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Wednesday, December 30, 2009

My Favorite Movies of 2009

2009 is gone, but it brought us plenty of awesome movies. As opposed to the last couple of years, in which I could easily choose the best movie of the year (Hellboy II in 2008, Stardust in 2007), I cannot do that this time, and I will explain why in a second. I have been forced to leave a lot of great movies out of this list, but I could easily make a Top 20, I enjoyed so many movies so much this year. But I'll stop rambling now. These were my favorite movies in 2009:

1. Inglourious Basterds and Star Trek
In my opinion, these two were the best movies of 2009, but I find it impossible to choose one over the other. Both movies presented an interesting universe with a cool story that was both very original and presented a fresh, clever take on some familiar elements. Both movies were packed with action, tension, suspense, and had strategically-placed humorous one liners all over. Both movies were very well acted, with spectacularly compelling characters, and were a blast to watch. I saw them both twice in theaters, and I have already bought Star Trek on DVD, but haven't watched it already. (Inglourious Basterds was sold out, so I couldn't get it when I went to buy ST.) The only difference between these two films is the tone, IB being dark and bloody, and ST being much lighter fare. How to choose, then? Sometimes you're in the mood for shiny action-adventure, and some other times you'd rather watch something grim and gritty. That's why I can't choose, and I therefore award both films with the prestigious Jhannian Movie of the Year Award. Congratulations!
Read my original reviews here and here.

3. Up
Technically brilliant, Up was also funny, heartrending, surprising, and incredibly moving. Once again, Pixar showed us creativity is key, and originality will put you ahead of everyone else. One of Pixar's top five films, and that's saying a lot.
Read my original review here.

4. Sherlock Holmes
I like all things Victorian, and when you add a detective (and not just any detective), audacious action scenes, sharp costumes, and great actors, chances are I'm going to love the movie. Like I said in my original review, I found it quite original and supremely entertaining, and I'll make sure I get it on DVD as soon as it comes out.

5. The Hangover
The surprise hit of the year, The Hangover was outrageously funny, twisted, and impossible to predict. I laughed so hard all throughout the movie I was surprised I wasn't crying by the time it was over. Certainly one of the most enjoyable movies of the year.
Read my original review here.

6. Zombieland
I have just realized that, so far, all the movies on this list were original in more than one way, and that's probably why I liked them the best. Zombieland surprised me on so many levels that I can't talk about it without spoiling most of the film. The movie was hilarious, with great characters and the acting was dead on (lame pun intended). Even if you don't like zombie movies, you should give this rollercoaster of a film a chance, and see what happens.
Read my original review here.

7. Avatar
Had Avatar's story been more original, it would have been much higher on this list. Still, it was groundbreaking in more than one sense, and Zoë Saldana as Neytiri elevated the movie more than I would have thought possible. Definitely worth seeing in theaters to make the most of its glorious visuals.
Read my original review here.

8. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Most everyone seemed to dislike this movie, but I really, really liked it. As a matter of fact, I just watched it on DVD again, and I simply loved it. Sure, there are a couple of things that were left hanging, but I liked the story, and the combination of Wolverine, Gambit, and Deadpool is simply irresistible to me.
Read my original review here.

9. The Proposal
I was going to choose District 9 over this comedy, but the truth is that, amazing as Neill Blomkamp's movie was, I enjoyed The Proposal a lot more. I am a sucker for comedy, I know that, and this one is plain hilarious. The chemistry between Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds is out of this world, and even though its plot is as by-the-numbers as Avatar's, I still had a great time at the movies.
Read my original review here.

10. Drag Me To Hell
The last movie of the list is another example of unoriginal elements that somehow made for a supremely entertaining story. I think it was because I was rooting for the main character the whole time, but it could simply be that Sam Raimi is an old pro and knows what he's doing.
Read my original review here.

And that's it for 2009. Like I said, I could have included plenty of other great movies, such as 9, District 9, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, or Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, but I tried really hard to stick to only ten films. Still, having had such a hard time choosing only ten means there were lots of enjoyable movies to choose from, which is always a good thing. Let's see what 2010 brings to the big screen...

8 comments:

Exclusive Movies said...

Great read, district 9 was my fav of this year tho..cant wait to see iron man 2

alberto said...

estimado finn. uso este medio para desearle un feliz cumpleaños de parte de yours truly y de mi santa esposa. le he llamado por teléfono, pero me ha salido un voicemail message la mar de pintoresco (something about long johns?) que me ha dejado pelín descolocao. por eso notará que el tono del mensaje es algo "flat".

en cualquier caso, reitero mis felicitaciones. del mismo modo, le deseo un feliz año nuevo (eso de la navidad pa'l que lo celebre).

un abrazo.

alberto

Nash said...

Curiosa lista, yo sinceramente la de Startrek no la pondria la primera, aunque esta bien le falta algo para estar en un puesto tal alto, como a malditos bastardos. Pero es una lista la mar de completa

Mario Alba said...

¿Cuál pondrías tú la primera?

Nash said...

Sinceramente esta complicado encontrar la mejor pelicula de este año, ya que no veo ninguna que digas esta es una pasada, Avatar tecnicamente y visualmete es incrible pero de guion muy simple, Star Trek esta bastante bien, los actores cumplen y la acción esta bien llevada pero que una puta nave minera reviente a toda la flota estelar me parece demasiado fuerte, y que los malos sean siempre tan tontos y permisivos también. Up es una película preciosa y técnicamente esta muy bien pero no es un numero uno. La última de Harry Potter para mi es la más floja de toda la saga y con diferencia....creo que este año dejaria el numero uno en blaco.

Mario Alba said...

Qué duro, hahaha. Yo fui a ver Sherlock Holmes anoche por segunda vez, y me gustó incluso más que la primera :)

Anonymous said...

Gracias, Nash, por reventarme Star Trek. Si es que me lo tengo merecido por haber tardado tanto en verla.

Para mí el clarísimo número uno es Inglourious Basterds. Pedazo de peliculón. Dos veces la he visto, y ahora mismo la creo mejor incluso que Pulp Fiction o Reservoir Dogs.

Up es otro peliculón, y sólo le falta un poco de redondez para estar a la altura de la de Tarantino. Y es que abrir con los diez mejores minutos del año se paga.

Avatar tiene sin duda que estar en el Top Ten, porque es una gran película. Está claro, como bien habéis dicho, que tiene una historia de lo más predecible, que sigue punto por punto todas las convenciones del género. Vamos, que Cameron no se ha querido arriesgar ni media. Si bien es cierto que no lo ha hecho nunca, ni con las dos Terminator, ni con Aliens, ni con Titanic. Así que no me sorprende. De todos modos Avatar triunfa en todo el resto de sus aspectos (dirección, efectos visuales, dirección artística...). El guión viene lastrado exactamente por aquello que dijo Fel: una historia satisfactoria pero muy previsible, y una exposición, sobre todo al principio de la película, que cuesta tragarla.

Aparte de eso, yo incluiría en mi Top Ten District 9, y probablemente, sí, The Hangover. Aunque nunca The Proposition. Y añadiría This Is It (aunque sea un documental) y, desde luego, (500) Days of Summer. Y, quizá, Brüno y Whatever Works, si no caigo en otras mejores. Como, por ejemplo,Duplicity, que sin duda entra en mi Top Ten.

Mario Alba said...

Bueno, bueno, bueno. Esto más que un comentario es una revelación, Halagan. No sabía que hubieras visto Avatar, 500 Days of Summer, o Duplicity. De hecho, no estoy seguro de si sabía que habías visto District 9. Dado que las incluyes en tu lista, asumos que te gustaron. A mí Duplicity me sorprendió mucho, y para bien, con ese guión screwbállico y con la forma de contar la historia.

Con respecto al spoiler que soltó Nash, no te preocupes demasiado, que dicho evento sucede en la primera parte de la película. Y con respecto a Up e Inglourious Basterds, me alegra que estemos de acuerdo: peliculones, con mayúscula. Y mejores ambos que Pulp Fiction ;)