🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Spicy - A must watch
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Hot - Recommended
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Mild - Could be good
🌶️🌶️ Bland - Don’t bother
🌶️ Rotten - Disaster

Which movies are worth watching? These ratings serve as recommendations for cinema enjoyers based on cinematography/story/fun and to discover similar films. Reviews/analysis are spoiler protected.

Aftersun (2022)

Marko Li 4/7/25 Marko Li 4/7/25

Aftersun (2022)

Warm, nostalgic melancholy.

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The Piano Teacher (2001)

Marko Li 12/25/24 Marko Li 12/25/24

The Piano Teacher (2001)

Aren’t all piano teachers masochistic?

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A Star Is Born (2018)

Marko Li 12/24/24 Marko Li 12/24/24

A Star Is Born (2018)

Lady Gaga can sing, but can she act?

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Die Hard (1988)

Marko Li 12/17/24 Marko Li 12/17/24

Die Hard (1988)

All I want for Christmas is an action blockbuster.

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The Hunt (2012)

Marko Li 12/16/24 Marko Li 12/16/24

The Hunt (2012)

Men can also be victims.

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The Ring (2012)

Marko Li 12/16/24 Marko Li 12/16/24

The Ring (2012)

Let’s sleep with the lights on.

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Steve Jobs (2015)

Marko Li 12/15/24 Marko Li 12/15/24

Steve Jobs (2015)

Our favorite asshole tech CEO.

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Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)

Marko Li 12/13/24 Marko Li 12/13/24

Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)

Can a painting be famous enough for an entire movie?

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Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Marko Li 12/13/24 Marko Li 12/13/24

Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

An obscure vision even for open eyes.

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Limitless (2011)

Marko Li 12/12/24 Marko Li 12/12/24

Limitless (2011)

There’s still a limit to the audience’s disbelief.

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District 9 (2009)

Marko Li 12/12/24 Marko Li 12/12/24

District 9 (2009)

Defying traditional alien tropes.

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Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Marko Li 12/12/24 Marko Li 12/12/24

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Wes Anderson’s funniest film.

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The Pianist (2002)

Marko Li 12/9/24 Marko Li 12/9/24

The Pianist (2002)

The haunting silence of the Holocaust.

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Train To Busan (2016)

Marko Li 11/11/24 Marko Li 11/11/24

Train To Busan (2016)

Korean zombies infect western cinema.

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Chronicle (2012)

Marko Li 11/10/24 Marko Li 11/10/24

Chronicle (2012)

The superpower experience every high schooler dreams of.

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The Substance (2024)

Marko Li 11/2/24 Marko Li 11/2/24

The Substance (2024)

Superficial, artificial, the body horrors of vanity.

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The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

Marko Li 11/2/24 Marko Li 11/2/24

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

An overly long film befitting of its title.

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The Road (2009)

Marko Li 11/1/24 Marko Li 11/1/24

The Road (2009)

Father, son and audiences try to survive this apocalyptic journey.

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Shame (2011)

Marko Li 10/31/24 Marko Li 10/31/24

Shame (2011)

Somehow, sex addiction seems uninteresting.

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Hero (2002)

Marko Li 10/31/24 Marko Li 10/31/24

Hero (2002)

The pinnacle of Chinese cinematography.

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Strange Darling (2023)

Marko Li 10/27/24 Marko Li 10/27/24

Strange Darling (2023)

Unsophisticated subversion.

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Babylon (2022)

Marko Li 10/27/24 Marko Li 10/27/24

Babylon (2022)

A vapid love letter to Hollywood filmmaking.

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Kinds of Kindness (2024)

Marko Li 9/16/24 Marko Li 9/16/24

Kinds of Kindness (2024)

The absurdity of loyalty.

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Army of Shadows (1969)

Marko Li 9/16/24 Marko Li 9/16/24

Army of Shadows (1969)

A war thriller at the peak of the French wave.

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Alien (1979)

Marko Li 8/15/24 Marko Li 8/15/24

Alien (1979)

The alien movie that really started it all.

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Goodfellas (1990)

Marko Li 7/20/24 Marko Li 7/20/24

Goodfellas (1990)

As far back as I can remember I always wanted to be a gangster.

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Green Room (2015)

Marko Li 7/16/24 Marko Li 7/16/24

Green Room (2015)

If Fincher made a slasher.

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Barry Lyndon (1975)

Marko Li 7/16/24 Marko Li 7/16/24

Barry Lyndon (1975)

An epic character study underneath all the powered wigs.

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Apocalypse Now (1979)

Marko Li 7/16/24 Marko Li 7/16/24

Apocalypse Now (1979)

The greatest war film ever made.

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Citizen Kane (1941)

Marko Li 6/28/24 Marko Li 6/28/24

Citizen Kane (1941)

A revolution in filmmaking no longer revolutionary.

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Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

Marko Li 6/18/24 Marko Li 6/18/24

Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

Ridiculously fun Kung Fu.

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Lars And The Real Girl (2007)

Marko Li 6/18/24 Marko Li 6/18/24

Lars And The Real Girl (2007)

Oh, you don’t like real girls?

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House of Flying Daggers (2004)

Marko Li 6/18/24 Marko Li 6/18/24

House of Flying Daggers (2004)

As sexy as martial arts can get.

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127 Hours (2010)

Marko Li 6/18/24 Marko Li 6/18/24

127 Hours (2010)

Claustrophobic immersion.

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Her (2013)

Marko Li 6/16/24 Marko Li 6/16/24

Her (2013)

A man dumps his wife for AI.

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The Shining (1980)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

The Shining (1980)

Redrum.

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No Country For Old Men (2007)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

No Country For Old Men (2007)

How a coin toss changed cinema.

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Whiplash (2014)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Whiplash (2014)

It’s quite my tempo.

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The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Wes Anderson's most polished art project.

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Rush (2013)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Rush (2013)

The best racing film is one with a triumphant finish.

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Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

An everlasting romance in wonderfully European gothic style.

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Midnight in Paris (2011)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Midnight in Paris (2011)

What if you could go back in time and meet your literary heroes?

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Casino Royale (2006)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Casino Royale (2006)

The most seductive modern bond film.

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Inglorious Basterds (2009)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Inglorious Basterds (2009)

Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece.

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Drive (2011)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Drive (2011)

Romanticizing Los Angeles crime.

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The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

The Place Beyond The Pines (2012)

A film that speaks to male audiences with just enough spark of magic.

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The Illusionist (2006)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

The Illusionist (2006)

No illusions, the magic is real.

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Ex Machina (2014)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Ex Machina (2014)

Everything a Black Mirror episode strives for.

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You Won't Be Alone (2022)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

You Won't Be Alone (2022)

A sentimental love letter to humanity.

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Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016)

Marko Li 6/15/24 Marko Li 6/15/24

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016)

Gothic yet innocent, one of Tim Burton's best in years.

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