Best Films of 2008

by James Evans

Man on Wire
I’m not afraid of heights, but there is no way in hell you could get me to do something like this. Philip Petite walked a tightrope across the World Trade Center towers back in 1974. Illegally. This documentary tells the incredible story of how he did it. I simply cannot understand how anyone would not want to see this movie.

Another great documentary is Surfwise. Look it up.

Slumdog Millionaire
Danny Boyle’s Bollywood love story was a nice surprise for me. The preview made it out to be something different than it is. One of the few movies this year that I saw more than once.

The Dark Knight
This should have been nominated for Best Picture and not because of Heath Ledger dying. He is brilliant in the movie but everyone else is good, too. I love Maggie Gyllenhaal, so I was happy for her replacing Katie Holmes. I was glad that one of the times I saw it was in IMAX. It really was worth it for the scenes that they filmed in the IMAX format.

I also want to mention Iron Man, of course. That one was more fun, so it’s a different movie, but they were both great.

And I loved The Incredible Hulk. After the first movie from five years ago, I was worried about them doing it right. Especially since Edward Norton was attached. He is really hit and miss for me, but he was perfect in the role. I hope they make another with this cast.

The Wackness
If you don’t know what this movie is then just rent it. Don’t look anything up. Josh Peck and Ben Kingsley are great in this smaller film that was unfortunately overlooked. By everyone.

In Bruges
I didn’t know anything about this movie going into it, and that is how I prefer things. It’s funny and yet there is sadness behind things. Colin Farrell is great here unlike in Casandra’s Dream, which was terrible. And Ralph Fiennes shows once again he is one of the best actors today. Despite The Reader. Watch Guy Ritchie’s Rock N Rolla for a good double feature.

Let The Right One In
I actually liked Twilight, but the best vampire movie was this Swedish film. It is also one of the most unique and interesting films I have seen in a long time. I loved everything about the movie but the last five minutes will last with me forever.

Another great foreign film and another unique movie was Timecrimes. What would happen if someone turned on a time machine? Well, you get to find out if you watch this very dark comedy.

Tropic Thunder
This was just a hilarious movie. Robert Downey, Jr. deserves his nomination this year for his role. I am not someone who thought that Tom Cruise was so brilliant here though. Yes, he was good but there was way too much talk about him.

Two other comedies I loved this year were Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Pineapple Express. Russell Brand made Sarah Marshall and James Franco was absolutely the stand-out in Pineapple.

JCVD
Yes, those initials stand for Jean Claude Van Damme. He shows here that he can actually act. Although I felt his monologue went on a little too long, it was a terrific scene. The rest of the movie is good except for the very end.

And speaking of actors you wouldn’t think much of, Mickey Rourke deserves to win Best Actor for The Wrestler. Again, it’s not just a movie that shows he can act; it is a great movie with a lot of heart.

Boy A
Not quite based on a true story. This is about a boy who gets out of jail for a crime he committed while a juvenile. He is relocated and given a different name but when he saves the life of someone in a car accident, his past comes back to haunt him. It’s devastating to watch.

Under the Same Moon
I didn’t believe that this little boy could make the journey that he does, but I would like to think it’s possible so that is why I loved this movie. A small gem and a truly great story.

Most Underrated
The most underrated film of the year would have to be Speed Racer. Yes, it is too long especially for the audience they were going for, but I thought it was a lot of fun. It looked great in digital, too.

Most Overrated
The Reader. Best Picture? Watch it and tell me that it is not a bad German After School Special.

Not As Bad As You Heard
I can’t believe I am going to do this, but The Love Guru wasn’t terrible. It is not good by any means, and Ben Kingsley should be ashamed of himself. Despite that I did laugh a number of times. Still not saying you should see it though.

And Twilight. I really enjoyed this movie. For what it was. They did a good job of going after their audience. No, I still do not know why they are still going to high school after 100 years. Can’t they just say that they are home-schooled? Or what about college at least?

Biggest Disappointment
Hellboy II. I am a huge Hellboy fan from the comic books. I have a Hellboy tattoo and I loved the first movie. So what the hell happened with this second one? It was lazy, and I hated the whole pregnancy thing. I did like the addition of Johann Krauss to the mix though.

The Oscars: 2008

by James Evans

The Oscars contenders this year are pretty much a joke for the most part, so I have no clue what is going to win this year.

Best Picture
Slumdog Millionaire is the one that deserves to win this year. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Frost/Nixon are both good, but not Best Picture material. Milk is okay to be on the list but The Reader is simply one of the worst movies of the year, and I cannot understand how this happened. The Dark Knight should have been up there instead. (Winner: Slumdog Millionaire)

Actor
I really want Mickey Rourke to win. He was great and the movie was terrific. Sean Penn and Frank Langella are both worthy, but Brad Pitt was just okay in Benjamin Button. Richard Jenkins is a good actor and it’s nice to see him recognized. (Winner: Sean Penn)

Actress
I love Meryl Streep, and she was good in Doubt, but I think the best performance this year was from Melissa Leo for Frozen River, and I’m so glad she was nominated even if she won’t win. No, they want to give it to Kate Winslet for a terrible movie (The Reader). Anne Hathaway was good in a not-so-great movie (Rachel Getting Married). And then we come to Angelina Jolie in Changeling. Another awful movie, and her performance was not that great. Watch the scenes where she is waking up to her alarm. She really needed some coaching in those scenes. (Winner: Kate Winslet)

Supporting Actor
Heath Ledger deserves it and not because he died. He simply was incredible in the best performance of the year. Robert Downey, Jr. and Philip Seymour Hoffman are both worthy, but Josh Brolin in Milk wasn’t a fully developed character. He should have been nominated for W instead. And who cares about Michael Shannon. (Winner: Heath Ledger)

Supporting Actress
I hated My Cousin Vinny but Marisa Tomei deserves it this time around for The Wrestler. I would be okay if Viola Davis won though. And Penelope Cruz was great in Woody Allen’s one good movie of the year out of the two he made (Vicky Christina Barcelona). Amy Adams and Taraji Henson I’m fine with being nominated but their performances were not stand-outs. (Winner: Penelope Cruz)

Director
Well, Christopher Nolan should have been nominated for The Dark Knight but since he wasn’t I would love to see Danny Boyle win for the second best film of the year. David Fincher has a good eye and Benjamin Button looks great, but it is lacking substance. I hate Ron Howard but I liked Frost/Nixon. I just don’t think he did anything special enough that makes him worthy of a nomination. Gus Van Sant I would be okay with winning for Milk. He did a great job of using real footage, and the movie was really good. I can’t even talk about Stephen Daldry for The Reader. (Winner: Danny Boyle)

Documentary
I have not seen all of these movies, but I had to mention Man on Wire. It simply was the best movie of 2008 and if you haven’t seen it yet then stop reading this and go rent it. Or just buy it. (Winner: Man on Wire)

Original Screenplay
Wall-E was okay. I love Mike Leigh and Happy Go Lucky was a fun movie. Frozen River was hard to watch but it was great, and Milk was well written. I think for originality it should go to In Bruges. Brutal but terrific film and on my top ten list for 2008. (Winner: Milk)

Adapted Screenplay
Again I would have to go with Slumdog since I want it to win Best Picture. Doubt and Frost/Nixon are worthy, but Benjamin Button is not and, again, I just want The Reader to go away. (Winner: Slumdog Millionaire)

Film Editing
This is always a strange category. How do you tell exactly? Well, I think Milk did a great job with the use of old footage at times so I would give it to them. Slumdog’s storytelling in flashbacks was well done, too. Benjamin and Frost/Nixon were okay and The Dark Knight was well done. (Winner: Slumdog Millionaire)

Animated Feature
Well, with only three of them, this is an easy one. Bolt was good but really doesn’t deserve to be nominated. Kung Fu Panda was more fun than Wall-E but the visuals alone in Wall-E make it the best of the year. (Winner: Wall-E)

Visual Effects
When you have The Dark Knight and Iron Man in this category, how is it that Benjamin Button is the one that deserves to win? Even though I didn’t think that much of the movie, the special effects are simply incredible. (Winner: Benjamin Button)

Cinematography & Art Direction – And Throw in Sound Mixing and Editing too!
These have to go to The Dark Knight and you will especially agree with me if you saw it in IMAX. If you didn’t, you really missed out. (Winners: Slumdog Millionaire, Cinematography; Benjamin Button, Art Direction; Slumdog Millionaire, Sound Mixing; The Dark Knight, Sound Editing)

Costume Design
Who cares. I didn’t even see The Duchess, but I’m sure there were a ton of big dresses that had to be made by someone. (Winner: The Duchess)

Makeup
Another one I don’t care about but Benjamin Button obviously used a lot of makeup on Brad. Just not as much as they did on Ron Perlman in Hellboy II. (Winner: Benjamin Button)

Original Score
I have to go with Slumdog Millionaire again. It really sets the tone for the film and when there are so many changes in tone, they did a great job. (Winner: Slumdog Millionaire)

Original Song
“Down to Earth” by Peter Gabriel in Wall-E? Don’t remember it. “Jai Ho” and “O…Saya” from Slumdog? Well, I am not humming them all day, but I do remember them fondly from a great movie. (Winner: “Jai Ho”)

Movie Review: The Wrestler

by James Evans
 
Mickey Rourke is great in this movie. Darren Aronofsky does a good job with giving him a perfect role. Yes, it maybe mirrors his own life in some ways, but it really is its own story. He plays an aging wrestler who doesn’t know how to do anything else. His daughter won’t talk to him, and he’s in love with a stripper. Then things get worse. It’s a sad movie, but I loved the story and I actually liked Marisa Tomei as the aging stripper he is in love with. Their love story is really sad and wonderful, too. I loved their scenes together. Great ending even though you see it coming.