My Top Films of 2021:

Pandemic disruptions made for slim pickings this year, but these were the movies that made an impact on me. (If you want a list of the all-around best entertainment of 2021, TV was where it’s at.)

The Power of the Dog (2021) dir. Jane Campion

Together Together (2021) dir. Nicole Beckwith

The Green Knight (2021) dir. David Lowry

Passing (2021) dir. Rebecca Hall

Violation (2020) dir. Madeleine Sims-Fewer & Dusty Mancinelli

Black Widow (2021) dir. Cate Shortland

Dune (2021) dir. Denis Villeneuve

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2021) dir. Will Sharpe

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) dir. Destin Daniel Cretton

Kate (2021) dir. Cedric Nicolas-Troyan

Honorable mention: Zack Snyder’s Justice League – Ok, is it a *good* movie? Not really, but it is 100x better than the original and very enjoyable for Wonder Woman fans. And if you had the misfortune of seeing the Wh*don cut, you understand why this gets a mention for simply existing, to retcon that piece of racist/misogynist trash from the DCEU.

RANDOM HARVEST Keeps on Giving by Kim Luperi

Classic film fans who are also wise enough to follow Carl Reiner on Twitter may have noticed that he extols the virtues of RANDOM HARVEST (‘42), his favorite film, on a regular basis. Actor Gene Wilder considered it one of the most romantic movies of all time.

Upon filming the last scene of the film, star Ronald Colman commented to director Mervyn LeRoy: “This is one picture I hate to finish!” Even fellow star Greer Garson called it her favorite of all her movies – the “happiest” one she ever made. “I know I am prejudiced, but I think it is one of the half dozen greatest love stories,” she said in an interview quoted in Michael Troyan’s biography A Rose for Mrs. Miniver: The Life of Greer Garson.

RANDOM HARVEST begins with amnesiac WWI vet Smithy (Colman) fleeing the asylum he’s been recuperating in when peace is declared. During the revelries, he meets dance hall girl Paula (Garson), and they fall in love, marry and have a child. Soon thereafter, a freak accident Smithy suffers restores the memory he previously lost and wipes all recollection of Paula and their life together. As the wealthy Charles Rainier, he returns to his family and their business. But fate works in mysterious ways, especially as engineered by faithful Paula, who takes a job as Charles’ secretary in hopes that he’ll remember her.

Based upon James Hilton’s 1941 best-selling novel, RANDOM HARVEST had ‘hit’ written all over it. The Hollywood Reporter predicted it would break box-office records, and that it did, in particular a big one: RANDOM HARVEST ran for 11 weeks at Radio City Music Hall, screening as many as seven times a day, starting as early as 7:45am. (The picture broke the 10-week record set earlier in 1942 by MRS. MINIVER, another Garson vehicle.) RANDOM HARVEST went on to earn over $8 million, making it the third highest grossing movie of the year. One New York exhibitor even expressed regret that they weren’t able to extend the film’s run, calling it “a great audience picture, which made its own way into the hearts of the people.”

Garson and Colman’s delicate, compassionate performances along with the warmth and refinement imbued in the script and Mervyn LeRoy’s sensitive direction won the movie mostly rave reviews. “One of the truly fine motion pictures of this or any year is ‘Random Harvest,’ an emotional experience of rare quality,” The Hollywood Reporter commented, further praising the “great, enduring love story it stirringly brings to life.”

But what accounted for the film’s massive success? A superior production, of course, and romantic idol Colman and Garson at the zenith of her popularity didn’t hurt either. But I think timing played a large part. In Ten Movies at a Time, John DiLeo called RANDOM HARVEST an “essential piece of escapism for the home-front audience.” Just as Smithy and Paula experienced personal tragedies as a result of war, so many in America did as well. But like the characters onscreen, viewers had to keep pushing forward during tough times. 

In RANDOM HARVEST, Garson portrayed a woman that WWII-era viewers had come to know her as: a composed, valiant presence, privately suffering yet steadfast in her faith—in this case, faith that Smithy’s memory comes back. That brand of stoic devotion, loyalty and optimism was not only highly relatable to wartime audiences, millions of whom were filled with the same emotions awaiting the return of their loved ones fighting overseas, but it also hit a chord with those protecting the country, too. In A Rose for Mrs. Miniver, Troyan shared excerpts from a letter a Navy Officer wrote Garson lauding the picture and her performance for epitomizing “the sailor’s dream: a happy home, a family, and a good wife.”

While the reality of WWII is far removed from ours in 2019, I think the romance of RANDOM HARVEST plays a role in why the film remains so beloved today. Yes, the fact that Smithy loses his memory and regains it twice is rather far-fetched, but that makes Paula’s devotion, even though she’s told he may never remember her, all the more dramatic, engaging and endearing, especially since the audience is rooting for them both. I believe people want to think that there will be someone as devoted to them, with a love just as strong, who would fight like Paula did for Smithy after their tragic separation—despite the odds being stacked against her.

With such a far-flung plot, RANDOM HARVEST could easily have teetered overboard into full-blown soap opera, but the restraint shown in the production and the gentle performances relieve the story from such a fate. The tender way in which this tale was told and the sincere emotional reaction RANDOM HARVEST still elicits today serve to showcase love—and classical Hollywood filmmaking—at their finest.

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Netflix’s highly anticipated action film Kate is out September 10. Starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the titular role, the film also features Woody Harrelson, Miku Patricia Martineau, and Miyavi. The film is directed by Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, who ComingSoon was able to chat with ahead of the film’s release.

“Meticulous and preternaturally skilled, Kate is the perfect specimen of a finely tuned assassin at the height of her game,” says the official synopsis of Kate. “But when she uncharacteristically blows an assignment targeting a member of the yakuza in Tokyo, she quickly discovers she’s been poisoned, a brutally slow execution that gives her less than 24 hours to exact revenge on her killers. As her body swiftly deteriorates, Kate forms an unlikely bond with the teenage daughter of one of her past victims.”

ComingSoon Editor-in-Chief Tyler Treese spoke with Kate director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan about the action flick, working with Woody Harrelson and Miyavi, and how anime had an impact on the film.

Tyler Treese: Woody Harrelson, what a great performance by him. He’s such a versatile actor and I thought he fit this role so well. Could you just speak to his performance?

Cedric Nicolas-Troyan: So Woody was like, when we were talking about the character of Varrick, we were looking for someone that’s going to embody warmth, but also can turn on a dime. Someone that can be like, you want to hug that person, but then the next minute you’re like, oh no, that guy is actually scary. Woody is just right there, top of the list because he has all those. He has made all those performances where you just kind of love the guy, like, oh, this guy is the coolest, and then all of a sudden you’re like, hold on, wait, what, he might be scary actually. It can turn like that.

He modulates his performance and those looks and those things. He does the smile and then he turns into a look and you’re like, oh. It brings a swagger, and also one thing that is really cool with Woody is that he loves playing. So when I was saying, “Okay, let’s play a little bit on that line. Let’s improv a little bit on this.” He was always up for it. So he brings that swagger and this and that kind of attitude to the film. I wanted to have that rock and roll attitude to have that swagger. So, he brings that all the time and he’s fun.

I saw that you mentioned that you’re a big fan of anime and Hayao Miyazaki as is an influence on your overall work. We see Tokyo Ghoul in one scene, but I’d love to know how anime really influenced this film and the style of Kate?

Yes, absolutely. I grew up with Japanese culture like Grendizer and [Message from Space:] Galactic Wars. All of that was big deals in France. So I was really drawn into that kind of anime culture very, very young and to this day my son is very much into it, so I never really kind of gave up. So that was a big part of the design and the look.

I wanted to find something that was connecting, and that’s why Tokyo Ghoul is in the film because I was looking for a connection with Kate and with the [Ken] Kaneki character has that connection. So to create those images that people who are [fans] of that kind of style, can be like, “oh yeah,” and they know why. People that don’t know Tokyo Ghoul, they’re going to be like, oh, it’s just a cartoon on the building. But people that know they’re going to be like, oh, I can see why Kaneki and Kate are together. Actually, I wrote a letter to the creator of Tokyo Ghoul to ask him to put it in the movie.

Awesome. The casting is just so inspired all around. I loved Miyavi’s role. What led to the samurai guitarist being brought into this film?

Well, Miyavi, he’s like he has that kind of striking look. He’s just so charismatic and I’d seen him in Angelina Jolie’s Unbroken, and he was reminding me of the Ryusuke Sakamoto character in Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, and I thought it was like he had that really great presence. Then he has this amazing look, you know? So when it was about who is going to play Jojima, Jojima is the only person in the film that beats the crap out of Kate and literally should have win the fight [against Kate].

I wanted that one scene to have someone that you just kind of like, wow, and a friend of mine, Mr. Hide, who is a Japanese director, we were talking about him and he happened to be friends with him and he’s like, “Oh, you know, you should totally get him,” and he texted Miyavi and then Miyavi came to audition for me when I was in Tokyo. Right away, it was great. I’m so blessed he accepted to do the movie. He thought, “Yeah, that’s kind of fun. I never did that. Let’s do this,” and he just came in like, bam. He’s amazing.

The post Interview: Kate Director Cedric Nicolas-Troyan Talks Woody Harrelson, Anime’s Influence appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

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The Huntsman: Winter's War movie clips: http://j.mp/2m4Jdy0 BUY THE MOVIE: http://bit.ly/2nww8wb Don't miss the HOTTEST NEW TRAILERS: http://bit.ly/1u2y6pr CLIP DESCRIPTION: When Freya (Emily Blunt) is betrayed by her lover, her heart grows cold and she gains magical ice powers. FILM DESCRIPTION: This spin-off of Snow White and the Huntsman acts as both prequel and sequel to the original film, detailing the adventures of Eric the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) as he gets caught up in the rivalry between wicked queens Ravenna (Charlize Theron) and Freya (Emily Blunt). During his quest, Eric is also endangered by his feelings for fellow warrior Sara (Jessica Chastain), since ice queen Freya has decreed that love is forbidden in her kingdom. Directed by Cedric Nicolas-Troyan. CREDITS: TM & © Universal (2016) Cast: Liam Neeson, Colin Morgan, Charlize Theron, Emily Blunt Director: Cedric Nicolas-Troyan Producers: Sarah Bradshaw, Palak Patel, Joe Roth, Chloe Yellin Screenwriters: Evan Daugherty, Craig Mazin, Evan Spiliotopoulos WHO ARE WE? The MOVIECLIPS channel is the largest collection of licensed movie clips on the web. Here you will find unforgettable moments, scenes and lines from all your favorite films. Made by movie fans, for movie fans. SUBSCRIBE TO OUR MOVIE CHANNELS: MOVIECLIPS: http://bit.ly/1u2yaWd ComingSoon: http://bit.ly/1DVpgtR Indie & Film Festivals: http://bit.ly/1wbkfYg Hero Central: http://bit.ly/1AMUZwv Extras: http://bit.ly/1u431fr Classic Trailers: http://bit.ly/1u43jDe Pop-Up Trailers: http://bit.ly/1z7EtZR Movie News: http://bit.ly/1C3Ncd2 Movie Games: http://bit.ly/1ygDV13 Fandango: http://bit.ly/1Bl79ye Fandango FrontRunners: http://bit.ly/1CggQfC HIT US UP: Facebook: http://on.fb.me/1y8M8ax Twitter: http://bit.ly/1ghOWmt Pinterest: http://bit.ly/14wL9De Tumblr: http://bit.ly/1vUwhH7