The Year’s Sixteen 10 Best Films

1. District 9.  This stunning debut feature from South African director Neill Blomkamp just knocked my socks off.  [Read my review at http://hubpages.com/hub/Thirty-Great-Movies-Youve-Probably-Never-Seen-District-9.]
2. Precious.  Staggeringly good little indie about a young woman with stubborn determination to rise above a sea of troubles.  Also features the year’s most astonishing performance.
3. Up in the Air.  Gives the light romantic comedy back its good name and proves that Ivan Reitman is one of our best new directors.
4. Up.  Once again, Pixar knocks it out of the park.
5. Avatar.  Know it.  Love it.  Put on the glasses and watch it.
6. The Hurt Locker.  Yeah, everything you have heard about it is true.  It’s gritty, gripping and great.
7. Moon.  Duncan Jones eerie and melancholy tribute to the “smart” science fiction films of the late 60s and early 70s.
8. A Serious Man.  The Coen Brothers bone-chillingly dark comedy update of The Book of Job.
9. Fantastic Mr. Fox.  Easily Wes Anderson’s best movie since Rushmore, this stop-action animated fable is arch, smart, great to look at and very funny.
10. 10.  [500] Days of Summer.  Charming anti-romantic comedy with charming performances and great music.
11. 11.  Coraline.  A deeply creepy fable about family, gorgeously realized in glorious stop-action animation.
12. 12.  Star Trek.  Who would have thought the creaky franchise could get rebooted with this much flair and class?
13. 13.  Julie and Julia.  Meryl Streep as Julia Child?  ‘Nuff said.
14. 14.  Away We Go.  Underrated little movie by the overrated director
15. 15.  Me and Orson Welles.  Utterly charming fable about a high school kid who accidentally ends up in Welle’s legendary Broadway production of Julius Caesar.
16. 16.  World’s Greatest Dad.  Bobcat Goldthwaite’s creepy drama about the world’s worst son.

Best Actor

*Sharlto Copley, District 9

Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Michael Stuhlbarg, A Serious Man

George Clooney, Up in the Air

Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

Peter Capaldi, In the Loop

 Honorable Mention:  Hugh Dancy in Adam, Robin Williams in World’s Greatest Dad, Colin Firth in A Single Man, Sam Rockwell in Moon, Joseph Gordon-Levitt in [500] Days of Summer, Viggo Mortensen in The Road

  

Best Actress

*Meryl Streep, Julie and Julia

Abbie Cornish, Bright Star

Carey Mulligan, An Education

Gabourey Sidibe, Precious

Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

 

 Honorable Mention:  Rose Byrne in Adam, Zooey Deschanel in [500] Days of Summer, Maya Rudolph in Away We Go

 

Best Supporting Actress

Maggie Gyllenhaal, Away We Go

Juliet Lewis, Whip It

*Mo’Nique, Precious

Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air

Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air

Best Supporting Actor

Paul Schneider, Bright Star

*Christian McKay, Me and Orson Welles

Woody Harrelson, The Messenger

Anthony Mackie, The Hurt Locker

 

Honorable Mention:  Frankie Faison in Adam

 

Best Director

Duncan Jones, Moon

*Neill Blomkamp, District 9

Lee Daniels, Precious

James Cameron, Avatar

Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

Jason Reitman, Up in the Air

 

The Performance of the Year

Mo’Nique’s shocking and shattering performance as the worst welfare mother around in Precious.

 

Best Screenplay

Moon (Nathan Parker, Duncan Jones)

The Invention of Lying (Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson)

District 9 (Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tachell)

*Up in the Air (Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner)

Precious (Geoffrey Fletcher)

 

Best Musical Score

Clint Mansell, Moon

 

Best Foreign Language Film

Broken Embraces

 

Best Documentaries

Every Little Step.  A tremendously enjoyable film which connects the dots between the origin of the 1975 Broadway phenomenon A Chorus Line and its recent revival.

Outrage.  The appalling stories of closeted gay politicians who use homophobia to further their own careers.

The Boys:  The Sherman Brothers Story.  The fascinating exploration of the songwriting team behind Mary Poppins and many other Disney standards.

*The Cove.  Filmmaking as political activism.  This movie might just help dismantle the dolphinarium industry.

Ingelore.  A work of stunning simplicity and power; a tale of survival redemption.  [Egotistical note:  After posting my review of the movie I got a nice note from the film’s director!  Read the review at http://hubpages.com/hub/Thirty-Great-Movies-Youve-Probably-Never-Seen–Ingelore]

Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg!  A fascinating look at a forgotten television pioneer.

Art and Copy.  The stories behind the people behind the most famous ad campaigns of the last fifty years.

Capitalism:  A Love Story.  A surprisingly good piece from activist Michael Moore.

Visual Acoustics.  Tracing the career of iconic architectural photographer Julius Shulman.

This is It.  A remarkable record of the final rehearsals of the show Michael Jackson didn’t live to perform.

 

Good Movies That Flew Under the Radar

Adventureland.  A very sweet coming of age story set during a crappy summer job at a crumbling amusement park.

In the Loop.  Fall-down-on-the-floor funny political satire of the most scathing variety.

 

Good Popcorn Movies

A Perfect Getaway.  A sharp and attractive cast help raise this little thriller out of the mundane.  Good scenery, too!

Taking Woodstock.  Ang Lee’s gentle riff on an iconic American event.

It’s Complicated.  Not really, but it’s fun to sit through.

Whip It.  It’s shameful that more people didn’t see this charming tale of rebellion on roller skates.

The Informant!  Won’t hurt you.  Reasonably funny and interesting true story.

Surrogates.  Decent science fiction thriller starring The Bruce.

2012.  Go watch buildings you’ve worked in collapse into the abyss!

 

Guilty Pleasures

Taken.  Liam Neeson kills really bad guys really dead.  Better than it sounds.

The International:  Clive Owen dodges bad guys in the Gugenheim museum.

 

Take Your Kids To It But Make Sure You, Uh, Talk About It Afterwards

Coraline.  Deeply creepy, but worth seeing with an adventurous kid.  Or adult.

Where the Wild Things Are.  Not exactly enjoyable, but could spark some really good conversations between parents and kids.

 

Good Family Fare

Hotel For Dogs

 

Can’t Believe They Got This One Made

The Road.  I loved the Pulitzer-Prize-winning Cormac McCarthy novel it’s based on.  But it’s such grim subject matter that I cannot believe they got anyone to invest money into it. 

 

My Favorite Little Independent Movie

The House of the Devil.  Scary and funny homage to tacky early 1980s horror films.

 

Scariest Bit

A pack of cute Scotty dogs turn into upside-down hanging bats in Coraline.

The first time the bedroom door moves in Paranormal Activity.

 

Harmless.  Really.

He’s Just Not That Into You.  Okay, so it’s not Citizen Kane.  But it has an attractive and charming cast (as well as Scarlett Johansson).

 

The Year Two of My Favorites Finally Made It Big

Long underappreciated, two of my favorite actors had very very good years in 2009:

Bradley Cooper in The Hangover, not to mention He’s Just Not That Into You and New York I Love You.

Ryan Reynolds hit pay dirt with The Proposal, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and even had time to shine in the indie charmer Adventureland.

 

Least Expected Comeback

Old-fashioned stop-action animation.  Two excellent films were released in this venerated, but largely abandoned format.  Coraline was creepy and lyrical, and Fantastic Mr. Fox was arch and whimsical.

 

Why Aren’t They Bigger Stars Yet?

Justin Long

John Krasinski

Maya Rudolph

 

Go Go Melanie Lynskey!

I’ve been a fan of this quirky, pretty actress since her chilling turn as a psychotic teen murderess in Heavenly Creatures.  In 2009 I was happy to see her talents in three different movies:  Away We Go (a young wife struggling with infertility), Up in the Air (a young woman struggling with a reluctant fiancé) and The Informant! (a young woman struggling with a crazy husband).  Send your agent a REALLY expensive muffin basket, girlfriend.

 

Most Underrated Character Actor

Frankie Faison has been making movies better for decades.  Why isn’t he better known?

 

Why Can’t He Get Into a Good Movie?

Chris Evans

 

Terrible Titles Scuttling Movies Actually Worth Seeing

The Goods:  Live Hard, Sell Hard.  Okay, I’ll grant you it has a truly awful title.  But this broad comedy about car salesmen is actually quite funny.

I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell.  A TRULY awful title kept people away from the film version of Tucker Max’s memoir of debauchery.  Matt Czuchry (also saddled with a challenging name) is terrific as Max.

 

Best Reboot of a Franchise

Star Trek.  J.J. Abrams managed to make it feel classic and new at the same time.  The superb cast helped a lot.

 

The Year Opening Credits Became Fun Again

Opening card of the credits for [500] Days of Summer:  Author’s Note: The following is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Especially you Jenny Beckman. Bitch.

The “U” on the Universal logo gaining an umlaut at the beginning of Brüno.

The jazzy music and graphic which opened An Education.

The peek-a-boo titles which immediately drew you into the claustrophobic world of Moon.

 

Best Character Names

The roller derby queens in Whip It had a catalog of wonderful names, such as Eva Destruction, Juanna Beat’n, Bloody Holly, Jaba the Slut, Maggie Mayhem and Iron Maven.

 

After Years of Working, They’ve Hit It Big!

Zoe Saldana, who burned up the screen as Uhuru in Star Trek and as a hottie blue alien in Avatar.

Sam Worthington, who I first saw ten years ago in Bootmen, an odd but affecting dance movie from Australia, where he also did a lot of television.  After Avatar and Terminator Salvation, I think he can look forward to bigger jobs and bigger paychecks from here on out.  Next up:  He plays the lead in the remake of Clash of the Titans.   Let’s hope he got a personal trainer before principal shooting commenced for that one.

 

Can We Please See More of . . .

Andrew Wilson.  Who knew Owen and Luke even had a big brother?  He was excellent in Whip It.

Kathryn Hahn.  Hot and hilarious in The Goods:  Live Hard, Sell Hard

 

Best Argument for a Best Casting Academy Award

Star Trek

A Serious Man

 

Good to See You Back in the Saddle

Daniel Stern

 

Two People Who Should Work Together More

Wasn’t it great to see Sigourney Weaver suit up for another rollicking James Cameron adventure?  She really connects to his vibe and makes his movies better.

 

Three Good Supporting Performances by Ben Affleck

After a three-year absence from the screen, Ben was terrific as a corrupt politician in State of Play, an earnest boyfriend in He’s Just Not That Into You, and especially as the naughty best friend in Extract.

 

Three Good Supporting Performances by Kristen Wiig

The Saturday Night Live comic scored comedy points in Adventureland, Extract and Whip It.

 

Sure, She’s Not Bad to Look At, But Who Knew She Had Such a Flair for Comedy?

Jennifer Garner in The Invention of Lying

 

Best Lines

“I do not like The Cone of Shame.”  Dug the Dog expresses the chagrin we can all (at least sometimes) relate to in Up.

“You look like a radioactive tampon.”  Sam Rockwell gets real in Moon.

Bus Ad:  “Pepsi.  For When They Don’t Have Coke.”  — truth in advertising in The Invention of Lying.

“I’m committing carbicide.”  Using ice cream to end everything in Brüno.

 

Best Love Story

The first fifteen minutes of Up.

 

Funniest Movie, Start to Finish

Actually, it WASN’T The Hangover, even though that was a fun movie.  The funniest movie this year was the British political romp In the Loop, with its amazing performance by Peter Capaldi (you might remember him as the sweet young linguist in Local Hero).  The scathing insults he pelts his fellow cast members spew like battery acid, and you laugh until your sides hurt.

 

Not as Sublime as Borat but Still Funny

Brüno

 

Best Random Moment

Drag Me To Hell.  “You tricked me, you black-hearted who-o-o-o-o-ore! You b-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-itch!” – Okay, so it’s not much of a line.  But here’s the thing:  It’s uttered by a goat.  A goat. 

 

Funniest Bits

The running jokes on signs and advertisements in The Invention of Lying.  Highlights include a nursing home called “A Sad Place For Hopeless Old People” and a bus ad reading “Pepsi.  For When They Don’t Have Coke.”

 

Jodie Foster Award For Worst Performance By An Actress

The formerly-dependable Alison Lohman’s bafflingly unconvincing performance in Drag Me to Hell fatally undermined an otherwise fun movie.

 

Movie I’m Most Ambivalent About

Inglorious Basterds.  I like Tarantino, and there’s lots to like about this movie, particularly the two main women (Melanie Laurent and Diane Kruger).  There’s also the spectacular supporting performance by Christoph Waltz, not to mention a devilishly charismatic turn by the handsome Michael Fassbender.  But Brad Pitt is not a great actor, no matter how bad they want us to believe he is.  He’s an okay actor.  And I left this movie with a fairly bad taste in my mouth.

 

Least Entertaining Harry Potter Movie So Far

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

 

Proof That a Film Can Be Perceptive, Beautifully Made, and Perhaps Even Brilliant . . . and Still Not Be Very Much Fun to Sit Through

The very glum Where the Wild Things Are.

 

Bleh.  Just . .  Bleh.

The Lovely Bones

 

Worst Burial of a Franchise

Terminator Salvation.  Enough already.  And speaking of Terminator Salvation . . .

 

Scarlet Johansson Award for Career That Needs to End Immediately.

Christian Bale.  Okay, so can everyone now get on my page regarding this strange guy?  He was great as a kid in Empire of the Sun, and he’s been good a few times.  But now all he does is scowl and growl.  Boring and bewildering.

 

 These Movies Just Sucked

Did you try to sit through any of these turkeys:

 

Coco Before Chanel.  Even my beloved Audrey Tautou couldn’t make this tedious (and, reportedly, very fanciful) biopic interesting.

Terminator Salvation.  Needless sequel with a needlessly colorless performance by Christian Bale.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra.  Lots of noise and things exploding and really attractive young actors running around in cool outfits.  Unfortunately, it makes Starship Troopers look like Citizen Kane.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine.  Not Hugh Jackman’s fault, of course, but the plot didn’t make a lick of sense.

 

And, of course, let’s not forget:

 

The Year’s Worst Film

Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen:  Hours and hours of boring, repetitive CGI destruction.  Yawn.

 

I’d love to hear your comments!