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| Top Ten Films of 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 10. Jarhead- Sam Mendes’ third film is very good, much like his first two. This is the story of marine jarheads during the first Gulf War who find themselves facing their toughest enemy yet: boredom. This is a striking, hard-boiled look at marine life in 1991 with three great performances by its stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx, and Peter Sarsgaard. | |
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| 9. Melinda and Melinda- A Woody Allen movie. One of Allen’s best in years; a film that talks and is about life. Two stories about the same person told at the same time, one a comedy, the other a tragedy. Allen’s script is smart and articulate, teaching us that life is neither comedy nor tragedy, and yet both also. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 8. War of the Worlds- Scary, loud, and suspenseful, Steven Spielberg’s take on H.G. Wells’ classic novel stars Tom Cruise (pre-Katie Holmes) as a jerk posing as a dad. It takes an alien invasion to prove to himself that he loves his children. Filled with special effects and threatening parallels of life in America after September 11, Spielberg proves again that aliens are one of his many fortes. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 7. Capote- In an impossibly-good directorial debut, Bennett Miller brings to life the five year period in which Truman Capote wrote his famous In Cold Blood. Philip Seymour Hoffman, an already underrated actor, exudes precious, rare talent in his portrayal of Capote, a man plagued with eccentricity and desire. “Capote” is one of the best written, directed, and acted pictures I’ve watched all year. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 6. Junebug- This delicate little drama inside a drama feels as real as the plastic keys I touch right now as I type. You rarely come across a film with as much delight and joy and wisdom as this; a film with as much humor as there is tragedy, as much heartwarming as there is heartache, as much truth as there is whimsy. Not too many other films this year were as beautifully acted either. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 5. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe- Busting with joy, wit, and magic, “Narnia” captures the humor and wisdom of its original author C.S. Lewis and portrays the biblical symbolism that Lewis was striving for with resounding grace. Not “The Lord of the Rings”...nicer. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 4. King Kong- Not “The Lord of the Rings” either. Peter Jackson’s remake of “King Kong” (his favorite movie) is thunderous entertainment in three acts. Act two is a thrill-a-minute, spectacular achievement by Jackson’s special effects team. Act three is almost like Greek tragedy; beautifully realized and acted, “King Kong” is the best remake I’ve ever seen. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire- The “Harry Potter” franchise just keeps getting better and better. “Goblet” is large and full of glorious imagination. Not to mention I can relate to this movie on a level of emotion ranging from fear to awkwardness (sometimes those coexist) because the stars are growing up right in front of us. Despite being wizards, they face the same horrors we do...like school dances. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2. Munich- Spielberg again. Terrorism again. “Munich” chronicles the events that took place after the Olympics massacre of 1972. This includes the hiring of five makeshift assassins, with Avner (Eric Bana) leading the pack. Not only is “Munich” the best directed film of the year, it’s absorbing, provocative, spellbinding, and reaches a level of suspense that puts “War of the Worlds” to shame. Spielberg isn’t siding with anyone; in fact he poses more questions than answers. It is clear, though, that “Munich” is as relevant now as the actual events were when they happened thirty years ago. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1. Crash- Besides “Crash” being the most visually beautiful film of 2005, it contains a script that defies any kind of political correctness, revealing that even victims of racism are racist to a certain point. It teaches us that no one will be safe from it until we realize that it’s still here, that stereotypes can be premeditated or they can be dead on, that sometimes what seems to be the right thing to do can ruin us. Few films can provoke your values. Fewer can make you a better person. “Crash” is an American masterpiece. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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