1 Slumdog Millionaire – There’s a lot going on in this epic story: star-crossed love, rags to riches redemption, brutal crimes, resilient orphans. It’s Charles Dickens meets Bollywood. You can spend a lot of time slicing and dicing the film’s layered themes and symbolism or the way it so skillfully shifts gears from comedy to tragedy. The lasting impact of this film in exporting Indian culture to a wide Western audience cannot be overestimated. Memorably indelible.
Our knee-jerk review
2 Wall-E – Pixar movies are so consistently smart and sleek that superlative adjectives begin to lose all meaning. This one, however, may be the best yet, mashing together a critique of all-American consumerism, a cautionary tale of ecological ruin, and – most satisfying of all – a poignant
romance between two robots far more endearing and vivid than most glossy Hollywood romantic comedies. The first half-hour, which is almost completely without dialogue, is particularly magical. An instant classic.
3 Iron Man – Imagine Bruce Wayne without all the psychological baggage, a multi-millionaire who might actually, like, you know, enjoy fighting crime with cool gizmos. The movie’s got a dark edge to it in that it deals with the morality of arms dealing and the mortality of the main character. But mostly it’s sunny, fizzy fun thanks to Robert Downey, Jr. in a role he was born to play. This one ranks up there with Spiderman 2 and X-Men as one of the best superhero movies ever. Far more humor than you’d expect.
Our knee-jerk review
4 Cloverfield – Godzilla from the point of view of the screaming citizens. How’s that for high concept? The first 15 minutes can be tedious as the (yes, we admit it, cardboard) characters get introduced, but once the monster attacks, it’s a powerhouse roller-coaster of a movie and a special effects tour de force. Dig that leaned-over skyscraper. Extra credit for a surprisingly downbeat, somber vibe where a happy ending is not a sure thing. Vastly underrated.
Our knee-jerk review
5 Rachel Getting Married– This is what’s so great about independent filmmaking. Flawed characters get together and talk about why they’re so flawed and how they might (or might not) get better, ugly dark family secrets are pushed into the daylight, editors don’t have to conform to trendy chop-chop-chop rapid-fire cuts, perky Hollywood stars like Anne Hathway get to prove that they really can act, and established talents like Debra Winger have a chance to remind us how good they can be.
Our knee-jerk review
6 Gran Torino – A lean, gritty little movie about letting go of hateful habits and embracing the possibility of redemption. Eastwood hits the jackpot playing a surly Korean War veteran who still has some ass-whooping left in the tank. Some have rightfully pointed out that had Eastwood’s character unleashed his slurs on African-Americans rather than Asian-Americans he might not be so amusing a character. In a strange way, that’s just the sort of uncomfortable question about race that drives the whole movie.
Our knee-jerk review
7 Hancock – A lot of movies pay lip service to exploring “what it would be like if superheroes were real,” but this film really runs with the idea. A cranky superhero who’s blamed for the property damage he causes, drinks to forget the weight of responsibility on his shoulders, and ultimately hires a PR flack to help rehab his image. And that’s just the first half of the film. Midway through, the story takes a wooly left turn that Changes Everything. But you have to go with it. Seriously. Don’t fight it. Embrace the plot twist. You won’t be disappointed.
Our knee-jerk review
8-9 Forgetting Sarah Marshall/Role Models– Don’t believe for a minute that the sloppy train wreck that was Tropic Thunder was the best comedy of the year. These two are more hilarious by a factor of at least five. And far more plausible. There’s comic alchemy at work here, matching actors playing to their persona strengths (e.g. Jason Segel’s sensitive shlub, Paul Rudd’s wiseass misanthrope) with comic filmmakers at the top of their form (Nicholas Stoller and David Wain).
10 The Dark Knight – Make no mistake: this is one extremely overrated movie. There’s too much story, the film straining at the seams to contain all of the subplots and characters and themes. Smaller would have been better. But we must begrudgingly admit that few “popcorn” summer movies would ever dare to tackle such epic ideas about justice and obsession. And there’s nothing overrated at all about Heath Ledger’s blistering performance as the Joker. He makes you forget all about Jack Nicholson’s take on the character. Ledger’s creative fire will be sorely missed.
Our knee-jerk review
11 The Visitor – The quietest, simplest, and most human film on the list. What would you do if you found a Muslim couple squatting in your apartment? It’s a look at how small choices can have big consequences, how the middle-aged can always start over, and, on a bigger scale, how American immigration policy can be aggressively (and perhaps needlessly) impersonal and heartless. The lead role was written specifically for Richard Jenkins and it shows. He’s pitch perfect.
12 The Reader – There’s indeed something tired about Holocaust movies, which often seem to have been designed to wow critics and win awards. And a lot of what happens in this movie is fairly familiar. It’s the tragic characters that make the story pop, locked as they are into self-destructive choices fueled by shameful secrets. The final 20 minutes pack a real punch. Stephen Daltry’s only directed three movies – all three have been nominated for Best Picture. That’s quite a track record.
Honorable Mention: Baby Mama, Frost/Nixon, The House Bunny, In Bruges, Kung Fu Panda, Marley and Me, Man on Wire, Milk, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Quantum of Solace, The Ruins, and Wanted.
The Worst of 2008 (in alphabetical order)
Changeling – If the Angelina Jolie character were played by Valerie Bertinelli, this would be right at home on Lifetime. You wouldn’t have to change a word. It was the best of times, it was the worst of time, huh, Clint? (See #6 above.)
Our knee-jerk review
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – This is one of those stuffy, stiff movies that tries so very hard to be Important that it fails miserably to be engaging on any level other than the lush production design. We couldn’t wait for it to be over.
Our knee-jerk review
The Happening – It’s safe to say the bloom is off the M. Night Shyamalan rose. What was once a strong brand name is now a joke. A terribly silly movie with a ridiculous ending. Avoid it like the plague. You have been warned.
Our knee-jerk review
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls – We liked it at first, too. But upon further review, we cannot endorse this disappointing, lazy exercise in George Lucas ego stroking. He wanted aliens and by God, he got aliens over the objections of just about everyone involved. Thanks, George. Way to ruin one of our childhood icons. Aliens. Seriously?
Tropic Thunder – Robert Downey, Jr. is amazing, no doubt. And the “Simple Jack” bits are hilarious. This slapdash mess is never as funny as it thinks it is. It certainly could have been a great comedy, but that would have required more rewrites and a clearer, sharper vision than director Ben Stiller can bring to bear. The people making the movie seem to be having a lot more fun that you will be watching it.
Our knee-jerk review
Vantage Point – If you saw the kickass trailer, you probably wanted to see this movie. Sadly, the movie they sold is not the movie that they made. It’s something that happens a lot in Hollywood, but the transgression is never this insulting. It’s cheap, implausible trash that thinks it’s Three Days of the Condor.
Our knee-jerk review
X Files I Want to Believe – This is how you kill a movie franchise. It’s not even up to the level of a mediocre episode of the series.
The Cheese Fry wishes the above list were more exhaustive and comprehensive, but time and budget realities meant that we simply didn’t get a chance to see everything. Films we heard very good things about but have yet to find out first-hand: Doubt, Frozen River, Happy Go Lucky, I’ve Loved You So Long, Nothing But the Truth, and Vicky Christina Barcelona.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment