In a brazen attempt to redefine the term “magnum opus”, Damian Chazelle goes all out for his Old Hollywood extravaganza Babylon, which charts the fortunes of several (fictional) showbiz figures as the still-nascent movie industry transitions from silent pictures to talkies in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and heretofore little-known Diego Calva form the central trio, and the amazing hairstyles on display are designed by a team led by Jaime Leigh McIntosh, who spoke to Journal in October. Noah Levine nails it when he describes Babylon as “The MOST movie you’ll see all year”. Shahbakht is also accurate when they write that “this is going to go down like honey for the You Must Remember This pod listeners.” Elephant poop for all! (In US theaters December 23.)

When James Cameron first announced Avatar: The Way of Water, he said we’d get to see it in 2014. But unlike almost every other blockbuster filmmaker working today, Cameron doesn’t rush himself—and he doesn’t rush us. “What sticks is the experience,” writes Philbert Dy. “It’s over three hours of a man sharing his deep and abiding love for the ocean by trying to recreate some of the things he’s seen, and imagining what else might be in the endless oceans of faraway worlds in an infinite universe.” “Seeing this kind of thing is a face-melting reminder [of] why I love movies,” raves Lt Ballsworth. (In theaters now.)

In a year-end positively overflowing with wistful odes to the magic of cinema, Sam Mendes comes in with Empire of Light, a love story set at a seaside picture house in 1980s England. The cast includes British belters Olivia Colman, Colin Firth and Toby Jones, alongside rising actor Micheal Ward, in a mid-budget adult drama the likes of which we don’t see often enough these days. Zoë Rose Bryant had a good time, espousing that Empire of Light “doesn’t aspire to change the world or anything, but it doesn’t need to!” (In US theaters now.)

Arriving, as it does, more than a decade following its predecessor, and with the Shrek franchise having faded from memory somewhat, Puss In Boots: The Last Wish is surprising many with just how gosh-darned awesome it is. Robert E. Acuña celebrates the film’s textured look, praising “a paintbrush aesthetic that works so well”. “The best Dreamworks effort I’ve seen,” says Nick. “Amazing and striking animation, flawless voice work, compelling characters, and an engaging story.” Sam Summers teases: “Didn’t think we’d ever see a new contender for ‘Best Shrek Movie’, and yet…”. (In US theaters December 21.)

After breaking out internationally with a one-of-a-kind performance in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread, Luxembourg actress Vicky Krieps has consistently pursued interesting roles and also starred in an M. Night Shyamalan film. In Corsage, she plays Empress Elisabeth of Austria, who lived in the late nineteenth century. The heavily fictionalized film has been going down well since its Cannes premiere, where Krieps took home the Un Certain Regard acting prize. “Absolutely stupendous,” writes Phoebe, who goes on to describe Corsage as “the Spencer/Fanny and Alexander/The Piano/Portrait of a Lady/Cleo from 5 to 7 soup that I never dared hope for”. (In US theaters December 23.)

Actor and filmmaker Sarah Polley further marks herself as a major contemporary auteur with Women Talking, an adaptation of Miriam Toews’ novel about Mennonite women reckoning with abuse in their community. The film is on track to make itself known come Oscar time, with an already award-winning ensemble of some of the most exciting talent working today, including Claire Foy, Rooney Mara, Jessie Buckley and Ben Wishaw. “Shows that there is a more feminine, communal and thoughtful way to make studio movies, a vision that is reflected in how beautiful this film turned out,” writes Annnnnak. (In US theaters December 23.)

Plenty of people went out to see Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery when it hit theaters in November, and plenty more will Netflix and kill later this month. Almost everyone agrees Glass Onion lives up to the highly regarded first film, with many celebrating the inadvertent relevance of its themes. “The timing of this film couldn’t be any better, it’s incredible” celebrates Andrew M. “A full two hours and twenty minutes of me throwing back my head cackling and clapping my hands with delight,” says Patrick Willems. (Streaming on Netflix from December 23.)

Considering the degree to which the trailer went massively viral upon its release earlier this year, Universal executives must be rubbing their hands together with glee in anticipation of the box-office returns for M3GAN. It’s the new evil-doll movie from producer James Wan, whose obsession with evil dolls previously brought us the underrated Dead Silence (see Dom’s Pick at the end of this email) and Annabelle, who first appeared in Wan’s The Conjuring, before getting her own franchise. Not only that, this is written by Akela Cooper, who gave us last year’s gloriously nutty Malignant (also produced by Wan), and directed by Gerard Johnstone, the New Zealand filmmaker behind cult favorite Housebound. (In US theaters January 6.)

Sometimes, one syllable is all you need. There was no way we were ever not going to get excited about a movie called Plane, especially when it’s an action-thriller starring Gerard Butler. The Scotsman plays a commercial pilot forced to land his… aircraft… in a war-torn country, where he must contend with multiple militias who want to kidnap his passengers. This is possibly the most January movie of all time. (In US theaters January 13.)

The elevation of Chantal Akerman’s 1975 film Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles to the top of the new Sight & Sound rankings is bringing plenty of attention to the hitherto relatively under-seen film. Jeanne’s Letterboxd page has been on fire since the news broke, so editor-in-chief Gemma Gracewood sampled some of the newly articulated praise that has been flowing for the film.

If, like Lindsay Lohan, you’ve been falling for Christmas but been unable to come up with any good present ideas, why not peruse our annual Gift Guide for the movie lover in your life. You’ll find Na’vi figures, Turning Red plushies, Top Gun: Maverick airplane toys and that Mahler album that Lydia Tár loves. Or give the gift of an enhanced Letterboxd experience: any member (who’s been good this year) would be delighted to receive a Pro or Patron subscription upgrade. It’s easy to gift a Letterboxd subscription: visit the Pro page, or find the Gift Pro link on a member’s web profile.

Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio has been a long time coming, and his passion shines through in Rafa Sales Ross’ interview with the master Mexican filmmaker about the stop-motion reinterpretation of the Carlo Collodi classic, which places the little wooden boy in fascist Italy. Voice actors Christoph Waltz and Gregory Mann also weigh in on their roles in the film, streaming on Netflix now.

Anyone around here go to Catholic school? You may wish to concern yourself with this (non-comprehensive, she warns) list of hot ’n’ evil nuns and sad cold priests. Amen to that.

As the tangible aspects of filmgoing (DVDs you can hold in your hands, stores you can physically enter) become further de-emphasized in the digital era, the importance of preserving physical posters is greater than ever. For Journal, Ella Kemp spoke to designers, archivists and publicists for an inspirational feature about the beauty and art of the film poster.

Australian filmmaker Mark Hartley is behind some of the most fun movie docs ever made: Not Quite Hollywood, Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films and Machete Maidens Unleash. To mark the release of his new scripted effort Girl at the Window, Hartley went back to the subject of his breakout movie to select his favorite Ozploitation movies. He elaborated on his selections for Horrorville. Oi!

Luca Gaudagnino’s Bones and All is unquestionably an instant classic in most of our eyes. And Letterboxd is the landing pad for many of the best quips about the dreamy, atmospheric cannibal coming-of-ager, from “lots to digest” (thank you Karsten) to variations on other movie titles such as Mawl Me by Your Name, Eat Prey Love… Isaac Feldberg sat down with Gaudagnino and star Taylor Russell to discuss the lyrical, bloody film for Journal.

Would you like a nice, non-controversial horror list to distract you from this whole Sight & Sound kerfuffle? Rolling Stone contributors have compiled what they consider to be the 101 Best Horror Movies of All Time. It’s a pretty decent list.

Filmmaker Joanna Hogg’s ongoing collaboration with Tilda Swinton reaches new heights (two Tildas!) in The Eternal Daughter, which she discusses with Brian Formo for Journal. In other recent interview highlights from our online magazine, Elegance Bratton talks to Adesola Thomas about his semi-autobiographical drama The Inspection, the directors and producer behind Long Line of Ladies explore their Oscar-qualifying short with Indigenous editor Leo Koziol, Martika Ramirez Escobar pulls back the curtain on her one-of-a-kind action movie Leonor Will Never Die with Katie Rife, and Kambole Campbell revisits Disney’s Treasure Planet.

How nice is it that this year we’ve more or less been spared the annual debate about whether or not Die Hard counts as a you-know-what. Everyone knows that its primary category is that of a film in which a character utilizes the air ducts of a building as if ventilation shafts work like a subway that you crawl through.

Alright, alright. Here’s an alternative cinephile Christmas list from Hibiscus, “a collection of films that are warm, cold or somewhere in between. Snowy landscapes, heavy Christmas vibes, and perhaps a couple of films that you haven’t seen before?”

Then again, you know you want to. There’s no shame in it…

It’s time for Dom’s Pick! Each month, Call Sheet editor Dominic Corry closes with a recommendation for your watchlists. This month: Dead Silence. By all accounts a frustrating filmmaking experience for co-writer and director James Wan and co-writer Leigh Whannell, who were following up their debut smash Saw, this is nevertheless a stylish, entertaining horror film that remains criminally underseen.

Wan’s career-long obsession with creepy dolls (see M3GAN, mentioned earlier) gets perhaps its purest expression in this ventriloquism-themed chiller that deserves to be placed alongside Magic and the Michael Redgrave segment of Dead of Night in the very small canon of films that successfully exploit the eternally odd art form to create genuine tension. If you enjoyed the over-the-top kookiness Wan displayed in Malignant, you have to check this out. Featuring spectacular production design (the old theater on the lake!) and cool icky make-up effects. No TikTok dances, though.

Happy holidays, and to all a goodnight!