I reserve the right to retroactively add “Adam” and “The Invention of Lying” to this list; living in a small town, I have to wait for DVD to see them. So these are my top 10 movies of 2009 as of this moment.
I doubt my No. 1 will change, though. A couple days ago, I found out someone didn’t like the movie, and I got a bit angry and defensive. You know it’s not too bad of a movie year when there’s a movie you don’t merely love, but you feel a sense ownership of it (I did buy it on DVD, but that’s not what I mean).
Anyway, here goes:
1. “(500) Days of Summer” (now on DVD) — Why is it that you can find the perfect girl, she seems to like you, and yet the relationship doesn’t work out? And then she goes and marries some random guy? These are the questions posed by “(500) Days,” and while it doesn’t have the answers, it does present the questions beautifully. And what a performance by … Joseph Gordon-Levitt (you thought I was going to say Zooey Deschanel, but that’s too obvious). Great scene: The “You Make My Dreams Come True” musical montage. (Full review.)
2. “I Love You, Man” (now on DVD) — In school, most of us could make friends by accident, such was the structure of public education. But what about after school? You might be lucky enough to hit it off with a co-worker, but what if you’re an adult looking to make new friends? There’s even less of a clear structure for that than there is for dating. This film knows it and finds the humor at every step of the way as Paul Rudd befriends Jason Segel. Great scene: Rudd overhears his wife telling her large group of pals about his lack of friends. He mumbles, “I need to make some f***ing friends.”
3. “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” (now on DVD) — Does a movie have to work on its own merits, separate from its source material or previous entries? I used to say yes. Now, I’ve changed my mind. Someone coming in cold might be bored with “HBP,” but if you read and loved the book, you’ll love soaking up the craftsmanship of this adaptation; for example, Jim Broadbent’s turn as Professor Slughorn. Great scene: Ron mutters Hermione’s name in his sleep. (Full review.)
4. “Adventureland” (now on DVD) — Although he gives it a good effort, Michael Cera can’t be in every movie. Enter Jesse Eisenberg as the slightly awkward kid who takes a summer job at an amusement park in the ’80s. We really feel his heartache as he tries to connect with Kristen Stewart (a flat-expressioned actress, but she’s perfect for this role because of that). Great scene: A rainstorm and a kiss. This movie earns the cliché.
5. “Avatar” (now in theaters) — With the 3-D format and the richness of the computer-generated world, I could live on Pandora. That’s why it doesn’t bother me that the story is James Cameron’s usual “be careful where progress takes us” parable (actually, it has a nice twist because the aliens are the good guys and we are the bad guys). But I come back to the technical achievement: Ten years ago in “The Phantom Menace,” Jar Jar and Boss Nass and Watto were oh so close to seeming real. Now, the characters in “Avatar” are completely convincing (I didn’t find out until after I saw the movie that they used motion capture and digital sets rather than complex makeup and soundstages). Great scene: When he learns how to fly the giant dinosaur-like thing. (Full review.)
6. “Fanboys” (now on DVD) — It gets “Star Wars” fandom right; “Star Wars” is important to these fans — they happily dress as stormtroopers and Darth Vader for a party — yet it doesn’t dominate their lives as per the stereotype of “Star Trek” fans (which is all too often proven accurate). Basically, it boils down to a nice road trip/friendship flick. Great scene: Seth Rogen’s almost-unrecognizable guest spot as a Trekkie. (Full review.)
7. “Star Trek” (now on DVD) — How do you make the first good “Star Trek” movie in a while? You bring in director J.J. Abrams to spice up the usually staid franchise with a wilder tone. You’d think recasting the iconic characters wouldn’t work, and then suddenly you’re accepting some kid named Chris Pine in the role of Kirk. Great scene: Uhura’s first impression of Kirk is finding him in bed with her hot (and, by the way, green) roommate. (Full review.)
8. “District 9” (now on DVD) — Through the years, sci-fi taught us to love cute aliens (like E.T.) and hate ugly aliens (like from the “Alien” pictures). “D9” allows us to get to know the physically unattractive prawns and yet feel for them (the trick is that they conveniently have all the same needs and emotions as humans). Great scene: The main character, laying in a hospital bed, gets his first clue that he’s turning into an alien. (Full review.)
9. “Drag Me to Hell” (now on DVD) — It’s a horror movie that embraces all the gaudiest conventions of the genre in ways ranging from funny to scary. And, I admit it, I would watch Alison Lohman in just about anything. Great scene: The dinner table sequence, where signs of the curse keep getting in the way as Lohman is making a first impression on her boyfriend’s parents. (Full review.)
10. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” (now on DVD) — I like a lot of the X-Men as broad concepts; the shame of it is that I don’t really know them as people after three movies (because the filmmakers cram so many mutants in there). “Wolverine,” the franchise’s fourth and best entry, is a breath of fresh air because it steps back and tells the origin tale of Logan (perfectly played by Hugh Jackman). Great scene: A clumsy Wolverine breaks a sink in half and sheepishly presents the halves to his farmstead hosts. (Full review.)
Agree? Disagree? Share your top 10 movies of 2009 below.
Comments
John, some good picks like always…but, and that’s a big but, I hate your No. 4 and 10 picks — Adventureland and X-Men Origins: Wolverine — for different reasons. I didn’t dislike Adventureland and don’t necessarily mind it making the list, but above Star Trek and Avatar at 4? No problem with the rest of the list although I haven’t seen No. 6, 8 and 9, but I heard they were worth a see.
Here’s my list, as unsexy as it may be.
1. Star Trek
2. 500 Days of Summer
3. Where the Wild Things Are
4. I love You Man
5. Watchmen
6. Avatar
7. He’s Just Not That Into You
8. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
9. A Perfect Getaway
10. The Hangover
And if I would have seen Zombieland, District 9, The Informant, Drag Me to Hell, Big Fan, Sugar and others, my list would probably change.# Posted By Seth Stringer | 1/6/10 4:05 PM
Seth–
It’s a fairly sexy list. Some surprises on there.
I thought “I Love You, Man” would be your No. 1, as it was the only ’09 film among your best of the decade.
“Star Trek” No. 1? Too many silly plot holes to earn the top spot for me. But indeed, it was an entertaining flick.
It is kind of odd that I put “Adventureland” over “Avatar.” I am obsessed with “Avatar” at the moment, so maybe I overcorrected and underrated it. “Adventureland” does have some great music and a great look. I may have overrated it a bit because it came out during that spring stretch when there was otherwise nothing worth seeing in theaters, so I was grateful to see a decent flick.
“Wolverine” will get bumped when I see more ’09 movies. It was far from perfect, but I don’t understand the hatred of that movie. To me, it was clearly superior to the overblown second and third “X-Men” movies, at least. I find Hugh Jackman quite entertaining in that role; plus, Sabretooth was good, too. They got the origin story right, in my opinion. Now they should do a Rogue origin story.
I haven’t seen “Where the Wild Things Are” (I’m scared that I’d be bored, but on the other hand I might love it), “Watchmen” (I heard it was long and boring), “He’s Just Not That Into You” (I’d be willing to try it), “The Perfect Getaway” (I’d be willing to try it) and “The Hangover” (I saw the preview, so I feel like I saw the movie, and it rates as mediocre).
Obviously, I’m in agreement on the five films that made both of our lists.
John# Posted By John Hansen | 1/6/10 4:53 PM
Ok, I guess I have to have a list at some point. I still need to see
Avatar, Up in the Air, Precious, Crazy Heart and a few others so
the list may change. These are not in any order(500) Days of Summer
Away We Go
The Hangover
Adventureland
Up
Big Fan
Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Where the Wild Things Are
I Love You, Man# Posted By Matt | 1/18/10 12:36 AM
Matt—
Yeah, eventually you have to admit that the calendar says 2010 and get your 2009 lists out there.
Is “Away We Go” worth seeing? I was going to skip that because it was on EW’s worst of the year list. Never heard of “Big Fan.” Would I like it?
John# Posted By John Hansen | 1/18/10 2:17 AM
I was surprised Away We Go made EW’s worst list. For the most
part I usually like their movie reviews although we never seem
to agree on TV and especially music which they’re really week on.
I think you’d like it. Most movies about relationships feature way
too happy people or miserable people. The characters in this one
are how most people I know are. Big Fan is really good and very
sad. Its from the same writer as The Wresler. It stars Patton Oswalt
and Kevin Corrigan as obsessed NY Giants fans. Check it out# Posted By Matt | 1/24/10 4:26 PM
OK, I will check those two movies out.
Update to my top 10 of 2009: “The Invention of Lying,” which I just saw today, moves into the No. 2 spot, with everything else being bumped back one. Lucky for me, that knocks “Wolverine” out, so I can stop being made fun of for that pick.
I’ll have a review of “The Invention of Lying” posted shortly.# Posted By John Hansen | 1/24/10 11:36 PM
10. Invictus
9. Pirate Radio
8. Fantastic Mf. Fox
7. Up
6. The Men Who Stare At Goats
5. A Single Man
4. An Education
3. Up In The Air
2. Inglourious Basterds
1. (500) Days of Summeri didn’t see x-men or drag me to hell# Posted By chance o | 1/1/11 12:11 PM