The Writings of John Ryan Sullivan

2023 was a year for reevaluation for me. I came to a stunning, yet obvious, conclusion in January – I don’t want to write screenplays. I have never enjoyed the process of writing screenplays and for twenty years I’ve had to endure every form of negativity, from people I know and do not know, telling me being a screenwriter is impossible. Famous, successful screenwriters whose work is being made shout at the heavens that no one can be a screenwriter. It is baffling.

For years I have done my best to ignore this. As long as I’ve been writing people have been discussing the decline of book publishing and how no one can make a living being an author anymore. I don’t understand the desire people have to do this, as screenwriters and novelists are still working, but it is a persistent noise I try to ignore.

Why start a post about the good things I watched this year with two paragraphs about deciding to no longer write screenplays? The reason is because this decision caused a shift in of me that lead to watching almost nothing for half the year. Which, for me, is unheard of. My typical day before June of 2023 involved watching at least an hour of something. Every day. From June onward I may have watched an hour of something a week, but most weeks I didn’t.

Instead I used that time for other things, mostly reading. And what I’ve rediscovered after twenty something years is that I prefer reading to watching things. Which is why I’ve debated writing this list at all. I watched so much less this year and have little to no desire to write about what I watched, despite having seen some incredible works this year.

The reason for this is the realization that I would never write a list like this for books. Not only would I feel uncomfortable trying to summarize why I liked or disliked a book in two or three paragraphs but I also would never keep a list of what I’ve read. Somehow that feels wrong, almost disrespectful.

Nick Hornby has an essay about what makes a great pop song and one of the qualities he lists is length. Anything beyond a certain length does not make a good pop song because they need an amount of brevity to serve their function. Most people, I think, would say the same about films. Hitchcock has a quote about the length of a film needing to be proportional to the audience’s bladder.

The point being – pop songs, movies and television shows I think have certain restrictions they should adhere to. It’s not that you can’t have exceptions but if every pop song was “Off to The Races” or “Paranoid Android” I think many people would start listening to something else. Much like Scorcese making his three and a half hour films now. People watch them because it’s a Martin Scorcese film. If everything coming out was three and a half hours long I think many people would stop going to the theater.

I don’t feel this way about books. I would never make blanket statements about how long a book should be or what size the font should be or any aspect, really, of what a book should be. Which is me realizing, finally, that I hold them in a different esteem than I do everything else. Which is why I value working on a novel differently than I do a screenplay. Which is why I’m not going to write screenplays anymore. 

I’ve been giving some thought to a recent issue I face. The issue is: most of what reaches me regarding films/television/books seems designed to manipulate me. Whether it is reviewers or social media posts or something else – it all feels intentional. I’m trying to recall when this changed and why I trusted things before. There was a time when I felt I had a sense of whether something was good or liked by the general public and I trusted this. Now, whether it is a film like The Marvels or Barbie, none of the old metrics seem to apply. I have no doubt that The Marvels is a better, more universally appealing film than Barbie, having seen only The Marvels. I understand who The Marvels is made for and why they will enjoy it. For the life of me I don’t know why anyone would watch Barbie.

Only everyone did watch Barbie and The Marvels failed to find an audience in theaters (and presumably once it went to Disney + only there is no way to know if this is true). The question is: why? Why did a social media campaign combining Barbie and Oppenheimer result in success for these two wildly different films? Why were the latest Indiana Jones and Mission Impossible films ignored? Also: why do I care?

I don’t think people in general are deciding these things, I think it’s being decided for them in the same way political lines are drawn and people are finding themselves on one side or another. Before you could be indifferent to a film that was not intended for you (Barbie) – now we are all participating in a zero sum game that means we have to pick sides despite most of us not caring.

I don’t like this and I refuse to do it. So many excellent things are being made and being ignored, which is as it has always been. Now, however, you have the exceptional being made and long before anyone should have an opinion people are firmly against it.  Or for it. The manipulation is not subtle and needs to be resisted.

That being said 2023 might be the worst year of watching television shows and movies in my life. From May to December I essentially quit watching and read instead. I wish I could say there was a good reason (other than loving to read and realizing I prefer it to watching anything) that something happened to trigger this response. Nothing in particular stands out.

What I do think occurred is I became aware of the manipulation taking place for films and shows I care nothing about and I watched a slew of things I disliked. I find it is getting harder to tell beforehand whether something will be good and it has led to a number of terrible viewing experiences.

So below is what I call The Good List and what you may notice is a number of these films were widely criticized and maligned this past year. Many I put off watching because of these reviews and negative comments. I hope by writing about them I can perhaps convince someone else to give them a try as I think they were treated unfairly. 

The Flash

The controversy surrounding this film at the time of its release was inescapable and kept me from watching it until November. Even then I was unsure I would be able to enjoy the movie because of the external nonsense associated with it (which is absolutely my refrain this year – tangential matters to films and television shows now muddy the waters with nearly every production). I can happily report that when I did watch the film I was able to ignore all that came before and enjoy the experience.

So much has been written about the visual effects of the film and the cameos. I have come across little that discusses the premise, which is as follows: if you had the ability to change some terrible event of your past, would you be able to resist the urge to do so? This isn’t new ground in fiction but I believe this is the first superhero movie (at least in this new wave) to do so. It is a solid premise especially since so many of these characters exist because of childhood trauma.

What I enjoy about The Flash is the character is older, wiser and calmer than when we last saw him. He is a more pleasant character to be around. Given that he is the main character of the film that is important. Concerned with his father’s upcoming court appeal we learn, quickly, that no new evidence will save him from his wrongful conviction. For murdering his wife and Barry Allen’ mother.

Can we take a moment and acknowledge this is respectable character motivation? When he discovers he can go back in time and change events his desire is to keep the murder (and therefore wrongful conviction) from happening. As far as comic book storylines go this is good. It is understandable. It allows for the Batman character to offer the advice to not do this thing, which is meaningful as we all know how much he must wish to do so.

What follows is an interesting film where time traveling Barry meets up with a younger, not yet super-powered, version of himself. Most of the film consists of two Barry Allen’s on screen. Not only does it look real but the performances are distinct and believable. I’m not saying it is Orphan Black level work but is respectable and interesting. This was a surprise to me, despite having seen the trailer. This is a largely a buddy comedy staring two versions of the same character both of which are superheroes. Who travel through time. Have you seen this movie before? I don’t think I have.

To then incorporate, for a decent portion of the film, Michael Keaton reprising his role as Batman, makes this a winner. I’ve seen comments about how viewers dislike the way the character is handled or the fates of these other versions of characters and all I can say is you did not pay attention to the film. The explanation of the multiverse in The Flash states the inevitability of some occurrences (and we have a character whose sole purpose is to illustrate this) so some characters are going to die or fail regardless of what is done in the past. It is, quite nakedly, the point of the movie.

I enjoyed The Flash for a number of reasons. That I was able to do so despite the negativity and noise surrounding it makes me happy. We live in a strange time where unrelated matters to film and books and television influence our opinions of them on a regular basis. We all need to do our best to resist these influences. Every writer and director and actor is counting on us to judge their work by the quality of their work, not based on a review or comment released into the world with no purpose other than to cause harm. 

The Killer

I read a review of The Killer before watching it, which I think is always a mistake. For me, going into a film with other people’s opinions floating around my head is undesirable. The review I read was not unkind but certainly not positive. Which is why I was pleased to discover the film is excellent.

I’d like to preface the following comments by saying it has been some time since I have been enamored with a David Fincher film. That last that I enjoyed was Fight Club. I haven’t seen Benjamin Button and I couldn’t get past the first five minutes of Mank but I have seen the rest. I say this because I have felt for a long time that he lost his way. Which is obviously not the general consensus of his work. Gone Girl received nothing but praise and The Social Network might as well have been the second coming. I don’t get it.

What I do get is The Killer. If ever there were a film where the script, director and lead actor are perfectly in sync it would be this one. Precision, control and pacing are the important elements of the film. If you watch the trailer you can see how these things dovetail together to form a complete movie. In the past I have asked the question, “Why did he make this film?” And found myself unable to answer it. The point of Gone Girl escapes me, The Social Network seems to work against itself in terms of narrative and Zodiac ends with a shrug. 

The Killer, however, is the story of man who lives by a strict set of rules and breaks them when his domestic life is disturbed. With other directors and actors (I’m thinking of Tarantino and Nic Cage) that premise would be a wild, over the top story of revenge and blood (hi Mandy) but with Fincher and Fassenbender the restraint only loosens slightly. As the viewer I find this more interesting to watch. The story is essentially what does it look like when a control freak has to change things up?

I’ve moved away from watching more violent films of late and tales of revenge tend not to interest me as the once did. What I enjoy about The Killer is the focus is less on the raw emotion and acts as it is about the process of achieving The Killer’s goals. The story is tailor-made for Fincher and Fassenbender and I find it fascinating that people have chosen this film to ask, “What’s the point?” Or “Why did they make this?”. To me the answer seems simple – they both relate to the main character and connected to the story.

Don’t Worry Darling

I didn’t set out to watch films that faced controversy and bad press but somehow November found me watching several. I’ve always put off watching films that had too much noise or buzz surrounding them when they were released. I’ve not seen Avatar still because of this. Don’t Worry Darling was particularly savaged by the press for reasons that never became clear. A number of details from director Olivia Wilde’s personal life, which have nothing to do with the film, dominated the conversation around the film along with utter nonsense about cast members disrespecting one another at premieres. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a film more thoroughly sabotaged at the time of its release than this and now having seen the movie I can say that it is a shame as Don’t Worry Darling is quite good.

It was impossible to avoid hearing about this film and things swirling about it when it was released but somehow (somehow!) the big spoilers never reached me. I am amazed. I am also quite pleased as I was able to go in to the film knowing little about the plot. If you have not seen it and are able to do so, I suggest you do.

I want to not spoil the film for anyone so I am being careful with what I write. I do want to say that the performances, from everyone in the film, are wonderful. Florence Pugh in particular is so present and affecting that I doubt anyone can watch this film and not be on her character’s side. The other cast members are excellent as well, Chris Pine does not have a lot of screen time but his presence if felt throughout and it is chilling. Olivia Wilde has a significant role and from one of her earliest scenes I was taken with how beautifully she conveyed the eagerness and conviction her character felt (her husband, played by Nick Stoll did the same and it’s a delight to watch). Harry Styles was good as well, most of his interactions are with Florence Pugh and the two of them together are interesting to watch.

The one gossip related piece of information I knew about the film, that Shia LeBeof was originally in it, that I want to address is this – I am fairly sure he was cast in the Harry Styles role. Having seen the film now I can say that was one hundred percent a brilliant casting choice. I’m not weighing in on anything other than the casting here. It absolutely makes sense in terms of the film.

The look, the locations, the costumes – all of it is incredible. Tied in with the story being told it is simply perfect. I hope that with time people will forget the nonsense that troubled this film and come back and give Don’t Worry Darling a chance. I think most will be surprised with how good it is.

Dungeons & Dragons: Den of Thieves

This is a great example of going into a film having little to no expectations and being pleasantly surprised. Dungeons & Dragons is fun, it’s funny and is filled with great action sequences. It is, quite possibly, my favorite movie of 2023 (it isn’t but it is very close).

I don’t have a lot to say about the movie, much like Kong: Skull Island this film is everything it should be. If you know nothing about Dungeons & Dragons you will be fine and have a good time. Reading reviews and online comments I can see that the filmmakers were faithful to the game and source material and this pleased those who know the world and its rules well.

This is a good movie and fun to rewatch. I want more of these in the world, please.

Encanto

Sometimes I choose to live under a rock. There are a good deal of films I do not see because the hype surrounding them is too great. I know if I watch them when they are released that experience will be tainted by this hype and my negative feelings about it. So I wait. There are some that the time is still not right (Avatar). In November it felt correct to finally watch Encanto.

To say I am not in the pro Lin Manuel Miranda camp (regarding his music) is an understatement. I don’t get it. My family is enamored with his work, both for children and adults, and it plays constantly in my home. I have been familiar with the songs of Encanto since the film was released and I have not enjoyed listening to them. Until I saw the movie, which then gave them context.

Encanto is a wonderful film telling the story of a family dealing with tragedy, responsibility and the fear or mishandling a miracle. I haven’t seen this story before, told in this manner and I think it is an excellent film. There are very adult (but appropriate) themes in the film and they are handled deftly. Everything surrounding Bruno is relatable and understandable, to children and adults. In short I’m glad I watched Encanto and I can see why everyone loves it.

That being said the music makes me long for the time when Disney would hire singers for their animated films. There is nothing quite like a lovely story acted beautifully to be paired with incomparable songs. Most of the people who sing in Encanto are not singers and despite doing their best it shows. It is jarring to go from something honed to perfection to lackluster songs and mediocre singers.

My list ends here, when I began writing this in December I was convinced I needed to continue posting a year-end summary of the films I saw and loved. I think that is true. It’s the end of May and my desire to watch movies and televisions shows has not returned. I occasionally watch something now and more often than not I do not enjoy it. Part of me is wondering if the issue is solely my attitude.

This is a me-centric post and for anyone who read this far I thank you and I apologize. I try not to blather on about myself in this way. It’s been fun to revisit what I wrote here, especially the beginning, and remember having these realizations about myself and what I value. Perhaps some of those thoughts will be useful to someone else.