My Film of 2009 Rundown

Current Tunes: Disfear – Get it Off

Another year in movies has come and gone. I wish I could say it was an exciting year, but in actuality I was left completely listless and bored by this year’s fare. I could barely put together a list of 10 films I saw this year that I actually considered worthy. I don’t know if it’s just me getting old and crotchety, but if I didn’t like it, I didn’t like it.

I’ll grant part of the problem was that I didn’t exactly have tons of cash sitting around to spend on tickets. Being thrifty meant it was especially important to choose my films wisely, and I don’t believe I did that at all. I kept making poor decisions. Well, enough moaning and groaning. What films did I enjoy this year? Here you go…

1. “District 9”
2. “Zombieland”
3. “Up”
4. “Avatar”
5. “The Hangover”
6. “Where the Wild Things Are”
7. “Up in the Air”
8. “The Princess & The Frog”
9. “Watchmen”
10. “Inglorious Basterds”

Well I covered my opinion of “District 9” a week ago, so I’ll forego explaining that one. The presence of not one or two, but three whole family/children’s films on the list surprised me. Well, whether or not “Wild Things” constitutes a family film is another debate entirely. To give you a more precise idea of how little of thought of this year’s crop of films, I can look at every film (save #1 & #2) on this list and point out very specific problems these films had that held them back from being truly great.

Speaking of that, here’s a brief list of films from 2009 that really let me down. I could have made a much longer list, but I’m keeping it short in the name of not appearing like a total killjoy…

“G.I. Joe”
“Terminator Salvation”
“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”
“Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince”
“Inglorious Basterds”

Now, you’re probably saying “Matt, wait, wasn’t ‘Inglorious Basterds’ in your list of best films for the year?” Yes, it is. “Basterds” was a strange case for me this year. I enjoyed it; I laughed hard, it had cheerful, triumphant moments. However, it’s a seriously flawed film. As the months have gone by, I’ve even come to question the necessity of this film, but that’s a discussion for another time. I expected “Basterds” to be Quentin Tarrantino’s best film yet, and it wasn’t. Far from it actually, I still stand by my statement that it’s the least-good film he’s made yet. That’s why it’s a disappointment. I hope my standards weren’t too high; I really don’t think they were.

“G.I. Joe” and “Transformers: ROTF” I enjoyed as well, but you’ll never ever catch me saying those were well-made movies either. Put together, they may have made an OK movie. This year’s “Harry Potter” disappointed me because everyone told me this was the film where the baddies in the story would finally have a chance to shine, when in the film all the baddies just depressed me with their flat acting.

Despite my underwhelming attitude toward the cinematic output of 2009, I am quite excited about 2010. It’s always nice to be able to look towards the future, isn’t it? Here’s a list what’s got me buzzing for 2010, with short explanations of what to expect or what has me so interested in these films:

“Tron: Legacy” (been waiting about 20 years for this, I want it 3x more than anything else)
“Cop Out” (Kevin Smith directing Bruce Willis? Yes, please!)
“Inception (Christopher Nolan’s new drama. Possible it could exceed “Dark Knight”)
“The Expendables” (Stallone, Lundgren, Statham, Li, Schwarzenegger, Willis, & Randy Couture?!)
“The Rum Diary” (Hunter S. Thompson adaptation finally happens!)
“Jonah Hex (For the Mastodon-written soundtrack alone)
“Clash of the Titans” (original will always be better, but this looks fun enough)
“Machete” (Danny Trejo gets his chance to truly shine in the spotlight)
“Daybreakers” (interesting twist on vampire lore)
“Predators” (Robert Rodriguez’s look at my favorite extra terrestrials)
“Legion” (Crazy possessed grandma climbing the ceiling. I’m there.)
“Salt” (Spy flick meant for Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie instead)
“How to Train Your Dragon” (Vikings!)

I certainly anticipate having a much better time in theaters next year. If anything, 2010 will be interesting to see if the success of “Avatar” pushes 3D filmmaking into the next realm. There are already rumors flying around about 3D re-releases of “Star Wars” and a host of other popular favorites. Well whatever happens, I’ll see you in the theater (in the back row) in 2010!