I'll of course only comment on those I've watched:
Se7en vs Memento- Whilst Memento's difficulty in constructing a non-linear narrative and then adapting it from script to screen can't be understated and to do successfully is exemplary, Se7en to me was much more emotionally hard hitting/ thematically rich. From the choice to not name the city-thereby making the characters more palpable by comparison, to the juxtaposition of young/brash and old/wise detective, the engrossing plot of the Christian moral codes, the disturbing shot of the Sloth etc, Fincher's film felt surreal and won't leave my memory. The twist ending was the icing on an already delicious cake and the music for suspense was masterfully done. Pitt, Freeman and Spacey were perfectly cast as well IMO
Memento is great but Se7en is special.
Fight Club vs Batman Begins
Tough. Fight club's writing was smart without feeling too on the nose, the acting was on point and the direction fit the characters like a glove. It's also poignant that the author of the book preferred the film's ending because the more faithful message sent.
Begins though was pretty much the perfect Batman origin, Comic faithfulness notwithstanding. The atmosphere Nolan crafted wasn't reached again in the trilogy, not even in TDK. Gotham felt like a character what with the dark lighting and mostly night shots which fits with Batman's dark mythos. The pacing was excellent, the casting was mostly commendable and the score was epic.
The Dark Knight
More ambitious and superior writing compared to Begins despite the plot holes, a better villain, great supporting antagonist in Two-Face, smooth pacing, entertaining sub-plots and all round set the standard for sequels.
Inception
Been years since I saw this but from what I remember, the idea was pulled off well and explained sufficiently, awesome cast of actors, consistently entertaining, brilliant special effects and cinematography. The strength of Inception lies in the iron-strong script and supporting cast IMO
The Social Network vs The Dark Knight Rises
TDKR was an overall step-down in quality for me despite shining in a few areas like action and set-pieces. Bane's reveal as a lackey was disappointing, his death was even worse, Catwoman felt redundant and most egregiously, the theme of the film was done better in TDK.
TSN had a very impressive script, getting you emotionally invested in a morally questionable protagonist, understanding Spider-Man's part in the company/his side of the story, the dialogue was memorable and the direction was to the point but effective.
Dunkirk
I appreciated the direction, acting (Harry Styles surprised me) and historical significance but I didn't enjoy the film that much overall, there just wasn't enough meat for me stay gripped and the tone was too quiet.
Tenet
This was exciting but felt a little too self-indulgent for Nolan. The idea of the time aspect overtook the importance of character establishment-we followed the protagonist but didn't know where he came from, what truly drives him etc, one would argue that might not matter for this type of film but for me it always does. The idea wasn't executed coherently albeit it was fun and the sound needed more work in post-production as I couldn't hear what was being said at times. Positives though-acting on point, occasional funny lines, (Kenneth Branagh) the special effects were incredible and certain sequences like the gas room scene were exhilarating. TLDR: was fun but Inception was better.
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