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It's the end of the year (not the end of the decade
as so many of these publications/internet sites are claiming
so the "Best of the Decade" lists are premature--perhaps
those putting them together need to go back to school. The
decade began in 2001 NOT 2000 and ends in 2010. Maybe they
are getting a jump on the end-of-th-world by two years as
well) hopefully all of your holiday shopping is done and
you look forward to 2010 being better than 2009. I know
it was a rough year. Many people are still out of work,
the economy appears to be no better or worse and banks continue
to make stupid decisions including paying out bonuses to
executives who approved risky ventures that put us all in
the poor house. I don't know about you but I had to tap
my 401 and retirement thanks to these bozos. Unfortunately
the clowns putting on the "entertainment" rarely change
only the venue so we'll no doubt have some idiotic meltdown
somewhere else. ***
There were some things worth looking back fondly on
in 2009--the distraction that kept us going while everyone
tried to decide if the emperor had no clothes on--we all
that entertainment. The networks continued to their slow
slide into oblivion as they fought for a smaller share of
the pie with the internet, games and other distractions
mimicing the foolish dance of the music industry. They're
starting to panic because they've made you buy everything
you purchased years ago on video on DVD and now only some
of you want to buy (yet again) the same thing on Blu-ray.
To paraphrase that great prophet Pete Townshend twice--won't
get fooled again and the new boss is the same as the old
boss. That should about cover it. ***
We did have some highlights in 2009 and some lowlifes
that snuck into the theater/store and made away with our
money. Let's take a look at both. ---
Best of 2009:
It's a surprisingly short list. I've got 10--count
'em!--10 items listed and that's it. No recounts, no hanging
chads (whoops, wrong decade and what's worth a dated political
joke), no doubt about authorship and citizenship (ah a topical
political joke of sorts). Here they are in all their glory
naked or not the best of 2009. ***
1. "500 Days of Summer"-
Got to preview this movie on DVD the other day and I
have to say there hasn't been a better movie that manages
to capture the randomness, fun and sadness of a romance
that almost blossoms. Marvelous honest performances drive
this well written and directed film and it's worth buying
on DVD or Blu-ray. ***
2. "Star Trek"-
At least Paramount got something right when they asked
J.J. Abrams to reboot their Trek franchise. I've heard a
lot of Trekkers complain (it's not Trekkie by the way that's
an insult) about this reboot. Surprisingly, a lot of people
were confused by the plot (I guess Abrams overestimated
the intelligenc eof his audience once again). ***
"Star Trek" isn't earthshaking what was is that Abrams
made the franchise FUN again. That's something that's been
missing for some time. Yes, it had some narrative holes
(which film doesn't today--it's how well you do the slight-of-hand
not in films to distract the audience--then you don't mind
the cheesy fact that it IS an old magic trick as much) but
the film was perfectly cast (kudos to Karl Urban who--in
my mind--was the BEST performance overall managing to capture
the essence of the character, pay tribute to Deforest Kelly
without copying his performance) and, more importantly,
Abrams realized what Nick Meyer did over twenty years ago
when HE rebooted the franchise with producer Harve Bennett--it's
about the characters stupid. Well made with some truly stunning
visual effects, "Star Trek" was a perfect melding of pulp
entertainment and some weighty themes as well. ***
3. "District 9"-
At first I wasn't sure about this film. It's not because
of the quality (it's terrific) but it was about the HYPE.
Hype ruins movies creating unrealistic expectations much
as the rumours about your first time having sex might--it
could be terrific or not it all comes with EXPECTATIONS
and the baggage you carry forward. ***
"Distrcit 9" meshed allergory (apartheid), political
conspiracy and the redemption of one man who suddenly discovers
that he doesn't want to be a cog in the machinery because
otherwise the machinery will crush him. It's about character
and our main character in the movie marvelously played by
Sharlto Copley suddenly discovers his humanity by losing
it. Director Neill Blomkamp tackles a number of difficult
themes in what turns out to be a surprisingly blunt look
at prejudice, our own lack of humanity & greed and manages
to turn the last 20 minutes into a Jim Cameron style blast
of action. It's well worth watching and managed to transcend
the hype because it truly took things we'd seen before and
made them new again. ***
4. "The Hurt Locker"-
Kathrine Bigelow directed one of the most powerful films
of the year and ditched going for honesty and directness
in this drama. Bigalow's drama follows an elite bomb squad
as they face dismemberment and death every day in Iraq.
It's one of the best drarmas of 2009 and, heck, if we assume
I can't count, I'd go so far as to name it one of the best
of the decade (even though the decade's not over yet mind
you...remember I lost my ability and common sense just like
all the other "Decade's Best" idiots out there). ***
5. "The Hangover"-
You're asking yourself--what's wrong with this idiot
naming this one of the best of the year? It's tought to
take a movie with what could be seen as an "American Pie"
premise and allow it to transcend that level of idiocy.
With strong, memorable performances from Ed Helms, Bradley
Cooper and Zach Galifianakis. It all works. Seamlessly.
It's also damn funny. ***
6. "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince"-
It's a miracle when a franchise can get BETTER with
each film. So far the Harry Potter franchise has done so
probably because it had a solid basis with J. K. Rowling's
novels. That doesn't mean though that the makers couldn't
screw it up. They don't here. Harry Potter continues to
tackle the themes of growing up, being a teenager and the
darkness right around the corner that ALL teens must eventually
face (whether it be Voldemort, pimples or the dangerous
world that surrounds us). ***
7. "Inglorious Basterds"-
It's far from a perfect film and Quentin Tarentino throws
in a few too many tributes and cinematic love towards those
films he cherished growing up but this fantasy film that
asks "what if we assassinated Hitler and brought a close
to WWII before the Normandy Invasion"? Fiction fans that
have read all of those "alternate history" novels in the
science fiction section of their book store probably cheered
to see a film like this made. What matters is the way that
Tarention deftly combines black humor and some of the best
suspense sequences this year along with pure exploitation
film violence. It's a huge improvement over the tepid "Death
Trap" which suggested that QT had lost his QC. ***
8. "Avatar"-
Sure it's "Dances with Wolves" on an alien planet to
some extent but it's also much more than that. Cameron doesn't
tackle any new themes here and his story isn't as wildly
inventive as some of his other work but he does manage to
score by combining new technical break throughs with a strong
performance from Sam Worthington. Films about going native
are nothing new but once again Cameron tackles something
old and makes it new again by crafting a marvelously entertaining
film with a message (OK, if you want a bigger message maybe
you should contact Western Union or use the internet for
that matter), pure entertainment value and visual brilliance.
It's not his best film but it's a strong return proving
that if Cameron isn't the King of Our World he is of the
one presented here. ***
Is "Avatar" flawed--yup. It runs about 20 minutes too
long, is a bit morally simplistic but it allows the contrast
between belief systems--one based on greed and the other
society focusing on how interconnect the environment is
to the people--but it's a science fiction allegory or fantasy
if you will tying into OUR treatment of our own planet.
It's visually stunning. Cameron needs somebody to tell him
when to trim his films a bit. Just because you spent X million
dollars on a project doesn't mean you have to use EVERY
scenes you shot. ***
9. "Fringe"-
The sophmore year of Abrams' TV show (maybe Abrams'
is "King of the World" this decade) proved to be every bit
as inventive as the first season. Abrams as previously mentioned
recycles old ideas but makes them seem fresh (borrowing
from writers like Philip K. Dick, Dan Simmons and others
in creating a show about an interdimensional war brewing).
The show upped the suspense level and even brought Leonard
Nimoy out of retirement. It also gives us John Noble every
week which is a gift. He's one of the best actors working
on TV right now and continues to startle with his complex
portrait of Dr. Walter Bishop space cadet, brilliant scientist
and, perhaps, one of the causes of the war. ***
"Fringe" has had some minor hiccups this season as
well. The elimination of Charlie (it was a budget cutting
move from what I understand although the writers used it
to their advantage to make it a narrative that tied in nicely
to the main story arc of this season) was a bad move. Likewise,
the show hasn't pushed the main story arc as quickly as
they should this season with a bit too many stand alone
episodes. Here's an epic idea--develop another story arc
in the second half of season two that dovetails with the
conclusion of THIS season and tie up the loose ends of the
interdimensional war. Perhaps we end up NEEDING the help
of those from the other side for this conflict. It's just
an idea J.J. ***
10. "Mad Men"-
On one level this show remain pure soap opera but what,
in essence, is great drama? The show deserves the acclaim
it got and this season was a stunning one where we find
out that not everyone is who they claim to be and the ad
agency's fate up in the air. To say anymore for those who
haven't followed the show would be spoiling it for those
who haven't seen it. ---
Honorable mentions for Best: "Supernatural", "The Closer",
"Criminal Minds", "Lost", "The Office" (which had game this
year), "30 Rock" and "Lie To Me". ---
Top 10 Disappointments:
"The Worst":
1. "Transformers:
Revenge of the Fallen"-A horrible film poorly written
(interestingly by the same folks who wrote "Star Trek")
where the action is so relentless and explosively graphic
it almost borders on pornography, "Transformers: Revenge
of the Fallen" proves two things 1) Americans have no taste
(it was the highest grossing film of the year and gross
describes it's quality) and 2) Michael Bay has yet to prove
he's more than a hack. ***
2. "Up"-
I know lots of folks that fell in love with Pixar's
ode to togetherness but, quite frankly, it was about as
entertaining as "Bolt" and of the same quality. The difference
is that I expect far more from Pixar and Pete Docter (director
of "Monsters, Inc."). This isn't the first disappointing
Pixar film ("Cars" continues to be the studio's nadir) but
it just proves that even a great studio can occasionally
stumble. ***
3. "The Ugly Truth"-
Yep, it was ugly. This "comedy" about the differences
between men and women demonstrates one thing--you can't
take the grossness of "The 40 Year Old Virgin" graft it
on to a chick-flick template and come away with a hideous
monster that makes Frankenstein's Monster look like a candidate
for "America's Got Talent". ***
4. "Paranormal Activity"
This flick was nothing more than "The Blair Witch Project"
redux. It did prove that anyone with a digital camera, two
people who can't act and shooting in your own house can
convince studios to plunk down good money for a vapid suspense
horror thriller. Yes, the director strung us along for awhile
creating tension but the film truly was just a glorified
episode of that horrible Sci-Fi (I can't bring myself to
use the term "Syfy"--it's ebonics in action) TV show where
people go to houses to find out if they are haunted (except
there they usually have a rational explanation for what's
happened). Again, hype can damage a film but, quite honestly,
hype improved this film for a lot of people "convincing"
them that they saw a good movie. They didn't. The only paranormal
activity here was the mysterious way that the audience's
pockets were picked for the money to see this film. ***
5.
"Jon and Kate Plus 8"- Almost all reality shows are
odious but this one where a family exploits their own children,
failing marriage and pending divorce for fame is horrible.
The reason that American's watch this show must be so Americans
can feel better about their own lives. The other reason
is because it's hard to turn away from a car accident. It's
a pity that these folks are celebrities and proves than
even common folks when fame is thrust upon them can be idiots
and selfish. ***
6.
"18 and Counting"-A show about a family that already
has 18 children (my God I can't imagine what the uterus
of this poor woman looks like) and is expecting a 19th.
In our world of precious, shrinking resources it makes little
sense (beyond religious reasons) to have this many children.
Please, please, please someone sent this family to Family
Planning, tie her tubes or, at the very least, take away
the TV camera. WE are enabling them. ***
7.
"Parks and Recreation"-The allure of this show eludes
me. I'm a big fan of "The Office" but that doesn't mean
you can successfuly duplicate the casting/writing/direction
and magic that happens with that show. Luckily "The Office"
had a strong template with the original British series.
This is just unnecessary and most of the time unfunny to
me. ***
8.
"The Day the Earth Stood Still"- I liked this remake
even if it collided at the intersection of bad and overwrought.
Seriously, the remake had its moments during the first fifteen
or twenty minutes and then went off the rails particularly
with it's anticlimatic ending. It's entertaining and in
a cheesy sort-of-way is the evil twin of the original Robert
Wise fclassic film. Evidently the Earth truly only stood
still during the two hours it took this movie to unfold.
The Blu-ray was worth it for one reason and one reason alone--you
got the ORIGINAL "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (sadly
without any special features or even the commentary track
by Robert Wise and Nicohlas Meyer) in the same packet reminding
us that copying a masterpiece doesn't make the copy a masterpiece
as well. ***
9.
"Star Trek: The Original Series-Season 3"-If the first
season of "Star Trek" was stellar, the second flickered
like a pulsar the third was a black hole that sucked everything
good about "Star Trek" into it spewing it all someplace
else as stellar garbage. It's no wonder that the third season
has the "Red" shirt color to it--this is the season that
made the series marketable because of enough episodes for
syndication (all that anyone truly cared about at the time)
but also killed the series for a long, long time. It would
take "Star Wars" to ressurect the series along with all
of the syndicated viewing of the show. ***
So we should be thankful for these episodes for one
reason and one reason alone--it allowed others to discover
the Trek universe. Most of the episodes from the third season
seemed like leftovers left out for a weak--they may have
looked decent enough from far away but once you got close
the smell overwhelmed you and made you sick. Sadly, most
of the episodes here would make perfect material for "Mystery
Science Theater 3000" in its heyday (heck, even "CSI: Las
Vegas" did a marvelous job of lampooning the show in an
episode from this year and most of the targets of that episode
were the worst episodes of season two and the best of season
three). ***
The mystery here for "CSI" to solve--who killed "Star
Trek" and why? It truly wasn't the studio or the network
but the "talented" folks behind-the-scenes. I can't completely
blame Fred Frieberger or Arthur Singer (Producer and story
editor respectfully) for this mess. Gene Roddenberry left
the show keeping his title but limiting his day-to-day activity
because he didn't get the time slot he wanted running away
like a petulant child. The result was like a butcher serving
up hamburger and calling it steak--it may still be meat
but that doesn't make it QUALITY meat. ***
What adds insult to injury is that Paramount is charging
a premium for the Blu-ray release for this just as they
did with the first two seasons (it seems to me that it should
truthfully sell for the same price as "CSI" or, for that
matter "Fringe" but Paramount has been nothing if not greedy
regarding it's highly profitable Trek franchise. ***
10.
"Psych"-
It's entertaining but like "Monk" it's fatal flaw is
that it's "Columbo"-lite. My wife loves it. Hope she doesn't
see this review. ---
Dishonorable Mentions:
"Monk" (I don't hate the show but it's so predictable),
"CSI: Miami", "Dollhouse" (a great concept that was savaged
by Fox and, by the end, not worth saving), EVERYTHING on
"Syfy" (particularly Wrestling--it's pretty darn close to
a Syfy product as any I can think of but just not entertaining),
"Saving Grace" and almost ALL "reality TV' but particularly
"The Housewives of Beverly Hills". Why? Why should we reward
these morons who enjoy the advantages of life but still
make stupid mistakes? Why should they be made into celebrities.
Trust me in that a homeless person's plight would be even
MORE riveting and moving. Please somebody remove these idiots
and whatever you do DON'T let Simon Cowell breed any more
TV shows. Trust me on this he's driving the average IQ down
a notch with every idiotic TV program spin-off he's come
up with.
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