1) Brokeback Mountain
2) Good Night, and Good Luck.
3) Capote
4) The Squid and the Whale
5) A History of Violence
6) Syriana
7) The 40-Year Old Virgin Batman Begins
9) King Kong
10) The Chronic (what?) cles of Narnia
Worst:
1) The Island
2) Star Wars Episode III
3) War of the Worlds
4) Monster-in-Law
5) The Island (cuz it's so terrible)
Still to see: Munich, Pride & Prejudice, Murderball, Grizzly Man
--Sabin wrote:Wow. The Ballad of Jack and Rose is all but assured a place on my top ten. Maybe I need to see it again, but I had quite a bit of affection for it.
To be fair I haven't seen a lot of bad movies this year. I would call nos. 3-5 more exasperating than terrible.
The Ballad of Jack and Rose meandered so much I found myself wondering between scenes why the daughter of a famous playwright would write a script about thinly disguised father-daughter incest and then get her husband to play the father. Still, Daniel Day-Lewis works so infrequently these days I suppose we should be grateful for anything that gets him to appear before the cameras anymore.
I also found myself with time to wonder why Catherine Keener and her husband, Dermot Mulroney, from whom she is now separated, make so many movies yet have appeared together in only one film in 16 years - he had a bit part in Lovely & Amazing in which she starred.
Mulroney also made my five worst list in Must Love Dogs, in which he, playing a cad, has much better chemistry with lead Diane Lane than John Cusack who has played the sensitive guy so many times he doesn't even bother to cover his boredom.
Most exasperating of the three, though, was Sin City, which went back and forth from one uninvolving violent scene to another. I'm opposed to gratuitous violence on principle but can appreciate the artistry involved when the story makes sense such as John Singleton's re-incarnation of The Sons of Katie Elder as Four Brothers.
1) Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee)
2) A History of Violence (David Cronenberg)
3) Good Night, and Good Luck (George Clooney)
4) The Constant Gardener (Fernando Meirelles)
5) The Squid and the Whale (Noah Baumbach)
6) The Family Stone (Thomas Bezucha)
7) Capote (Bennett Miller) Munich (Steven Spielberg)
9) Millions (Danny Boyle)
10) Downfall (Oliver Hirschbiegel)
Here's my top 10 list (so far). It's been a weak year for film, so I don't think that bottom half of the list (below 5) definitely deserves consideration but they're pretty good and remain there until something better comes along.
1.) Nobody Knows
2.) 2046
3.) A History of Violence
4.) Grizzly Man
5.) Kung Fu Hustle
6.) War of the Worlds
7.) The 40-Year Old Virgin
8.) Batman Begins
9.) The Squid and the Whale
10.) Memories of Murder
Oscar-Holiday films haven't seen yet -- Munich, The New World, Syriana, King Kong, Brokeback Mountain, Pride & Prejudice, Breakfast at Pluto, The Constant Gardner, Memoirs of a Geisha, Chronicles of Narnia
Have seen a number of Oscar favorites and all didn't really impress -- Match Point (this one's the best of the lot), Mrs. Henderson Presents, Capote, Crash, Cinderella Man, Walk the Line, Good, Night and Good Luck, The Family Stone. Some better than others but all decidedly mediocre.
Critical consensus films that also were just alright or downright bad -- Tropical Malady, The Holy Girl, Kings & Queen, Me and You and Everyone Else We Know
You get what you'd expect from 40-Year Old Virgin. The title says it all, the poster is beguilingly sweet, and the story itself is played out well. I was apprehensive a few weeks before it came out, but I still think it's extremely amusing and laugh-out-loud funny in several scenes, much more than you can say for mainstream comedies these days.
Anyways, saw "A History of Violence" and I loved it! It really is a movie you think about when you're done. The performances were terrific, the direction was great (especially the front-yard massacre), and the concept is so simple, yet fascinating. I am confused about the love for William Hurt, but I can appreciate his performance as an unusual and twisted look at evil. My immediate gut reactions were to the acts of violence, especially when Tom's son beat the crap out of the bully, but it was Tom's reaction when he finds out that really stays with you. Maria Bello especially was great, and I would not begrudge her an Oscar nomination; I'd be disappointed if she was overlooked. This movie moves into the Top 5 of my year's list.
I just saw The 40-Year Old Virgin for the second time (well, The Unrated Version for the first time) and I must say that it's one of the best examples of how sometimes you don't need a great (or even good) director, screenplay, or much by way of aesthetic or even restraint to make an entertaining film. This is shoddy filmmaking with some absolutely hysterical bits and an ensemble that gels better than I had previously given it credit for (especially Romany Malco's effortlessly funny player). I don't feel entirely justified in even giving it three stars but it's such a deserving success story that I can't really not.
I don´t even think it´s funny. It´s pretty stereotyped with lack of humor. The same boring characters as usual. No innovation, no ingenious screenplay. Is that a good comedy? Nora Ephron, where are you?
Hustler wrote:can someone explain to me what´s the value of 40 year-old virgin?
Because unlike most comdies it's actually funny.
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
This movie was easily one of the best movies I've seen this year, just an amazing performance from Hoffman, truly awe-inspiring and a blueprint for future biopic actors. The whole movie was engrossing and sublime, and I had a great time. Even my girlfriend, who was apprehensive, thought it was great. Seeing "A History of Violence" in over an hour, so my top ten list for now:
1. Good Night, and Good Luck.
2. Capote
3. Wedding Crashers
4. The Squid and the Whale
5. Syriana
6. Batman Begins
7. Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire
8. The 40-Year Old Virgin
9. Sin City
10. Chronicles of Narnia
01. Brokeback Mountain
02. Pride & Prejudice
03. The Constant Gardener
04. Broken Flowers
05. 2046
06. Crash
07. Cinderella Man
08. Sin City
09. A History of Violence
10. Syriana
1. Grizzly Man
2. Capote
3. The Squid and the Whale
4. Broken Flowers
5. Nobody Knows
6. King Kong
7. Mysterious Skin
8. Me and You and Everyone We Know
9. Goodnight and Good Luck
10. Crash
Batman Begins
