Ep. 22: 2023- A Year in Review

Alex and Lee reflect on the films of 2023. They reveal their favorite audio description tracks and movies of the year!

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Transcript

Lee Pugsley  
What's up everyone, welcome back to The Dark Room, where two blind cinephiles illuminate the sighted. I'm Lee Pugsley.

Alex Howard  
I'm Alex Howard.

Lee Pugsley  
And this is a podcast hosted by two legally blind guys for film lovers of all abilities. So we are in a new year now, which is really exciting. And we are going to be looking ahead to the 2024 film year. But before we do that, we wanted to take an episode to look back at 2023 and do a year in review. With that we are going to be talking about our favorite audio description tracks of 2023, as well as our top 10 favorite movies of last year. And before we get into our list of the best audio description tracks of 2023, for any new listener out there who doesn't know what audio description is, it is a narration track that describes the action happening on screen when there is no dialogue.

Alex Howard  
Yeah, and it helps blind and low vision people like us enjoy movies. And we can have a fuller conversation with sighted people because we can fill in the gaps.

Lee Pugsley  
Exactly. So yeah, Alex, go ahead and kick it off with your top audio description tracks of 2023. 

Alex Howard  
And I'm going in chronological order of release date. So my first one is Infinity Pool, I thought that that audio description track was much more adult than I mean, the movie has adult themes, and they didn't hold back from describing things in an adult way. And I thought that that was really great because sometimes they kind of water down the sexual things or violence to make it more PG even though the movie is rated R. So I really appreciated how R rated the audio description track was as well. Okay, so then number two for me was Guardians of the Galaxy. I saw it in 3D and I was in the back row of the theater, which is not my primary spot. And the audio description was really great, I was really able to understand everything that was happening. And they had a lot of weird sci fi elements in that movie with animal and human creatures combined. And so the audio description did a really great job of describing things that don't even exist in our world. Number three for me is The Flash. The Flash audio description is great because it describes the cameos with the actors' names, like I said, Nicolas Cage as Superman and things like that, which really enhance our experience as a blind movie goer. Because half the time when they have cameos we're like, "Wait, who is that?" because they won't say the actor's name. So I feel like that is the blueprint, they should take for cameos. Number four for me is Anatomy of a Fall, which is my first ever foreign film I was able to see in theaters with audio description. So that's the reason that's there. It's very, very cool. I hope that happens more often with foreign films. And the last one for me is Poor Things, because that movie is very weird, and very beautiful and very visual. And it really was detailed in describing all of the visuals in that movie and capturing the weird essence of Yorgos Lanthimos' his vision. And I think the honorable mention for me is Barbie, because the audio description really played into the physical comedy of that movie. 

Lee Pugsley  
That is all great. And I did see all of the movies that you mentioned. And I can totally understand how the audio description in each one of those movies enhanced the viewing experience for you because it did the same for me. And I'll go into my list. Now we do have some crossovers here. Once again, I'll go in order of release date as well. So first, on my list of Best Audio Description Tracks of the Year is The Flash for the same reasons that you mentioned, Alex. The biggest one being that it's one of the first audio description tracks that I can recall where they actually do describe the cameos using the actors' names, like you said Nicolas Cage, George Clooney, cameos that we would not know who they were referencing if they didn't actually call out the actors' names. And I wholeheartedly agree that this should be the blueprint and the example going forward for how audio description is done in films where there are cameos. Really appreciated that. Next on my list is, and I guess this is a little bit of backtracking, would be John Wick Chapter Four. The reason I appreciated this audio description track is because there were a lot of really detailed action sequences and a lot of very fast moving action sequences, which is a lot for any audio describer to fully encapsulate. And I thought that they did a great job of giving the blind and low vision viewer a sense of what was happening on screen. And without the AD track, I would have been lost in quite a few different scenes. Third on my list is Barbie and I know that was one of your honorable mentions, Alex. I thought that the Barbie audio description track did a great job of really describing the production design of the movie in a way that we could fully understand what it looked like and the little nuanced details of what was happening. Like, for example, when Barbie takes a shower, no water's coming out, or she's drinking out of a cup, and there's no liquid in it. Things like that we might not be able to pick up on unless the audio description was there. So I'm really grateful for that. Fourth on my list is Anatomy of a Fall. Once again, this was great to have an international film with audio description in theaters. I know there have been a few other times that I've seen that with Minari and The Farewell. But I really felt like the audio description track for Anatomy of a Fall was wonderful in terms of reading the subtitles and having different voices, but also letting us know visually, what was happening, including the small details. Because after all, it is a courtroom drama. And there's a lot of visual details that we would miss if there was no AD to help us out there. And then fifth, I agree with you, Alex, Poor Things was a great audio description track. While that movie didn't work for me on every level, it is weird. And there's a lot to take in with that movie. And I think the audio description track did a great job of painting a picture visually and cinematically of what was going on, in a way that we felt like we were able to live in the world with these characters. And we were able to go on that journey in as close of a visual sense as possible because of the writing of the AD script. And then for my honorable mention, I'm gonna have to go with The Little Mermaid. I think that they did a very good job of describing the underwater life. And especially because a lot of that movie is dark. But they did a good job of describing the sea creatures, and just the nuanced underwater detail, as well as some of the things on land, like some of the buildings and the architecture and everything that really added to the viewing experience for me, and hopefully for a lot of other blind and low vision users as well. So those are my top five AD tracks of the year.

Alex Howard  
Those are really great. Yeah, I agree with you on the ones even though I didn't say, like Little Mermaid and things like that. They really did describe the sea life. I'd like to take a minute to say just what we missed out on this year. I know we're -- we usually keep things positive here. But just real quick. Godzilla Minus One is on a lot of people's top 10 lists. That didn't have audio description. The Boy and the Heron didn't have audio description. I know those are all foreign movies. And people say "Oh, but it's harder to make." Yeah, it's harder to make but like, Anatomy of a Fall had it. So I don't know that that's really an excuse anymore. Also, Society of the Snow has it on Netflix, they also did All Quiet on the Western Front. So I feel like I would love to get to the point where these really highly regarded international movies-- even some of the anime movies, I've heard a lot of good things about this year, I wasn't able to watch it because there's no audio description. Were there any that you felt like you missed out on Lee?

Lee Pugsley  
The movies you just mentioned, Boy and the Heron and Godzilla Minus One are the ones that I felt like I missed out on this past year. And it's really unfortunate, because with international films, if there is no AD track, then we're not able to read the subtitles, obviously. So there's no way that we can even take it in. I mean, there's some other movies that you know, that both of us have watched that we have to rely on the dialogue for. And maybe they are smaller independent films, so they don't have an audio description track. Or when we go to the theater, the audio description devices aren't always working. And sometimes we can still take in some of the movie or a good chunk of it because we're relying on the dialogue. With international films like the ones that we mentioned here, we're not able to take in hardly any of the movie because even if we can catch a little bit visually, with the limited vision we have, we're not able to pick up on any of the dialogue because it's all in another language. So yeah, I agree that hopefully, in the coming years, there can be improvements in this area, especially for the bigger international films that go beyond just their own international markets and get a claim. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah, and on the plus side of things for this year. Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, and Skinamarink did not have audio description in the theater. But then when they came to streaming they did, event though they're pretty small horror movies. So that was kind of cool to actually be able to watch those once they came to streaming.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, absolutely. I was really grateful to see that those movies did have AD on streaming. And then just one other thing to note about the audio description tracks. From our listeners, we kind of talked about why the movies that we listed as the top audio description tracks of last year, were the ones we selected. Hopefully you're able to see that each audio description track can offer something different that can still contribute to the overall viewing experience for the blind and low vision viewers. You know, every audio description track is going to be a little bit different. But there are certain aspects of each audio description track that are worth highlighting because they add something unique to the table. 

Alex Howard  
Great. So now we are going to go into our favorite movies of 2023. I have about 10 honorable mentions. (chuckles) Where I think for the honorable mentions, we're just gonna rapid fire, not go into great detail. And then for the top 10 will go into greater detail. 

Lee Pugsley  
And, as always, with any of these kind of top 10 lists, or best of lists, keep in mind that these are our personal favorites. That doesn't necessarily mean that they're the most critically acclaimed movies of the year. And you may have a different opinion on what you feel like were the top movies of 2023. And that's totally okay. This is what makes the film world so great, is that we can all have different opinions, and we can all share them. And we can also learn from each other and bring new perspectives to the table. So I think that's a really wonderful thing about seeing the differences in everyone's top 10 list. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah. The great thing about film is it's all subjective. And I guess art is subjective. And so everyone has differing opinions. And you know, we respect everyone's opinion. 

Lee Pugsley  
So Alex, yeah, why don't you go ahead and start with your honorable mentions.

Alex Howard  
So my honorable mentions are, I'll talk about the ones that are smaller, people might not know. Bottoms was a great comedy, I think it's the best comedy of the year. Fair Play is awesome. It's a very intense relationship drama on Netflix. Flora and Son, which we went into on the TIFF episode. Killers of the Flower Moon. Nyad, which is a great sports drama on Netflix. A Thousand and One. John Wick Chapter 4. Oppenheimer. All of Us Strangers. And Dumb Money, which I think was a very underrated movie this year, and not enough people are talking about it. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, those are all really great options. There is a little bit of crossover on my list with your list for honorable mentions. So I'll just go through my list, and then we can kind of dialogue back and forth on it. So some of my honorable mentions include Anatomy of a Fall, All of Us Strangers, Fair Play, Wonka, Priscilla, Dream Scenario, John Wick Chapter 4, Nyad. And I think that concludes my honorable mentions for this year.

Alex Howard  
Yeah, we did have a lot of overlap, especially with the Netflix ones like Fair Play, and Nyad. I think Netflix has like four or five Oscar hopefuls, and some of them kind of get buried with the other ones. So it's funny that we both had Nyan and Fair Play on our lists. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, both of those were really good movies. If you guys haven't watched them, check them out. And I do have to hand it to Netflix. They really gave us a lot of solid viewing this past year. And I was very impressed with what they gave us.

Alex Howard  
Yeah, and I started Society of the Snow last night. I haven't finished it. But from what I've seen, I mean, I would imagine it would make my honorable mentions if it keeps going the way it's going. So yeah, they definitely have a lot of movies in the run for Oscars this year. 

Lee Pugsley  
Exactly. So in keeping with the theme of Netflix, I guess I'll just dive right into my top 10 list, because the number 10 movie on my list is a Netflix film, which is May December. And it's a very interesting story about an older woman's relationship with a younger man. And I just found it very fascinating to see the different dynamics, also exploring some of the trauma that he was going through, and just kind of where things are at now. Another interesting component of that movie is Natalie Portman who plays an actress who's portraying Julianne Moore's character in a film. And coming from an acting background and kind of seeing her method of getting into character was definitely something I could connect to. I don't necessarily take that same approach. But from an acting technique point of view, it was really interesting to watch. I also feel like the screenplay is very solid. There's a lot of layered complexity within the screenplay. And Charles Melton is definitely the standout performance from that movie.

Alex Howard  
I have May December on my list as well. It is number eight for me. So I will just talk about it right now, since we're already talking about it. Yeah, I really love May December. All of my top 10 are kind of emotional gut punches. And May December is no different. It is a very emotional movie. But it's interesting because it's a subject matter that is very taboo. People don't really know a lot about with-- I mean, it's loosely based on a true story about a teacher having a romantic relationship with a student, even though that's not the case in the movie, but that's what inspired this film. And so I thought, yeah, Charles Melton is great. And yeah, it's just really riveting and really holds your attention because of, the subject matter's so fascinating. It's so intense, the emotions are like, just seeing him kind of realize how wrong things were. It's great. So if you haven't seen May December, I highly recommend it.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, definitely check it out. Alex, what's your number 10?

Alex Howard  
My number 10 is Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. I think this is THE animated film of the year. I know Super Mario is the highest grossing one. But I think the Across the Spider-Verse really proved that animation can be for adults as well. I know the first one did that also. But they went places in Across the Spider-Verse that I did not think I would ever see done in a Spider Man movie, let alone an animated Spider Man movie. We talked about it halfway through the year on our check-in of our top five. I think it's good enough that it stayed in my top 10.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I'll comment on that. Because Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is my number six film of 2023. And I just thought it was really solid storytelling. I was never bored with it. I thought that it did a really good job of expanding what was built on in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. And they just kept the action going. But there are also some nice emotional moments. And, you know, the animation style still looks really good, the score is really good. Their choice of music is great. And just the way that they continue to develop the characters, especially the relationship with Gwen, I thought was really effective. And it ended so abruptly. That was, I guess my only complaint about it or minor criticism, I guess I should say. I just wanted more, because I could have kept watching it. And I didn't expect it to end on as big of a cliffhanger as it did. But you know, it was smart for them. Because now I will eagerly await Beyond the Spider-Verse. 

Alex Howard  
I think they're planning on 2025. So hopefully we'll get it out by then. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I know the strike delayed some of the production on that film. But I'm rooting for it to come out in 2025. And I would even be more happy if they decided to surprise us and drop it later this year.

Alex Howard  
I know there were some controversy about how much they pushed the VFX artists as well. So I think they're pulling back a little bit to give the VFX artists more time so that they're not taking advantage as much.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I've heard that as well. Okay, so moving on to my number nine movie of the year, which is Air. Out of all of the product movies we got last year, which we got Blackberry, Tetris, The Beanie Bubble, Flaming Hot, probably some other movies that I'm not thinking of as well. I thought Air was the strongest of all of those product movies. And I think the strength of the movie is in the script, in how tight the script is. It almost feels very, like Aaron Sorkin-esque in how the banter goes back and forth. And once again, in a movie, that's just a lot of people in rooms talking, it's still very compelling. It's still kept me on the edge of my seat from scene to scene, even though I knew how it was going to turn out. And the big credit goes to Ben Affleck's direction. And the acting ensemble, I think, was stellar all around.

Alex Howard  
I completely agree with everything you said. Air is my number four. I think it was one of the better product movies you could say of the year. And I know we talked about it in our top five earlier in the year. But once again, it was good enough to stick in there throughout the whole entire year to make it in my top 10.

Lee Pugsley  
So what's your number 9?

Alex Howard  
My number nine is David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived which is a documentary on HBO Max, about Daniel Radcliffe stuntman on Harry Potter, and how he was paralyzed in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One, and how his life changed. And I liked this one better than Still: A Michael J. Fox story, because I think this is how you should portray disability. Like not that the Michael J. Fox one was wrong. But I felt like this one was a lot more positive. It was a lot... It was very sudden, he was young when he got injured, and he stayed positive. And it's basically looking at-- his life's not over, he's still able to do things that he loves, just in a different way. And, you know, just the impact that his positivity and his injury had on everyone around him. I think it was a very, very touching story. And the part of the documentary where they talk about him actually getting injured, was very, very emotional. I felt a little sick watching it. It's a very, very good documentary, I highly recommend it.

Lee Pugsley  
I wholeheartedly agree. I think that David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived is a very moving documentary. I actually would probably put it in the honorable mentions, as well as the Michael J. Fox documentary, Still. I thought both of them were good in their own right. And they both have something different to say. But I did appreciate the positivity like you mentioned in this particular documentary. I thought that the friendship between Daniel and David was very tender and just very cool, that there's definitely like a brotherhood going on there. And that after David got in the accident, he wasn't abandoned, but people came around him and rallied around him. And just his determination to continue fighting. And to continue choosing gratitude and positivity in the midst of challenges is definitely something that I'm sure you can connect with, as well as me, in terms of dealing with, you know, visual impairment and different challenges that face both of us. Obviously, the disability that we have is very different from being paralyzed. But the emotions and the frustrations and the challenges of all of that offer relatability as well. 

Alex Howard  
Oh definitely, they had all the different angles. But I like how the guy who was working on set who-- I mean, if you look on paper, IS responsible for the accident-- he took things so hard, and he feels so guilty. And David had forgiven him and is trying to make him feel better about it. But he, he just feels so guilty. And you can see like, you can understand all the different perspectives of it. I just I really love this movie.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I can understand why. And if you haven't watched this movie, we both highly recommend that you check it out. It's a pretty quick watch as well. So it's not going to take up that much of your time. But it's just such a moving documentary. So my number eight, I wasn't sure if this was going to make it on my list. But my number eight on this list is Saltburn directed by Emerald Fennell. And I've realized that I'm such a sucker for these stories where someone sees a life or a world that they want to be a part of, and they try to get into it. And sometimes they succeed. For whatever reason I find those stories really intriguing. And this movie is kind of like a modern day take on a movie like The Talented Mr. Ripley, which came out in 1999 with Matt Damon. But it's kind of like the same idea, but it's told in a very much more modern way. What I appreciated about the movie is the performances from Barry Keoghan and Jacob Elordi, as well as the rest of the ensemble. I mean, Rosamund, Rosamund Pike is great. And um...

Alex Howard  
Carey Mulligan.

Lee Pugsley  
Carey Mulligan. Yeah, it's just, it's a really good ensemble, and everyone plays their parts really well. It's also just a really lavish visual spectacle. Like, the scenery is gorgeous, the costumes are exquisite, the manor or the mansion, the castle, whatever it is that they're in, is, the production design on that is really wonderful to look at. But more than that, it was just such an intriguing story from beginning to end, that kept me guessing and kept me wanting to know more and to live in the world with the character of Oliver. I will say, this is not a movie for everyone. There are definitely some scenes in this movie that once you see them, you can never unsee them. So I would recommend this movie selectively to people. But if you're willing to jump on board with it, it's a wild ride, and it's going to keep you very engaged.

Alex Howard  
I am so happy this is your top 10. It did not hit me the same way it hit you, but I love Emerald Fennell as a director. Her first movie, Promising Young woman, was my favorite movie of 2020. I will always hold that movie in my heart. But I enjoyed Saltburn a lot. And I'm very excited to see where she goes from here, because she's definitely an interesting director. 

Lee Pugsley  
Absolutely, she just makes such bold choices that, yeah, I think the sky's the limit from what she could do next.

Alex Howard  
My number eight was May December. But my number seven is-- so I have two horror movies on my list. It was a pretty good year for horror. I think I forgot to mention, I think Scream 6 is in my honorable mentions. But my number seven favorite movie of the year is Talk to Me. This is the kind of horror movie that I love. Where it's you know creative, it's a metaphor for drug use. So it's teenagers holding a hand from like a witch woman and they they get possessed by someone and it's like a high that they, they get when they touch it, and they can only touch it for like two minutes, or else they would OD, is the thing. And I love, love this idea. I think it's very well executed.  A24 horror movie once again, hits really well. I saw this movie twice in the theater. So yeah, this is my number seven and I'm really happy where indie horror especially went this year.

Lee Pugsley  
That's awesome. While Talk to Me didn't necessarily make my top 10 list or honorable mentions, out of the horror movies I saw this year I can definitely say it was my favorite. I don't know, it was simple, yet very effective in the narrative that it was telling, And it was just done really well. I also really liked the ending, without going into spoilers on it. There's ambiguity in interpretation of what you want to take away from the ending and how you want to interpret it. And I appreciate that fact about it, too. 

Alex Howard  
Oh, yeah, definitely. I love that. It was yeah, it was kind of left open to interpretation. And they didn't explain too much about the lore of the hand either. Like the first Halloween movie, you don't know much about Michael Myers. And then Halloween 2, they're like, "Oh, he's Laurie's sister." And you're like, "Oh, well, the mystery is kind of gone now." So they did greenlight, Talk to Me-- Talk 2 Me, the second one. And I'm hoping that they keep the ambiguity of the hand origin. Because I think that's what makes the movie really fascinating. So what's your number seven.

Lee Pugsley  
My number seven is The Color Purple. And, you know, I'll be honest, as we all know, I'm a little biased because I'm a musical theater guy. But beyond that, I felt like from the preview of this movie that it could have gone either way. That it could be very emotional and a powerful story or could just be a musical that-- they tried to do it well, and it just didn't succeed. I thought this was a very well done musical movie adaptation. I have seen the original Broadway production, actually with Fantasia when it toured here in Los Angeles. And then I saw the Broadway revival tour in production as well. And so I knew the material pretty well. And it was great to see Fantasia reprise her role on screen, and I was so impressed with how she was able to pull in everything, to play to the camera rather than to a 3000 seat theater. And I thought she did it very effectively. She doesn't really say much, but she expresses a lot of emotion. The highlight of the film that for me was definitely Danielle Brooks as Sophia. I mean, whenever she's on screen, you just want more of her because she's such a presence and a force to be reckoned with. But overall, I thought that this was a fantastic ensemble piece. I thought that Corey Hawkins Colman Domingo, Hallie Bailey, Taraji P. Henson, all of the cast uniformly did an excellent job. And I think that the strength of the movie is the performances. And arguably, I think that the ensemble for this movie is very worthy of a best acting ensemble for the SAG Awards. But beyond that, I thought there there were some very nice visuals and I liked some of the fantasy sequences that they put into the movie. I think that what really resonates with me about The Color Purple and about this iteration of it is, they kept a nice balance of lightheartedness with the musical numbers, even though there was a lot of heavy stuff going on. And just seeing a woman that has gone through so much oppression, still hang on to hope, and still believe that a better life could be in front of her and not giving up on that? And in the meantime, coming to love herself and find her voice? I don't know, I just think that's a very powerful narrative that deserves to be told.

Alex Howard  
That's awesome. Yeah, the story was very powerful. I agree with you. Danielle Brooks was definitely the highlight of the movie for me as well.

Lee Pugsley  
And I know that you weren't as big on this movie as I was, correct?

Alex Howard  
Yeah. I mean, I can appreciate it. But I just I don't think the themes and story resonated with me personally, but I can certainly appreciate the craft of the movie. 

Lee Pugsley  
You know, it's interesting, too, because when I first got introduced to The Color Purple, through the Steven Spielberg movie, I really wasn't a fan of it. I mean, I didn't hate it or anything, but it didn't do anything for me. And when I saw the Broadway production with Fantasia, even though the production itself was great, the story really didn't do much for me then either. So it's one of those stories that's grown on me over time, as I've been able to go deeper into the themes of the narrative. 

Alex Howard  
Oh, that makes sense. Yeah. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah. So what's your number six?

Alex Howard  
Number six for me is The Iron Claw. This is one emotional gut punch I did not expect to have this year. Zac Efron is the best he's ever been. The story itself, it's better if you don't know a lot about it going in. It's the story of the Von Erich wrestling family. And I if you don't know what happened to them, I wouldn't look it up before you see this movie. It is a fantastic movie. It's emotional. Fantastic performances. It's definitely in my top 10. I loved it.

Lee Pugsley  
I'm so glad that it made your top 10. Because it also made my top 10 in the number five spot. I think it is very effective in the narrative that it's telling. And I didn't know anything about the Von Erich family either. And I think that as you said, Zac Efron is the best he's ever been. Just how ripped and built he looks in this movie is insane. 

Alex Howard  
Okay, so in Baywatch and Neighbors, he was pretty built. But he was like, slim. And in this one, I don't know what diet you need to change, because I always thought it was body type. Like oh, when you get buff, you're either like slim buff or like thicker. I don't know what he ate. But he looks like a thick, wide shouldered wrestler now. And I'm like, it's so funny because his muscles in this are so different than something like Baywatch.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, it's, it's insane, honestly. And I also thought that the other brothers did a really good job too like Jeremy Alan White, Harris Dickinson and then the kid or the younger actor who played Michael, the musician guy. I think his name was Stanley Simons or something like that. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah.

Lee Pugsley  
He kind of came out of nowhere. And I think he's great. And I think that he has a very promising career ahead of him. Another thing that I guess I'll comment on, too, with this movie is, the audio description for this movie was very solid in describing what was happening when they were showing the wrestling parts. 

Alex Howard  
Oh yeah. No, it was great. And also, I think what helped with that, too, was the cinematography because there were several long takes where they would go through the living room, I think there was a long tape during a fight as well. That combined with the great audio description really helped me keep track of where people were, especially when it's two white fighters. And they're both big dudes, and you don't see their face very much because they're in each other's shoulders, all bloody. And so the audio description and the cinematography helped me really keep track of who was doing the fights. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, same with me. Cool. So we don't really have to talk much about my number six or number five, because my number six is Spider Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which we already touched on. And number five is The Iron Claw. So moving to your number five, Alex, what do we have? 

Alex Howard  
So funnily enough, the reason Saltburn isn't in my top 10 is because I thought it was a little too weird for me. My number five is VERY weird. And I don't normally like these kinds of movies. My number five is Poor Things. There's a lot of sex in it, it's definitely not for everyone. Don't watch it with your parents or your kids. But I just thought it was so good. And like, I really like the whole idea of-- it's a Frankenstein retelling. But like they take the brain and put it in, it's like she has a baby brain in a woman body. And so she's discovering things about life and her emotions and trying to figure out why people do certain things. We feel certain feelings and situations and do certain things. And it's almost like an unspoken language that we go through in our mind. And somehow they figure out how to write those lines in a way where Emma Stone questions like, "Why do we do things that we don't like? Why do we do this? Why did we do that?" And it's like, it's just part of society. But she actually puts it into words. And I really, really love the script. This is my favorite script of the year. I think the way he was able to verbalize these human thoughts that we have, that we don't normally say, is very, very fascinating.

Lee Pugsley  
That is wonderful. Um, I'll be honest, Poor Things. There's so much to appreciate about this movie in terms of the craftsmanship, the performances, the writing, all of it. I think it was a little much for me. Yeah, it was it was a little much for me, I think. But there were definitely interesting things about it. I do think that arguably, it's Emma Stone's career best performance. 

Alex Howard  
Oh yeah, she's the best she's ever been. And I'm like, "She already WON an Oscar." So I mean, if we're going on pure performance this year, I think it goes to her.

Lee Pugsley  
It's going to be a very tough call. But I think that she's definitely one of the front runners. The other front runner I'll get to in a moment. It was a fascinating movie, because it is so weird, but it's done really well. Like the production design, the score, I was just listening to it the other day, and it's such a weird score. But it's so effective. Yeah, everything about it. It's so funny, cuz I can't say that I loved it. But I can't really say a lot against it either, because it's just such a uniquely crafted and masterfully directed piece of cinema.

Alex Howard  
So what is your number four then? 

Lee Pugsley  
My number four is Maestro, another Netflix film. And I've always been a fan of Leonard Bernstein because of my musical theater background. I know the West Side Story score really well. But even beyond that, I've seen other documentaries and things about Leonard Bernstein, and just kind of like being familiarized with his music as I was growing up. So I did have an interest in how they were going to tell this story. Interestingly enough, I thought it was going to be more about Leonard Bernstein's music, and then we're going to dive more into the musicianship, but it's more about his personal life. And I think the strength of this film for me were definitely the performances by Bradley Cooper, who IS a bit over the top. But you know, if you do some research, Leonard Bernstein really was a pretty over the top and eccentric sort of individual. And Carey Mulligan. Her performance is arguably a career best as well. And between her and Emma Stone, it's so hard to know which one is going to win because I think both of them are highly deserving of the Oscar. What I appreciated though about the craftsmanship of Maestro is how nuanced and subtle it is. It's one of those biopics that doesn't really follow the typical structure of a biopic that's like plot point A, plot point B, plot point C. It really just unfolds through the conversations and through what's happening. And you have to really read between the lines to pull out the nuanced layers of each situation, of what each character is feeling, of what each character is going through. The script definitely doesn't spoon feed you anything, which to me, marks the genius of the script. And just how Bradley Cooper told the story through the different eras having different aspect ratios and different visual styles, I thought was a really cool idea as well. And then you know, it kind of doesn't feel like you're watching a movie, it kind of feels like you're just watching a documentary or watching home videos of these people having conversations. It's not going to work for everyone. But for me, it was very effective. And I actually think that this was an improvement upon Bradley Cooper's direction from A Star is Born.

Alex Howard  
That's awesome. Yeah, I thought this movie was gorgeous. I thought the performances were great. It didn't hit me too hard, emotionally. But I mean, Carey Mulligan is arguably one of the best she's ever been or close to it. Bradley Cooper is definitely the best he's ever been. So yeah, we had some great performances this year. And it is a gorgeous movie. The cinematography is great. 

Lee Pugsley  
Absolutely.

Alex Howard  
I think I heard he studied conducting for like six years or something to prepare for this role. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I think I read something like that, too. It's crazy how committed he was. But it shows. So... Yeah, what's your number four?

Alex Howard  
So we already touched on my number four, my number four was Air. Definitely holds up. I think that came out in what, March or April? 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, April, I believe. 

Alex Howard  
I think that says something that it lasted this long through the whole year. My number three is Anatomy of a Fall. I think this is, like we mentioned before, this is my first foreign film that I saw in the theater with audio description. This movie is great. It's a courtroom drama, you know, the woman's husband dies, and they're trying to figure out if she did it or not. It's kind of combines the courtroom drama with like, almost a marriage story. Because they flashback to certain fights that the couple had. Their son is blind in the movie, and he's a blind actor as well, so it's authentically cast. I just thought this movie was very powerful, very well made. And it really keeps you engaged the entire film. Because you know, I mean, everyone loves-- it's not a true story, but everyone loves the courtroom dramas, the crime movies. It's, it's a great, great movie.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I totally agree with that. As I mentioned before, it was one of my honorable mentions. And the power of the performances from Sandra Hüller and the kid are both spectacular. But even beyond that, it is very gripping, because they just give you little bits and pieces of what happened and how the relationships unfold. They don't give it to you all at once. And I really appreciated what this movie brought to the table. And it was very effective in everything that it did. So I'm glad to see that it's so high up there on your list. And on a personal note, it was cool to have like a blind character that was authentically cast as well. 

Alex Howard  
Oh definitely. It was, it was really great. And he-- it's not like, "Oh, he's blind, so he's great." He's a great actor, AND he's blind. So what is your number three?

Lee Pugsley  
So my number three, and now I guess I get more to the conventional fair, is Killers of the Flower Moon. I will be honest, I was dreading the three and a half hour runtime of this movie. And when I was going to the theater, I really wasn't looking forward to it because I thought I was going to be bored. The movie took me about 20 minutes to really get into but once I got into it, I was compelled the whole way through. I don't really think if I'm being honest that this movie breaks new ground in any way. I think that it's just a very well crafted movie in terms of the performances from Leonardo DiCaprio, De Niro, Lily Gladstone is definitely the standout for this acting ensemble. But you know, everyone does a really solid job. Visually, it looks really good. Cinematically speaking, it's, you know, just everything that you would expect from a Martin Scorsese film done really well. And the story of the Osage people is one that I knew nothing about. So I feel like I learned something. And it's definitely not a feel good film. But I think it's a very important story that was worth telling. And I'm glad that more people know about the experience of these people.

Alex Howard  
I completely agree. I thought this was a great movie. It is in my honorable mentions, I think just because it doesn't break new ground, and I also think I take rewatch-ability into account when I make these lists. I don't know how many times I would rewatch Killers of the Flower Moon, I think partially because the runtime. But it's also just a very heavy movie. But you're right, Lily Gladstone is unbelievable. It's crazy. Her performance stands out next to DiCaprio and De Niro, which we're used to them giving great performances. So their performances don't stand out that much. Because it's what we expect. It's a very, very interesting movie. I do recommend everyone see it? 

Lee Pugsley  
Exactly. Just make sure that you're in the right mood for it. If you're looking for something that's uplifting and you know, light hearted, this is the exact opposite of that, but it still has a lot of significance. So what's your number two?

Alex Howard  
My number two, so my top two, you could flip back and forth. Depending on the day, I had so much trouble deciding which one was top, which one was bottom. But my number two is Birth/Rebirth. I think this is the most underrated movie of the year. Not many people saw it. It's so strange to me that not more people are talking about it, because it is so timely. There's so many, like, issues that are touched upon in this movie, from abortion, to you know, just what would you do to bring someone back to life? Like, what would you give up? It's such a compelling movie, it's-- I guess you could say it's a horror movie. It is a horror movie. It's not your typical scary horror movie, which is I think what I like about it. It's super independent. I think it's on AMC Plus / Shutter right now. So if you haven't checked it out, I do recommend it. However, it is NOT for everyone. So proceed with caution. If you like horror, I would say go for it. But yeah, I really, really love this movie. I've seen this one twice this year. And both times I just, I love it.

Lee Pugsley  
I appreciate the fact that this movie is so high on your list. And also I know that we had interviewed Rein Brooks who did the audio description for this movie. So for those interested in that process, you can go back and check out that podcast episode. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah, I think that was number 18 or 19. It was our Halloween episode. So yeah, I definitely recommend that conversation with Rein. He's, he's really great. 

Lee Pugsley  
And it does bring up some real-- this movie, Birth/Rebirth does bring up some really interesting moral and ethical questions. And while it wasn't necessarily my thing, I appreciate the way that it really makes you think about certain issues. It doesn't give you answers necessarily. It just presents scenarios that are going to make you think. And it's definitely a movie that I would recommend people watch if you are into the horror or even psychological thriller sort of genre. I think it could maybe fall into that category a little bit too. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah. And I think it's also really great because it-- I mean it stars two women, three women, I guess, with the kid included, and it's directed by a woman I believe as well. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah. So but yeah, really solid choice. So my number two is Oppenheimer, and I know that's on like, everyone's like top 10 list, or it seems to be this year. You know, it's arguably Christopher Nolan's best directed film, in my opinion. I don't necessarily know if it's the most enjoyable Christopher Nolan movie, if I were to look back at every movie he's done. But I just think it's a masterclass in directing. I think that the script probably catered to my sensibilities because I like rapid fire dialogue and very quick banter. And so it definitely hit me in those ways and made me very engaged. And then just visually, you know, everything that we know that Christopher Nolan does well technically, cinematography, visual effects, editing score, all of those things were just really well done. And you know, once again, a really great acting ensemble. I know that when we did our Christopher Nolan tier rankings with John Stark, all of us went a lot more in depth into Oppenheimer there. So I won't, you know, go into all, too much detail now. But check out that episode if you want to hear more of our thoughts on Oppenheimer. But yeah, I really love this movie, and I thought it was spectacular and probably one of the best movies of the 2020s decades so far.

Alex Howard  
I was really hoping this would have the Everything Everywhere All at Once effect on me, because the first time I saw Everything Everywhere, I was not a big fan. Audio description didn't work for the first 20 minutes, so I was kind of lost. And I watched it again and I loved it. So I was like, "Oh, maybe it'll be the same thing with Oppenheimer" and I tried to watch it the other night. It's a lot. It's in my honorable mentions, I can appreciate it. I think you need to be in the right headspace. You need to be ready to pay attention because every single line, it's very rapid fire. I think you would appreciate what I'm about to say. I feel like this is Christopher Nolan-- it's almost like a Stephen Sondheim play. It's very rapid fire, you can't miss a line, because every line has importance and, you know, has to do with some plotline. And plus, like, they're honestyly kind of hard to understand sometimes. So, and without reading the subtitles it's also very hard. So I think that's just why it didn't hit me. I, I did buy it and I want to sit down and rewatch it when I'm fully awake, ready to you know, pay attention for three straight hours. But that's the only reason why it's not in my top 10. I just, it's a lot to take in, this movie. And it's all white people talking in a room. It's hard to, like, for me to figure out who is who. And even though they say the names in the audio description, like there's about 20 characters, so it's hard to remember who's who. 

Lee Pugsley  
It is a lot to take in. And that's always one of my criticisms of Nolan films generally, is there's just so many characters, that it can be hard to keep track of them or even feel connected to them. For whatever reason, in Oppenheimer it worked for me. And I do love your comparison of it being similar to like a Stephen Sondheim play. I think that that's very true. And for anyone who hasn't watched Oppenheimer yet, don't do it when you're tired, and do it when you're ready to be off your phone for three hours. Because any distraction is going to take you out of the movie, and you will feel lost coming back in even if it's just for a minute or two.

Alex Howard  
And if you have a bass in your apartment, turn it down before the movie starts. Because I had it on, and the first five seconds is the nuke explosion, and it was so loud. My neighbor texted me and she was like, "What's going on?" I was like, "Sorry, Oppenheimer." And she was like, "Oh, okay." The sound design in that movie I can tell you from experience is crazy.

Lee Pugsley  
It's great that she understood it, though, as soon as you said Oppenheimer, she's like, "Oh, I get it." 

Alex Howard  
Yeah. 

Lee Pugsley  
Ah, yeah, so then, what's your number one top movie of 2023?

Alex Howard  
So yeah, like I said, I could flip back and forth between this and Birth/Rebirth, but my number one is, shockingly, Blackberry. I think this is kind of like The Social Network for me this year. I think it's fascinating. It's almost a thriller, the way things play out and just the rise and fall of Blackberry and how, how quickly things can come into popularity, and then how quickly they can fall out of popularity. I just think it's a fascinating movie. I've seen this three times this year, I watched it with my parents last week. I just I love this movie so much, just the way it's made. The first time I went to see it was a Q&A with Glenn Howerton. It didn't have audio tears when I saw it the first time. But then the second two times I saw it, it did have it. And so just knowing some of the behind the scenes of how he made up the line where he says, what does he say? "I'm from Toronto, where the vampires live" or something. And that line was completely improvised. I don't know why, this movie holds a special place for me.

Lee Pugsley  
I love that so much. And your passion for this movie throughout the year has definitely made me want to rewatch it. And when I saw it, I thought it was good. And you know, like, yeah, I thought it was a solid movie. But I didn't have the same reaction that you did. But now you're making me feel like I missed something or that I need to go back and give it another shot. Um, and I think you're right, it does kind of have a bit of a Social Network sort of vibe to it. That totally makes sense and it's a good comparison.

Alex Howard  
And I think it's really cool too, like the way they shot it. It was with such long lenses that the actors didn't really know where the cameras were. So it was almost like they were doing a play when they said "Action!" They just went about their, the scene, hitting the spots in their lines, not really knowing what the frame is going to look like. But it's just all very natural because it was, the cameras were so far away.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I did appreciate the shots in that movie. There's some very unique filmmaking going on there.

Alex Howard  
Kind of like The Office feel. 

Lee Pugsley  
Exactly, exactly. 

Alex Howard  
So what is your number one?

Lee Pugsley  
So my number one, and I know that you're so tired of me probably talking about this movie, but it's The Holdovers. And I remember that you had said earlier that there's been no movie this year like in Everything Everywhere All at Once for you that just like grabbed you and you're like, "This is it. This is THE movie." For me this year, or for me in 2023, The Holdovers, this is my movie, like I absolutely love The Holdovers. I just bought it on Bluray. It just was released. And I've watched all the special features. I watched this movie three times in theaters. I have watched it again when I got the Bluray. So I've seen it four times now. It's definitely a movie that I'm probably going to watch more. And I don't know what it is that really resonated with me. I mean, I think that the performances from the three main cast members -- Paul Giamatti, Da'Vine Joy Randolph and Dominic Sessa are all spectacular. And the fact that Dominic was a newcomer who'd never done a film, but he holds his own with Paul Giamatti and Da'Vine Joy Randolph is a credit to his ability and to what an intelligent actor he is. Beyond that, though, I think that there's something really beautiful that it speaks to you about connection. That people coming from all these different backgrounds in different places, and with broken parts can find a level of healing and connection and relatability even though on the surface, it doesn't look like any of those things wouldn't be possible. I think that whole idea of like found family, community, connection, and relatability, really resonate strongly with me. And I also feel like this screenplay for this movie, in my opinion, is the best screenplay of the year. Because I think it just reveals character so effectively. There's no wasted line in that movie. Even the little things that could easily be throwaway lines, it says something about the characters, it says something about the character's backgrounds, it says something about the way that the characters feel about their present situation or what they're hoping for, for their future situations. And it is just so effective. It never verges on overly sentimental or sappy or overly melodramatic, even though it could have gone to all of those places. Without giving away spoilers, especially the ending could have been really sappy and sentimental. But it was very restrained, yet you still felt the emotion, and the touching moments were still very much there. Yeah, so I love The Holdovers. I want this movie to win every award. And that's really all I can say about it. I'm just in love with this movie.

Alex Howard  
That's so funny too. See, you're making me want to re-watch The Holdovers now. Because yeah, I saw this movie at TIFF, and I liked it. It's, it's Alexander Payne's return to form. But I think, I mean, for one thing, you're exhausted when you're at a festival. But it's funny, happy movies don't resonate with me as much as emotional, sad, hard to watch things. And so I think I do need to rewatch this in a different mindset, I guess, and see if it does hit me in a different way. But I'm really glad that-- I think when I saw it, I think I told you, you're gonna love this movie, because I knew this was your cup of tea.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, you called it. And it's interesting, too, because it is a feel good movie. By the end, it's heartwarming. But I don't know if I would call it happy the whole way through because there's so much brokenness in these characters, too. And there's so much hurt and pain. And so I guess, if you do watch it again, I guess just keep that in mind and watch it from that vantage point. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah, I definitely will. 

Lee Pugsley  
Nice. Well, that concludes our Year End Review for 2023. Any other thoughts, Alex, before we kind of wrap up? 

Alex Howard  
Well, I just wanted to thank everyone for being with us. I know we have been almost doing this a year, I think as of February 2024, will be our anniversary. So thanks to everyone for sticking with us through the year. We were on a list of the top Cinephile podcasts of 2023. We were number 19. So that's very, very cool. None of the other podcasts I had heard it before, I hadn't heard of the blog that we were on. We posted it on our Instagram and on our Facebook. So if you want to check them out. It's always really nice to be acknowledged by someone that you don't know. Because like, I know, I have friends that listen, you have friends that listen, Lee, but when it's someone that we have no idea who it is. That's when we know we're really reaching people. So that was really great. 

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, I second that, and especially when it comes from someone that you didn't even know was like following you, or, you know, like, you were never in cont-- you had no connection with them at all. And they just come out of the blue and say, "Hey, we're putting you on this list." It was very meaningful. And yeah, I just want to echo what Alex said, thank you guys so much for listening to our podcast and for sharing it and getting the word out there. Accessibility matters. And our continued goal for this year is to continue furthering the conversations on accessibility, especially as it pertains to audio description in the blind and low vision community, and we'll just see what else happens. Yeah, so for anyone out there who has any questions or comments, or you guys might want to share your top 10 lists with us, feel free to email us at DarkRoomFilmCast@gmail.com Once again, that's DarkRoomFilmCast@gmail.com. 

Alex Howard  
Yeah, and you can also reach out to us on Instagram as well, @DarkRoomFilm Cast.

Lee Pugsley  
And last but not least, we want to give a shout out to Matt Lauterbach. And we want to thank him for making transcripts of this podcast, and, you know, all previous episodes possible.

Alex Howard  
So yeah, really excited to talk movies and accessibility with you guys in the coming year.

Lee Pugsley  
Yeah, Happy New Year guys, and here's looking to a good 2024.

Alex Howard  
Bye.

Lee Pugsley  
Bye.