The Best Films of the 2000s and more.
Posts tagged Dysfunction
American Splendor (2003)
Jun 28th
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Hope Davis, Judah Friedlander
Director: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Country: USA
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Most original mix of reality and fiction of the decade.
Biopics are a dime a dozen. Most of the time they are overly dramatized excuses for an actor to be a candidate for Best Actor. But American Splendor takes a far different approach. It’s part documentary, part adaptation of a graphic novel, part dramatized biopic. It’s a movie about a movie being made about a man who has written a comic book about himself. The funny, and perhaps most impressive thing is, it never comes off self-indulgent. Harvey Pekar, the film’s subject, is known for his blatant truth-telling and the film stays true to that. It blends animation with interview footage and traditional scripted scenes. Paul Giamatti puts in a splendid performance as the depressed hygiene-handicapped comic book writer.
Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire (2009)
Jun 9th
Starring: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo’Nique, Paula Patton
Director: Lee Daniels
Country: USA
Genre: D-r-a-m-a-a-a-a-a.
The greatness of this film is a surprise of a lifetime.
It’s not unfair to say that this film is targeted for a specific demographic. However, it is a testament to its quality when its reach exceeds and transcends the boundaries of its marketed audience. Sure, it was an award season darling, but make no mistake, its roots are in the festival circuit where the issues of independent films aren’t shied away from or sugarcoated (The Blind Side being the counter piece to this film, and the worst offender of Hollywood dribble.) Here, the performances are so real it’s grating. Mo’Nique creates a villain equal to that of all the Waltz’s, Bardem’s and Ledger’s the Academy has ever seen. Sidibe is an absolute revelation as the twice pregnant abused high schooler. Precious makes Hollywood underdog stories look like children’s books. Lee Daniels really created something special here – something that deserves every ounce of praise it gets.
Enduring Love (2004)
May 10th
Starring: Daniel Craig, Rhys Ifans, Samantha Morton
Director: Roger Michell
Country: UK
Genre: Thriller
Don’t be a hero, Joe.
Roger Michell has certainly crafted himself a diverse body of work from the romantic fare of Notting Hill to the supercharged Changing Lanes and the poignantly hilarious Venus. In Enduring Love he has taken on the thriller genre and explored all that it has to offer. In terms of the script, it’s not anything entirely new, but the events that unfold have a certain freshness to them. This could be in part to the visual style which is absolutely breathtaking. This might also be due to the amazing performances by Samantha Morton, Rhys Ifans and by far Daniel Craig who shows he’s far more than James Bond makes him out to be. It’s a surprising and emotionally packed thriller which gives it a longevity over most films in the genre, and it’s sure to satisfy those looking for more than just cheap thrills.
The Mist (2007)
Apr 27th
HORROR PICK:
Starring: Tom Jane, Laurie Holden, Toby Jones
Director: Frank Darabont
Country: USA
Genre: Horror
Darabont brings us yet another great Stephen King adaptation.
Horror films can reach some dark depths, but most of them give us hope for the survivors by the end of the film, or at least throw us one last scare to leave us smirking… The Mist starts dark, gets darker, then takes a right turn into dismally bleak. Darabont’s B-film starts off fun enough with a bunch of strangers stranded in a grocery store during a massive fog as creatures begin to attack. But, like the fog itself, it becomes impossible to see the dangers that lurk in the near future. By the end of this film, you’ll be wishing for the happy times of 28 Days Later. Aside from the creatures, the focus on human behavior under extreme circumstances is given great emphasis which more than anything else develops the suspense of the film. Marcia Gay Harden deserves special attention as her incredibly frustrating evangelical performance.
I Heart Huckabees (2004)
Mar 14th
Starring: Jason Schwartzman, Jude Law, Lily Tomlin
Director: David O. Russell
Country: USA
Genre: Comedy
I heart I Heart Huckabees.
Despite the infamous on-set battles that David O. Russell seems to get himself into, he has created some of the best character driven films in the last quarter century. I Heart Huckabees boasts one hell of an ensemble, all bringing their A game to the over-the-top characters. The film is an exploration on the question “why are we here?” and the answer seems to be an optimistic one, that is if we have a sense of humor about it all. It’s a zany existential farce. While every aspect of the film plays its part well, the score by Jon Brion is what really brings out the joy, and even sadness. Instead of a typical score, Brion’s music becomes a character itself, sometimes relaying information through a typical pop song, other times commenting on the silliness by evolving into a pseudo silent film score. The film is rude, it’s crude, it’s hilarious, it’s touching, it’s everything that life is.
Shutter Island (2010)
Feb 25th
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley
Director: Martin Scorsese
Country: USA
Genre: Thriller-ish.
At Shutter Island nothing is as it seems.
In his fourth collaboration with DiCaprio, Scorsese has pulled out one of his best performance, and crafted perhaps one of his most interesting films. Sure to infuriate some and delight others, Shutter Island is all about evoking a response out of the audience – participation. It’s a detective story about a detective, but the investigation isn’t the investigation that the detective is investigating. Or is it? It raises a lot of questions, and doesn’t take the audience for granted in finding the answers for themselves. Also, in a departure from his usual visual style, Scorsese has created one of his more luscious looking, albeit foreign feeling, films to date.
Little Children (2006)
Dec 31st
Starring: Kate Winslet, Patrick Wilson, Jack Earl Haley
Director: Todd Field
Country: USA
Genre: Drama
Quite often these dramas that seem like they could be potentially overbearing end up being surprisingly watchable. Little Children is more than just watchable though, it’s a really unique and well-crafted piece of filmmaking. Its cast is tremendous, even the grossly underused Jennifer Connelly. The narrative moves along at a quick pace with a spot on voice over giving the audience insight into the character’s simple lives and complex minds. With content as heavy as this, there’s a certain foreboding feeling going into it, but it explores it in such a way that it emerges through the character’s discoveries thus taking a lot of the preachy edge off. Jack Earl Haley is outstanding as a sex offender rereleased into a suburban neighborhood, (and a public swimming pool in one of the most uncomfortable underwater scenes since Jaws.) Little Children isn’t the lightest of movies, but damn is it good.
