Up to this point in time, these would have to be my fave:
10. The Incredibles
So far, this is my favorite computer animated movie of all time.
One of the best voice castings for the lead roles I've seen (or is it heard?) & it has a great story, full of charm, wit & family chemistry. I always thought that Hollywood never seem to be able to put out 100% in any feature dealing with superheroes, but they really did with this one. The effects are incredibly cool, the over-all visuals are stunning & the characters are all drawn with an equally high level of quality & dynamicism (.... is that really a word?). Added with the "Jack Jack Attack" story on the DVD, & I know that it will probably be a long time before the family "I's" get dethroned from #1 on my list of fave computer animation movies.
9. 40 Year Old Virgin
By far, my fave of the Apatow comedies. Like Knocked Up, his best films seem to be the ones in which he does triple duty as director, writer, & producer.
In this case, this triple-combo results in a movie whose strength lies not just with the high level of comedy (which probably would've been enough), but also for the fact that at it's heart, this is a story of a "late bloomer" that is handled not just intelligently, but even more importantly, with a genuine heart.
Ofttimes, many of the characters seem to deliver their punchlines with a tempered sense of sympathy towards the plight of the lead character, even when the results lead to a an exasperated situation of disintegrated success (a tried & true formula of the genre).
This movie can be touching & even socially in-depth at times, but without any cost to the number of out-loud laughs.
8. Little Miss Sunshine
A suicidal gay uncle, an unspoken emo brother who dreams of flying jet fighters, a motivational-speaking dad who always seems to be out of touch, a seven year old out-of-shape pangeant-contesting "super-freak", and a heroin-addicted grandpa with the power to spout out Oscar-worthy expletives, all capped off by a mom who tends to serve popsicles for dessert.
Everything you need to provide a big yellow vehicle such as this one with a solid push.
7. Ghost World
While I had seen Scarlett Johansson before in other movies, this was the first one where I had actually "fallen in love" with her.
I always liked Dan Clowes' comics. His work definitely subscribed to the idea of having a "style that was all his own". And for my money, this style fits in even more effectively in the medium of film than it does in the comicbook version of what is known as the "alternative" genre (a genre that his printed works mold into quite successfully). Dan Clowes' movies bring a well-welcomed shot of something new & different to watch just as effectively as his comics bring to the experience of reading.
6. Let The Right One In
I've used this already once in a previous list, but for the sake of my simplicity, here it is again.
Good horror movies come so rarely into my life. The same with good vampire movies. And the same also goes for good love stories (I refrain from using the term "romance movies" since I find Hollywood's idea of romance is always so impossibly & ridiculously fairy-tale-like). This movie is 2 outta 3 (Though there is some, it's very light on the horror). Told more in an adult manner, yet still with enough of an escapist sensibilty that is respective to the genre, this is a soft, beautiful & beguiling story (which is really saying something since I don't know what that word means) of two 12 year olds finding love for the first time thru the flaws of each of their separate (& sometimes desperate) life situations.
The lead actors for this movie portray their characters with a true down to earth awkwardness that is usually found with kids at this age, along with a longing that is both sincere & convincing.
As far as vampire love stories go, I find myself agreeing with those who compare this one with another human-falls-for-bloodfeeder film that was released around the same time :
the 15 year old girls can have their Twilight. I'll take LTROI.
5. Million Dollar Baby
The chemistry that results from Clint Eastwood's & Morgan Freeman's presence in this movie epitomizes the main thing I like about Million Dollar Baby. These are two seasoned actors so comfortable in their craft, that they both simply move in this film with a flowing ease of two veterans of their field (fictionally & non) who are just willing to allow the emotion of the story & the naturalness & trust of each other's acting ability to drive this movie. And as cliche as it sounds, it truly belies on the phase as something almost indescribable but so tangible that the much younger yet equally talented Hilary Swank can't help but to follow suit in doing. It all leads to an overall performance from the trio that makes this a film whose power stems not from the boxing themes that one would usually expect from a boxing flick, but more from the emotions that weave & tie the characters together & allows a story to unfold at it's own volition. In the end, it seems almost overkill to decribe Million Dollar Baby as anything other than an Eastwood directed film about boxing that focuses on the female contingent of the sport & stars Eastwood himself, Swank & Freeman.
Or more simply put, a film that had me at "Mo Cuishle".
4. Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth is a film whose creativity & emotion are elegantly entwined in a manner that blurs the barrier between the "real" world & the fantasy dimension, almost beyond physical distinction.
Just an absolutely beautiful movie that successfully takes the constant air of peril that comes with living under the grim realities of war & overlays it with the macabre & twisted influence that such a situation can have on a young creative mind's fairy-tale-like imaginations.
3. Spider-Man 2
The fact that I have Spidey-2 at #3 is another way of saying that this entry is a "superhero geek alert" (& also explains a couple of the other entries on this list).
In this one, Peter Parker roughs thru his dilemas with the same down-to-earth fustrations as in the comicbooks, his relationship with Mary Jane convincingly reaches it's next level, & Doc Ock is portrayed much better as a villian than he ever was on the printed age.
As a hardcore nerd of this genre, I was pretty satisfied at Marvel's initial effort at trying to do what Burton did with the Batman; introduce the webhead as a serious legitimate property for film.
The most I could've hoped for this sequel was that it be at least half as good as it's predessor.
Instead, Spidey-2 turned out to become one of my favorite movie adaptations of a comicbook superhero ever.
Which I guess I should've anticipated since, unlike for most other superhero films, before I entered the theatre, my spider-senses didn't go off, all atingling an' sh*t.
2. Kill Bill
Only two words can be used to describe this movie: Bad ass.
Not only is this Quentin Tarantino's homage to martial arts flix, but it also includes homage's to anime & those funky, grainy 70's Bruce Lee's wannabe's that made us laugh with their unsynchronized voice-overs, jagged camera movements & b-level musical sound effects. And yet, QT was able to combine all this in a manner that was just plain...
well....
... bad-ass.
And just how bad-ass is Beatrice Kiddo, "the Bride", in this movie?
Well, at her wedding, not only does she show up looking like she's late into her trimester of pregnancy, but also at the same time, she has enough balls to wear a wedding dress that is white, the traditional color that is supposed to symbolize the purity that is virginancy.
So then, the question arises;
how does one stop such an act of blatant aborition towards such an endeared long-standing nuptial tradition?
Try sending her a Bill.
Oh, & by the way,
out of sheer curiosity, right before putting up this entry, I performed the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart technique on myself,
to see if it really works. Now, as I post this, I have just finished taking the 5 steps forward, & am waiting to see if anything will actually
happ
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