My Top 10 Films of 2007

*Note: The following is part of the continuing "10 FOR 10" series in celebration of ten years of "Jeremy The Critic," in which my choices for the top 10 films of each year from 2006-2015 are revealed. 2006 can be viewed here. This installment will be focusing on 2007.  

                                                                            2007

How great a year was this? It was so great that, for change, I actually did compile a belated Top 10 List for it in 2008. But we'll just have to throw that out the window because a lot can change. The biggest leap of faith in tackling this project was trusting that enough time has passed that I'd "just know" what my top 10 films of each year are. That understanding is seriously tested with '07, the strongest movie year of the entire decade and the cinematic fuel that kept me going to the point we've arrived at now.

Surprisingly, when it came down to the much anticipated Zodiac vs. Southland Tales vs. Into The Wild vs. There Will Be Blood showdown, I knew. You try out a couple of films in that top spot and it just feels wrong. It's a testament to the staying power of David Fincher's Zodiac that this is the closest this obsessive procedural has come to getting that spot and when Paul Thomas Anderson's masterpiece, There Will Be Blood is coming in at number four, you know it's a formidable field like no other. He'll have another shot later, as will Fincher.

Given the current events, Southland Tales seems more prescient than ever, and remains one of my favorites regardless of contrary popular opinion, which seems to have shifted toward my side of late. It's so unusual that honoring it with a best of the year honor feels almost like an insult as it defies labels of any sort. It's simply something else entirely. After an initially lukewarm reaction, I've come around on No Country, which in hindsight stands as one of the strongest Best Picture winners of the modern era, despite its controversially wide open ending. Michael Clayton is such a well-oiled machine, the idea of seeing it in the number one spot is far from absurd, as it boasts what's easily the best performance of Clooney's career.

To the likely delight of anyone who's seen it, The King of Kong becomes not only the first documentary to place, but my first unreviewed pick, forcing me to come up with a quote that somehow, at least partially, does it justice. I'm Not There, The Assassination of Jesse James and Atonement all held strong, whereas inclusions from the last list like the poorly aging Juno, Ratatouille and Bridge to Terabithia got knocked off, with only Terabithia earning runner-up status alongside Superbad, The Lookout, Alpha Dog, Once, American Gangster, The Mist and Gone Baby Gone.

This leaves us with Sean Penn's Into The Wild, an experience that only seems to grow richer with each passing year and rewatch. Techically undervalued and emotionally transcendent (who can forget that scene on the street with William Hurt or any featuring Hal Holbrook?), it's still the film from that year I get the most out of and best connect with. But the real winners were moviegoers and critics spoiled by all these quality titles in a loaded 2007.  


10. Atonement

"I’d call it a 'twist ending' but that would be inaccurate since the beauty of it is in how it follows the narrative course set from the beginning. We just never bothered to notice. It causes you to go back to reevaluate every scene and word spoken in the film and view it in a completely different context. At the beginning I nearly giggled at how much the script expected me to care about these young lovers and the seemingly contrived situation they found themselves in. By the end, it's no laughing matter." - 3/30/08


9. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

"(Ford's) obsession with James also causes him great embarrassment and humiliation at the expense of his brother and his peers who view him as nothing more than a pathetic, whiny little boy who would do anything for his hero. They're right, and Ford's resentment over the situation builds slowly , leading him down a moral path he didn't think himself ever capable of traveling." - 2/14/08


8. The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

"When creepy, mullet-haired Donkey Kong champion Billy Mitchell appears to be physically stalking earnest challenger and potential successor to his throne, Steve Wiebe, at the arcade, we realize that within the framework of a non-fiction documentary, director Seth Gordon has managed to create a good vs. evil dynamic surpassing any superhero movie. And it all actually happened. The phrase, 'You can't make this stuff up' has never seemed more applicable."


7. I'm Not There

"...while most films have only one method of entry, this has seven, with a new way to get in each time. Any way you approach it, you end up knowing no more about Bob Dylan the person than you did before, and that’s okay. He remains exactly as he should be: An enigma. And in telling us nothing about him, Haynes somehow reveals so much more than we could have hoped." - 5/9/08


6. No Country For Old Men

"The film, set in 1980, finds a way to remain very much of that time period while still telling a story that’s just as relevant now. The Vietnam wounds are still fresh in these characters’ minds and there’s a new kind of evil emerging. It’s an evil Sheriff Bell and even his father’s generation before him couldn’t have possibly prepared for. It’s encapsulated in Anton Chigurh and Bell wants no part of it. With time passing him by and retirement on the horizon, he’s just going through the motions and would likely prefer not to come face-to-face with this monster. If he does, he’s through." - 5/13/08


5. Michael Clayton

"There isn't a single twist or turn in the film that's revelatory and the plot is one we've seen before. It moves methodically toward its predestined conclusion. And yet, it succeeds by executing its premise with laser-like precision and uncommon intelligence. Gilroy knows what he has to do and does it expertly, not getting bogged down in silly sub-plots or unrealistic situations. It also features the best performance of George Clooney's career, as well as two more supporting performances of nearly equal value." - 2/20/08


4. There Will Be Blood

"Some have criticized Day-Lewis' performance as being hammy and over-the-top and it sort of is, but what's so remarkable is how he turns those qualities into attributes that deepen the story's psychology. On a first viewing it may not be entirely noticeable, but on repeated ones it comes clearly into focus. And surprisingly, that only makes Plainview's downfall scarier and that much more desperate. Even while hating him with a passion, we still care deeply about his fate." - 4/11/08


3. Southland Tales

" It helps that Kelly is an equal opportunity offender, hilariously taking swipes at both sides. It works as a hysterical spoof of everything from YouTube to cable news channels to celebrity culture. Maybe it’s just my weird sense of humor, but I laughed harder during this than any mainstream comedy in years. Labeling this a masterpiece is false advertising if only because it’s just such a beautifully flawed mess. Perfect in its imperfection."- 3/24/08


2. Zodiac

"Of the many cryptic notes sent from the Zodiac, one left the most lasting impression. It reads: 'I am waiting for a good movie about me.' He gets a great one. But you can't fight the uneasy feeling that maybe he's still out there and knows it. If that's not enough to send chills down anyone's spine, I don't know what is. Unfortunately, by making such a brilliant film about one of our country's greatest unsolved cases, Fincher may have also given this deranged killer exactly what he wished for all along." - 7/30/07


1. Into The Wild

"You’re not sure whether to be angry at or feel sorry for this admittedly selfish protagonist and Penn wisely doesn’t force us to make such a determination. He’s not asking us to like McCandliss or condone his decision to abandon his life and family, but only to understand what he was doing made sense to him. Foolish as it may seem to us and those he encountered in his travels, he left this Earth on his terms. The degree of empathy you feel for him or his family may vary, but your heart will break for the people whose lives he touched along the way." - 3/7/08

Top 10 Films of 2007
1. Into The Wild (dir. Sean Penn)
2. Zodiac (dir. David Fincher)
3. Southland Tales (dir. Richard Kelly)
4. There Will Be Blood (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
5. Michael Clayton (dir. Tony Gilroy) 
6. No Country For Old Men (dir. Joel and Ethan Coen)
7. I'm Not There (dir., Todd Haynes)
8.  The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (dir. Seth Gordon)
9.  The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (dir., Andrew Dominik)
10. Atonement (dir. Joe Wright)

My Top 10 Films of the Decade (Part One: 10-6)

So....too late? Here's what happened: Around December of last year when all the decade-end lists were popping up all over the place the plan was to begin re-watching and evaluating films for one of my own. Unfortunately, due to time constraints and other issues I realized it just wasn't happening anytime soon. Even though I had my top five selected and written on and had seen most of what I wanted to I was forced to shelve the project...for MONTHS. I kept it's revival on the down low because I didn't want to promise it again and not deliver. In a crazy way, the wait worked out for the best since the movies I saw could settle in my mind for a while and I could reflect back being far removed or influenced by the tidal wave of lists that hit at the end of last year. Despite telling myself I'd watch everything, that's impossible, so you just do the best you can, looking at everything with fresh eyes as year-end lists become irrelevant and you discover which films pass the ultimate test. Before I started this I thought the decade was weak, but now that I'm done I realize it was actually much weaker than I originally thought. Not to sound overly negative, but so many films had lackluster viewings that I actually had serious problems coming up with ten deserving entries.

There's a big drop-off in quality after my top 5 and while it's extreme to say I was "filling" the remaining slots with the least flawed films, that is kind of the case. Discovering that a film can carry all the necessary technical qualifications to be considered one of the decade's best, yet still manage to fall short, tells me that it not only comes down to how well all those elements merge, but an indistinguishable "It" factor that's very subjective and personal. It's also a harsh reminder why my DVD collection is so small and how few movies hold up, but don't take that as a knock the films that made it. Just the opposite: These exclusive ten were left standing and somehow survived the test of time and repeated viewings.

The results were shocking, especially at the top where the film I've long considered the decade's best (Almost Famous) was dethroned, by not just one, but TWO deserving titles. The list is all about them since they were the only two pictures to really effect me in a huge way, substantially improving upon the high regard I already held them in. Everything else either held steady or dropped. There was also a re-match of sorts between two of my favorite films from early in the decade, this time with a different outcome. Five years out of the decade compose the ten slots with one year making the most impressive showing (congrats 'o7) and two directors making it twice, one of whom has two films in the top 5. That's fair since I'm rewarding the best films, regardless of who directed them, and every other filmmaker had their shot at beating them. I also unofficially excluded films from 2009 on the basis that they just didn't log enough time in and it's too soon for me to feel comfortable counting them in the mix.

Many of these films had a really rough time when they were released, especially when you enter the top five. Some succeeded critically, but failed commercially while others found an audience but never received the critical recognition or awards notice they deserved. In the worst case scenario they achieved neither, going completely overlooked. Ironically, my top film went underrated even by me, as I failed to name it the best film of its particular year. It definitely wasn't my intention to shine a spotlight on overlooked, under-appreciated films but I'd be lying if I told you I'm not thrilled that happened. I was also surprised how mostly character-driven stories ruled the day and that more than few titles on the list featured a writer as the central character or was about writing in some way. It's nice to find out that a topic often unfairly frowned upon as too mundane and introspective provided so many exciting cinematic moments this decade (at least for me).

I tried my best to go light on plot details talking more about exactly WHY I feel these were the deserving selections. Of course, these are the results of a single round and if you asked me in a week, month or year the results might be completely different. This is how it stands now. Hopefully, it was worth the wait.


10. Adaptation (2002, dir. Spike Jonze)

No better or more hilariously is the curse of creativity and frustration behind art explored than in Spike Jonze's Adaptation. Under normal circumstances, the very idea of a screenwriter writing themselves as the main character of their movie, as well as the movie WITHIN that movie, would be considered self-indulgent, if not flat-out insane. But these aren't normal circumstances and Charlie Kaufman isn't your normal screenwriter. In actuality this is one of the least self-indulgent films anyone could make when you consider Kaufman (Nicolas Cage) paints himself as a self-loathing, socially phobic basket case who leans on his talentless, overconfident twin brother (Cage again) for creative support. Never has an autobiographical screenplay been written where its author is so unrelentingly hard on himself. Just witness that brutal rejection scene with the waitress.

Had Kaufman (real or movie version) actually written a direct, faithful adaptation of Susan Orlean's (Meryl Streep) The Orchid Thief the result would have likely been a giant bore. What we get instead is the screenwriter exposing himself in the most humiliatingly honest way possible and in the process revealing how a lot of writers feel when they try to write ANYTHING. In doing it he constructs the movie everyone secretly wishes to see and maybe even wants to write if they could only bring themselves to. It also contains my favorite single scene performance of the decade as the great Brian Cox (playing a fictional version of real-life screenwriting guru Robert McKee) goes over the edge at a story seminar, rallying against the evils of voice-over narration (in a movie deliberately packed with it) and taking hilarious exception to Kaufman's suggestion that "nothing happens" in life. I could probably watch that rant 7,000 times and never tire of it.

Cage, in this dual role, delivers arguably his career best performance, and Streep is comic gold as Orlean, the author who realizes she's never been passionate about anything in her life until meeting her odd subject, backwoods redneck John Laroche (an Oscar winning Chris Cooper). All the real-life players deserve a lot of credit for being such sports by allowing themselves to be lampooned like this, no matter how much of it is complete fabrication. The story flies off the rails in the best way possible in the third act, which puzzled many viewers altogether unprepared for Jonze and Kaufman to actually follow their amazing premise right through to its insane end. Anything less would be unfaithful to the creative spirit the film does such a masterful job celebrating.



9. The Squid and the Whale (2005, dir. Noah Baumbach)

The Squid and the Whale holds the dubious honor of not only being the least viewed, least known film on here, but also the one where I can actually try to guess what the main character in it would think of this list. My ten through six is probably just snobby enough to satisfy pompous blowhard Bernard Berkman (Jeff Daniels), though he'd likely rip me a new one for having the nerve to exclude Mulholland Drive. That I can even begin to speculate on the reaction of a fictional character is a testament to just how sharply he's drawn by writer/director Noah Baumbach in his autobiographical film about two young boys (Jesse Eisenberg and Owen Klein--both brilliant) painfully caught in the middle of their parent's bitter divorce in 1980's Brooklyn. The New Yorker's David Denby asked an interesting question in his 2005 review of the film:

Is this what we're like at our most fatuous? Ranking every person and book so we won't be associated with anything suspected of being second-rate?

Is it wrong that I find the arrogant, deplorable behavior of washed-up author Bernard Berkman hilarious, despite the fact it's ripping his marriage apart and psychologically crippling his children? I'm in the clear because we watch and laugh out of relief that we're not him and his actions make us too uncomfortable to do anything else. Despite playing such a terminally unlikable prick, Daniels (robbed of an Oscar) makes Bernard impossible to hate, yet forbids us from ever pitying him. His wife, Joan (underplayed perfectly by Laura Linney) isn't the saintly innocent victim and you'd see why the kids are forced to take sides. The movie is one uncomfortable, cringe-worthy situation after another where we're not sure whether to laugh or cry at the family's suffering and neither are they. Some may find the movie too artsy or indie but, as Denby's above quote implies, this movie is actually a spoof of those stuffy films and the people who enjoy watching them for the wrong reasons. Ironically, it's intended to mock the very audience likely to find the most enjoyment in it.

At a brief, but emotionally impactful 85 minutes, the film gets done what it needs to and gets out without wasting a minute or overstaying its welcome, unlike so many clumsily edited efforts this decade. Eisenberg proves here he's no Michael Cera clone, Anna Paquin captivates in her small role and even Billy Baldwin (yes, THAT Billy Baldwin), manages to give an entertaining supporting performance. If that's not proof of the movie's greatness I don't know what is. You're never completely sure what Baumbach's up to until the incredible final sequence (featuring the best use of a Lou Reed song ever) where one of the characters has his eureka moment and catches up to us finally, seeing their previously infallible parent for what he actually is and reassuring us that somehow the possibility exists that these kids could actually survive this and turn out okay.



8. Punch-Drunk Love (2002, dir. P.T. Anderson)

When the Adam Sandler art-house romantic comedy/drama Punch-Drunk Love was released in 2002 someone whose opinion I didn't hold in very high regard told me it was the only movie they ever walked out of. After hearing that, I knew I had to see it. And when I eventually did, my opinion was curiously indifferent, as the reaction to tends to be after anyone's first viewing this film, which is as maladjusted and uniquely bizarre as the protagonist it centers on. Why couldn't anyone see then what seems so plainly obvious now? How does this hold up so well and just seem to get better each time with each new viewing? You'd think the simple story doesn't seem like much and wouldn't be enough to sustain even a meager running time of barely over an hour and a half, but that only makes the accomplishment all the more staggering.

Anderson doesn't tell us but instead shows everything and make us FEEL and EXPERIENCE it through his eyes, an unheard of approach for a romantic comedy, if this could even be considered that. With the aid of a harmonium musical score and trippy, psychedelic visuals, we share in an uncomfortable but ultimately uplifting journey of a closed-off man's world opening for the first time after meeting an interested stranger, played superbly by Emma Watson. It's surreal watching Adam Sandler as Barry Egan, a socially repressed novelty plunger salesman hen-pecked by his seven sisters, because the fits of passive-aggressive rage he explodes in aren't much different from the behavior he's demonstrated in all his frat boy comedies. But somehow in writer/director PTA's hands these outbursts become sadly terrifying. It's all about context. Sandler definitely has his haters but even they'd have to admit this is his finest hour and Anderson somehow pulled something out of him we've never seen and probably won't again.

I'd be quicker to use this than There Will Be Blood as an example of PTA's full capabilities as a filmmaker just simply because here he took what amounts to peanuts from a story standpoint to craft an epic mood piece you can return to again and again no matter what mood you happen to be in. There are few scenes more inspiring in all of movies than when Barry gains the confidence to confront and defeat the "Mattress Man" (an explosive Philip Seymour Hoffman) and Sandler makes us believe every word he's saying because his character does. What more can be said for a film that uses Shelly Duvall's song, "He Needs Me" from the equally underrated Popeye for its finale? Even though I still say Punch-Drunk Love is a goofy title, I've yet come up with a viable alternative, making me think that maybe even that strangely fits. Regardless, the film manages to tap into everyone's secret belief that no matter how messed up we think ourselves to be, there's that outside chance someone's out there who's just as messed up, or if not, at least crazy enough to take a huge chance. Possibly a total fantasy, but for 95 minutes this movie had me convinced that it wasn't.



7. There Will Be Blood (2007, dir. P.T. Anderson)

There is that tendency to resist piling more praise on a film that doesn't need it and is universally considered the best film of the decade anyway, regardless of its placement here. Even if that film happens to be There Will Be Blood. So while it's hard to get too excited about its inclusion, everyone's right. As much as PTA challenged the conventions of the romantic comedy with Punch-Drunk Love, he does the same here with the historical epic, but on a much larger scale. Given the material he was working with (Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel Oil!) it stands to reason the film should have come off as a slow, plodding history lesson; a homework assignment you don't feel motivated to complete. And in the hands of a lesser filmmaker it may have been.

Somehow though, this movie is actually FUN. Every minute is exciting, and that includes the first twenty of which there's no dialogue. Lost amidst all the hype of how technically perfect it is, from the production and costume design to Robert Elswit's cinematography to the sound to Jonny Greenwood's haunting score, is just how well it works as pure entertainment and the brave, crazy choices made so it would. Daniel Day-Lewis' performance as obsessed oil man Daniel Plainview just grows more berserk and brilliant each time you watch, so entertaining at times it's almost as comical as it is dramatic.

Those who complain about the movie's unusual time-tripping structure and the fact there's hardly a female character of any relevance in the picture fail to realize the entire film exists through the lens of Plainview's narrow, demented worldview. Paul Dano's supporting turn as preacher Eli Sunday is underrated, with many forgetting he's supposed to be playing the weaker, over-matched opponent. Other strange choices like making that character a twin for seemingly no reason at all other than to screw with us (I think) and closing with what feels like a lost ending to a Clockwork Orange, make less sense. But I don't care, because that's the madness of this movie. I'll go a step further with the Kubrick comparisons and say he doesn't imitate, but practically CHANNELS that legendary filmmaker from the grave, becoming the only film this decade to earn such a comparison not so much for its style, but actual level of accomplishment.



6. Zodiac (2007, dir. David Fincher)

It isn't obvious just how perfect David Fincher's Zodiac is after only a single viewing. What it does is rare and takes some time to settle. I'm a little bias since I'm so fascinated by the subject, but each time I see this I'm captivated for over two and a half hours, holding my breath and hanging on every word of procedural police jargon for an investigation I already know the outcome to. In this era of big payoffs, Fincher denies us one and focuses instead on all the fascinating details. It's a good thing that in this case the little details add up to a true crime masterpiece that's scarier than anything attempting to pass as horror these days. Just that stabbing of the couple in Lake Berryessa ranks among the most suspenseful scenes for its genre and more points gained for transforming one of the 60's goofiest songs (Donovan's "Hurdy Gurdy Man") into a prophetic calling card for death that perfectly bookends Zodiac's reign of terror.

The peculiar casting of Jake Gyllenhaal as San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist turned Zodiac hunter Robert Graysmith seems like a weakness on first viewing but subsequent ones reveal his performance (as he slowly flips the switch into obsessive mode) may be the film's most undervalued aspect. Through him we see the killer, realizing this isn't about the investigation at all, but how everyone's addiction to solving it even eclipses the compulsion of the Zodiac himself, mirroring our own obsession as audience members for closure. Chloe Sevigny is great as the only wife I've seen in a movie given a completely justified reason to nag the hell out of her husband, who's behavior toward her becomes more unconscionable as the case drags on.

Better still is Mark Ruffalo as the detective who just can't escape the case, Robert Downey, Jr. as sleazy, boozy reporter Paul Avery, and John Carroll Lynch, who as prime suspect Arthur Leigh Allen embodies our worst nightmare of who the Zodiac could be in a single, chilling interrogation scene. Having little interest in just going for a nostalgia trip, Fincher recreates what it must have been like to actually live and work in the 1970's with the lighting and set/costume design choices, making a movie that can stack up to All The President's Men. A huge commercial flop when released, those still complaining Fincher got his only director nomination for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button can now brag that time is proving them right.

Note: This is the first of a three part series, with the top 5 on its way, followed by a third part where I reveal the runners-up/honorable mentions.

The Ten Best Films of 2007

I’m not among the many who believe 2007 was an “INCREDIBLE YEAR” for movies. Still, it was pretty damn good and a definite step up from the past couple of years (especially the dreadful 2005), I found the big problem though was that it filled with films that were brilliant technically but failed to make that extra connection. And those that did make that extra connection tended to fall just short technically. I actually think there’s a HUGE GAP between the first couple of films on my list and the rest. It’s always a blurry line between “BEST” and “FAVORITE” but I’ve always had a theory that once you get to the top of any list like this that line starts to fade.

When compiling what I felt were the best films of the year I look for movies that excite me as a fan AND a critic, which is more difficult than you might imagine. When I could only find one that was able to do both equally my top choice became crystal clear. I should want to go running down the streets screaming to the world how much I love my top film and be able re-watch it multiple times, discovering something new with each viewing. It should be able to stand the test of time, with me being unable to look back and ask, “What the hell was I thinking?” when I made the choice. There’s no foolproof guard against that other than going with your gut, yet it must work because somehow I’ve yet to make a selection in any past year that I’ve regretted later.

It’s funny the tricks that time plays on your perception of certain films. I was certain that movies from earlier in the year like Grindhouse and The Lookout would make the list. They didn’t. Going in I was 100 percent sure that The Mist, which I loved and actually re-watched in preparation to do this, had a spot locked up. It didn’t. I’m still not sure what happened there but it can't speak too well for the horror genre when the best executed horror movie in years can’t even crack my top 10. Looking back, of the two Westerns released this year, I can’t believe I actually thought at one time 3:10 To Yuma was a superior to The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford. Jesse James ended up staying with me long after the final credits rolled. Yuma did not. And what was I thinking giving 4 stars to Shoot Em’ Up? Talk about over-praising a film.

I guess it’s to the Academy’s credit that four out of the five Best Picture nominees made my list, but unfortunately the one that didn’t ended up winning. Oh well. If anyone had told me a year ago that a period costume drama, 2 (!) family films and vehicles starring George Clooney and Justin Timberlake would make my list I’d tell them they were crazy. As much as I tried to avoid it happening, a film I didn’t review made it, but given the sheer glut of movies released within a calendar year that possibility was almost inevitable. I also didn’t want to declare any ties, but that happened too. When I asked myself whether I could sleep the next night without both of them making it and the answer was “no” the decision became a no-brainer.

Only two out of the ten films ended up going the distance from very early in the year to hold on and make cut. Two of our greatest living directors, David Fincher and Paul Thomas Anderson, both contributed very strong efforts but neither was able grab the top spot. It was a strange year…at least for me. As I waited until I saw everything to do this it was my secret hope that my list wouldn’t look exactly like everyone else’s, but if it did I’d be fine with it so long as the right choices were made. For the most part it does look like everyone else’s, with one very glaring exception. The list counts down from the bottom up and following it is an "honorable mention" category. Enjoy.

10. (TIE) Bridge To Terabithia (Director- Gabor Csupo)
I saw this one very early in the year and regrettably didn’t block out the time in advance to review it. That I didn’t should tell you how bias I am against most “family” films and that I put it on here should let you know how special I think it is. The most mismarketed film of 2007 was pitched to audiences as a Chronicles of Narnia rip-off with fancy CGI and wondrous creatures. That's such a small part of this. In truth, it’s a touching story of friendship and loss that echoes My Girl and Little Manhattan with a touch of Pan’s Labyrinth, except maybe better than all those. Had they advertised it as it was, however, it’s possible no one would have gone to see it, which would have been beyond a shame.

In conveying the importance of tolerance, creativity, hard work, loyalty and imagination without ever once piling on the clichés or preaching, it features two of the best children’s performances I’ve ever seen from Josh Hutcherson and AnnaSophia Robb. The smaller adult roles are treated with just as much care as Robert Patrick is for once in his career given an unlikable character to play with real depth and it’s the rare film that actually seems to know the gift it’s been given with the presence of Zooey Deschanel and doesn’t squander it.

Those reasons above would be enough for it to make this list even if everything else in the picture were garbage, but it’s far from it. It could have coasted along, smiling and skipping its way to the finish line ignoring Kathleen Paterson’s 1977 Newberry Award winning source material and still have been a very good film. But credit Disney and Walden Media for realizing that by staying true to the absolutely horrifying third act there was a chance to do something GREATER. At first I was angry at the dark twist the story took, but it wore off quickly when I saw the intelligence and dignity with which Csupo and screenwriter David Paterson (the author’s son, whose childhood experience influenced the novel) handled it. Assuming they’re of the appropriate age (and not being a parent I wouldn’t dare speculate on what that is) I’m willing to bet children will leave this picture feeling more inspired than traumatized. I’d even go so far as to say it could invoke a positive change in their lives.

I’ve yet to meet anyone of any age or gender who saw it and wasn’t fighting back the tears as it reached its conclusion. Only one other movie moved me more this year and that one’s near the top of this list. A great film is a great film regardless of whether it’s considered a “kid’s movie.” If you ask me, adults probably have more to learn from it since kids can often be smarter than we give them credit for. There’s so much more to talk about but I can’t at the risk of giving too much away. Everyone underestimated the difficulty of what this movie had to pull off. It’s the best family film in decades and and recalls an era when seeing the Disney logo on a project actually meant something.

10. (TIE) Ratatouille (Director-Brad Bird)
Is there any movie this year (other than Juno) that had a worse premise on paper? A rat travels to Paris to become a gourmet chef. The idea of rats in the kitchen isn’t exactly appetizing nor is it likely to have small kids begging their parents to see a film tackling the subject. I saw this when it was first released in theaters and an interesting thing happened. The adults were laughing and transfixed by what was happening on screen while most of the children were restless and bored. Despite the film being rated “G” a lot of the humor is for adults and I think some of it may have flown over young audience’s heads. But like the other Disney film that shares its spot on this list, assuming they’re the right age, they’ll love it and find a lot to extract from its message of tolerance and cooperation without being hit over the head with it.

It’s a huge step up to the highest level for director Brad Bird (who previously helmed The Incredibles and the criminally underrated The Iron Giant) and a landmark release for Pixar. You’ve never seen animation look this beautiful and crisp and if you visited Paris yourself I’m guessing it probably wouldn’t look half as good as it does here. It boasts peerless voice work from Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm and Peter O’ Toole and is also one of the few animated films to deservedly earn a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination. There’s a speech toward the end of the film (delivered by O’Toole’s evil food critic) that’s among the best dialogue written for any film this year, animated or otherwise. It was so deep and multi-faceted it’s almost impossible to believe an animated character is delivering it.

At the beginning of the film we’re told that “Anyone Can Cook” and Bird takes that relatively simple notion and expands it to mean so much more than that and in the process give us a family classic that can be revisited time and time again. There were a lot of technical achievements in film this year and this could be grouped among them but where it breaks from the pack is in taking that extra step to reach out and do more. One of the year’s most magical filmgoing experiences.

9. The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford (Director-Andrew Dominick)

“Yes, the title's too long. And yes, so is the film. And it isn't even the best Western released in 2007.”

That ridiculous statement was written by none other than myself when I reviewed The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford back in February. There was a lot of shifting and feeling out as to what deserves to make this list and what doesn’t, especially at the bottom. It was amazing how films I hadn’t previously given the time of day to held up really well and those I loved months aged poorly on second viewing. A “so what” feeling even accompanied many of them I re-watched. I still found them somewhat great, but so what? They were just great and entertaining. There was nothing else there and I couldn’t justify including them.

There’s no “so what” with this. After watching Jesse James again I now more fully understand my initial, less than stellar impression of the film and why I reacted the way I did. It isn’t the kind of movie that provides instant gratification and on a first viewing all you’re doing is concentrating on how long and slow it is. It isn’t “knock your socks off” action/adventure Western like 3:10 To Yuma. But when Yuma ends, it’s over. This film never ends as certain scenes constantly play over again in your mind . It just sits there ingrained in your consciousness just waiting for the opportunity to be viewed again. And when it is a different result emerges. It isn’t too long or too slow. You realize there’s simply no other way for a story like this to be told effectively. It engulfs you in its dream-like atmosphere.

The haunting narration and cinematographer Roger Deakins’ unforgettable visual rendering of the Old West (which should have won the Oscar) make this less a film than a work of art, a novel captured on film. It’s a no-brainer that this is the most beautifully shot film of the year so let me go a step further and say it’s probably the best shot Western ever made. And with apologies to screenwriting guru Robert McKee, isn’t it about time we finally admit that voice-over narration (employed by no less than three other films on this list) can, if executed well, enhance a film tremendously?

Maybe I approached it all wrong in assuming that the film was actually about James and the wussy man-child Ford (brought to wimpy, pathetic life perfectly in an Oscar nominated performance by Casey Affleck) who worships him. It’s less about the legend and more about us, our celebrity obsessed culture. That should make the casting of Brad Pitt as James a stunt but the actor transcends that notion by delivering what’s hands down the best performance of his career. Rarely has an actor manipulated his own image to such successful effect as Pitt does here.

You’re on pins and needles and in a constant state of discomfort wondering what the unpredictable, wildly inconsistent Jesse James will do next. He doesn’t even know what he’ll do next. And when he’s gone we’re forced to reevaluate everything we initially thought of him and the film itself. In the final half hour when we expect the dust to be settling and the film to start crawling, Dominick makes it come alive in the most dazzling way, reversing our expectations and proving just how important it is to finish strong. 2007 was truly the year of the throwback film but classifying it as just that denies how timely (and timeless) it really is. It may not be for everyone, but try naming 10 better films released in the past year.

8. Juno (Director- Jason Reitman)
Rather than talk about the actual film (since we all know the last thing it needs is more exposure) I’ll use this space to go on a rant instead. There was a time not too long ago when a movie like Juno could have actually meant something. Expectations would have been lowered and it would have been worth rooting for. Unfortunately, Fox Searchlight and the media took it upon themselves to shove it so far down our throats that we were choking. The victim of an epidemic that’s reached alarming proportions in recent years: The over-aggressive Oscar campaign. Normally that wouldn’t bother me but it does here because I actually thought the movie was excellent.

If I had one wish though it would be that screenwriter Diablo Cody held back a little in the first 10 pages of the script with all the hipster dialogue (the only minor flaw in an otherwise superb script) so the haters wouldn’t have all that ammunition. Oh, by the way, did you hear that she used to be a stripper? Argue all you want about the quality of her script, but you can’t tell me Jason Reitman and his cast didn’t handle it as well as humanly possible and mine everything they could from it.

I think everyone knew going in Ellen Page would be perfect (and she was), but what about Jason Bateman? Am I crazy or would we have had a far worse movie if another actor were playing that part? Juno is neither as good or as bad as everyone has said it is and at its worst it’s still better than many of the films released in 2007 (what that says about the year is open for interpretation). And whatever you think of it I’m sure we can all universally agree that between the hype, the backlash to the hype and the backlash to the backlash to the hype, the whole thing was a nightmare that hopefully will never be repeated again.

And here’s something you may not have heard about Juno and why I think it works. Reitman and Cody took the most thankless topic imaginable (teen pregnancy) and did something unique and memorable with it. No other film on this list had more problematic material to work with and accomplished so much with it. We’re all about to find out just how talented Reitman, Cody and Page really are because their careers may have been permanently damaged by all the nonsense surrounding this film. It looks like they (and us) have a huge challenge ahead in recovering from all this chronic overexposure.

7. Atonement (Director- Joe Wright)
Hell has officially frozen over. A period piece starring Keira Knightley is on my list of the year’s best. There wasn’t a movie in existence this year I had LESS interest in seeing than this one, but thank God I did. Another film that plays with perceptions. You think it’s going somewhere but then takes a detour into entirely unexpected territory giving the film an added emotional kick. That problem I mentioned about certain films being brilliant technically but missing that extra special something? Not an issue here. Besides being a technical marvel (witness the now infamous 5-minute long Dunkirk tracking shot) it contains a twist ending that would make M. Night Shyamalan turn green with envy.

Nearly all of its emotional power is contained in the final minutes with a sucker punch to the gut that reveals the story was far more powerful than we originally suspected. I prepared myself for a sappy romance, but instead was handed a deep meditation on the power of storytelling that’s impact only increases in repeated viewings. The performances from James McAvoy, Knightley and Oscar-nominated Saoirse Ronan are all flawless, but I though the best one came from the criminally overlooked Romola Garai, who carries the most difficult part of the picture.

I never fully realized until viewing Atonement that, as much as I made fun of them in the past, how important it is to have big sweeping epics during Awards season (like 1996's The English Patient), and how much I’ve missed them. They used to be nominated all the time but it seems lately the Academy has been on this kick of trying to become edgy and cool by going with offbeat, smaller films. The result of which has been the unfortunate near-extinction of nominated movies like this, which make the little movies actually mean more. Without them smaller, supposedly “underdog” films (like you know what) can pick up too much steam and become overrated. That’s why this, despite earning a Best Picture nod, was actually UNDERRATED, if that makes sense at all.

6. Michael Clayton (Director-Tony Gilroy)
Another screw-up on my part. I first found Bourne trilogy screenwriter Tony Gilroy’s directorial debut barely recommendable and spent most of that review mocking star George Clooney and making fun of legal thrillers. While that was fun at the time I happened to see it again (and again after that) and realized something. It isn’t a legal thriller at all. It’s a gripping character study…and it’s perfect. Each time I watch it it just gets better. The movie Michael Clayton can best be described as the girl you meet at the party who doesn’t impress you all that much at first, but then the more time you spend with her, the more you start to discover things about her you really like. I changed my rating for this movie twice and looked like a major tool as a result of it. Except, those changes were justified. I was wrong.

Gilroy’s script is completely airtight, an unheard of achievement in the legal drama genre. There wasn’t a single event that occurred in this script was unbelievable or even stretched credibility in the slightest, which is miraculous given the plot. It starts with the most memorable dialogue-free scene of the year and then returns much later in the film. How we get back to it is a wild trip and the scene means that much more that second time.

Like Jesse James, it's a throwback, but this time to the intelligent, character-driven thrillers of the '70's like The Parallax View and The Conversation and at its center is work from Clooney that qualifies as both a great movie star and great acting performance. If Daniel Day-Lewis wasn’t in the race he would have won and deserved it. The supporting turns from Tom Wilkinson and Oscar winner Tilda Swinton are just as good if not better. The film also features one of the most emotionless, workman-like murders I’ve seen depicted on screen in a long time as well as a climax that will have you jumping out of your seat, pulse racing and cheering.

5. Zodiac (Director- David Fincher)
A David Fincher movie coming in at number 5 almost qualifies as an off year for him. Think about that for second. Even though Zodiac isn’t his best career effort he still made the top 5 with ease. That’s scary. I’d rank this way above Seven and (especially) Panic Room but below The Game and Fight Club. It could almost be considered the anti-Juno of 2007 because I’m convinced had it been released in December and not the Oscar dead zone of March it would have earned nominations for Best Picture, Director, Cinematography, Adapted Screenplay and Supporting Actor (Robert Downey Jr.) Why it wasn’t we’ll never know but its release date does nothing to dilute the power of Fincher and screenwriter James Vanderbilt’s gripping cinematic adaptation of Robert Graysmith’s non-fiction books Zodiac and Zodiac Unmasked.

Part police procedural and part character study it manages to keep us at a terrifying arms length from the killer while at the same time bringing us closer to him than we’ve ever been before for nearly 3 gripping hours. Downey is typically amazing as the troubled San Francisco Chronicle reporter who befriends the paper's curious and later obsessively compulsive cartoonist Graysmith (played with reluctant precision by Jake Gyllenhaal).

It’s All The President’s Men for a new generation as Fincher and his cinematographer Harris Savides brilliantly realize late 70’s San Francisco at the height of the Zodiac killing spree. Years pass but we feel his legacy grow along with Graysmith’s obsession. Character actor John Caroll Lynch as Arthur Leigh Allen (the man who may or may not be the killer) in just one heart stopping interrogation scene, brings to frightening life our worst fears of what he may be. Credit him and Fincher for exceeding those wildest expectations. One of the most underrated and overlooked films of 2007.

4. There Will Be Blood (Director-Paul Thomas Anderson)
If I were going by which film “technically” was the most impressive of the year this would win hands down. The mitigating factors necessary for this to be considered the absolute best may not be present but everything else is. Anderson is a filmmaker known for taking huge risks but he may have taken his biggest risk yet by reversing all of our expectations in making a period epic and playing it mostly straight. Looking at his other previous work it would appear he’d be way over his head and out of his comfort zone here but you’d never know it watching the film.

Almost Kubrikian in its execution, Anderson uses Upton Sinclair’s novel, Oil! as his basis to tell the story of prospector Daniel Plainview whose greed during the turn-of-the-century oil boom destroys everything and everyone around him. Yes, Daniel Day-Lewis is every bit as incredible as you heard he was and of all the Best Picture nominees this year, this is the one that should have won, not No Country For Old Men. You could mention it alongside such classics as Lawrence of Arabia and not be too far off the mark. It really is that good. Of the films on this list, this wins as most likely to enter the American Film Institute's Top 100.

Between Robert Elswit’s sweeping cinematography, Johnny Greenwood’s loud, pulsating score and a final 20 minutes that’s just about the darkest and most depressing thing you could ever imagine seeing on screen, this is a new classic. The American dream is built up, then dragged straight to hell kicking and screaming. Despite what the media tells you, it’s not a film about just milkshakes and catchphrases. It will never go down as my favorite P.T. Anderson picture (see Boogie Nights for that), but it’s probably the one I have the most respect for.

3. I’m Not There (Director-Todd Haynes)
Bob Dylan finally has a movie as bizarre, inaccessible and polarizing as he is. And for fans of his this is a dream come true. Haynes uses six different actors playing seven different versions of the legend at various stages of his career and life. Each one brings something different and special with none of them ruining the enigmatic aura that’s always surrounded him. A big fuss has been made about Cate Blanchett’s Oscar nominated turn as the egotistical jerk Bob Dylan from the Blonde on Blonde era we’re all so familiar with. There’s no doubt it’s impressive and dead-on in its accuracy, but I was more interested in the others. Like Christian Bale’s bizarre and compelling take on Dylan’s religious conversion, Richard Gere’s underrated interpretation of his reclusive later years, and most unsettling of all, Heath Ledger’s troubled movie star with the rocky marriage.

You could ask a dozen different people and probably get a dozen different answers as to what it all means or what it says about Dylan, or if it really even says anything at all. There are so many different things going on at once it’s impossible not to be transfixed (even if you hate it) and while everyone will have certain sections of the film and performances they favor over others, Haynes never stays with one long enough that you’d get antsy. With certain sections filmed in good old black and white it’s also one of the most interestingly shot movies of the year and the only one other than my number one pick that I feel showed me something I've never seen before.

2. Into The Wild (Director- Sean Penn)
When most films reach their conclusion I’m left thinking about the direction, the performances, or maybe the script. Not here. When Into The Wild ended all I was thinking about was THE MEANING OF LIFE. That’s how deep it cuts. In telling the story of Christopher McCandliss, who abandoned his family and worldly possessions to head off into the Alaskan wilderness, many accused Sean Penn of glorifying the journey. Well…what was he supposed to do? Penn told this story exactly how it should have been and he doesn’t, despite popular opinion, ignore the fact that this kid’s actions were misguided and selfish. We’re not supposed to necessarily like him, just come to some kind of understanding why he felt compelled to take the actions he did. Emile Hirsch, quite simply, gives the performance of his life while Eddie Vedder’s music plays just as an important role in telling the story as any line of dialogue in the script.

I’m glad I’m not a voting member of the Academy because it would have been impossible for me to put objectivity aside and cast a vote for Javier Bardem as Best Supporting Actor. With not much more than 10 minutes of screen time acting legend Hal Holbrook gives one of the most heartbreaking supporting turns in years as the aging retiree forever changed by McCandliss' journey. Everyone knows how this one ends, but that doesn’t make it go down any easier. Quite possibly Sean Penn's most important and unselfish contribution to cinema, either as an actor or director.

I should point out that the reason this movie is not in the number one position has nothing to do with any shortcomings on its part. It’s flawless and actually better than many of the films I’ve picked as my top choice in previous years. I even tried this out in the top spot but it just didn't work. And believe me I really, really tried. It just didn’t FEEL RIGHT. I knew what film was the best of 2007...

1. Southland Tales (Director- Richard Kelly)
Maybe the most ambitious and self-indulgent brilliant mess of a movie I've ever seen. With the pressure to follow-up his 2001 cult classic Donnie Darko, Richard Kelly was given (you could argue unjustifiably) the budget and free rein to do whatever he wanted for his sophomore effort. And THIS was his response. If you think about it, that’s pretty funny. When I first heard about this film a couple of years ago and found out who was behind it and the actors attached to star, I couldn’t wait. That enthusiasm started to diminish when the release date started to constantly be pushed back and word leaked of disastrous early screenings (like the infamous one at Cannes). If you had told me a year ago that this film would be sitting at the top of this mountain I would have jumped through the roof, but I started having serious doubts, not only that it could be as good as I hoped, but that it could be any good at all. I also know whenever a filmmaker tackles a project with this ambitious the potential for disaster is enormous. But it ended up not only being as great as I wished it could be, but a million times better than that.

In my review of this a couple of months ago I compared it to Dr. Strangelove and Brazil and that wasn’t hyperbole. I’d put it right up there with those, which is appropriate considering both weren’t received well at all by most critics and audiences upon their release. They later came to be appreciated as cult classics and after that took their place as being genuinely respected as important, groundbreaking films. All I can do is just wait and cross my fingers but if it doesn’t pan out that way it’s okay. The public’s perception can do nothing to diminish my love for this film. There are a lot of fantastic movies on this list but all of them (with the exception of maybe number 3) are great in ways that could be duplicated in the future. This can’t. Even those who think the film failed (and I know there are many) would admit it did so more interestingly than many others succeeded in 2007 and could only have been made by a true visionary.

Every time I watch it (four times and counting by the way) I notice details I never saw before and the second it ends I have this burning desire to just start over and see it again. I think that’s because the story twists in so many different directions that you could come at it from any angle you choose. If you wanted to just watch it as a slapstick comedy you could. It works equally as well as an action/adventure film. You can shut your brain off and choose to not even bother following the plot (which does eventually reveal itself as a brilliant construction that holds together perfectly) or you can attempt to put the pieces together as you go along. Unfortunately, most chose to view it the one way they probably shouldn’t: Literally. As if it were trying to make some deep, important thematic point. IT’S A SATIRE. It knew how to have fun, which is something too many of the year’s films completely forgot how to do.

In creating an alternate 2008 Richard Kelly came closer to depicting the world we live in now than any of the serious dramas released in 2007. It actually comes way closer than people are ever likely to admit and is only cinematic effort this year to incorporate politics and the Iraq War into its story successfully. It can also boasts an awesome score from Moby, mind-boggling visuals and one of the most memorable musical numbers ever committed to celluloid. In short, this is one for the time capsule.

It would be tough for me to claim that it’s filled with our generation’s greatest actors, but I can argue they’re among our most entertaining celebrities and all deliver terrific performances, pushed and challenged like they’ve never been before in roles no one imagined they could play. Kelly was smart enough to know a film this insane warranted casting choices that were equally crazy. Just get a load of this:

-Dwayne Johnson as an amnesiac movie star with ties to the Republican party.

-Mandy Moore as his bitchy, slutty wife

-Sarah Michelle Gellar as a porn star and aspiring reality talk show host

-Justin Timberlake as a wounded Iraq war veteran

-Seann William Scott as kidnapped twins

-Jon Lovitz as a psychotic cop

-Midgets (in S.W.A.T uniforms!)

Special mention should be made of Johnson, Gellar and Scott who deliver performances way beyond what anyone thought they were capable of. Especially Johnson, who I’ll never refer to as “The Rock” again after witnessing what he pulls off here. Most filmmakers would consider themselves lucky if they accidentally made one cult classic in their career. Kelly wrote and directed two…intentionally! As a human drama Darko wins, but as a work of science fiction it’s got nothing on this. I feel with Southland Tales Kelly made the kind of film I always secretly wanted to see, whether I was consciously aware of it or not. And I suspect it's infuriated so many because it challenges the perceptions of what we feel movies are capable of and what they can do. It's a misunderstood masterpiece.

Honorable Mention (in no particular order):
The Lookout (Scott Frank)
The Mist (Frank Darabont)
Superbad (Greg Motttola)
Grindhouse (Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez)
No Country For Old Men (Joel and Ethan Coen)
Gone Baby Gone (Ben Affleck)
American Gangster (Ridley Scott)
3:10 To Yuma (James Mangold)
Margot At The Wedding (Noah Baumbach)
Rescue Dawn (Werner Herzog)
Live Free Or Die Hard (Len Wiseman)
Alpha Dog (Nick Cassavettes)

2007 Year-End Awards

I have to say doing this really brought back memories (some traumatic) of the year in film for 2007. I can't say it was a great year but everyone has assurred me that's only because all the great movies have been released in the past two months and I haven't seen them yet. You'll get reviews of those in 2008. Before anyone says that I have 2006 releases on here let me point out that these awards include movies I either saw or REVIEWED in 2007.

You Liked it, I Didn't: 300, Hairspray, Waitress, Black Snake Moan

I Liked it, You Didn't: Spider-Man 3, Georgia Rule, Mr. Brooks

The Whole Country Liked it, I Didn't: Knocked Up

Most Overrated Comedy: Knocked Up

Most Underrated Comedy: Hot Rod

Most Underrated Drama: Mr. Brooks

Most Overrated Performance By An Actress in a Comedy: Katherine Heigl (Knocked Up)

Most Underrated Performance By An Actress in a Comedy: Leslie Mann (Knocked Up)


Worst Lead Performance By An Actress in a Comedy: Malin Akerman (The Heartbreak Kid)

Worst Performance By An Actor in a Dramatic Role: Matthew McConaughey (We Are Marshall)

Worst Lead Performance By An Actor in a Comedy: Dan Fogler (Balls of Fury)

Worst Supporting Performance By an Actor in a Comedy: John Travolta (Hairspray)

Best Summer Action Popcorn Movie: Live Free or Die Hard

Separated at Birth Award: Déjà vu, Premonition and Next

"Sorry, it wasn't THAT good" Award: Hot Fuzz

Most Polarizing Movie of The Year (TIE): Smokin' Aces and Shoot 'Em Up

Most Disappointing Movie of the Year: Saw IV

Funniest Comedy of the Year: Superbad

Unintentional Comedy of the Year: Fracture

The Robin Williams Award For Worst Comedy of the Year: Balls of Fury (barely edging out Williams' own License To Wed)

Most Overrated Clive Owen Movie: Children of Men

Most Underrated Clive Owen Movie: Shoot 'Em Up


Most Needlessly Convoluted Screenplay of the Year: Premonition

"I'm Hot But I Can't Act" Award (Tie): Jessica Alba (Fantastic Four: Rise of The Silver Surfer) and Jessica Biel (Next)

"I'm Hot, But I CAN act" Award: Sarah Roemer (Disturbia)

"I Need a New Agent" Award (Actor): Nicolas Cage (Ghost Rider and Next)

"I Need a New Agent" Award (Actress): Mandy Moore (License To Wed)

Best Cure for Insomnia: Angelina Jolie (A Might Heart and The Good Shepherd)

The Dame Judi Dench/Chronicles of Riddick Quick Payday Award: Julianne Moore (Next)

Should Be Nominated For Best Actor But Won't: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (The Lookout)

Should be Nominated For Best Supporting Actor But Won't: Jeff Daniels (The Lookout)

Should Be Nominated For Best Picture But Won't: Zodiac


Shouldn't Be nominated For Best Actress But Might: Keri Russell (Waitress)

Best "Torture Porn" of the Year: Hostel Part 2

Worst "Torture Porn" of the Year: I Know Who Killed Me

Most Welcome Return To Form: Kevin Costner in Mr. Brooks

Best Remake: Halloween

Worst Remake (TIE): The Heartbreak Kid and The Hitcher

The Whole Really is Greater Than The Sum of Its Parts Award: Grindhouse

Best Twist Ending: Smokin' Aces

Worst Twist Ending: Saw IV

Most Laughable Twist Ending: Perfect Stranger

Biggest Cheat of an Ending: The Prestige

Best Cameo: Alan Thicke (Yes, THAT Alan Thicke) in Alpha Dog


Best Performance as a Convicted Pedophile in a Motion Picture: Jackie Earl Haley (Little Children)

Best Performance by a Convicted Pedophile in a Motion Picture: Jeffrey Jones (Who's Your Caddy?)

Best Wardrobe Decision: Mary Elizabeth Winstead's cheerleader outfit in Death Proof

Worst Wardrobe Decision: Sharon Stone's fat suit in Alpha Dog

"There's No Way This Movie Can Be As Good as Its Trailer " Award: Across The Universe

Most Hilariously Titled Movie: In The Land of Women

Gutsiest Filmmaking: Craig Brewer for Black Snake Moan

Coolest Villain: Maggie Q (Live Free or Die Hard)

Lamest Villain: Wes Bentley (Ghost Rider)

Creepiest Villain: Frank Whaley (Vacancy)

William Hurt Award For Best Performance in a Single Scene: John Carroll Lynch (Zodiac)

Best Body Part: Megan Fox's tummy (and everything else) in Transformers


Worst Body Part: Lindsay Lohan's robotic hand in I Know Who Killed Me

Best Performance By a Director: Kevin Smith in Live Free or Die Hard

Worst Performance By a Director (TIE): Quentin Tarantino (Planet Terror and Death Proof), Eli Roth (Death Proof)

Guiltiest Pleasure of The Year: Shoot 'Em Up

Future Cult Trash Classic: Alpha Dog

Worst WWE Film: The Marine

Least Worst (I Refuse to say "Best") WWE Film: The Condemned

"Hollywood Fluff" Award: Ocean's Thirteen

"Wow, He Can Really Act" Award: Justin Timberlake (Black Snake Moan and Alpha Dog)

Best Score: Clint Mansell (The Fountain)

Movie I Desperately Wanted To See and Review But Didn't: Southland Tales

Sign of the Apocalypse Award: The box office success of films like I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry and Alvin and the Chipmunks.

Sign There May Still Be Hope: The box office failure of "timely" political dramas like Lions For Lambs, The Kingdom, In The Valley of Elah, and Rendition.

Movie I Most Enjoyed Reviewing: Disturbia

Movie I Least Enjoyed Reviewing: The Good Shepherd

Best Movie I Didn't See or Review (TIE): Bug and Breach

Movie I'm Most Looking Forward to in 2008 (Tie): The Dark Knight and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Zodiac

Director: David Fincher
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Edwards, Robert Downey Jr., Brian Cox, Chloe Sevigny, John Carroll Lynch, Elias Koteas, Running Time: 158 min.
Rating: R

**** (out of ****)

I've been waiting ten years for this day to come. The day when I no longer have to constantly justify and defend David Fincher's place among America's greatest living directors. That place, in case you haven't guessed, is at the top and now it is rightfully secure. In 1997 Fincher directed a film called The Game that completely changed how I viewed motion pictures and challenged my perceptions of what they can do. Then in 1999 he did it again with Fight Club. Now, with Zodiac he's made what stands thus far as the best film of 2007. Hands down. It may not break the creative boundaries those other two films did, but it is a technical masterwork deserving of a Best Picture nomination come January.

Fincher, a director who has previously existed only on the fringe, can now sit at the table with the big boys. He's earned it. This is certainly his most mature, mainstream endeavor to date and the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences have run out of excuses this time. He deserves a nomination if not a statue for this. An expert at directing films with high concepts, this time he takes a simple, minimally complex police procedural and turns it into a gripping, terrifying film that doubles as a deep character study. And we're not just talking about one character either, but many. Major ones and minor ones. There wasn't a single person in the film I didn't care about and not a minute of this film's admittedly lengthy two and a half hour running time that I felt should have been cut. I sat on the edge of my seat the entire time, glued to the screen by what I watching. I like to think I can go into any movie without any preconceived notions, but when you enter David Fincher's universe there comes a certain set of expectations. This film exceeds them.

The film, based on Robert Graysmith's two non-fiction books (Zodiac and Zodiac Unmasked) is epic in scope and covers a thirty-year period starting in the 1960's when a serial killer known as "The Zodiac" terrorized the San Francisco Bay Area. He left a trail of victims and taunted the police with numeric codes (known as ciphers) and letters to the San Francisco Chronicle stating his intentions. He was never caught and to this day the case remains unsolved. The film begins with the shooting of Darlene Ferrin and Mike Mageau at lover's lane in Vallejo on July 4, 1969. Mike survives. Darlene doesn't. One of the many fascinating details about this killer and the case is that he gets so caught up in killing the women he often forgets to finish off the guys.

Police Detectives Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and Bill Armstrong (Anthony Edwards) and are almost out of necessity forced to work with the staff of the San Francisco Chronicle, who have been receiving cryptic letters from the fame seeking Zodiac that he wants printed on the front page. The top beat crime reporter for the paper at the time is the booze and drug addicted loose cannon Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr.), but soon the case attracts the attention of the Chronicle's political cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal). The first half half of the film focuses primarily on the initial investigation into the case during the late 60's and early 70's and how it consumes and nearly destroys the lives of the police and journalists investigating it.

What's most interesting is that Zodiac is far from a criminal genius (an old married couple even solves one of his ciphers), but the police cannot catch him mainly because of poor communication, stupid decision-making, politics and red tape. As a result, more and more people die and his rampage continues. By the time the film's over we realize that if just one eyewitness had been questioned all of this could have stopped. This is a movie we shouldn't even be watching. Sensing this weakness in the system, Zodiac wisely spreads his murders across different counties correctly assuming each police precinct has their agenda and can't possibly work together to solve any crime.

The saddest part of this is that if these murders were to occur today he probably would have been caught in a week, yet because of limitations in communication and technology the terror rages on. The Zodiac killings, more than anything else, are a reflection of the time. Fincher understands this and milks it for everything he can. The police departments become so tangled up in their incompetence that they begin to panic and suspect Zodiac may even be taking credit for murders he didn't commit sending the whole case into a tailspin. He craves celebrity and notoriety even going so far as to contact well-known television broadcaster Melvin Belli (the great Brian Cox) to get his point across. In a funny touch Belli seems genuinely excited and intrigued to be talking to a serial killer and Cox brings the same eccentric panache to this role as he did to his loony psychiatrist in last year's Running With Scissors.

After this, it becomes clear to the police the only predictable pattern of Zodiac is that he has no predictable pattern. Toschi and Armstrong are two smart, dedicated detectives who do everything right but fail because the system around them doesn't work. In one memorable scene Armstrong tries to send information to another police precincts but discovers they don't have a fax machine. The look on his face says it all. Against all odds, and largely due to that dedication, they finally zero in on a main suspect. He's a convicted child molester named Arthur Leigh Allen (John Carroll Lynch) and all the signs point to him being the guy. Unfortunately, while the circumstantial evidence may add up, the physical evidence doesn't. They also must deal with the self-destructive Avery, whose desire to put his name on the journalistic map jeopardizes their case and his life. All these characters are in a free fall and watching fascinated from the sidelines is cartoonist Robert Graysmith.

It isn't until 1974, four years after Zodiac's last attack that Graysmith launches a personal investigation of his own and falls into the trap of obsession that befell the detectives and his own colleague Avery. Except, unlike the police investigation years earlier Graysmith's is actually effective and what he uncovers puts himself, his wife Melanie (Chloe Sevigny) and his children in danger and even raises the ire of Zodiac himself. One the best moments of the film comes when he states that he won't stop this until he's standing in the same room with the killer, looks him straight in the eye and knows it's him. Whether that line has a payoff I cannot reveal, but how ironic that a mild-mannered cartoonist could unlock the mysteries of one of the greatest unsolved mass murders in our country's history, but the police couldn't. A tricky situation develops here because audiences know going in that Zodiac was never caught and the case was never closed, so the film is practically forced into an ambiguous ending. James Vanderbilt's brilliant screenplay gives us that ambiguous ending, but at the same time leaves us completely satisfied. The case may not have an ending, but this movie does have a clear and emotionally powerful one that will haunt you for a long time.

Movies that span over decades or hinge on recreating certain time periods are among the most difficult to film and once again Fincher employs his trusted cinematographer Harris Savides, whom he's worked with previously on Seven and The Game (which was also set in San Francisco). According to Savides the goal this time out, unlike those films, was to shoot it in a way that wouldn't sensationalize anything. The result is that the movie almost has a washed-out documentary style to it, very much reflecting the time period it's set in. The newsroom scenes are very clearly inspired and influenced by All The President's Men. So many directors go too far when a movie is set in the 60's and 70's bombarding us with visual gimmickry and littering the soundtrack with every top 40 hit from the decade. Fincher knows that just one song placed at just the right time during a film can make a huge impact. In The Game it was Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit." In Fight Club it was The Pixies' "Where is my Mind?" This time it's Donovan's "Hurdy Gurdy Man," and when the film's over, you'll be hearing it in your nightmares. I know I am.

That's the thing with Fincher films. You're just there. No games. He doesn't need to rely on any tricks or crutches. All the details are right but they're never distracting or call attention to themselves because the story and the characters are always front and center. Ironically, while it may seem like Fincher is doing his least, in doing it he's actually achieving the most. Watch the scene with Graysmith and Melanie on the their first date at the restaurant and pay attention to the subtle clues Fincher drops that this date is really their future. The roles they play at that table are the ones they'll play when they're married. It'll be a mess, but one they'll have to share in together. Under Fincher's skillful eye, Gyllenhaal and Sevigny put on an actor's clinic in a scene that would just be a throwaway in another film.

Then there are the killings themselves. The first two murders in the film (especially the second) are among the most horrifying I've ever seen in a major motion picture. Not because they're gory or bloody, but because Fincher makes the moments leading up to them pure emotional torture. You feel like screaming and crying for the victims because you know what's coming, even if they don't. He plays with that idea for a while and let's us think about it. Hard. This is the first time I can remember wanting the killings to get going because the waiting was scarier than anything we could possibly be shown. Then when they came I wanted to take that wish back.

A lot of important characters come and go through the course of this nearly three hour film, so unexpectedly, there are a lot of memorable performances, one of which I think is Oscar worthy. You may be surprised which one that is. Mark Ruffalo continues his streak of strong leading man work as nearly entire first half of the film belongs to him and Anthony Edwards, and they actually have a somewhat thankless task if you think about it. They must deliver copious amounts of police exposition, while at the same time give affecting portrayals of two honest, loyal men being dragged to the depths of Hell by this case. They're the moral conscience of this story. Their scenes could have played like a re-run of CSI but they don't beacuse they keep us engaged. It's also great to see Edwards, long underrated, find the right big screen role in his post-E.R. career.

Robert Downey Jr. again excels at the role he's always been best at: playing damaged goods. If anything, I wish he had a little more screen time, but it's a miracle Fincher even fit all these people in and gave them an adequate showcase at just under three hours. Gyllenhaal's Graysmith is not your typical Fincher protagonist. The first half of the film he could almost be described as a self-reflective wallflower just standing in the corner and observing. It isn't until the third act of the film where he shows us what he's got. A lot of people have complained that Gylenhaal really doesn't appear to age throughout the film not even looking old enough to have a wife and three kids. I agree to an extent, but I don't think it has a huge bearing on the effectiveness of the story or his performance. He's solid here.

In 2005 the Academy nominated William Hurt for Best Supporting Actor for A History of Violence even though he appeared in basically one scene and for no longer than 10 minutes. It was well deserved. Here's hoping History repeats itself and John Carroll Lynch is rewarded with one for his role as Arthur Leigh Allen, the man who may or may not be Zodiac. He makes that same kind of impact here, with just as little screen time. Lynch, a character actor, probably best known for playing Marge Gunderson's loyal husband in Fargo, really does have just one big scene. That scene, however, is the most important one in the movie.

We may never know who Zodiac is, but when he's questioned, Lynch's Allen somehow in just a few minutes and with only a couple of lines of dialogue meets our most frightening expectations of who the man behind that mask could be. This is clearly an actor who did his homework on Allen as little details about the real man subtly manifest itself in his performance, including everything from speech inflection to physical mannerisms. Even if he's not Zodiac, he's the creepiest, scariest person you could imagine encountering and you'd see why he'd be considered a prime suspect for any crime, not just this one.

This film has been criticized as being "overlong." "Overlong" means scenes have been added to pad the film's running time. This movie is not overlong. I could have watched ten hours more. I'm not going to lie though. It certainly would play better for someone like myself who's incredibly interested in the subject matter. I could easily relate to Graysmith's obsession with the case, as the details surrounding it are endlessly fascinating on many different levels. It's not too often I urge people not to purchase the DVD of what may end up being the best film of the year but that's exactly what I'm doing here. DO NOT BUY THIS DVD. Apparently Fincher was forced by the studio to commit to the scheduled DVD release date even though he was preparing a special edition director's cut he told them couldn't possibly be ready on time.

So what we have now is a bare bones single disc release of the theatrical version with a trailer in front of it for his director's cut to be released in 2008. This director's cut will include commentaries, deleted scenes, and an in-depth look at the actual Zodiac killings with witness accounts. I'll have to lock myself in the house, take the phone off the hook and plant myself in front of the tv for days when that comes out. Fincher was put in a tough position here and apparently was none too happy about it as he's stated the last thing he wants to be accused of is taking advantage of consumers by double dipping on a DVD release. I don't blame him. Everyone should just rent this version to tie them over for now, then wait until early next year to buy the director's cut. Here's hoping it comes out earlier to coincide with a strong Oscar campaign for the film.

Of the many cryptic notes sent from the Zodiac, one leaves the most lasting impression. It reads: "I am waiting for a good movie about me." He gets a great one. But you can't fight the uneasy feeling that maybe he's still out there and knows it. If that's not enough to send chills down anyone's spine, I don't know what is. Unfortunately, by making such a brilliant film about one of our country's greatest unsolved cases, Fincher may have also given this deranged killer exactly what he wished for all along.