Reflection On “The Big Picture” 2019 Movie Draft

Looking at this reflection of “The Big Picture” 2019 Movie Draft, I have seen 167 movies from this year! This is actually the most abundant movie viewing year of my life! How about them apples!

This is my 15th reflection on a The Big Picture’s draft. Thus far I have Sean Fennessey has the lead in terms of my appreciation of their lists with six wins thus far. Chris Ryan is in second with five wins. Amanda Dobbins has a pair of wins, and the lone guest to win has been Joanna Robinson with her 2003 movie draft.

Now let’s head into the 2019 movie draft. Perhaps I should do some recaps of their auction drafts as well? Not sure how I would go about doing that, but it is an idea for content.

Drama

Holy smokes, we are starting off with two absolute killers. Sorry Chris Ryan, but I have not seen The Souvenir, so that is not going to be factored in.
Uncut Gems is arguably the most stressful movie I have seen over the last five years, and it is the best performance that Adam Sandler has ever given. It involves Kevin Garnett on the Boston Celtics, sports gambling, a super attractive Julia Fox, and a truly surprising ending. It was also one of the best Alamo Draft House sequences I ever had because I walked out grinning from eat to ear and a group of four women in front of me hated it and said it was a terrible, awful experience. Too bad I have sworn off Alamo now.
However, despite Uncut Gems appeal, I am going to go with the Amanda Dobbins pick of Portrait Of.A Lady On Fire. This love story is fucking gorgeous, and god damnit if the ending didn’t have me swimming in a puddle of tears. It introduced me to Noémie Merlant, who continues to impress me with her latest effort in Tár (2022). When it comes down to these two movies, I get down to the ending. I have rewatched the ending to Portrait Of A Lady On Fire more times than I could count. It has two undeniably awesome performances, and did I mention it looks incredible?

Streamer

Another category, and another movie I have not seen. Apologies to Sean Fennessey, but I have not seen High Flying Bird so I will not be choosing that.
So this is between a different Steven Soderbergh movie, The Laundromat, and the Scarlett Johansson/Adam Driver acting showcase Marriage Story. Although I enjoyed The Laundromat, this one is going to Amanda Dobbins again because Marriage Story is just a way, way, better movie. Noah Baumbach creates the best couple arguments since Before Midnight (2013). The movie was nominated for six Oscars, and Laura Dern took home the only win in best Supporting Actress. One could argue it had a shot in Best Original Screenplay, but that category was FUCKING STACKED at the 2020 awards; Marriage Story, Knives Out, 1917, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood…and the winner Parasite.

Oscar nominee

AMANDA DOBBINS IS GOING FOR THE SWEEP. Parasite is the best movie from this year and is one of the best movies of this millennium. It is impossible for me not to pick the movie that shocked me in every which way the multiple times I saw it in theaters. Do you remember what it was like watching The Academy Awards when Parasite was sweeping through? Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, Best International Feature, and Best Picture. That night was awesome. No disrespect to The Irishman or Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, but they never stood a chance.

action/Horror/Thriller

Alright, combining these three genres into one makes for a compelling competition. Sean Fennessey goes a bit wary of the restraints of the category calling Ford v. Ferrari , but if you want to call those race sequences actual chase sequences, then fine, I get it. Ford v. Ferrari first has to match wits with Ari Aster’s Midsommar, which is the scariest movie to ever be set in the daylight. I think you can pin any car race from Mangold’s achievement to the shock-and-awe of the cliff head bashing in Midsommar and the super-charged engines would fall short. I forget that Ford v. Ferrari is a movie, but Midsommar lives in the back of my head and reminds me every day that I should not be single. Finally we have Midsommar vs. Triple Frontier, which the latest movie from J.C. Chandor (director of Margin Call (2011)). Oscar Isaac, Ben Affleck, Charlie Hunnam, and Pedro Mascal is a damn god action movie cast, and damn if the movie doesn’t leave some sticker shock..much more so than most Netflix one offs.
I am going to give Chris Ryan his first point. In terms of a last impact, Midsommar has stood the test of time and has haunted me since my first viewing of it. Also, it introduced me to Florence Pugh, and that is a gift I can never give enough thanks for.
Amanda Dobbins has three categories check off, while Chris Ryan looks to play catchup with one.

BLOCKBUSTER

I have not seen Greta Gerwig’s Little Women. It has been on Emma and I’s watchlist since we have started dating and we just haven’t made it that much of a priority. But what Amanda said on the podcast is correct. It is very cool that this movie was eligible for the blockbuster category. It made 108 million dollars domestically, and over 110 million dollars overseas. Not too shabby.
This is a showdown between Sean and Chris, and I am going to lean toward the host of the show. This was a hilarious moment during the podcast when Chris took Avengers: Endgame and Sean was legit butt heart. However, him being a master scrooge should not have been his reaction because…he got the better movie? Knives Out is better than Endgame, even if it did not make as much money. Endgame was the end of my Marvel fandom, and my discovery of truly good who-dun-its was kindled with Rian Johnson’s mystery.
With that decision, Sean and Chris each have one vote…and Amanda Dobbins has three. No one is catching up to the Dobb Mobb.

WILD CARD

As crazy as this is, I have not seen 21 Bridges. This is a huge hole in my random action movie loving library. Sorry Chris Ryan. you will not be getting a second point.
These are two major “THIS IS ME” picks. Sean Fennessey picks The Lighthouse, which is Robert Eggers adventurous isolation drama comedy. It is a really weird but really gorgeous movie. It will draw you into the sea and Willem Dafoe is casted perfectly for the crazed lighthouse keeper. Amanda Dobbins picks American Factory, which won Best Documentary at the 2020 Academy Awards and features an American factory taken over by Chinese ownership.
I don’t believe my own fingers, but I am picking American Factory. That documentary was remarkable and I have been thinking about it since I watched it over a month ago. It puts work cultures and work stereotypes under a microscope and forces the audience to think. It deserved the praise it got.

AMANDA DOBBINS EMERGES VICTORIOUS! She gets the win of Chris and Sean, 4-1-1. Overall, this 2019 draft was STRONG and there were no bad movies on this list. But it is Dobbins who gets the bragging rights.

*Holy smokes this draft was close! Maybe the closest ever? I wish the word doc I used to use was being updated so I could see for sure. But good for Amanda Dobbins, bragging rights now.*

	STANKO PICKS (All Movies Eligible)	STANKO PICKS (No TBP Movies)
Drama	Parasite	Bombshell
Streamer	Knives Out	Brittany Runs A Marathon
Oscar Nominee	Once Upon A Time … In Hollywood	Rocketman
Action/Horror/Thriller	Ready Or Not	Ready Or Not
Blockbuster	John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum	John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum
Wild Card	Portrait Of A Lady On Fire	Crawl

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Booksmart, Diego Maradona, Midsommar, Us, Marriage Story

Drama

I have already talk about Parasite. It is fucking great.
I am in the minority, but I thought that Bombshell was excellent. I thought all of the acting was fantastic, the the makeup & hairstyling on Charlize Theron could have been trickery of AI. Bombshell did with the Oscar for makeup, and both Charlize Theron and Margot Robbie were nominated. The movie did not generate the critical buzz that I expected, but damnit I swear this movie got hated on bad for some reason I just don’t understand.

Streamer

Knives Out is great. It was picked by The Big Picture crew, and rightfully so.
Brittany Runs A Marathon is way under the radar. it is slept on. Now, am I biased because I enjoy running, I run marathons and I love stories about people pushing themselves to do things they didn’t think possible. All of this is in Brittany Runs A Marathon. This movie could have just been a body positivity type of self-improvement movie, but Jillian Bell and this whole story rise to a different level.

Oscar Nominee

Listen, I can get a Quentin Tarantino on my list? Yes, I will take it. I wrote back in 2019 that Once Upon A Time … In Hollywood was my second favorite Tarantino movie. I may have to think back on that, but it easily in my top half. Still a knockout of a movie.
Part of my love for Rocketman is that it is so much better than Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) yet it did not get the attention it deserved. Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting) is a fantastic scene and I revisit it all the time on YouTube.

action/Horror/Thriller

Ready Or Not is my version of The Nice Guys. I recommend this movie to everyone who needs a random movie to watch. It is in the same ilk as Cabin In The Woods (2011); a horror comedy that pokes fun at the genre and has damn good characters to carry what could be a formulaic story. There are twists, scares, laughs and the beautiful face of Samara Weaving. I am all about.

BLOCKBUSTER

Listen, I love John Wick. John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is absolutely bonkers. The ending sequence in the hotel is bouncing of the walls with suspension of disbelieve, and I just do not care at all. Keanu Reeves is looking fly as fuck, and I can not wait for when he becomes a phoenix rising from the ashes to kick the shit out of someone in Chapter Four. We get more Ian McShane and Lance Reddick in Chapter three, as well as the wonderfully creepy Adjudicator, and the quirky Zero. Everything about it is great.

WILD CARD

Portrait Of A Lady On Fire is the most I cried before CODA (2022) came out, and before episode three of The Last Of Us.
I am sucker for monster movies. I will watch the worst of the worst, and hope for the best knowing I will never get there. Crawi, it is my type of stupid slop. As I am writing this, I am being poked fun at because I don’t enjoy fun in my movies. Well, I love this type of fun. Killer alligators, a super simple premise and some remarkably memorable scenes. That is all I need from a monster movie.

Sean Fennessey – 6 Wins
Chris Ryan – 5 Wins
Amanda Dobbins – 3 Win
Joanna Robinson – 1 Win

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Posted on 2 months ago 0 By jstanko99 Apple TV+ Posted in Apple TV+, Disney+, General Topics, HBO Max, Hulu, Movies, Netflix, Paramount+, Peacock, Prime Video Tagged #2019, 2019 Movie Draft, 21 Bridges, Academy Award, Academy Awards, Amanda Dobbins, American Factory, Avengers: Endgame, Bombshell, Booksmart, Brittany Runs A Marathon, Cabin In The Woods, Chris Ryan, Crawl, Diego Maradona, Endgame, Ford V. Ferrari, High Flying Bird, John Wick, John Wick: Chapter 3, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, Knives Out, Little Women, Margin Call, Marriage Story, Midsommar, Once Upon A Time ... In Hollywood, Oscars, Parasite, Podcast, Portrait Of A Lady On Fire, Ready Or Not, Rocketman, Sean Fennessey, Stanko, Tar, The Big Picture, The Irishman, The Laundromat, The Lighthouse, The Nice Guys, The Ringer, The Souvenir, Triple Frontier, Uncut Gems, Us

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