Best & Worst Films of 2008!

Happy new year everyone! 2008 is a wrap, and it was a fantastic year for film. I can’t recall a year that’s been as consistently awesome since the eighties. But without further ado, here’s what my best and worst for the year.

Note, there are several flicks not included in that I just couldn’t see. I got married in October, and to say the rest of the year has been hectic is an understatement.

BEST

10. Funny Games

I wasn’t quite sure of how I felt about Funny Games while I was watching it, but it hit me shortly afterwards: I’ve never felt so uncomfortable watching a film for its entire duration.Michael Haneke adapted his own 1997 film for the US market that tells the story of a family terrorized by two strange young men. The films tension, pacing and turns of bizarre make this film one of a kind for the year and an unusual addition to my list.

9. The Foot Fist Way

Danny McBride is ridiculously funny. Dare I say the film achieves just as much as Napoleon Dynamite, with McBride’s performance as a small-town Taekwondo instructor making him next in line for the comedy torch. If you haven’t seen this one, check it out immediately.

8. The Strangers

Quite honestly, The Strangers creeped me out. I can count on one hand how many horror films have accomplished that in the last decade alone. The film is so concentrated, and small; it is the perfect little horror story that keeps us with our main characters as they go through hell. And to further drive the scare home, the true horror is revealed at the films bleak ending. Much like Funny Games, The Strangers is a complete downer that I may not watch again, but damn was it effective.

7. Speed Racer

Don’t crucify me just yet. I felt that everyone was way too hard on Speed Racer. Like I said in my review, if this film came out when I was eight, I would’ve lost my shit. Whether you dug it or not, the films visuals are eye-popping, and the first true live-action cartoon. Granted it could’ve lost a good 15 minutes in run-time, I had a whole lot of fun watching it, and I think that was the point.

6. Forgetting Sarah Marshall

There’s just nothing wrong with this comedy. The entire cast brought something to the table, and I laughed my ass off thoroughly. I can’t wait to see more from Jason Segel.

5. The Incredible Hulk

I totally gushed over this in my review, and after a few more viewings since its release on Blu-Ray, I stand by it. This is the best a Hulk film can be, and major kudos to director Louis Leterrier. I really hope that Edward Norton can come back for a sequel, or at least to be a part of the Avengers movie.

4. Burn After Reading

I caught this one on Blu-Ray last week, and I knew it would make this list within 10 minutes. This cast was a knockout. Every character was perfectly lost in their roles, and equally hilarious (though it was wonderful to see John Malkovich get some much deserved attention). There can be no doubt that the Coen brothers are the two of the finest directors working today, and perhaps two of the best of all time in terms of consistency.

3. The Dark Knight

What else can be said about The Dark Knight that hasn’t been said thousands of times already? The film is EPIC, plain and simple. I’ve re-watched it a couple times since its release on home video, and with every subsequent viewing I do notice little things that seem a little off, like Batman’s voice, fight scenes, and perhaps some pacing issues. But c’mon, scrutinizing these things does not take away from the film as a whole. That’s like criticizing a microscopic imperfection in the Sistine Chapel.

2. Iron Man

While not as technically or traditionally sound as The Dark Knight, I see Iron Man as the greatest comic book film made to date. Its cast, performances, visuals and devotion to its source material has me squirming in geeky giddiness every time I watch it. I simply adore it. I got five bucks, however, that says Watchmen destroys it. Until then, Iron Man is king.

1. Wall-E

You can check out my review of Pixar’s masterpiece here, and that’s all I can really say. Wall-E should serve as a how-to for any filmmaker. It is completely and entirely a display of visual and technical excellence. My heart had not been melted since E.T., and Wall-E mopped the floor with ol’ canned ham head.

WORST

I was going to make a list of the 10 worst films of last year… but in reality there is only one. This one is so bad, that to put nine more films in the same category would be unfair. That film, of course, is M Night Shyamalan’s The Happening.

The Happening is one of the biggest pieces of shit I have ever seen in my entire life. The film lacks any and all subtlety… even when the monster is AIR. Thin air. Wind. People ran away, screaming, from a gust of wind. Who the fuck in their right mind would agree to let someone film this? Why would any actor want to do this? I can’t really call them actors anymore, the performances, across the board, were some of the most atrocious I’ve ever seen. What is the point of this movie? Shyamalan created a vehicle simply to indulge a simple audience in showing us death scenes. None of the characters have a mission or struggle to overcome, other than breathing air. Ridiculous. Shyamalan is horrid.

There you have it. There’s just a glance back at 2008 in film. 2009 has some interesting stuff coming up, like Star Trek, Pixar’s Up, and my most anticipated film of all time, Watchmen (keep your fingers crossed that it will be released).

I wish you all the best in 2009!