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I
never thought I'd see the day that 2 "Greg Kinnear movies" would
crack my top 10 of any year...wow! Seriously though, I'm not sure why
others aren't including THE MATADOR in their 2006 lists, as the film
was released wide in January of 2006, but there it is on mine. Unfortunately,
due to my crappy health, I wasn't able to see as many movies as I'd
have liked this year, but I recently tried to see all of the films that I
thought might crack my top 10, except for a few that I still haven't
gotten around to like THE
PRESTIGE, DREAMGIRLS, APOCALYPTO, etc... (there might be a small
upgrade to my list over the next week or two, but not all that
much).
Overall,
this was yet another weird year in movies in the sense that it was
sadly (once again) packed with lots of generic/sequel/remake
garbage, but at the
same time, also included a number of classics (in
my opinion) that should be discussed for years to come (and no, I'm
not talking about LITTLE MAN). I apologize for the incompleteness of
my list, but for those scoring at home, I thought you might want to
see what my thoughts were on the films that I did manage to
see in 2006.
post
your top 10 lists here
RUNNERS-UP
(alphabetical
order)
The
Break-Up,
Idiocracy,
Little
Children,
Nacho
Libre, Pirates
of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest,
Running
Scared, Talladega
Nights
#10
CLERKS
2
"When
I first heard about this sequel being made, I was scared like many
of you, but I’m happy to report that this is a solid movie with
laughs galore, pop-culture reference galore, vulgarity and sexual
connotations galore and even a cute romance for the ladies in the
audience. If you’re a fan of Kevin Smith and his previous films, I
see no reason why this movie wouldn’t rock your balls off."
I guess I'm a little
biased since I've met Kevin Smith once or twice in my lifetime and
he was even cool enough to write a foreword to my book, but that
aside, this film was one of the funnier ones of the year for me,
especially as a 30-something who connected with some of the film's
subtext (and yeah, by "subtext" I mean Pillowpants!!!!!).
And I'm pretty sure that I can watch the scene featuring Rosario
Dawson "dancing" on the rooftop for say...days on end!
#9
THE
ILLUSIONIST
"...writer/director
Neil Burger has other plans as he has created here, a wonderful
cinematic experience filled with lush visuals, eye-catching
costumes, authentic locales, a believable and romantic love-story,
as well as plenty of magic and suspense for anyone who appreciates
that sort of thing."
I didn't get a chance to
see THE PRESTIGE yet, but I had a damn decent time watching this
gorgeous movie with Norton and Giamatti having a rollick, and the
film's plot, always keeping me tuned into its original happenings. I
guess the film's only downside is the fact that Jessica Biel doesn't
show off her goodies, but then again, I suppose she's
"growing" as an actress.
#8
THANK
YOU FOR SMOKING
"I
love this kind of movie! It’s a breeze to watch, it’s packed
with all kinds of cool cinematic goodies including classic lines of
dialogue, memorable scenes and fun directing, it features a ton of
engaging actors playing entertaining characters, it’s talking
about something that isn’t commonplace in movies nowadays, and who
would have guessed it…it’s also teaching you stuff as you go
along."
One of the year's bigger
"surprises" for me, I was expecting a lame flick about how
smoking sucks, yadda-yadda, but got instead, an energetic, fun and
powerful satire featuring a whole bunch of actors seemingly having a
blast, including Mrs. Tom Cruise sexually riding the shit out of the
awesome lead, Aaron Eckhart. Pick this one up, you likely won't
regret it.
#7
BORAT
"In
the end, I think your enjoyment of this movie will depend on your
own tolerance of this sort of stuff, and whether or not you already
know and enjoy the character of Borat in the first place. Also,
it’s something to watch….on weed!!!"
I saw this puppy in
Cannes this summer with Mr. Sasha Baron Cohen in the audience
(although I didn't know that at the time) and almost busted my gut
cracking up over a number of scenes, particularly one in which two
men are wrestling in the nude on a hotel bed, and ultimately get
into all sorts of compromising positions. I personally think that
Cohen is a modern-day comedic genius and hope to see many more of
his creations in the future (whether original or characters in
films). Yagshimash!!
#6
THE
MATADOR
"...'fun
times' for anyone looking for a quick creative movie-making fix,
with Brosnan’s career performance leading the way, plenty of
tomfoolery backing it all up and dark comedy, cute touches, moral
grapplings and even a little emotional stuff packed in to create one
of the best movies of the year so far."
Granted, I don't
remember all that much from this film, since I saw it about a year
ago (I barely remember what I had for breakfast yesterday--
Pop-Tarts), but I do remember that it was a fun time at the
theater, including a marvelous turn by ex-James Bond Pierce Brosnan,
as well as a very original story featuring some quirky directing and
a great straight-man in Greg Kinnear. I also remember reminding
myself to pick it up on DVD, as it's one of those movies that I can
see myself watching over and over again. Fun times. "You like
cock?"
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