Year in Review: 2007
So this is absurdly late, but I can't just not post it. That's right, it's finally time for my annual thoughts on the movies I watched the previous year. I keep saying I should compose this as the year goes on, but do I ever do it? No. So forgive me if my reflections are a wee bit vague or if I accidentally slip in a spoiler (I'm pretty sure I didn't). At any rate, here's the breakdown for your enjoyment. ;)
The Great
Children of Men: I've forgiven this movie its major flaw since I've seen it (that is, we never get any answers), because on the whole, it's a really great film. Gritty, realistic, human, dirty. There's something beautiful about this movie, in spite of the violence, and it's that poignancy that makes the film resonate for me.
Pan's Labyrinth Another dark, gritty, human film with its own sense of beauty. And yet another flawed film: for all its hype, it didn't have near enough fantasy elements in it as it had advertised, and I wasn't thrilled with the shot at the beginning that basically gives away the end of the movie (rather, it did for me). But despite the flaws, I really felt the very end had a lovely sense of ambivalence about it, because in this case, it didn't matter how you interpreted the movie, because any interpretation was correct, and the importance was the state of mind of the main character at the end.
300: You don't go into this movie expecting historical accuracy. I mean, for goodness sakes, just LOOK at the cinematography, at the visuals, and tell me you HONESTLY expect this movie to be accurate. Please, no. This film is, beyond a doubt, stylized. Every last detail is Miller's graphic novel brought to life, and in spite of the violence and gore, it's a very beautiful film to watch on many levels, and the story was inspiring in its own right.
Sunshine: Once you understand that this is NOT a realistic film in the sense that this mission could REALLY happen and be successful, it's a damn, good suspense film. Mostly quiet, mostly unassuming, with shades of Event Horizon, I really liked the level of detail and realism that WAS in this film in terms of setting, and the characterization was great. And it was a beautiful film to watch in certain parts, even though some scenes, pretty as they were, were pure fantasy.
3:10 to Yuma: I'm not a big fan of Westerns, but this one really called to me when I saw the trailers, and admittedly, I was called by the presence of Christian Bale, whom I adore. But the story was excellently done, and the characterization was just fantastic. Great action, great tension, and talk about a bittersweet ending, in spite of the humor.
The Good
Zodiac: This really was a well-done film, but it didn't resonate with me in any regard. It felt longer than it was, but one thing about it, I really got a fantastic sense of what America was like in the years right before I was born. I've always heard talk about how things just CHANGED in the eighties in terms of "sudden" violence, and watching this film made me understand how that came about. In many ways, Zodiac is a film about how America lost its innocence when it came to violent crime, and how the media started the coverage we're so used to today.
28 Weeks Later: There's a lot to like in this sequel, even though it has a completely different tone and feel from the first movie. It's still gritty, still nail-biting, and still fascinating to watch in terms of a survival movie. Disturbing too, considering the family ties of this one, but I loved seeing what had become of England since the outbreak and what people were trying to do to start over, and the end of the movie was just great, a perfect opening for a third movie.
Shrek the Third: This was a lot of fun. While I missed having more Puss-in-Boots moments, the story was really good, and it was great to meet more fairy tale princesses and learn what they were REALLY like. I think my only problem with the movie was that I'd forgotten a lot of the details from the second, and those details play a huge role in motivating the characters in the third. Still, I enjoy the hell out of this franchise, and this film offered plenty of good, fun, adult humor.
Transformers: I didn't expect to like this. While I was a child of the 80s, I had no interest in Transformers or any other boy-toys, but I got suckered into going since I'm engaged to a guy who was a Transformers fanatic. And much to my surprise, it was fantastically entertaining. There's not much else to say about it: the action was awesome, the graphics were amazing, and it was just a lot of fun.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: One of my least favorite books of the series, the movie's become one of my favorites. I do myself a favor and don't re-read the books before seeing the movie, so it's been a while, and I didn't have much to compare the movie too, other than understanding that the main story felt intact. Daniel Radcliffe did a really great job in this one, and the look of the movie was wonderfully gritty. The climax was a wee bit anti-climatic, but considering I knew it was coming, it's no surprise. Makes me wonder how the sixth movie's climax will play out.
30 Days of Night: An odd movie to go see, considering this is the first movie based on a graphic novel I've actually read, and even more weird, I'm acquaintances with the writer and artist of said graphic novel. This translated wonderfully to the screen, and I was tickled pink to see Melissa George do something. When it comes to horror, pure survival movies are always the greatest, and this was a great addition to the genre. I think my only complaint was knowing what was coming at the end, because that took away some of the tension, as well as the fact that I think I was able to fill in any plot holes due to my knowledge of the book.
The Good for what it was, but nothing spectacular
The Golden Compass: I actually liked this a lot better than I liked The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, which didn't seem to have any heart for all its beauty and devotion to the original story. I'm sorry that the writers didn't bite the bullet and let the intensity of the book bleed out into the film, but the film was pretty solid as a story, and one doesn't need the religious parallel to get what's happening, though having an understanding of the parallel really adds layers to the story that you might not otherwise grasp. The movie made me want to go back and re-read the book (which I need to do anyway, before reading books two and three of the trilogy), and the graphics were awesome. They did a great job of casting, even though I've come to despise Nicole Kidman (but she was perfect in her role).
I Am Legend: All and all, it's a good movie. Great tension, fantastic acting on Will Smith's part, and an interesting story. Only I felt the script borrowed too much from 28 Days Later in terms of plot and feel of the film, because it was all too familiar. Yes, I know the movie's based on a book, but I haven't read the book, and those who have told me the film's entirely different anyway. I won't get into the debate over how much an adaptation should follow the source material. The movie was good in its own right, and I loved the dog.
The Bad
Spider-Man 3: When it comes to comic book films, I've never been a huge fan of the Spider-Man franchise. The first was cheesy but entertaining, and the second had some real meat on the bones. So I was hoping the upward trend would continue, that the third installment would be even better, but damn if it's not WORSE than the first in terms of the cheese factor. The writing was horrible, the plotting was shaky at best, and the actors, who are talented in their own rights, looked really, really bad in this movie. Peter Parker's transformation was total cheese and horribly, unbelievably done (I mean, he suddenly knows how to play jazz piano? Give me a break). This movie was incredibly painful, down to the last minute. If they do a fourth installment, you'll have to drag me there by my teeth.
Only 14 movies this year. That's one down from last. And no, I didn't see the third Pirates installment. I wanted to, but it was insanely long, and I could never find a good time in my schedule to go.
Don't know how many movies I'll get around to this year, but already, I've been to 2. I plan on watching far more dvds of stuff I missed in theaters this year, I think. :)
The Great
Children of Men: I've forgiven this movie its major flaw since I've seen it (that is, we never get any answers), because on the whole, it's a really great film. Gritty, realistic, human, dirty. There's something beautiful about this movie, in spite of the violence, and it's that poignancy that makes the film resonate for me.
Pan's Labyrinth Another dark, gritty, human film with its own sense of beauty. And yet another flawed film: for all its hype, it didn't have near enough fantasy elements in it as it had advertised, and I wasn't thrilled with the shot at the beginning that basically gives away the end of the movie (rather, it did for me). But despite the flaws, I really felt the very end had a lovely sense of ambivalence about it, because in this case, it didn't matter how you interpreted the movie, because any interpretation was correct, and the importance was the state of mind of the main character at the end.
300: You don't go into this movie expecting historical accuracy. I mean, for goodness sakes, just LOOK at the cinematography, at the visuals, and tell me you HONESTLY expect this movie to be accurate. Please, no. This film is, beyond a doubt, stylized. Every last detail is Miller's graphic novel brought to life, and in spite of the violence and gore, it's a very beautiful film to watch on many levels, and the story was inspiring in its own right.
Sunshine: Once you understand that this is NOT a realistic film in the sense that this mission could REALLY happen and be successful, it's a damn, good suspense film. Mostly quiet, mostly unassuming, with shades of Event Horizon, I really liked the level of detail and realism that WAS in this film in terms of setting, and the characterization was great. And it was a beautiful film to watch in certain parts, even though some scenes, pretty as they were, were pure fantasy.
3:10 to Yuma: I'm not a big fan of Westerns, but this one really called to me when I saw the trailers, and admittedly, I was called by the presence of Christian Bale, whom I adore. But the story was excellently done, and the characterization was just fantastic. Great action, great tension, and talk about a bittersweet ending, in spite of the humor.
The Good
Zodiac: This really was a well-done film, but it didn't resonate with me in any regard. It felt longer than it was, but one thing about it, I really got a fantastic sense of what America was like in the years right before I was born. I've always heard talk about how things just CHANGED in the eighties in terms of "sudden" violence, and watching this film made me understand how that came about. In many ways, Zodiac is a film about how America lost its innocence when it came to violent crime, and how the media started the coverage we're so used to today.
28 Weeks Later: There's a lot to like in this sequel, even though it has a completely different tone and feel from the first movie. It's still gritty, still nail-biting, and still fascinating to watch in terms of a survival movie. Disturbing too, considering the family ties of this one, but I loved seeing what had become of England since the outbreak and what people were trying to do to start over, and the end of the movie was just great, a perfect opening for a third movie.
Shrek the Third: This was a lot of fun. While I missed having more Puss-in-Boots moments, the story was really good, and it was great to meet more fairy tale princesses and learn what they were REALLY like. I think my only problem with the movie was that I'd forgotten a lot of the details from the second, and those details play a huge role in motivating the characters in the third. Still, I enjoy the hell out of this franchise, and this film offered plenty of good, fun, adult humor.
Transformers: I didn't expect to like this. While I was a child of the 80s, I had no interest in Transformers or any other boy-toys, but I got suckered into going since I'm engaged to a guy who was a Transformers fanatic. And much to my surprise, it was fantastically entertaining. There's not much else to say about it: the action was awesome, the graphics were amazing, and it was just a lot of fun.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: One of my least favorite books of the series, the movie's become one of my favorites. I do myself a favor and don't re-read the books before seeing the movie, so it's been a while, and I didn't have much to compare the movie too, other than understanding that the main story felt intact. Daniel Radcliffe did a really great job in this one, and the look of the movie was wonderfully gritty. The climax was a wee bit anti-climatic, but considering I knew it was coming, it's no surprise. Makes me wonder how the sixth movie's climax will play out.
30 Days of Night: An odd movie to go see, considering this is the first movie based on a graphic novel I've actually read, and even more weird, I'm acquaintances with the writer and artist of said graphic novel. This translated wonderfully to the screen, and I was tickled pink to see Melissa George do something. When it comes to horror, pure survival movies are always the greatest, and this was a great addition to the genre. I think my only complaint was knowing what was coming at the end, because that took away some of the tension, as well as the fact that I think I was able to fill in any plot holes due to my knowledge of the book.
The Good for what it was, but nothing spectacular
The Golden Compass: I actually liked this a lot better than I liked The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, which didn't seem to have any heart for all its beauty and devotion to the original story. I'm sorry that the writers didn't bite the bullet and let the intensity of the book bleed out into the film, but the film was pretty solid as a story, and one doesn't need the religious parallel to get what's happening, though having an understanding of the parallel really adds layers to the story that you might not otherwise grasp. The movie made me want to go back and re-read the book (which I need to do anyway, before reading books two and three of the trilogy), and the graphics were awesome. They did a great job of casting, even though I've come to despise Nicole Kidman (but she was perfect in her role).
I Am Legend: All and all, it's a good movie. Great tension, fantastic acting on Will Smith's part, and an interesting story. Only I felt the script borrowed too much from 28 Days Later in terms of plot and feel of the film, because it was all too familiar. Yes, I know the movie's based on a book, but I haven't read the book, and those who have told me the film's entirely different anyway. I won't get into the debate over how much an adaptation should follow the source material. The movie was good in its own right, and I loved the dog.
The Bad
Spider-Man 3: When it comes to comic book films, I've never been a huge fan of the Spider-Man franchise. The first was cheesy but entertaining, and the second had some real meat on the bones. So I was hoping the upward trend would continue, that the third installment would be even better, but damn if it's not WORSE than the first in terms of the cheese factor. The writing was horrible, the plotting was shaky at best, and the actors, who are talented in their own rights, looked really, really bad in this movie. Peter Parker's transformation was total cheese and horribly, unbelievably done (I mean, he suddenly knows how to play jazz piano? Give me a break). This movie was incredibly painful, down to the last minute. If they do a fourth installment, you'll have to drag me there by my teeth.
Only 14 movies this year. That's one down from last. And no, I didn't see the third Pirates installment. I wanted to, but it was insanely long, and I could never find a good time in my schedule to go.
Don't know how many movies I'll get around to this year, but already, I've been to 2. I plan on watching far more dvds of stuff I missed in theaters this year, I think. :)