Movies of 2006
Apr. 10th, 2007 12:04 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meteordustYeah, we're well into 2007, but it occurs to me that I never wrote up one of these for last year. So anyway. In 2006, I saw 12 movies at the cinema, down from a record 20 the previous year.
The best movie of the year:
The Prestige
Any movie that can be summarised as "Wolverine seeks the help of the Goblin King in order to defeat Batman" has got to be awesome. (Not my words, but I can't track down the source.) But seriously, this movie hooked me from the start and kept me riveted all the way through. Not only is it full of twists, but it's also one of those movies where it doesn't matter if you manage to guess one or more of its secrets - it's all about the emotional impact of revelation. This movie lived in my brain for a solid fortnight afterwards. I even bought the screenplay, reading and rereading to see how the puzzle pieces fit together. Also: Best. Review. Ever.
The movie that would have been better with more swordfights:
Memoirs of a Geisha
See, I'm not usually into arty movies, but I'll admit that this one was beautifully filmed and elegantly told. Still, there were too many scenes where I just wanted the main character to pick up a sword or a baseball bat or even a hairpin and fight back against the people who were abusing her.
The movie that was both faithful and beautiful:
Brokeback Mountain
The original short story was spare and evocative and heartbreaking. The movie got everything about it right. One of the most perfect adaptations I have ever seen. (Someone accused me of being heartless because it didn't make me cry, whereas Finding Nemo did. I'm sorry, but Ennis and Jack are adults who can make their own decisions. Nemo is a poor little baby clownfish who needs looking after.)
The movie that somehow lost its soul:
RENT
I saw the musical when it came to the Capitol Theatre many years ago, and I've listened to the CD so many times I know the words by heart. I'm not sure why the movie didn't win me over - they did some odd things, like stretch the events of Christmas Eve over two or three days, which diluted the impact of that "one magic night". It was all right - but it wasn't special.
The movie that didn't tell me to give you a viking funeral:
V for Vendetta
Maybe I'm being picky, but there was one line I was waiting for, a damn cool line, and they didn't include it. Okay, some of the changes I liked, like the reimagining of Gordon, and the masked march on Parliament. Some of the changes I didn't, like the St Mary's conspiracy theory, which diluted the impact of Larkhill, and also undermined the message of the original, which was that people don't need an excuse to begin the slide into totalitarianism. But they kept the soul of the story, which was Valerie, and in the end that's enough. (One other thing - I knew in advance that Alan Moore had taken his name off the credits, but it was still a shock to see the words "Based on a graphic novel illustrated by David Lloyd.")
The movie that everyone else hated but I loved:
X-Men 3
It was cheesy and melodramatic and pretty much killed the possibility of X-Men 4, but there's a little corner of my heart that feeds off cheesy melodrama. In a way, it was kind of like the writers had thought up a bunch of really cool big moments and tried to string them together into a movie. Which, y'know, is probably what happened, leaving incidental things like plot and character development to gather dust. But any movie that uses not only the line "NOOOOOOOOOOO!" but also "What have I done?!" deserves some kind of recognition.
The movie that had more messianic symbolism than The Passion of the Christ:
Superman Returns
Some people have accused Brandon Routh of being just a Christopher Reeve clone, but his performance worked for me. And James Marsden succeeded in making Superman's rival in love a likeable, decent, and even heroic man - a man you can't help but cheer for a little bit, which is no mean feat when you have over fifty years of canon saying Clark/Lois OTP. My only complaint - Kate Bosworth is too young to be a convincing Lois Lane. I'd be surprised if she was even 25, and to believe that five years ago she was the hard-nosed, Pulitzer-winning, star reporter of the Daily Planet - I'm sorry, I can't buy it.
The movie that had a tough act to follow:
Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
The first Pirates of the Caribbean movie came out of nowhere and delighted everyone with its witty and irreverent charm. The second movie had the weight of huge expectations piled on it, so it's not surprising that it couldn't live up to them. Nonetheless, it could have been better had the editors done their jobs and tightened it by half an hour or so. Still, there was some damn cool stuff in it, and I'll be lining up for the third movie, if mostly to see Chow Yun-Fat as a Chinese pirate. Arrr!
The movie that I should be embarrassed about seeing but am not:
DOA: Dead or Alive
Featuring the world's least stealthy ninja, an obligatory beach volleyball match, and a love story between two characters who are actually half-brother and half-sister in the original game. Jaime Pressly steals the show with her brilliant comic timing, but I guess in this kind of movie, you're better off playing a humorous character than a serious one, because the audience is going to be laughing anyway.
The movie that triggered a paradigm shift:
An Inconvenient Truth
Seriously, this time last year, the government was still in denial and the media was still giving equal space to the sceptics. I think 2006 will be remembered as the year of the tipping point of public opinion on climate change, and this movie will have been one of the factors.
The movie that was unfairly overlooked:
Hoodwinked
An animated film that does Little Red Riding Hood, Rashomon-style. The reviews I read compared it unfavorably with Pixar's works, but I think that's unfair - while it's no Toy Story or Finding Nemo, it's a smart and funny movie that's certainly on par with Monsters Inc or The Incredibles.
The only movie I saw last year that wasn't based on a novel, short story, musical, graphic novel, comic book series, amusement park ride, console game, slideshow presentation, or fairytale:
Swing Girls
A gentle comedy in the tradition of the "group of misfits reluctantly take on X only to find they have an unexpected talent for it" genre, where the misfits are a failing class of Japanese high school girls and where X is big band jazz.
The best movie of the year:
The Prestige
Any movie that can be summarised as "Wolverine seeks the help of the Goblin King in order to defeat Batman" has got to be awesome. (Not my words, but I can't track down the source.) But seriously, this movie hooked me from the start and kept me riveted all the way through. Not only is it full of twists, but it's also one of those movies where it doesn't matter if you manage to guess one or more of its secrets - it's all about the emotional impact of revelation. This movie lived in my brain for a solid fortnight afterwards. I even bought the screenplay, reading and rereading to see how the puzzle pieces fit together. Also: Best. Review. Ever.
The movie that would have been better with more swordfights:
Memoirs of a Geisha
See, I'm not usually into arty movies, but I'll admit that this one was beautifully filmed and elegantly told. Still, there were too many scenes where I just wanted the main character to pick up a sword or a baseball bat or even a hairpin and fight back against the people who were abusing her.
The movie that was both faithful and beautiful:
Brokeback Mountain
The original short story was spare and evocative and heartbreaking. The movie got everything about it right. One of the most perfect adaptations I have ever seen. (Someone accused me of being heartless because it didn't make me cry, whereas Finding Nemo did. I'm sorry, but Ennis and Jack are adults who can make their own decisions. Nemo is a poor little baby clownfish who needs looking after.)
The movie that somehow lost its soul:
RENT
I saw the musical when it came to the Capitol Theatre many years ago, and I've listened to the CD so many times I know the words by heart. I'm not sure why the movie didn't win me over - they did some odd things, like stretch the events of Christmas Eve over two or three days, which diluted the impact of that "one magic night". It was all right - but it wasn't special.
The movie that didn't tell me to give you a viking funeral:
V for Vendetta
Maybe I'm being picky, but there was one line I was waiting for, a damn cool line, and they didn't include it. Okay, some of the changes I liked, like the reimagining of Gordon, and the masked march on Parliament. Some of the changes I didn't, like the St Mary's conspiracy theory, which diluted the impact of Larkhill, and also undermined the message of the original, which was that people don't need an excuse to begin the slide into totalitarianism. But they kept the soul of the story, which was Valerie, and in the end that's enough. (One other thing - I knew in advance that Alan Moore had taken his name off the credits, but it was still a shock to see the words "Based on a graphic novel illustrated by David Lloyd.")
The movie that everyone else hated but I loved:
X-Men 3
It was cheesy and melodramatic and pretty much killed the possibility of X-Men 4, but there's a little corner of my heart that feeds off cheesy melodrama. In a way, it was kind of like the writers had thought up a bunch of really cool big moments and tried to string them together into a movie. Which, y'know, is probably what happened, leaving incidental things like plot and character development to gather dust. But any movie that uses not only the line "NOOOOOOOOOOO!" but also "What have I done?!" deserves some kind of recognition.
The movie that had more messianic symbolism than The Passion of the Christ:
Superman Returns
Some people have accused Brandon Routh of being just a Christopher Reeve clone, but his performance worked for me. And James Marsden succeeded in making Superman's rival in love a likeable, decent, and even heroic man - a man you can't help but cheer for a little bit, which is no mean feat when you have over fifty years of canon saying Clark/Lois OTP. My only complaint - Kate Bosworth is too young to be a convincing Lois Lane. I'd be surprised if she was even 25, and to believe that five years ago she was the hard-nosed, Pulitzer-winning, star reporter of the Daily Planet - I'm sorry, I can't buy it.
The movie that had a tough act to follow:
Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
The first Pirates of the Caribbean movie came out of nowhere and delighted everyone with its witty and irreverent charm. The second movie had the weight of huge expectations piled on it, so it's not surprising that it couldn't live up to them. Nonetheless, it could have been better had the editors done their jobs and tightened it by half an hour or so. Still, there was some damn cool stuff in it, and I'll be lining up for the third movie, if mostly to see Chow Yun-Fat as a Chinese pirate. Arrr!
The movie that I should be embarrassed about seeing but am not:
DOA: Dead or Alive
Featuring the world's least stealthy ninja, an obligatory beach volleyball match, and a love story between two characters who are actually half-brother and half-sister in the original game. Jaime Pressly steals the show with her brilliant comic timing, but I guess in this kind of movie, you're better off playing a humorous character than a serious one, because the audience is going to be laughing anyway.
The movie that triggered a paradigm shift:
An Inconvenient Truth
Seriously, this time last year, the government was still in denial and the media was still giving equal space to the sceptics. I think 2006 will be remembered as the year of the tipping point of public opinion on climate change, and this movie will have been one of the factors.
The movie that was unfairly overlooked:
Hoodwinked
An animated film that does Little Red Riding Hood, Rashomon-style. The reviews I read compared it unfavorably with Pixar's works, but I think that's unfair - while it's no Toy Story or Finding Nemo, it's a smart and funny movie that's certainly on par with Monsters Inc or The Incredibles.
The only movie I saw last year that wasn't based on a novel, short story, musical, graphic novel, comic book series, amusement park ride, console game, slideshow presentation, or fairytale:
Swing Girls
A gentle comedy in the tradition of the "group of misfits reluctantly take on X only to find they have an unexpected talent for it" genre, where the misfits are a failing class of Japanese high school girls and where X is big band jazz.
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no subject
Date: 2007-04-10 05:25 am (UTC)I thoroughly enjoyed "The Prestige", wouldn't have called it the movie of the year... but it was definitely clever. Something about it though, felt like it lacked heart.
"Brokeback Mountain" is wayyy overrated. Sure the scenary was beautiful, but cut like half an hour out of the film and it would have been much better. It just dragged on and on. I could barely understand Heath Ledger during the whole film, I know he was trying to channel Marlon Brando ala "The Godfather"... but it didn't work. But the most annoying thing? They kept playing the theme music everytime something gay was happening, which was like every 5 minutes.
"X-Men 3" - loved it. I don't know why everyone bags it so much. If you go back watch the earlier movies, you'll see that they're not THAT much better, if at all. Especially the first one.
I had my apprehensions about Brandon Routh as well, but in the end I thought he made a great Superman. I agree about Kate Bosworth, but Kevin Spacey wasn't that great either. Bryan Singer, you let me down buddy. The movie was boring (and long). X3 was so much better!
Hoodwinked I thought had some great bits in it (like the singing goat), but no way was it as good as any pixar movie. Sorry Meteordust.
no subject
Date: 2007-04-10 03:05 pm (UTC)I'm kinda embarrassed I can't remember the theme music from Brokeback.
All right, so I'm not the only one who liked X-Men 3! Though X-Men 2 is probably still my favourite - lots of great character moments.
Yeah, I thought Kevin Spacey would have been brilliant, but he was just okay. Best Lex Luthor I've seen is still Michael Rosenbaum.