Favorite Movies of the Decade

Again, purely personal - here's my ranking of my 20 favorite movies of the last decade:

1. Serenity
2. Pan’s Labyrinth
3. The Lives of Others
4. Memento
5. Minority Report
6. Little Miss Sunshine
7. Kill Bill Vol 1 & 2
8. There Will Be Blood
9. United 93
10. Slumdog Millionaire
11. The Departed
12. The Hurt Locker
13. Avatar
14. Star Trek
15. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
16. Gone Baby Gone
17. No Country For Old Men
18. Cinderella Man
19. A History of Violence
2o. A Beautiful Mind

What's yours?

Here's the consensus of the critics:
http://features.metacritic.com/features/2009/the-best-movies-of-the-decade/

And my favorite 2 performances of the decade:
Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line and Daniel Day Lewis in There Will Be Blood.

2009 Movie Ranking

Here's my all encompassing, totally personal ranking of every new movie I saw this year:

The Hurt Locker
Avatar
Food Inc
Capitalism: A Love Story
Star Trek
Inglourious Basterds
The Hangover
Up in the Air
The Proposal
State of Play
The International
500 Days of Summer
I Love You Man
The Blind Side
It Might Get Loud
Julie & Julia
Taken
Whatever Works
Paranormal Activity
Terminator Salvation
Bruno
The Informant
Underworld – Rise of the Lycans
Knowing
The Answer Man
12 Rounds
Public Enemies
The Girlfriend Experience
Bride Wars
District 9

Best Actor: Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker
Best Actress: Meryl Streep in Julie and Julia
Best Director: James Cameron

Cool Sites on this subject, that I'm not on:
http://www.metacritic.com/film/awards/2009/awardsandnominations.shtml

http://www.metacritic.com/film/awards/2009/toptens.shtml

At the Cinema - December 2009

Avatar – 10
The James Cameron winning streak is intact.
The Terminator, Aliens, The Abyss, Terminator 2, True Lies, Titanic, Avatar.
Not too many filmmakers with a string like that.

Avatar? It’s just incredible.
Four years in the making, this is a fantasy of the highest order. Using breakthrough technology, this is a breathtaking visual extravaganza.

Sam Worthington stars as Jake Sulley, a wheel chair bound ex-Marine who replaces his brother in the Avatar program on the outpost planet Pandora. The Avatar is the body that he will inhabit, a copy of the species populating the planet - one that can survive in the toxic atmosphere. The bad humans here are the corporations that are mining the planet. You can tell who they are because the leader wears a tie. Yes – bad news. This far in the future, men are still wearing ties. The corporations are using the military to clear a path to the mining of Pandora. You can tell who the military is because they have big biceps. Then there are the scientists, led by Sigourney Weaver. More bad news. There are still cigarettes two centuries from now, and for some reason Sigourney Weaver’s character smokes. I have no idea why Cameron felt it necessary to have one character on “the crutch.” But, she strolls around the massive project puffing away. It's a little jarring.

Make no mistake - it’s the visuals that are the story. Do yourself a favor. Don’t skimp. Get up off your wallet and see it in 3D. This is the future. Cameron has crafted the future of movies, and it unfolds right before your eyes. Using this fictional planet as his canvas, Cameron lets his imagination run wild and in the process proves he has more imagination in his little finger than most of the world. He and his immense team (the credits roll forever) pull out all the stops.

What keeps this from being a masterpiece in every way? Well, you could quibble with the story a little. It’s not without some issues. While you could read some deep racial assimilation meaning into the story, it is a little like every movie ever made in its boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl. The last half hour is a little too GI Joe for me. The inevitable battle sequence is somewhat predictable. So, let’s just say the sparkle of this movie isn’t in the story telling – it’s in the visual feast that’s laid out before your eyes. My last complaint is really not about this movie, because you're never bored. It's about "epics" in general in that it now seems to be a given that you can’t do an “epic” in 2 hours – it must clock in as a bladder buster exceeding two and a half hours. So, I suggest reduced liquid intake.

It won’t do Titanic money, because teenage girls aren’t going to go 10 times to see the love story. But, if you want to see the creativity that will forever affect the future of movie making, go see this. It’s a Game Changer. Simply awesome.

Here’s my top 5 Game Changing Motion Pictures of all time prior to Avatar.

Birth of a Nation
Gone With The Wind
The Exorcist
Star Wars
Titanic



Up In The Air - 9
You’ll like this movie if
a. You like George Clooney
b. You liked previous Jason Reitman movies like Juno
c. You like a little romance

This is a wonderful little movie. I love “star is born” movies, and while George Clooney and Vera Farmiga are terrific, it’s Anna Kendrick who lights the screen up here as the emotional compass of this dramedy.

George Clooney is Ryan Bingham, a professional “work force reducer” who does the dirty work for corporate captains who are too spineless to do it themselves. That Clooney fleshes out his character with humanity is what will bring him some recognition come awards time. It’s his best performance so far as he continues to build his body of work.

When Bingham meets his road warrior soul mate in Farmiga’s character, their chemistry crackles. But, it is Kendrick who almost steals this movie. The sequence with the three of them is a beautifully crafted scene. I may be wrong, but I think we’ll be watching Anna Kendrick light up the screen for a long time. But, accolades to each for creating memorable characters that we like, believe, and care about. In addition, those who are getting fired are as real as you could imagine. That the movie captures these tough economic times so realistically is a tribute to all involved.

The early travel scenes are accurate and funny. That the movie runs out of romantic and narrative steam in the last 15 minutes is really not that disappointing. The resolution may surprise you, but unfortunately I knew where things were headed very early. That’s ok. It’s an entertaining movie.

Saints Report # 15 - December 27, 2009

Who Dat Nation
Take a Sedative

Things are never as good as they seem, nor as bad.

It would be easy for the perpetually negative Saints fans to start talking like Buddy D today, after a stunning 20 – 17 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There’s no need.

The Saints are the same good football team they’ve been all year. The wheels haven’t come off. They’re just wobbling a little, and at a distressing time. In the NFL it’s a 4 month season, with a 5th month if you’ve survived the first 4. There's no way a team can be flawless for that long a time period, no matter what the record shows. There will be ups and downs. The Saints have clinched that they’ll be playing in January, and we should enjoy that. Let’s discuss:

First the bad news.
I said at the beginning of the year the key to the Saints having a great year was Pierre Thomas. The Saints, like every team, need to have some threat of a running game to keep the passing game going, and Pierre is the guy. When he went out with bruised ribs Sunday, I thought the Saints changed significantly. They couldn’t pound, and the Bucs spread the field with coverage. Teams are doing that to the Saints now. NFL defenses catch up with the offenses, always have. It’s the running game threat that the Saints need to open up the field.

Second, the Super Bowl is won by teams that are hot and healthy. The Saints are neither.
But, they have 3 weeks to get healthy. Let’s hang our hat on that for the time being.

The defense is so depleted with injuries, that they just can’t get off the field. Just watch the replay of the punt return that sliced the Saints yesterday and you’ll see a lot of names you don’t recognize getting up off the ground, like game day practice squad signees.

Bill Parcells says a great cornerback is an asset, but a good cornerback is a target. Right now Malcolm Jenkins is a target. The Bucs threw at him all day and he appears to suffer from being a) a rookie, and b) a step too slow to play corner. Now, it may take him a year or two to improve, or I suspect he’ll eventually play safety, but right now he’s not making anyone forget Jabari Greer.

The Saints run defense is awful. The Bucs proved yesterday that being down 17 zip is no reason to abandon your running game. I hope the Saints noticed that.

NFL games turn on a handful of plays. They all seemed to go the Saints way early in the year. The Saints early victories over the Falcons and Panthers I recall could have broken the other way, but for a few plays, not to mention the last month’s last-minute miracles, which came to an abrupt end in the last week. Yesterday, the Colston fumble, the punt return, and the missed field goal were 3 plays that wouldn’t have happened earlier in the year.

Sean Payton appears to have no faith in Kyle Eckles at fullback. Since Heath Evans went down with an injury, the Saints offense has not been the same, and the Saints use tight end David Thomas in the backfield an awful lot. With Shockey out, the Saints don’t have the Tight End down the field threat, with Thomas tied up blocking.

Without Lance Moore, Heath Evans, & Jeremy Shockey, the Saints are a 20 points per game offense, not 30.

Football is a game of power, and the Saints don’t have enough. No matter what their record is, they’ve gotten pushed around in about half their games this year, and the skill players have offset that – but it can’t continue forever. Their top priority in the offseason needs to be more power, especially on the defensive front.

Now, the good news.

If, and it’s a big if, Pierre Thomas, Lance Moore, Jeremy Shockey, Scott Shanle, and Jabari Greer return in time for the playoffs, the Saints should be as good as they were 2 months ago. Will that be good enough to go to, or win, a Super Bowl? We’ll see.

Drew Brees is still Drew Brees. He did all you could ask yesterday. The Saints just seemed a yard short all day. It’s amazing to be walking out of a stadium and have the quarterback throw so few incompletions, that you can recall them all. I’ve done that twice this year.

Robert Meachem continues his emergence. One more step yesterday and he would have scored the winning touchdown by turning a good play into a great one and winning another game almost single-handedly.

The Saints offense is still good, it’s just not as consistent as it used to be.
The Saints defense needs to get back to pressuring the QB, something they haven’t done for awhile.

So, Who Dat nation, take a deep breath and keep the faith. I’m not even saying they’ll win next week, and it would certainly be a shame to now lose home field advantage, which no one seems to want at this point. The great thing about this team is that they have a chance to be very good for the next 3 or 4 years. It doesn’t mean they’re going to go 64 – 0. The pundits will crucify us for the next week or two, and those lofty power rankings will plummet, but this is the same good football team they’ve been all year. They could’ve been great, even perfect if their luck had extended to the training table, but it didn’t and now comes the time of year when you have to grind through a few weeks of adversity.

So, the great news:
We’re in the tournament, and starting mid-January, it’s a brand new, very short season.
I still like our chances. Stand by. Take a sedative if you have to. The Saints will do that to you.

Saints Report # 14 - December 19, 2009

Even the Saints, in a season of magic, dug too deep a hole this time. This first loss of the season can be summed up easily – they hit our quarterback, and we didn’t hit theirs. So, Romo and the Cowboys dominated a Saturday night in the Superdome 24 - 17.

So, at 13 – 1, with injuries depleting the defense, some think the Saints are wearing down. My response is that it appears that the Saints have more depth than ever before. The question is, will it be enough?

As usual, as the 16 game season wears on, your weaknesses get exposed and exploited. Every team is like the Saints in that respect. No reason to panic. The team that wins the Super Bowl is usually the one that is hot and healthy. There’s still time for the Saints to get both.

Some things are now obvious:
1. The NFL still stands for “not for long” – teams are beginning to slow the Saints offense down for some stretches, particularly early in games.
2. On defense, teams have figured out our blitzes, and our linebackers aren’t the scariest blitzers in the world anyway.
3. You can’t have too many cornerbacks to get through the season.
4. There are some emerging offensive superstars that must be stopped and Miles Austin joins that list which includes DeSean Jackson, Chris Johnson, Joshua Cribbs, Percy Harvin. They scare me to death.
5. Middle of the Line Run Stuffers are critical – Sedric Ellis must get healthy
6. While Will Smith and Charles Grant are having good years, can you imagine if the Saints could beef up their pass rush with a DeMarcus Ware or Julius Peppers?
7. As a cornerback, Malcolm Jenkins looks like he’s going to be a great safety.
8. The Saints seem to pull a lot of hamstrings. Wonder if that’s a training issue?
9. No matter what you think, the Saints are never out of a game.

So, now 2 big games to close out this season and hopefully secure home field advantage. What to expect? Well based on the last few games I’d expect the games to be closer than we’d like, the opposing quarterbacks to have big games, and the Saints to have to come from behind. Then, comes the playoff run.

I’m recalling my pre-season prediction; The 14 – 2 Saints meeting the Chargers in the Super Bowl. I’d take that.

Saints Report #13 - December 13, 2009

When a team is having a great year, it seems there is a new hero in each game. This year’s Saints go beyond that. Yes, Jonathan Vilma has bailed them out two games in a row, but what stands out about this team is that there are so many players making contributions.

Sunday, Randall Gay, came out of nowhere on the play previous to Vilma’s 4th quarter interception to throw a Falcon reverse for a 12 yard loss, applying pressure that starting quarterback Chris Redmond couldn’t handle on the next play. Gay’s play up to that point was undistinguished, and Redmond had been unflappable.

This team reminds me of one of my favorite teams – the 1974 -75 Golden State Warriors. They pulled a monumental upset by sweeping the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA Finals. But, it was the way they did it that I’ve always remembered. They used their whole roster. All 12 players played, as I recall, and their only “star” was Rick Barry. Their intensity was incredible and they had a new hero every minute. The NBA was stunned that Coach Al Attles kept the pressure coming for the entire game, using everybody. I’ve never forgotten it.

The Saints remind me of that team. No dominant player, except for Drew Brees, they just keep coming at you in waves. This 26 – 23 victory over the hated Falcons was not in any way pretty, and as the Saints enter the home stretch, there is a lot of cause for concern, especially the way teams are moving the ball on the defense. But, as much as the defense has bent, they haven’t broken, allowing the offense to win the game with its relentless weaponry.

Now Dallas comes to the Dome in what has to be a nasty mood. In this most fortunate season the Saints get to play another big game in the friendly confines of a rocking Superdome. The Cowboys will probably move the ball, but can they stop the Saints’ offense? Can anyone? I sure hope not.

And I So Wanted to beat Phil Simms

It’s Thursday night on the road and I’m so bummed out. I’ve been playing Beat the Insiders all year on Showtime’s Inside the NFL web site.

I forgot about Thursday Night football and locking all my picks in before tonight’s game.

I was 131-61, ranking me 355th out of 51,786 players. I was behind Cris Collingsworth (135 – 57), but ahead of Phil Simms (122 – 70) and Warren Sapp (130 – 62).
I was pretty proud of that, but I’ll pull an 0 – 16 this week because I didn’t get my picks in by kickoff.

Ride over. Bah Humbug.

Oh, by the way - the name of my group of players - which I picked before the season?
The Undefeated Saints.
I'm just saying.

Saints Report #12, December 6, 2009

Just another ho-hum, boring, methodical, “we had ‘em all the way” game on this Magical Mystery Tour. I've got an invitation to make a reservation.

The Saints traveled to Washington, and in a reversal of their performance of last year, got outplayed for most of the game, but pulled out a victory. When things are going your way, strange things happen:
You punt the ball and it hits an opposing team member in the back and you recover the “fumble.”
You throw an interception and one of your receivers rips the ball away and runs in for a touchdown.
Your opponent misses a chip shot field goal that would have put the game away.
Your depleted and beaten up defense gets pushed all over the field – until overtime.
You give up tons of yardage, but your QB throws for 419.

The temptation is to feel sorry for the Redskins who clearly outplayed the Saints for 59 minutes. I don’t. How many times have the Saints lost games after dominating for 59 – too many to count. Steve Young and Joe Montana were specialists at snatching games from the Saints.

Good teams get the breaks and the calls. The Saints have a good team, a magical team, and one that can be good for a long time. The question is, how long can they be magical? These Saints never quit, never give up, never surrender. When the Saints pushed it to overtime yesterday before pulling off a 33-30 win you could sense the magic.

With 3 of the last 4 games of the regular season within the division we’ve already clinched, the stretch run will be bloody and bloody interesting. Buckle up, it’s a Magical Mystery Tour.

At the Cinema - November 2009

The Blind Side – 8

In the great tradition of expose movies like The Insider, The Blind Side is a revealing depiction of college football recruiting tactics – in this instance it is The University of Mississippi that comes under the microscope. As in many Southeastern Schools that are part of the illegal cartel known as the BCS, white alumni recruit and improve the eligibility of poor black athletes, then steer them to their own alma mater.

Okay, that was for my Ole Miss Friends.

You’ll like this movie if you like
a.) Sports Movies
b.) Sandra Bullock
c.) Sentiment

In actuality, The Blind Side is much more in the “Rudy” tradition – a sports movie with heart. This story of a Memphis couple who take in Michael Oher, now of the Baltimore Ravens, off the wintery streets of Memphis and adopt him features another outstanding performance by Sandra Bullock – her second of the year. She stars in this one as LeeAnne Touhy, the big-hearted matriarch. Talk of an Oscar nomination for this role is prevalent, but I still like her better in The Proposal, a movie she carried.

This is a good, solid movie. Go, have fun and enjoy the action.
Just don’t go to Ole Miss.

Saints Report # 11 - November 30, 2009

Random Thoughts from The Monday Night game:
National Stage
Tailgating at Noon
Statement Game
Almost finished my Ferdi
Brett Favre is the MVP
Section mad at me
Wow
Saints have weapons
McKenzie quick on the carpet
Brady uncomfortable
Malcolm Jenkins worthy
Wow
Brees perfect
Cedric not a running back
Crowd drunk
Why is a cop standing next to me?
Peyton Manning is MVP
Wow
NOPD Officer is huge
Colston or Welker?
When is Lance coming back?
Brett Favre is MVP
Where’s Reggie?
There goes Sharper
Unexpected blowout
Wonder if Phil Simms is watching
42 years to carefully construct this
Hitting on 8 cylinders
Section has forgiven me
Is there a weakness?
Our cornerbacks awesome
Does Payton ever stop attacking?
Their corners are lost
Defense superb
Guards best in the league
Brees kept clean
Patriots throw in towel
Meachem now worthy
Wow
Brett Favre is MVP
11 – 0 and by Wednesday we’ll be back under the radar
Next week we get only game in the elements all year
We owe the Redskins one
ESPN Monday Night shirts!
French Quarter wild
Fans getting cocky
Did I really just see that?