2007: Top 10

What a year, what a year...

In 2007 I saw more movies than any other year. I tried my best to see every major film that was released, but ultimately a few slipped through the cracks. Most notable were Lars and the Real Girl, The Orphanage, 4 Months 3 Weeks and 2 Days, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, La Vie en Rose, and Away from Her. I hope to see most of those by the time the Oscars role around, so they could conceivably make for a slight shift in my top 10. That said, it seems unlikely that this top 10 is getting shaken up. I feel like this may be the strongest top 10 I've ever had for a year.

I have in years past tried to label a year as "good" or "bad." That has come back to bite me every time. For example: I called 2005 the best year for film this decade, while I felt 2006 was lacking. I am still in love with half my top 10 of 2006 and have a hard time recalling what some of my favorites of 2005 were even about. The perspective that comes with age is a wonderful thing, but unfortunately one cannot wait a few years to do a top 10 list. Who cares what the best film of a few years ago really was? I know some of these films I am about to talk about will fade away from my memory as years pass, but I really think that this year will be one that stays with me for a long time. And right now, these ten were truly great experiences.

I have in past years had to fill out the top 10 with less than perfect films (films I enjoyed but felt were still flawed). Not here: There are a number of films I regret not being able to find a place for in my top 10. Sicko, which hit on an issue I feel needs to be addressed immediately. Ratatouille, yet another classic from the masters at Pixar. Bridge to Terabithia, a supremely mature film for children and adults alike. Sydney Lumet's return to form in Before the Devil Know You're Dead. And there were many others (25 movies out of the 70 I saw got either a 3.5 or 4 star review from me). The top 10 are an eclectic bunch, though: two westerns, two musicals, and a documentary make for the least likely top 10 I could have imagined at the start of the year. Yet they all work, and together they make for a great summary of why I really liked 2007 at the movies.

10. The Bourne UltimatumThe Bourne trilogy just got better and better with each film, and it went out on the perfect note. In a summer filled with uninspired threequels, this one reminded me that sometimes a franchise can be a rewarding experience. Director Paul Greengrass knows how to both stage great action scenes as well as explore and expand his characters. And Matt Damon is on the top of his game here, solidifying the character of Jason Bourne as the most interesting action hero since James Bond. If this really is the end of the series, it will be sad, but at least all involved knew to leave us wanting more.

9. The King of KongI wrestled with this question for a long while: which documentary of the year warranted a mention in my top 10 - the important one or the fun one? When it came down to it, The King of Kong proved to be just too wonderful to ignore. For perhaps the first time ever I saw a documentary as not just something used to teach, but something to entertain. And entertain it did. One would be forgiven if they watched this film and assumed it was a mockumentary. The idea of two men battling over who has the best score in Donkey Kong sounds like a joke, but it works on so many levels it's kind of stunning. I found myself really cheering on the hero. It is both hilarious and heartbreaking. Underdog Steve Wiebe is so sympathetic and nemesis Billy Mitchell is so odious that you may find yourself shouting at the screen by the film's end. Even the most staunch documentary hater will be won over by this one, guaranteed.

8. Gone Baby GoneCongratulations to you, Ben Affleck. I've always had an appreciation for Affleck as an actor, so it made me sad to see his career fall apart so drastically. Thankfully he is just as good of a director as he is an actor (better probably), and his debut effort is a thought-provoking meditation on the nature of right and wrong. Some have complained that the ending is too out there, too unlikely, but I think it is a brilliant conclusion that really challenges the viewer's beliefs. This also may be the only film I saw all year that at the halfway mark I honestly had no clue as to where it was going to go next. That really counts for a lot in a medium that seems more interested in familiarity than freshness.

7. 3:10 to YumaI'm not sure if we really will see a resurgence of the Western in the coming years, but 2007 sure made it seem like the genre had a lot of life left in it. One of two major Westerns released this year, 3:10 to Yuma demonstrated that the genre could be just as fun and exciting as a present day set action film. With great performances across the board, a gripping story, and a final showdown that was among the most memorable moments of the year, this really was a film that delivered everything you could want. Here's hoping that the Western trend catches on and we see more great films like this.

6. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet StreetLeave it to Tim Burton to take my least favorite genre - the musical - and produce one of the best films of the year. In spite of the near nonstop musical numbers, I became enamored with this tale of a murderous barber out for revenge. It is one of the very, very few musicals I've seen in which I felt that the music imparted more story and depth than simple dialogue ever could have. In recent years I have found myself more and more open minded when it comes to genres I don't like, but the musical has long been the lone holdout. If Sweeney Todd (and another soon to be mentioned musical) is any indication, the barrier between me and musicals may be about to fall.

5. AtonementWhile a lot of people will disagree, I found the fall to be extremely weak for films. It seemed like every week a new film would be released and critics would fall in love with it, only for me to see it and be unimpressed. Michael Clayton, Juno, No Country for Old Men: all fell short. I was about to give up on the awards season altogether when along came Atonement. Finally an intelligent, well written, meaningful film that really fired on all cylinders. It works as a period drama, as a war film, as a mediation on art, and so much more. If you aren't in tune with the thematic undertones this film supplies, you might be left a little cold. But for me, the whole film works so perfectly because of the revelation at the ending, elevating the underlying themes to center stage and begging the question: can you really atone for your sins through art?

4. There Will Be BloodI need more time and more viewings to truly get a read on There Will Be Blood. I decided to forgo an official review of it because it wasn't a film that could be easily commented on. To be honest, I'm still not sure what it is I saw, but it affected me deeply, and that's important. Daniel Day-Lewis, it must be said, gives a performance every bit as good as you've heard, and the idea that anyone might beat him for the Oscar is a joke. He simply is Daniel Plainview in this film. Don't be fooled into thinking it's nothing more than an arthouse picture about oil drilling. It becomes something so much more as you watch it, and the final few scenes reveal what this movie was really about: the very nature of humanity and what being human entails. Family, religion, money, power; all play a part in the rise and fall of Plainview, and it is an amazing sight to behold. And that final scene: wow. It may seem over the top, but it works so well, really driving home what this bizarre masterpiece was about.

3. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert FordThe other big Western of the year was of a much more slow, deliberate breed. This isn't the kind of film you can rent on a Saturday night and passively enjoy with mom and dad. It demands a lot of you, and in return it really rewards you with its mediation on fame and envy. Casey Affleck gives another great performance, here as Robert Ford. One might think the film is anti-climatic since it reveals the climax in its title, but nothing could be further from the truth. No, it isn't filled with big shootouts or bank heists or anything else of that nature. What it is filled with is beautiful visuals, striking drama, and the best score of the year. I defy you not to be moved and wounded by the death of Jesse James, or by the downfall of Robert Ford after he has done the greatest deed in his life. It's simply filmmaking at its strongest.

2. ZodiacThe first film of 2007 I saw nearly made it the distance, falling just short of number 1. I saw 69 other films and yet it still stayed in my mind through the year: quite impressive. I went in expecting to get another David Fincher serial killer flick. What I got was anything but. Whereas Se7en was pure pulpy entertainment, this is a much more thoughtful project. It refuses to give you the easy releases that so many other films of this genre do: the search for the Zodiac killer ruins almost every character's life and he is never even caught. It becomes a film not about serial killers, but about obsession. Therein lies the genius: we see how these men become obsessed, while at the same time the film makes us become obsessed. Filled with so much detail, both factual and visual, we are almost overloaded. When the end arrives we still aren't sure who the Zodiac was; we just feel as obsessed and frustrated as the characters have become. A lot of people say they disliked Zodiac because it didn't have a resolution. That's just a testament to how successful Fincher was.

1. OnceReading my review of Once back in June, you'd probably be surprised to see it end up at number 1. Believe me, I was surprised as well. If you'd told me at the start of the year that I'd see films from the Coen Brothers, Tim Burton, David Fincher, Sydney Lumet, Quentin Tarantino, and many other masters of cinema, and that none of them would make a film as good as an independent Irish musical starring nonactors, I wouldn't have believed you. But something about this film really struck a chord (no pun intended), and I have not been able to get it out of my head all year long. No, it isn't the best looking film, nor the best acted, nor the most intricately written. But what it does have is something no other film had this year, at least not in abundance: it had one hell of a lot of heart. I have found myself listening to the soundtrack over and over, its magical web further ensnaring me (in fact I'm listening as I write this, and it makes me want to rewatch the film again for a fifth time). Once is proof that there is no formula for the best film of the year. Very few films are made with pure passion, but when they do come around, that passion really shines through. Such is the case with Once. I am simply in love with this movie.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Inevitably when someone writes reviews for a specific medium - be it film, music, books, art, or whatever - biases come into play. Even the most seasoned critic can't help but gravitate towards certain genres or themes while consistently holding others at arm's length. Take, for example, Roger Ebert's strong predilection towards films dealing with race issues and his inability to enjoy the vast majority of film's made by David Lynch or Tim Burton. Everyone has different biases, and as such certain critics need to be taken with a grain of salt in specific instances. I say all this because this review is heavily influenced by my own biases, more so than most reviews. Sometimes I'll watch a film I don't especially love, but I can see why it deserves recognition and recommend it in spite of my own tastes (No Country for Old Men jumps to mind). But sometimes my own biases prove too strong to overcome. If I were to name my two biggest biases, they would certainly be that Tim Burton is my favorite filmmaker and that musicals are the most tedious of film genres to sit through. So imagine how hard it is for me to try and explain my thoughts on Sweeney Todd, a Tim Burton musical.

I had little notion of just what the story of Sweeney Todd entailed before I learned of Burton's decision to make a film version. It turned out that Todd follows a barber (Johnny Depp) who was living the perfect life in 19th century London with his wife and baby daughter, until one day a jealous Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) had the barber falsely accused of a crime and sent away to prison for the rest of his life. The barber breaks out and returns to London, now calling himself Sweeney Todd and hellbent on revenge. He learns that his wife is gone and that his daughter is under the ward of the evil judge. With the help of local pie maker Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter) he sets about murdering the citizens of London with his shaving razors while Lovett bakes the victims into meat pies. Singin' in the Rain this certainly is not.

I've had some time to think about Sweeney Todd, and I think there are a few reasons why it proved to be one of the most enjoyable films I've seen all year. Chief among them, of course, is the usual Tim Burton flairs. From the atmospheric world he has crafted to the dark humor and the themes of an outcast fighting against a society that doesn't understand him, it all feels like something straight out of Burton's mind. If you are in tune with Burton's visual style, you will certainly be sucked in within minutes. But I suspect that even if Burton was doing everything I usually expect of him, he still wouldn't have been able to make me fully appreciate the fact that it is a musical. And not just an occasional break-out-into-song musical, but a near opera of wall to wall music. No, I have to give credit to Stephen Sondheim for crafting a truly aurally striking masterpiece that rises above the typical musical to be something unique.

Whether it is Mrs. Lovett singing about how she has the worst meat pies in all of London, or Todd serenading his razor blades, the songs here are anything but typical. And they really convey just what the characters are thinking, what makes them tick. Perhaps one of the best moments in the film is when Todd has the judge within his grasp, only to lose him at the last second. The song Todd sings truly shows that any last thread of sanity he may have had is now gone forever. As he roams the streets singing about how he will have vengeance not just on the judge, but one everybody, we see that he is not the hero we once might have hoped him to be, but instead a monster, no better than the man who made him what he is.

I'm no expert on these things, but from what I can tell, Johnny Depp is not the greatest of singers. He never does a bad job, but he doesn't hit some notes in the way that is probably expected of him. Helena Bonham Carter isn't much better. But their acting is very good. We've come to expect Depp to be amazing in everything, so the fact that he can convey the emotional distress and conflicted nature of the demon barber comes as no shock. Carter actually outshines him at times, however, and she might have actually been my favorite characters. We understand why Todd has lost his mind, but the fact that Mrs. Lovett so willingly goes along with him makes much less sense at first. Yet Carter makes you believe that this woman would bake human victims into pies simply for the affection of Todd. Alan Rickman as the judge is a wonderful, if too brief, performance. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of him is how his pessimistic world view so closely mirrors that of Todd. Todd says we all deserve to die, while Judge Turpin says we are all guilty of something. I would have loved to get some more insight into what made Turpin into the man he had become. And a special note must be made of Timothy Spall, who plays Beadle, Turpin's right hand man. He is so effectively slimy and unlikable that he steals every scene he is in. Spall is a character actor that deserves more recognition than he gets, consistently outshining his costars in a number of big films.

All the things I hate about musicals were either not included here, or were tweaked in such a way that they became fun and exciting. This isn't a feel good musical made to get you to sing along. These aren't characters you are meant to route for. These are monsters singing about monstrous things, and it becomes much more complex for that fact. I'm not sure what you are to make of my review, however. If you love Burton films but hate musicals, then this movie was made for you. For me, this film is truly exciting in that it gave me a bit more appreciation for a genre I heretofore had no love for at all. Maybe I'm just getting more open minded in my old age. Or maybe Burton really has made a masterpiece in Sweeney Todd.