89. "Big Fish"
I've never been ga-ga over Tim Burton and he's definitely a filmmaker I grew up watching... and I'm a sucker for my own nostalgia. However in his entire career I'd say he has three to four perfect or near perfect films. "Big Fish" for me is one of them and has the strange effect of working best while watching it. When I think about the film I never feel that it's as great as I feel when watching it. Ewan McGreggor provides one of his best performances and Burton recaptures much of the magic he had in his younger days. It's a beautiful, funny and original film that deserved more acclaim then it got.
88. "Monster House"
I remember seeing this after a horrible day at work. I walked down to the theater and on a whim bought a ticket to this. I'd seen a billion trailers and heard a billion great things about it, but still even it's producers being as high quality as Spielberg and Zemeckis, I still wasn't looking for much. Damn was I wrong. Some how, some way "Monster House" wasn't just some run of the mill kids flick, but instead an almost Sam Raimi-sque horror-comedy for kids. The motion capture was a bit herky-jerky at times, but the animation was wonderful and I love, love, LOVE this entire final act when it almost seems like we're not watching CGI, but full on puppets moving. Also the designs of the ever changing monster house are stupendous.
87. "Transformers"
Gotta give the devil his due. I'm not a Bay-hater oddly enough. Sure he's not much for enhanced character development and yes he tends to play into stereotypes a lot (although he's not alone in that), but the man knows spectacle and sometimes (like in the case of "Bad Boys", "The Rock" and "The Island") he can get it down well enough for it to not be (at best) a guilty pleasure action film like the others. With "Transformers' however I felt he made a good blend of himself mixed with what a general audience of youngsters and older people would want to see in a sci-fi action flick. The film blew up the careers of Shia LaBeouf and of course Megan Fox. Aside from them he managed to turn a toy franchise and mediocre cartoon series, into a full blown entertaining ride with bits of badassness tossed into the mix.
86. "Grindhouse"
Such a sad event. I wish that the more people had experienced this in theaters, the way it was meant to be. I wish people could have seen ALL the fake trailers and little ads connecting Rodriguez's "Planet Terror" and Tarantino's "Death Proof". But more did discover the two films on DVD and I guess got the idea. Happily enough the dynamic duo's homages to B thru D quality movies of the 70's and 80's have become a cult success and it's style has caught on a bit more than I thought it would so it's not all bad. Plus in April we'll get a new installment co-directed by Robert Rodriguez... "Machete".
85. "Pineapple Express"
Definitely a film that has gotten only stronger with time and it's because of how clever it really is. Seth Rogen and James Franco are a comedy match made in heaven, something Judd Apatow has known for years. However I've gotta say that Danny McBride and Craig Robinson make me laugh a bit more. In any case to have weed film morph into an action flick the way it did while still being funny was no easy task and yet it accomplishes it better than 95% of buddy action, comedies.
84. "The Weatherman"*
One reason why no matter how many half-assed adventure movies that don't work Nicolas Cage does I still like him, is because he'll still turn and do a movie like this (like Samuel L. Jackson and Christopher Walken). In 2005 actually had two terrific films, one was this and the other was "Lord of War", a black comedy about war lords. I chose this one because his performance and the overall him have stuck with me longer. Directed by Gore Verbinski ('The Ring' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean' 1-3), it's a very funny dramedy about a Chicago weatherman and the dysfunctions of his relationship with his ex-wife, her new husband, he successful father played by Michael Caine and his two kids; plus his attempts to get a nation wide weatherman job and get them all liking and respecting him again. What I've come to love about the film (aside from the photography, the subtle humor and Hans Zimmer's wonderfully original score) is just how true of a film it is. Everything in it is based in our world and can and would probably unfold as it did. Rather than make a wholly depressing movie about someones several attempts to achieve a far-fetched dream, it merely shows these things and life as humorous, somewhat sad, but not completely unrewarding.
83. "Watchmen"
The filmed, unfilmable graphic novel. I've come to realize that in certain groups (i.e. the ones that read the book) there is a divide on the film and it's based on how well you liked the book. If you loved the book, then you'll probably say you were disappointed in the film, although it kept dangerously close to the source material. If you're like me however then you might think a bit differently. The book is terrific and a classic for a reason. However it's not flawless and neither is the movie, but it's important. I'd rather have had Snyder be himself and create a film as a filmmaker and fan, than to have had just anybody come on, read the book and then shoot whatever they feel like works. There is stunning images and great, gritty moments throughout the film, but it's more a character drama then anything. Something fans have seemed to notice and have helped raise the films cult status. Jackie Earle Harley's Rorschach has become an even more beloved character than he was, Silk Spectre II (well... and the original Silk Spectre... I mean c'mon Carla Gugino is hot too) have been more oggeled over than before and the Comedian's satirical attitude to the world has reached a much boarder audience than ever before.
82. "Harry Potter" (series)
You can't discuss the past ten years in film or literature without bringing up Harry Potter. Those books have helped divine a generation in ways that shit like 'Twilight' will never do (God willing) and cinema wise, set the bar for children's fantasy adventure. Now this is a blanket pick spanning six films and if you know me then you know that I'm not crazy about all six. Personally the best ones to me are three and four. I love them because they feel like complete, original and engrossing packages. The first two haven't aged particularly well, but their magic and creative spark is definitely there. As for the last two... well... they're just not 'wow' inducing. Perhaps you'll get a cool scene once in a while, but I feel like the Yates films look terrific and dark and brooding, but add nothing emotionally, dramatically or thematically. They feel more like slightly altered readings of the books set to dark photographs. I'm not impressed in the slightest bit by the new trailer, but I do hope this two part finale saves the franchise from mediocrity.
81. "Catch Me If You Can"
Truly a great tale told in great ways. Steven Spielberg is a master of tone and mood; that's probably why I like him so much. "Catch Me If You Can" works so well because it's a real life cat and mouse story that draws you in more and more with each scene. This one of the films that brought Leonardo DiCaprio back to the foreground in films and it was great work. Equally fun to watch was Tom Hanks as the FBI agent on his trail. Going back you'll also see one of Christopher Walken's best roles and two fantastic extended cameos by Jennifer Garner and Amy Adams. Also if you haven't read the book, you really need to.
80. "Jarhead"
I love Sam Mendes films. The man is a true artist to the core and "Jarhead" is one of his unsung masterworks. Jake Gyllenhaal and Peter Saarsgard provide amazing performances that were award worthy, but overlooked. "Jarhead", like most non-flag waving war films was met with tons of controversy; mainly because of the unfavorable war in the middle east we were in, but also because of it's dark sided few of the soldiers who get wrapped too tight and made too paranoid. However a lot of times we must look at the ticking-time bombs we turn human beings into in the military. We should question certain methods and figure out what is the best way to handle these men and women. The film nor the book offer any answers, but simply tell the story and with great detail and images. Also I can't forget how true and enduring Jamie Foxx is in the film.
* film pictured at the top of post
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