Sunday, January 10, 2010
The Movies of 2009
And here is the list of all of the movies that I watched from start to finish during 2009, ranked in the order in which I liked them. My goal every year is to have more books than movies on my list, and I have usually met that goal. But never have I had such a large difference in the number of movies and books as I did in 2009. I read 33 books, but saw only 22 movies. The weird part about that is that the last movie I saw in 2009 was Cocoon, which I watched in September. (The reason for that is that Shelly and I used our Blockbuster mail-order rental subscription to get all the way up to date on "The Office" in the latter months of the year; I'll probably write another post about TV and live performances and other stuff I took in this year.)
I only saw two movies in the theater in 2009 (which is actually a very high number for me). I'm not sure if it's a coincidence or not that they are #1 and #2 on my list. I don't think I liked them more because I saw them in the theater; rather, I saw them in the theater because I knew I would like them. Most of the others were rented from Blockbuster, but a few (Cocoon, L.A. Story, and Butch Cassidy) were recorded from TV and one (The Very Unlucky Leprechaun) was at the annual Campbell Family St. Patrick's Day Party. Only one (L.A. Story) had I ever seen before.
The only other general comment is that when I was ranking these movies, I was surprised at how far down the list I still thought they were really good movies. I guess I did a good job of picking a limited number of movies that I knew I would like. Only the bottom four or so would I actually consider "bad" movies.
1. Up (6/13/09). Not only did I see it in the theater, I saw it in 3-D (the first feature film I've ever seen that way). The 3-D was nice, but it was Pixar's consistently high-quality storytelling, characters, and plot that made this the best movie of the year for me. I didn't love Up as much as The Incredibles or Wall-E, but it's clear to me that if it's a Pixar movie, it's probably the best one of the year.
2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (7/17/09). Shelly and I saw this one on a whim while on our romantic getaway in Winchester, Virginia. Definitely the best yet of the Potter series. As we discussed it afterwards, I couldn't think of a single thing I would do to make it better. It captured the spirit and action of the book precisely, without being bogged down with too much booky detail.
3. Cocoon (9/21/09). I guess I don't consider this to be a "great" film like I consider all Pixar films to be. I realize that it probably won't show up in the top five for other people who watched it this year. But for me, I had a very personal and even somewhat spiritual reaction to the themes of this movie about aging and dying that made it precious to me. This is my list, so it ranks very high.
4. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2/23/09). Amy Adams is fast becoming one of my favorite actresses. Not only is she stunning, she is stunningly fun to watch. And the story here was also fun and quirky. So, yeah. This was a very fun movie.
5. Gone With the Wind (8/22/09). The book is Number One on my all-time list; the movie was great, but doesn't quite rank so high. I was actually surprised at how much of the action in the voluminous text was able to make it into the film (and I approved of the decisions to leave various things out). The movie characters weren't quite as extreme as the book characters, but the stunning visuals had me constantly reminding myself: "This was made in nineteen-freaking-thirty-nine!"
6. Duplicity (8/28/09). An unexpected delight. When Shelly picked it up, I thought it wouldn't be that great. But I found it to be smart and interesting, and I was thinking about it for days. The title sequence featuring the slo-mo fistfight between rival CEOs alone is worth checking it out for.
7. The Dark Knight (3/9/09). It was hard to rank this movie on my list, because it's so different from all of the other movies on the list. Dark, brooding, and scary, yes. But I don't know if any other film I saw this year succeeded so well at producing the intended emotions in me.
8. L.A. Story (3/7/09). I love vintage Steve Martin. This isn't his best work (My Blue Heaven is, in my humble opinion), but it's close. It's rare that a film can contain such social satire and then throw in such outright wackiness and get away with it.
9. Coraline (9/15/09). Another movie that was hard to rank because of its uniqueness. The stop-motion animation was superb and I think really added to the feel of the movie - it wouldn't have been as good had it been live-action or a regular cartoon. I particularly enjoyed Teri Hatcher as the Other Mother, and I must brag that I recognized John Linnell's voice (from They Might Be Giants) in the Other Father's musical number immediately. I must be a freak.
10. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (6/6/09). Now I understand what all the fuss is about. I think this is supposed to have been one of the first movies where you're supposed to root for the bad guys (the Ku Klux Klan scene in Birth of a Nation notwithstanding), and boy howdy was I rooting for them. I loved the finale.
11. Man on Wire (4/17/09). Once upon a time, there was this crazy (and I mean CRAZY) French dude. When he heard, back in the 1970s, that they were building the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, the only thing he could think of was stretching a tightrope between them and walking across it. He'd done it to the towers of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, the Sydney Harbor Bridge, and other crazy places, but this was his Everest. This movie is a documentary, featuring original footage from the 70s (he and his friends, fortunately, loved to film themselves) and modern-day interviews with the crazy French dude (he didn't fall!) and his associates. Because they had to break in to the towers, it feels more like a bank heist movie than anything else. So weird it has to be true.
12. Knowing (8/17/09). Okay, I actually kind of like Nicholas Cage in this kind of movie. He's just off his rocker enough to be enjoyable in a laugh-at-him sort of way, but not so much as to make it a bad movie. In this case, the movie got much better after I sat and thought about it for a couple of days.
13. He’s Just Not That Into You (6/29/09). I liked the idea of the big ensemble cast experiencing all sorts of dating and relationship trauma, even though they didn't always relate to each other. I liked the idea of the guy giving advice to the girl about what guys are thinking. But in the end, I kind of ended up a little unsatisfied, though I don't really know why. Maybe it was the adultery subplot, though I guess that's just one more way in which he may just not be that into you.
14. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) (5/28/09). When the Keanu Reeves remake came out, I decided to see the original, which was touted as a landmark science fiction film. I bet it was more groundbreaking fifty years ago than it seems now. One of my favorite bits was seeing shots of 1950s Washington DC.
15. Meet the Robinsons (1/31/09). An utterly harmless and forgettable feature, epitomizing the recent decline of the Disney animation studio, except for one thing: that recurring "I have tiny little arms" joke made me bust a gut every time.
16. Dan in Real Life (7/25/09). This movie was probably better in theory than it was in execution. Michael Scott goes to a family reunion and meets a girl in the neighborhood whom he really likes, only to discover that she's his brother's new girlfriend. It started out all right, but it developed in unrealistic ways, which just spoiled it for me (and it could have used a more compelling female lead).
17. Twilight (4/1/09). There was a time when I was considering reading the Twilight books. But after Shelly read them and described the writing style to me, I decided I would pass. Therefore, I consider it my American duty to see the movies (on DVD, long after they are released, of course), so that I can understand my own culture. It was all right, but I didn't really like the way Stephenie Meyer seems to be messing with the nature of vampires. Bram Stoker is rolling in his grave.
18. Marley and Me (5/4/09). It was a decent little book, and it was a decent little movie. The dog was cute, the situtations were amusing, and the ending was maudlin enough to tug a little at my heartstrings. But it didn't seem to really have a point. Kind of like the book.
19. Bride Wars (8/11/09). Now we get to the bad movies. Even Anne Hathaway's radiant presence couldn't save this wreck. Who enjoys this kind of stuff? Both of the protagonists were heartless, mean jerks and I wanted them both to get punched in the face and dumped by their respective fiances.
20. Swing Vote (7/8/09). Speaking of lead characters who are icky, icky people, I thought this would be a funny commentary on the political process. But as I watched it, I wanted Kevin Costner's character to not only get punched in the face and dumped by his too-cute, too-smart daughter, but to get deported somewhere very far away for being such an idiot.
21. Mamma Mia! (1/9/09). The badness in this one wasn't in the stupid characters so much as it was in the writers' inability to make a coherent movie altogether. Sure, it's fun to hear your favorite ABBA songs, but sometimes it was like they just spun a wheel to decide what song would be sung next. Immediately after saying that she's not looking for a rich guy, Meryl Streep sings "Money, Money, Money." After her friend has been established as not needing a man ever in her life, she nudges a guy and starts singing "Take a Chance on Me." I could hear my IQ points fizzling away to the beat of the music.
22. A Very Unlucky Leprechaun (3/14/09). Poor Campbells. Every year they invite us to their St. Patrick's Day party, and they try very hard to find a new St. Patrick's Day movie to show us all. I applaud their efforts. Darby O'Gill a couple of years ago wasn't bad. But there are only so many leprechaun movies, and this one was just laughably bad.
I only saw two movies in the theater in 2009 (which is actually a very high number for me). I'm not sure if it's a coincidence or not that they are #1 and #2 on my list. I don't think I liked them more because I saw them in the theater; rather, I saw them in the theater because I knew I would like them. Most of the others were rented from Blockbuster, but a few (Cocoon, L.A. Story, and Butch Cassidy) were recorded from TV and one (The Very Unlucky Leprechaun) was at the annual Campbell Family St. Patrick's Day Party. Only one (L.A. Story) had I ever seen before.
The only other general comment is that when I was ranking these movies, I was surprised at how far down the list I still thought they were really good movies. I guess I did a good job of picking a limited number of movies that I knew I would like. Only the bottom four or so would I actually consider "bad" movies.
1. Up (6/13/09). Not only did I see it in the theater, I saw it in 3-D (the first feature film I've ever seen that way). The 3-D was nice, but it was Pixar's consistently high-quality storytelling, characters, and plot that made this the best movie of the year for me. I didn't love Up as much as The Incredibles or Wall-E, but it's clear to me that if it's a Pixar movie, it's probably the best one of the year.
2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (7/17/09). Shelly and I saw this one on a whim while on our romantic getaway in Winchester, Virginia. Definitely the best yet of the Potter series. As we discussed it afterwards, I couldn't think of a single thing I would do to make it better. It captured the spirit and action of the book precisely, without being bogged down with too much booky detail.
3. Cocoon (9/21/09). I guess I don't consider this to be a "great" film like I consider all Pixar films to be. I realize that it probably won't show up in the top five for other people who watched it this year. But for me, I had a very personal and even somewhat spiritual reaction to the themes of this movie about aging and dying that made it precious to me. This is my list, so it ranks very high.
4. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2/23/09). Amy Adams is fast becoming one of my favorite actresses. Not only is she stunning, she is stunningly fun to watch. And the story here was also fun and quirky. So, yeah. This was a very fun movie.
5. Gone With the Wind (8/22/09). The book is Number One on my all-time list; the movie was great, but doesn't quite rank so high. I was actually surprised at how much of the action in the voluminous text was able to make it into the film (and I approved of the decisions to leave various things out). The movie characters weren't quite as extreme as the book characters, but the stunning visuals had me constantly reminding myself: "This was made in nineteen-freaking-thirty-nine!"
6. Duplicity (8/28/09). An unexpected delight. When Shelly picked it up, I thought it wouldn't be that great. But I found it to be smart and interesting, and I was thinking about it for days. The title sequence featuring the slo-mo fistfight between rival CEOs alone is worth checking it out for.
7. The Dark Knight (3/9/09). It was hard to rank this movie on my list, because it's so different from all of the other movies on the list. Dark, brooding, and scary, yes. But I don't know if any other film I saw this year succeeded so well at producing the intended emotions in me.
8. L.A. Story (3/7/09). I love vintage Steve Martin. This isn't his best work (My Blue Heaven is, in my humble opinion), but it's close. It's rare that a film can contain such social satire and then throw in such outright wackiness and get away with it.
9. Coraline (9/15/09). Another movie that was hard to rank because of its uniqueness. The stop-motion animation was superb and I think really added to the feel of the movie - it wouldn't have been as good had it been live-action or a regular cartoon. I particularly enjoyed Teri Hatcher as the Other Mother, and I must brag that I recognized John Linnell's voice (from They Might Be Giants) in the Other Father's musical number immediately. I must be a freak.
10. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (6/6/09). Now I understand what all the fuss is about. I think this is supposed to have been one of the first movies where you're supposed to root for the bad guys (the Ku Klux Klan scene in Birth of a Nation notwithstanding), and boy howdy was I rooting for them. I loved the finale.
11. Man on Wire (4/17/09). Once upon a time, there was this crazy (and I mean CRAZY) French dude. When he heard, back in the 1970s, that they were building the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, the only thing he could think of was stretching a tightrope between them and walking across it. He'd done it to the towers of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, the Sydney Harbor Bridge, and other crazy places, but this was his Everest. This movie is a documentary, featuring original footage from the 70s (he and his friends, fortunately, loved to film themselves) and modern-day interviews with the crazy French dude (he didn't fall!) and his associates. Because they had to break in to the towers, it feels more like a bank heist movie than anything else. So weird it has to be true.
12. Knowing (8/17/09). Okay, I actually kind of like Nicholas Cage in this kind of movie. He's just off his rocker enough to be enjoyable in a laugh-at-him sort of way, but not so much as to make it a bad movie. In this case, the movie got much better after I sat and thought about it for a couple of days.
13. He’s Just Not That Into You (6/29/09). I liked the idea of the big ensemble cast experiencing all sorts of dating and relationship trauma, even though they didn't always relate to each other. I liked the idea of the guy giving advice to the girl about what guys are thinking. But in the end, I kind of ended up a little unsatisfied, though I don't really know why. Maybe it was the adultery subplot, though I guess that's just one more way in which he may just not be that into you.
14. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) (5/28/09). When the Keanu Reeves remake came out, I decided to see the original, which was touted as a landmark science fiction film. I bet it was more groundbreaking fifty years ago than it seems now. One of my favorite bits was seeing shots of 1950s Washington DC.
15. Meet the Robinsons (1/31/09). An utterly harmless and forgettable feature, epitomizing the recent decline of the Disney animation studio, except for one thing: that recurring "I have tiny little arms" joke made me bust a gut every time.
16. Dan in Real Life (7/25/09). This movie was probably better in theory than it was in execution. Michael Scott goes to a family reunion and meets a girl in the neighborhood whom he really likes, only to discover that she's his brother's new girlfriend. It started out all right, but it developed in unrealistic ways, which just spoiled it for me (and it could have used a more compelling female lead).
17. Twilight (4/1/09). There was a time when I was considering reading the Twilight books. But after Shelly read them and described the writing style to me, I decided I would pass. Therefore, I consider it my American duty to see the movies (on DVD, long after they are released, of course), so that I can understand my own culture. It was all right, but I didn't really like the way Stephenie Meyer seems to be messing with the nature of vampires. Bram Stoker is rolling in his grave.
18. Marley and Me (5/4/09). It was a decent little book, and it was a decent little movie. The dog was cute, the situtations were amusing, and the ending was maudlin enough to tug a little at my heartstrings. But it didn't seem to really have a point. Kind of like the book.
19. Bride Wars (8/11/09). Now we get to the bad movies. Even Anne Hathaway's radiant presence couldn't save this wreck. Who enjoys this kind of stuff? Both of the protagonists were heartless, mean jerks and I wanted them both to get punched in the face and dumped by their respective fiances.
20. Swing Vote (7/8/09). Speaking of lead characters who are icky, icky people, I thought this would be a funny commentary on the political process. But as I watched it, I wanted Kevin Costner's character to not only get punched in the face and dumped by his too-cute, too-smart daughter, but to get deported somewhere very far away for being such an idiot.
21. Mamma Mia! (1/9/09). The badness in this one wasn't in the stupid characters so much as it was in the writers' inability to make a coherent movie altogether. Sure, it's fun to hear your favorite ABBA songs, but sometimes it was like they just spun a wheel to decide what song would be sung next. Immediately after saying that she's not looking for a rich guy, Meryl Streep sings "Money, Money, Money." After her friend has been established as not needing a man ever in her life, she nudges a guy and starts singing "Take a Chance on Me." I could hear my IQ points fizzling away to the beat of the music.
22. A Very Unlucky Leprechaun (3/14/09). Poor Campbells. Every year they invite us to their St. Patrick's Day party, and they try very hard to find a new St. Patrick's Day movie to show us all. I applaud their efforts. Darby O'Gill a couple of years ago wasn't bad. But there are only so many leprechaun movies, and this one was just laughably bad.
Comments:
In my defense - I never said any of the Leprechaun movies are any good and I have yet to decide what to show this year...hope you'll come anyway!
I'm going to give you a pass because of your recent catching up on Office episodes, but I do believe it is Steve Carrell, not Micheal Scott, who stars in "Dan" ;-)
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