posted
I don't think there has been a topic on this yet. So far I have seen 43 movies released in 2007. I haven't seen all that I want to, and I've only seen 1 of the 5 films nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, so this list may change, but here are my top 10 of 2007.
10. Grindhouse
Death Proof was good enough on its own to merit seeing this, but Planet Terror is a romping good time too.
9. Waitress
Sort of an anti-"Knocked Up". Instead of being about two strangers who are having a baby growing closer together, it's about a married couple having a baby growing farther apart. The performances are great all-around, and I love Andy Grifith's character. I think that "Knocked Up" was the superior comedy, but I believe "Waitress" to be the better movie.
8. The Darjeeling Limited
Wes Anderson has some serious clout. "Hey Natalie, you wanna be in my movie for like, 5 seconds?" "Sure Wes, anything for you."
7. Sicko
I laughed during about half of this movie. It's funny. The other half I was absolutely, primally, ferally enraged. Furious. Sometimes I was furious and laughing at the same time. Moore has a talent for getting the shots that he needs to make the most affecting, and most entertaining documentary he possibly can. Excellent.
6. Black Snake Moan
Christina Ricci, who will never be on anybody's list of Oscar hopefuls, has found something that she is really, really good at. With her role as Rae, she definitively proves, once and for all, that she can play white trash better than anybody out there. Samuel L. Jackson adds to his list of great performances. And Justin Timberlake is. . . sorta good. While keeping a hyper-sexed crack-whore chained up in your house would certainly be a felony, I don't think that anybody who sees this film could argue that it isn't the right thing to do.
5. Zodiac
This movie takes place over 22 years. That's an incredible time span for a feature film. Jake Gyllenhall is remarkable as the socially akward Robert Graysmith, a cartoonist at the San Francisco Chronicle. Robert Downey Jr. is incredible as the drunk crime reporter Paul Avery (not such a stretch for Downey Jr.). Mark Ruffalo is good too, and Chloe Sevigny is charming.
4. A Mighty Heart
The writing, directing, and editing in this film are all used to make it as confusing as possible. Not to alienate the viewer, but to provide as realistic an experience as can be had in a theater.
3. The Lives of Others
East Berlin, 1984: the year I was born. Not so very long ago. The populace is kept in check by the Stasi, the State Security. One man comes to a slow realization that he is part of the problem in a system that rewards paranoia and loyalty to the state above all other qualities. Sound familiar? It should.
2. Once
A love story about a 30 something Dubliner and a 20 something Czech. Is it about them falling for each other? Well, kind of. More a love story between them and their music. Marketa Irglova has my vote for most infectious smile.
1. No Country for Old Men
The country of the title is beautiful, vast, expansive, and brutal. There is no extraneous dialogue in this film. Another Coen brothers masterpiece, this film, like one of the main characters, has no sense of humor. Dead serious all the way through.
Posts: 127 | Registered: Jul 2006
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posted
Puffy, this thread isn't necessarily redundant. I don't see why there can't be several threads dedicated to this topic seeing as how we have so many posters and so many movies.
Posts: 722 | Registered: Jul 2004
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Grindhouse--I think Tarantino needs to stop with this whole "I'm merely playing around" routine. Death Proof is not a serious film, the same way "Kill Bill" wasn't a serious film. It's all jokey and full of references to this or that. Say what you will of "Reservoir Dogs", "Pulp Fiction" or "Jackie Brown"--there were all serious, earnest films, and it's as if Tarantino is afraid to be that ambitious again.
Zodiac--Wonderful film. Creepy and enthralling.
No Country for Old Men--I wish I liked it, so I could be in the club of having liked it. But I thought it was awful and pointless.
Posts: 722 | Registered: Jul 2004
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