Honorable Mention from 2008 that didn't get a US release until 2009 so it's ineligible for the list but dang is it good movie -Let the Right One In
It's actually more of a dramatic character piece than a horror movie, the two lead child actors emote together for some of the best performances I've ever seen considering age, the script isn't super obvious but no stupid "twists" either, the camerawork pulls back to show the beautiful Swedish winter (I loved the many long shots, no goofy fast edited close up montages here). Finally, when the horror bits happened, they were intense and visceral especially when the rest of the movie was so somber. I have to say that I am less than excited about the US remake coming out this fall of 2010, I mean really, 2 years and we already get a remake?? (the trailer looks competent enough, but there's virtually no room to improve on the original thus making any remake unnecessary)
Last 3 movies out - The Road (really well made but amazingly depressing and hard to watch), Crazy Heart (very well acted but a little too familiar considering the high profile music biopics in recent years), and A Perfect Getaway (I'm still not sure if my love for this movie is that it blew away the low expectations I had or if its that good)
So without further ado...
7. Fanboys
In a year that saw such garbage as The Proposal and Paul Blart Mall Cop top 150 million domestic, this comedic gem was completely dumped by the Weinstein company. After being delayed for 2 years (it was originally set to be released in late summer of 2007), Fanboys had an extremely limited release (45 whole theaters) in early February.So that's why you probably haven't heard of or seen this movie... but man is it funny. The best way to describe it is kids from Road Trip have a Star Wars themed Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back adventure. Or in easier to understand terms, in the year 1997, a group of friends drive cross country to Skywalker Ranch to steal a rough cut of Episode I. The main five characters have good camaraderie (especially Jay Baruchel and Dan Fogler) and there are a lot of great cameos (including Seth Rogen in three different parts). Its just a fun, silly comedy with clever references and a surprising amount of heart.
6. Zombieland
The previews didn't get me that excited (an American Shaun of the Dead knockoff) but the movie proved to be a fun, exciting ride with an appealing yet unlikely pair of the rough, vulgar Woody Harrelson and the Ceraish, germaphobic Jesse Eisenberg. Add in a long run of creatively gruesome zombie mayhem, witty dialogue, hilarious sight gags (featuring possibly the best celebrity cameo from... I can't spoil it), and Emma Stone's coming out as a hot babe with some acting chops, and you get a super enjoyable movie.5. Inglorious Basterds
This movie wast the most frustrating on the list to evaluate for me. The good parts of this movie (the Basterds themselves, Christoph Waltz's fanatical officer, the final scene at the theater) outweigh the overly slow and unnecessary parts (the opening scene, Mike Myers' cameo, most of the bar sequence). To me, every QT movie is about ten minutes too long and has one long extraneous dialogue scene, and by my count, Basterds has at least four of these parts. On the good side, Tarantino always gets the most out of the cast at hand, which definitely holds true this time. BJ Novak, Eli Roth, and Brad Pitt stand out as the primary Basterds and their attempt to infiltrate the German ranks result in some of the funniest moments in any movie of 2009.4. Up in the Air
I'm not generally a fan of one note snarky smooth George Clooney roles, but in the right movie (like in Out of Sight or Dusk Till Dawn) it can fit in really well. I also really enjoyed Jason Reitman's previous 2 movies (Juno and Thank you for Smoking) so I had high hopes going in. The basic premise of the movie (Clooney flies around the country helping companies to fire their employees) doesn't seem that interesting, but the amazingly clever dialogue and strong characters made this movie extremely memorable. Beyond Clooney, we also get gems in small roles from longtime favorite J.K. Simmons, Sam Elliott, Danny McBride, and Zack Galifinakis. However, for me, the movie was stolen by Anna Kendrick as Clooney's younger co worker who took a pretty stock idea (overachieving up and comer) and created a nuanced, realistic character. A lot of charm, but wasn't as exciting as the top three.3. Taken
Liam Neeson beats up Europe, nuff said. This felt like the kid of the Bourne movies and Die Hard. Really simple plot, tight pacing, the action seemed realistic and didn't get too ridiculous. In my opinion, Liam Neeson might be the most underrated great modern actor. It seems like besides Schindler's List, most of his really good performances aren't remembered. I still really dig Rob Roy, Les Miserables, and even his part of Love, Actually wasn't that bad (the other part of that I can tolerate is the Alan Rickman store). Anyhow, back to Taken, amazing smart and gripping action movie, but wasn't super original, so it can't be #1.2. District 9
Expectations greatly influence how much I enjoy or don't certain movies and going into District 9, I knew 2 things.1. The movie involved aliens in South Africa
2. Every person who saw this movie thought it was at least pretty good.
Featuring the completely unknown Sharlto Copley, this movie had a combination of ridiculous action, political statements, and human pathos/drama. Early on, the quasi documentary style introduced the world and setup without a clumsy expositional scroll. After the first half hour or so, things pick up, and its pretty much an extended chase to the finish.
This movie also totally kept my attention and was amazingly suspenseful the whole way to the end. I don't want to give away too many details, but the showdown with the gangsters/army leading up to the "suit" part would probably place in my favorite action scenes ever. Plus, its the rare movie that doesn't tie everything up completely tidily and leaves room for future movies from director Neil Blomkamp (After seeing this, I'd have loved to have seen his proposed Halo movie).
1. Watchmen
Watchmen might be my favorite comic story that could possibly become a good movie. From the marketing campaign to the casting to the amazingly faithful direction, this is the best comic to movie adaptation to date. I could write for a while about everything I love but I'll focus on debunking the criticisms I've heard the most.It's too long... Its a fricking epic, I love how much character development was kept in. If you want a short, to the point comic action movie, watch 300.
It's too gratuitous... This one is tougher, because the comic was written in the mid 80s, so Zack Snyder definitely intensified the violence (bones breaking, Manhattan making people explode) and sex aspects. Did this bother me? Nah, with the sheer volume of action/events, I think making some a little more memorable didn't hurt the movie that much.
But they changed (item X) from the comic... The density of the Watchmen universe made it amazingly hard to translate to a movie. Even with the 3 hour directors cut, there were cuts. To me, I can distill it down to focusing on the current team of Watchmen and really trimming a lot of the side characters. Its really funny to me that Ive heard complaints that it was too long yet things were left out. Its also funny how amazing V for Vendetta the movie was, yet Alan Moore and a lot of the hardcore fans really hated it.
Malin Ackerman/Matthew Goode can't act... Well, I kind of agree with the first and really would have liked a stronger actress there (Christina Hendricks from Mad Men would have been a cool choice). Goode as Ozymandias had a really tough part to play - the pacifist intellectual. It just is not as dynamic a character as Manhattan or Night Owl not to mention Rorschach. I think he did a really good, no great, no iconic job (and no best supporting actor nod, not even in Golden Globes).
On to what I liked specifically... SPOILERS!!!
A yellow screen with black company logos, a Pat Buchanan parody, MTV, door breaking, slow motion mug throwing, major league ass kicking, wall breaking, coffee table breaking, kitchen knife throwing, the shot of Jeffrey Dean Morgan thrown out a window, the freefalling yellow smiley face button,
pseudo slow motion opening montage with Bob Dylan song playing over the credits, a hot lesbian kiss, prostitutes, we find out who really shot JFK, the moon landing, gratuitous Richard Nixon winning another term as President, exploding store
awesome Jackie Earle Haley voice overs, a grappling hook gun, old superhero bullshit session, bean eating, World Trade Center in the background, cool teleportation effects, multiple flashbacks, superhero funeral set to the Simon and Garfunkel opus "The Sound of Silence," barfing, gratuitous Carla Guigno attempted flashback rape
The Comedian kicking ass: setting a guy on fire in the Nam and killing a pregnant woman, map burning, Matt Frewer!, the super cool old Night Owl, conscience growing, a blue skinned guy on Mars, gratuitous extended flashback concerning Dr. Manhattan's origin, tank destruction, exploding bad guys
Henry Kissinger, Richard Nixon ecstatic about nuclear war killing people on the U.S. eastern seaboard, a deliveryman hitman, cool slow mo bullet to the head, metal thing to the body, a foamy cyanide death
The police fight with the bug spray flame thrower, Jackie Earle Haley without a mask!, ball punching, cheek tearing, gratuitous dogs fighting over a human leg bone followed by dead dogs, meat cleaver to the top of the head (ouch), attempted prison beating, hot grease to the face followed by amazingly badass line, gratuitous night vision goggles, impotence fighting, a midget prison gang boss, superhero sex, kid rescuing, outrunning an explosion, a prison riot, arm slicing, toilet breaking, electrocution, funny midget killing
Antarctica?, a big character revelation, funky tiger critter, a floating glass machine, Jimi Hendrix!, pacifist ass kicking killing millions to save billions, bullet catching, dead tiger critter, touching final moments, gratuitous ink blot, world peace, gratuitous "The Outer Limits," and an attack on Ronald Reagan, crappy My Chemical Romance cover of a Dylan song
Whew...
Who's gonna make the 2010 list? Who knows?
That's all I gotta say about that
Patrick
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