Yo everyone, Sly did it!

In Creed, Stallone’s Rocky Balboa nostalgically reprises one of the most beloved characters in film history with a lasting and emotional portrayal. While still maintaining that “aw shucks” persona, our hero is bestowing upon young Adonis Johnson in a surprisingly elegant manner.

The Italian Stallion steps out of his pugilistic stereotype and into an intellectual role with self deprecating humor (the chicken scene) and fascinating corner speak; an evolution I was skeptical of and found to be the defining character arc of the film.

Creed (Johnson), attempting to chart his own path in his father’s profession, seeks out Rocky, a lost soul in his own way, for boxing acumen. A story line told many times, however not this well. His athleticism is unquestioned and the chemistry with Balboa is uncommonly good. Save for one thick, unnecessary moment backstage at a concert, Michael B. Jordan’s Creed is well acted.

The ending, evoking memories of Rocky I, was delightfully unexpected. The training and fight scenes were elegantly shot and perfectly timed. Creed goes toe-to-toe with the heavyweights of the Film Clas elite, scoring 4.5 out of 5 napkins, a near unanimous decision by the judges.

Room is balance. A balance achieved through imaginative storytelling. There are beautiful moments during despair and sad moments during supposed elation. It is this parity that keeps us so invested before and after the story’s fulcrum; the separation, escape and reunion of Ma and Jack. There is no parity during these minutes. It is as powerful as cinema can get.

While Larson and Tremblay were brilliant, it is the performance of Tom McCamus as Leo that is subtly heroic in this film. He is the first male to pay Jack any mind. Ma’s father (Macy) cannot acknowledge Jack because of the circumstances with which he came to be. The male police officer was even dismissive and condescending. Enter Leo, Ma’s stepdad, who simply shares a bowl of cereal with Jack and socially catapults him into this world.

The film is disturbing, no question. But the tinge of joy from parental love and childhood innocence wins. Larson’s is the best female performance of the year, by far. Jack can say goodnight to napkin 1, 2, 3, and 4, as well as half napkin as this moving film gains 4.5 out of 5.

I’m not sure what I expected going into this picture but I did not think my initial assessment would be, “I was on the edge of my seat.” This brash statement had my theater going pals wondering if I was sitting in a smaller seat.

Although it might not be the next Bourne film, The Danish Girl is certainly poignant and emotional.

Eddie Redmayne steeps himself in the roles of Lili and Einar, flawlessly transforming into the person he believes himself to be. As Gerda, Vikander allows the audience to feel the swell of emotion crashing down upon her; especially as she begins to paint Lili and her struggling art career ascends. Her acceptance of Lili is gradual and guides us to the end of the film.

Redmayne is fantastic but I wanted the actual film to be better than it was, my initial proclamation notwithstanding. Although brilliant acting is a wonderful thing to watch, this artistic picture doesn’t quite venture into the Film Clas elite, doodling on 3.7 napkins out of 5.

I have never been pushed purposely toward sleep by a film till Brooklyn. Cue The Beastie Boys. Luckily I caught the matinee and made it through this stunningly emotionless two-hour lullaby.

And that is very disappointing as I love the woven history between New York and Ireland. But the movie isn’t about this. Nor is it beautiful. It isn’t humorous. It isn’t dramatic. The story reduces to a girl making a choice between two guys when her New York secret is discovered in Ireland. Yippee.

Ronan is uninspiring and bland. Thoughts of chutzpah and bravery for leaving Ireland are misguided as she has work, lodging, school and guidance waiting for her in Brooklyn; all set up by an adoring sister.

Predictable stories can be exciting and entertaining but not this one. I wasn’t rooting for the Italian-American plumber or the Irish gentleman to get the girl. I knew what was going to happen and I didn’t care and that is the problem with this film.

I know Nick Hornby is way better than this. Nevertheless, Brooklyn tumbles right down Park Slope with only 1.6 out of 5 napkins to break the fall.

This film is unbelievable. Literally, it is not believable. Well, it is possibly believable but there is no way, right?

And there it is. This film holds us in this confused and blissful limbo for its duration. Is it fable? Is it folklore? Is it truth? And that, in part, is what makes it incredible. A revenant is someone who has simply returned but with the added mythical and biblical caveat, “supposedly from the dead.” The brilliant Alejandro Inarritu challenges our faith, and the story we might know, from the title alone.

It is a grueling watch, for sure, and in DiCaprio’s Hugh Glass, we feel all of it. This is partly because of the amazing cinematography but mostly because of Leo’s epic, all-inclusive (gritty and intelligent) performance. The emotional surprise from the film was the visceral hatred developed for Fitzgerald. This rivals the disdain developed for Commodus in Gladiator and puts Hardy in exclusive company.

Inarritu places us in a fascinating time in history. We are theatrically transported and that is challenging. The Revenant proves that revenge is a dish best served cold, or in the cold, with 4.6 out of 5 napkins on the side.

Adam McKay, a zany screenwriter, interprets a highly analytical book and produces a slapstick film adaptation. It’s a nice trick but the end result is gimmicky, hodgepodge and funnier than it needed to be.

The Big Short, a conceptually formidable drama, turns into a weird comedy when Ryan Gosling’s character wipes out the fourth wall and admits to the audience that the previous scene never actually happened. And that’s just the beginning.

The celebrity cameos used to explain financial lingo are amusing interludes but misplaced. I was okay with the “Jenga” collapse analogy contained in the actual movie. These vignettes highlighted an inability to write the actual story into the story. This has many theater goers talking about Anthony Bourdain’s fish instead of Christian Bale’s excellent performance. Heretofore, McKay made assumptions about economic knowledge and interest of his audience which shorts, well, us.

I didn’t dislike the film. I joined in the laughter. The overly tanned and arrogant Gosling was hilarious but I didn’t expect humor to be the big takeaway from The Big Short. The film can only make a 3.1 out of 5 napkin down payment, making it unable to finance Film Clas elite status.

***The photo is of a drawing in the book “All the Buildings in New York That I’ve Drawn So Far” by James Gulliver Hancock published by Universe Publishing, a division of Rizzoli International Publishing, Inc. 300 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10010***

Thank you so much for a wonderful 2015 as the response to this project has been awesome!!

Here at Film Clas, we love Countdowns/Top 5s/Best ofs and the such. So we have compiled, based on the airtight napkin rating system, a list of the year’s Top 5 films. Enjoy and get out to the theater!!!

1. Shaun the Sheep
2. The Force Awakens
3. What We Do in the Shadows
4. Trumbo
5. (tie) Spotlight
5. (tie) Rogue Nation

A long time ago in a city not so far away, I was a wide-eyed tiny lad walking into the theater. I was freaking out in the middle of Gotham; crying because I thought we would miss the train and shaking because I was going to the cinema to see The Empire Strikes Back.

The Force Awakens took me right back to that time (the excitement not the crying).

From the moment the text scrolls and the score begins, this movie is astonishing. It is finally what happens next! The howling, ominous TIE Fighter fly-by sounds echoing through the theater and the scene transitions with pinhole fade outs were fantastic. Our exciting characters (Poe, Finn, Rey and Kylo Ren) breathe new emotions, heroism, humor, darkness, confusion and relationships into the story. Gosh, just the head shots aboard the X-wing fighters were enough for me.

I’ll admit, I was easy to please, especially after the prequels fiasco. I always just want to be entertained and in this regard, the film is gold. The Force Awakens allies with 4.85 napkins out of 5 and luminous napkins are they.

Spotlight is the investigative reporting team at The Boston Globe that knocked the Rosary beads right off the Catholic Church’s cover up of rampant priestly sexual abuse. Well, they made a movie about these journalists and it’s excellent.

The Spotlight group (Keaton, McAdams, Ruffalo and d’Arcy James) was cohesive and thorough in their investigation before everything was a click way. Each had their personal relation to the church and they were collectively motivated to expose these injustices. This makes it difficult to distinguish one performance as better than the other; a testament to the team concept and great writing. In fact, when Ruffalo individualizes his own emotions in a much previewed rant, the demeanor of the group is altered and thus we have the film’s only true glitch.

Two performances in the picture stood tall. Schreiber as new Globe editor Baron, exhibited monotone calm and leadership as the pressure to print mounted. And Tucci as Garabedian, the single attorney representing the victims, resembled an exhausted man with unwavering resolve to give his clients a voice.

This story about the story about the newspaper reporting of an extremely important story inks 4.55 napkins out of 5.

Bryan Cranston is naked again and that is good news for all of us. Whether he is writing in the tub at home or desolate in his tighty-whities on the side of a New Mexico road, the former “dentist to the stars” is certainly one of a kind and his physical commitment to his characters is unparalleled.

Cranston lures us in with his slow drawl, flowing intonations and timely humor. His portrayal of this imaginative hen-pecking writer, smoking and editing, was simply brilliant. John Goodman’s Frank King was the perfect amalgamation of the likability of Dan Conner and the humorous outbursts of Walter Shoback. These two savvy vets gave the film a lengthy head start.

I really enjoy movies about the movies like Cinema Paradiso, Hugo and Shadow of the Vampire and Trumbo can dance right alongside these excellent films. This is a well told Hollywood history lesson that I knew little about and found fascinating. Today, The Blacklist is an open platform for screenwriting creativity, not censure.

Trumbo is far from the “garbage” that King Brothers Productions prides itself in releasing as it fades in with 4.6 out of 5 napkins.