Just to be clear, I'm rating these movies based how how much I liked them and how interesting they were. There might be possible spoilers in some of these reviews, so if you really don't want to know anything about a movie don't read the text.
1 The Hurt Locker - 84
My Philosophy of Film professor at college once said that the really good movies make you think about life. I think this is one of the few movies that came out this year that really made me think. The score from the movie is by Marco Beltrami. I would say it's understated, but in no way 'furniture music'. From a high level, I would say that the music hits right where it aught to.
The movies characters aren't necessarily people that I can identify with, but as the movie progresses I found myself really caring about them. The overall storyline is simple, but I feel like a lot happens at an emotional level which is why the movie is so heavy hitting. I certainly can't claim to know what it's like in Iraq, but this movie really feels like it brought me there.
I also noticed another cool thing about this movie. As I was watching it, the music at one point reminded me of the music from There Will Be Blood. I think I even commented to my girlfriend about it. As I was, listening to the soundtrack later, I heard the same song. So I looked at my iPod and the song was titled 'There Will Be Bombs'. To me, this is really cool because I don't know how often there are musical references to other movies like this. Especially movies that aren't that far apart in time!
2 The White Ribbon - 78
The White Ribbon is one of those movies that I knew I had to see as soon as I finished watching the trailer. I like the movies where it might be a little hard to figure out what exactly you're watching. Even after the movie is done, you might not be sure what you just saw.
Probably everyone who sees this will walk away with a different feeling. For me, the story shows how Germany became a troubled country during World War II by showing us children who would have grown up to become adults during that time.
The story is not straight forward at all. It plays out a like a whodunit where everyone is guilty. In the end I was just left with the feeling that the town was basically cursed. If you don't mind black and white along with subtitles this is a great story to watch unfold.
3 District 9 - 77
District 9 really was the surprise hit of the summer for me. I had no idea it was coming out. I just happened to see the preview and decided to go see it. From start to finish, the story really had me. This is along with Star Trek might be the only movies that I saw more than once in the theater this year.
The situation in this alien movie is fairly unique in that the aliens are at a disadvantage. The movie as a whole really seems to speak to how we treat our disadvantaged. I think the director does a particularly good job in this film getting the viewer to care about Wikus, Christopher, and his son as they fight for survival.
The score for this movie was actually pretty good. I enjoy listening to it and it played a big role in the movie. Most notably, when Wikus and Christopher are in MNU being shot at and Chris is so shocked by the experimentation that he doesn't react to the gun fire. Pay attention to the music at this part of the movie.
4 A Serious Man - 78
As soon as I saw the trailer for A Serious Man, I knew I had to see it. To be honest, the poster really drew me in too. When I found out that it was directed by the Coen brothers, I really knew I had to see it.
The movie is filled with complicated and quirky characters and watching them all interact with each other is really fascinating. Throughout the whole movie there is a feeling of suspense because you're wondering what exactly is going to happen to Larry.
As in a lot of Coen movies, the ending is somewhat enigmatic... okay very enigmatic haha, but I guess it gives you something to think about rather than just feeling like the story is over.
5 Paranormal Activity - 70
It's not often that a movie makes it hard for me to sleep, but I certainly have a tough time sleeping for a day or two after watching this one.
The director takes the time when we're most vulnerable and tries to show us that we really don't know whats going on while we sleep. There aren't really any cheap scares during the movie, but there is a lot of suspense. Every time the camera goes to the bedroom at night, the audience has to sit and wait for some weird thing to happen to the helpless couple sleeping.
I would say that as with most horror movies, the main characters are pretty dumb(just leave the house!). At the same time they seem like a genuine couple and I think that is a necessity in a movie that has to seem genuine in order to be scary.
I think the biggest weakness of this movie has to be the ending. I just felt like it was a little bit too ordinary and they could have done something more original and terrifying. I also don't think this is a movie that can really be watched many times. It scares the crap out of you once and then it's probably not all that scary to watch again.
6 Star Trek - 79
Star Trek has a lot of good action and humor mixed together in such a way that kept me really engaged at the movie progressed. On top of that, the score is really fun and action packed as well.
7 Tyson - 75
This might be from 2008 but I'm not really sure. I have always found Mike Tyson really interesting, so perhaps that skews my judgment, but I just found this to be a really fascinating and insightful documentary into one of the most famous, and troubled athletes of all time.
The only reservation I had was that there was a lot of weird editing effects during the movie where there would be all these frames with different shots. To me that all felt a little bit out of place and a little tacky, but I didn't think it hurt the presentation very much.
8 Inglorious Basterds - 77
What's not to love? Blood, scalps, Brad Pitt with a sweet Tennessee accent, and glorious revenge all make for a successful movie.
9 Avatar - 76
This is pretty obvious. The biggest movie since Titantic, possibly ever. There is a lot going on in this movie and people seem to take whatever theme they want to out of it, but that's probably a good sign.
10 Up in the Air - 82
I thought this was a really witty movie. It definitely deserves repeat viewing. Somewhere I read a review that compared George Clooney to Cary Grant, and I think that's just about spot on. I would love to see a North by Northwest remake with George Clooney as Roger Thornhill. I'm not sure who would play Eve, maybe Scarlett Johansson.
Either way Up in the Air is certainly one of the best pics of the year and a very memorable Clooney performance.
Honorable Mentions:
Big Fan - Love Patton Oswalt in this movie. It's a crazy movie with a lot of really dark humor in the mix.
Capitalism: A Love Story - Awesome documentary. I remember that the musical selection was very interesting as well
Crank 2 - Don't laugh! hahah This movie was actually pretty cool. The sound track was surprisingly good for a movie of this genre. The movie even mixed diegetic and non diegetic music.
Drag Me to Hell - A funny kind of scary movie with a killer ending. The only downside is that Justin Long is in it.
I Love You, Man - Really funny/goofy movie. Not terribly realistic dialog or anything, but it's a good time at the theater.
The Hangover - Probably the best comedy of the year. All around funny movie and great cast
Watchmen - This didn't get great reviews, and to be honest I didn't like it that much in the theater, but I liked it a lot more when I watched the directors cut at home. I felt like the extra time really helped in terms of getting to know the characters.
Zombieland - Zomies are funny, if you haven't seen this... watch it now.
Moon - Really fun and interesting plot. I liked the music a lot as well.
Movies I still need to see:
Bad Lieutenant
Bronson
Fantastic Mr Fox
Black Dynamite
More Than a Game
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