I suppose if I’m going to introduce myself, one thing would be to establish my tastes and what I enjoyed last year. This is a pretty hefty 25-name list, but it’s a list of flicks I consider faves of the year, although I’m sure in a couple of years I’ll realize how damned wrong I was on some. (especially the first one to name off)
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#25. Mr. Brooks
I’m sure that I’m going to regret this, given how much “BAD” was thrown at this movie. But, aside from the horrible Demi Moore segments of the film (which are completely and utterly pointless), this is a strangely cynical, dark, grisly little serial killer drama. The interaction of William Hurt and Kevin Costner is absolutely fantastic and well-worth seeing the movie for (if you can get past how painfully cheesy and predictable some parts are). And the story itself, which deals more with Mr. Brooks’ lineage passing down onto his college-aged daughter, along with his rising compulsion to kill again, and the new protege (Dane Cook was suitably irritating); was actually overall pretty good. The conclusion of the film worked for me, also. I wouldn’t say it’s a “great” film, but it helped sweeten the year for me with some of its creative ideas.
#24. He Was A Quiet Man
An “almost direct-to-DVD” movie that captured the spirit of the 1990s Independent film, taking the common idea of “the guy who snapped” and doing something unique and interesting with it. There’s a trippy vibe all over the flick, mostly from the way locations are used, but also in Christian Slater’s incredible performance (the guy finally feels like a “man”, rather than a young man or a punk). While it isn’t without its problems and it definitely lacked a budget, I enjoyed it. I was a tad overhyped for it, though…thanks, Rammy. ;P
#23. Invisible Target
The first break-out role for Jackie Chan’s son, this was one of those great returns to the Hong Kong action film of yesteryear. Yes, there was tons of B.S. that made it cheesy and ridiculous, but it worked itself out by having lots of absolutely BRUTAL ass-kicking and stunt-work. Nicholas Tse also surprised me with how…adult he looked in this film. o_O I hope Benny Chan keeps at it, he really does know how to make a jam-packed action ride.
#22. Tekkon Kinkreet
A visual feast that may be a little foggy-headed in the third act (the “out of left field” stuff was a bother), but it’s a unique journey and one I really enjoyed taking. An anime film that is a good breakout feature for Studio 4C.
#21. D-War
I’m sorry, I’m a kaiju nut. This one was fun just for the action and monster smashings (which are SUPERCOOL, by the way ), making it well-worth a rental and a real fine piece of work. Its characters/story/plot/dialogue make you want to stab something really hard, but hey, it has Robert Forster as “awesome old guy who helps the chosen kid” so what more could you want out of that?
#20. The Triangle
A trio of directors (Tsui Hark, Ringo Lam, and Johnnie To) doing an almost “exquisite corpse”-esque film, similar to what was done with The Signal (a film I’d put on this list but it technically came out just this year - damn!), but executed far better. A surreal journey of a heist film, where the film is more about the before and after than the actual job itself. Simon Yam is fantastic as the most mild-mannered of the group, unfortunately I don’t recall the other actors…but they also rocked! This felt refreshing to see, a film that was eerie, intense, funny, and gleeful. The kind of experiment that worked. Thumbs up to it.
#19. Smokin’ Aces
I was disappointed at first because of my humongous expectations, but I’ve grown to love this film and watch a little bit of it at every opportunity. The variety of characters, comedic tone, the strong dramatic performances from Ryan Reynolds and Jeremy Piven, the well-done (although way cut down/not-violent-enough) action sequences, the idea of the Tremor Brothers, the presence of Tommy Flanagan, and Ben Affleck getting blown away, all added up to an enjoyable experience. A good rewatchable movie, definitely my kinda style and flavor. Sorta wish it was mine, really. Dang you, Carnahan! (hee)
#18. Ocean’s Thirteen
I haven’t seen it since release, so this may change, but I actually seriously liked the film. The liveliness of the original remake combined with the energetic/artistic touch of the second film made it a winning combination. I also liked that it touched on some darker elements without making it too much. Ehh…Vincent Cassel wasn’t used well enough but when is he ever overused? It also was the first example of Casey Affleck surprising and kicking ass, which he continued to do for the rest of the year.
#17. 300
Like Smokin’ Aces, this kind of disappointed me because of unrealistic expectations. (I guess 2006 kinda spoiled me ) Nevertheless, Zack Snyder proved his worth and built on the potential that he gained from Dawn 2004, satisfying both the need for lots of carnage and an emotional core with the King/Queen relationship. Although I have serious issues with the movie (in a “I wouldn’t have done it that way” sort of fashion), it’s a helluva rush and a kick-ass action film, with moments throughout that are gorgeous, visually amazing, bad-ass as hades, and that make the warrior inside me want to pound his chest and go to war.
#16. Like A Dragon
One of the three Takeshi Miike films released in 2007 (one of two I saw, I haven’t gotten my hands on Crows Zero yet) and a damn good one. I haven’t played the Yakuza games (this is a film adaptation of the first one), though this made me more apt to try it out. There’s a lot of 1980s action homages in the general tone and style of the film, along with some smirks at yakuza movie cliches and Miike cliches. The overall movie is an absolute blast that delivered a great deal of enjoyment. It’s a refreshing kind of foreign film, because it overcame the problems of the standard Hollywood action film and didn’t fall into the strange quirks of the Japanese film culture. Funny, fun, and just plain cool. Ace.
#15. American Gangster
Ridley Scott seems to seriously be on a roll this decade, especially with his last few films. (yes, I liked A Good Year, so sue me) This one was a bit bloated, bit slow, and could’ve used at least one more action scene; but he balances a gritty drama that’s part Black Caesar, part Godfather, part Year of the Dragon (you may start scratching your heads as to why that title’s familiar now); with a cop investigation that feels straight out of The Seven-Ups. Not everything works, but I love gangster/crime stories and this one is a really freaking good one. I felt like I got my money’s worth with it and many films in 2007 that I was looking forward to did not. So it goes on the list. Also for the buckshot ricochet. Yowch.
#14. Superbad
Dude. I don’t see comedies in theaters, but this had to be the exception. It captured, for me, a lot of what I always wanted to do in my old high school-based scripts in terms of characters/situations. (the fact I just realized that there’s two sequences whose locations look eerily like what I envisioned for LHS also adds to this) Aside from that…period blood on a pant leg? Truly hilarious! XD This is truly a comedic classic, which I hope holds up and does well against the test of time.
#13. Assembly
A Chinese War movie? Set during when the Communist party took over? Yup. Another interesting Asian film that I’m curious how it’ll be received when brought to the states, I found myself surprised by not only how gorgeously well-done the battle sequences were (they were staged/choreographed/executed by the same team who did the stellar war scenes in Tae Guk Gi), but also how strong the emotional arc of the story was. The idea of a man trying his best to honor the men he failed, in the face of bureaucratic adversity, is handled well, with humility and very genuine emotion. The Chinese film industry is often plagued by sap, but this film is quite truthfully heart-wrenching at times. But perhaps the biggest shock is the complete lack of Chinese nationalism. The filmmakers really wanted to tell a story, not make a propaganda piece. Even the philosophy itself is very anti-establishment. Again, I’m curious how this will be received when it finally makes it to the west. (which I’m sure will take forever)
#12. 3:10 To Yuma
Unfortunately, I lost my review for this at Smokin’ Guns, but I guess to sum it up, it took a pretty dang good film and made it better. It expanded it, brought it out into the open, gave it three really good character arcs, and made me really dig seeing Russell Crowe on the big screen again. The action was also fantastic and the final 35 minutes of the film are almost perfect. I love westerns and this combined the best parts of the old with some cool stuff from what we can do now. Class act!
#11. Mad Detective
It’s amazing how long it took for me to appreciate Johnnie To, but I think even with my spite towards Fulltime Killer I would’ve loved this movie. Mad Detective is a Hong Kong detective flick that feels a lot like a Jean-Pierre Melville film or a European cop drama, using a strong sense of atmosphere, some auteur-like techniques to explain certain facets of characters’ personalities, and giving an ambigious quality throughout the movie. When this film hits stateside, you REALLY must see it. It’s gonna rock people’s socks off, just you watch.
#10. Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street
Holy. Freaking. Cow. I hope Tim Burton makes a third film in this style to make himself a total trilogy of Hammer/Bava-influenced brilliance. I knew it was gonna be cool, but I didn’t realize it was going to be a near-masterpiece!
#9. Sukiyaki Western Django
The other Takeshi Miike film that rocked in 2007 was this and I’ll quote my review of it for Smokin’ Guns to further explain: “So you take this amazingly odd and different filmmaker, a rebel spirit within a sometimes very stale film industry… He’s starting to lose some of the superweird and go into just plain old weird ‘n’ fun. What happens when he decides to finally make a western? You get Sukiyaki Western Django. A Japanese-made spaghetti-style western set in the 1100s (with 1800s hardware), starring a near-complete Japanese cast, set in Japan, featuring Italian western cliches, an American director in a small role, and all the dialogue (except one line) spoken in phonetic English. The combination is so artistically outrageous that it’s either gonna be the worst movie ever made or some of the most fun you’ll ever have watching a movie. (thank God it’s the latter)”
#8. Zodiac
For most of the year, this was my favorite film of 2007. David Fincher took a concept that if done 100% realistically/factual would be a dramatic nightmare, and then made it work. His dedication to the material shines through, along with his continuing sense of visual mastery and unique use of special effects for actual emotional effect, guiding the picture along just right. The great script and performances elevate the picture to a higher level also. In many ways, I’d think this the Sergio Leone-scale epic story of a murder investigation (there’s definitely that kind of character interplay with Mark Ruffalo and Jake Gyllenhaal). If you haven’t seen this film yet, it’s an absolute must.
#7. Hot Fuzz
Unfortunately, circumstances surrounding the day of this film’s release hindered my loving it more and will probably leave a permanent mark on my enjoyment of it for years to come. Having said that, IT STILL RULES! “This shit just got real!”
#6. Persepolis
A visual feast from front to back that surprised me with its emotional poignancy. An absolute must-see for…well, in many ways, everyone. The perfect kind of anti-war/pro-freedom film, that tells the story of a human being who could be anybody. The B&W, simple style of artwork is so fitting as the movie seems to transcend all kinds of barriers. Like much of the great flicks that 2007 gave, I am in love with this movie. It’s a work of art and one I hope to watch again and enjoy over and over. If you still haven’t seen it, get it when it hits DVD. It’s so absolutely classic.
#5. Ratatouille
Brad Bird captured in this film exactly what Miyazaki captures in his work - a sense of a world that you completely escape into, characters who become your best friends, scenes that make your heart soar, and a sense of consistent visual beauty that reminds you that art is a wonderful thing. A fulfilling piece and one I really, really need to buy so I can enjoy it more.
#4. No Country For Old Men
I hate how people don’t get the ending. This film is front to back brilliance and goddammit, I love it to pieces. The idea of doing A Simple Plan by way of Charly Varrick is downright awesome and I’m amazed a guy in his 70s came up with such a thing. The Coens are back on track and gave us a true, bonafide American classic with this film. Although the greats of 2006 will be remembered by geeks and film lovers, No Country’s the boundary jumper. The mainstream and the geeks get into it, sometimes for the same and different reasons. It reminds one why we love deep, powerful films. And although I haven’t read the book, they captured the feeling of McCarthy’s writing very, very well. I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite, but it’s dang close.
#3. There Will be Blood
Mindblowing. I love Paul Thomas Anderson’s work and I was so happy to see he keeps up the amazing craftsmanship and then adds on a mature sense of subtlety that is restrained and strong. He learned a lot from Robert Altman (supposedly quite a bit of Prairie Home Companion is PT’s co-directing) and this films shows that. Daniel Day-Lewis completely disappeared into the role for me, him no longer being the “Stay Alive! Whatever may occur, I will find you!” guy or Butcher Bill, being given a fantastic script to work from. The story flows and moves like an old epic of the 1960s, the kind of picture that cost a great deal to make (though this film was reasonably cheap in comparison to the industry today) but delivered in spades in terms of drama, character, thought, and spectacle. I absolutely adore everything about this movie.
#2. Grindhouse
After watching both extended cuts and then watching the original full-length theatrical version, I have to say, the theater experience of this movie is exactly the way it’s meant to be. It’s sad that it was a profound, expensive experiment that flopped; but I guess the world wasn’t ready or never will be ready. (besides, would we really want to see Grindhouse ripoffs oversaturating the market?) Still a mind-blowing flick and the most fun theater experience I’ve had for a newly released film since ROTK in 2003.
#1. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
This? This is my favorite film of the year? Indeed it is. Why? Because in its music, the narration, the performances, the amazing sense of realism, the cinematography, the editing, the writing - this is exactly the kind of movie I’d love to make. If I chose to make a story about Jesse James and Robert Ford, this is probably how I’d do it. Casey Affleck was robbed of an Oscar for this (and should have been for LEAD actor, he was truly the main character of the film) and I doubt that Brad Pitt will ever get enough credit for his menacing and creepy work here. Out of all the films of the year, this one seemed to connect with me the most. I honestly do need to see it again but I don’t doubt this will still hold ground. Absolutely magnificent example of filmmaking at its best.
Honorable Mentions
Angel-A (yes, this came out in the US very late)
Right At Your Door
Transformers
War
Beowulf
Pathfinder
Plane Dead/Flight Of The Living Dead
The Kingdom
Interview
Sunshine
Stardust
Futurama: Bender’s Big Score
(probably more I’m forgetting here, but it’s fine)
And I guess that’s all for today. Hope you enjoyed hearing my ramblings.
~F.
