Strat's 20 of 2014

The top of the crop for 2014 was some of the fascinating and original cinema in quite awhile. Overall the year seems to have been one where the cinema of distraction reigned supreme as sequels and spinoffs made up most of the films in the American film market. Fortunately, there were some glowing exceptions. A few notable mentions were The Theory of Everything, The Search for General Tso, Beyond the Lights and Showrunners.

20. Edge of Tomorrow (sci-fi)
The first film to blend some of the narrative notions of video games with the traditional 3 act narrative, the film works almost as a science fiction version of Groundhog Day.

19. X-Men:Days of Future Past (sci-fi/action)
The best X-men film since X2 and it manages to be entertaining yet cerebral and socially themed.

18. Interstellar (sci-fi) 

Probably higher up in my mind just for the classic Nolan mind puzzles and scale. It never becomes a vfx show off piece and keeps the characters close at hand. 

17. Neighbors (comedy) 
It's like one of those short form cartoons you'd see from Tom and Jerry as a kid, except done as a series of adults versus frat teens in live action.

16. Mitt (documentary) 
The best doc of an active political campaign since the War Room. While it sometimes seems to oversimplify the decision-making by Romney and cohorts, you have to wonder how much of the spin in the media is just spin.

15. The Babadook (horror) 
A wonderful original entry into the horror/suspense genre without becoming something it's not. It fits right into the pantheon of domestic tales like Rosemary's Baby with an Aussie twist.

14. Gone Girl (drama) 
Fincher's attempt to take a best-selling book and push it even further visually. While the film has some serious plot holes, the intensity of the main characters will have you wondering how well you really know your significant other.

13. Grand Budapest Hotel (comedy)
Wes Anderson films for me are always hit or miss. This is not one of those films that are so full of itself that it gets in the way of telling a good story and we're all rewarding with a light farce.

12. Blue Ruin (drama)
If No Country For Old Men were made for next to nothing, this is what it would look like. A tough, realistic film that pulls no punches.

11. Selma (drama)
A solidly told historical drama that is remarkable in it's telling and at the same time surprising in that it took this many years before it was portrayed. While somewhat overlooked, it is sure to be a film that will be a film of study in years to come.

10. Whiplash (drama)
While I have never been dedicated to a musical instrument, I can fully understand the  extreme obsession of prioritizing one aspect of one's life/career above all else to the detriment of ones own person.

9. Fury (drama)
The intensity of Training day is brought to bear on a WW2 tank film. It has the same sort of claustrophobic tension as some of the great submarine films like Das Boot or Crimson Tide.

8. Foxcatcher (drama)
It's fascinating to see how some people of means can become so detached from society and still be revered for no other reason than their wealth allows them to allow patronage to those of lesser means. Steve Carrell breaks all perceptions of him as merely a comic actor.

7. Citizenfour (documentary)
No one in recent American history has challenged the powers of our government on a fundamental level as Edward Snowden. This is his story and it's told without flinching.

6. Big Hero 6 (animated)
It's one of those films that you're constantly surprised by with its maturity and heart. Not to mention Disney's ability to blend its distinctive style with that of Japanese anime.

5. Chef (comedy) 
This is a film that's hard to decide where to put in on this list. Maybe it's not quite this good, maybe I'm tempering its greatness. What I do know is that it illicits one feeling unlike any other that I've ever placed on this list - hunger. Damn the food looks good.

4. The Lego Movie (animated) 
This is a film that late out ambushed me. In what could have easily been a pure commercial grab, the film jumps up with something to say about society and creativity while still keeping to it's commercial interests.

3. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (sci-fi) 
This is what science fiction should be in the sequel world - taking the story to new heights and exploring new dimensions of what makes the original good.

2. Nightcrawler (drama) 
How far will ambition take people desperate to live the American entrepreneurial dream? It's one part Taxi   Driver, one part Network.

1. Boyhood (drama) 
What can I say? It's the best, most impactful film I've seen since Fight Club. Just see it. It's a life changing experience.

Lupe's Top 20 of 2012

20. The Master (drama)
Too bad the movie is told from Johnny Cash's point of view, he's the least interesting and most predictable character here.  And he has no clue how to be a good cultist, not like this:  "I'm covered in the dust of the Leader!  He favors me!"  "I am even dustier, dustier than thou!"

19. Beasts of the Southern Wild (drama)
You can tell it's not a documentary, despite the title, because the aurochs was a bovine, not a pig.  Also because little girls aren't hush puppies (unless maybe you're Ted Bundy).

18. Cosmopolis (drama)
This is what the Foo Fighters' White Limo video would be like if it were written and directed by sterile robot brains only programmed to write one character.

17. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (adventure)
I think what this movie really needed was more songs.  I'm inferring that one of Radagast's bunnies was named Bugs, from what we see of their altercations with the Yosemite Orcs.  Definitely a lot of epic stuff left on the cutting room floor here.  It should have been a quadrilogy.

16. Searching For Sugar Man (documentary)
You missed the zeitgeist, Rodriguez.  You'd have been huge as a hair metal band (for about five minutes).  Luckily for you, the sixties was still going on in South Africa.  Marilyn Manson's going to scare the hell out of them, one of these days.

15. Hitchcock (drama)
Hannibal Lector's eaten one too many livers with fava beans and a nice chianti.  This softer, yet still excitable psycho lets us know that behind every weird auteur there's a woman taking credit for his genius.

14. Compliance (drama)
The true story of a textbook Lewinsky, a dubious authority figure taking advantage of a malleable young girl.  This would never have happened at a McDonalds run by Ron Paul.  That dude missed his calling.

13. Silver Linings Playbook (drama)
I saw this movie back when it was called Garden State.  Hey, I'm emotionally damaged, too (as should be completely obvious from my film reviews).  Where's my manic pixie dreamgirl?

12. Les Miserables (musical/drama)
Chill, Anne Hathaway, jeez.  Some ladies aspire to prostitute themselves.  They're called gold diggers.  At least you found a nice sugar daddy for your little girl, if I'm interpreting this movie correctly.

11. Cabin in the Woods (horror)
So if you ever suspected there was a reason for the endless, samey iterations of boring, repetitive slasher films, whether the killer is a Jason, a Freddy, an S&M horror advertised as being from the mind of Clive Barker, or even Aquaman, it's because Quetzalcoatl is a movie producer, and Quetzalcoatl has notes.

10. Killer Joe (crime)
Killer Joe’s proposal is so special, I’m sure he won’t beat his future bride just because she seems stoned to a Carrie Fisher-like degree, then make her eat a bloody chicken leg like he did his future stepmother-in-law.  Ain’t it a shame to beat your wife on a Sunday?

9. Looper (action)
A one party state in which men vastly outnumber women… China, it's the place to be in the future!  Anyway, these filmmakers must have thought time travel was lame, because they threw in some pointless telekinesis to their movie as well.

8. Skyfall (action)
Between the Jensen Aston Martin or whatever, and going back to M’s original office from the 60’s complete with secretary Miss Moneypenny, we’ve circled back in time.  Though maybe this was a new Austin Powers installment where Mike Myers got a little dark, even for a guy who plays a character named Dr. Evil.  Seriously, though, who upholsters a door?

7. Wreck-It Ralph (animated/family)
Some day, movie watchers will look back on a time when kids went to arcades to play video games as totally anachronistic.  And that day came like twenty years ago.

6. The Avengers (action)
This is the most fun superheroes had all year.  Loki's a great villain who didn't have to steal his master plan from Magneto (looking at you, Lizard), plus you can understand words coming out of his mouth (Bane should get a job voicing Mushmouth for Bill Cosby).

5. Seven Psychopaths (drama/crime)
You never know, this might have been another Kurosawa remake like The Magnificent Seven, or Seven Faces of Dr. Lao, or Seven Minutes in Heaven, or Se7en.  Some of those strayed from the source material, but I think I have that right.  Instead, it has the psycho bunny from Monty Python.  “Go on, Bors, chop his head off.”  Don’t do it, Bors.  This will not end well.

4. Lincoln (historical drama)
Strat hates Lincoln.  He's all like, "States rights, bitches!  I'ma John Wilkes Booth this mofo!"  Me, I got nothin but love for Lincoln.  The best is putting on a stovepipe hat when you tower over everyone else already.  Hat power!

3. Moonrise Kingdom (drama)
There are those of you who will understand if I just say, it's Wes Anderson.  I have a soft spot for this movie because it’s exactly how I remember the Boy Scouts.  I also went on campouts, learned to tie knots, purchased snake bite kits from the trading post, was struck by lightning, and got married when I was twelve years old.

2. Argo (drama/suspense)
The Persians have graduated from Zack Snyder's slow/fast motion to Spielbergian time stretching, and from Xerxes' army of perverts to Khomenei's much scarier and more believable army of perverts.

1. Zero Dark Thirty (drama)
After the long awaited Point Break 2, Kathryn Bigelow might eventually make a biopic about Gadhafi's final days, so hold your breath for that bit where they sodomize him with a bayonet.  For now, settle for being sodomized by slow moving bureaucracy as Little "Red Hair, not Red Tape" Riding Hood mobilizes Team America to take out OG bin Laden.

Strat's 20 of 2013

2013 was a year of starts and stops. At one point it looked as if there would hardly be films I would dare recommend to having a solid grouping within a few months. Considering I've been making these lists for awhile, it shouldn't have come as that big a surprise that the end of the year would see the most number of these films released.  What was surprising is the list of notables not on here including "All is Lost", "Elysium", Don Jon, and "Mud".

20. The World's End (comedy/adventure)
I'm sure many will disagree, but this is my favorite of Edgar Wright's Cornetto trilogy.  If you've seen the others, you know what to expect tone wise, but you don't need to have in order to follow the film.

19. We're the Millers (comedy)
Sure it's formulaic. But the chemistry between the cast pulls out one of the most surprisingly funny movies of the year.

18. Blackfish (documentary)
If one movie ever provokes you to think twice before accepting at face value the treatment of wild animals in captivity, this will. This unflinching documentary gets right into the grit of life for the orcas which people go to see every day around the world.

17. Dirty Wars (documentary)
At this point, there's probably not much anyone can show you about the American system of covert engagement with "targets" around the world. What this doc does is take all the puzzle pieces and put them together in a rather engaging and provocative manner.

16. Spring Breakers (drama/thriller)
What if Natural Born Killers were sexy college coeds on spring break that then met a Florida gangster? Yeah. It's a ride.

15. 12 Years a Slave (drama)
Quite possibly one of the most difficult movies to watch on the year. Be warned. It's unflinching and brutal. I'm sure by the title you can tell why.

14. The Lunchbox (foreign comedy)
An incredibly rich and fascinating film that revolves entirely around, you guessed it, a lunchbox. While it is very current with its depiction of life in Mumbai, India, director Ritish Batra manages to create a rich tableau of characters that never ceases to entertain or fascinate.

13. Captain Phillips (drama)
This is a film that if it had a different director at the helm and an actor other than Tom Hanks, the realism and genuine honesty of this story wouldn't resonate.  Tom Hanks' greatest acting gift is making you forget its Tom Hanks just as Paul Greengrass makes sure every moment is sincere.

12. Wadjda (foreign drama)
The first feature film ever to come out of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and it is directed by a woman.  This remarkable glimpse into the world of a little girl growing up in a strongly oppressed world looking to own a bike.

11. Disconnect (drama)
This film likely flies under more radars of films for the year, but is much more important than many other films about contemporary American culture as it explores our virtual "connectedness" today through compelling and someone interconnected stories.

10. Omar (foreign drama)
This is a tense, rough glimpse into the world of a Palestinian freedom fighter/terrorist as he struggles to choose between saving himself or the people around him.

9. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (comedy/drama)
This is one of those uplifting movies that manages to tightrope that fine line between cheesiness and inspirational art.  And if you haven't in awhile, use your passport.

8. The Broken Circle Breakdown (foreign drama)
A gut-wrenching sad foreign film about a country western band's collapse as it is held together by the relationship of a mother, father and dying daughter.

7. The Dallas Buyers Club (drama)
You'll spend half the movie thinking "Is that really Jared Leto and Matthew McConaughey? Then the rest of it, enthralled in the ethics struggle between them and the politicians and drug companies fight.

6. Inside Llewyn Davis (comedy/drama)
It's hard not to like this movie about a dislikable fellow on his quest.  It's a movie without your typical 3 act structure that is cleverly written, but never feels like it's too clever.

5. Cutie and the Boxer (documentary)
Can't say it's not somehow personal to watch a film about the struggles of being an artist in a big city.  What makes this so wonderful is the love and desire that the artistic couple in this film feel for each other through it all.

4. Nebraska (comedy/drama)
It's sort of a trip through a portal into old mid-west Americana and looking at all of it 50 years later.

3. Gravity (sci-fi/drama)
It's hard to appreciate the movie in 2D the way you can in 3D.  The awesomeness of the vacuum of space is both terrifying and magical. Thankfully this film weaves a balance of heart and story in such a way that keeps it heavy in your mind and soul.

2. The Square (documentary)
A glimpse into the life of the various factions within the Egyptian populace that took to the streets during the 2011 Arab Spring protests and the aftermath.  The film captures what feels like a 360 degree view of the people involved.

1. Her (sci-fi romantic comedy)
One of the most lovely, touching and absolutely moving films in a long time.  It's incredibly personal about how impersonal Her is.

Strat's 20 of 2012

2012 mirrored 1999 in some rather interesting ways - it started off slow and picked up the pace and highly anticipated second trilogies by well-respected filmmakers meet with good box office, but disappointing fan reactions.  That said, putting the 2012 list together was an exercise in deciding what got left off. Notable films that didn't make it were Amour, Magic Mike, The Sessions and Ted (go ahead and laugh).

20. Amazing Spider-Man (action)
I was ready to write this off as re-boot with no business being made. Then I realized Andrew Garfield managed to find a portrayal of Peter Parker that is both vulnerable and bold.

19. Frances Ha (drama)
This is a film that I was not exactly looking for as a "ooh I have to see it" from the ads or the recommends on Netflix. That said, it's a great film. An honest film about friendships and love and growing up in your late 20s.

18. Skyfall (action drama)
What happens when someone decides to make one of the most visual Bond films ever? What happens when you actually think Bond could be broken or that he really exists? You get awesomeness.

17. Wreck-It Ralph (animated comedy)
It's about time that someone brought the video game world to the big screen without trying to make it about the video games.  The filmmakers here triumphantly went for substance much deeper than the 8-bit pixels.

16. Looper (sci-fi)
It's not often than you see a single, but complex story executed with such precision and depth that it is a moving and exciting experience. Kudos to getting this story made.

15. Django Unchained (western)
The star of this film isn't Jamie Foxx or Leonardo DiCaprio.  That honor is bestowed to Tarantino for delivery another sharp, clever, written performance to an otherwise tired genre.

14. Hitchcock (drama)
It only makes sense that the "Master of Suspense" himself was a creepy, strange fellow.  It's part bio pic, part horror film.  All excellent.

13. The Master (drama)
No, this movie has NOTHING to do with Scientology.  What is Scientology you say?  Watch this film.  For once, a film that shows the genesis of how a spiritual following starts.

12. Cloud Atlas (sci-fi)
One of the most intriguing films I've seen in years.  Not to mention actors in roles you would not ever imagine.  I mean Halle Berry as a man? Come on.  It's part Matrix, part Tree of Life.

11. Brave (animated adventure)
I would never have watched it based on the trailers, but the film shows it's much better than that.  With fantasy and fun suitable for small children and mature themes for the older audience.

10. Safety Not Guaranteed (sci-fi/comedy)
This is one of the more touching and funny films of the year. Aubrey Plaza's dry delivery mixes perfectly with the absurdity of her time traveling partner.

9. End of Watch (drama/thriller)
The most intense, thrilling cop film I've seen since Training Day.  With the decision to intermix "found footage" with traditional cinema techniques, it takes on a fresh vibrant life of it's own.

8. Indie Game: The Movie (documentary)
It might be about the independent video game developer world, but it's difficult to not see connections with their struggles and that of anyone else in the creative side of the entertainment industry.

7. Flight (drama)
Yes, it's a movie about addiction.  Yes, it's about a crazy airline crash.  But unlike an actual flight, this film is about the journey much more than the destination.

6. Ruby Sparks (comedy/drama)
One of the sweetest and definitely darkest romantic comedy I've ever seen.  There are a lot of opportunities for this movie to have taken a well worn direction, but it never ceases to find something interesting and insightful.

5. To Rome With Love (comedy)
Just when people were starting to write off Woody, he churns out 3 great movies in 5 years.  As daring as some of his early work was at the time, it's become evident that while not that daring anymore he has an innate ability to do what many filmmakers fail to recall - tell an good story.

4. 21 Jump Street (action/comedy)
This movie jumped up and surprised me.  I really had not considered how much the high school culture itself has changed in the last 10 years until I saw the dots connected in this surprising remake of the old TV series.

3. Searching For Sugarman (documentary)
If you don't know what this movie is about, don't look it up.  It will make the movie THAT much more surprising and moving. Not that it needs much help.  Certainly one of the most uplifting movies that you'll ever see - and it's a true story!

2. Silver Linings Playbook (comedy/drama)
Just great writing and great acting just chewing through scenes; always taking the unconventional road. Up and down as much as someone with bi-polar.  Good thing that's part of the story.

1. Argo (drama)
It's your classic historical drama. Like Flight, it's a story that is about the journey rather than the destination.  What makes this that much better is that the story is so insane, it has to be true.  Fortunately it is.

Lupe's Top 20 of 2011

All of Hollywood's millions of hours of hard work don't amount to much in the worst year for movies since I started doing these lists.  Try harder, celebutards!

20. The Artist (drama)
Critics can see through style over substance when its in service of a big dumb action movie, like 300, but always get taken in by the novelty when it's Oscar bait, like Moulin Rouge, or like The Artist.  But it doesn't make the characters any less flat, or the story less shallow.

19. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (crime)
If the original Swedish version didn't make you feel uncomfortable enough, this should do the trick.  About as bad as the shot for shot remake of Psycho.

18. Super 8 (sci-fi)
A cross between ripoffs of ET and The Goonies, if that's your thing.

17. Young Adult (drama)
The writer behind the Mary Sue is an unpleasant alcoholic.  Kinda makes sense.  Diablo Cody without the charm of Juno. Or even Jennifer's Body.

16. Hugo (family)
Scorsese has two passions: filmmaking and the mob.  Sadly, this movie is about filmmaking.

15. The Adjustment Bureau (sci-fi)
Matt Damon plays a politician whom the world actually revolves around.  As if a politician's ego isn't big enough already.

14. Source Code (sci-fi)
Jake Gyllenhal sure can play a torso.

13. Hanna (action)
A seventeen year old girl experiments with murder and lesbianism.  That's a small and scary target audience.

12. The Help (drama)
Nothing makes me love my fellow man more than a poo pie.  I wonder if Gandhi ever borrowed that recipe?

11. The Descendants (drama)
George Clooney opens the movie by telling us that Hawaii is as humdrum as any other place.  Then we find out that he owns this vast, unspoiled tract of idyllic beachfront paradise.  Up yours, George Clooney.

10. Thor (action)
The son of Odin is just a bad dude until Natalie Portman tames his impudent heart.  He may be whipped, but he still knows how to hoist his hammer.  For Asgard!

9. My Week With Marilyn (drama)
In the real world, Lawrence Olivier's "be a dick" approach would be way more productive than falling in love with your psycho starlet.

8. The Lincoln Lawyer (drama)
Feels like a big budget TV pilot, though I doubt they'd get Bongo McConaughey to come back for the series.  Maybe if it was on HBO and they offered him copious nude scenes.

7. Captain America (action)
Heil Hydra.  Cut off one head and two more shall take its place.  Cut off their balls, though, and they'll be a little more housebroken.

6. A Dangerous Method (drama)
This looked like a lot of fun for the actors, especially the spanking scenes.  And then she was murdered by Hitler.  As Freud would say, sometimes a cigar is just a Nazi firing squad.

5. Moneyball (drama)
One of the better movies from this otherwise regrettable year, but they could have made the porn version of its title just a little less obvious.

4. X-Men: First Class (action)
Mystique never does the whole "mutant and proud" thing with Banshee because he's a ginger, and that's nothing to be proud of.

3. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (spy thriller)
Before long, George Smiley finds out that his frumpy Panamanian housemaid was secretly Karla all along, if that Soviet spymaster's name is anything to go by.  Power to the Smiley's People!

2. 50/50 (comedy/drama)
JGL: "I have cancer."  Seth Rogen: "And your girlfriend's a bitch."  Definitely one of the year's few good movies.

1. The Devil's Double (drama)
They could do this same story by replacing Uday Hussein and his Iraqi schoolgirls with Michael Jackson whisking away young boys to Neverland Ranch and it might be even more horrifying.  Or is it still too soon?

Strat's 20 of 2011

While 2011 had several very solid films, it did not see any truly remarkable, timeless films come to the silver screen. Sci-fi fare tended to dominate more than any year I can recall.  Independant material ruled and of 9 movies nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, only 2 made this list (Moneyball and Midnight in Paris). I also had the honor and privilege this year of seeing two friends' first features make the list that really deserved more attention than they received.

20. 5 Broken Cameras (documentary)
This remarkable story that follows a Palestinian man and his encounters with the Israeli army and settlers is unsettling for not only the courage in making this film but how much restraint is shown when not trying to victimize the village.

19. Melancholia (drama)

Yes, it's depressing. It's also very provocative (no surprise there from Von Trier) and well acted.

18. The Lincoln Lawyer (suspense drama)
I never thought I would add a film on this list that includes Matthew McConaughey, but that's what it looks like. A sharply written, glimpse into the world of free wheeling hucksterism.

17. Source Code (sci-fi/thriller)
A not-so futuristic look at the tie in between humans, computers and our relationships to one another through them.

16. Kumaré (documentary)
This film was overlooked by many when it made the festival circuit, but as lighthearted as the film seems, I imagine that some will find its message quite deep.

15. Crazy, Stupid, Love (romantic comedy)
I overlooked this movie for awhile, thinking Steve Carell was a one note guy. Well he is. But he hits the note with ease. With a great cast and few fun twists, this movie is quite enjoyable.

14. Take Shelter (drama/thriller)
It's been awhile since I've seen a movie relatively about nothing terrify me. This is definitely a psychological scary movie not to be missed.

13. Bernie (dark comedy)
This movie is the quientissential depiction of life behind east Texas' "Pine Curtain". While Jack Black's performance is okay, it's the use of interviews with people about the true story of Bernie that make this movie shine.

12. The Adjustment Bureau (sci-fi)

It's another cool concept film with a surprising emotional connection that I unexpectedly discovered. 

11. Rise of the Planet of the Apes (sci-fi)

Franco has a knack for picking interesting projects. This is the first time I have ever seen animal CGI that looked convincingly real. It sure didn't hurt that the movie was generally compelling and set up the world that we know in the Apes franchise so well.

10. Natural Selection (comedy/drama)
Hats off to Robbie Pickering in his feature directorial debut.  It's a well-crafted/acted film that reminds me of an early Coen brothers movie.

9. Drive (drama)

Not often that a small budget movie makes a car chase scene exciting again. Let alone really intrigues me for a whole film. Here's your warning - the violence is pretty graphic.

8. Post (drama)

Jim Parrack directs his former wife (Ciera) and best friend Scott Haze in a gripping emotional film about a wife coping with the loss of her husband off at war and the trials and tribulations of moving on.

7. The Intouchables (foreign drama)
The film is a lot funnier than I thought it would be and although rather predictable, does a great job of saying a lot through saying little. Excellent performances all around and some rather nice cinematography.

6. Midnight in Paris (comedy)

Just when you thought Woody Allen was washed up, he pops up with a gem. Not just any gem, but his best since Vicky/Christina Barcelona and one of his all time best.  Owen Wilson nails the Allen-esque role.

5. The Devil's Double (drama)

On the surface, you wouldn't expect a movie about the son Saddam Hussein's son's body double to be loaded with visual effects, but you'd be wrong. In fact, you wouldn't expect this movie to be much more than filler. Wrong again. Dead wrong.

4. Hot Coffee (documentary)

Before seeing this movie, I admit I was one of those who panned about the merits of frivolous lawsuits until I saw the other side of this story. The side that has been silenced most of the time since.

3. The Adventures of Tintin (animated adventure)

Quite possibly the most fun Spielberg movie I've seen since Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. It's not going to blow anyone away when it comes to animation, but following Zemeckis' lead, Spielberg crafts a wonderful motion capture movie and nails the comic. 

2. My Week With Marilyn (drama)

I fell in love with Michelle Williams' Ms Monroe as well with the other performances in this one.  I've never felt like I really understood this old Hollywood icon until this movie. Great cinematography by Ben Smithard.

1. 50/50 (drama/comedy)
I never thought you could do a comedy about cancer without it feeling melodramatic, but that's what director Jonathan Levine manages to do in what should have been an Oscar-nominated/best picture of the year film in my book. See for yourself.

Lupe's Top 20 of 2010

20. The Town (crime)
Ben Affleck should stay out of the tabloids and do more of this.  Normally, I'd be bored of the love story, but this one keeps my interest by giving Affleck a secret identity, like Batman.  If Batman robbed banks.

19. Get Low (drama)
Robert Duvall witnesses his own funeral, but the good townspeople of Geezerville stop short of burying him alive.  This ain't no horror movie, sad to say.

18. The Fighter (drama)
How can a movie be this watchable with so many douchebags on parade?  Chalk it up to the strength of the acting, I guess.  Never fear, sports movie fans, I got your montage right here.

17. The King's Speech (drama)
I can't overemphasize the importance of this character arc.  We needed the king to step up and do what Winston Churchill couldn't: give a good speech.  "We shall fight them on the beaches…"  Wait...

16. Toy Story 3 (animated, children's)
I eventually got too old for He-Man and Ninja Turtles, but you're never too old for Lots-O'-Huggin' Bear.  Excuse me while I suppress a shudder.  This film is a welcome condemnation of those freakish "bronies".  Grow up, weirdos!

15. Youth in Revolt (romantic comedy)
Evil Michael Cera is pretty awesome, though if you look closely enough, this is almost the exact story as Black Swan.  I'm not sure why the girl doesn't just knee him in the junk and never speak to him again.

14. Inception (science fiction)
The team of paramilitary dream invaders just squeezes past the suspension of disbelief.  My only real complaint is that you shouldn't make your whole movie pointless for the sake of a twist ending.  M Night Shyamalan directed the last five seconds and it ruined everything that came before.

13. The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader (fantasy)
Not as good as the first Narnia movie, but better than the second, thanks to Eustace Scrubb and his mean spirited limericks.

12. Animal Kingdom (crime)
In The Departed, everyone gets shot willy-nilly until Marky Mark is the last man standing.  That looks kind of farcical compared to this movie.  That's the difference between random violence and deliberate violence.

11. Restrepo (documentary)
Thank God the cameras cut away before we see any Afghanis take a squat.  Seriously, they don't know how to use a commode.  Not making that up.  Instead, we get to see real live war, and it's totally mesmerizing.

10. Iron Man 2 (action)
Hopefully, Tony Stark can still be a drunk, narcissistic womanizer even after hooking up with Gwyneth Paltrow, since that's what made him so likable and fun to watch.  God bless Iron Man, God bless America.

9. Black Swan (drama)
It's not the pressure that drives Queen Amidala insane, it's her explosively pink bedroom.  Maybe that also explains why she's so into Mila Kunis.  Lord knows that's my excuse.

8. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (foreign, crime)
The Swedish version of this movie is a modern murder mystery with computer hacking, video surveillance, and soundproof rooms, and guess who's the culprit?  Spoiler alert: it's Hitler.

7. Let Me In (horror)
A wish fulfillment scenario I can appreciate.  If my best friend was a vampire, then everyone who was ever mean to me would be sorry.  That means you, Ralphie Parker.

6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (comedy)
If you don't know Launchpad McQuack, this might not be the movie for you.  And if your life had a face, I would punch it in the balls.  The rest of you are cool.

5. Winter's Bone (drama)
The premise, of a teenage girl looking for her dad so their impoverished family doesn't get kicked off their land, sounds dull until you hear the phrase "redneck mafia."  Plus, she can really peel a squirrel.

4. 127 Hours (drama)
Surprisingly gripping for a movie about a dude trapped under a rock for two hours.  James Franco is so hardcore, he drinks his own pee.  Just like Kevin Costner in Waterworld, though maybe that's not the best comparison.

3. The Social Network (drama)
Mark Zuckerberg craps money.  He's all like, "Hey, lawyers.  See this?  Yeah, that's my middle finger."  I should invent something that makes me super rich and overthrows Arab dictators.

2. True Grit (western)
The years have not been kind to drunken cowboys.  He looks like if Kurt Cobain was still alive, and also a cowboy.  Kind of gritty.  Truly gritty.

1. Carlos (biopic, political thriller)
This film, the anti-Che, tells of the utterly engrossing true life criminal career of Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, aka Cobra Commander.  Watch all six hours and love it, or I'll send over Serpentor to eff you up.

20 Most Overrated Movies of the 2000s

Alright, so what do I mean by overrated? I mean movies that were box office smash hits that got decent reviews or flat out were gushed over by many critics.  Not being part of the normal criticssphere, we here at 20 Movie Bites are more than happy to take the gloves off about these films and help you avoid the mistake of watching one of these because you heard good things. Trust me, I heard good things too. You will likely notice a heavy dose of musicals on this list.

20. Elephant (drama)

Acclaimed by critics for its minimal style while attempting to deal with teens in a Columbine-like situation, this unmoving work by Gus Van Sant makes you want do something violent yourself. 

19. Spirited Away (animated)

Japanimation. Ughh. It's a niche genre of cinema and no matter what anime fans might try to persuade you, it's the most elegant of them. But it still sucks.

18. Girlfight (drama)

The movie that put Michelle Rodriguez and director Karyn Kusama on the map. Another critic darling about a female boxer. You'd think it would be interesting. Nope. Incredibly slow-paced and uninspiring.

17. Pollock (drama)

The pretentious art film in the bunch - literally. Hardly redeeming and while Jackson Pollock's work is worth studying, this movie isn't.

16. Ice Age (animated comedy)
It was so good they made 2 sequels. And seriously, could you really care any less about the characters?

15. Adaption (comedy/drama)
Unlike confessions, Charlie Kaufman takes a great approach to a movie about the writing experience. Unfortunately, the book he's adapting is still really boring.

14. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (drama)
I didn't really care if the guy's story was true or not. All I did not was that it was a convoluted mess masquerading as a story.

13. Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince (fantasy)
The book was actually well-written. What happened here is the subplot of the relationship became the main plot and the exploration of the villain, Voldemort became a footnote. How does that happen? The title of the movie/book is about him!

12. Dreamgirls (musical)
You'd have to wonder if musicals are an excuse to not tell an interesting story or fresh take on an old tale. Dreamgirls seems to recycle every musical cliché out there.

11. Dancer in the Dark (musical)
Von Trier takes the Dogmé 95 movement to its conclusion here. It seems that he tries to show in this film how many cuts you can possibly have in a film. I've never felt a movie was so overcut as this and it is distracting. Bjork seems okay in it, but again - it's a musical.

10. The Reader (drama)
Another movie with the Oscar nominee pedigree - WWII setting, woman with a secret, coming of age boy and European sexuality. It falters under the weight of all the movie clichés that it lives off of.


9. Brokeback Mountain (drama)
Is it well acted? Yes. Is it that moving? Not any more than any other dramatic love story. It just happens to be about a gay love story. Perhaps it's more because it falls on the sword of the joke about indie films that Trey Parker and Matt Stone concocted years before - gay cowboys (without the pudding).

8. Sweeney Todd (musical)
Dear Mr. Burton,
While I admire your visual panache, your choice of stories leaves much to be desired. What you need is a producer to keep you selecting good projects. This is not one of them, despite the hype.



7. A Beautiful Mind (drama)
Funny that a movie about mathematics is a paint-by-the-numbers type of film. Everything is here that should be, but very non-compelling and heavy handed fashion.



6. Sideways (comedy/drama)
There seem to be a lot of these on the list. Movies that are not sure how to balance laughter and seriousness. In all seriousness, it's hard to relate to the main characters as no one is likeable and the situations are sort of a twisted funny. Yes, it might be real life. No, it's not entertaining.

5. Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge of the Sith
Alright George Lucas, third time is the charm, right? He wrecked a story for a generation or two of fans with the first 2 prequels, could he do it again? Yes. The movie didn't have to be surprising, it just had to be well acted and well executed. For all the hope of salvaging the Star Wars franchise, it did nothing for it.



4. Mystic River (drama)
When Mr. Eastwood rolls a movie into theaters, I'll watch it every time. Ocassionally he goofs. And when he goofs it's big. But don't tell the Academy that. It was nominated for Best Picture despite it's lackadaisical, wandering structure



3. The Pianist (drama)
There's a reason that this movie was dismissed initially by the public - it's not terribly interesting. And Adrian Brody rubs me the wrong way.  The douche-baggy wrong way. I for one am content to let Polanski's film productivity stay down while he stays in Europe.

2. Gran Torino (drama)
I just can't get over how cheesy the dialogue is in this film. It's hard to watch Clint play a facsimile of Dirty Harry here. I don't think I've ever watched a major dramatic movie before and ever felt that it was "acted" as this.

1. Chicago (musical)
Just because you channel your inner Bob Fosse and win best picture, doesn't mean you are any good. The most forgettable Best Picture winner of the decade.