Sorry to make you wait, but the Poppies arrive later than most best-of lists because I like to wait until the Academy Awards winners are announced. It's a nice reminder of how little stock to put in the Oscars since they're so stiff and Biz-centric.
More to the point, I like to wait so I can catch up on things I missed that pop up on other year-end lists. Although the more you try to catch up with, the more it seems like you haven't seen. So of course, there's no such thing as a complete list, but here's my best guesstimation of what moved, shook, and took me in 2009.
To refresh your memory,
last year The Dark Knight was the big winner (and
in 2007 it was
There Will Be Blood).
10 Best Films of 2009
10)
Watchmen (d.
Zack Snyder)
Alan Moore's iconic comic book is given life on the big screen. A slavish adaptation yes, but the claustrophobic style is suitably grotesque and Snyder's ending is much neater than Moore's. Maybe not so slavish afterall. The opening credit sequence's ridiculous revisionism is worth the price of admission alone.
9)
Carcasses (d.
Denis Côté)
This documentary/fantasy suspense film is best seen with zero expectations or knowledge of the plot. So all I'll say is that it was the best film I saw at the Toronto film festival in '09. See it if you can.
8)
Goodbye Solo (d.
Ramin Bahrani)
Charming and restrained as its two leads, this film is from the director of
Man Push Cart and
Chop Shop. It tells the story of a young Senegalese cab driver and his old, grumpy fare. And here, Bahrani makes another new American classic - touching and cliche-free.
7)
Where the Wild Things Are (d.
Spike Jonze)
The fact that this got made the way it did is worth kudos enough. Old school puppetry and animatronics give this film a timeless feel to match its source material. I was never a big fan of the book, but I am a big fan of the movie.
6)
Inglourious Basterds (d.
Quentin Tarantino)
What a bounce back from the mediocrity of
Death Proof! Nice work Quentin. Forget about that
Kill Bill prequel and keep making these historical epic genre remixes.
5)
The Hurt Locker (d.
Kathryn Bigelow)
Bigelow finally gets props from the mainstream for being the epic filmmaker she's always been. Although not as pulpy as
Near Dark or
Point Break, this movie is crammed with excitement to go along with its detailed character sketches.
Anthony Mackie is awesome in his supporting role.
4)
Pontypool (d.
Bruce McDonald)
I love you
Pontypool. You had me from the opening credits until the very end. For my money, one of the best horror/zombie movies of the last ten years.
3)
Anvil! The Story of Anvil (d.
Sacha Gervasi)
Realizing half-way through the film that one of the main characters lives in my old neighbourhood, only added to the relateability factor for me. One of the most poignant films on aging and relentlessness that I've seen.
2)
Avatar (d.
James Cameron)
I have to admit this is a bit of contrarian move to put this so high on this list, because this movie certainly has many flaws (as many have already pointed out). But I can't deny the pure action-adventure excitement I got from it when I first saw it. Michelle Rodriguez as the new Ripley - I love it!
1)
Sugar (d.
Anna Boden &
Ryan Fleck)
As they showed with
Half Nelson, Boden and Fleck have such a knack for creating stories we've all seen/heard before, but then re-framing them in subtle and profound ways. At the end of the movie, I walked out of the theater more satisfied and engaged than any other time in 2009.
