Film Reviews

Film reviews by Ali Shukri Amin, preserved from Letterboxd with dates, ratings, and links to the original reviews.

These pages preserve Ali's existing public writing and link to the original Letterboxd or Google Maps contribution. Relevant Maps reviews also link to the corresponding essay on aliamin.info. For long-form essays and research, visit aliamin.info.

28 Years Later (2025)February 26, 2026 · If this movie was a bit more focused and had a bit less extraneous editing and scenes it could be a 5. There are some truly moving and compelling scenes…
A Prophet (2009)February 26, 2026 · Breath-taking masterpiece. Prison & crime genre. Begins with a naieve and possibly innocent teenage boy thrust into an incomprehensibly harsh system. Forced…
A Prophet (2009)February 26, 2026 · An absolute materpiece of a prison film with some of the most intense scenes I've ever seen
All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)February 26, 2026 · A brutal depiction of the reality and senselessness of war
All That's Left of You (2025)February 26, 2026 · Seen at Middle East Books in DC: A powerful journey demonstrating the unimpeachable value of the human spirit, while it is in this world and after it has…
Beau Is Afraid (2023)February 26, 2026 · One of the most bizarre films I've ever seen. Full of so many good ideas executed so poorly. Intended to be a Freudian examination of the anxious mind told…
Beau Is Afraid (2023)February 26, 2026 · The most self-indulgent and pretentious slog you'll ever have to endure. I get that Aster is trying to depict Jewish anxiety, especially about death ("You…
Black Bag (2025)February 26, 2026 · Tries so hard to be smart that it only succeeds in being irritating and forgettable
Blade Runner (1982)February 26, 2026 · I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate…
Blue Velvet (1986)February 26, 2026 · Does the fact that everyone has the capacity to both commit evil acts & enjoy the infliction of evil on others mean we cannot be truly loving and therefore…
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)February 26, 2026 · Basically a mediocre film with a nice twist
Bring Her Back (2025)February 26, 2026 · The title spoiled the entire movie. The body horror was effective. I feel like there was just something missing here, but can't put my finger on what it is…
Bugonia (2025)February 26, 2026 · This movie has no idea what it's trying to say
Burning (2018)February 26, 2026 · Another insufferable slow burn. Please make it stop
Caddo Lake (2024)February 26, 2026 · Brilliant mind bender
Caught Stealing (2025)February 26, 2026 · A good old fashioned 90s action movie with all the tropes and some unexpected surprises.
Citizen Kane (1941)February 26, 2026 · From a historical perspective it is one of the most important and essential films ever created. Every film student & movie buff should see it just for that…
Companion (2025)February 26, 2026 · This will probably happen in less than ten years
Conclave (2024)February 26, 2026 · Slow burn i.e. extremely boring. The kind of movie people claim to like to signal they still have an attention span and are "sophisticated". For old people…
Don't Breathe (2016)February 26, 2026 · It just gets more ridiculous
Donnie Darko (2001)February 26, 2026 · What does it mean to be alive at one particular time as opposed to another? How much of who we are is static and how much is predicated based on when we are…
Drive My Car (2021)February 26, 2026 · Another painfully intolerably slow burn
Drop (2025)February 26, 2026 · The first half was so good. The second half was so dumb. The result is a mediocre film in aggregate that had the potential for greatness
Dune: Part Two (2024)February 26, 2026 · This should have been better
Eddington (2025)February 26, 2026 · I'm not sure what made Ari Aster think he's capable of insightful political commentary but this has proven he isn't. He captured much of the anxiety and…
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)February 26, 2026 · An instant sci-fi action drama classic. On par with The Matrix and The Fifth Element.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)February 26, 2026 · Ferris is absolutely so insufferable and a terrible person. I don't know what this movie intends to communicate. Being a handsome privileged guy gives you…
Frankenstein (2025)February 26, 2026 · Extremely underwhelming. Isaac's performance was too hammy. The monster's design was too clean. A lot of nitpicky plot points make no sense (outside of being…
Friendship (2024)February 26, 2026 · Ari Aster social anxiety but trying to be funny
Good Will Hunting (1997)February 26, 2026 · One of the most over rated films ever
Heretic (2024)February 26, 2026 · Thinks it is smarter than it is. An incredible set-up that they did not know how to capitalize on. The ending was not totally the expected cliché but overall…
How Green Was My Valley (1941)February 26, 2026 · I think this is way better than Citizen Kane.
I Saw the TV Glow (2024)February 26, 2026 · The horror of being too weak to live up to your potential, the terror of living an unfulfilled life when fulfillment was accessible, the nightmare of the…
Iron Man (2008)February 26, 2026 · Back when it was still vogue to include every possible stereotype about Arabs & Muslims
It Was Just an Accident (2025)February 26, 2026 · Very disappointing. Meandering. Directionless. Morally confused.
Jack and Jill (2011)February 26, 2026 · I'm sure this movie is some kind of insurance fraud scheme to make a movie so terrible that it bombs & Sandler capitalizes on the failure. He admits as much…
Jeremiah Johnson (1972)February 26, 2026 · One of the best Westerns of all time and it's set in the snowy mountains.
Joker (2019)February 26, 2026 · People don't like this movie because they don't like the heteronormative white male rage it accurately depicts and the power fantasy that Fleck cum Joker…
Karate Kid: Legends (2025)February 26, 2026 · They had two scripts and just collaged them together I guess
Knives Out (2019)February 26, 2026 · A perfect Agatha Christie esque whodunnit translated to film
La Haine (1995)February 26, 2026 · "Do you believe in God? That's the wrong question. The correct question is: does God believe in us?"
Lady Vengeance (2005)February 26, 2026 · Pretty disjointed. Some disorienting transitions. Very clearly the work of a Park Chan Wook in process.
Magnolia (1999)February 26, 2026 · An absolute mess of a film with nothing insightful to say about any of the topics it touches on. The dialogue is hanmy and overdone. The multitude of weaving…
Memories of Murder (2003)February 26, 2026 · Beautifully shot but just missing some narrative depth with the plot. Some of the most gorgeous cinematography you'll ever see.
Monster (2023)February 26, 2026 · So many good things about this film. So many things to admire. Sexualizing children is not one of them.
Mulholland Drive (2001)February 26, 2026 · A pretty good movie but certainly not the best of the 21st century. Interesting motifs and visuals, but ultimately I don't think the messages in the…
Mystic River (2003)February 26, 2026 · What an absolute mess of a film. Nonsensical plot. I can't believe so many big name actors are involved in this mess.
No Other Choice (2025)February 26, 2026 · A social commentary on techno-feudalism wrapped in a black comedy crime thriller. Some of the most striking transitions & modern editing I've ever seen…
Nocturnal Animals (2016)February 26, 2026 · I literally cannot remember this film and almost rewatched it. It's that forgettable.
Nomadland (2020)February 26, 2026 · One of those unbearably boring "slow burn" films with absolutely nothing to say and nothing to give
Nope (2022)February 26, 2026 · I feel like Peele had one brilliant idea for a movie and is now sputtering out of control.
Okja (2017)February 26, 2026 · A bizarre film. I guess intended to communicate the horror of mass animal slaughter & genetic modifications. Jake Gyllenhal is one of my favorite actors but…
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019)February 26, 2026 · Perhaps the worst Tarantino film. Boring.
One Battle After Another (2025)February 26, 2026 · What happens after you retire from your radical politics but the radical politics has not retired from you? A story that perhaps Paul Thomas Anderson was not…
Parasite (2019)February 26, 2026 · A masterpiece. A subtle yet darkly hilarious meditation on class & capitalism.
Perfect Blue (1997)February 26, 2026 · A movie about chastity, sexual objectification, the internet, depersonalization, being terminally online, and disassociative personalities. What happens when…
Pig (2021)February 26, 2026 · This film is on the cusp of greatness. Incredibly well done.
Poor Things (2023)February 26, 2026 · i love naked woman
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)February 26, 2026 · The plot is that they're gay. The end
Resurrection (2025)February 26, 2026 · Seen at the National Museum of Asian Art, Freer Gallery: The motion picture itself is a kind of rebellion against the ephemral nature of life. Everything…
Saloum (2021)February 26, 2026 · Sinners prototype
Sinners (2025)February 26, 2026 · Too many ideas, all of them interesting. Needed more focus.
Spaceman (2024)February 26, 2026 · At one point Adam Sandler pulls a jar of nutella out of nowhere while floating in outer space to give to a giant Jewish space spider
Speak No Evil (2022)February 26, 2026 · Gratuitous torture porn intended to drive home the lesson of self assertiveness.
Stranger Things 5: The Finale (2025)February 26, 2026 · I feel like I just broke up with a toxic girlfriend this last ep was so emotionally manipulative Also I didn't know decapitation was back in style Jamie…
Superman (2025)February 26, 2026 · Very obviously political. There's a stand-in for Elon Musk and a stand in for Netanyahu. As anti-establishment and anti-war as a Superman film could possibly…
The Cabin in the Woods (2011)February 26, 2026 · A total subversion of the entire horror genre
The Count of Monte Cristo (2024)February 26, 2026 · A valuable retelling of Dumas' epic novel. Unfortunately, the shorter runtime means a lot of the thematic depth and plot nuances were lost. This is…
The Hateful Eight (2015)February 26, 2026 · How do we get Tarantino to go back to making interesting movies?
The Long Walk (2025)February 26, 2026 · This movie feels like it was written by a precocious 12 year old. A 12 year old who is really feeling their intellect. The dialogue is so stiff. The…
The Nun's Story (1959)February 26, 2026 · The final shot is one of my favorites in film history.
The Phoenician Scheme (2025)February 26, 2026 · Wes Anderson is at his best with grand sweeping tales that capitalize on his dead pan writing and humor. When Wes tries to do smaller scale stories that are…
The Power of the Dog (2021)February 26, 2026 · Another unbearable "slow burn" where nothing happens and nothing meaningful is said. I am convinced these slow burn directors know they can just film the…
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)February 26, 2026 · His style wasn't completely developed here
The Sixth Sense (1999)February 26, 2026 · One of the greatest films of all time. A sentimental horror with, perhaps, the most astounding twist in all of cinema. What a shame that Shyamalan has lived…
The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011)February 26, 2026 · One of the most horrific pieces of media you'll ever see
The Wind Rises (2013)February 26, 2026 · My least favorite Miyazaki movie. This is perhaps the only one that has no real reason to be an anime.
The Woman in Black (2012)February 26, 2026 · If you make heaven canon in your horror film the horror is gone because all the characters have to do is die and they're good forever.
Train Dreams (2025)February 26, 2026 · "Just waiting to see what we've been left here for." A beautifully shot and emotionally compelling "slow burn" that manages to keep your attention the entire…
Trap (2024)February 26, 2026 · One of my favorite M. Night movies
True Grit (1969)February 26, 2026 · John Wayne is the stiffest "actor" a person will ever lay eyes on
Wake Up Dead Man (2025)February 26, 2026 · Not much to say here. A good Agatha Christie style murder mystery. Twists and turns. A nice depiction of faith although the main character is a gay atheist…
Weapons (2025)February 26, 2026 · One of the strangest movies you can watch. An unpredictable horror black comedy.
Weapons (2025)February 26, 2026 · The set-up was really strong but I felt the film meandered a bit in the middle. The cop & druggie plotlines provided some comedic relief but didn't add much…
Zootopia 2 (2025)February 26, 2026 · You can tell a lot of love went into this by people that love the medium. Mostly a clichéd children's movie with just enough style, thoughtful messaging…
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)January 24, 2026 · Listening to Peter Jackson ramble on about shooting the mines of Moria scenes in a dragon button up was a treat. There's a lot more deus ex machina to save…
Princess Mononoke (1997)January 21, 2026 · This is perhaps Miyazaki's greatest film. While Spirited Away may be his most artistically & creatively impressive film, and the one most successful at…
Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)December 31, 2025 · Jumanji in space
Over the Garden Wall (2014)October 13, 2025 · Essentially Dante's Inferno lite for children. A story about a young man learning to take personal responsibility over his life and initiative over how it…
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)August 28, 2025 · One of the most important films ever made
The Boy and the Heron (2023)August 28, 2025 · Miyazaki's spiritual autobiography told through the lense of a son he could never allow to exist. "How Do You Live" as if addressed to Goro Miyazaki, is a…
In Bruges (2008)Hilarious
The President's Cake (2025)May Allah bless the people of Iraq.