The Final Top 10 of 2009 & Predictions for 2010

In about a day or two or three, I’ll release my final Top 10 of 2009.

With that, will come my predictions for 2010.

You can get an early glimpse at both of those in the tabs above…

Review: Avatar

He did it. He actually did it. Eleven plus years in the making, James Cameron’s passion project is not simply golden at the box office as it turns out, but one of the best motion pictures in recent years. It is true – it looks like nothing you’ve ever seen before in movies. Midway through, I leaned over to a friend and whispered, “This is unbelievable. It looks too real.” But perhaps what will cement Avatar as a sci-fi and modern-day classic, and a film that changed how movies are essentially made, is the tremendous work put into the story behind all those pretty pictures. We’ve all seen high-budget/bad acting clunkers – no matter how cool it looks, without a solid story and good acting, it’s going nowhere. Well, fear not for Avatar, because in all respects of how movies are made, it – like James Cameron said some years ago – “is king of the world.”

Cameron has created a masterpiece by showing us something we've never seen, but the story matches the effects in emotion and beauty. (20th Century Fox/aceshowbiz.com)

Look at Cameron’s resume: Terminator, Aliens, The Abyss, Terminator 2, True Lies, Titanic. I’m not so sure why this guy isn’t mentioned in the same sentences as a Steven Spielberg; those are all classic science fiction or action movies that are above the standard for their day. Little did we know that back over a decade ago, as Oscar after Oscar was won by Titanic, that Cameron was dreaming up the world of Pandora, the remarkable and game-changing special effects, and this beautiful story. Now we know, and the movie world is better for it.

Let’s focus on what’s being “attacked”, if you want to call it that, by critics. I should say that about 9/10 critics have it in their top 10 of 2009 and it’s been nominated for a number of Golden Globes, with Oscar nominations coming not too far down the road. But I digress…the knock on this film is the formulaic storyline. Now granted, the tribe on Pandora can be interpreted as any civilization in history that was stomped upon by a mightier power. And granted, the human military machines can also be interpreted as any superpower that tried to uproot or destroy another people for riches or land, or both. The military general is by the book: jerky, flat-top haircut, ripped, and completely empty of emotion. But the way in which Cameron brings his feelings, emotions, and thoughts into these cookie cutter ideas is what makes the story take off. Forget the scenic backdrops for a second – the story captures your heart and your mind immensely. It’s riveting and sad, tragic and beautiful. Of course, as noted, you have to have good acting…

And that’s what we get from the cast of Avatar. In other Cameron movies, as amazing as they were, I don’t think Arnold was a ‘moving’ character study in Terminator 1 or 2. But that is not the case here, as our hero – Sam Worthington – plays the hell out of Jake Sully. As a partially paralyzed marine who takes his brothers shoes on this foreign planet and this demanding mission, the character transformation is both well acted and completely understood. Starting from a hard-nosed Marine and ending up as one of the creatures is truly incredible to watch. However, he doesn’t do it alone. Sigourney Weaver is a terrific counterpart to the military general. Zoe Saldana, although never seen in human form, is full of power and emotion. Finally, Giovanni Ribisi is fantastic as a tortured but determined mission leader. You can’t just throw actors into a plot and hope it works: these ones were hand chosen for their roles and they all delivered mightily. You feel their agony, you smile when they laugh, and you become rich with their way of life and being.

There is only one way to describe this movie: game-changer. You feel as if you are truly in Pandora. Unbelievable. (20th Century Fox/aceshowbiz.com)

So, apparently there’s some cool special effects I hear? This movie was hyped up like nothing I can remember in the past, and to say it lived up to expectations would be a slap in the face of everything it accomplished. It wasn’t just great to look at it, nor was it cool or amazing. It’s a game-changer. When you see Iron Man 2 next year, and walk out of the theater with a smile on your face, try and think if you’d rather have it shot the way this was shot. In no movie I can remember was I so entirely “inside” the movie. You literally feel as if you are walking amongst the mystical trees and bushes, as if you are pressing the beautiful folding flowers and jumping over waterfalls and rocks. Pandora isn’t a planet in a movie you’re watching – it’s real life for a few hours. Someone noted to me after the credits rolled, “I feel like I want to go back to Pandora, like this life should be the dream.” Yes, it’s that insanely mind-blowing. Yes, you are part of the movie. And my God, is it more beautiful and jaw-dropping than you can imagine.

I had a difficult time juggling in mind which was the better picture this year: Up in the Air or Avatar. Both were tremendous in sincerely different ways. While Up in the Air is a 4-star movie that I will re-watch in the future and remember for years to come, Avatar blew the competition out of the water. The story is top-notch. The acting is top-notch. The experience is top-notch. The special effects are literally like nothing I’ve ever seen.

When you add it all up, this could be Cameron’s greatest achievement – ahead of Aliens, Terminator 2, and the Abyss – all classic movies. This is his passion project, eleven plus years in the making. And every single element, every scene and every word were chosen and made beautifully. This is the movie of the year and one that people will be talking about decades from now.

AVATAR: (out of 4)

Review: Up in the Air

I’ve been waiting almost the full calendar year for exactly this moment. I’ve sat and enjoyed movie after movie, some great, some forgettable after a week or two. 2009 never had it’s shining moment in cinema; it never had that one film that sticks with you like glue, that you’ll look back on in a year or two and say, “Now that was a classic.” No, this year didn’t have any reason to remember until now, and Up in the Air. The massive hype behind this drama was gaining such momentum that I was actually fearful it wouldn’t live up to expectations – I desperately wanted it to be beyond great. It lived up to the hype, it deserves Best Picture, and it’s a modern-day work of art.

The firm grasp this film has on a wide range of human emotions and life changing moments is beyond oustanding. (Paramount Pictures/aceshowbiz.com)

Up in the Air is the story of a man who’s essential goal is to never settle, to never marry, and to live at peace with the fact that his home is forever on the move. George Clooney plays Ryan Bingham, a man whose job is to bring people at ease with the fact that they’re being fired. Perhaps one more reason this movie will resonate so well with audiences is the economic crisis and job market we live in right now. The desperation and humiliation and anger of the employees, and the stern yet hopeful understanding of the person doing the firing. But beyond the job description is the backdrop for who Bingham is as a person truly: alone, and a creator of ever-expanding isolation from loved ones and people in general. The journey we see through his eyes, his love interest, his trainee, and his family is extraordinary and is something that anyone can relate to in one way or another.

Coming to terms with any difficult decision or lifestyle change is the underlying theme of the movie. Whether that’s the loss of a job, the loss of human contact, creating a new life, or finding love – these are all monumental pieces to the characters and who we are in general as people. I’ll get to how Clooney played his role, but it should be mentioned first the things we’re witnessing while watching this story unfold. A man who has traveled almost 10,000,000 miles in the air is going to be grounded by his company by technology. His life is thrown into chaos because what he knows, and what is comfortable, is slipping away. His sense of home which was hotel rooms and airports could be vanishing. It’s tremendous to watch his reaction.

But as Clooney takes his trainee, played by Anna Kendrick, on the road with him, there are moments that go without any needed words or interpretation to understand. The human elements of love and lust, hope and despair, and dreams and reality are all brought to the forefront. Through their journeys, we slowly but surely unwrap this package in Clooney’s character that has a piece inside wanting that human contact. Though we may see what happens coming, it doesn’t stop you from feeling any less any emotionally connected, perhaps more so.

Farmiga is fantastic but Clooney is Oscar winner material in this beautiful, humbling, and heartbreaking picture. (Paramount Pictures/aceshowbiz.com)

There is no question that Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick deserve their Golden Globe nominations as they were both outstanding. The range of emotions that each portrayed in a touch under two hours is a remarkable feat. We as an audience can sit back and watch a complex, yet somewhat simple human story, come to fruition bit by bit. It’s pieces are brilliantly placed together by Jason Rietman and his cast in a beautiful, and heartbreaking fashion. The true star however, is Golden Globe nominee George Clooney. Some have said that he’s playing this suave, funny, too-much-like-himself character. I would dare you to find a better acting job in 2009 – you won’t. He’s never too funny and never to intensely serious or over the top as to ruin the personality. It’s all there, it’s all so delicate and worn on his sleeve. His stern exterior is broken down and we learn the inner workings of his character. Like in the wedding scene, or the Chicago scene. In every scene however, he is at the top of his game without question. Body language alone, he was tremendous, but the job he did in this difficult role should land him a trophy come March.

When you look back on it, Up in the Air isn’t a remarkably complex story. These are real people doing real jobs and displaying a wide range of real emotion. But the way it’s placed and told and put together is something that can’t be explained – it’s just one of those things that is. It’s one of those things that makes this movie the best film of the year, and one that won’t soon be forgotten. Jason Reitman is establishing himself as one of the best directors in Hollywood, while Farmiga and Kendrick are creating names for themselves. Clooney, well, he just continues to get better. There is no doubt in my mind that every person who will see this movie will come away feeling emotionally connected and twisted around by its’ events. That’s real cinema. That’s terrific.

UP IN THE AIR: (out of 4)

Review: Brothers

It’s not often you walk out of a movie theater with your stomach twisted, feeling helpless and utterly distraught, as though you just witnessed a horror unfold in front of you. But this is no horror movie, no gore filled, mindless bloody action film. What makes it so much worse is that what you just watched, in this case it’s the movie Brothers, is 100 percent authentic real life material. It’s what we hear about. It’s what we read about. And it’s what we silently cry and mourn over when the small glimpse of the effects of the Iraq/Afghan war are shown to us.

What Brothers achieved is no small feat. Every article that’s been written in the past five years about high suicide rates in the military…every article about spousal abuse and family disturbances rising…every article about how this war is literally destroying our young soldiers both inside and out, all that is shown through one family. To effectively hammer home how war can completely tear apart lives, a movie must have the ability to shake you to the core of what it’s really like. This small town, completely natural looking film did just that. I’m not saying that this film is on par with Saving Private Ryan which is an all-time classic, but if we’re measuring how well a film affects me emotionally on how horrifying the effects of war are, then consider them even.

This plot feels all too real given what we see every day, and the family dyanmic is brilliantly portrayed. (Lionsgate Films/aceshowbiz.com)

Brothers picked up so much steam after Tobey Maguire’s return from his capture overseas. It’s safe to say that the intensity picked up ten-fold when the subject of post traumatic stress disorder was shown through this soldier. But to rewind and look at the dynamics that make the movie so brilliant is to truly look at every little detail that is later revisited. First, the family has two sons: Jake Gyllenhaal’s fresh-out-of-prison character and Maguire’s proud solider character. They’re polar opposites, and the differences cut through the entire family immensely. The father, a Vietnam veteran, is brutal and cold to Gyllenhaal’s character, wishing and almost demanding he was more like his other son. Firing right back, Jake’s character – Tommy, accuses his father of being a drunk and planting the Marine “bullshit” into his brother’s head. Finally, Portman’s character, Mrs. Cahill, isn’t Tommy’s biggest fan. Phew. Ok, so with that said, the movie has you cringing and near tears from the pure dynamics of the family. Hell, Maguire hadn’t even left for war yet. Then, it happened.

When I reference “it”, I mean a particular scene in Afghanistan that will forever change Sam, Maguire’s character, for the rest of his life. It’s a scene that is brutally hard to watch, one which is so disgusting and so off-putting because it could so very well be going on in Afghanistan right now to one of our soldiers. We don’t know what really happens that makes these brave men and women completely self destruct once returning home, perhaps we never will. This scene is brutal, but honest in this way, and sets up one of the more ferocious hours of any movie I’ve seen.

While Sam is gone, the family dynamic begins to change, and in more ways that one. Tommy begins to better himself as a person, beautifully blending in as a “temporary father figure” for the two little girls the Cahills have. He helps fix the kitchen, gains respect from his father, and eventually makes amends for what he did that landed him in prison – his explanation for that may be one of that best scenes in the movie. The girls begin to love him, and he loves them in return. All this is going on while they think Sam is dead. Then, the call.

I don’t want to give it all away for what happens, but to say Sam is different would be a terrible understatement. His post traumatic symptoms are so glaring and yet so subtle at times. Maguire is magnificent playing this same man we saw in “act one” of the movie, but is 180 degrees different now. His deterioration is fast and it manifests over his paranoia that his own brother is sleeping with his wife. Perhaps the most heart wrenching scenes are those with his daughters, particularly his oldest daughter – Isabelle. Now, this young actress is 10 years old, but her performance was beyond tremendous. The pure fear of her “new” father, her thought that she is never thought of in the same light as her sister (another reason she bonded so much with Uncle Tommy), and ultimately wishing that her dad had died. A horrifying scene that grips you and shocks you at the same time.

The climax of the film is one of the most intense and heart breaking sequences in recent movie memory. Oscar nominations should be given to Maguire and Gyllenhaal, and maybe more. (Lionsgate Films/aceshowbiz.com)

The climax is so utterly brutal and nerve-wracking because it’s been building itself up brilliantly for so long. The signs of Maguire’s disorder pushing him off the edge were all there. When he finally goes off the edge, all I can say is … please, someone, nominate this man for an Oscar. I’ve never seen a more powerful five minutes executed more tremendously by all the actors involved. And again I revisit why – it feels like a news story we could read about tomorrow.

The ending is tragic even though Sam is home, and has been for some time. But that’s the point. War is never over, especially the war we fight today. So many soldiers are coming home in one piece, but destroyed completely mentally. Their lives, and the lives of their families are changed forever.

I feel as though I rushed through this review and for that I apologize, but for such an emotion packed movie, I can’t do it justice with words. It really is something to marvel at. There are three things that make it special with the first being the plot and how relevant and accurate it is to what we as an audience feel in today’s world. Second, the small facial expressions and moments that might be missed with one viewing add so much depth: the drowning story, the kisses on the back, waiting outside the bank, and so on. How about Jake Gyllenhaal’s reaction after he was told his brother was dead? You can’t act any better, you just can’t. It was so brutal to watch, and I hate to revisit that word again, but it was all so natural and real. You felt the anger, hatred, and depression set in as he did too. As mentioned the daughters, especially Isabelle, were terrific. But this brings me to the third and final reason why it was a powerhouse movie – the acting. You can’t have a movie like this with bad acting, or even mediocre acting. I don’t feel biased or over emotional when I say that Oscar nominations should absolutely be given to Jim Sheridan (director), Tobey Maguire – who played the role of his life, and Jake Gyllenhaal – who also knocked this role out of the park. The whole ensemble was just terrific and each part was as important as the next.

This movie isn’t for the weary: it’s heavy, and it truly affects you emotionally. After viewing it feels like a punch in the gut and that you just lived it. It was brilliantly made, told, and acted. I didn’t do it justice in this review, but perhaps that gives you more reason to go see it. Because I’m out of words, except for one last thing – this is the best movie of the year to this point.

BROTHERS: (out of 4)