Top Ten Movies of 2009

This is my sixth annual Top Ten list. As before, this list only accounts for movies that were officially released in 2009, and I saw 55 new releases in all this year. I only considered the movies that I actually saw but there are still 61 movies on my future wish list...

[10] Where the Wild Things Are (Link)
This movie made my list because of everything that it didn't do. It didn't use the usual 3-act movie arc; it didn't explain who the characters were; it didn't have a tidy ending; it didn't let you off easy in any way. The director obviously had a very specific idea in mind for this movie, and much of the credit must go to him. I just read the original children's book a few weeks before seeing this and it's quite brief but I think that the soul of the book was left intact. This movie makes you feel the emotions of growing up and the hurts of a modern family, but it does this in entirely unexpected ways. And if you can have some extra Fraggle-like monsters running around, then all the better!

[9] The Blind Side (Link)
This is the standard based-on-a-true-sports-story movie but it has the advantage of being based on a current NFL player. Rather than glory in past achievements, we can flick on the next Baltimore Ravens game (Jan. 10!) and see him in action, and visit a sports website to see his profile. That aside, the movie's quite enjoyable. The central characters are played by Sandra Bullock and Quiton Aaron and they nailed those roles. The downside is that it's tough to know which scenes were Hollywoodized for the sake of drama but I assume that osme of the gang-related scenes weren't exactly like that in real life. Also, the husband's role is strictly yes-man to Bullock's dominating wife, which got annoying after a while and apparently isn't very accurate. Minor critiques aside, it was a good sports flick that worked really well as a date movie.

[8] Surrogates (Link)
I can't help it: My list is heavy with sci-fi flicks. I love reading sci-fi novels and short stories and, if anything, I love watching sci-fi flicks even more. While this movie was sure to include the standard action scenes and finale, it was the technology and social commentary that made this better than the average movie. They didn't just set up the basics of people using remote-controlled robotic avatars. They gave a completely believable "this could really happen" intro for the movie and then played with numerous examples of the effect this would have on people's lives. By comparison, the movie Gamer also had some similar sci-fi concepts but did very little with those ideas. This is a definite Bruce Willis type of movie and it didn't get much box office but if you haven't seen it then by all means, check this out sometime.

[7] Watchmen (Link)
As a serious comics geek, I was paying attention to all of the early hype for this movie. I've owned the original graphics novel since forever and it certainly was a genre-changing book back in the 80's. The movie, however, hardly has that impact. It's a great comic movie but nowhere near the level of The Dark Knight or Spider-Man. I marveled at how accurately the movie portrayed exact scenes from the comic book and I thought the twist ending was an actual improvement over the original plot. Even so, the dramatic heart was kind of missing. The actions scenes were brutal but it was the other scenes that seemed to be missing je-ne-sais-quois. The best part of this experience was external to the movie, actually. My wife decided to read the entire graphic novel, every single word of it, beforehand. I skipped a lot of the boring stuff between chapters but she was able to understand both the book and the movie on a deeper level that I did and I admired her muchly for that. Now, I'm just waiting to see the final super-extended Director's Cut version that incorporates the animated movie between movie chapters. Geeks of the world unite!

[6] The Hurt Locker (Link)
This is the thinking man's action movie. Much credit to the director, Kathryn Bigelow, for putting together this indie flick. Even though this is was critically acclaimed it was woefully underappreciated while in theatres. It's about a bomb-squad guy with serious skills, and it explores his crazy attitude and why he does what he does. Set in middle of the ongoing Iraqi war and it plays real and gritty. To quote the best line in the movie, "The rush of battle is often a potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug."

[5] Sherlock Holmes (Link)
I have always been a fan of the original Sherlock Holmes stories but I haven't seen many movies based on these flicks - possible because there were no recent ones. I'm aware that there were critics originally dismissing this because it was too much of an action flick and it disregarded the original stories, and the fact that the movie makers claimed that this was even more accurate than previous movies. I will agree with both sides of that argument, actually. This movie is more accurate than previous incarnations but it still takes certain liberties. Holmes was a kick-ass strong guy when he had to be and he did have difficulty keeping his intricate mind busy when he didn't have a case, and his sidekick was more than just a portly author. Even so, the books depict him as more controlled than the movie version. Despite the fact that I'm such a fan of the source material, and I give kudos to the director Guy Ritchie for modernizing thigns in just the right ways, I can't move this up any more. It's a good movie that I thoroughly enjoyed and I hope/assume there are sequels to come but I would have enjoyed this movie just as much at home as I did in the theatre. The reason I recommend this so highly is the way the central characters were written, and how they were portrayed by both Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. And it wasn't an "origins" story, either, so it gets bonus points for that.

[4] The Hangover (Link)
This was easily the most hilarious movie of the year for me. I wasn't sure what to expect but it just kept piling on the crazy until you couldn't help but laugh. I'm a fan of Bradley Cooper because of his role in the Alias TV show and the cast was a great band of misfit misfits.

[3] District 9 (Link)
Lo and behold, my Top 3 movies are sci-fi. I loved this little-movie-that-could. On a low budget but with the reputation of Peter Jackson behind it as producer, this was a completely unexpected surprise. The alien effects were superb and the action was bug-nuts but it was the intentional parallel to South African apartheid that really made me appreciate this movie. On the flip side, my wife thought this was a terrible movie. ;)

[2] Star Trek (Link)
This movie is emminently re-watchable. And I say that because I have watched it quite a number of times in the past year. The cleverness of the time travel = parallel universe plot allows this to pay homage to the original TV show and movies while moving in a new direction. The cast was perfectly chosen, the effects were great and it had sooo many memorable scenes. Kirk as a boy, Spock as a boy, Kirk in the bar, the introduction of Bones, Spock and Scotty, Spock enraged... I could go on and on. Kudos to the brain of J.J. Abrams for pulling this quasi-reboot out of his hat.

[1] Avatar (Link)
This film absolutely must be seen in the theatre in 3D. This is the kind of film experience that has to be big and bold. Do not wait for this to show up on DVD or Blue-Ray because it won't do the film justice. James Cameron creates a new world out of nothing, with its own rules and unique beauty, and we can't help but become completely immersed in this creation. It is a straight-ahead sci-fi movie with with a romance at the heart of it. Even if you don't want to buy into the omni-present CGI and the funky aliens, you can't help but be drawn into the story and the planet. Box office records aside, this is the one movie that everyone needs to go out and see in the theatres.

Honourable Mentions:
Up (It has those magic Pixar qualities and it made me cry.)
Zombieland (Three words: Bill Murray cameo.)
Moon (A one-man drama in which Sam Rockwell slowly goes crazy - or does he?)
Taken (Actually released in Europe in 2008, it's way better than expected.)
The Brothers Bloom (I'm always a sucker for a good con-artist movie.)

Top Movies on Wish List:
Monsters Vs. Aliens (Top 10 box office, somehow I missed it.)
Up in the Air, The Men Who Stare at Goats, Fantastic Mr. Fox (All George Clooney movies, all well reviewed.)
Inglourious Basterds (Tarantino and alternate-history WWII are enough for me.)
Cold Souls (Little known, weird & funny sci-fi with Giammatti chewing up scenery.)

My Previous Top 10 Lists:
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 & 2008

References:
Film Release Dates for 2009
Top Grossing Movies of 2009