So I figure I will start this blog out with something that has been quite popular for this year, a top ten list of the past decade. Obviously I am a bit late to this party but nevertheless I will speak my piece.
I thought about numbering them 1-10 but ultimately can't decide on an exact order so they go roughly from best downward.
Children of Men
Alfonso Cuaron - 2006
First up we have Children of Men, directed by Alfonso Cuaron. This is a movie that grows on me every time I watch it. The most directly wondrous thing about it is the absurdly amazing cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki. I am a huge fan of long takes and this film has probably the most stunning example of what long takes can do in cinema.
The one that stands out the most is the car scene that works so well your jaw will most likely be slightly agape at the end. Aside from that the atmosphere of the movie that is told through the lighting and set design is brilliant and really brings you into this world that is really not so different from our own.
While the cinematography really is the best thing about this film, that in no way is to look down on the rest. The story and acting are all top notch in my eyes. Clive Owen delivers the best performance i've ever seen from him, and I just can't help but love any movie with Chiwetel Ejiofor. The story is a great one that makes itself feel very relevant and never focuses itself on unnecessary details that would derail a lot of other dystopian tales.
It is that necessity that I think is ultimately what is so great about this film. Cuaron made a brilliant choice in shooting this film documentary style, and everything from the set design, to the way the music is heard, to the insane attention to detail, lends to this feeling that this is a future that is just around the corner. This sense of reality despite it obviously being a film set in the future makes you feel part of the despair better than any other dystopian film i've ever seen, and ultimately makes it the best dystopian film i've ever seen.
In The Mood For Love
Wong Kar-Wai - 2000
This film really came out of nowhere for me. I had never really dipped my toes into Asian cinema (with the exception of Kurosawa and the occasional hit film) but this film opened my eyes to the films coming from that part of the world.
It's hard to explain what I like about this film so much except that it's just so darn beautiful. And I don't mean just the cinematography (though that is certainly beautiful), I mean everything. The outfits, the lighting, the dialogue, the story, and especially the music make this one of the most beautiful films i've ever seen.
Probably the most important of those elements for the success of this movie is the music. The aching cello during the slow motion sequences will make your heart ignite. This film combined with Chungking Express made me believer that Wong Kar-Wai is without a doubt the best director in the history of film when it comes to using music properly. This is one of the main reasons I consider him one of my favorite directors of all time and a major influence on what I aspire to do in the future.
Also I think it's very brave to make a love story that does not involve the characters having sex throughout the movie. I know a lot of people think sex inherently makes a film better, but I don't think it's a coincidence that that films like In the Mood For Love and Before Sunrise are some of the best romantic films ever made and don't include a single sex scene.
The Son
Jeanne-Pierre and Luc Dardenne - 2002
This film from the most talented film-making brothers on the planet (sorry Coen's) is brilliant in in simplicity. There is no large cast of characters (in fact there are really only 3 characters that matter at all), no special effects, no complicated story. It's just straight up in your face claustrophobic story telling. It is essentially a parable, and in my mind the greatest parable ever put on film.
When I say the film is claustrophobic I certainly mean it. The camera stays uncomfortably close to the main character throughout most of the film, which while it will make you feel pretty uneasy at first, is ultimately the key to the films brilliance. This is a film that literally forces you to be with a character. There are no beautiful images to distract your attention, no pretty music to keep your ears entertained...there is only the main character, in all of his beauty and ugliness.
Naturally when a film does something like this, the main actor had better be good, and Olivier Gourmet knocks it out of the park delivering one of the decades great performances. The fact that very little is actually spoken in the film makes his performance all the more astounding. His face speaks millions of words, and it is up to us to attempt to decipher them.
Oh and it certainly doesn't hurt that the film is very very suspenseful.
Pan's Labyrinth
Guillermo Del Toro - 2006
Fairy tales are for children right? Not if you're Guillermo Del Toro. This astounding fable from the director of films such as Blade II and the Hellboy films only has one thing in common with his other films, and that is the presence of some rather freaky looking creatures (one of which is downright nightmare material). Aside from that, this film is much more serious and frankly much better than anything else Del Toro has created.
There's really not much wrong with this film. Ivana Baquero gives one of the great child performances in cinema history and everyone else is solid as well. The faun is downright creepy but mesmerizing and the captain is frightening as he should be.
Probably the most amazing thing about this film is the way it seamlessly blends the brutally realistic with the fantastical. It really makes you start to wonder whether the fantasy elements are real or not, and THAT question is the key to the film. You can very well tell something about a person based on how they interpret the ambiguous ending of the film, possibly even tell whether they are an optimist or a pessimist.
I have my opinion on the ending and am very convinced that I am right (and it doesn't hurt that the director shares my opinion) but I commend Del Toro for leaving it so open to interpretation. That conflict between reality and fantasy is at the heart of the film.
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Peter Jackson - 2001-2003
Peter Jackson did something astounding withe the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. He took probably the most important fantasy series of all time, and didn't make it suck. Sure the book is better blah blah blah, but the films are genuinely fantastic. Tolkien is surely a genius, but Jackson must be some kind of brilliant to make a film trilogy that hits so close to the heart of Tolkien's work that even the most die hard fans were pleased. Yet at the same time he made a great work of entertainment that even the illiterate would enjoy. It's a difficult task to please both the masses and the fanboys yet somehow Jackson did it.
I think the key to the films is that they feel authentic. A lot of attention was played to the settings of the film, the costumes, and the creatures and it all lends itself to creating probably the most beautiful yet believable fantasy world ever put on film. The film series (like the books) does not fall prey to the inevitable overabundance of fireballs and sorcery that so many other fantasy series do, and that ultimately makes it a much more mature and powerful work.
Add that to probably the best ensemble cast ever for a big budget film trilogy and you've got yourself the best trilogy ever put to film (yes, even better than the original Star Wars)
United 93
Paul Greengrass - 2006
Paul Greengrass (mostly known for the 2nd and 3rd Bourne films) is not really known for making top quality dramas (though he sure knows how to direct an action film) but he sure did score with this film. September 11th is one of the biggest tragedies in U.S. history and really deserved a great film made about it, and thankfully Greengrass managed to pull that off.
The greatness of the film comes in that it is completely unassuming. Style takes a complete backseat and Greengrass just shows us what happened. The film was heavily researched as to who the passengers were, what the actual conversations were between the passengers and the people they called, and they even went so far as to make the film in real time (in other words from boarding the plane until the crash takes just as long as it did in real life).
It is this determination to make the film realistic that makes it so great. 9/11 was already dramatic enough, so why attempt to make it even more dramatic? Instead we just get to experience the greatest reenactment of the events of 9/11 you will ever see, period. If you were old enough when 9/11 happened to remember it or were in some way effected by it, this film will tear you to shreds, but ultimately give you faith in the human spirit.
Slumdog Millionaire
Danny Boyle - 2008
It seems popular these days to look down on this winner of 8 Oscars, but I still love it. I vividly remember when I saw it in theaters at a very cool independent theater in Washington D.C. The audience laughed at just the right moments, clapped at the right moments, cheered at the end...it was the best theater experience i've ever had.
To me the key to this movies greatness and success lies in it's kinetic energy. The editing style, cinematography, and music all lend to a very fast paced and entertaining atmosphere. In essence this film is an ultimate crowd pleaser. I think the chase scenes in the film are the ultimate expression of this energy. I still sometimes get chills during these scenes because they are filmed and edited so brilliantly that you can't help but get caught up in the energy of it and feel that you are running too.
Yet perhaps the key to the film is that even though it is a crowd pleaser, it goes much deeper than that. The film is unafraid to show sadness and pain and the darker things in life, yet does so with a hopeful spirit. This of course is driven by Jamal's undying love for Latika, which due to the obvious connection between the actors (whom i'm pretty sure are dating now) is very believable and makes Jamal's actions understandable. In fact Jamal is a character that we should all look up to and try to emulate.
Still Life
Zhang Ke Jia - 2006
Easily the most unknown film on my list is this masterpiece from the Chinese director Zhang Ke Jia. I presume that his films don't get much attention due to their lack of action and flashy effects, but I find his films to be excellent, especially this one.
The film presents a very odd mixture of reality and fiction, so much that you really start to wonder how much this film is a documentary and how much is a fictional tale. Yet in the mixture of this confusion Ke Jia can add something as absurd as a building suddenly shooting off into outer space like a rocket (with absolutely no explanation or the characters even noticing), and it works. I don't know how it works, but it does. It somehow fits, even though you probably won't be able to understand why.
I will say the film is not exactly very entertaining (do films even need to be entertaining?) but it is mesmerizing. It pulls you into the reality of the situation and never lets go. Also the cinematography is excellent, with some really stunning landscapes.
Where The Wild Things Are
Spike Jonze - 2009
When I first saw the pictures for this movie, I thought it was going to be terrible. I thought the monsters looked absurd and really was skeptical they could turn a children's book with no words into a feature length film. Goodness gracious was I wrong. Spike Jonze is at the absolute top of his game with this masterpiece that I think is the best film ever made about being a child.
Everything about being a child is in the film. From Max's relationship with his mother and sister to his relationship with the monsters, you will find yourself saying over and over "I went through that" or "I knew someone exactly like that". Because of this you find yourself immensely connected to the film, almost as if you are experiencing childhood again in all it's ups and downs.
Now people have complained that this is not a children's movie, and I totally agree. I think that the best audience for this film is adult's because it is only then that you will be able to fully appreciate the depth that this film has to offer. If you really open up to the film it can be an almost revelatory experience as you find yourself understanding childhood as you never could when you were actually in it.
Yes it's a bit of a depressing film at times, but it ends in beauty and hope and should remind all of us grouchy and cynical adults that we should always let the wild thing inside of us free...perhaps even in public sometimes.
Moon
Duncan Jones - 2009
My final entry to my list is this brilliant science fiction film from director Duncan Jones, aka David Bowie's son. The fact that this is his first feature length film is astounding, and it must surely rank amongst the best freshman films of all time. This obviously bodes well for the future and I can't wait to see what he comes up with next.
There's no reason to beat around the bush about the obvious: this is Sam Rockwell's film. In a performance that should have easily garnered an Oscar Nomination (and a win in my opinion), Sam Rockwell will astound you. In fact it's a travesty this film didn't even get a single nomination. Rockwell's performance is so magnetic it will have you absolutely glued to the screen. Sure the plot of the film isn't the most original and some people can spot the twist a mile away, but who cares when you get to see this man act for a few hours.
Aside from that, my other favorite thing about the film is the set design. It has a wonderful simplicity in it similar to that of 2001: A Space Odyssey's. In fact the entire film has a simplicity to it that I find refreshing. Instead of going the route of most science fiction films and adding a lot of big explosions, lasers, aliens, and whatnot, the film returns to what Science Fiction was meant to be, films that make you think.
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