10. The Dark Knight - I wonder if Heath Ledger's performance would still have garnered the same acclaim had he not died. I'd like to think so, because it's simply one of the best performances ever filmed. The rest of this movie is nothing more than a decent superhero/action movie, but with his performance it's enough to elevate it onto here.
9. High Fidelity - Ah the movie that introduced the world to Jack Black. A romantic comedy for people who hate romantic comedies. Just the right balance of comedy and drama with just enough philosophy thrown in.
8. The Fog of War - This shouldn't surprise any frequent reader, since I've talked extensively about this documentary on here on at least two occasions. If you still haven't made time to see this, consider this just one more nudge.
7. Memento - I feel a little odd putting this here, because I find that I spend a lot of time arguing that this movie isn't as good as most people think. However, that's because I find myself talking to a lot of people who want to place this up there with the greatest films of all time and I'm just not there with it. Still, as just a pure cinematic experience this is hard to top. Few films have the power to just reach out and grab you from the opening credits, engross you in a story, and not let go till the end as much as this one did.
6. Almost Famous - Another odd one because looked at separately no component of this movie stands out as exceptional. Everything (story, dialogue, directing, characters, acting) is pretty much good but not great. But what can I say? I just flat out love it! Probably the best way I can describe it is "immensely watchable". I can pretty much watch this movie any time, any place. That's a rare quality for a film. I remember that after seeing this in theatres, it was one of the 5 films they were offering on the little personal TVs on my flight to Amsterdam (it was pre-"On Demand"; the movies just ran in a loop). I think I ended up watching it 3 times on the flight over and twice more on the flight back.
5. Pan's Labyrinth - I am a sucker for a good fantasy (which are, admittedly, very rare) and this is one of the best (even despite the fact that, technically, it may not even qualify as a fantasy). Some of the most engaging scenes and breathtaking images.
4. Lord of the Rings - Speaking of great fantasy . . . OK, so maybe it's a cheat to include this all as one movie, but I think it's actually more of a cheat to split them up. It's clearly all one story and I like them all equally anyway.
3. Waking Life - There are only two movies ever where after I finished watching it at home I've just instantly watched it again. This is one of them (Trainspotting is the other). This film pioneered the "live animation" look that's now unfortunately been ruined by investing commercials. It's the perfect look for this film. Yes, it's really "just" a collection of scenes where random people wax philosophically but I found every single scene engaging and almost all of them had at least something to say that I'd never thought of before. I also learned how to lucid dream from watching this film. Talk about practical usage!
2. City of God - When I first saw this film, I think I told everyone I knew that they needed to see it. But when they inevitably asked "what's it about" I found that I could never explain it in a way that made it sound even a fraction of as interesting as it really is. I find that I still have this problem, so I'll just say this. I guarantee you that no one who has watched it would dispute it's inclusion on this list.
1. Mulholland Drive - This will probably not be a very popular choice. This is a movie that splinters people. It's the ultimate "love it or hate it" movie. After I recommended this, a number of people saw it and then asked me to help explain it to them. Curiously I found that for everybody (myself included) whether or not you understood it was irrelevant to whether or not you liked it. It took me probably 5-6 viewings before I felt like I understood everything (or *almost* everything) but fitting all the pieces together was probably the most enjoyable part. Watching it, letting it all sink in, coming up with theories during drives to and from work, then rewatching it to see how my theory fit, and then doing it all over again. If that sounds like torture, then this is not the movie for you. If it sounds like fun though, you've got a fun little puzzle ahead of you. A word of warning though; the DVD has no chapter stops. Yeah, David Lynch is a quirky guy (to put it mildly).
Honorable mentions: Minority Report, Kill Bill (1&2), Inglorious Basterds, Avatar, Spirited Away, Best in Show, WALL-E
5 Movies that I'd like the 2 hours of my life back:
5. Transformers I and II - I love the Transformers. I still have the original 80s movie on VHS. I also don't have a problem looking at Megan Fox. But you'd find yourself both more entertained and more fulfilled staring at a Megan Fox poster for 2 hours - even if someone took away the poster after 30 minutes and you were stuck staring at a blank wall for the next 90.
4. Dumb and Dumberer - I didn't expect the genius of the Carey/Daniels original, but I did expect to laugh at least once. And I didn't. Not once. This is the start of a common theme for the rest of the movies on this list: when you don't have an idea, DON'T MAKE A SEQUEL!
3. Ocean's Twelve - One of the few films that actually made me angry as I watched it in the theatres. A pivotal plot point that revolves around the fact that Julia Roberts' character looks like Julia Roberts. Are you f'n kidding me?!?!?!? You. Can. Not. Do. That.
2. The Whole Ten Yards - I like to imagine that during filming right after the director yelled "cut" each time Bruce Willis and Matthew Perry just burst out laughing in disbelief that they were getting paid for this. I don't think this movie had a script. Seriously, I don't.
1. Matrix Revolutions - Even after "Reloaded" I still defended this series. I had faith in the Wachowskis (being a big fan of Bound and the original Matrix), that they would tie up the loose ends and wrap up the story in a satisfying way. I could not have been more wrong. After seeing it, I remember writing an e-mail saying that "I wish when I had gotten to the theatre Keanu Reeves had just kicked me in the nuts and stole my $7. That would have been more honest." I still feel that way.
8 comments:
(Ooh, boy, you're going to get some arguments here!)
I question both your taste and (once again) your ratings system.
First of all, your ratings system is broken. IIRC you gave Transformers 2 either 2 or 2.5 stars. I tried to look it up, but couldn't find a cache from back then. We've had this discussion before, but I think it bears re-mentioning.
Second, I won't get into "You missed this!" or "My favorite was this, why wasn't it on your list!" but "Children of Men" was the best movie of the decade, why wasn't it on your list?
Third, Heath Ledger's performance was pretty good, but not one of the best ever, and probably not in the top five of the decade or even the year. As Brad Pitt said after people were wow'ed by his performance in "12 Monkeys" (and I'm working from memory here) "The easiest role to play is crazy." His Joker was good, damn good, but it was just a crazy dude.
But speaking on "The Dark Knight" specifically, it was good, but holy crap was it indulgent. People railed on Schumacher at the end for having too much going on (too many villains) and Nolan solved that problem by making Dark Knight 6 hours long. Seriously, if you include the extra long drive to get to a real IMAX theater, standing in line, waiting in my seat, commercials, previews, and credits, it was probably a 4.5 hour experience. That is why I haven't seen Avatar, I just can't find 5 hours to carve out of my day. Now, "Dark Knight" had a better script and was better paced than "Batman & Robin," but you could have cut out 75% of the Harvey Dent stuff and cut the running time down to 1:45. THEN you make Batman 3 about 2 Face instead of having to choose from the crappy Batman rogue's galary.
But I digress.
Memento is a great movie, I loved it, but if you strip away its gimmick it is a pretty bland mystery. And I just noticed you have 2 Nolan films on the list.
I feel the same way about Mullholland drive. When I got done watching it I felt like I had just watched something important, but as I started deconstructing it (taking away the gimmick) it b
became just another movie about LA and ambtition and letting those things change you. I've seen that movie 50 times.
As a guy that has dated the same girl (basically) his whole life it amazes me that you liked High Fidelity so much. I didn't think it was really that good. I remember watching it and thinking "God, this is Clerks with better actors, color, and music instead of movies." And I hate Jack Black. Except from the Cable Guy. He's been playing the same part for 10 years now. Its old.
First, I will concede a point. I was able to look up my rating for Transformers II and was astonished that I gave it 3 stars. That's indefensible, and I have no idea what I was thinking. However, I labeled the section at the end "5 movies I want the 2 hours of my life back" on purpose. I was not trying to call them the "5 worst movies of the decade". And I really was just going to include Transformers I in that (which is a movie that I did rail about how terrible it was on here right after I saw it) but decided at the end that it was worth including II in as well. I probably should have just included 1 though.
I did consider "Children of Men" and had I gone to a top-25 it would have been on it, but ultimately I like all the movies on the list (and the honorable mentions) better.
For Heath Ledger, I disagree that he was playing "just a crazy dude". For one, look at the difference between his and Nicholson's portrayal of The Joker. And for that matter, contrast Nicholson's Joker with his character in The Shining. They're all playing "crazy dudes" but you don't see a difference in the portrayals or in the difficulty? And, really, you don't even rate his performance in the top-5 from 2008? I think you're just being contrarian.
OK, you're going to criticize my rating system and you want to use your lack of proximity to an IMAX screen as a valid criticism of a film? Well my work is a 10-minute walk away from the Navy Pier IMAX so does that mean I'm justified in giving it such a high rating. Also, the Navy Pier IMAX does assigned seating (so you don't have to worry about getting there early) and in order to squeeze more shows in per day there are no previews. So it actually takes less time out of my day to see a movie there then to see a popular movie at another theatre. But, again, why the hell should that matter? Also, my original 5-star rating was based on a non-IMAX viewing of the movie.
I largely agree about Memento, but to me the gimmick was enough to make it a completely original and incredible experience (at least the first viewing). Is it not just as original to take an old story and tell it in a new way as it is to take a new story and tell it in a conventional way?
Mulholland Drive is about "LA and ambtition and letting those things change you"? Apparently you and I either have vastly different interpretations of that movie, or you were being intentionally very vague in order not to write any spoilers.
I think we've hit upon a key difference in how we rate films. You appear to be of the opinion that a movie is only great if it has something deep or original (or both) to say whereas I think a movie can still be great if it merely tells a good story in a new or interesting (or both) way.
If anything, the fact that I've only really dated one girl my whole life is a reason for me to like High Fidelity MORE than most people. It's about the futility of playing the field forever and "chasing the fantasy when the fantasy doesn't exist." Who better to be comforted by this than someone who has never played the field and worried that he was missing out on something? And, while I won't go so far as to say that I hate Jack Black, I too am sick of him and feel like he's done the same thing for 10 years now. But this was 2000 when he was fresh and he was still great in that role. I think it's revisionist and unfair to say "well maybe I liked him at the time but I hate him now so now I don't like him in that anymore."
Oh lord, not the ratings system argument again. I'll stay out of it.
But I will agree with John that High Fidelity is a great movie. It is also immensely watchable. I'd like to nominate 500 Days of Summer to the same category (though I haven't tested the repeat viewings thing yet).
(500) Days of Summer is another one that definitely would be in my top-25, and it might even make the top-10 but when I considered it I felt like I needed to watch it again before I could decide. For some reason, I just had a real problem with including any 2009 movies on here, which is how Inglorious Basterds ended up as just an honorable mention.
I was very surprised to see that Ebert picked Synechdoche, NY as his best film of the decade. Makes me feel like I should watch that one again now that I won't just be overwhelmed by how weird it is. The only film we both put on our top-10 was Almost Famous, although he put City of God, Kill Bill, Minority Report, Pan's Labyrinth, and Waking Life in his next 10. He put The Hurt Locker as his #2 and that's one I've been very anxious to see and am very excited that it came out on DVD/Blu-Ray yesterday.
Please note that I wasn't trying to insult or in any way put down the length of your relationship. My point in that was things that have a basis in real life are more easily enjoyed if there is a level of identification
For instance, I'm sure I'll enjoy "The Hurt Locker," but there is a level of appreciation I have no way of matching compared to someone who has served.
The whole IMAX thing was only an addendum to me thinking the movie was 30-45 minutes too long and was really only a commentary on not yet having seen Avatar.
I only brought up the ratings thing again because there is no point in arguing unless you can come back 6 months later and try to win again.
Of course different crazy characters are different to play. 12 Monkeys Brad Pitt was a different kind of crazy than, say, Fight Club Brad Pitt. But from a performance standpoint (and having been in a bunch of plays in elementary school I am totally qualified to speak here) it is easier to portray a crazy character with super exagerated emotions and expressions than it is to play a character with more normalized traits. (I'd add that XXX was better, but I haven't seen any of the other movies from the best supporting actor category, although I'd wager I think Hoffman in Doubt was better had I seen it.)
Don't worry, I wasn't offended, although it's kind of funny to note (out of all the things you've said on here) where you thought you may have crossed a line.
Your point about relatabiliy is well taken when it comes to something like The Hurt Locker, but I don't think it translates very well to something like High Fidelity. Being a bomb-disarmer for the Army is a pretty specific thing, but the themes of looking for a "soulmate" (for lack of a better term) and asking "what if?" about your past are universal and, though they take different forms with different people, are something everyone can relate to. And should I be surprised that you liked Children of Men so much even though you're not sterile (as far as I know)?
Yes, I am in agreement that it's easier to play "over-the-top" than to play realistic. Taking from my amateur acting career (which, being from high school, TOTALLY trumps your elementary school) I found it far easier to stage act than to act in front of a camera
since you have to overact on stage to get your emotions across to the back row and in general it's a lot easier to give more than less.
But I just think there's a lot more nuance and subtlety in his performance than you're giving him credit for. When you go over the top (another great movie, BTW) you risk just turning it into a cartoony performance and if you're not careful you end up in Jeremey Irons Dungeons and Dragons territory. But I thought that Ledger managed to make the Joker seem pretty real and actually made him scary, and that's just really impressive to me. There's also the fact that he was playing a character that's been around for 50 years and did so knowing that he'd be compared to Jack Nicholson and the fact that he not only made the character his own but completely overshadowed Nicholson's portrayal. . . again, just really impressive to me.
PSH was good (as always) in Doubt, but I will still stick with Ledger. I will admit that "one of the best performances ever" was probably a stretch, but your "not in the top-5 of 2008" is a stretch too.
All this reminds me of another great performance of "crazy" - Jim Carey in Me, Myself, and Irene. Regardless of what you think of the movie (I didn't like it much when I first saw it but it's grown on me a lot) his performance is awesome. I think he didn't get a lot of the credit he deserved because he does such a convincing job portraying two completely different characters that it's easy to forget that it's all just him! In particular, the scene where he first turns into Hank at the supermarket is just an acting clinic. And then the fight he has with himself at the end is almost as good.
Ech. Jack Black singing and playing himself on Community last night.
Although the other guest appearance was shocking and mildly amusing.
I actually don't have alllll that much to rail against here. Several of your picks aren't necessarily the best movies of the decade for me, but I feel you are justified and things like Waking Life and Mull Drive certainly make it your personal list... which I guess make you an art house indie snob. Go wear your beret Commie. Woo Labels!
I was so glad to watch your transition in the Matrix. As you had me watch the original (and most people forget it took a while for everyone to really start liking that movie on DVD), I was initially horribly disappointed with the sequel and couldn't believe I couldn't get you on board.
So in the spirit of horrible sequels I wonder if you forgot Phantom Menace and the like. True, Jar Jar is back in the realms of 1999, but its offspring grew up in this decade and once you utter such ridiculousness theres no way back.
There's no excuse for watching dumb and dumberer. None.
High Fidelity is a great movie. Simple characters who hint at more. It's because it was so good that Jack Black is given more for you to get sick of him. The dream sequence of Tim Robbins being hit in the face with and Air Conditioner makes e smile as I write.
Movies to consider worth honorable (good) mention: American Psycho, Death to Smoochy (yeah I went there), Eternal Sunshine, Finding Nemo, Best in Show, Royal Tenenbaums...
Also surprised/relieved theres no There Will Be Blood/ No Country For Old Men. Maybe they deserve to be there... I may just need some time.
And Damnit Frost Nixon is better than Slumdog which is also thankfully not here.
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