FILM OF THE YEAR
DUNKIRK
Christopher Nolan is one of my favorite filmmakers. He’s one of the few directors who manages to somehow make tent-pole Blockbusters, while at the same time, being an auteur who makes films that you’d be hard-pressed to call less than artful.
He frequently collaborates with Hans Zimmer, and it makes sense. Hans Zimmer’s scores are bombastic, symphonic, and overwhelming at times. The same could be said for every film in Nolan’s filmography, so it’s no surprise how frequently these two collaborate.
What’s special about DUNKIRK, is that it’s the first film he’s made that feels less like a “war movie” in the traditional sense, and more like what film critic Alissa Wilkinson referred to as “a symphony.” and she has a point; as we cut to Tom Hardy’s fighter pilot story thread as he lends support from the sky, or Mark Rylance’s story thread as he plays an everyday citizen doing the extraordinary to rescue the trapped troops across the English channel, or it’s following Harry Styles’ story thread as he struggles to survive the act of retreat, each thread feels like the horns section, the strings section, or the percussion section, and by the end of the film, all three sections come together in a breathtaking symphony of triumph in the face of desperation.
This final act never ceases to move me to tears. It’s overwhelming in all the right ways, and serves as a humble reminder that even when all seems hopeless, as long as we do what we have to do as individuals to the best of our ability, even if we aren’t able to see how we fit into the mosaic, it takes the actions of individuals doing thankless tasks that leads to the whole succeeding. It’s a masterpiece
ALBUM OF THE YEAR:
THE SYSTEM ONLY DREAMS IN TOTAL DARKNESS
The albums from this year didn’t wow me too much, and the ones I liked, all had things that kept me from loving them. The National’s THE SYSTEM ONLY DREAMS IN TOTAL DARKNESS is no exception, but the brilliant tracks are some of The National’s strongest work.
For this reason, I decided to award it to this album over runner-up’s: COLORS by Beck (if this had been his MORNING PHASE album, he’d have gotten it) or MASSSEDUCTION by St. Vincent (The first album she made that got me to understand why people love her music, but the content is a bit aggressive/offensive for me to sign-off on in good conscience) or EVERYTHING NOW (which felt like Arcade Fire learned their lessons from REFLEKTOR and brought it back to their more traditional style, a return-to-form I was happy to see, but still didn’t consider to be their best.)
Honestly, Zimmer’s score from DUNKIRK is the album I listened to most, so I feel like that’s the one that should win, but I mean, come on… That’s just too much.
GAME OF THE YEAR:
BREATH OF THE WILD
Speaking of “too much,” what an overwhelming and refreshing dose of “too much” that BREATH OF THE WILD is, eh?! But “too much” is exactly the sentiment I experienced after playing through the game’s opening hours. The freedom of this game can cause a bit of agoraphobia for players who are used to the more traditional linear Zelda-games.
Where’s my Navi-fairy being like, “HEY! LISTEN!” and my clear objective markers?! Nowhere to be found!
However, once I started exploring the world, taking my time with it, and stopped being so uptight about having clear cut directions on what to do next, however, I discovered a game that was textured and rich, one that feels less like open space for the sake of open space, and more like a designed “open space.” Think of it as a Japanese Garden as opposed to your typical open world bunches of copy/paste environments, just put into a game for padding.
BREATH OF THE WILD is a world where there’s secrets, adventures, and stories under every nook and cranny put in there by their designers, and it’s one of the only Open World Games I’ve played, where it’s depth actually matches it’s breadth.
It’s the game I’ve spent the most hours playing on my Switch, and it’s the whole reason I bought a Switch in the first place, and even if I never played another game on it, it would’ve been money well spent.
If it’s worth buying a console over, it’s only right that it’s my Game of the Year.
D I S C E R T A I N M E N T 