cgoodwin1991

Kogonada may be the best director working today, and I say that while considering the fact that he only has only released two feature length movies. He's doing what he does best better than anyone else does what they do best. Quality over quantity, beautifully shot, emotionally charged, cathartic movies.

His movies are not for everyone, but for fans of Ozu and Japanese/Eastern Asian sentiment in movies he is a Modern, updated version.

Note: Ozu should be appreciated, but to say some of his movies did not age is absurd, most 40s/50s movies show some age, and this does not exclude the greats (except maybe Kurosawa).

I would say whether you are watching this or Columbus (2017), don't search too hard for strongly pronounced, singular themes on the human condition. Otherwise, you'll get lost in all of them and end up like the top commenters calling the movie pretentious and boring while having never watched a French movie from the 60s.

Kogonada makes movies that make you feel as opposed to think. I didn't even know why I was feeling certain emotions, but I certainly did. That's okay though, not everything needs to be so black and white.

I think 10 different people could watch this movie and have 10 different opinions about what it is about, and they could all be right. But truly, don't think so hard, it's not that type of movie.

Edgar Wright always does great work, and when it was announced that he would be at the helm of a Sparks documentary, I was ecstatic.

I was of course excited to see the movie, but more than that I was excited that a big name director would be exposing the world and some of my fellow Americans (hopefully) to Sparks.

The band is not easy to find, and it is absolutely criminal. I myself only discovered the band 2 or so years ago and fell in love immediately, listening to the then 24 studio albums over a course of about a month for hours a day. I implore you to do the same, I really don't think you'll regret it.

The documentary really was true to Sparks sensibilities too, as Edgar promised he would try to do. The artists were not the center of attention, but rather the art was the center of attention. The dedication to their craft, along with an immense amount of wit and talent is what has sustained them as a band for 50 years.

The two are just so easily lovable guys, and immense talents with a one of a kind sound. As a fan, it made me happy to see the two in the limelight where they should be, taking a quick break to reflect after 50 years of innovating in the field. Here's to 200 more Sparks albums!

The first thing any good movie should do is make you think. This one achieves that goal with its main premise alone. That premise being if you could only select one memory from your life to "take with you", what would that memory be?

I think anyone watching intently will immediately ponder this question rather introspectively, and if you're like me, come up with nothing.

But Koreeda delicately asks and guides his viewers through this difficult question through his characters, their thoughts, and their tribulations while choosing a memory.

And so he doesn't stop by simply asking a question, but helping to answer it too. With a very simple plot and a subtle twist, he guides us beyond our own vanity and achieves possibly the most human movie I've ever had the pleasure to have watched.

Slow burn like all of the movies I've seen by him, but well worth your time. Cathartic, charming, thought-provoking, and moving. 9.5/10