Top Films of the Decade: pt. 5 (10-1)

10. CASINO ROYALE (2006) – Reinvigorating the Bond franchise by way of Jason Bourne is possibly the smartest route the producers have taken. Bond here is all brute force, but slowly softens in the presence of Eva Green’s Vesper Lynd, who is sexy, smart and more than capable of handling Mr. Bond. After preventing the destruction of a new airplane, James goes ante a ante with Le Chiffre at a high-stakes poker game to prevent Le Chiffre from winning the money to fuel terrorism. From the exhilarating parkour chase at the top of the film to the fight inside a crumbling, sinking Venetian building, this film gets you jazzed that Bond is back.

9. THERE WILL BE BLOOD (2007) – An eerie score by Radiohead’s Johnny Greenwood permeates PT Anderson’s intense gaze into the soul of a man who consumes and is consumed by his quest for oil. Like the fossil fuel, the man, played to sheer perfection by Daniel Day Lewis, has a seething force bubbling beneath his surface, and when it explodes, nothing and no one is spared. And by the end the title’s promise is a foregone conclusion. “I. DRINK. YOUR. MILKSHAKE… I DRINK IT UP!”

8. RATATOUILLE (2007) – Whereas the previous film broods and glowers, Pixar’s film about a rat, Remy, who dreams of becoming a chef in Paris explodes with delight. Once again, Brad Bird presents his theme that daring to be extraordinary should be celebrated. Practically note perfect, this funny and moving film serves as an inspiration. Anton Ego’s reaction to tasting the dish crafted specially for his review is one of the many reasons that made this an easy choice to include in my Top 10.

7. SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004) – Edgar Wright’s love-letter to George Romero’s zombie films manages the nearly impossible feat of making a movie that has equal helpings of wit, savvy and gore without becoming a one-note spoof like “Scary Movie”. As the zombie-pocalypse erupts, Shaun, accompanied by his shiftless buddy Ed, attempts to salvage his relationship with his girlfriend Liz. What helps is that this relationship is the heart of the movie— the zombiegeddon is just the backdrop. Brilliant and canny, this film bears repeated screenings.

6. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (2007) – The Coen Brothers’ finely crafted adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel explores Evil and its implacable, non-negotiable inability to reason as embodied by Javier Bardem’s Anton Chigurh. Though his unrelenting pursuit would not be half as interesting without the characters who stand in opposition. Josh Brolin really shines as the taciturn Llewelyn, and when his immovable object meets Chigurh’s unstoppable force, the shit hits the fan. Inbetween these two polar opposites sits Tommy Lee Jones aged sheriff on the cusp of retirement who cannot fathom the level of violence and death left in Chigurh’s wake. Woody Harrelson (also providing a stand-out performance) and Kelly MacDonald round out the stellar cast.

5. OLDBOY (2003) – Like a character in a Kafka novel, Oh Dae Su, finds himself imprisoned for 15 years for what at first appears to be no reason. Upon being released, he begins his journey of revenge, leaving bodies in his wake — armed at one point only with a hammer — seeking the one person who stole his life away. To speak more of the plot would give too much away, suffice to say Park Chan Wook gives us a twisted, darkly humorous film filled with surprises and style. As mentioned previously, the hallway fight between Oh Dae Su and about 40 thugs in one long single take is breathtaking.

4. THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS (2001) – After seeing this I may have foolishly declared, “There’s no need to make any more films” but I was mostly serious about that declaration. Wes Anderson, fresh off of Rushmore, gives us a fable out of time about the gifted Tenenbaum family — the kids’ brilliant promising futures and their fading glory as adults, and the negligent father (the irascible Gene Hackman) who wishes to make amends and bring the family back together before he kicks the bucket. Fresh, stylish and mannered with an intense scrutiny where production design is concerned, this film is dazzling to behold; every nook and cranny of the frame is bursting with detail. The performances are also a major part of this film’s charm — Gwyneth Paltrow particularly shines as the dour adopted Margot. Having not yet seen The Fantastic Mr. Fox, this is, to me, Wes Anderson’s best film.

3. THE DARK KNIGHT (2008) – Christopher Nolan revisits Gotham and creates a stunning near-perfect film that just happens to have a super-hero in it. The movie belongs mainly to Heath Ledger’s committed and stunning performance as the Joker, playing his sociopathy with nuance, wit and sharpness. Both Nolan and Ledger hold us tightly in their grip with their craft. Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard also contribute to one of the most memorable and haunting scores in recent memory. “How about a magic trick? I’m going to make this pencil disappear…”

2. ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004) – The second pairing between enfant terrible Michel Gondry and Charlie Kaufman results in the perfect chemical combination. Jim Carrey wants to have the painful memories of his ex-girlfriend (Kate Winslet) erased but once the procedure starts, discovers that some of those memories were actually quite good. What follows is a dizzying frenetic chase that explores the past, one’s memories of fleeting moments, how they inform the present and, most importantly, the question of fate: is a relationship the sum aggregate of shared moments or is it the result of cosmic fate? Gondry’s best film and Kaufman’s finest script. My favorite scene is when the beach-house of a treasured moment starts to collapse into the sand as the tide rises.

1. IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (2001) – Wong Kar Wai’s masterpiece. This movie transcends cinema and becomes sublime. A married man, Tony Leung, lives across the hall from Maggie Cheung and in spite of their respective spouses’ infidelity, they struggle to keep from submitting to the same passion despite their growing attraction to each other. The movie is all feints and retreats as the two luminous leads get closer. Never have constricting, neck-high dresses been sexier. The ending at Angkor Wat is devastating and heartbreaking. Truly a classic beyond this decade. Flawless.

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And there you have it. My Top 50 films. If you’ve read this far, thanks for your patience and I hope you were entertained.

Here’s looking forward to a new decade of excellent films!

Dead On Arrival: Resident Evil: Degeneration

RESIDENT EVIL: DEGENERATION (2008)
d. Makoto Kamiya

In this direct to DVD computer-animated feature, the world of Resident Evil is expanded slightly, but the main thrill is seeing Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield reunited since their first pairing in the videogame, Resident Evil 2.

The storyline is what one expects from Resident Evil: an outbreak of zombie-ism perpetrated by a mysterious person behind the scenes. The location this time is an airport terminal where Claire must protect a little girl and a slimy Senator, and Leon is sent in to rescue survivors. However, this only takes up the first act.

The rest of the story has Leon and Claire splitting up. Leon teams with an SRT member, Angela (who bears a striking resemblance to Angelina Jolie) to track down a suspected bio-terrorist, who turns out to be her brother, Curtis. Claire, meanwhile, travels with a doctor to the WilPharma institute where she discovers that they have a cure for the T-virus, but they house the G-virus as well. Danger!

The two threads draw together when Angela’s brother attacks the WilPharma institute and injects himself with the G-virus, transforming himself into a deadly creature.

While the narrative, on the whole, is clunky and peppered with leaden dialogue typical for this series, the animation is crisp and detailed; I found myself admiring the rendered dust motes more often than paying attention to the story.

For plot-hounds, this story takes place after Resident Evil 4 as there are mentions of Leon’s involvement with Ganados and the President’s daughter; I have a sneaky suspicion that there is the most tenuous of connections to RE5 with the appearance of the TriCell members toward the end as they sift through the rubble for remnants of the G-virus.

In any case, the story is so-so, and the animation is top-notch — though the people are somewhat stiffer than the zombies.

** stars.

When There’s No Room Left In Hell, The Dead Will Walk The Earth… To Vote! — Masters of Horror: Homecoming

MASTERS OF HORROR: HOMECOMING (2005)
d. Joe Dante 

Not as bad as most of the episodes of this Showtime series, Homecoming manages to get a few good laughs with its broad satirical swipe at the Bush administration and its failing War on Terror.

Set on the eve of the 2004 Presidential Election, David Murch, a republican spin doctor inadvertently pulls a page out of the Liar, Liar book and makes a wish that goes horribly wrong. He wishes that the soldiers stationed abroad could come home, and come home they do despite having been killed in battle. And in a great twist on the zombie genre, instead of coming home to feast on brains, the undead have returned to vote against the reigning administration.

Joe Dante, known for The Howling and his segment from Twilight Zone: The Movie does a good job of keeping the satire broad and brisk, even staging scenes like horror films from the 50s to pay homage to its b-movie roots. The script is a little flat-footed with a lot of narration filling in for ellipses in time and feeding us explanations of what’s happening, but it offers some good scenes (between Murch and his mom at the cemetary) and some schmaltzy ones that are actually touching if corny (the undead soldier being sheltered in the cafe by the kindly couple).

And look for the names of movie directors of the undead in Arlington Cemetery when zombies erupt from their graves. Nice touch!

At an hour, it works fine, even if the gag is given away early in the game and there are few surprises at the end.

**1/2

Oh God, Scour My Eyeballs: Hellgate

HELLGATE (1981)
d. William A. Levey 

There are no words to describe the absolute crap that is this film. It tries to nudge its way into the horror/comedy genre but the only thing laughable about this movie is the script, and the only thing scary is the acting.

The Best Part of The Movie. I Just Saved You Three Dollars.