top/bottom ten of '05

It is getting harder and harder to do a top ten list every year. A large percentage of the problem is the fact that movies were pretty sub-par this year. But sadly I have to admit that it’s also because I find it harder and harder to LOVE movies. Really love them. Really be swept up in a movie theater and forget what’s going on around me and in my life. I can’t remember the last time that happened. And that’s more of a product of my age I fear. I’m sure I’ll never get completely immersed in a film like I did with Star Wars when I was 5. But dammit Hollywood! In the future at least try a little harder to make me happy.

Before I do my lists, I feel like I have to clarify what makes a “best” movie. There’s been much discussion of this and I feel like I’ve finally nailed it down. It all comes down to if I’m moved. Moved to laughter, moved to tears, moved to insightful reflection. Something in the movie has to engage me and move me. This definition leaves room for comedies, dramas, musicals, and every other little movie. So yes, sure, some of the movies that didn’t make my Best list are “good” movies in that the cinematography is beautiful and the acting is good and the sound is great, but they are bland and I didn’t find them compelling at all.

Okay, enough clarification, here they are:

TOP TEN MOVIES OF 2005
10. Brokeback Mountain
i'm still not sure this movie should be on this list because i didn't LOVE it like other people did. i didn't cry either. but it has stayed with me a bit and the acting and scenery are beautiful.

9. Good Night and Good Luck
another movie that i wasn't blown away by but it was good and well done. david strathairn is finally getting some recognition which is great. besides, how can you not love clooney? that guy's funny. (and apparently cool enough to save syriana from my worst ten list).

8. Capote
phillip seymour hoffman is amazing in this and should win the oscar. his performance alone elevated this movie to the top ten.

7. Mr. and Mrs. Smith
i went into this movie expecting nothing and was pleasantly surprised by how fun it was. just good fun where sexy people are doing sexy things. and it's got vince vaughn being funny in it.

6. Jarhead
this movie isn't getting much attention but i thought it was pretty damn good. the visuals alone were fantastic and i thought it was a pretty interesting way to do a "war movie".

5. and 4. a tie between The 40 Year-Old Virgin and Wedding Crashers
two great movies that i loved this summer. i couldn't decide which deserved to be higher on the list though. Virgin is probably a better movie overall and the comedy is spread throughout. but i do love my vince vaughn and his parts of the movie are hysterical. i would pay to see that guy read the yellow pages.

3. Pride and Prejudice
yes, i'm a sucker for the story but i was actually surprised at how well done this was. and keira knightley didn't even bug me that much. just a little.

2. Walk the Line
yay! a great movie! i really enjoyed this movie and thought joaquin phoenix was great. and i'm not a big joaquin fan. but he nailed this and the music and the acting all come together to make a great movie.

1. The Family Stone
as predicted, this did turn out to be my favorite movie. on the surface it looks like a romantic comedy but i thought it was better than that. it was the only movie that moved me to tears and i loved it. i laughed, i cried, i loved luke wilson (unusual), and liked sarah jessica parker (also unusual). check it out.


TEN WORST MOVIES OF THE YEAR

And, of course, these aren’t the WORST movies of the year. They can’t possibly be the worst because I didn’t pay $12.50 to see Son of the Mask, Elektra, or The Pacifier. These are just the most disappointing that I saw....or perhaps the most overrated.

10. Must Love Dogs
i'm fairly easy to please when it comes to romantic comedies but this one was lame with a capital "L". in the end if i'm rooting for diane lane to go back to the fun dermot mulroney rather than stay with boring ol' john cusack, there's a problem.

9. the 10 minutes of Phantom of the Opera that i saw on HBO
horrible, horrible, horrible. i'm glad i didn't pay to see it in 2004.

8. The Upside of Anger
i love kevin costner when he's doing the funny and i generally respect joan allen too. but the culprit here was writer/director mike binder. all of his work is terrible including hbo's 'mind of the married man' and damon wayan's 'blankman'. he even has the audacity to give himself a big part in the movie. and don't even get me started on the ending.

7. Munich
this movie is a failure as far as i'm concerned because i should have been emotionally involved and i wasn't. wasn't sad when the olympians died, wasn't sad when the assasins were killing everyone, wasn't sad that these people were forced to become killers. the only emotion i remember having was indignation when spielberg actually decided to juxtapose the athletes getting killed with eric bana climaxing while having very sweaty sex. just stop it.

6. Crash
we are all racist in los angeles. and all of us casually throw about racial slurs all day every day. and it's not very subtle. just wanted to warn you in case you come to visit.

5. Sin City
boo. besides looking cool (which i could have appreciated in a 5 minute short), this movie wasn't very good and for the first time in my life i found myself being disturbed by the violence and misogyny.

4. Star Wars Revenge of the Sith
the only good thing i can say about this movie is that i'm glad the star wars prequels are finally over.

3. King Kong
this movie almost was my worst movie of the year but my respect for peter jackson kept it from being number one. never in my life have i wanted a movie to be over more than this one. literally i just remember sitting in the theater and praying for it to end. from the scenes that went on too long to the endless repetitive reaction shots to the ridiculous ice skating scene to my general dislike for the king kong storyline. yep, i didn't enjoy it. but you did so fine.

2. A History of Violence
the tragedy of this movie is that the opening scene of the movie is actually one of the greatest scenes i saw all year in any movie. after it i was very excited about the movie. oh yeah, then those two characters die in the first ten minutes and the movie is taken over by over the top unlikable characters followed by the even more ridiculous william hurt doing some sort of italian mobster impression that made my head hurt. definitely the most overrated movie of the year.

1. Broken Flowers
Nothing. Happens. bill murray doesn't speak or move so i guess i shouldn't be surprised that it was so fucking boring.

BONUS SECTION
You all know that I think television has a lot more quality right now than films. The writing and acting are excellent on a lot of shows. So here are my favorites:

TOP TEN TV SHOWS OF 2005:
10. any and all awards shows
9. Veronica Mars
8. Carnivale
7. The Wire
6. Sopranos
5. Rescue Me
4. Lost
3. The Shield
2. Deadwood
1. Grey's Anatomy

RUNNERS UP OR BEST REALITY TV THAT I WAS TOO EMBARASSED TO LIST IN TOP 10 TELEVISION PROGRAMS:
America’s Next Top Model
Project Runway
American Idol
Real World/Road Rules Challenge
the True Life series on MTV