The show At the Movies was once a favorite show of mine. It is of course the show that started as Siskel and Ebert and then became Ebert and Roeper at the movies. When Disney wanted to mess with it and make it more about entertainment, they hired two douchebags and I stopped watching. Realizing their mistake Disney went back to what worked and hired two great film critics and took the show back to really reviewing movies. Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune and A.O. Scott of The New York Times are two of my favorites to read and they were my two favorite guest hosts with Ricard Roeper, so my excitement level for At the Movies went right back up. Starting this past week, the show is going to feature each man unveiling one movie a week in their top 10 of the decade.
A few months ago Robbie approached me with the idea of coming up with a best of the decade list and it kind of festered in my mind, but a few weeks ago I started to really think about it. I rewatched a bunch of movies and thought long and hard about it. Then I watched At the Movies this weekend and it clinched it for me: I needed a list. So, Saturday night I started a list. It started at 50 movies, then I got it down to 33. Monday the list got whittled down to 25 and finally yesterday afternoon I got the the list all the way down to my definitive top 10.
Before I unveil how this is going to work, I need to talk about how I decided on these 10 movies. It is a combination of things and different aspects are weighed differently. I wasn't sure if I should do just the ten best, or most replayable, or maybe 10 movies I felt defined this decade of film making. Should I look at them for what I felt at the time of their release, or movies that hold up over time? Eventually I came to the conclusion that it should be a bit of all of that. So my list will incorporate a lot of those aspects for different movies.
Alright, so the plan is this, for the next ten weeks I will release 1 movie on my list to coincide with At the Movies. I will also list each of those guys' pick and talk about for a brief second. This might turn out to be a colossal disaster and it is very time consuming considering I have like 4 people who actually read this, but I think I want it for me, so here we go!
Number 6
Michael Phillips: Zodiac- I hated, hated, hated this movie. It was incredibly disappointing and by the time it actually got intense, I was just so over it. I do not get the appeal of this movie at all, certainly not to put it in a "Best of" list. No way, no how. Icky!
A.O Scott: The Best of Youth- This is a mini series from British television, so how it made it on this list is beyond me, but I have never seen it and I was not really compelled to see it after listening to Scott discuss it. I guess "movie" is a loose term for the guy.
My Pick: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang- Shane Black wrote and directed this brilliantly hilarious movie that is about as META as a movie can be. When done well, I love 4th wall breaking and this movie has it in spades. It also features an incredible script, interesting story, great acting by Robert Downey Jr and Val Kilmer and just some really interesting narration techniques. I really can watch this movie over and over again and be perfectly content.
Number 5
Michael Phillips: Y Tu Mama Tambien- I really enjoyed this movie the first few times I watched it, but it does not hold up any longer for me. It is still well acted and the direction is phenomenal, but the story does not keep me engrossed anymore. It does not surprise me to see this movie on this list and I expect it would be on many lists like this. Alfonzo, the director will appear on my list in a little while, but for a different movie.
A.O Scott: Where the Wild Things Are- This came as a total surprise to me, but 2009 is turning out to be an incredible year for movies, so to find a movie from this year on this list is not shocking. Having listened to Scott review the movie, discuss the movie and having read this amazing article he wrote about it, I know how strongly he feels for it. This movie did make my initial list and even made it to the final 30, but eventually I decided that (500) Days of Summer was going to represent 2009 for me.
My Pick: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind- The narrative framing alone in this movie is worth it being considered on my list. When you add in the rest of the flawless screenplay, the terrific acting, the very steady directing and how visually gorgeous it all is, how can you not love it? The movie is about memories and love and questions if losing the pain is worth losing the good stuff as well. it takes a break up to the extreme and then messes with their heads and ours at the same time. I love it.
Number 4
Michael Phillips: Once- I still have yet to actually see this movie. I have no excuses for not seeing, I just haven't. I love the soundtrack and think I will probably love the movie, I just got bogged down by the hype of the film that year. I will be making a much stronger effort to see it now.
A.O Scott: The Pianist- This is definitely a Critics movie. I am not the biggest fan, but I get why people love it so much and Scott's passionate reasoning was nice to see. The movie really affected him and that is nice to see. Maybe I need to see it again now that I have some time away from it, so I might have to put it on the list.
My Pick: Memento- Chris Nolan had 3 movies in my top 15 this decade, and one of those is even higher on the list than this one. Nolan's story telling is wonderful and the way they shot it remains spectacular. Guy Pierce shows why he deserves to be a bigger actor than he is with a terrific performance that carries this unusually framed film. I think the the fact that the movie is backwards helps make this amazing, but the movie is just flat out good.
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