So here’s the deal. We rate films according to the year they’re available in America, not just New York and LaLa Land, hence our top (and bottom) films may technically be 2008 films. The ones marked with an asterisk (*) have longer reviews on the site that can be accessed from the “Movie Madness” archives.
1. Synecdoche, New York—This enigmatic film from Charlie Kaufman is a visual acid trip that defies laws of time, narrative, and logic but it’s central theme is profound: What if everything that happens to you is because of who you are, not what you do? The smartest thing I saw all year by a hair over…
2. The Limits of Control* — Jim Jarmusch is always both a deliberate challenging director and this film is no exception. Like Kaufman, Jarmusch asks big questions; in this case: What happens in the gaps between what we can control and what we merely think we can?
3. Julie & Julia — And sometimes going to the cinema is just pure fun. No film can close to this one as a life-affirming embrace of life’s simple pleasures. Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci are fabulous together.
4. Up in the Air (to be reviewed)— We caught this on January 1 and were glad we did. It’s a sophisticated comedy that’s more bitter than sweet. Just when you think a cliché is about to emerge, Director Jason Reitman slaps you for daring to believe it.
5. Milk—Sean Penn’s triumphant performance reminds us, amidst the tragedy, of how far both Hollywood and society have come since 1977 when Harvey Milk was exotic for some and a target for others.
6. The Reader— Kate Winslet’s gutsy performance of an illiterate former Nazi prison guard. If you don’t think it’s gutsy, you try spending half a movie acting while completely naked!
7. Doubt— Meryl Streep has been getting lots of meaty roles, but her performance as the icy Sister Aloysius in John Patrick’s Shanley’s he said/she said drama is so powerful you’ll forget that this is really a play, not a movie.
8. An Education*— Carey Mulligan! Okay, it’s also a smart coming-of-age film set in the early 1960s that walks a very thin line between charming and creepy. Charming wins.
9. Frost/Nixon— Another film that’s really a play, but Ron Howard’s surprisingly deft direction is cat-and-mouse pas de deux between commentator David Frost and disgraced ex-President Richard Nixon. Frank Langella is so good you forget that he doesn’t look a think like Nixon.
1. Synecdoche, New York—This enigmatic film from Charlie Kaufman is a visual acid trip that defies laws of time, narrative, and logic but it’s central theme is profound: What if everything that happens to you is because of who you are, not what you do? The smartest thing I saw all year by a hair over…
2. The Limits of Control* — Jim Jarmusch is always both a deliberate challenging director and this film is no exception. Like Kaufman, Jarmusch asks big questions; in this case: What happens in the gaps between what we can control and what we merely think we can?
3. Julie & Julia — And sometimes going to the cinema is just pure fun. No film can close to this one as a life-affirming embrace of life’s simple pleasures. Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci are fabulous together.
4. Up in the Air (to be reviewed)— We caught this on January 1 and were glad we did. It’s a sophisticated comedy that’s more bitter than sweet. Just when you think a cliché is about to emerge, Director Jason Reitman slaps you for daring to believe it.
5. Milk—Sean Penn’s triumphant performance reminds us, amidst the tragedy, of how far both Hollywood and society have come since 1977 when Harvey Milk was exotic for some and a target for others.
6. The Reader— Kate Winslet’s gutsy performance of an illiterate former Nazi prison guard. If you don’t think it’s gutsy, you try spending half a movie acting while completely naked!
7. Doubt— Meryl Streep has been getting lots of meaty roles, but her performance as the icy Sister Aloysius in John Patrick’s Shanley’s he said/she said drama is so powerful you’ll forget that this is really a play, not a movie.
8. An Education*— Carey Mulligan! Okay, it’s also a smart coming-of-age film set in the early 1960s that walks a very thin line between charming and creepy. Charming wins.
9. Frost/Nixon— Another film that’s really a play, but Ron Howard’s surprisingly deft direction is cat-and-mouse pas de deux between commentator David Frost and disgraced ex-President Richard Nixon. Frank Langella is so good you forget that he doesn’t look a think like Nixon.
10. Phoebe in Wonderland*— Elle Fanning’s performance in this is the finest performance by a child actor in many moons. The story line is predictable and any adult not named Patricia Clarkson so-so, but the magic takes over.
Worst Films:
See these at your peril and with a clothespin over you nose. In reverse order of badness:
Milk in the Land, Ballad of an American Drink— This documentary seeks to be a shake of various ways to think of milk, but it’s what you’d get if the base was sour and the ingredients incongruous.
Bright Star*— Jane Campion’s new film is easily the year’s most disappointing. It looks gorgeous, but it’s as vacuous as the moon’s (non) atmosphere.
The Informant!*— This Archer Daniels Midland corporate crime film is so tame that the ADM board couldn’t have bribed Hollywood to make it more lame.
The Wrestler— Like Nobody’s Fool for the WWF crowd and without Paul Newman. But I’ll believe Mickey Rourke as a wrestler before I believe that Marisa Tomei is a serious actress.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day— Really? It seemed like at least a month.
Serious Man*— If God really wanted to test Job, He make him sit through this film. Reviewed highly by critics who don’t know the difference between “subtle” and “empty.”
Taking Woodstock*— If you think there’s any redeeming value in this Ang Lee train wreck, please stay away from the brown acid.
Worst Films:
See these at your peril and with a clothespin over you nose. In reverse order of badness:
Milk in the Land, Ballad of an American Drink— This documentary seeks to be a shake of various ways to think of milk, but it’s what you’d get if the base was sour and the ingredients incongruous.
Bright Star*— Jane Campion’s new film is easily the year’s most disappointing. It looks gorgeous, but it’s as vacuous as the moon’s (non) atmosphere.
The Informant!*— This Archer Daniels Midland corporate crime film is so tame that the ADM board couldn’t have bribed Hollywood to make it more lame.
The Wrestler— Like Nobody’s Fool for the WWF crowd and without Paul Newman. But I’ll believe Mickey Rourke as a wrestler before I believe that Marisa Tomei is a serious actress.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day— Really? It seemed like at least a month.
Serious Man*— If God really wanted to test Job, He make him sit through this film. Reviewed highly by critics who don’t know the difference between “subtle” and “empty.”
Taking Woodstock*— If you think there’s any redeeming value in this Ang Lee train wreck, please stay away from the brown acid.
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1 comment:
I would have to say that your reviews are enjoyable to read. There is a movie website that I belong to that I think that you would enjoy.
http://www.ez1productions.com
I really think that you should check it out. There are many different types of movie games that I think you might find enjoyable.
Also in the lounge area, there are some heated discussions about many of the films that you discuss and many others that I think might interest you. There is a strong group of around 15-20 people that contribute to the site from all over the world.
If you visit the lounge area, then go to the awards section, you could contribute your Best of 2009 list if you desired to do so.
My only critic is that I don't think it is fair to include films from 2008 in a 2009 discussion for best and worst films. My personal opinion is that there is too much overlap in the way that you come up with your list. Also you might want to publish a full list of all the movies that you have seen in a given year. It is interesting to know the sample size and type of movies that comprise your list.
Hope to see you in the lounge adding your list to the rest of ours. We are also doing a best of the decades list.
Here is the URL for the lounge.
http://www.ez1productions.com/cgi-bin/yabb/yabb.pl
Cheers,
Aaron
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