OFFICIAL 2009 top (and bottom) ten list thread - voting closes 2/7

[Boner M]

Post your FINAL TOP TEN OF 2009 here. You may go back and edit your list until the thread is locked. If you do edit it, DO NOT make a duplicate list within the thread.

Only list films that were given a US THEATRICAL RELEASE.

Also, you can post your BOTTOM 5-10 films as well, as I will also be doing a 'worst of' countdown. The same rules for the top 10 apply to that one.

List away.

[Boner M]

1. Tokyo Sonata
2. A Serious Man
3. Import/Export
4. The Limits of Control
5. 35 Shots of Rum
6. The White Ribbon
7. Inglourious Basterds
8. Two Lovers
9. Adventureland
10. The Fantastic Mr. Fox

BOTTOM 5:

1. Transformers 2
2. Amelia
3. Cold Souls
4. Paranormal Activity
5. An Education

[Spinal]

1. Antichrist
2. A Serious Man
3. Inglourious Basterds
4. Tokyo Sonata
5. Moon
6. Astro Boy
7. The Hangover
8. Paranormal Activity

Worst:

3. Up
2. Partly Cloudy
1. Planet 51

[Ezee E]

TOP:
1)Inglorious Basterds
2)Two Lovers
3)Public Enemies
4)A Serious Man
5)Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
6)Broken Embraces
7)Observe & Report
8)Drag Me To Hell
9)The Road
10)The Hangover

WORST 10:
1)Friday the 13th
2)The Goods: Live Hard Sell Hard
3)Underworld: Rise of the Lycans
4)Last House on the Left
5)Limits of Control
6)Obsessed
7)Halloween 2
8)Push
9)The Perfect Getaway
10)The Uninvited

Note to self - Don't bother with horror film remakes/reboots.

[ledfloyd]

1. A Serious Man
2. Two Lovers
3. Summer Hours
4. Adventureland
5. 35 Shots of Rum
6. Inglourious Basterds
7. The Limits of Control
8. In the Loop
9. The Fantastic Mr. Fox
10. Up

1. The Mysteries of Pittsburgh
2. Transformers 2
3. (500) Days of Summer
4. An Education
5. The Soloist

[Adam]

best

A Serious Man
You, the Living
Revanche
Inglourious Basterds
Humpday
Two Lovers
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans
The White Ribbon
Adventureland
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

worst

Transformers 2
The Hangover
Duplicity
Drag Me To Hell
The Brothers Bloom
State of Play
Watchmen
Star Trek
Bruno
I Love You Man

[EyesWideOpen]

Top Ten:

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Thirst
3. Antichrist
4. Coraline
5. Up
6. Up in the Air
7. Two Lovers
8. Fantastic Mr. Fox
9. Goodbye Solo
10. (500) Days of Summer

These are the only four that I actively disliked.

1. Dragonball Evolution
2. Land of the Lost
3. Where the Wild Things Are
4. X-Men Origins: Wolverine

[Watashi]

Worst:

3. Up
2. Partly Cloudy


None of this.

[Watashi]

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Up
3. Where the Wild Things Are
4. A Serious Man
5. A Single Man
6. Moon
7. Adventureland
8. Coraline
9. Summer Hours
10. In the Loop

Worst:

1. Antichrist (just for Spinal)
2. An Education
3. Limits of Control
4. The Taking of Pelham 123
5. Angels and Demons

[Boner M]

Adam, are those lists in order of preference?

[Adam]

Yup

[The Mike]

Top 10:
1. Moon
2. Watchmen
3. Inglourious Basterds
4. The Hurt Locker
5. Up in the Air
6. Drag Me to Hell
7. Observe and Report
8. A Perfect Getaway
9. Knowing
10. The House of the Devil

Bottom:
1. Halloween II
2. Did You Hear About the Morgans?

[ContinentalOp]

1. Where the Wild Things Are- ****
2. District 9- ****
3. Avatar- *** 1/2
4. Two Lovers- *** 1/2
5. Up- *** 1/2
6. Goodbye Solo- *** 1/2
7. Moon- *** 1/2
8. Sugar- ***
9. World's Greatest Dad- ***
10. Inglorious Basterds- ***

Bottom 4
1. The Limits of Control- * 1/2
2. Crank: High Voltage- **
3. The Hangover- **
4. Drag Me to Hell- **

I'm going to see either Fantastic Mr. Fox or Bad Lieutenant, possibly both, before this is over. I want to knock Inglorious Basterds off my list. It's at least a notch below the rest.

[Pop Trash]

Best:
1. Where the Wild Things Are
2. Adventureland
3. Two Lovers
4. Goodbye Solo
5. Inglorious Basterds
6. Drag Me to Hell
7. Fantastic Mr. Fox
8. 500 Days of Summer
9. Up
10. Up in the Air

Worst:
1. GI Joe
2. Zombieland
3. Terminator Salvation
4. The Last House on the Left
5. Friday the 13th

[B-side]

1. Inglourious Basterds (Tarantino)
2. Antichrist (Trier)
3. A Serious Man (Coen)
4. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (Herzog)
5. Broken Embraces (Almodóvar)
6. The White Ribbon (Haneke)
7. Ponyo on the Cliff (Miyazaki)
8. Moon (Jones)
9. Two Lovers (Gray)
10. The Hurt Locker (Bigelow)

BOTTOM:
3. Up in the Air (Reitman)
2. Grace (Solet)
1. Brüno (Charles)

[soitgoes...]

Best:

The White Ribbon (Haneke)
Still Walking (Koreeda)
Tokyo Sonata (Kurosawa)
You, The Living (Andersson)
Inglourious Basterds (Tarantino)
The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (Herzog)
A Serious Man (Coen)
Summer Hours (Assayas)
Two Lovers (Gray)
Sita Sings the Blues (Paley)


Worst:

Orphan
2012
S. Darko
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
The Haunting in Connecticut
My Bloody Valentine
Land of the Lost
G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra
Year One
X-Men Origins: Wolverine

[Morris Schæffer]

TOP

1) Inglourious Basterds
The Hurt Locker
The Misfortunates
2012
5) State of Play
Angels & Demons
Star Trek
District 9
The Taking of Pelham 123
10) The Hangover

BOTTOM

5) Duplicity
The Proposal
The Code
Crank: High VoltageG-Force
1) G-Force

[Kurosawa Fan]

Can I put in a request for an extension to the deadline? My theater, in the next two weeks, is getting a bunch of Oscar contention films that havne't come our way before, and with my free passes I'll have a chance to see a lot more, but probably not before the 31st. A week extra would be great, if it's not too much trouble. If it is, no big deal. I'm sure I'll live.

[Dukefrukem]

TOP

1. Avatar Cameron
2. Star Trek J. J. Abrams
3. Drag Me to Hell Raimi, Sam
4. (500) Days of Summer Webb
5. Thirst Chan-wook Park
6 District 9 Blomkampm Neill
7 Zombieland Fleischer, Ruben
8 the Hangover Phillips, Todd
9 Taken Morel, Pierre
10. Inglourious Basterds, Tarantino

BOTTOM


10. Resident Evil: Degeneration
9. Dead Snow
8. the Proposal
7. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
6. Night at the Museum 2
5. Friday the 13th
4. Transformers 2
3. S. Darko
2. Surrogates
1. The Final Destination 3D

[Duncan]

1. 35 Rhums
2. Two Lovers
3. Inglorious Basterds
4. Public Enemies
5. My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?
6. Adventureland
7. Tokyo Sonata
8. Antichrist
9. The Hurt Locker
10. Where the Wild Things Are

My screenings were way down this year, but that's by far the worst top 10 I can remember compiling. Lots of stuff I still want to see.

[Ezee E]

Saw a few scenes of Crazy Heart and am pretty excited for it now. Comes out Friday here.

[Lazlo]

Best:
1. Up
2. Where the Wild Things Are
3. Bright Star
4. Inglourious Basterds
5. Avatar
6. Adventureland
7. The Road
8. Away We Go
9. The Brothers Bloom
10. The Hurt Locker

Worst:
1. Post Grad
2. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
3. Friday the 13th
4. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
5. The Blind Side
6. The Limits of Control
7. Extract
8. Adoration
9. Watchmen
10. Terminator Salvation

[dreamdead]

1. Bright Star
2. Where the Wild Things Are
3. Summer Hours
4. Public Enemies
5. Inglourious Basterds
6. Coraline
7. Fantastic Mr. Fox
8. Avatar
9. Sugar
10. Thirst

[baby doll]

1. Adoration (Atom Egoyan)
2. Tony Manero (Pablo LarraÃ*n)
3. A Serious Man (Ethan and Joel Coen)
4. Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea (Hayao Miyazaki)
5. Silent Light (Carlos Reygadas)
6. You, the Living (Roy Andersson)
7. Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson)
8. La Frontière de l'aube (Philippe Garrel)
9. The Bad Lieutenant—Port of Call: New Orleans (Werner Herzog)
10. Moon (Duncan Jones)

Worst: District 9 (Neill Blomkamp)

[Stay Puft]

1. Tokyo Sonata
2. Summer Hours
3. Bright Star
4. 24 City
5. The White Ribbon
6. A Serious Man
7. My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done
8. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
9. Birdsong
10. Big Man Japan

[Boner M]

Can I put in a request for an extension to the deadline? My theater, in the next two weeks, is getting a bunch of Oscar contention films that havne't come our way before, and with my free passes I'll have a chance to see a lot more, but probably not before the 31st. A week extra would be great, if it's not too much trouble. If it is, no big deal. I'm sure I'll live.
Sure, but the main reason I was closing this early is this year's Oscar contention films (Precious, Nine, The Lovely Bones... heck, even Up in the Air) seem more likely to impact the worst list than the best.

[Ivan Drago]

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Watchmen
3. Avatar
4. Crank 2: High Voltage
5. Star Trek
6. The Box
7. The Informant!
8. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
9. The Princess and the Frog
10. Brothers

Worst:

1. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
2. The Girlfriend Experience
3. Fantastic Mr. Fox
4. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
5. The Lovely Bones

[Kurosawa Fan]

Sure, but the main reason I was closing this early is this year's Oscar contention films (Precious, Nine, The Lovely Bones... heck, even Up in the Air) seem more likely to impact the worst list than the best.

Well, Where the Wild Things Are (cheap seats), The Road, Up in the Air, and A Serious Man are all coming my way, and I'm hoping at least three of those will crack my top ten. Precious and Nine aren't even on my radar.

[Boner M]

Well, Where the Wild Things Are (cheap seats), The Road, Up in the Air, and A Serious Man are all coming my way, and I'm hoping at least three of those will crack my top ten. Precious and Nine aren't even on my radar.
Ahh, sure... thought you were just talkin' bout the year-end releases. Keep forgetting about the Piece of Shit Dumpy Town thing.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Ahh, sure... thought you were just talkin' bout the year-end releases. Keep forgetting about the Piece of Shit Dumpy Town thing.

NEVER underestimate my Piece of Shit Dumpy Town.

[eternity]

If someone isn't already going to, I'm going to run the top 10s through the Academy BP nomination algorithm...because I can.

The Objective Unquestionable Best Films of 2009
1. Adventureland dir. Greg Motolla
2. Moon dir. Duncan Jones
3. A Single Man dir. Tom Ford
4. Avatar dir. James Cameron
5. The Box dir. Richard Kelly
6. Watchmen dir. Zack Snyder
7. The Brothers Bloom dir. Rian Johnson
8. Inglourious Basterds dir. Quentin Tarantino
9. A Serious Man dir. Joel and Ethan Coen
10. Mary and Max dir. Adam Elliot

The Objective Unquestionable Worst Films of 2009
1. He's Just Not That Into You dir. Ken Kwapis
2. The Ugly Truth dir. Robert Luketic
3. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen dir. Michael Bay
4. The Proposal dir. Anne Fletcher
5. Dragonball Evolution dir. James Wong
6. The Unborn dir. David Goyer
7. Paul Blart: Mall Cop dir. Steve Carr
8. Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire dir. Lee Daniels
9. My Sister's Keeper dir. Nick Cassavetes
10. Knowing dir. Alex Proyas

[soitgoes...]

Post your FINAL TOP TEN OF 2009 here. You may go back and edit your list until the thread is locked. If you do edit it, DO NOT make a duplicate list within the thread.
/me being a dick.

[Llopin]

US release dates eh, o rily? I'll try.

1. Still Walking
2. Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea
3. Police, Adjective
4. A Serious Man
5. Big Man Japan
6. The White Ribbon
7. Bad Lieutenant
8. The Milk of Sorrow
9. Antichrist
10. Pardon Us for Living But the Graveyard Is Full

[eternity]

Films I've Seen:
The Room (2003) - Zero Stars
This is a joke right?

[Kurosawa Fan]

This is a joke right?

Feel free to visit the B-movies thread to see my extended thoughts. Short answer is no, it's not a joke.

[EvilShoe]

Still a few I need to see (damn you, Belgium) that have a good chance of making my list: Fantastic Mr. Fox, A Serious Man, The Road, Bad Lieutenant, etc...
Current list:

Best:
1. Where The Wild Things Are
2. Moon
3. Two Lovers
4. The Hurt Locker
5. Inglourious Basterds
6. (500) Days of Summer
7. Troubled Water
8. Up
9. Das Weisse Band
10. Ponyo by the Cliff

Worst:
1. Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
2. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
3. Street Figher: The Legend of Chun-Li
4. Dragonball: Evolution
5. Doggers: a Love Story

[Kurosawa Fan]

Might as well post my list as it currently stands, that way I don't forget:

Best:
1. Goodbye Solo
2. Moon
3. Tokyo Sonata
4. Two Lovers
5. A Serious Man
6. The White Ribbon
7. Where the Wild Things Are
8. Sugar
9. Inglourious Basterds
10. Summer Hours

Worst:
1. Observe and Report
2. G-Force
3. Up in the Air
4. Wolverine
5. The Final Destination
6. Paranormal Activity
7. Watchmen
8. Year One
9. Extract
10. Avatar

Hopefully it will change dramatically before the deadline. Also, I'll try to work out a Worst five.

[right_for_the_moment]

1. Summer Hours
2. Inglourious Basterds
3. The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans
4. Antichrist
5. The Limits of Control
6. A Serious Man
7. Where the Wild Things Are
8. The Hurt Locker
9. The Headless Woman
10. Precious


1. G.I. Joe
2. Law Abiding Citizen
3. Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen
4. Surveillance
5. The Men Who Stare at Goats

[Fezzik]

My Top Ten as of now:


Inglourious Basterds
Up
District 9
The Hurt Locker
Adventureland
Avatar
Up in the Air
Where the Wild Things Are
(500) Days of Summer
The Hangover



My Bottom 5:


He's Just Not That Into You
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Paul Blart: Mall Cop
The Surrogates
X-Men Origins: Wolverine

[Kurosawa Fan]

Added Two Lovers. Remarkable film. I'm really impressed. It may actually go up further after a day or two of reflection.

[Raiders]

Added Two Lovers. Remarkable film. I'm really impressed. It may actually go up further after a day or two of reflection.

w00t!

Sorry I could only partially return the favor with Goodbye Solo. I added it at #9.

[Kurosawa Fan]

w00t!

Sorry I could only partially return the favor with Goodbye Solo. I added it at #9.

I'll take it.

[Ezee E]

w00t!

Sorry I could only partially return the favor with Goodbye Solo. I added it at #9.
Well, he only had it at #4. Must be higher.

[Eleven]

1. A Serious Man
2. Two Lovers
3. Fantastic Mr. Fox
4. Inglourious Basterds
5. In the Loop
6. Tokyo Sonata
7. Tetro
8. Where the Wild Things Are
9. Police, Adjective
10. Coraline

5. Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
4. Knowing
3. Angels & Demons
2. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
1. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

[Spaceman Spiff]

Still have quite a bit to see, but:

1. TWO LOVERS
2. A SERIOUS MAN
3. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
4. ANTICHRIST
5. BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL NEW ORLEANS
6. THE HURT LOCKER
7. PONYO ON THE CLIFF BY THE SEA
8. LORNA'S SILENCE
9. ADVENTURELAND
10. BRIGHT STAR

[Kurosawa Fan]

Edited in Tokyo Sonata. Oh, man. Has the last five minutes of any film ever captured the soul and emotion of a story that well? Wow.

[Derek]

Feel free to visit the B-movies thread to see my extended thoughts. Short answer is no, it's not a joke.

Awesome. Your last five ratings, discounting The Final Destination which I haven't seen, have been spot on aside from the missing 1/2* for Two Lovers.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Awesome. Your last five ratings, discounting The Final Destination which I haven't seen, have been spot on aside from the missing 1/2* for Two Lovers.

Well, I was feeling much better about this before I read your rep comment. When was I off track, you dirty bastard?

[Derek]

Well, I was feeling much better about this before I read your rep comment. When was I off track, you dirty bastard?

I can't think of any specifics, but it's been a little while since your sig has been full of so much right. :)

[NickGlass]

I'm saving this post, in hopes that I don't forget to update with my list tomorrow.

(Done, but still not totally satisfied)

Yum:
1. Summer Hours
2. 35 Shots of Rum
3. Sugar
4. Lorna’s Silence
5. $9.99
6. Two Lovers
7. Tokyo Sonata
8. The Maid
9. Fantastic Mr. Fox
10. Where the Wild Things Are

Yuck (do I have to rank them? I'll get put them in alphabetical order):
An Education
Angels and Demons
Away We Go
Bruno
Cold Souls
The Informers
The Lovely Bones
Orphan
Up in the Air
Whatever Works

[Melville]

Best:
1. Two Lovers
2. Bright Star
3. Inglourious Basterds
4. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans
5. Antichrist
6. Public Enemies
7. Whatever Works
8. A Serious Man
9. The Hurt Locker
10. The Cove

Worst:
1. Up in the Air
2. Capitalism: a Love Story
3. Where the Wild Things Are

[Qrazy]

Worst:
3. Where the Wild Things Are

Because?

[Melville]

Because?
It was painfully literal. Other than the subjective hand-held cinematography, I didn't like anything about it.

[Fezzik]

Added Two Lovers. Remarkable film. I'm really impressed. It may actually go up further after a day or two of reflection.

I really, really need to sit down and watch this. Maybe tonight after dinner.

[Watashi]

It was painfully literal. Other than the subjective hand-held cinematography, I didn't like anything about it.
How is it being literal in this case a negative thing?

The film is targeted towards children above all else.

[Pop Trash]

Worst:
3. Where the Wild Things Are

:cry:

[Beau]

Okay. U.S Theatrical Release during 2009. This means no Weerasethakul shorts, so the list is incomplete, and would be anyways because I've seen next to nothing from last year. But we need to support Bright Star, right Melville? Right.

1. The Headless Woman
2. Bright Star
3. Historias Extraordinarias
4. Inglorious Basterds
5. The White Ribbon

6. 35 Rhums
7. Tetro
8. Moon
9. Up
10. Avatar

I haven't even seen five bad films this year, let alone enough bad films to create a five worst films list. My top ten really only matters up until the seventh spot. The rest is just filler. Pretty good films, but they wouldn't be on any list of mine if I hadn't such slim pickings to choose from. I almost had to add The Secret in their Eyes, and that thing's barely any good.

[Melville]

How is it being literal in this case a negative thing?

The film is targeted towards children above all else.
I'm judging the film based on how well it worked for me, not how well it worked for children. They can judge it for themselves. For me, the literalness seemed a very bland, limited approach to the film's themes, preventing the fantasy world from having any sense of wonder, richness, or scope. With the fantasy-world story dealing so literally with the relationships, feelings, and themes of the real-life story, I'd prefer the film to just stick with the real-life story.

EDIT: actually, the directness would be just as bad, if not worse, if they stuck with the real-life story. I guess the fantasy world is an excuse to address things with a directness that would seem awkwardly unnatural in a more realistic setting. Meh.


Okay. U.S Theatrical Release during 2009. This means no Weerasethakul shorts.
Oh, I guess that means I shouldn't have Phantoms of Nabua on my list. Whatever. I haven't got anything to replace it with.

[Watashi]

I'm judging the film based on how well it worked for me, not how well it worked for children. They can judge it for themselves. For me, the literalness seemed a very bland, limited approach to the film's themes, preventing the fantasy world from having any sense of wonder, richness, or scope. With the fantasy-world story dealing so literally with the relationships, feelings, and themes of the real-life story, I'd prefer the film to just stick with the real-life story.

EDIT: actually, the directness would be just as bad, if not worse, if they stuck with the real-life story. I guess the fantasy world is an excuse to address things with a directness that would seem awkwardly unnatural in a more realistic setting. Meh.


The movie you want doesn't even exist. You have some off-the-wall expectations when it comes to judging movies, but looking at our three films that define our tastes, we couldn't be more opposite.

[Melville]

The movie you want doesn't even exist. You have some off-the-wall expectations when it comes to judging movies, but looking at our three films that define our tastes, we couldn't be more opposite.
I don't know what you mean by the bolded statement. No movie has a less-literal fantasy element? Guh? I also don't know what you mean by my expectations. It's not a matter of what I expect a film to do; it's a matter of what I find interesting and/or affecting.

I'm pretty sure you knew we had drastically different tastes without looking at that three-defining-films thread. :)

[Watashi]

I don't know what you mean by the bolded statement. No movie has a less-literal fantasy element? Guh? I also don't know what you mean by my expectations. It's not a matter of what I expect a film to do; it's a matter of what I find interesting and/or affecting.

You're saying that the film would (allegedly) work better if they stuck to the real story, but if you did that, a movie adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are woudn't exist let alone ever be greenlighted. You make it sound that the film surprised you when it took a turn for the more fantastical.

[Melville]

You're saying that the film would (allegedly) work better if they stuck to the real story, but if you did that, a movie adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are woudn't exist let alone ever be greenlighted. You make it sound that the film surprised you when it took a turn for the more fantastical.
Yeah, it wouldn't have been an adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are. So what? I was just saying that I'd probably have liked a film about the real-life story more than I liked the film as it stands (and even that statement I qualified with an edit). And of course I wasn't surprised when the film became more fantastical. What did I say that implied surprise? I didn't like the way the fantasy was handled, but obviously I knew going in that it was the film's core.

[Beau]

Actually, he just said the film would be worse if it had stuck to the real world. I don't think Melville has a problem with the fantasy world. I think he has a problem with the fantasy world bluntly reflecting the real world. That's not in the original children's book because there is no 'real world story' in the original children's book outside of going down to dinner. The sinister vibes you might get from the original fantasy world come from independent details. That is: details that are, in and of themselves, suggestive of various ideas and feelings; details that don't depend on their connection to some other "real" detail for their power. Melville just hated the 'a = b' aspect of it all.

I haven't seen the film.

[Qrazy]

I haven't seen the film.

I thought you were anticipating it? Not available in your region?

[Pop Trash]

Yeah, it wouldn't have been an adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are. So what? I was just saying that I'd probably have liked a film about the real-life story more than I liked the film as it stands (and even that statement I qualified with an edit). And of course I wasn't surprised when the film became more fantastical. What did I say that implied surprise? I didn't like the way the fantasy was handled, but obviously I knew going in that it was the film's core.

Wait...so you want an adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are but without the Wild Things?

[Qrazy]

Wait...so you want an adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are but without the Wild Things?

He wants a fantasy film that doesn't explore the real world relationship dynamics of the boy's life as explicitly... or a film (not where the wild things are) which focuses solely on real world dynamics without the fantasy.

[dmk]

US theatrical release dates, eh?

Top:
1 . The Limits of Control
2 . Where The Wild Things Are
3 . Revanche
4 . La Ventana
5 . Of Time and the City
6 . Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
7 . The White Ribbon
8 . Police, Adj.
9 . Public Enemies
10 . The House of the Devil

Bottom:
1 . Winged Creatures
2 . The Vicious Kind
3 . Serious Moonlight
4 . (500) Days of Summer
5 . Knowing

[Beau]

I thought you were anticipating it? Not available in your region?

I was. I am. And I'm not just quoting Gigolo Joe.

I just didn't get around to it. Not sure why. Got lazy with my theater attendance. Busy studying for an entrance exam. Eh...

[Philosophe_rouge]

Okay, might as well.... as a non-American (and a generally confused person), I'm not sure what we feel about festivals. Is Love Exposure counting as an 09' release? I'll put it but if there are objections I'll change.

Top List

1. A Serious Man
2. Love Exposure
3. Inglorious Basterds
4. Bright Star
5. Adventureland
6. A Single Man
7. Drag me to Hell
8. The Hurt Locker
9. Avatar
10. The Last House on the Left

Bottom List
5. Cheri
4. Duplicity
3. The Haunting in Connecticut
2. Friday the 13th
1. The Unborn

[Beau]

I'm not sure what we feel about festivals.

I think festivals can be said to count as theater releases. Otherwise, too many films would have to be lopped off, including a few on my list (Historias Extraordinarias, for example).

[ledfloyd]

i didn't include love exposure because it didn't have a theatrical release in the US.

[Chac Mool]

I haven't seen many of the so-called great films of the year, but here goes anyway:

First Tier:
1. Love Exposure
2. Inglorious Basterds

Second Tier:
3. The Hurt Locker
4. The Children

Third Tier:
5. Knowing
6. Avatar
7. Up
8. District 9
9. Taken
10. State of Play

So close: Broken Embraces, Watchmen (DC)

Bottom:
1. Canary
2. My Bloody Valentine
3. The Unborn

[Stay Puft]

So is this being extended another week?

I'm going to be seeing A Serious Man on Feb. 4th, and I hope to see the new Almodovar and Haneke films by then, too. These could shake up my list quite a bit, since they're each by filmmakers who have made some of my all time favorites, so I'd obviously be in favor having the extra week.

[Henry Gale]

I still have a lot more to see and rewatch before I'll be happy with a final ten, but for now:

1. Where The Wild Things Are (Jonze)
2. Moon (Jones)
3. Inglourious Basterds (Tarantino)
4. Up (Docter)
5. A Serious Man (Coen/Coen)
6. Funny People (Apatow)
7. Adventureland (Mottola)
8. Thirst (Park)
9. The Road (Hillcoat)
10. Coraline (Selick)

And the shittier:

5. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Hood)
4. Monsters vs. Aliens (Letterman/Vernon)
3. The Unborn (Goyer)
2. G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra (Sommers)
1. Street Fighter: The Legend Of Chun-Li (Bartkowiak)

[ThePlashyBubbler]

Hmmm.

1. Inglourious Basterds (Tarantino)
2. Humpday (Shelton)
3. Lorna's Silence (Dardennes)
4. Summer Hours (Assayas)
5. Julia (Zonka)
6. The Limits of Control (Jarmusch)
7. Sugar (Fleck/Boden)
8. Tokyo Sonata (Kurosawa)
9. The Fantastic Mr. Fox (Anderson)
10. Beeswax (Bujalski)


Bottom Five:
5. Whatever Works
4. Antichrist
3. Precious
2. Angels & Demons
1. Madea Goes to Jail

[Boner M]

So is this being extended another week?
Yeah.

[soitgoes...]

Love Exposure will show up next year (hopefully it gets a US release in the next 11 months) on my list. Wow, I don't think I've seen anything like that, nor would I have thought it possible to pull off a four hour film dealing with the themes it tackles.

[kopello]

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Two Lovers
3. Adventureland
4. The White Ribbon
5. Tokyo Sonata
6. A Serious Man
7. The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
8. Public Enemies
9. Gomorrah
10. Julia

Worst:
1. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
2. Ice Age 3
3. Angels and Demons

Still have a few I want to see like Broken Embraces, A City of Life and Death, Adoration, and Bright Star but I'm really in no rush.

[Pop Trash]

10. Beeswax (Bujalski)


I hope I get to see this soon. I really liked Mutual Appreciation.

[Spinal]

I was hoping to do some catch-up, but then I bought a PS3 and that plan just went to hell.

[dreamdead]

I was hoping to do some catch-up, but then I bought a PS3 and that plan just went to hell.

Dude. PS3 Instant view. Summer Hours. Get on it. :pritch:

[Raiders]

Dude. PS3 Instant view. Summer Hours. Get on it. :pritch:

Yeah, I very much need to watch that before the end of the week. That and Tokyo Sonata, which will be by less... moral... means.

[Mysterious Dude]

1. Bright Star
2. The White Ribbon
3. In the Loop
4. Moon
5. A Serious Man
6. The Hurt Locker
7. Where the Wild Things Are
8. District 9
9. Inglourious Basterds
10. The Maid

worst:
1. Amreeka
2. Whip It
3. Public Enemies

[Boner M]

worst:
1. Amreeka
Good choice, just missed my bottom 5. What a stupid movie.

[Raiders]

I'm going away for the next couple of days so unless I watch Summer Hours on Sunday (doubtful), this list is final. Oh, and don't worry Boner, I deleted my first list.

1. TWO LOVERS (James Gray)
2. CORALINE (Henry Selick)
3. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS (Quentin Tarantino)
4. TOKYO SONATA (Kiyoshi Kurosawa)
5. HURT LOCKER, THE (Kathryn Bigelow)
6. ADVENTURELAND (Greg Mottola)
7. DISTRICT 9 (Neil Blomkamp)
8. AVATAR (James Cameron)
9. PONYO ON THE CLIFF BY THE SEA (Hayao Miyazaki)
10. GOODBYE SOLO (Ramin Bahrani)

Worst List:

1. TERMINATOR SALVATION (McG)
2. TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN (Michael Bay)
3. OBSERVE & REPORT (Jody Hill)
4. WATCHMEN (Zack Snyder)
5. TAKEN (Pierre Morel)

[B-side]

I believe my list is final now. Had to add Ponyo.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Moved Tokyo Sonata up two spots after letting it settle and rewatching the last 20 minutes three times now. The only thing that doesn't work for me, and I think Spinal mentioned it in the thread, is the wife and the thief.

[Ivan Drago]

Replaced Observe and Report with The Lovely Bones on my worst list.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Added Where the Wild Things Are. Going to try to see A Serious Man on Saturday, as my final (potential) update before the deadline.

[monolith94]

1. Moon
2. A Serious Man
3. Observe and Report
4. Up
5. Inglourious Basterds
6. In the Loop
7. The Men Who Stare at Goats
8. Sherlock Holmes
9. Where the Wild Things Are
10. Knowing

[Stay Puft]

Updated with Bright Star, The White Ribbon and A Serious Man.

That'll probably be my only update, too. Don't know if I'll have time to catch anything else this week.

[NickGlass]

(Done, but still not totally satisfied)

Yum:
1. Summer Hours
2. 35 Shots of Rum
3. Sugar
4. Lorna’s Silence
5. $9.99
6. Two Lovers
7. Tokyo Sonata
8. The Maid
9. Fantastic Mr. Fox
10. Where the Wild Things Are

Yuck (do I have to rank them? I'll get put them in alphabetical order):
An Education
Angels and Demons
Away We Go
Bruno
Cold Souls
The Informers
The Lovely Bones
Orphan
Up in the Air
Whatever Works

Updated and quoted for truth.

[Ezee E]

Added Where the Wild Things Are. Going to try to see A Serious Man on Saturday, as my final (potential) update before the deadline.
Please do. I'd predict top three for you.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Please do. I'd predict top three for you.

Considering my love for (nearly) all things Coen, I wouldn't be surprised.

[Ezee E]

Considering my love for (nearly) all things Coen, I wouldn't be surprised.
I don't want to put your hopes out of expectation, so I'll just hope you see it, and then read through that thread afterward.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Whatever Works is the single most underrated film of the year. I think it JUST missed my top 10, but I kinda want to include it so it can get some of the love it deserves.

[Ezee E]

Whatever Works is the single most underrated film of the year. I think it JUST missed my top 10, but I kinda want to include it so it can get some of the love it deserves.
I like the opening and a few Larry David bits. However, it seems like I saw that movie years ago.

That doesn't really mean anything.

[dreamdead]

Edited in Summer Hours and Bright Star. That'll be all I get to before results are collected.

[Weeping_Guitar]

01. Bright Star
02. Fantastic Mr. Fox
03. Up
04. Summer Hours
05. In the Loop
06. (500) Days of Summer
07. Star Trek
08. Lorna's Silence
09. Adventureland
10. The White Ribbon

[thefourthwall]

1. Bright Star
2. Where the Wild Things Are
3. Inglourious Basterds
4. Up
5. Thirst
6. Coraline
7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
8. Fantastic Mr. Fox
9. (500) Days of Summer
10. The Box

[Pop Trash]

Dang mang, Bright Star 's coming up this list fast.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Edited in A Serious Man. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the Coens aren't terribly religious individuals.

[Derek]

Edited in A Serious Man. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the Coens aren't terribly religious individuals.

Totally. I said it was damn near atheistic and, at the very least, casts religion in a very negative light. Several MatchCutters oddly enough disagreed.

[Watashi]

I think the Coens left it ambigious enough for the viewer to decide.

In other words, Bright Star is not making my Top 10.

[Ezee E]

Edited in A Serious Man. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that the Coens aren't terribly religious individuals.
Knew you'd love it.

[Ezee E]

See K-Fan, you just have to be patient with moviewatching. Nearly everything you saw in the past few weeks has been awesome.

[MadMan]

Are we counting short movies as well? I don't really have time to go through the entire thread at the moment.

The Top 10 Best Movies I saw in 2009:

1. A Serious Man-98
2. Up-97
3. Inglourious Basterds-95
4. District 9-95
5. Up in the Air-95
6. Where The Wild Things Are-94
7. Partly Cloudy-94
8. Public Enemies-93
9. Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America - A Final Night with George W Bush-91
10. Zombieland-91

The Worst Movies I Saw This Year (just a bottom 5, as these days I'm more careful about what I watch):

1. Halloween 2-58
2. Taken-61
3. Friday the 13th-63
4. Notorious-71
5. Bruno-73

[Derek]

1. Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino)
2. Two Lovers (James Gray)
3. Still Walking (Hirokazu Koreeda)
4. Afterschool (Antonio Campos)
5. Antichrist (Lars von Trier)
6. The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow)
7. FILM IST: a girl and a gun (Gustav Deutsch)
8. A Serious Man (Joel & Ethan Coen)
9. Bright Star (Jane Campion)
10. Tokyo Sonata (Kiyoshi Kurosawa)

5 worst:

5. Observe & Report (Jody Hill)
4. The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard (Neil Brennan)
3. Ninja Assasin (James McTeigue)
2. Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen (Michael Bay)
1. GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra (Stephen Sommers)

[Kurosawa Fan]

Totally. I said it was damn near atheistic and, at the very least, casts religion in a very negative light. Several MatchCutters oddly enough disagreed.

I'll have to go to the thread and read, because I don't understand how anyone could see it any other way.

[Rowland]

I didn't get to catch up with nearly as much as I would've liked, but oh well, whatcha gonna do. I hope to watch at least The Hurt Locker today and possibly Observe and Report, and that will be it before posting my incomplete list.

[Llopin]

3. Still Walking (Hirokazu Koreeda)


Yeah!

[dreamdead]

Yeah!

It's on Netflix's Instantview, so I'm tempted to watchc it super-soon. These ratings excite me, since I initially thought that baby doll's opinion on the film was the consensus...

[Dillard]

1. Summer Hours
2. Still Walking
3. Fantastic Mr. Fox
4. The White Ribbon
5. Adventureland
6. Moon
7. Goodbye Solo
8. A Serious Man
9. The Inglorious Bastards
10. Coraline

Question: Is Let the Right One In eligible? Or did it receive it's US theatrical release in 2008? I saw it in theaters in 2009.

[Ezee E]

Question: Is Let the Right One In eligible? Or did it receive it's US theatrical release in 2008? I saw it in theaters in 2009.

It was in the top five of 2008.

[Dillard]

Gotcha. I'll have to find that thread.

[Derek]

It's on Netflix's Instantview, so I'm tempted to watch it super-soon. These ratings excite me, since I initially thought that baby doll's opinion on the film was the consensus...

That's how I watched it. It takes a little while to get on its wavelength, but it accumulates a surprising amount of emotional power as it goes along. Koreeda is masterful at dealing with the oppressive effects of memory and the residue of tragedy without ever bringing it to the forefront. Reminds me of why I dislike Ordinary People, a film also about a family dealing with the loss of their son. No explosive confrontations or blunt psychological platitudes - everything bubbles beneath the surface and the pain, guilt and resentment is expressed through subtle, passive-aggressive conversations and the most minute of gestures, glances. There is one cut in particular that cuts like a knife and embodies the remarkable control Koreeda has over the material and his actors and how his restrained approach allows for individual moments to carry lasting power without resorting to histrionics.

[Rowland]

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Martyrs
3. Sita Sings the Blues
4. Two Lovers
5. Julia
6. Adventureland
7. The Brothers Bloom
8. District 9
9. Observe and Report
10. Coraline

Bottom (alphabetized):

Bright Star
Duplicity
The Grudge 3
Monsters vs. Aliens
My Bloody Valentine
Of Time and the City
Partly Cloudy
Seventh Moon
Surveillance
Terminator Salvation

[Bosco B Thug]

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. Two Lovers
3. A Serious Man
4. Tokyo Sonata
5. Antichrist
6. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
7. Coraline
8. Where the Wild Things Are
9. Bright Star
10. Adventureland

WORST:
6. (500) Days of Summer
5. District 9
4. Bruno
3. The Hangover
2. The Uninvited
1. Friday the 13th

[Llopin]

It's on Netflix's Instantview, so I'm tempted to watchc it super-soon. These ratings excite me, since I initially thought that baby doll's opinion on the film was the consensus...

I do recommend it, of course. Not sure if it's the best movie from last year, (since this US release dates thingy mostly confuses me into not checking if every film I've seen in the last three frakin years has been released in the last one in the US or not!) but you cannot go wrong with Kore-eda, at all. I'm a longtime follower of his films and I believe this is one of his best.

[Sycophant]

Okay, it may be too late to get in on this, but I'm gonna post mine anyway. I really wish I'd squeezed in Tokyo Sonata or Thirst, because I bet at least one of them could've made it. Oh well.

TOP TEN:

1. A Serious Man
2. Inglourious Basterds
3. Moon
4. Still Walking
5. Where the Wild Things Are
6. Adventureland
7. The Hurt Locker
8. I Love You, Man
9. Observe and Report
10. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

BOTTOM SEVEN (I am only going to mention 7):

1. Orphan (WORST)
2. The Orphan
3. Year One
4. Race to Witch Mountain
5. Dragonball: Evolution
6. Invictus
7. Up

[Rowland]

Last minute edit to include Observe and Report.

"I thought this was gonna be funny, but instead it's just kinda sad."

[Derek]

Last minute edit to include Observe and Report.

"I thought this was gonna be funny, but instead it's just kinda sad."

I agree with that quote, but for different reasons than those who like the film.

[Ezee E]

Last minute edit to include Observe and Report.

"I thought this was gonna be funny, but instead it's just kinda sad."
Told you so.

[Sycophant]

Last minute edit to include Observe and Report.

"I thought this was gonna be funny, but instead it's just kinda sad."

If you feel so compelled, I'd love to read some thoughts on this from you.

If you don't feel so compelled, that's a'ight.

[Kurosawa Fan]

In the hopes that this hasn't closed yet, I updated my list one last time. It's a bit different, some reordering here and there. I also saw The White Ribbon, which was fantastic. I'm still mulling things over. I wish I had more time to let things settle before I finished my rankings, but this will have to do for now. If things were already closed, no big deal, I still liked my list before this update.

[Rowland]

Looking back through this thread, it looks as though Bright Star is going to have an impressive showing on the final tally. I suppose I'm not surprised, but I didn't expect to be so outnumbered, given that I appear to be the only person who flat-out didn't like it. Eh.

[Rowland]

If you feel so compelled, I'd love to read some thoughts on this from you.

If you don't feel so compelled, that's a'ight.Sorry, I somehow missed this. Most of what I have to say has already been said to some degree in the film's thread, which I skimmed through. If anything comes to mind I'll post it, though I do feel compelled to emphasize how surprisingly well-made the film is; Hill does some really striking things with movement, editing, sound design, and what have you.

[Boner M]

I'll leave this open for one more day.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I'll leave this open for one more day.

Nice! I think I'll watch Still Walking tonight after the kids go to bed.

[Silencio]

1. Bright Star
2. Inglourious Basterds
3. A Serious Man
4. Goodbye Solo
5. The Hurt Locker
6. Broken Embraces
7. Where the Wild Things Are
8. Summer Hours
9. Moon
10. Up

Worst:

5. The Hangover
4. Invictus
3. Precious
2. The Blind Side
1. Angels & Demons

[Watashi]

I have White Ribbon and Bad Lieutenant available but I probably won't get to them in time.

I'm satisfied with my current list.

[Raiders]

I'll leave this open for one more day.

Awesome. Got Haneke's White Ribbon in just a few minutes.

[Rowland]

I'll try to sneak in Lake Tahoe tonight. Too bad Revanche won't be available for streaming for another week.

[Derek]

Swapped out Underworld: etc. with Observe & Report in my worst list. It was my #6, but KF's not submitting a worst list so it needs some hatin' in here.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Swapped out Underworld: etc. with Observe & Report in my worst list. It was my #6, but KF's not submitting a worst list so it needs some hatin' in here.

Well, I'm not going to get to another flick tonight, so I'll try to add a bottom ten to my list. Or at least a bottom five.

[Ezee E]

Update or put your list in the Match Cut Awards people. There's some very close and interesting races there.

If you've already put in a list, let me know what you are adding in/taking out.

[soitgoes...]

Updated my best of list with Still Walking. Jesus, that was a rough experience. By far the best Koreeda film I've seen.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Edited in a Worst list. And damn my laziness for not watching Still Walking tonight.

[Boner M]

Edited in a Worst list. And damn my laziness for not watching Still Walking tonight.
Gran Torino was 2008.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Gran Torino was 2008.

Well, shit. Can I rag on it anyway?

[Kurosawa Fan]

Welcome to the Worst list, Avatar.

[MadMan]

Observe and Report's rating went up a few notches after I thought about it, but not enough to warrent even cracking the list. Other notable absences from my Top 10 are Star Trek, Harry Potter 6, The Hangover, Avatar, Watchmen, and Paranomal Activity.

[Raiders]

In the same spirit as Derek, I have edited in a Worst List.

[Boner M]

Let's lock this mofo.