Yeah, I know it's almost March, but I figure that since it is Oscar night, I would count down my favorite movies from last year. These are actually all the 2008 movies I was able to see, and they're mostly worthwhile. In fact, there are only two -- the bottom two -- that I wouldn't recommend. So here they are, ranked in order from the best to... well, the not so best.
WALL-E
Surprising, original, joyful, provocative. (Saying any more might spoil something, and I couldn't live with that.) I loved every frame.
The Dark Knight
But this was the one I saw three times in the theater (and I didn't like Batman Begins). Granted, I've been a Batman fan for twenty years, but this movie really gets the title character (as opposed to, say, Batman Begins). Plus, it's got a message about morality, of all things, and is absolutely riveting from start to finish.
Frost/Nixon
I've been fascinated by Nixon since high school, and Frank Langella is simply amazing in the role... even better than the previous gold standard, Dan Hedaya in Dick. Anyway, F/P is easily Ron Howard's best movie, a hugely entertaining rumination on media, power, and above all else, Nixon.
Kung Fu Panda
The funniest and most stylish film of the year, with some of the most beautiful animation ever produced. While WALL-E goes for realism (with good reason), Kung Fu Panda is most definitely a cartoon, and the best one I've seen in a many a moon.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
This updated screwball comedy is, at its core, a good movie with two great scenes. But wow, those scenes!
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Why are comic book movie sequels ALWAYS better than the originals? I was totally underwhelmed by the first Hellboy, but this one was smart, creative, and brilliantly hilarious.
In Bruges
Not for the squeamish or easily offended, but a killer screenplay and some top-notch performances.
Ghost Town
Another good comedy with a couple of great scenes. Surprisingly, this was the only movie that actually made me cry this year, if just a little bit.
Doubt
Stagey, to be sure, but terrific acting and a gimmick that stuck with me.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
I don't understand why some folks didn't enjoy this. A great ride all the way through.
Iron Man
Another extremely fun film, and pretty smart, too.
Gran Torino
Clint Eastwood is always at his best when he's got a sense of humor. Here, he gets plenty of laughs, and they elevate everything else in the film, especially the tension.
Benjamin Button
Yeah, it's slow, and the message is pretty obvious even early on, but I was always engaged and, occasionally, even moved.
Milk
Good biopics know how to take a flawed character and make him a hero, and Milk really gets that. Even its messages aren't cut-and-dry, which makes them more effective.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Hey, I enjoyed it, though I recognize that it was essentially a pilot for the (superior) TV show.
Slumdog Millionaire
I liked it when I saw it, but way overhyped. All in all, kinda forgettable.
Changeling
Not bad, but a major disappointment since it came from one of my favorite writers, J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5. And like B5, this movie made an impact, found an ending... and then just kept going and going and going, without adding much.
The Incredible Hulk
I prefer the 2003 Ang Lee version (a very weird adaptation of a comic book), to this one (a big-budget adaptation of a lousy 70's TV show).
Hancock
A good idea, but this movie could not figure out its tone. The end result doesn't work.
Twilight
Many, many laughs, all of them at the film instead of with it. Really, a horrible movie.
9 comments:
I pretty much agree with you for the ones i've seen. Have you seen Waltz With Bashir yet? It's fantastic.
If I'd seen it, it'd be on the list. Kinda shocking that it lost, it was the favorite to win.
I could not get through the first 20 minutes of Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. But yeah, I'm pretty much on board for the rest of the ones I've seen and totally agree that the humor was the elevating factor of Gran Torino. You're just surprised to be laughing and laughing (until you're not).
Miss Pettigrew: Which two scenes?
Benjamin Button: overvoice narration all the way, every scene predictable, no explanation for all the loose threads -- I'm surprised you (of all people) liked it.
Word verification for this comment is humphol. Humph!
Um, I might be 12 years too late, but "When We Were Kings" is awesome.
Hellboy 2 was hillarious and beautiful.
Margo, Miss Pettigrew is certainly an acquired taste, but I love the genre it's riffing on.
(S)Aba, the two scenes are: Pettigrew and the older gent in the hallway during the air raid, and Amy Adams' nightclub song (where we see her make a decision without saying it).
And yeah, Benjamin Button is pretty over-narrated, but these days, anything with babies in it will get to me.
Duv... um, never saw that one.
"When We Were Kings" is awesome.
Ali vs. Foreman? That movie IS awesome.
Glad to see someone else noticed In Bruges. I always get puzzledy looks when I say that movie's name. Dark, and you need to enjoy stories without caring deeply about the characters.
KOTCS, I would have liked it better with a Hat Pickup. You who have seen it know what I mean. I think it's time. Past time. If Harrison keeps these movies up, Indy's gonna end up fighting Al Qaeda as the 1000 year old man. Maybe he should go back to the Canyon of the Crescent Moon and have the old Crusader juice him back up!
-Brad
I'm just glad someone else saw it! The only reason I'd heard of In Bruges was because someone recommended it. I think it's our duty now to recommend it to others... well, those who can handle it, anyway.
I hear what you're saying about Indy, but I kinda liked the ending, simply because it defied expectations. And really, Indiana Jones and the Hunt for Bin Laden would kinda be hilarious, especially if he was older than dirt!
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