The Top 10 Films of the Year

“I won’t let anyone come between us anymore. “

10. High Tension

This film definitely took me by surprise. I had remembered seeing previews for it and chalked it up to another brainless slasher film (which don’t get me wrong, can be fun to watch). Little did I know that this is actually one of the better horror films released in the past decade or so, and it really lives up to its name. The scenes are tense, the deaths are gruesome, and the ending is handled very well. The concept of the twist ending is something I’d seen done horribly in other films recently, so it was refreshing to see the ‘right’ way to make this kind of movie work.

“I’ve spent so long in the darkness, I’d almost forgotten how…beautiful the moonlight is.”

9. Corpse Bride

The spiritual successor to one of my favorite movies, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and yet another Tim Burton/Johnny Depp collaboration, I was a little nervous this movie wouldn’t live up to my expectations. Luckily, it did. It’s not nearly as good as Nightmare but it holds its own and the story is crafted in a very lovely fashion. The songs were something I was less impressed with, but they were still fun none the less. Also, Emily Watson voices Victoria and I love her.

“Don’t give me no rules. All I got are rules.”

8. Walk the Line

I love Johnny Cash, and when I heard about the biopic being made about him I was pretty excited to see how it turned out. Then Joaquin Phoenix was cast as Cash himself, and at first I thought it was a strange casting choice. But after seeing the movie, I realized how perfect he was for that role. While the film itself seemed to come out conveniently when the biopic fad was hitting it’s stride, I thought this was one of the stronger films in that genre. Phoenix specifically did wonderful in his role, and the music was of course brilliant.

“Ask him, Edie…ask him how come he’s so good at killing people.“

7. A History of Violence

A lot of people didn’t like this movie, and I honestly wasn’t sure how I felt about it upon my first viewing either. But upon viewing it a second time, I started to understand what Cronenberg was trying to do, and behind the seemingly simple story about a man trying to forget his violent past is a very Darwinian focus on survival of the fittest and how humans have adapted to using violence as a tactic to survive. It’s a very interesting watch, and it isn’t for everyone, but I personally love it.

“Let’s get some fuckin’ french toast!“

6. The 40 Year Old Virgin

I’d still say this is Apatow’s strongest film, and it’s so incredibly truthful while managing to be hilarious as well. Andy is a good person, and unlike the slew of raunchy teen comedies about losing their virginity no matter what bro!!! is a very heartfelt story of a lonely guy who simply stopped trying and kept doing the things he loved doing. It’s satisfying to see him find someone he loves, and who loves him, but in the end the movie is about Andy finding himself and being able to grow as a human being. That, and it’s really funny.

“You know friend, this is a god damn bitch of an unsatisfactory situation.“

5. Brokeback Mountain

I remember this being touted as ‘That Gay Cowboy Movie’ for a long time. There was controversy behind depicting two ‘hollywood’ actors like Gyllenhaal and Ledger as gay. People still talk about it in kind of a teasing way, and the term ‘Brokeback’ is used often in a derogatory way nowadays. The fact of the matter is, this is a gorgeous, non traditional love story that is handled with the utmost profesionalism, courtesy of director Ang Lee. The actors are all in top form here, especially Ledger, earning him his first Academy Award nomination, something you wouldn’t have expected from the star of ‘A Knight’s Tale.’ 

“I can only express puzzlement, that borders on alarm.“

4. Sin City

Robert Rodriguez is quite possibly the most unpredictable director, in terms of ‘will I like his new movie or not?’ After the El Mariachi trilogy, he made Spy Kids, essentially dancing for his kids while throwing them candy and simultaneously shitting all over the rest of the world. But then he made Sin City, and I remembered why he’s so good at what he does. The cinematography here is some of the best I’ve seen, and no movie before or since has really captured the ‘comic book’ feel on film. It also makes good use of some great talent like ‘Comeback of the Year’ Mickey Rourke, and ‘Bad-Ass Baldy’ Bruce Willis.

“Sometimes when I think of how good my book is going to be, I can’t breathe.“

3. Capote

If you know me at all, you know I love Philip Seymour Hoffman more than anything. He had been doing great work pretty much since and including Boogie Nights, after his ‘mean prep school jerk’ phase. But this was the first movie the Academy finally recognized his work, and not only nominated him but gave him the best Actor Oscar. And did he ever deserve it. Embodying real life persona Truman Capote was likely not an easy feat, but he pulled it off brilliantly. I’d probably not care about this movie if he wasn’t the one being awesome in it. But it’s true that the film itself is pretty great too.

“You must become more than just a man in the mind of your opponent.“

2. Batman Begins

I never cared much for Batman. This was mostly due to never reading the actual comic books but just watching shitty movies about him get worse and worse as they went on, culminating in the giant turd called Batman and Robin. It wasn’t until I saw this movie, the ‘relaunch’ of the franchise, that I realized how fucking awesome Batman is, or at least how awesome he can be. Christopher Nolan proved he was the ‘next big thing’ by setting the Batman mythos in a very ‘realistic’ Gotham City, and grounding it in as much reality as it could while still maintaining the comic book’s stories and characters.

“Well, something sure the hell ain’t right.“

1. Serenity

Joss Whedon has not let me down yet. I grew up watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the day I finally got around to seeing his ill-fated space-western series Firefly it had already been cancelled and released on DVD. It’s a completely different animal than Buffy, and in my opinion his best series. It maintains the humor that I love but grounds it with more of the human element. Sure, it’s set in a future we’ll likely never see, but there aren’t any vampires or lesbian witches or musical demons to take away the relatability. It’s a ‘realistic’ future, and you really grow to love this crew of characters.

Then the movie came out, and just cemented how fucking awesome this world is. This is the movie George Lucas wished he made instead of Revenge of the Sith. It’s the way a Sci-Fi film should be, with great characters, great effects and a wonderful story of hope and rooting for the underdog. Even if you have never seen the series, this movie is a monster of it’s own, so don’t let that stop you.

“This report is maybe twelve years old. Parliament buried it, and it stayed buried till River dug it up. This is what they feared she knew. And they were right to fear because there’s a whole universe of folk who are gonna know it, too. They’re gonna see it. Somebody has to speak for these people. You all got on this boat for different reasons, but you all come to the same place. So now I’m asking more of you than I have before. Maybe all. Sure as I know anything I know this, they will try again. Maybe on another world, maybe on this very ground swept clean. A year from now, ten, they’ll swing back to the belief that they can make people…better. And I do not hold to that. So no more running. I aim to misbehave.“

- Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion)