1) Fallng Slowly - Once I don’t know you, but I want you. This is the best scene of the year because true magic takes place. Glen plays guitar in the street and Marketa plays piano in a music store during lunch. After the two meet, she takes him to this store where he shows her the music and lyrics to one of his songs. He begins to sing and play it for her and she joins in on piano and harmony. As the song builds, you realize you are watching and listening to one of the greatest things ever put on film. The scene (and film) is perfectly constructed and executed. The song is beautiful (Oscar for Best Song) and resonates for days in your heart and head.
2) Dunkirk Beach - Atonement Dearest Cecilia, The Story Can Resume This is a four-and-a-half long single tracking shot through Dunkirk Beach during the retreat of the British and French soldiers from France during WWII. These tracking shots are great when they're done necessarily. Joe Wright only had a few lines of description of the beach from Ian McEwen's novel. He also had the extras for just one day and the tide was to wash the set away that evening. The shot follows Robbie through the beach as horses are killed to make room, machines sabotaged, wreckage of the town stands in the background and a battleship lay stranded on the shore. He takes us in a circle back through a Gazebo full of soldiers singing a song that perfectly matches the layout of the beautiful score. In just a few minutes, thousands of descriptive words are spoken to us.
3) Strangling The Deputy – No Country For Old Men The Ultimate Bad-Ass! The deputy has just brought in Chigurh as prisoner. The deputy, in focus, sits at the desk with his back to Chigurh, out of focus. Chigurh is in the back ground standing straight up. We see him lower him self and come back up, bringing his cuffed hands from behind his back to in front of him. As the deputy talks on the phone, Chigurh calmy walks toward the deputy, drops his cuffed hands over the deputies face and around his neck. Just as he hangs up the phone Chigurh pulls the chain of his cuffs in to the neck of the deputy, lifts him up and slams both bodies on the ground; Chigurh on his back and the deputy on Chigurh. The deputy is writhing and kicking and spurting blood. Chigurh is looking to the side and breathing somewhat heavily. Blood spurts from the neck of the deputy and as his legs stop kicking and we see scuff marks on the floor from his boots. Hello, welcome to the movie, it means business...
4) Baptism- There Will Be Blood & Bowling - There Will Be Blood
Baptism Give Me The Blood! These two scenes are put in the same slot because they must be viewed in the same frame of reference with one another. The film itself, through one persepective, is one long pissing match between Plainview and Sunday. Throughout the film, Plainview is constantly getting the better of Sunday by taking his land, taking the attention from his church members, not allowing him to bless the drill and beating the everyliving crap out of him in the mud. In this scene, Sunday sees his opportunity to finally get back at Plainview for his humiliation. In front of the congregation, Sunday forces Plainview to confess over and over again his sins, including the abandoning of his son. Sunday then makes him beg for the blood. He is then smacked and slapped for the whole congregation to see. After the baptism we see an incredible shot of Plainview and Sunday shaking hands, Plainview whispering something in Sunday's ear and Sunday with a look of dread on his face.
Bowling I Drink Your Milkshake! Plainview has not forgotten his baptism when Sunday comes by his mansion years later. Sunday has been destroyed financially and spiritually from the Depression. Sunday asks for the money owed to him for the land and tells of a portion of land undrilled. Plainview proceeds to explain that all of that oil is gone because he drained it. He then puts Sunday through a sort of "anti-baptism", forcing him to confess, yell and repeat that his religion is nothing but a superstition; a mirror-image of the scene described above. Plainview even tells Sunday to imagine is congregation in front of him. The roles are reversed, the bowling alley is the church and the oil is the blood of the lamb. A chase ensues where an angry Plainview is running after a frightened Sunday and throwing bowling pins at him. At the time, this seems rather silly and humorous until Sunday trips and Plainview bludgeons him to death with one of the pins. At this point, the laughter dies and the jaws drop as Plainview ends this masterpiece with the instantly famous line “I’m finished.”
5) Hal Holbrook - Into The Wild When you forgive, you love and when you love, God's light shines upon you. "I had an idea. You know my mother was an only child. So was my father. And I was their only child. Now, with my own boy gone, I’m the end of the line. When I’m gone, my family will be finished. What do you say, you let me adopt you. I could be, say, your grandfather." Ron Franz (Hal Holbrook) says to Chris McCandless (Emile Hirsch) as a tear gently falls down his cheek. The scene takes place in his jeep just before he drops him off for his final adventure; Alaska. Chris replies that they'll talk about it when he gets back. It is here that we see Ron's heart break into billions of peices. This amazing acting job by Holbrook coupled with fantastic editing garnered him the Supporting Actor nomination.
6) Oil Drill Explosion - There Will Be Blood > There's a whole ocean of oil under our feet! No one can get to it except for me! H.W. is on a small landing above the drill watching it flow. Daniel is in his office. The drill finally strikes oil after days of churning and sets the whole mechanism on fire. H.W. is blown back to the roof of a side room and Daniel's first reaction is to make sure he is okay. The score drums and ticks suspensefully as Daniel runs to the drill, picks up his son and embraces him as they run for cover. Once H.W. is laid down on a table resting in the office, but deaf, Daniel goes back to gaze at the drill "blowing gold" all over the place. He is mesmerized by the site of the burning drill spewing oil. This is the only thought that encompasses his brain at this point. Daniel's close advisor asks if H.W. is okay to which Daniel replies “No”. The advisors immediately leaves the scene to check and Plainview is unmoved, gazing at the flaming drill.
7) Taxi Ending Credits - Michael Clayton Do I look like I'm Negotiating? For the duration of the film, Michael Clayton, a corporate janitor, has been beaten up by the big man corporation. Now that his good friend and coworker has been murdered, he is the only one with the information to bring down the corporate bad guys. All he has to do is prove it. He's a father, he's divorced and his brother is a low-life moocher. Michael is tired of cleaning up the messes of the higher-ups. He shows up at a shareholder's meeting where he pretends to negotiate with the chairwoman of the company but in actuallity is just buying himself time. He walks away as the Feds show up to bring them down. He leaves the building and gets in a cab. The ending credits role as the cab drives off and we see Clayton looking straight ahead. The look on his face speaks volumes. After seeing what he's just gone through, we know how he truly must feel by the look on his face and body expressions as he sits in the cab. Kudos to Clooney for this one.
8) Call It – No Country For Old Men What’s the most you ever lost in a coin toss? Anton Chigurh is a ruthless killer; that's been established. What we learn in this insanely intense scene is that Chirgurh doesn't just kill uncontrollably. There's a method to his madness. Oddly enough, he has principles and ethics to his ways. The flip of a coin. Chigurh enters the gas station to pay for his gas and peanuts (which in and of itself is interesting because why should a cold-blooded killer ever pay when he can kill) and then preceeds to ask the cashier how much he's ever lost in a coin toss...perfectly setting up the standard by which we view Chigurh the rest of the film. This standard also works to make him seem infinetely more scary. The cashier finally calls "heads". This was the correct answer because, much to the subtle eye-rolling of Chirgurh, he lives. Chigurh is the executioner, the coin is the judge and we're all in serious trouble.
9) Ratatoille Perspective - Ratatouille …you know what I’m craving? A little perspective. Anton Ego is the most feared food critic in France. He is heartless, dark and solely responsible for the loss of 2 stars from Gusteau's 4-star restaurant. Remy, the rat, is responsible for the recent rave reviews that the restaurant has been getting from other critics. The time has come for Ego to see what the buzz is all about and once and for all, end this reputation. He orders "perspective", which makes everyone in the kitchen freak out because they have no clue what wine goes well with it. Remy, pulls out the recipe for Ratatouille, a very simple peasant dish that is pretty much the worst thing you can serve to the biggest critic around. He prepares it and it is served to Ego who has been sipping his wine, looks bored and ready to leave. He cuts into the ratatouille and puts it in his mouth. Immediately, his eyes bug out and face tightens up and we are all sent into a flashback of a young boy being called into the house by his mother for supper. She has fixed him ratatouille. Perspective is exactly what he got. By one taste of the food Ego was shot into his past, digging up a memory he probably hadn't remembered in years. In a Proust sort of way, he recalled the moment in his life that stands for the whole basis of his love for great food. This is a scene that has stuck out in my mind throughout the year.
10) The Bathouse - Eastern Promises I'm Just A Driver. I'll try not to give anything away. Viggo is being tricked. Two hitmen have been told that he is someone else and that he's waiting in the bath house for them to kill. He is attacked and his towel falls off. He then beats the everliving crap out of and kills the two hitmen while completely buck-A-naked. He is vulnerable to the very literal sense. He is running, slipping, punching, stabbing and flopping all over the place. The gore matched with nudity make the entire scene unforgettable. A quick note: if you're looking at the part of the screen that you should be looking at during this scene, then you won't see anything "offensive"…depending on what you find offensive.
Other Notable Scenes Green Dress Much? - Atonement Come Back To Me This dress has quickly gone down in the annals of costumes in film history; comparing it to the iconic black dress that Audrey Hepburn wore in Breakfast At Tiffnay’s. It’s absolutely stunning. The dark green with a sheek and shiny texture brings a little light to the darkly lighted (and written) dinner/night scenes in which it exists.
Race For The $$ - No Country For Old Men You know how this is going to turn out, don't you? The chase ensues soon after the film begins and stop just a few minutes before one of the greatest endings of all time. No Country contains scene after scene of a gut-wrenching game of very suspenseful cat-and-mouse.
The Letter - Atonement In my dreams I kiss your- WHOAOA!! It’s amazing how one tiny mistake can change your whole life and the lives of others around you. This sequence is shot beautifully, jumping back and forth from Robbie typing a letter at his desk to Cecilia smoking a cigarette at her vanity. We see what he types in one rough draft as a joke to himself and we see him type the real letter. We then watch as he inserts the former page into the envelope to be delivered.
Atoning - Atonement Just do what we’ve asked of you. Write it all down! This is another scene that is extremely well done, but this time with use of the actors’ blocking and body language. Brionny has to come apologize to Cecilia and Robbie, neither of which can stand the sight of her. Robbie realizes Brionny is there after he has walked out the door. After a moment, he reenters and then starts to go off.
Redgrave Pulls The Rug - Atonement I’m sorry, could we stop for a minute? Throughout the whole film I was standing on a beautifully crafted rug. It was colorful, well structured and very big. Out of nowhere Vanessa Redgrave walks up to the edge, kneels down and gathers a clump of the edge of the rug in both fists. She shakes it a bit to spread it out as I continue to stand in the middle and look at her with wonder. She stands up ever so slightly and yanks the rug out from under me. The rug flies towards Vanessa and I fly backwards, landing on my side.
Andy Griffith - Waitress Oh I love living vicariously through the pain and suffering of others. Nobody can describe a pie better than Andy Griffith. On old grumpy man who owns the diner and hates everyone but really doesn’t. After this speech you’re mouth and eyes are watering. This was one of the better supporting actor performances of the year.
When Your Mind's Made Up - Once So, if you want something and you call, call then I’ll come running. Glen gathers a few guys he knows that play on the street to help record his album. They go to the studio to begin. The sound technician is watching the inexperienced musicians setup. He is bothered by the amateurs and has other things on his mind, like cell phone calls and the newspaper, but as they begin the second verse and the drums come in, you sense the astonishment that comes over him as he realizes the talent and quickly begins to adjust the soundboard, hoping to fully capture the music.
Heath Ledger - I'm Not There It's not about me anymore, it's all about him. Heath Ledger is Robbie Clark, a movie star playing the role of Jack Rollins (Christian Bale) who actually represents 1 of the 6 Bob Dylan characters which includes Robbie Clark. Heath’s role in the movie is very well done. He meets a girl, falls in love with her, has kids, goes through the movie star trials, divorces her but still in love with her. A memorable performance.
Tin Foil - Bug I Am The Super Mother Bug! We see the horror of mind manipulation through something as natural as someone else’s paranoia. Agnes is thoroughly convinced that bugs have entered her body and are living inside her. She has adopted this theory because her lover claimed that the army experimented on him with bugs and the government is covering it up and trying to kill them. Since they had relations of the intimate nature, Agnes is now infected and believes she is harboring the mother of all the bugs. In Act 3 they line the whole of their house with tin foil, douse themselves with gasoline and blow themselves up because it’s the only way to rid the bugs living in their skin.
Waking Up – The Diving Bell & The Buttefly I can’t speak? Why can’t you hear me? This is a great scene because it is when Jean-Dominique Bauby finally comes to after his stroke. He cannot move or speak save his left eye, but he doesn’t know this because he’s answering all of the doctor’s questions and can’t seem to figure out why they can’t hear him. You realize with Bauby the nature of his injury, emotionally as well as visually because at the same time, you’re seeing what he sees; life through one eye, watery and fuzzy and blurry as if you had just woken up from a comma. Very innovative cinematography going on here.
CGI Birth – Knocked Up Rear Your Child! This birthing scene doesn’t stop above the hospital gown. It goes straight to the womb with baby crown poking right out there. Everything. And before you can look away it’s gone. To my knowledge it’s the first visual effect birthing scene.
Games With Ghost Children - Orphanage Uno, Dos, Tres, Toca La Pared In order to channel the ghosts of her former playpals, Laura dresses up like the old nurse and plays the old game they played when they were little. She closes her eyes, faces a column in the house, says “uno, dos, tres, toca la pared” and knocks 3 times on the wood. She then turns around where the children will have taken several steps closer. Now, the first few times she does it, nothing appears. Then, out of nowhere, the 3rd time she says it and turns around, you can make out the outlines of children in the dark. Each time she repeats, they get closer. It’s the scariest scene of the year.
May You Be In Heaven 40 Days - Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead All of my parts don’t add up to one…one me. …however, there’s one part that adds up to someone else…HELLO!! This movie starts off with a bang…no pun intended. The scene begins in mid-“getting it on” and just as you least expect it. No time to pull out now ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM!!. They go all out complete with slamming pillows and staring at oneself in the mirror. Hoffman and Tomei seem to really be enjoying themselves. A startling scene to say the least.
Picture There Will Be Blood
Once
Atonement
No Country For Old Men
Juno
Eastern Promises
Michael Clayton
Waitress
The Assasination of Jesse James
Before The Devil Knows You're Dead
Director Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
Joel & Ethan Coen - No Country For Old Men
Joe Wright - Atonement
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Sydney Lumet - Before The Devil Knows You're Dead
Actor Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood
George Clooney - Michael Clayton
Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises
Josh Brolin - No Country For Old Men
Tommy Lee Jones - In The Valley of Elah
Supporting Actor Javier Bardem - No Country For Old Men
Hal Holbrook - Into The Wild
Phillip Seymoure Hoffman - Charlie Wilson's War/Before The Devil...
Andy Griffith - Waitress
Tommy Lee Jones - No Country For Old Men
Actress Julie Christie - Away From Her
Marion Cotillard - La Vie En Rose
Amy Adams - Enchanted
Keri Russell - Waitress
Ellen Page - Juno
Supporting Actress Cate Blanchett - I'm Not There
Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone
Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton
Jennifer Garner - Juno
Imilda Staunton - Harry Potter: OOTP
Adapted Screenplay Joel & Ethan Coen - No Country For Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
Christopher Hampton - Atonement
Ronald Harwood - The Diving Bell & The Butterfly
Andrew Dominik - The Assassination of Jesse James
Original Screenplay Diablo Cody - Juno
Kelly Masterson - Before The Devil Knows You're Dead
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Adrienne Shelley - Waitress
Steven Knight - Eastern Promises
Animated Feature Ratatouille
Persepolis
The Simpsons' Movie
Orginial Score Atonement
There Will Be Blood
Michael Clayton
Ratatouille
Eastern Promises
Cinematography There Will Be Blood
The Assassination of Jesse James
Atonement
No Country For Old Men
The Diving Bell & The Butterfly
Film Editing No Country For Old Men
There Will Be Blood
Atonement
Michael Clayton
The Bourne Ultimatum
The Diving Bell & The Butterfly
Sound Editing No Country For Old Men
There Will Be Blood
Atonement
The Bourne Ultimatum
Ratatouille
Transformers
Sound Mixing Sweeney Todd
No Country For Old Men
There Will Be Blood
Atonement
Hairspray
Transformers
Ratatouille
Art Direction There Will Be Blood
Atonement
Sweeney Todd
Harry Potter: OOTP
La Vie En Rose
Costume Design There Will Be Blood
Atonement
Sweeney Todd
Harry Potter: OOTP
La Vie En Rose
Makeup La Vie En Rose
Harry Potter: OOTP
Pirates of the Caribbean: AWE
Visual Effects Transformers
Harry Potter: OOTP
Pirates of the Caribbean: AWE
Documentary Feature Sicko
NOTE: I didn't feel it necessary to spend my extremely valuable time waiting on and searching for these films. Most of which, are wrongfully nominated and virtually pointless.
Original Song When Your Mind's Made Up - Once
Falling Slowly - Once
That's How You Know - Enchanted
Foreign Language The Orphanage
The Diving Bell & The Butterfly
Persepolis
NOTE: I refuse to see the foreign films that the Academy chose to nominate this year. I do not have to waste hours of my time because of their incompetence.
Doc. Short Subject NOTE: A, Who cares? Number 2, where in the world would I go to watch them?
Animated Short I Met The Walrus
Madame Tutli-Putli
Even Pigeons Go To Heaven
Peter & the Wolf
Live Action Short Il Supplente (The Substitute)
The Mozart of Pickpockets
Tanghi Argentini
The Tonto Woman
People, people, people! If I hear one more person say they can't wait to go see Fool's Gold this weekend because it looks good, I will peel their skin off of their bodies. They don't know what good or bad is. They go to their usual helping of formulaic Hollywood movies where they are mildly entertained for somewhere between an hour and a half and two hours and then they go back to their pickups, pull the tailgate down and site there talking about how cool it is to wear a giant fish hook on the brim of their camouflage hats. And they do this without once asking themselves the question, "Was this worth my time and money?" If they did ask themselves this question, the honest answer would be no and any idiot with a memory would stop going to see such crap. These movies are destroying their souls and they don't even know it. It's eating and burning and tearing away at their bodies more and more until one day, they'll come out of a romantic comedy starring Eva Mendes and Matthew McConaFAGGOT and they'll just cease to live. Just because there are commercials telling you to see a movie doesn't mean you have to. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. And you don't want to see that movie...I hope. Do you think that if Anne Sullivan kept putting Hellen Keller's hands under a streaming flow of Sulfuric Acid instead of Water (WAHWAH!!) that Hellen would have kept letting that crazy ho teach her? No! She would probably say something like, "Hey, you crazy biotch, quit putting my hands into that. I may be blind, deaf and dumb, but I can still feel it when my flesh is burning off!"...or maybe something like "UHHHHHHHHH ERK UHHERKERK". Except these PEOPLE (Plainview style) continue to let the poison evenflow of liquid pour all over them.
After the movie, you need to ask yourself, "Was this movie good or bad", and then have a FRICKIN' opinion about it. You're a human, you have a brain, you have a soul and therefore you have an opinion; if you so choose. Did you like it because you didn't "hate" it? Did you hate it because it was not what you were "expecting" or that it was "different" than the movie you saw last Saturday at 7:00 pm that parodied whatever genre is up next? If so, then you really need to reevaluate your life, open up your eyes and take a good dang look at the world around you. Take the script, story, acting, sound, cinematography etc. into account. Let me help...
2007 Movies That Were BAD: Norbit, Evan Almighty, The Number 23, License To Wed, 300, Because I Said So, Epic Movie, I Know Who Killed Me, Hostel II, Saw IV, The Game Plan, Good Luck Chuck, Alvin and the Chipmunks...
If you liked these movies, then I suggest you seriously take a step back and stop wasting your life with your lack of taste and opinion.
I’m at work. I’m surrounded by 3 ¼ of cubicle wall and a bunch of people who, unlike me, love what they do. I feel like Al Gore cutting the ribbon at the Yucca Mountain grand opening. It’s utterly nauseating to stare at this bage carpet-wall all day. If I had eaten chicken salad for lunch then it would be all over my monitor right now. But I didn’t, I had 46 Cheeze’Its. My imagination is steadily shrinking from the lack of use it gets put to. I can’t stay focused on any one thing for very long at all. I changed my pants this morning more times than Mitt Romney changed his mind on abortion…this morning. And for what? So it would match my shirt? I forgot to even wear a shirt!! One might say I have writers’ block, but for the mind. Sort of like how scissor packages say “Not for children under the age of 6 and…Brittany Spears.”, my brain box says “Not for anything creative, imaginative…or Brittany Spears”. Okay, maybe the last bit goes without saying, but the former portion is what needs to be addressed. It’s only healthy to create and imagine, but if this “Corporate America” trend keeps up, I will ‘fo shiz’ go off like Mike Gundy at a guess-your-age booth at the Payne County Fair. I turn from the window and the enticing four-story jump it holds and go back to my cubicle to do something productive for a change. I’m putting together my Top 10 Movies of the year 2007 and a few of the worst as well for fun. 2007 has been a great year for film-lovers. Week after week the theatres have screened what feels like too many movies to see. So, it’s pretty exciting to be able to write about it. I demote my pivot table and begin.
P.S. If you viewed P.S. I Love You in the theaters, you best exit now and go back to your daily dose of TMZ.com.
1. There Will Be Blood We begin in complete silence save a very dynamic and dissonate score accompanying Daniel Plainview as he digs underground with his own tools. He blows up rocks with dynamite. He climbs in and out with sticks nailed to the rock wall and a home-made pully system. There is no dialogue for about 15 minutes. This is Step 1 in his evolution as a self-proclaimed “Oil Man”. He has a son and business partner, H.W. Plainview. They go from town to town and pitch their skills as oil prospecters. They receive a tip from a young man, Paul Sunday, giving the location of oil in a town called Little Boston. The Plainviews make their way to this new promised land to broaden their business. This film is epic, grand, dark and bold. It’s a character study, a rise and fall, a tour de force (a term which I HATE to use because it's "quote-whorish"). It’s an achievement in all aspects of cinema. Paul Thomas Anderson once again creates something that will stand the test of time. Based on the novel, Oil, by Upton Sinclair, Anderson adapts it for the screen and directs it phenomenally. It has been compared to Giant, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and even Citizen Kane. All these comparisons are valid. Robert Elswit, photographs beautifully the frontier and farmland, using appropriate opportunities to show off unpretentiously his skill in cinematography and long single shots. Not only is the cinematography artistic and beautiful, but it has a purpose. It advances the plot beautifully by teaming with the very dark and brilliant score. Daniel Day-Lewis gives the performance of his career. He is completely engulfed in this character, Daniel Plainview, who is unpredictable in every way except his lust for oil drilling. Constantly jerking the audience around by showing his love for his son and then shunning him. Plainview, a volcano on the verge of eruption, is a character to behold as we see his journey to power. Paul Dano plays the twin brothers Paul and Eli Sunday, the latter of which is the eccentric preacher of the Church of the Third Revelation in Little Boston and also, natural enemy of Daniel Plainview. This film is multi-faceted. By the end, the story bottlenecks and zooms in on the boxing match between Plainview and Sunday. This film is a masterpiece and an instant classic. Either you will love it or it will rub you the wrong way. I can't wait to tell my grandchildren that I actually saw this film in the theatre.
2. Once Imagine going into a theatre without any preconceived notions about a film and leaving completely elated. This is one of the best movies of the year and has, by far, the best soundtrack. Written & directed by John Carney and made for under $160,000, this modern-day musical stars Glen Hansard from the Irish band, The Frames, and co writer Marketa Irglova as their paths cross, musical talents merge and form the best film of the year. Once takes us through a few days of the character’s lives as they share their music with each other. It studies their short relationship and how their music has been influenced by their past. This is truly a songwriter’s movie. The music and lyrics created in this film are nothing short of perfect. It is shot in a grainy, handheld-like format, some of which used with long-lense so that passersby remained unaware of the miracle that was being created around them. For a glorious movie experience, watch this. It is simple and a must see for film music/lovers.
3. Atonement It’s hard to imagine that someone could envision this film prior to making it. 2nd time director, Joe Wright, did. This film adaptation of Ian McEwan’s novel, Atonement is a period piece set during World War II. Wright adds his own style and artistic signature throughout with smokey, wordless scenes and beautiful cinematography all of which mix perfectly with the beautiful score. James McEvoy continues to impress and Kierra Knightley shows us that she can act without being obnoxious. Atonement is the story of how jealousy can direct someone to see something that wasn’t necessarily so, resent what one doesn’t understand and the drastic consequences it has on everyone else. Brioney, the girl who royally screws up the lives of Robbie (McEvoy) and Cecilia (Knightley), is played by 3 different women from her adolescence (Saoirse Ronan) to late teens (Romola Garai) and finally as an elderly woman (Vanessa Redgrave) telling her story to the world. It also addresses the concept of tweaking reality in one's writing to present the subject matter through a different point of view. The twist in this movie truly gives the audience the proper perspective of the difference in what could have been and what actually happened. The film presents perfect editing and it truly shows in the storytelling. There is an amazing 5 ½ minute single tracking shot where the camera gracefully follows Robbie (McEvoy) on Dunkirk beach through a mass of British soldiers in a gazebo as they sing along with the score, a wrecked ship, destroyed buildings and even a ferris wheel. Atonement ups the standard for period pieces.
4. No Country For Old Men What do you get when you mix the hardboiled, edgy wit of Raymond Chandler with the wide-open, epic cinematography and direction of John Ford? No, not “The Big Sleeping Searchers” and no, not “The Thin Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”. No Country For Old Men, that's what. Texas, 1980 and action-packed suspense from alpha to omega. The Coen's have brought back the old western by adapting Cormac McArthy's novel by the same name, direct, edit and produce their best work since Fargo. Roger Deakins photographs a beautiful film. The Coens really know how to make the audience love horrible people. "Mucho denaro" in the form of $2 million-cash is stumbled upon by Llewlyn Moss (Josh Brolin) as he tries desperately to stear clear of the unstoppable and ruthless Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem); whose madness is based on principle and who also scares the bejesus out of everyone. Batting third is Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones). He’s smart enough to figure out what’s going on, but also realizes that times, as always, are changing. I can’t write this review without mentioning Kelly Macdonald’s performance as Moss’ wife, Carla Jean…it’s good too. If you want Hollywood to hold your hand as you watch a shootout of an ending and one that requires no thought, then please see Live Free or Die Hard. This film deep has meaning.
5. Juno This movie mad an impact at the box office even before Oprah kidnapped the cast and had them on her show at gunpoint. Diablo Cody hits a grand slam with this first-time script by putting her clothes on, letting go of the stripper poll, and writing a screenplay that completely takes slang and witty dialogue to an entirely new level. Ellen Page is taking Hollywood by storm and Michael Cera, as always, has a quiet and reserved hilarity about his acting. Everything about this film is new and refreshing. Juno, directed by Jason Reitman, tells the story of a 16 year old (Ellen Page) who has just found out she is pregnant. She wrestles briefly with the idea of abortion until her picketing friend tells her that her fetus has fingernails. Buzzing from this double-shot of perspective, she finds a happy couple (Jason Bateman & Jennifer Garner) that will adopt the baby. The quick-paced, hilarious dialogue makes Juno the most well-written movie of the year. Mark my words come Oscar time when they announce Best Original Screenplay. It's the funniest movie of the year and it's a great time at the theatre.
6. Eastern Promises David Cronenberg, as usual, presents another drama thriller that leaves us with more questions than it actually answers. Naomie Watts plays a midwife who stumbles across the diary of a young mother who has died during childbirth. She has it translated in an effort to find the family. Viggo Mortensen plays a driver for the Russian mob, the head of which upon translating the diary, realizes he must kidnap the baby. Once again Cronenberg does something that’s never been done on film involving a bath-house, two Russian hitmen and an incredibly nude Viggo Mortensen. Eastern Promises is visually striking but at the same time has a simplicity about it. From the violence to the passing background during the motorcycle ride, Cronenberg sticks to his roots by being simple, yet stark. As the film comes to a close, it’s plain to see that Cronenberg barely scratches at the surface of what seems to be a very deep story. If you want Hollywood to hold your hand as they power-point you through until every question is answered, then try License To Wed...and then die...
7. Michael Clayton Michael Clayton is a film that gradually comes into focus throughout and not until the very end is it perfectly clear. However, it’s not confusing to the point of frustration and it’s not wordy to the point of pretention. Stephen Gaghan take notes…this is what Syriana should have been. Michael Clayton (George Clooney) is a janitor for a law firm. Not one that cleans toilets, but one that quietly cleans up messes for people in high positions; saving their reputation. Sort of like what Ted Kennedy must have used when he “accidentally” drove himself and Mary Jo Kopechne off a bridge in 1969. (“Errah, if you got a hooka in da cah, make shah ya drive her off da bridge errah”). Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson), works for the same law firm as Clayton and has been doing work for a corporation for years when, after uncovering extremely unethical and fraudulent actions and information, builds his own case against the corporation and goes insane during the process. Tilda Swinton plays a very neurotic corporate spokeswoman that is well aware of the corporate scandals and also, quite a turn off looks-wise. You hate everything about her. Clayton, taking the evidence Eden has left him, totally sticks it to the man by exposing the corporation at a shareholders meeting. Hope I didn’t ruin it for you. This movie doesn’t try to dizzy you with the plot and script although one must pay attention to keep up. Michael Clayton is visually dark, sharply written and contains underlying themes involving his sons red book. George Clooney does some of his best acting as the credits role (he neither bobs his head, nor smirks). He communicates, wordlessly, everything he’s just gone through and you believe him because you’ve witnessed the whole thing.
8. Waitress The late Adrienne Shelly writes, directs and acts in a whimsical and quaint film that’s more independent than Ralph Nader was in 2004 and much more successful. This film made quite an impact at the Sundance Film Festival, moving all who saw it. Kerri Russell proves that she can hold her own as the frontrunner of a film by playing Jenna, a waitress in a small café. She has a different pie recipe for every mood she’s in, which is usually a bad one courtesy of Earl (Jeremy Sisto), her husband who’s abusive in just about every way. Jenna is driven to some major doctor-patient humping with her gynecologist as she realizes what’s best for her and then learns that she’s pregnant. Andy Griffith gives an emotional performance (as usual) as Old Joe, the owner of the café. In his most brilliant scene he describes the texture and taste of a good pie...and it's never sounded so good.
9. Ratatouille Brad Byrd (The Incredibles) writes and directs Pixar’s newest movie about Remy. Despite his family who has no food preference, eating mainly from the trash and who also have a hatred of humans, Remy finds a way to do what he truly loves to do; and that is to cook. Ratatouille is Pixar’s most mature movie, relying mainly on story and not little kid jokes. Even though the goal is to appeal to children, this film is geared toward adults more so than any other Pixar has done. There are parts in the movie where you wonder whether it’s animation or actual footage of Paris. Ratatouille truly magnifies the beauty and color of the city with wide landscapes centered with the Eiffel Tower and with the artistic style and color reminiscent of Van Goh and Monet.
10. Before The Devil Knows Sydney Lumet shows us that, at 83 years old, he can still make a great movie. Shot in a style reminiscent of Network, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead comes from the Irish Proverb, “May you be 40 years in Heaven before the devil knows you’re dead." Hank (Ethan Hawke) is the youngest of 3 siblings. He is divorced and months behind on child support. Andy (Phillip Seymoure Hoffman), his brother, is a payroll supervisor with a drug problem supported by the salaries of two imaginary employees. Inspired by this problem-in-common, the two band together and form a plan to rob their parents’ jewelry store. This plan seems foolproof because the insurance will take care of family’s losses and they will end up with hundreds of thousands of dollars. Hank carries out the mission with a hoodlum friend of his whom, not knowing any different, kills the mother who is working at the store and gets shot himself. We view the movie through several different installments starting from different points in time and points of view. The end is through the eyes of their father, Charles (Albert Finney). We follow him as he deals with the loss of his wife, his children’s problems and finally, solving the mystery of his wife’s murder and gaining retribution by stuffing a pillow in his son's face. Ah, don't you just love family quables? They always seem to work themselves out.
11th Place: The Diving Bell & Butterfly – innovate & experimental cinematography. Great script & acting.
La Vie En Rose – worth seeing just for Marion Cotillard’s performance.
Into The Wild – character study of rebellious wanderer. Great performances
The Orphanage – the scariest movie of the year and it’s Spanish.
Charlie Wilson's War – Nichols, Hanks, Roberts, Hoffman, Adams…enough said. Comedic political retrospect that doesn’t take itself seriously...yes, it's possible.
Enchanted – Amy Adams outdoes herself, again. Disney spoofs itself, finally. Adults and children laugh at the same jokes for different reasons.
Sweeney Todd – Burton/Depp’s newest film. Violent to the point of nausea, great fun and great music.
Hairspray – for a great time at the movies. Great music, great dancing. Loveable.
The Darjeeling Limited – Wes Anderson needs Owen Wilson to keep folks interested.
Harry Potter OOTP – huge fan. Good adaptation, effects and of course, a great story.
I'm Not There – Todd Haynes abstract interpretation of Bob Dylan’s life. 6 actors portray Dylan. Blanchett gives another great performance.
The Bourne Ultimatum – Greengrass directs the best of the Bourne’s. Great action & spastic camera work.
Knocked Up – Realistic story and insanely funny.
Hot Fuzz – Quick-edit action flicks. I hope they never run out of ideas.
Grindhouse – it’s all about the experience. Needs to be viewed with all 4 trailers and both movies.
Dan In Real Life – a real comedy. If Dane Cook had to be cast, at least he’s subdued.
Sicko – Moore’s least controversial and most thought-provoking.
Gone Baby Gone – Ben Affleck’s first take at directing. Casey Affleck comes to his own as an actor.
Zodiac – Fincher’s newest tells the story of a killer. Visually stunning.
Away From Her – Julie Christie’s performance puts it on the map. Gordon Pinset opens your eyes to the world around you.
Bug – Hitchcock-y. The power of the mind when influenced psychologically.
The Worst Basically, when I say “The Worst” I also include the most disappointing. These are the ones that started with a boat-load of hype and turned out to suck. These movies had every reason to be good, whether it be a director, script or actors and despite these advantages, still managed to blow.
1. License To Wed This movie is one unrealistic misunderstanding causing one unrealistic reaction after another. If you didn’t write your own vows at your rehearsal dinner, your fiance’ isn’t going to walk out on you for it. And if she does, then good riddance biotch. Go find someone that can write vows, hope he makes you happy. License To Wed is just down right sucky. Robin Williams’ needs an intervention for this. Mandy Moore gets an eternal pardon from crappy movies because that’s just her style. John Krazinsky is one “smirk-into-the-camera” away from being forever type-cast as a “30-year-old slacker who has potential and knows it but doesn’t fully use it because he doesn’t really give a crap”, character. Trust me, we don’t need another one of those. I was flying over Cuba while this movie was playing on the plane. I wanted to jump out and take my chances with the Marxist-Leninist-Communist way of life there. At least they have cocaine.
2. Pirates of the Caribbean 3 I knew this movie was going to suck big-time because the 2nd Pirates sucked and, since they filmed both the 2nd and 3rd installments at once, I had no reason to believe this one would be any better. I was correct. This movie is an endless array of meaningless scenes that does not follow its own plotline. One gets the impression that the script was being written as the camera was rolling. As a matter of fact, it’s as if they just made up the story as they went along. The effects aren’t that great, but there’s a lot of them so your basic movie-goer is automatically wowed by that. That’s the problem these days. The standard for movies is so low that audiences don’t recognize good or bad, just boring or “frickin sweet”. In my opinion in most cases, boring trumps “fricking sweet”. Thank goodness (don’t jinx it) this trilogy is over.
3. 300 What was the point? Oh, I know, to show off special effects. Wow, good job guys. Someone took a bucket of special effects, threw it all over the monitor and then took the mouse and wiggled it around some. There’s only so much slow-motion decapitating that one can take and 300 more than wears it out. I’ll give you a rundown of the movie. The leader says, “Sparta, Charge!!” and then the men go “YEA!! ARRGHH!!” No questions asked. This movie had fanboys crapping themselves all over America. Thank goodness I only downloaded, watched it, and then deleted the evidence so no one would no that I watched this stupid movie.
4. Transformers Maybe this movie shouldn’t be on here because it’s Michael Bay and can you really expect anything more from this guy? John Voight fulfills his usual role of being a man of political power and corny one-liners. The best thing about this film, by far, is Shia Lebouf. He’s the next big thing and I’m a big fan. Apparently, Hoover Dam is home to the evil Transformer who comes alive and starts a fight between the good and evil Transformers. The effects are cool, except when they start scrapping. They then turn into blurry objects rolling around crashing into buildings and what not. So, in reality, the special effects aren’t good and neither is this movie.
5. American Gangster It’s more disappointing than bad. Washington and Crowe are two of my least favorite actors and here they play their usual type-cast selves. They play the same character every time and I can’t help but notice their personal mannerisms leaking through their characters on screen. This is a sign of mediocre acting. Director Ridley Scott tries with another swing and a miss. He hasn’t done a decent film since, some might say Gladiator, but I say Thelma & Louise or Bladerunner. Nothing happens in this film. Crowe tries to catch Washington. That’s it. He finally does and for about 5 minutes of the film they’re in the same room together, which isn’t so bad oddly enough. The movie then ends with a “thought-provoking scene” with Washington being released from prison in a different time and apparently a different world. It provoked no thoughts from me.
