It has been a long while since my last post, so I sincerely doubt that I have many readers left - which isn't saying too much, seeing how I had a pool of about 5 or 6 comprised mostly of family and roommates.
Much has happened, in my personal life, and in the world of cinema. First, let me be the first to pat me on the back, as this year has easily lived up to the billing I predicted months ago - this has been one of the greatest cinematic years of all time. We have seen, quite possibly, 5 classic, destined-to-be-great American films. It has been an incredible year for great, new, and old directors. I have witnessed some of the finest craftsmanship I have ever seen. So, before I continue gushing, let me propose my top-10 on 2007. This is really, very daunting.
1) There Will Be Blood: I am not sure how to describe it, but while watching this film, I felt that I was watching something very special. I wasn't sure if I even liked it, but the awesome power of the filmmaking and the absolutely monumental performance by Daniel Day Lewis completely overwhelmed me. Paul Thomas Anderson has created something epic, but personal; something blunt, but poetic. It defines classification and it just exists solely on the screen as a piece of craftsmanship. It exhausts and frustrates and yet, it never fails to fascinate. For people who dislike the ending, you must realize that you are watching a man's descent into madness and solitude - how can a film about that not end in a scene of complete craziness. After a few weeks of deliberation, I have concluded that I love this film. The score, too, must be mentioned because it is haunting.
2) The Assassination of Jesse James by The Coward Robert Ford: This film, like Anderson's masterpiece, is an epic too. It is one of the most beautiful films I have ever seen. I don't mean touching. I mean beautiful in a visual sense. Every scene appears to be so carefully crafted, and that iconic image of Pitt's Jesse James standing on the track as the train comes to pass is just fucking awesome. Pitt is good here, but Casey affleck deserves all the credit for delivering a sniveling, creepy, almost oddly sexualized performance as a glorified stalker of Jesse James. The film is deliberate, maybe because its pompous, but the musical score and the photography, and the gentle way that Andrew Domanik lets this tales of betrayal unfold seemed perfect to me. I loved this film too.
3) No Country for Old Men: Ebert is right. This film is perfect. There is a stretch of about an hour when Javier Bardem's nightmare villain is stalking Josh Brolin's rugged survivor that is just about as thrilling, and tense, and perfectly orchestrated a setpiece that has been committed to film. Speaking of Bardem, you have to mention him in the same breath as Hannibal lecter and Hans Gruber - this is a masterclass villain, an absolute horror show of a creation. I loved this film too. I loved the novel, and the ending here does not translate as well as it did in the book, and that's a shame, but it is a credit to Brolin's surprising and oddly amazing work here. He is very good. His sense of presence and his sense of normalcy being faced with death incarnate, is truly great. The fact that the ending just doesn't feel right is a testament to Brolin's work.
4) Once: The most touching film I have seen. And I don't throw the word "touching" around, okay.
5) Michael Clayton: A great, terrifically amped up corporate/legal thriller that isn't about the law, or the company. It is a 70's throwback, a rich, and tense and moody character piece that has an absolutely great star-turn by George Clooney. I love the scene of him gambling in the underground card game and the final shot - "Give me $50bucks worth." I loved it. This is the most entertaining film of the year and I was reminded so very much of 70's Robert Redford undergoing those super-subtle character changes. I wish Michael Mann would make movies like this now.
6) Juno: The best comedy of the year. What is so great, though, is how the film sidesteps convention ever-so slightly, and just missed being predictable. The development of Juno's parents, and especially, the adoptive parents of Bateman and Garner are what really hits home. Garner, in particular, underplays her role so well that it really sneaks up on you just how beautiful and maternal and sweet she is here. Bateman has a terrific scene where he is so confused about who he is and he asks Juno, "How do you see me," and you realize that he has zero sense of himself and is really, really hoping that Juno can point him in the right direction. I loved this film and it kind of pisses me off when a film I love finds a huge audience because it feels less like my discovery.
7) Eastern Promises: Viggo Mortensen. That's all you need to know. You want to see acting of the highest order, watch Mortensen. He is a study of presence here. He exudes cool. Watch him dominate the screen in every scene he is in. Even when the film is over, and discoveries and revelations are made about his character, you still know nothing about him. This, right here, is how a "dangerous man" should be played. Because even though his motivations are revealed, you still don't trust him. Its a great, great, poster-bound performance.
8) Before The Devil Knows You're Dead: A devastating, tragic film that really knotted up my stomach. For real. I puked for like 8 hours after this film. It was probably food poisoning. This movie is so sad and so angry that I doubt I could watch it again. My father loves movies about ordinary people who think they've planned the perfect crime, only to watch it fall apart and they scramble to fix the problems, only to create more and more and more fuck-ups. My father's favorite films are "A Simple Plan," and "Fargo," and both share quite a bit with this movie. My dad calls this a great, greek tragedy. I liken it more to a really fucked-up Eugene O'Neil play - just watch the scene between brothers, and the scene between Hoffman and Finney. Speaking of Philip Seymore Hoffman - he is phenomenal here. His volcanic blow-up, his latent homosexuality, and the way he bullies his brother - its his best performance so far, and that includes the boring Capote.
9) The Bourne Ultimatum: Action filmmaking of the highest order. It still is not better than Supremacy, which I consider one of the greatest, and most expertly crafted action films of all time, but it is exciting and Matt Damon has settled well into the speeding bullet role of Jason Bourne. Can i say, that despite all the great chases and action sequences, the best scene in this movie is its lone quite one: Damon and Stiles having coffee and Stiles implying that they had once been lovers. It is so rare to see that level of subtlety in a film like this. Paul Greegrass is a genius director.
10)3:10 to Yuma: I love this western. It is a true western, with mixed loyalties and complex heroes and villains. What I especially love, though, is the relationship between Protagonist and Antagonist and how the lines of those two archetypes are blurred here. You have Russell Crowe and Christian Bale really doing a great job of feeding the audience bits and pieces of their characters' motivations. Once their final scene of mutual insight is concluded, you're really kind of shocked at how much you're invested in the whole movie. Also, Mark Forster is a creepy villain here and when he gets his comeuppance, you can truly see heartbreak in his eyes.
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