2007, you might say, was the year
of revelations at the cinema, a year of surprises, startling discoveries and
spectacular achievements. But that is not necessarily a positive prospect,
either. Saturated by ambition and ambivalence, the movies that occupied theater
screens in the 12 months of the calendar year offered high stylization, great
energy and loud explosions, and payoffs too brief and momentary to make many of
them deserving of that output. The trend was not one limited to the more
prolific of box office competitors, either; like a disease that transcends
culture and social divides, no one, including the Indies
or the art-house flicks, were safe from the mediocrity that spread through the
crops.
Mediocrity, at least, tends to
lull us into appreciating bright spots even more than we might ordinarily do.
One does not know how the few actual great films of 2007 will hold up in years
to come, but in the moment, amongst a slew of monotone and intellectually
stagnant releases, they emerge as more than just solid productions: they are
also beams of light in a time when our faith in the future of moviemaking feels
like it has been muddled. The year produced many films that are memorable for
distinct reasons. Not all of them are completely successful, even fewer are
flawless. But the year’s ten best are so placed not just because there are so
few choices to pick from, but because each selection represents a scope that
fully encompasses the passion and inspiration of a talented filmmaker. It is
clear, beyond debate, that these people love making movies.
THE BEST
1. There Will Be
Blood
The portrait of the cynical and the corrupt is a grand,
stirring thing in the hands of a talented filmmaker, and the always-impeccable
P.T. Anderson tops himself with this loose adaptation of the “Oil!” novel by
Upton Sinclair, eradicating a good chunk of his stylistic quirks in order to
play straightforward with his material, at least to a point. The result is
brilliantly dramatic, beautifully shot and utterly captivating in the way it
builds, deconstructs and tears apart a persona in attempt to understand the
process at which power and money forces man to detach from the reality around
him. Daniel Day-Lewis does the work of his life in the lead role, rivaling even
the great Orson Wells in “Citizen Kane” in his attempt to occupy celluloid less
as a villain and more as an enduring object of destruction. He is brave, he is
captivating, and the endeavor that surrounds him is astonishing in its brash
thrust. Having seen it twice to this point, I relish the opportunity to revisit
it a third. And no other movie released in 2007 has warranted that distinction.
2. Across the
Universe
In a different time, in a different climate, Julie Taymor’s
vivid snapshot of the 1960 American society would be heralded as a trailblazing
endeavor. A musical in which the spine of the music is made up entirely of
songs from the Beatles catalogue, it is a film in awe and appreciation of
everything it does. But the music is only the glossy coating; underneath, an
ensemble of colorful and likable young characters blast their way through life
with little more than love and brotherhood guiding them, and Taymor surrounds
them in stirring acid-ish visuals that cater to the sentiments of a drug-fueled
generation. Why did it not catch on as easily as it should have? Perhaps
because the Beatles’ music is so timeless with so many people, it is impossible
for most of its admirers to allow characters in a movie to take ownership of
those songs. A valid standpoint, no doubt, but one that shields people from
seeing just how beautiful and poignant the end result really is. When it comes
right down to it, all you really need is, indeed, love.
3. Zodiac
David Fincher’s “Zodiac” suffered the burden of searching
for an audience in a time when the cinema was disinterested in the ways of the
classic serial killer phenomenon, having been saturated already by the next
generation of creative homicidal maniacs such as Jigsaw, Leatherface, and those
crazy rich guys who run human slaughterhouses across Europe .
Too bad for moviegoers, as they missed out on not only a brilliant, calculated
and skillful thriller, but also the best film of its genre. Surpassing even the
likes of “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Seven” in its haunting, terror-filled
grandeur, the movie obliterates the FBI-agent-becomes-hero formula and tells
its story without gloss or convention. Zodiac was never found, but the theory
that makes up the spine of the premise is both fascinating and plausible in its
foundation, and Fincher’s direction hits all the right notes in its search for
closure to a mystery that will likely forever remain unsolved.
4. Sunshine
Danny Boyle passed on doing “28 Weeks Later” because of his
involvement with this film, a project in which the premise reeks of the
over-the-top natural disaster thrust of “The Core” and “Armageddon.” The
difference between those films and this? “Sunshine” isn’t just well-executed,
it is precise, observant, imaginative and visionary to a fault, a movie so
brave and challenging that it doesn’t merely ask “what if,” but “why not?”
Filmed with a scope that rivals the expansive, endless possibilities of a
“2001” or a “Blade Runner,” it plunges us into its sphere with a certain level
of passion. The movie genuinely cares and believes in the material. And as it
slowly but surely reaches a fevered pitch of tension and excitement, it also
refuses to bow to convention and give us the conventional climax that we come
to expect of disaster pictures. Science fiction movie-making has not seen
anything this well done since “Minority Report.”
5. Lust, Caution
What a beautiful, elaborate, chilling period drama this is!
Ang Lee’s follow-up to his award-winning “Brokeback Mountain”, while an odd
choice of material to those who felt he would continue for commercial appeal,
is easily the director’s most daring, challenging and effective work yet,
telling the story of a group of rebels in World War II-era Shanghai who plot to
assassinate a local political official who has ties to the Japanese. When they
deploy one of their own into his life, allowing her to earn his trust and gain
access to his secrets, a wild and passionate love affair ensues. Lee is
unashamed in his brazen approach to the rough, often violent sexual interludes
shared between his two leads, and he captures a sense of chemistry that lends
great material to discussions on the use of sex as a tool for power and
control. Furthermore, an isolated shot in which a bus approaches the camera
while nighttime Shanghai
is visible in the background makes for the single most stunning moment I have
seen on film all year.
6. Ratatouille
Who would have thought a movie with a bunch of rats would
have been so cute? The latest PIXAR picture is rousing, touching, charming and
funny on so many levels that it is impossible to pinpoint one specific reason
why it is such. Moreso than “Cars,” the last of the studio’s CGI features, the movie takes ambitious chances
with formula and completely distances itself from the urge to cater strictly to
the tots; both adult and serious, the movie has all the wit, skill and
delectability of a great classic Woody Allen comedy, and all the emotional
maturity of one of the great Disney fairy tales.
7. 28 Weeks Later
The sequel on a top ten best list is a rarity, even more of
one if its predecessor too ranked among the highest quality output at the
cinema of any other given year. The follow-up to Danny Boyle’s rousing,
haunting and utterly terrifying horror flick not only built on and expanded his
universe, but gave it new edge. Gone is the enclosed, tight, gritty facet of
the original, and in its place comes an arsenal of skillful conviction, slick
camerawork, well-paced narrative structure and effective performances that,
even without linkage to its predecessor, allows the movie to completely exist
on its own terms. By the end, you are so worn down from the impact of the
psychology of the movie’s tug-of-war with human condition that you walk away
not with satisfaction, but with a sense of numbness and despair. And it’s
powerful.
8. Juno
Diablo Cody, an exotic-dancer-turned-screenwriter, didn’t
just concoct one of the cleverest scripts of 2007, she also produced a sweet,
touching, genuine, heartfelt and delightful little comedy that plucks at all
the quirks of a series of characters involved in the life of a pregnant
teenager as if she genuinely understands her players instead of just viewing
them from the outside. It is a brilliant and effective little movie that hits
all the right chords, never backs down from the wit or sarcasm, and approaches
hard positions with a subtlety that adds great dimension to a series of
likeable, realistic characters. Ellen Page as the lead, a high school
wisecracker who finds herself with child, is simply marvelous in her
conviction, and Jason Reitman’s direction ensures all sorts of color and humor
will occupy the screen as we watch all of its vibrant people slog through a
series of difficult situations in an attempt to grasp the meanings of their
lives, or something like that.
9. 1408
A creepy hotel room, a deep and buried past that manifests
itself into the lives of those living in the present… yeah yeah yeah, we’ve
heard it all before. But “1408” isn’t a clone of “The Shining,” nor is it just
a generic haunted hotel thriller with a bunch of creaking sounds and suggestive
visuals – the movie is purely psychological, relatively simple, and easily one
of the most well-acted of its kind. 90 percent of the screen time is occupied
by a single character played by John Cusack, who approaches the role as if he
is just as much the victim of the impending torment as the persona in the
script. When a writer with experience in exploring haunted mansions and
divulging in supernatural lore is mysteriously lured to a vacant hotel room in
a high rise that has been vacant for decades, he is encouraged to turn the
other way and avoid the temptation to uncover its mysteries. Naturally, he
refuses, and when the room’s interiors begin to go bonkers, so does the man
witnessing them. So direct with the suggestive sights and implications, there
are times when the audience feels like it is unraveling right along with the
protagonist.
10. No Country for
Old Men
Though their movie fails as a straight crime thriller – a
prospect that is likely not of much concern to the filmmakers anyway – the Coen
brothers’ “No Country for Old Men” nonetheless flourishes as a character study.
Three-fourths dedicated to its villain and one-fourth to the protagonist, the
movie plays awkwardly with its players in a tug-of-war for the affections of a
dithering narrative, yet allows (perhaps rightfully) the necessary details of
their stories to emerge with a certain cleverness and energy. Bardem as a
ruthless drug dealer dead-set on reclaiming what it his is more than just a
scene-stealer, he is an embodiment of dynamic and passionate performing, as his
screen persona rips through the lives of everyone around him like a hurricane
on a mission to devastate anything that shows courage or strength in his
presence. It is easily the male performance of the year, and the fact that it
single-handedly drives a movie that might have seemed ordinary without it says
something profound about the actor who undertakes it.
Honorable Mentions:
The Namesake
Beautifully written and framed, the story of an Indian
immigrant family from its early days in the states to its later years as the
children learn to grow up in American society is both touching and captivating
in the way it leads us in and out of the lives of so many rich and colorful
individuals. Director Mira Nair pays great attention to character details from
very early on, ensuring that her audience will continually be enraptured by
this family as they progress socially, recall rich heritage, share joy and
sorrow, and learn to exist together in a world that is difficult to some but
embracing to others.
300
The adrenaline and testosterone boiling in the veins of this
screen adaptation of the Frank Miller source material is a bit hard to get into
initially, but once you do, a sly, stylish and almost operatic visual feast is
ready to nourish you. A bit heavy on the macho factor (so much so that it, in
some ways, seems to be going for homoeroticism), Robert Rodriguez nonetheless
directs his picture with passion and attention to detail, and I love how the
screenplay completely turns its nose up at the prospect of characters
considering defeat, admitting fault or bowing to pressure. 300 men mean nothing
to an army of hundreds of thousands, but they make damn sure they go out with
the most colorful bang you’ll ever see on screen.
Harry Potter and the
Order of the Phoenix
The best of the “Harry Potter” films thus far, the first
movie that truly recognizes the famous source material for what it is: stories
of ambitious teenagers learning to find their place in a world filled to the
brim with magic and whimsy, but littered by villains that mean so much harm
that they would not hesitate twice about snuffing out lives to achieve what
they desire. Just as the screenplay has grown more adult and consistent, so
have the performances of the young actors, who seem like they are finally doing
more than just reading dialogue or reacting to situations on command of a
director. Here’s looking forward to the series continuing to sparkle.
The Big Disappointments
Though well-acted and directed, it’s simply impossible to
find much else to say in favor of this run-of-the-mill western drama, which
places all of its characters in generic western situations, has them recite
generic western dialogue, and gives them a climax so generically western in its
thrust that you feel as if the screenplay was entirely made up of excerpts from
more famous westerns of the past. Here is yet another reason why the genre of
outlaws and fast-gunners continues to bore.
Atonement
Amazing that a movie with such passionate themes could
emerge as something so utterly void of rhythm and energy. Telling the story of
a would-be relationship destroyed by the actions of a single young girl too naïve
to understand the complexity of human behavior and romance, the film feels like
it plods when it should be soaring, and finds its comfort in simply staying
stagnant with its themes rather than allowing them to evolve or collapse under
the weight of the narrative tragedy. One of the year’s biggest awards
contenders, “Atonement” joins the ranks of “The English Patient” as one of
those highly-acclaimed period dramas that everyone, except you, is talking
about.
Sweeney Todd: The
Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Tim Burton loses even more ground as a credible director in
this droll, depressing and lackluster screen adaptation of the famous Stephen
Sondheim musical, focusing so incessantly on style and execution that he leaves
his script on auto-pilot for nearly two straight hours. Though well-shot and
polished, as are most of Burton ’s
endeavors, it is nonetheless a movie that chooses to be weird just for the sake
of being weird, not for any dramatic or emotional purpose. Has Hollywood ’s most gifted eccentric finally
lost the plot? One might say he lost touch with it way back when, except now he
is merely covering up the evidence with some well-written musical numbers.
The Golden Compass
What went wrong? How did a brilliant, epic, challenging
novel lose so much in the transition to screen? Just ask the filmmakers behind
“The Golden Compass”, who will no doubt do everything in their power to justify
their virtual diluting of the very adult, very mature and very socially serious
fantasy fable by Phillip Pullman. As a book, the story of Lyra and her daemon
Pantalaimon was both inspiring and stimulating in its many psychological and
political facets; as a fantasy picture, it undermines the fabric of the source
material in order to cater to the kids, and creates a film in the process that
is weak, uninteresting, short-sighted and shameless in the way it strips away
essential aspects the book. Call me a purist, call me whatever you want, but
don’t call me when New Line Cinema decides take this series further with new cinematic
adaptations. This boy isn’t having it.
The predecessor to Kapur’s latest biopic about the virgin
queen was the first masterpiece I saw as a certified film critic back in 1998,
and as such the expectations for its follow-up were high. Big mistake. Not only
does lightning never strike in the same place twice, sometimes it completely
misses its intended mark. “Elizabeth :
The Golden Age” is such a feat: miscalculated, short-sighted, and underwhelming
in so many way that it fails to entertain even on a superficial level. Cate
Blanchett is, as always, stunning in the lead role (her nomination as an
actress at this year’s Academy Awards is deserved), but here she is upstaged by
so much ambitious cinematography and art direction that she and her fellow
players are muffled in their attempts to say something interesting. The virgin
queen would not have approved.
THE WORST
1. Pathfinder
For those still optimistic enough to think that Hollywood has enough
sense to prevent their absolute worst decisions from ever seeing the light of
day, this sack of crap is for you. “Pathfinder” isn’t simply the worst movie of
2007, but one of the most shameful cinematic endeavors ever released -- a
nightmare in every sense of the word, directed with all the skill of a cat
litter commercial. The movie tells the tale of a Viking son (played here by
Karl Urban) who is inherited by a family of Native Americans as an infant, the
sole survivor of a battle that culminated with the slaying of an entire ship of
land-rapers. Years later, another Viking ship pulls into the bay for the same
purpose: to gain control of the land and slaughter the “savages” that currently
occupy it. Except this time, one of their own is now considered family to the
Natives, and he isn’t about to let his violent ancestors lay waste to their
society for the sake of land. That the screenplay conveys all of this in
confusing muddles is only the shell of the problem; badly directed and poorly
executed, the movie is indistinctive with the photography and lighting, and
there are moments so dim-witted that we see characters running from a hot and
sunny beach into the nearby wilderness, where snow is falling at a high rate.
Too bad no one on screen noticed they were slogging their way through little
more than a giant turd.
2. Balls of Fury
“Balls of Fury” is such a bad movie that it violates a
principal rule in modern cinema, which indicates that any movie starring
Christopher Walken in any capacity cannot possibly be so bad. Oh, but it is
that and more: a movie so lifeless and unfunny that staring at your watch for
the same amount of time feels more rewarding. Main characters follow each other
around without much script to drive them beyond very broad plot points, and
Walken’s appearance in the picture – a cross between a Liberace and Elvira –
does little more than prove that, yes, “Balls of Fury” was very obviously made
in the hands of amateurs. It is not enough to frame your star in a series of
quirks; at least give him something interesting or funny to say and do. Don’t
allow him to spend 80 minutes of unfunny screen time cracking lame jokes about
the oh-so-important sport of ping-pong.
3. P.S. I Love You
Gerard Butler announces in the first scene that he will
“always be there” for his wife, and then dies of a brain tumor and leaves her
in one of the worst romantic weepers ever made. If seeing is believing, than
“P.S. I Love You” is that rare endeavor that truly lives up to its hype as a
pile of trash. Unromantic, contrived, touchy-feely and sappy melodrama at its
thickest, the movie is a series of cringe-worthy flashbacks, unbelievable
characterizations and lousy coincidences designed to do little more than make
ladies swoon over Irish biceps and piercing blue eyes, all for the sake of
nothing lasting or genuine. Luckily for Butler, he spends most of the movie
dead; poor Hilary Swank, one of our greatest living actresses, has to endure a
screenplay of such detestable and monstrous intentions that we find ourselves
wanting to cry for her. She does a lot of her own crying, to be sure, but
whereas most movies would make no argument over what those tears are meant for,
“P.S. I Love You” is almost bad enough to make you wonder if, just maybe,
Swank’s crying amounts to her truly realizing just how dumb she looks to be
associated with this travesty.
4. Evan Almighty
Read my lips. Steve Carell is not funny. Steve Carell in
“Evan Almighty” is not funny. Morgan Freeman playing God is not funny. And
everything about this follow-up to Jim Carrey’s “Bruce Almighty” reeks of every
unfunny sentiment you can possible think of. Obviously meant for kids (or
religious adults too dumb to smell a turkey when it’s right in front of them),
it is synthetic comedy through and through, paved from beginning to end in plot
twists and comedic dialogue exchanges so unfunny and aloof that it’s as if the
filmmakers are intentionally trying to cater to no one other than themselves.
Who finds the idea of building an arc funny? What relevance does it have in a
movie that is sorely lacking in comic timing? If not for the presence of Wanda
Sykes as a wisecracking, quick-witted political secretary, this entire thing
would be better off drowning in a 40-day flood.
5. Fantastic Four:
Rise of the Silver Surfer
The Silver Surfer makes a more interesting screen persona
than any of the Fantastic Four do, but that only highlights the fundamental
flaw with this franchise. What in the world is really so appealing about four
well-named super-heroes who, minus their space-bound mutations and abilities,
have no distinguishing characteristics to speak of? If the predecessor to this
endeavor could not find the answer, “Rise of the Silver Surfer” finds that the
question is now no longer in the mind of anyone behind the scenes. As such, the
movie bubbles over with the stench of irrelevance, plodding through the
material with such half-hearted conviction that even highly-stylized special
effects feel like nothing more than glossy coatings on expired candy.
Written by DAVID KEYES
Written by DAVID KEYES
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