Into the Wild. Man, this dude, as portrayed, was insufferable. Awesome cast.

Once Upon a Time in the West. Third viewing. (First, second.) I heard a snippet of Jill's Theme and there was no looking back. I had to watch it ASAP. One of my favorite movies, top 5 for sure. Filed under: Sergio Leone.

The Fountain. Second viewing. (The first.) I think I have to bump this up to my favorite Aronofsky. Izzy's lines drive me a little nuts. Thematic bludgeons. But the visuals, the score, acting, tone, mood, and everything else that's supporting the themes: on point. Filed under: Darren Aronofsky.

L.A. Confidential. I think I've re-watched this on accident two or three times. Somehow it just doesn't stick, slides right out of my memory.

Nightcrawler. Third viewing. (First, second.) What a creep. Not sure if it's coincidence or foresight, but this movie anticipated so many of today's headline issues – journalism and technology, display over discernment, race, class, economics, sexual misconduct in the workplace, narcissism, freelance desperation, moral compromise. It's all there. And Bill Paxton is so great. RIP.

Noah. I didn't know much going in (except for, you know, one of the most famous Bible stories). There was a good bit of fantasy-type and action-hero stuff that, uh, I wasn't anticipating. Overall, pretty darn good. The flood scene juxtaposing the Ark and the small spit of land – completely gutting. And I don't know how that Creation scene works so well, but it's such a genius interlude...

The Two Faces of January. I watched it the same day I finished the book. I should double-up like that more often. (I liked the movie more.)

End of Watch. A+, four stars. Blown away with how unexpectedly great this was, and how much I loved it. Start with something like Miami Vice, but dial back the moody cool and swap in more humor and camaraderie. Loved, loved, loved this movie.

Run All Night. Second viewing. (The first.) Not sure why I gave it another shot. There's not enough running! I like the looks at the various intra-gang relationships here and there.

Sicario. Second viewing. (The first.) It's so gorgeous. I wish the soundtrack were more interesting – lots of bom bom bom military stock-issue heavy orchestra stuff. I like how they tell you in the title what it's all about and then they distract you from it for two hours. Nicely done.

Allied. Oh man. I fell in love with it within a few minutes. I wish we had more movies like this. Old-fashioned glamorous romance, melodrama. Sweeping but intimate. The stakes are high because the relationships matter.

The Departed. Third, maybe fourth viewing. Somehow it's compulsively watchable but I don't actually like it that much? I like the Japanese original Infernal Affairs more, I think. Filed under: Martin Scorsese.

Arrival. Second viewing. (The first.) The mind-bending scifi stuff doesn't dazzle as much, having seen it twice and read the story a few times. I like the sappiness, though, and I wish they'd play it up more. But I think if they had, I probably wouldn't have liked it as much the first time...

Panic Room. Nicely constrained in time and space. I like the hints for stuff that comes up in the story later on, little things that foreshadow and reward your attention. Things are often in the frame for a reason.

Seven. It's not aging very well for me. Mid-grade Fincher is still pretty darn good.

Stagecoach. It is every bit as good as you've heard. Really wish I hadn't ignored the praise for so long. I like these movies where a loosely-tied cast of characters get thrown together. Made me think of Mad Max: Fury Road, if taken down to a crisp 90 minutes. The pacing sweeps you up. I wasn't expecting a love story, too!

The General's Daughter. Ugh. Just too much.