2012 Viewing Journal

2011-12-31T17:55:00.001-05:00

2012

2011-01-03T17:41:00.005-05:00

2011
12/31--*Hugo
12/30--*Source Code (2011)
12/29--*The Town (2009)
12/25--The Notebook (2004)
12/25--Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011)
12/24--Certified Copy (2011)
12/24--The Duchess of Langeais
12/24--In Time (2011)
12/23--Horrible Bosses (2011)
12/22--Margin Call (2011)
12/20--Midnight in Paris (2011)
12/19--The Descenendants (2011)
12/15--Warrior (2011)
1214--*The Muppets (2011)
12/13--Young Adult (2011)
12/12--The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
12/11--Making the Boys (2011)
12/10--The Mill and the Cross (2011)
12/10--The Adventures of Tin Tin (2011)
12/9--J. Edgar (2011)
12/9--The Artist (2011)
12/7--_trust (2009)
12/7--Beginners (2010)
12/4--The Oxford Murders (2008)
12/3--Being Elmo: A Puppeter's Journey (2011)
12/1--The Beaver (2011)
12/1--Crazy Stupid Love (2011)
12/1--Into the Abyss (2011)
11/30--7 Days in Utopia (2011)
11/27--Meek's Cutoff (2010)
11/25--Drive (2011)
11/24--*Le Havre (2011)
11/22--Seven Minutes in Heaven (2008)
11/21--Hugo (2011)
11/19--The Muppet Movie (2011)
11/18--A Dangerous Method (2011)
11/17--Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn--Part I (2011)
11/17--War Horse (2011)
11/16--The Grace Card (2011)
11/13--Eclipse (2010)
11/12--New Moon (2009)
11/5--The Interrupters (2011)
11/5--In Darkness (2011)
11/5--The Other F Word (2011)
11/4--Buck (2011)
11/4--Wrestling for Jesus (2011)
10/31--The Forgiveness of Blood (2011)
10/29--Le Havre (2011)
10/29--Alps (2011)
10/27--Anonymous (2011)
10/26--Rum Diary (2011)
10/25--Glitch in the Grid (2011)
10/20: Garbo: The Spy (2009)
10/15--The Help (2011)
10/14--Footloose (2011)
10/11--The Thing (2011)
10/10--Machine Gun Preacher (2011)
10/6--Ides of March (2011)
10/6--*In The Bedroom (2001)
10/5--Real Steel (2011)
10/4--The Karate Kid (2010)
10/1--Courageous (2011)
9/30--Raising Renee (2011)
9/27--50/50 (2011)
9/25--*Dogville
9/17--Killer Joe (2011)
9/17--Deep Blue Sea (2011)
9/17--*Tyrannosaur (2011)
9/17--This Side of Resurrection (2011)
9/17--Twiggy (2011)
9/16--Tyrannosaur (2011)
9/16--Take Shelter (2011)
9/16--Hysteria (2011)
9/15--Union Square (2011)
9/15--Habemus Papum (2011)
9/15--Trespass (2011)
9/15--That Summer (2011)
9/15--The Cardboard Village (2011)
9/14--The Moth Diaries (2011)
9/14--Once Upon a Time in Anatoulia (2011)
9/13--The Last Christeros (2011)
9/13--The Kid With a Bike (2011)
9/13--The Oranges (2011)
9/13--The Loneliest Planet (2011)
9/12--Martha Marcey May Marlene (2011)
9/12--My Worst Nightmare (2011)
9/12--I Wish (2011)
9/12--Twixt (2011)
9/12--Rampart (2011)
9/11--A Separation
9/11--Chicken With Plums (2011)
9/10--Melancholia (2011)
9/10--House of Tolerance (2011)
8/28--Green Lantern (2011)
8/21--Emma*
8/18--Fright Night (2011)
8/17--Dear Uncle Adolf (2010)
8/14--Super (2010)
8/13--Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II (2011)
8/12--*The International (2009)
8/3--Rango (2011)
8/3--Limitless (2011)
The Change Up (2011)
8/2--Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
8/2--^Four Nights of a Dreamer
8/2--Sucker Punch (2011)
7/29--The Lincoln Lawyer (2011)
7/27--Invictus (2009)
7/26--Cowboys & Aliens (2011)
7/25--Genealogies of a Crime (1997)
7/23--*Me and Orson Welles (2008)
7/12--Circo (2011)
7/9--Winnie the Pooh (2011)
7/7--Sunshine (2007)
7/6--*The Cell (2000)
7/4--The Roommate (2011)
7/4--For My Father (2008)
7/3--The Fountain (2006)
Going My Way (1944)
Unknown (2011)
If a Tree Falls (2011)
6/28--Larry Crowne
6/27--Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
6/26--Rio (2011)
6/23--Bad Teacher (2011)
6/20--To'lable David (1921)
6/15--The Gathering Storm (2002)
6/10--*X-Men: Last Stand (2006)
6/7--Super 8 (2011)
6/6--Another Year (2010)
6/2--Tree of Life (2011)
6/1--X-Men: First Class (2011)
5/26--The Hangover Part II (2011)
5/22--*Moulin Rouge (2001)
5/22--*Windfall (2010)
5/19--^You Again (2010)
5/19--The Pruitt-Igoe Myth (2011)
5/18--Kings of Pastry (2009)
5/18--Somewhere (2010)
5/17--Pirates of the Caribbean: On Strange Tides (2011)
5/17--How to Die in Oregon (2011)
5/16--The Expendables (2010)
5/12--Everything Must Go (2010)
5/8--To Be Heard (2011)
5/7--Heaven Can Wait (1943)
5/6--Wild Man Blues (1997)
5/5--Casino Jack (2010)
5/4--Black Swan (2010)
5/4--A Better Life (2011)
5/3--Thor (2011)
5/2^--Last Night (2011)
4/30--A Good Man (2011)
4/30--Miss Gulag (2007)
4/28--Monsters (2010)
4/24--Rabbit Hole (2010)
4/24--The Conspirator (2010)
4/23--Gun Fight (2011)
4/22--The Awful Truth (1937)
4/22--Angst (2011)
4/19--Bobby Fischer vs. The World (2011)
4/17--To Be Heard (2011)
4/16--The Loving Story (2011)
4/16--Caretaker for the Lord (2011)
4/16--Better This World (2011)
4/15--An Encounter With Simone Weil (2011)
4/15--The Grove (2011)
4/15--Still Here (2011)
4/15--Hot Coffee (2011)
4/14--Windall (2011)
4/14--The New Saint (2011)
4/14--Bathing Micky (2011)
4/14--The Hangman (2011)
4/14--Killing in the Name (2011)
4/14-Steps to Eternity (2011)
4/13--Bridesmaids (2011)
4/12--How Do You Know (2010)
4/11--Morning Glory (2010)
4/5--Win Win (2011)
4/5--Fair Game (2010)
3/31--Soul Surfer (2011)
3/31--Hanna (2011)
3/30--Satan Never Sleeps
3/29--Source Code (2011)
3/29--Love and Other Drugs (2010)
3/27--*The International (2009)
3/15--Paul (2011)
3/9--*The Princess and the Warrior (2000)
3/8--The Next Three Days (2010)
*3/7--Run Lola Run (Commentary Track)
3/7--Letter to Elia (2010)
3/7--Get Low (2009)
3/6--My Son John (1952)
3/5--Caught (1949)
2/28--Beastly (2011)
2/27--The Shanghai Gesture (1941)
2/24--The Adjustment Bureau (2011)
2/23--The Desert of Forbidden Art (2010)
2/22--Cedar Rapids (2011)
2/20--Notes on a Scandal (2006)
2/20-The Belle of Amherst (1974)
2/20-Zizek: The Reality of the Virtual (2004)
2/13--Make Way for Tomorrow (1937)
2/12--Smash His Camera (2010)
2/11--Sex is Comedy (2002)
2/9--I Am Number Four (2011)
2/7--Please Give (2010)
2/7--Candyman: The David Klien Story (2010)
2/6--*The Queen and I (2008)
2/5--Independent Lens: Life Between the Folds (2008)
2/2--^Crude (2009)
2-2-*Beyond the Poseidon Adventure (1979)
2/1--*Swordfish (2001)
1/30--The American (2010)
1/29--*Megamind (2010)
1/19--No Strings Attached (2011)
1/15--^*Monsters, Inc (2001)
1/14--The Golden Earrings (1947)
1/12--The Green Hornet (2010)
1/11--*The Social Network (2010)
1/7--*Bigger Than Life
1/5--Country Strong (2010)
1/5--Rope of Sand (1949)
1/5--La Jetee (1962)
1/5--^*The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
1/3--^The Stranger (1946)
1/1--*The Other Guys (2010)

2010-01-01T17:11:00.005-05:00

2010 Journal

- 12/31--Winter Sleepers (1997)
  12/30--*Citizen X (1995)
  12/29--*True Grit (2010)
  12/28--*The King's Speech (2010)
  12/26--Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)
  12/25--Tron Legacy (2010)
  12/24--*Winter's Bone (2010)
  12/24--Body and Soul (1947)
  12/23--*Toy Story 3 (2010)
  12/21--Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)
  12/21--Gospel Road (1973)
  12/20--Gulliver's Travels (2010)
  12/20--^Imitation of Life (1934)
  12/17--*True Grit (1969)
  12.15--Restrepo (2010)
  12/14--True Grit (2010)
  12/14--*Romance of a Horsethief (1971)
  12/13--Pressure Cooker (2008)
  12/13--The Most Dangerous Man in America (2009)
  12/12--Mine (2009)
  12/11--Odds Against Tomorrow (1959)
  12/11--*The Age of Innocence
  12/8--The Tourist (2010)
  12/8--*Blue Valentine (2010)
  12/7--The Fighter (2010)
  12/7--Babies (2010)
  12/6--*The King's Speech (2010)
  12/5--^Storm (2009)
  12/5--^Bobby (2006)
  12/4--Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I
  12/4--The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
  12/3--127 Hours (2010)
  12/2--Antichrist (2009)
  11/30--Winter's Bone
  11/27--The Damn United (2009)
  11/25--Force of Evil (1948)
  11/24--Splice (2009)
  11/17--Cool It (2010)
  11/10--Tangled (2010)
  11/4--Unstoppable (2010)
  11/1--The Proposal (2009)
- 10/30--Megamind (2010)
- 10/29--The Gates (2005)
- 10/26--*Capote (2005)
- 10/22--Greenberg (2010)
- 10/22--Like Dandelion Dust (2009)
- 10/19--Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
- 10/15--*Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)
- 10/12--Red (2010)
- 10/8--*Molokai: The Story of Father Damien
- 10/5--The Town (2010)
- 10/4--Date Night (2010)
- 9/28--The Social Network (2010)
- 9/24--Marwencol (2010)
- 9/24--That Hamilton Woman (1941)
- 9/23--Born Rich
- 9/15--Anything You Want (2010)
- 9/15--Blue Valentine (2010)
- 9/15--Amigo (2010)
- 9/14--Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow (2010)
- 9/14--The Sleeping Beauty (2010)
- 9/14--The Game of Death (2010)
- 9/14--Beautiful Boy (2010)
- 9/13--Of Gods and Men (2010)
- 9/13--Miral (2010)
- 9/13--Tamara Drewe (2010)
- 9/13--Never Let Me Go (2010)
- 9/12--The Illusionist (2010)
- 9/12--Conviction (2010)
- 9/12--Made in Dagenham (2010)
- 9/11--Jucy (2010)
- 9/11--Stone (2010)
- 9/11--The King's Speech (2010)
- 9/11--Erotic Man (2010)
- 9/10--The Way (2010)
- 9/9--Inside Job (2010)
- 9/9--Film Socialism (2010)
- 9/6--Kick-Ass (2010)
- 9/6--The Ghost Writer (2010)
- 9/5--The Triplets of Belleville (2003)
- 9/4--^Waiting for Armaggedon (2009)
- 8/31--Easy A (2010)
- 8/29--*Psycho (1960)
- 8/27--*Blue Beard (2010)
- 8/25--Takers (2010)
- 8/24-*^House of Mirth (2000)
- 8/24--*Consenting Adults (1992)
- 8/22--Twilight (2008)
- 8/17--The Switch (2010)
- 8/14--*Heaven (2002)
- 8/10--Eat Pray Love (2010)
- 8/6--*Inception (2010)
- 8/3--The Other Guys (2010)
- 8/2--Chloe (2009)
- 7/31--Blue Beard (2009)
- 7/27--Salt (2010)
- 7/25--^Robin Hood (2010)
- 7/23--*Shutter Island (2010)
- 7/22--Inception (2010)
- 7/18/--The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2009)
- 7/18--*Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
- 7/15--Predators (2010)
- 7/8--The A Team (2010)
- 7/3--Toy Story 3 (2010)
- 7/2--Surviving Hitler (2010)
- 7/1--La Captive (2000)
- 6/30--Knight and Day (2010)
- 6/30--Syndromes and a Century (2006)
- 6/17--*A.I. (2001)
- 6/16--When in Rome (2010)
- 6/15--Book of Eli (2010)
- 6/14--Tenure (2009)
- 6/13--*^Smooth Talk (1985)
- 6/11--Visual Accoustics (2008)
- 6/10--From Paris With Love (2010)
- 6/10--500 Days of Summer (2009)
- 6/8--Shutter Island (2010)
- 6/6--*The Princess and the Frog (2009)
- 6/5--Eyes Wide Open (2009)
- 6/4--The Bounty Hunter (2010)
- 5/27--Young Victoria (2010)
- 5/27--Iron Man 2 (2010)
- 5/27--Robin Hood (2010)
- 5/25--The Blind Side (2009)
- 5/24--Regretters (2010)
- 5/23--City of Your Final Destination (2009)
- 5/22--This Sporting Life (1963)
- 5/18--Planet 51 (2009)
- 5/18--Major Dundee (1965)
- 5/17--Junior Bonner (1973)
- 5/17--^The Oath (2010)
- 5/16--Herb & Dorothy (2008)
- 5/15--*Examined Life (2008)
- 5/8--King Lear (1971)
- 5/2--The Brave One (1956)
- 5/2--The Secret of Kells (2009)
- 5/1--The Time Traveler's Wife (2009
4/27--^Lasat Train Home (2010)
4-20--Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009)
4/18-^My Perestroika (2010)
4/17--Armored (2009)
4/13--^The Princess and the Frog (2009)
4/13--*School Ties (1992)
4/11--Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009)
4/10--Stonewall Uprising (2010)
4/10--Family Affair (2009)
4/10--Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould (2009)
4/9--Do It Again (2010)
4/9--Life Extended (2008)
4/9--The Invention of Dr. Nakamats (2009)
4/9--Google Baby (2009)
4/9--The Space You Leave (2010)
4/8--Photo and Copyright by G.P. Fieret (2010)
3/30--^Cleo from 5 to 7 (1961)
3/28--^*Fame (1980)
3/27--^La Ronde (1950)
3/27--Whip It (2009)
3/13--Amelia (2009)
3/11--Tender Comrade (1943)
3/10--Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)
3/10--^Revanche (2008)
2/23-^Letter from an Unknown Woman (1946)
2/20--^Bunny Lake is Missing (1965)
2/20--^Ivan's Childhood (1962)
2/19--Italian for Beginners (2000)
2/18--*Lianna (1983)
2/18--Bunny Lake is Missing (1965)
2/14--The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
2/10--Homemade Hillbilly Jam
2/3--A SIngle Man (2009)
2/3--^The Earrings of Madame de... (1953)
1/31--Whiteout (2009)
1/30--Full Moon In Paris (1984)
1/29--*It Might Get Loud (2008)
1/28--^In Old Chicago (1937)
1/26--Avatar (2009)
1/24--^They Call Me MISTER Tibbs (1970)
1/23--*Moon (2009)
1/22--^Shadow Kill (2002)
1/19--The Hurt Locker (2009)
1/17--^The Lady Eve (1941)
1/10--*State of Play (2009)
1/10--It Might Get Loud (2008)
1/9--District 9 (2009)
1/8--Adoration (2008)
1/3--Bhowani Junction (1956)
1/1--^Confessions of a Shopaholic
1/1--^The Headless Woman

2009-03-02T16:12:00.005-05:00

* 12/31--Sherlock Holmes (2009)
* 12/31--^Me and Orson Welles (2008)
* 12/30--*^Diary of a Country Priest
* 12/26--Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (2007)
* 12/25--Three Godfathers (1948)
* 12/25--Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire (2009)
* 12/24--A Good Marriage (1972)
* 12/19--Me and Orson Welles (2008)
* 12/18--Troubled Water (2009)
* 12/14--*Owning the Weather (2009)
* 12/13--GI Joe: Rise of Cobra (2009)
* 12/12--I Love You, Beth Cooper (2009)
* 12/12--Johnny Got His Gun (1971)
* 12/9--A Serious Man (2009)
* 12/9--^The Aviator's Wife (1981)
* 12/8--The Ugly Truth (2009)
* 12/7--Sacco and Vanzetti (2007)
* 11/31--*The New World
* 11/26--*Ratatouille
* 11/26--The Sandpiper (1965)
* 11/24--The International (2009)
* 11/24--*Troy (2004)
* 11/23--The Andersonville Trial (1970)
* 11/21--*Rounders (w/commentary) (1998)
* 11/21--^Silk Stockings (1957)
* 11/18--17 Again (2009)
* 11/18--Inglorious Basterds (2009)
* 11/16--*Legend of Billie Jean (1985)
* 11/13--The Hangover (2009)
* 11/9--Duplicity (2009)
* 11/7--Stomp Live (2008)
* 11/1--Heaven Knows, Mister Allyson (1957)
* 10/31-Flowing (1956)
* 10/23--Matinee Idol (1928)
* 10/23--Sound of the Mountain (1954)
* 10/21-*Blue Steel (1989)
* 10/19--Man on Wire (2008)
* 10/19--^The Widow of St. Pierre (2000)
* 10/19--Trumbo (2007)
* 10/18--Dr. Socrates (1935)
* 10/17--The Story of Louis Pasteur (1935)
* 10/16--State of Play (2009)
* 10/16--^Lola Montes (1955)
* 10/11--^*The Scarlet Letter (1995)
* 10/11--^One Hour With You (1932)
* 10/9--^Meet John Doe (1949)
* 10/5--My Darling Clementine (1946)
* 10/5--Coraline (2009)
* 10/3--*Abre Los Ojos (1997)
* 10/2--*Bright Star
* 10/2--^Odd Man Out (1947)
9/30-^A Woman's Secret
9/27--Platinum Blonde (1931)
9/26--Suspicion (1941)
9/26--Happy Together (1997)
9/25--The End of the Affair (1955)
9/24--We Live Again (1934)
9/24--The Red Badge of Courage (1951)
9/23--Silent Light (2007)
9/22--The Weight of Water (2000)
9/21-^Lady for a Day (1933)
9/19--*Lorna's Silence (2008)
9/19--Seraphine (2008)
9/18-^Somers Town (2009)
9/16--Leslie, My Name is Evil (2009)
9/15--Lourdes (2009)
9/15--White Material (2009)
9/15--Carmel (2009)
9/15--Les Herbes folles (2009)
9/14--Life During Wartime (2009)
9/14--Agora (2009)
9/14--The Road (2009)
9/13--Air Doll (2009)
9/13--Dorian Gray (2009)
9/13--Bright Star (2009)
9/12--The Disappearance of Alice Creed (2009)
9/12--The White Ribbon (2009)
9/12--All Fall Down (2009)
9/12--My Tehran for Sale (2009)
9/11--Vision (2009)
9/11--Face (2009)
9/10--An Education (2009)
9/9--^Broadway Bill (1934)
9/7--Sunshine Cleaning (2009)
9/6--Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times (2002)
9/4--^Girl 27 (2007)
9/4--^When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960)
8/29--Moby Dick (1956)
8/24--Johnny Guitar (1954)
8/22--They Live By Night (1948)
8/19--^In a Lonely Place (1950)
8/15--King and Country (1964)
8/15--*On Dangerous Ground (1952)
8/14--Two Lovers (2008)
8/14--On Dangerous Ground (1952)
8/12--^*In The Heat of the Night (1967)
8/12--Written on the Wind (1956)
8/10--^Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 (2008)
8/9--Julie & Julia (2009)
8/5--Born to Be Bad (1950)
8/4--^Leave Her To Heaven (1945)
8/4--^Lady from Shanghai (1947)
8/2--One Bright Shining Moment (2005)
8/1--Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
7/31--Dangerous Liasons (1988)
7/30--Moon (2009)
7/28--Word Wars (2004)
7/25-^The Smiling Lieutenant (1931)
7/26--The Oyster Princess (1919)
7/24--The Silence (1998)
7/23--*Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
7/22--*Conspiracy Theory (1997)
7/21--*Red Dawn (1984)
7/20--Public Enemies (2009)
7/19--*Zoolander (2001)
7/17--Bigger Than Life (1956)
7/16--Synecdoche, New York (2008)
7/15-Knowing (2009)
7/14--I Love You Man (2009)
7/14--Killshot (2008)
7/12--Captain Ahab (2007)
7/12--^Nobody Knows (2004)
7/11--Galileo (1975)
7/10--*V for Vendetta (2005)
7/9 Cheri (2009)
7/9--Easy Virtue (2008)
7/6--He's Just Not That Into You (2009)
7/3--Here Comes the Groom (1951)
7/2--Birth (2004)
6/30--State of the Union (1948)
6/28-^The Winslow Boy (1948)
6/26-^La ventana (20008)
6/24--Secret Ceremony (1968)
6/21-*The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
6/19--The Miracle Woman (1931)
6/16--A Man Escaped (1956)
6/--- ^La Truitte (1982)
6/5--^Last Chance Harvey (2008)
6/5--The Rape of Europa (2006)
6/4--Time Without Pity (1957)
6/2--^The Tragedy of Hamlet (2002)
6/1--*Bride & Prejudice (2004)
5/31--Azur et Asmar (2006)
5/30--Accident (1967)
5/27--The Great Debaters (2007)
5/27--^Mr. Klein (1976)
5/25--Jodhaa Akbar (2008)
5/24--^Reality Bites (1994)
5/22--^Valkyrie (2008)
5/21--*Forgetting Dad (2009)
5/20--Terminator Salvation (2009)
5/19--Taken (2008)
5/18--^Nights in Rodanthe (2008)
5/18--Dark Victory (1939)
5/18--^Munyurangabo (2008)
5/17--The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything (2008)
5/16--Jurassic Park (1993)
5/16-The Assassination of Trotsky (1972)
5/14-Star Trek (2009)
5/14-The True Story of Jesse James (1957)
5/13-^Burn After Reading (2008)
5/11--Simon of the Desert ((1965)
5/11--^The Country Teacher (2008)
5/10-*The Godfaher (1972)
5/6--^Hamsun (1996)
5/5--Elegy (2007)
5/5--^The Three Faces of Eve (1957)
5/4--You Can't Take it With You (1939)
5/2--^Cromwell (1970)
5/1--^The Big Shot Caller (2009)
4/26--*The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
4/26--Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)
4/26--^Lake Tahoe (2008)
4/25--Sherrybaby (2006)
4/24--Everlasting Memories (2008)
4/24--*Broken Blossoms (1919)
4/22--*Murder at 1600 (1997)
4/22--Flying Leathernecks (1951)
4/21--*Rounders (1998)
4/19--Supermen of Malegaon (2009)
4/19--Pray the Devil Back to Hell (2008)
4/19--*To Sir With Love (1967)
4/18--Song of the South (1946)
4/17--Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
4/15--^The Women (2008)
4/12--*The Miracle Maker (2000)
4/11--Henry Poole Was Here (2009)
4/9--Medea (1988)
4/8--*Owning the Weather (2009)
4/7--Marley & Me (2008)
4/7--^The Bitter Tea of General Yen (1933)
4/4--The Way We Get By (2009)
4/4--The Queen and I (2009)
4/4--Fallen Champ (1993)
4/4--Unit 25 (2009)
4/4--La Chirola (2009)
4/3--Forgetting Dad (2009)
4/3--California Company Town (2009)
4/3--Camp Diaries (2009)
4/3--Owning the Weather (2009)
4/2--Salonica (2009)
4/2--Art & Copy (2009)
4/2--Wounded Knee (2009)
4/2--Mechanical Love (2007)
3/31--^What Just Happened? (2008)
3/28--City of Ember (2008)
3/28--Watchmen (2009)
3/27--*The Celluloid Closer (1995)
3/27--^*The Spanish Prisoner (1997)
3/26--*Yesterday (2004)
3/25--The Criminal (1960)
3/25--Bolt (2008)
3/24--Twilight (2008)
3/23--*Philadelphia (1993)
3/21--The Way We Were (1973)
3/20--^Frozen River (2008)
3/19--Blithe Spirit (1945)
3/19--The Servant (1943)
3/17--Appaloosa (2008)
3/17--^O.T.: Our Town (2002)
3/15--Ha Sodot (2007)
3/12--^Changeling (2008)
3/12--^Greed (1924)
3/11--Passionate Friends (1949)
3/11--Rachel Getting Married (2008)
3/10--This Happy Breed (1944)
3/9--^Swing Vote (2008)
3/7--^Body of Lies (2008)
3/3--Bella (2006)
3/2--*The Dark Knight (2008)
3/2--Waltz With Bashir (2008)
3/1--In Love We Trust (2008)
2/27--Sita Sings the Blues (2008)
2/26--Lakeview Terrace (2008)
2/25--^The Duchess (2008)
2/24--^Blindness (2008)
2/24/-Miracle at St. Anna (2008)
2/22-Brideshead Revisited (2008)
2/22-^The Sound Barrier (1952)
2/18-^Horton Hears a Who (2008)
2/17--W. (2008)
2/16--Ryan's Daughter (1970)
2/14--^Son of Rambow (2008)
2/12--*Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
2/8--Pineapple Express (2008)
2/8--Pride and Glory (2008)
2/6--The Secret Life of Bees (2008)
2/5--Away from Her (2006)
2/4--^Forgiveness (2004)
2/3--Milk (2008)
2/3--Frost/Nixon (2008)
2/3--^Lilies of the Field (1963)
2/2--^Torn Curtain (1966)
1/31--Irma La Douce (1963)
1/30--The Wrestler (2008)
1/29/09--Quantum of Solace (2008)
1/29/09--Rembrandt (1936)
1/27/09--Igor (2008)
1/26/09-^Twelfth Night (1969)
1/25/09--^Bye, Bye Birdie (1963)
1/25/09--Heartbeat Detector (2007)
1/24/09-^In Which We Serve (1942)
1/23/09--*The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008)
1/22/09--The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
1/22/09--The Reader (2008)
1/22/09--^Enjo (1958)
1/20/09--The Quiet American (1958)
1/18/09--^Eagle Eye (2008)
1/17/09--Brighton Rock (1947)
1/16/09--Idiocracy (2006)
1/16/09--^Wooden Crosses (1932)
1/15/09--*The Cooler (2003)
1/13/09--Righteous Kill (2008)
11/13/09--^Through a Glass Darkly (1961)
1/11/09--^The Station Agent
1/10/09--^Doctor Zhivago (1965)
1/9/09--Gran Torino (2008)
1/8/09--Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
1/7/09 -- ^Seven Days to Noon (1950)
1/4/09 -- The Virgin Spring (1960)
1/3/09 -- ^I am Sam (2001)
1/3/09 -- ^Bob Le Flambeur (1956)

2008-12-26T13:21:00.013-05:00

Favorite Discoveries of 2008

Discoveries are films released in previous years that I saw for the first time in 2008. Often, they form the bulk of my best film experiences. These were my ten favorite discoveries from last year.

10) Sansho the Baliff (1954) -- Kenji Mizoguchi

One mark of a newbie cinephile is that you tend to think that all world film is alike. That Kurosawa is the same as Ozu is the same as Naruse is the same as Koreeda is the same as Misoguchi. I had heard good things about Mizoguchi's film, but I had resisted it because my response to Japanese films in the past has been very spotty.

This film is very accessible, and it is easy to follow for those (like me) who tend to get restless without any narrative. While the film is structured more around theme than plot, it is easy enough to keep the characters separate and to understand how their respective stories contribute to the larger theme.

If I had to articulate that theme, I would say the film is about the influence of one man. The plot isn't so much about Sansho but about his legacy, primarily on his children and particularly on his son. It is about the difficulty of doing the right thing--or, rather, the ease in going along with everyone else in doing the wrong thing.

Plus, the film is a treat to look at visually.

9) Mogambo (1953) -- John Ford

Okay, the plot is pure melodrama, but talk about star power...

The story is essentially a love triangle, with Clark Gable playing a big game hunter who is sought both by the free spirited Honey Bear Kelley (Ava Gardner) and the less acclimated but still smoldering Mrs. Nordley (Grace Kelly).

MGM apparently made a lot out of the fact that they made the film on safari, and, yes, the jungle is a character unto itself. But the real scenery here is the leading ladies. I've had a major crush on Grace Kelly ever since I saw Vertigo when I was sixteen, so I say it is no small accomplishment that Ava Gardner makes Gable's choice seem like anything but a no brainer. This is in spite of the fact that the script really makes it clear that the big game hunter is supposed to prefer the blond housewife on safari. Gardner is relegated to a supporting role, but Honey Bear is full of the life, energy, and spirit that Mrs. Nordley lacks.

Given that this is a John Ford film, I can't help wonder if the director shared my preference for Gardner's character--preferring a strong-willed woman to a meek and mild one. I thought I read somewhere that in some foreign or dubbed versions of the film, the audience was told that Gardner and Gable were brother and sister, ostensibly to make the film less shocking in or for cultures with taboos about what you could show on screen. I like to think that the real reason, though, is that even censors realized that there had to be some other reason that Gable preferred Mrs. Nordley to Honey Bear!

Both Gardner and Kelly were nominated for Academy Awards, though, inexplicably Kelly was placed in the Supporting Actress category. They really are both leads, but I guess even in the 50s there was some fudging of the categories to increase one's odds of victory. Kelly snagged the Golden Globe, but lost out on the Oscar to Donna Reed (From Here to Eternity). Gardner lost to Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. I like Audrey Hepburn as much as the next red-blooded American male, but seriously...

7) Beau Travail (1999) -- Claire Denis

There is no way this film should be this good. A retelling of Herman Melville's "Billy Budd" set in the French Foreign Legion, directed by a woman born in France, and culminating with an electric break dance by the Claggart character (Denis Lavant as Galoup)? Are you kidding me? Nor should the film be this beautiful to look at. It's set in the desert, for crying out loud.

But if you doubt that film is a visual medium, check out this film, where little is said but most everything is understood. I suppose it is inevitable, given the source material, that some people might or have dismissed this as strictly a gay film. That strikes me a little bit like saying that And The Band Played On is a medical mystery. I've always thought that the Melville novella was as much a meditation on chance and circumstances and the way they contextualize moral decisions as it was about repressed sexual orientation, but what do I know?

7) Lust, Caution -- Ang Lee (2007)

Admittedly not for all tastes, this deliberately paced meditation on what, if anything, distinguishes love from desire requires the sort of work from the viewer that many modern viewers are uninterested or unable to practice--patience during a screening and thought after it.

Lust, Caution's plot centers around the task of a young woman (Joan Chen) to seduce a powerful and dangerous political figure (Tony Leung) in Shanghai during World War II.

Things happen in Lust, Caution, it's just that director Ang Lee doesn't feel the need to explicate each thing that happens as it happens. Perhaps she is awakened sexually and falls in love with the man she is supposed to seduce. Perhaps he falls in love with the woman he suspects is a spy, but can't help himself. Even after the characters make their final decisions, we still aren't sure, because like much of the best poetic ambiguity, there are hints that support both interpretations.

I don't necessarily value ambiguity for ambiguity's sake, though. What makes the film's ending so sad and tragic is that I'm not sure that the characters themselves know. One can only spend so much time trying to keep truth hidden before one begins to lose the ability to recognize what it is.

6) Lars and the Real Girl (2007) -- Craig Gillespie

Not much to add to what I've written previously, so I'll just link to what I wrote about this film at my blog, All Things Ken.

5) Julius Caesar (1954) -- John Houseman

By the time I was old enough to get into "R" movies, The Godfather was over a decade in the rearview mirror, meaning I knew Marlon Brando primarily through The Island of Doctor Moreau and The Freshman.

Question: What do the following actors have in common?: Jack Lemmon, Billy Crystal, Keanu Reeves, Nathan Lane, Robin Williams, Alicia Silverstone.

Answer: They were all exposed trying to do Shakespeare.

Brando was in a Shakespeare film with James Mason and John Geilgud and was still able to command the screen.

Peter Saccio once said that Julius Caeasar is the Shakespeare play we think we all know, since it is introduced to students so early in their academic journey. As a result, we don't tend to see productions of it. Houseman's film is an unqualified success--as an acting showcase, as a transfer of Shakespeare to film, and as an entertaining film.

4) Taxi to the Dark Side (2007) -- Alex Gibney

A well deserved Academy Award (for best documentary) went to Gibney's investigation into the policies and practices that created the Abu Ghraib scandal. Eschewing sensationalistic tactics and avoiding an over-reliance on the photos themselves (which appear but aren't the final word), Taxi builds persuasive force until the viewers amazement reaches a level of disbelief.

Take a good look at the photo to the right, because this man died of homicide at the hands of the American government. That is not my opinion, or Gibney's. It is what it says on the death certificate given to his family by the representatives of the government that killed him.

3) Love in the Afternoon (1972) -- Eric Rohmer

My favorite of Eric Rohmer's Six Moral Tales is probably whichever one I've seen most recently, so at one point or another this list probably had five Rohmer films on it.

I wrote some notes about Love in the Afternoon last March, comparing some of its themes to Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut.

Pauline Kael once famously compared screening a Rohmer film to watching paint dry. Yeah, paint on the wall of the Sistine Chapel, maybe.

2) The Great Dictator (1940) -- Charlie Chaplin

Another film everyone thinks they know. You know, by the time you get through childhood, you've probably seen so many clips of Chaplin films that you feel like you've actually watched Chaplin films. I never had much interest in Chaplin until I screened The Pervert's Guide to Cinema at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival. Early in the year I also screened Monsieur Verdoux and A King in New York for the first time.

A lot of critical ink has been used to talk about how politically brave the film is, given that the outcome of the war was in no ways assured in 1940. So I was ready for the political satire and the humanistic speech at the end. Here's what I wasn't ready for--how darn funny the film can be. The embedded pudding scene, above, isn't dark humor, exactly. The participants have agreed that whoever gets the cake piece with a coin in it has to take the dangerous mission. The tone is one of desperation. And in spite of the circumstances there is a joy that breaks through that is essential to all comedy, because the desperation stems from the love of life.

1) Les Miserables (1934) -- Raymond Bernard

Every now and then when teaching film, you get to introduce a budding cinephile to Citizen Kane for the first time. It is not uncommon in my experience for their initial response to it to be one of slight confusion. The techniques don't seem particularly new and innovative to them. That, I suggest, is exactly the point. They are comparing the film to all the films they've seen since Welles's masterpiece, not to films that were made at or around the same time.

You could have told me that Raymond Bernard's three part adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel was filmed in 1994 and I would have believed it. It was, however, filmed in 1934.

I wrote some notes about my initial response to the film at Cinevox, so I'll just link to them here. My write up also contains a link to Doug Cummings's excellent review at Filmjourney.

Victor Hugo's novel is a timeless classic which has been retold and well loved since its inception, in part because it tells the story of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. The contemporary stage adaptation focuses on the antagonistic relationship between Valjean and Javert, but Bernard's film really focuses more on Valjean's spiritual development, echoing the novel's emphasis on his experience of grace and the way that it changes him gradually. Valjean is one of the great characters in the history of literature, and Harry Baur is totally up to the task of bringing him to life. The film feels less like an adaptation than a translation, and every time I assumed there would be a concession to staging or special effects--the barricades, the sewers--Bernard is able to take us there without drawing attention to the effects for effects sake.

Les Miserables is story the celebrates goodness. It is a joy to watch.

2008-12-19T18:28:00.026-05:00

This post has been moved to 1More Film Blog.

2008-12-05T19:54:00.019-05:00

*=Repeat viewing of a film previously seen.

12/30/2008
The Notorious Bettie Page (2005)

12/29/2008
*Persepolis (2007)

12/27/2008
Pride (2007)
Wendy and Lucy (2008)*

12/25/2008
In Bruges (2008)

12/22/2008
*The Visitor (2008)

12/21/2008
The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008)

12/20/2008
*Tropic Thunder (2008)

12/19/2008
No Reservations (2007)
Married Life (2007)
Traitor (2008)

12/18/2008
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
The Happening (2008)

12/16/2008
Shooter (2007)

12/15/2008
*The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

12/14/2008
Tropic Thunder (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
Baby Mama (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
The Visitor (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

12/12/2008
Slumdog Millionaire

12/7/2008
Cleopatra (1963)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

12/5/2008
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008)

12/3/2008
Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)

12/1/2008
The Paradine Case (1947)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
Destiny (1921)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

11/26/2008
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008)
Fort Apache (1948)
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

11/25/2008
You Only Live Once (1937)

11/23/2008
The Weather Underground (2002)

11/18/2008
Get Smart (2008)

11/15/2008
A Study in Scarlet (1933)
Doctor Faustus (1982)

11/12/2008
Standard Operating Procedure (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

11/11/2008
Lynch (2007)

11/10/2008
Dreamgirls (2006)
Kung Fu Panda (2008)

11/7/2008
Jungle Fever (1991)

11/6/2008
Taxi to the Dark Side (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

10/31/2008
88 Minutes (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

10/28/2008
Wall-e (2008)

10/24/2008
The Incredible Hulk (2008)

10/16/2008
Then She Found Me (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

10/14/2008
*Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

10/10/2008
The Heart of the Matter (1953)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

10/4/2008
Recount (2008)

10/3/2008
Macbeth (1948)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

9/27/2008
The Double Life of Veronique (1991)

9/23/2008
Speed Racer (2008)
[DNF]

9/20/2008
*Blue (1993)

9/18/2008
Wise Blood (1979)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
Dazed and Confused (1993)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

9/13/2008
The Green Ray (1986)
Romeo & Juliet (1936)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

9/9/2008
Two Legged Horse (2008)
More than a Game (2008)

9/8/2008
Still Walking (2008)
Disgrace (2008)
Seraphine (2008)
Unwanted Witness (2008)
At the Edge of the World (2008)

9/7/2008
Examined Life (2008)
Wendy and Lucy (2008)
Afterwards (2008)
Lorna's Silence (2008)
Of Time and the City (2008)

9/6/2008
Vinyan (2008)
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)
Cold Lunch (2008)

9/5/2008
Three Monkeys (2008)
The Sky Crawlers (2008)
Apron Strings (2008)
35 Rhums (2008)

9/4/2008
Redbelt (2008)

8/30/2008
The Big Kahuna (1999)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

8/26/2008
Stromboli (1950)

8/25/2008
Les Miserables (1933)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

8/24/2008
Redbeard (1965)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

8/13/2008
Cleaner (2007)

8/8/2008
Three Worlds of Gulliver (1960)

8/7/2008
In The Valley of Elah (2007)

8/4/2008
Nancy Drew (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

8/3/2008
Eastern Promises (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

7/30/2008
The Bridge (2006)

7/29/2008
Semi-Pro (2008)

7/21/2008
Vantage Point (2008)

7/20/2008
The Dark Knight (2008)

7/14/2008
Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)

7/4/2008
The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

7/3/2008
*His Girl Friday (1939)

6/29/2008
*The Cassandra Crossing (1976)
The Best Man (1964)

6/26/2008
Sleuth (2007)

6/25/2008
Jumper (2008)
*Honeydripper (2007)

6/22/2008
Monsieur Verdoux (1947)

6/14/2008
Charlie Wilson's War (2007)

6/10/2008
I Think I Love My Wife (2007)

6/8/2008
Man from Plains (2007)

6/7/2008
Sanshiro Sugata (1943)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

6/5/2008
Youth Without Youth (2007)

6/3/2008
Superbad (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

6/1/2008
Chocolat (1988) [The Claire Denis one, not the Juliette Binoche one]
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

5/30/2008
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

5/29/2008
*Daisy Miller (1974)

5/26/2008
Perceval le Gallois (1978)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

5/25/2008
*Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

5/24/2008
Justice League: New Frontier (2008)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

5/20/2008
Sansho the Bailiff (1954)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

5/18/2008
Blow Up (1966)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

5/16/2008
*Black Rain (1989)

5/14/2008
Untraceable (2008)
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

5/13/2008
Iron Man (2008)

5/11/2008
Mirror (1975)

5/10/2008
Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

5/9/2008
*Raising Arizona (1987)

5/6/2008
21 (2008)

5/5/2008
27 Dresses (2008)

5/4/2008
The Good Shepherd (2006)

5/3/2008
The Fallen Idol (1948)

4/26/2008
*Andrei Rublev (1969)

4/25/2008
Sweeney Todd (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

4/24/2008
*The Devil, Probably (1977)

4/22/2008
Suddenly Last Summer (1959)

4/20/2008
Jane Austen Book Club (2007)

4/19/2008
Lust, Caution (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

4/17/2008
Burden of Dreams (1982)
*Vision Quest (1985)

4/15/2008
Early Summer (1951)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

4/13/2008
Beau Travail (1999)

4/8/2008
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

4/7/2008
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007)

4/6/2008
Rio Grande (1950)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

4/5/2008
The Most Dangerous Game (1932)

4/4/2008
At the Death House Door (2008)

4/3/2008
King Lear (1969)[Kozintsev]
August Rush (2007)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

4/1/2008
Othello (1952)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
Three Colors: White (1994)


3/29/2008
Aguirre, The Wrath of God (1972)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

3/27/2008
I Shot Jesse James (1949)

3/25/2008
Dan in Real Life (2007)

3/23/2008
The Great Sinner (1949)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

3/22/2008
Yi Yi (2000)

3/21/2008
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1949)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

3/20/2008
This is What Democracy Looks Like (1999)

3/15/2008
King Lear (1971)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

3/13/2008
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]

3/12/2008
Love in the Afternoon (1972)

3/11/2008
Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)

3/10/2008
Voyage of the Damned (1976)
[Completed Viewing Done Over Several Days]

3/09/2008
*The Sentinel (2006)
*The Simpsons Movie (2007)

3/8/2008
Starting Out in the Evening (2007)
The Great Dictator (1940)
[Completed Viewing Done Over Several Days]

3/7/2008
Raintree County (1957)
Trembling Before G_d (2001)

3/6/2008
Into the Wild (2007)
Claire's Knee (1970)
[Completed Viewing Done Over Several Days]
Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr. (1999)

3/3/2008
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
Awake, My Soul: The Story of the Sacred Harp (2006)

3/2/2008
Caesar and Cleopatra (1945)
Howard Zinn: You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train (2004)

3/1/2008
When I Close My Eyes (1993)
[Completed Viewing Done Over Several Days]

2/27/2008
American Gangster (2007)
[Completed Viewing Done Over Several Days]

2/24/2008
Michael Clayton (2007)
[Completed Viewing Done Over Several Days]
Senator Obama Goes to Africa (2007)

2/23/2008
4 Months, 3 Weeks, Days (2007)

2/22/2008
Gone Baby Gone (2007)
Queen of the Damned (2002)

2/19/2008
Our Hospitality (1923)
Millions (2004)

2/16/2008
*Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)
La Collectionneuse (1967)

2/14/2008
*Victory (1981)

2/12/2008
Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940)

2/10/2008
Julius Caesar (1953)
[completed viewing over several sittings]

2/9/2008
Suzanne's Career (1963)

2/8/2008
*Persepolis (2007)

2/7/2008
Ace in the Hole (1951)

2/5/2008
The Sons of Katie Elder (1965)

2/3/2008
*The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

2/2/2008
The Warriors (1979)

2/1/2008
*Dogville (2003)

1/27/2008
Things to Come (1936)

1/26/2008
*The Simpsons Movie (2007)

1/21/2008
Age of Innocence (1934)
[Completed viewing done over period of days.]
Juno (2007)
Atonement (2007)


1/20/2008
Shrek the Third (2007)
Fitzcarraldo (1982)
[Completed viewing done over period of days.]
The Misfits (1961)

1/19/2008
A Good Woman (2004)

1/18/2008
Blade Runner: The Final Cut (2008)

1/16/2008
I Am Legend (2007)

1/15/2008
Bakery Girl of Monceau (1963)

1/13/2008
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
Becket (1964)
[Completed viewing done over period of days.]

1/12/2008
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)
[Completed viewing done over period of days.]

The Bible: In The Beginning (1966)
[Completed viewing done over period of days.]


1/9/2008
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007)

1/8/2008
The Newton Boys (1998)

1/4/2008
Sanjuro (1962)
The Quiet Man (1952)

1/3/2008
*JFK (1991)

1/2/2008
High Sierra (1941)

2007 Favorites

2008-12-05T19:36:00.000-05:00

I have increasingly mixed feelings about such lists as this one. I do think they help highlight films that might otherwise be missed and are of some service. On the other hand, I recognize that it is increasingly difficult for the cinephile to see the majority of films that are released in a given year—even those that are getting good buzz. The alternative to an imperfect list, though, is silence, or abdicating the landscape to full-time critics who often privilege commercial American films over all else. Consider this list, then, more of a “personal favorites” list rather than a claim of absolute judgment about relative worth.
In descending order:

10) Zodiac

I’ll be honest, I didn’t make it all the way through this one on first viewing. I have aesthetic and moral reservations about films that recreate true crimes; they make me feel as though I am a consumer of others’ suffering for my pleasure. I gave it another chance at the urging of some peers, and, although I still found it painful in places, I did see merit in it.

Zodiac is more a philosophical musing than a thriller. Its lack of climax and non-traditional narrative appear to have turned off more than a few viewers. For me, it was a film about the desperate, futile, postmodern need to know.

And the universe’s indifference to that need.

9) The Simpsons Movie

As long as I’m being honest, I’ll admit that this film came a few years too late, that The Simpsons is now “must get the DVD eventually” TV instead of “must see” TV. I’ll admit that the film relies a bit too much on slapstick and bit too little on biting, relevant satire. It had its moments though, such as when the president said, “I was elected to lead not to read.” When Homer’s pollution throws Lake Springfield past its ecological tipping point his motivation was not stupidity but laziness…and in that way there was a bit of an edge to it. As South Park gets more and more Juvenalian—picking out particular people to lambast, could The Simpsons be headed, finally, in a more Horatian direction...turning the satiric lens back on those who have embraced it?

8) Knocked Up

In a year in which Bella and Juno have been paraded before and championed by evangelicals as pro-life movies, I still found Knocked Up to be funnier and more honest.

Within five minutes of screen time Alison (Katherine Heigl) has two people advise her to “take care of it” while Ben’s grandfather advises him to “deal with it.” This rhetorical and moral distance between “take care of” and “deal with” may not seem like much, but it is, which is why so many abortion debates center on rhetoric. Many people (Alison and Ben are no exceptions) don’t even make consciously considered (or reasoned) moral decisions, they grapple for sound bites that will confirm the rightness of their decisions.

And yet…here is a film about two people who choose to “deal with it” rather than “take care of it,” and the “it” can mean “life” and not just “pregnancy.” Here is a film that has the audacity to suggest that—at the end of the day—the most important element of making a relationship work is showing up. What sort of relationship Ben and Alison have (and will have) is open to question. Cynics may doubt the optimism (hope?) of the ending, but films about people making baby steps towards maturity resonate more deeply with me than films about people who make great leaps into it through single decisions or sacrifices. Deciding to try is hard. Deciding to keep trying is harder still. Good for them.

Oh, and the film is pretty funny, too.

7) Breach

Anchored by three great performances (Ryan Phillippe, Laura Linney, and Chris Cooper), Breach is about the compromises we all make and the ways that we rationalize and justify them. The title connotes a security breach, but it also references a breach of trust. The way in which Breach constantly juxtaposes those breaches of trust—the personal and corporate ones—creates a surprisingly thoughtful work that invites us to question some of our assumptions without being preachy. The film reminded me in some ways of E. M. Forster’s A Passage to India in the way it explored how friendships are forged in and tried by difficult social circumstances.

6) No End in Sight

For anyone who has ever complained about the media’s oversimplification of complex issues, its overuse of sound-bites, or its reliance on official statements from press secretaries, No End in Sight is a breath of fresh air. It not only critiques American foreign policy, it grimly lays bare the shockingly inept and unthinking way the Bush administration attempted to implement that policy. “There’s never time to do it right, but there’s always time to do it over,” my father used to say to me as a reminder that cutting corners and using shoddy decision-making practices would always come back to bite you in the end. Whatever words of wisdom this administration’s policy makers received from their fathers, they apparently didn’t include “look before you leap.”

5) A Promise to the Dead: The Exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman

Dorfman is probably best known for his play Death and the Maiden. This film uses his life as a lens in which to lay out the history of Chile under General Pinochet, but it doesn’t stop there. It also explores the psychological costs—personal and corporate—of living in terror. An excellent companion piece to Forgiving Dr. Mengele, the film doesn’t advocate a position so much as follow one man on a journey to explain how he arrived at his. It has been somewhat popular to say in American society that the world changed on 9/11. For Dorfman, that is true, but it was a different 9/11. If nothing else, the film reminds us that the sudden disruption of their lives through terror and violence is something many have had to deal with before.

4) Waitress

After some good initial buzz, there appears to have been a backlash against this film. It’s been fashionable to dismiss it as a chick-flick and to whisper that the good will it generated was more about sympathy for the horrific death of director Adrienne Shelley than about the film’s quality. Like Lars and the Real Girl, this film has a major character that is pathological. In this case, it is Jenna’s husband, Earl, marvelously played by Jeremy Sisto. Watching Waitress, I was reminded of an early episode of The Simpsons in which Homer and Marge go on a retreat for marital counseling. “Normally I’m not supposed to say this,” the reverend confides, “but it’s all his fault.”

Some may see the vilification of Earl as moral card stacking to make us excuse, even root for, Jenna’s affair with Dr. Pammater (Nathan Fillion). A lesser film might have used that formula, but Waitress doesn’t glorify the affair. It does, however, remain steadfastly and unapologetically sympathetic to Jenna. Look closely and perhaps you’ll see strains of guilt or shame in Keri Russell’s depiction of Jenna. Mostly you’ll see weariness.

When Jenna asks Cal if he is happy he says: “You ask a serious question, I'll give you a serious answer: Happy enough. I don't expect much. I don't get much, I don't give much. I generally enjoy whatever comes along. That's my answer for you, summed up for your feminine consideration. I'm happy enough.”

Happy enough for what we might ask? Perhaps it is happy enough to go on living. Jenna’s poverty of spirit is such that she envies that much happiness. It would be a hard viewer who would begrudge her the pursuit of it. Waitress doesn’t ask us to approve of Jenna or her choices; instead, it postulates that the choices women could and would make when they are not dependent upon men for survival might be very different than we would like to think.

Is the money a deux-ex-machina? Perhaps. But sometimes the poor in spirit are comforted.

3) Honeydripper

A link to my review at Looking Closer.

John Sayles’s best film since Lone Star.

2) My Kid Could Paint That

A link to my review at Looking Closer.

I’ll only add that I took this film in again at a local art theater, and I liked it even more the second time. One postscript: I attended with a professional artist. She was convinced not so much by any formal critique of the paintings but by the shots of Marla “playing” with the paint. I trust her instinct here more than my own since it is based on more relevant experience, both personal and professional.

1) Persepolis

A link to my review at Christian Spotlight on Entertainment.

A heart-wrenching and life-affirming film about the search for peace and identity in a hostile world. A masterpiece.

2007 Discoveries

2008-12-05T19:35:00.001-05:00

The following were my 10 favorite "new to me" film experiences of 2007...films that were released in previous years but which I saw for the first time:

• The Silence of the Sea
• L'Enfant
• Mouchette
• The Informer
• Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man
• Le Petit Soldad
• Pan's Labyrinth
• Offside
• 28 Up
• The Trial of Joan of Arc

2007 Viewing Journal

2008-12-05T19:27:00.001-05:00

12-31-07
I'm Not There (2007)

12-30-07
Thank You For Smoking (2005)

12-29-07
Hot Fuzz (2007)

12-28-07
*Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)

12-24-07
Margo at the Wedding (2007)
The Kingdom (2007)

12-22-07
Stardust (2007)

12-19-07
Prisoner of Shark Island (1936)

12-16-07
The Nanny Diaries (2007)

12-15-07
*Knocked Up (2007)

12-13-07
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)

12-12-07
*My Kid Could Paint That (2007)
*No Country for Old Men (2007)

12-9-07
Lust for Life (1956)

12-7-07
From Here to Eternity (1953)

12-3-07
*Heat (1995)

12-1-07
Flags of Our Fathers (2006)

11-30-07
Beowulf (2007)

11-29-07
Lianna (1983)
Daisy Miller (1974)

11-22-07
Waco: Rules of Engagement (1997)
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

11-21-07
*Carl Theodor Dreyer: My Metier (1995)

11-20-07
Amazing Grace (2006)

11-18-07
Next (2007)

11-9-07
Death and the Maiden (1994)

11-4-07
As You Like It (2006)

11-1-07
Transformers (2007)
No End in Sight (2007)

10-30-07
Mouchette (1967)
[Finished viewing done over several days.]
Spiderman 3 (2007)

10-26-07
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)

10-23-07
49 Up (2005)

10-17-07
Rendition (2007)

10-15-07
*Michael (1924)
[Casper Tybjerg Audio Commentary]

10-14-07
Michael (1924)

10-13-07
Knocked Up (2007)

10-8-07
42 Up (1999)

9-30-07
A Promise to the Dead: The Exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman (2007)

9-28-07
35 Up (1992)

9-23-07
The Parson's Widow (1920)
[Completed viewing done over several days.]

9-16-07
*Manufactured Landscapes (2006)

9-15-07
28 Up (1985)

9-13-07
A Place in the Sun (1951)

9-10-07
No Country for Old Men (2007)
When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007)
Battle in Seattle (2007)
Honeydripper (2007)

9-9-07
XXY (2007)
Bucking Broadway (1914)
In Memory of Myself (2007)
Buddha Collapsed from Shame (2007)

9-8-07
Persepolis (2007)
My Kid Could Paint That (2007)
100 Nails (2007)
Nothing is Private (2007)

9-7-07
Les Amours d' Astree et Celadon
Terror's Advocate (2007)

9-6-07
Fados (2007)
The Brave One (2007)

9-4-07
Mary of Scotland (1936)

9-2-07
Becoming Jane (2007)
The Young Lions (1958)
[completed viewing done over several days]

8-29-07
Zodiac (2007)

8-27-07
21 Up (1977)

8-21-07
+The Simpsons Movie (2007)

8-19-07
The Wind Will Carry Us (1999)
[completed viewing done over several days]

8-17-07
Deja Vu (2006)

8-15-07
Ocean's Twelve (2004)

8-11-07
*Land of the Pharaohs (1955)

8-10-07
Land of the Pharaohs (1955)

8-7-07
300 (2006)

8-4-2007
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

8-2-07
The List (2007)

7-30-07
*Le Silence de la Mer (1949)

7-28-07
The Informer (1935)
Provincial Actors (1979)

7-26-07
Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End (2007)
The Simpsons Movie (2007)

7-18-07
*The Duellists (1977)

7-17-07
Match Point (2005)

7-13-07
Ratatouille (2007)

7-11-07
*Casino Royale (2006)

7-4-07
Le Petit Soldad (1963)

6-29-07
Music and Lyrics (2007)

6-27-07
*I, Robot (2004)

6-26-07
*Emma (1996)

6-24-07
Breach (2007)

6-23-07
Breakfast on Pluto (2005)

6-19-07
*Washington Square (1997)

6-18-07
*The Heiress (1949)

6-17-07
Old Joy (2006)

6-13-07
Hannibal Rising (2007)
[finished viewing completed over several days]
Prairie Home Companion (2006)

6-12-07
*Spirit of the Beehive (1973)
[finished viewing done over several days]
*King Lear (1998)

6-10-07
Waitress (2007)

6-7-07
*The Lord of the Flies (1963)

6-6-07
Spirit of the Beehive (1973)

6-4-07
Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus (2006)

6-2-07
Happy Feet (2006)

5-30-07
Talladega Nights: The Legend of Ricky Bobby (2006)
[Completed viewing done over several days.]
*A Raisin in the Sun (1961)

5-27-07
Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man (2005)
*Pickpocket (1959)

5-26-07
Shakespeare Behind Bars (2004)

5-25-07
Vampyr (1934)

5-23-07
Offside (2006)

5-18-07
*In The Cut (2003)

5-17-07
To End All Wars (2001)

5-15-07
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)

5-12-07
The Break-Up (2006)
The Thin Blue Line (1998)

5-11-07
Little Children (2006)
(Completed viewing over several days)
Deliver Us From Evil (2006)

5-8-07
*A Simple Twist of Fate (1994)
(completed viewing done over several days)

5-3-07
*Apt Pupil (1998)

5-1-07
Who the #$&% is Jackson Pollock (2006)

4-30-07
*Lifeboat (1944)

4-26-07
*Life and Debt (2001)

4-21-07
*The Enforcer (1976)
Persona (1966)

4-19-07
*Elephant (2003)

4-17-07
*Magnum Force (1973)

4-15-07
Battleship Potemkin (1925)
The Blood Diamond (2006)

4-14-07
The Lady in the Water (2006)

4-7-07
Carl Theodor Dreyer: My Métier (1995)

4-6-07
Gertrud (1964)

4-3-07
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

3-31-07
*Seven Up! (1964)
7 Plus Seven (1970)

3-29-07
Rocky Balboa (2006)

3-25-07
*Interview with the Vampire (1994)

3-24-07
The Piano Teacher (2001)

3-23-07
Charlie Chan: Curse of the Dragon Queen (1981)
*Maborosi (1995)

3-22-07
What's New, Pussycat (1965)

3-17-07
Les Girls (1957)

3-16-07
*Une Femme Douce (1969)
[completed second viewing done over several days]
Casino Royale (2006)

3-14-07 (2005)
Look Both Ways

3-13-07
The Milky Way (1969)
[completed viewing over several days]

3-6-07
Conversations With Other Women (2005)
Borat (2006)

3-5-07
My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006)
*To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

3-4-07
Un Femme Douce (1969)
*Climates (2006)

3-3-07
Life and Debt (2001)
Susan and God (1940)
*Primary Colors (1998)

3-2-07
Tape (2001)

3-1-07
Maborosi (1995)
[completed viewing done over several days]
Babel (2006)

2-28-07
*Dune (1984)
[completed viewing done over several days]

2-25-07
Les Bonnes Femmes (1960)
The Prestige (2006)

2-24-07
Rosetta (1999)
A King in New York (1957)
[completed viewing done over several days]
The Boys of Baraka (2005)
[completed viewing done over several days]

2-19-07
*The Pervert's Guide to Cinema (2006)
[completed re-viewing done over several days]

2-16-07
The Departed (2006)
Les Anges du Peche (1943)

2-13-07
The Swindle (1997)

2-11-07
Viridiana (1961)

2-10-07
Where the Heart Roams (1987)
Paragraph 175 (2000)

2-9-07
*The Merchant of Venice (2004)

2-8-07
Children of Men (2006)
The Devil Probably (1977)

2-6-07
Un Chien Andalou (1929)

2-4-07
Les Cousins (1959)

2-3-07
Catch a Fire (2006)
Dark Passage (1947)

2-1-07
Nazarin (1959)

1-30-07
*Mimic (1997)

1-28-07
A Scanner Darkly (2006)

1-27-07
*To Catch a Thief (1955)

1-26-07
The Trial of Joan of Arc (1962)

1-20-07
*The Illusionist (2006)

1-19-07
*The Lord of the Flies (1963)[Peter Brook, et al commentary track][Completed today, rewatched over several days.]
Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

1-18-07
The Painted Veil (2006)

1-16-07
The Lord of the Flies (1963)

1-15-07
L'Enfant (2005)
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

1-13-07
*The Red Desert (1964)

1-12-07
Monster House (2006)

1-10-07
The Red Desert (1964)

1-9-07
Harlan County USA (1976)
The Silence of the Sea (Le Silence de le Mer) (1949)

1-6-07
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)

1-5-07
Smiles of a Summer Night (1955)
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)

1-4-07
The Queen (2006)

1-2-07
*Army of Shadows (1969) [Ginette Vincendeau commentary track]

1-1-07
Stalker (1979)

2007-10-27T11:17:00.000-04:00

TIFF 2007:

Fados
The Brave One
The Romance of Astrea and Celadon
One Hundred Nails
Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame
XXY
Nothing is Private (Towelhead)
No Country For Old Men
Persepolis
Battle in Seattle
When Did You Last See Your Father?
Honeydripper
In Memory of Myself
My Kid Could Paint That
Bucking Broadway
Rendition

2006-10-23T19:17:00.002-04:00

Rescue Dawn
Climates
Macbeth (Geoffrey Wright)
Manfactured Landscapes
Born and Bred
Requiem
Lake of Fire
Pervert's Guide to Cinema
Shot in the Dark