2nd ASPEYA 2008 # 4: Gazz’s TOP 25 OF THE YEAR!
Hey! Hey! So now here’s me throwing out my thoughts on what I consider to be the twenty five BEST films of the year! I came in for quite a bit of criticism when I published my list last year because I incorporated the review screeners I’d been sent into my list and people didn’t consider that fair. Many thought that seeing as we had the US represented in the form of Kristina then I should be representing the UK – namely I should not be paying tribute to films that had not had a big screen release between the given dates, on British soil. Methinks they were referring to my Top Two movies being Gone Baby Gone and No Country For Old Men when they didn’t get releases in the UK during 2007.
So I’ve changed it this year. And I’ve stuck to my own rules – which obviously instantly excludes the likes of Frost / Nixon, Slumdog Millionaire, The Wrestler, The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons and so on and on and on, because they’re not out in the UK until 2009. I’ve also, to off-set accusations that such and such wasn’t a 2008 release or whatever, included the UK 2008 release dates for each of the titles I’ve chosen. I’ve covered all bases eh? Surely I can’t upset anyone now, eh?
Because I can’t see every single thing and most of my time is occupied in forced attendance at screenings for a multitude of cinematic fare for this site that I’d otherwise probably not have wasted my time with (and reviewing screeners sent to me on DVD, and doing some work on the screenplay, and ‘earning’ in the day job, and catching up with friends and having some sort of life away from all things “movies”), some movies that I’d otherwise been very excited about seeing have slipped by the wayside but there is every chance in the world that they would have occupied a place on this list if I’d made time to check them out (all of which I will be doing in the next four weeks or so). So quick mentions go to the following first of all:
Appaloosa (26/09), Changeling (28/11), Charlie Bartlett (16/05), The Children (05/12), Choke (21/11), The Escapist (20/06), Hunger (31/10), I’m A Cyborg And That’s Ok (04/04), Lakeview Terrace (05/12), Rocknrolla (05/09), Shotgun Stories (16/05) Somers Town (22/08) The Wackness (29/08) and The Wave (19/09)
Furthermore, I’ve REALLY tried to put a lot of thought into this and make sure that I’ve created a list that I would fight the good fight for and stand by each and every one of my choices. I’m pretty damn happy with the selection and the running order, but to get there a fair few worthy films had to fall by the wayside. So, before we hit the list, honourable mentions deserve to go to – very quickly – the following (and in no particular order): Juno, Gomorrah, Assembly, Chocolate, A Complete History of My Sexual Failures, Definitely Maybe, In Bruges, In Search of a Midnight Kiss, Kenny and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street.
And, on top of all this pre-amble, I just want to say that who the hell would have thought that – coming from the world’s biggest fan of Indiana Jones who is a die hard defender of Oliver Stone and who considers Casino Royale to be one of the best blockbusters of the last ten years – when putting together a Top 25 of the year in a year when there’s a new Stone movie, a direct sequel to that Bond movie I loved so much AND a fourth Indiana Jones film, that none of them would make an appearance. Crazy huh?
Anyway, without further ado, let’s get going:
25. The Strangers (29/08)
By having absolutely bottom-of-the-barrel expectations for this film my experience was all the better as a result. Judge the film as just a stand-alone, disposable piece of horror confection and this is a hugely recommendable little thrill-ride. It’s bare-bones, near-the-knuckle, and containing not a single ounce of fat up on the screen. I had an absolute blast watching this film; I jumped a lot, I gasped a lot and I had to question every single bit of background darkness that I saw (and there’s a lot) whilst muttering “What was that? Was that one of them? Oh my God!”. A great little genre piece. But if they start franchising the hell out of it then I won’t be going along on that ride. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
24. Forgetting Sarah Marshall (25/04)
This is enormously likeable in every respect. It’s directed with a great amount of energy designed around reinvigorating the stale conventions of the romantic-comedy genre even though it betrays itself a little by falling back on the genre’s “tick-list” towards the end, but don’t let that put you off. There’s more than enough originality on show to off-set accusations of it being ‘stale’ (a Dracula musical with puppets? The male lead getting his cock out whenever it will maximise the embarrassment levels in a given scene? Recognisable romantic songs done Hawaiian style? A surprisingly likeable turn from the walking turd that is Russell Brand!) and it’s got more laughs then you’ll find in pretty much any other comedy that normally gets junked in cinemas that early on in the year – I guess it was a sign of things to come that something throw-away like this would be as good as it is, leading the way for the plethora of great comedies throughout the months that followed.[Read my full review by clicking here!]
23. Eagle Eye (17/10)
‘Jimm’ hates this movie. And I mean HATES it! To the point that he had a nigh-on physical reaction to it – and threatened to walk around the block until the DVD screener had finished playing. Me? I like it. I think it’s a whole heap of big, loud, dumb fun! The first act is positively sublime. The second act takes you off on a ballistic blockbuster ride that contains some of the best thrills and spills of the year. And the third? Well… erm… it is testament to this films slick production values and all round brilliant execution that, for a third act that makes you do nothing more than mouth the words “Are you for fucking real?!?” the film never slows down enough to lose you or let you off the ride! Yes, yes, the third act is rotten but this is still a HUGE amount of fun – and in a year in which comic-book adaptations and comedies filled up the screens, it’s nice to have some broad entertainment that falls into neither category![Read my full review by clicking here!]
22. Cloverfield (01/02)
A film in which those rabid opening weekend fans seem to have disappeared, fell silent or turned against it. I thought it was a solid, entertaining piece of blockbuster fare. The film’s semi-annoying but eventually winsome quality (the fake found-footage format) proves to be its saving grace because without it, this monster movie would have fell flat on its face. The marketing campaign may well have burnt me out when it went in to overdrive but, for once, this was a film where the quality of the film actually lived up to the hype. It’s not going to change the world, it’s not going to even change the face of blockbuster filmmaking. But, as a night’s viewing goes, this is well worth your time and a thoroughly fun and endearingly entertaining film to boot. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
21. Happy-Go-Lucky (18/04)
Sally Hawkins gives one of the freshest, funniest and most touching performances of the year in a film that is just under two hours in the company of a character that bounces from annoying to infectious to irritating to loveable on a consistent basis. That it turns out to be such a joy to watch is probably the most wonderfully surprising thing of all. And massive respect needs to be afforded to the criminally under-rated Eddie Marsan too, whose performance is the perfect counter-weight to Hawkins’ Poppy. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
20. Redbelt (26/09)
I urge you to give this film ninety odd minutes of your time. But, please, don’t go into it expecting a ‘Mamet-ised’ version of Rocky or The Karate Kid or whatever other fighting-underdog movie you can think of. You will only end up frustrated and more than a little disappointed. Walk into his world on this one and go with the story he is trying to tell you and I promise David Mamet won’t bore you or leave you unengaged! This is more than any plot synopsis will do justice to and, post-viewing, it’ll stick around inside your head, leaving you to think it over and the more you do, the more all the characters and stories start to bleed together in after-thought, the way they were intended to by Mamet – giving us a movie that is actually a slow-burning, under-rated gem! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
19. Kung Fu Panda (04/07)
I had an absolute blast with this film and, since getting the DVD I’ve watched that ‘prison break sequence’ over and over again. I took my four year old nephew to see this up on the big screen and he didn’t move from start to finish, it completely transfixed him. You cannot ask for anything more from this film then what it delivers – it is wonderfully animated, very funny, surprisingly touching and a sign that Dreamworks can up their game and deliver the goods without the big green ogre front and centre. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
18. The Mist (04/07)
Okay, so it’s no classic but then it was never meant to be. However, Darabont is such a fine director that you can kind of get the feeling that if he’d wanted to take this film and transcend it from its B-movie foundations into the avenue of timeless masterpiece, then he could have done. It is, however, exactly what Darabont set out to make – a strong piece of cult cinema with unique flourishes here and there to create a great “word of mouth” movie. And then there’s that ending too – so brave, so dark, so bitter and so worthy of being considered one of the greatest of all time! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
17. Eden Lake (12/09)
Forgiving it its very occasional moment of illogical silliness (which is often a very common quality with films of this ilk), this is a well written and well directed grimy little British B-movie that serves to send your heart into your mouth by the end of the first act and keep it there. This film benefits from two utterly superb lead performances by a staggeringly brilliant Kelly Reilly and a fantastic Michael Fassbender (soon to be seen in Tarantino’s Inglorious Bastards), not to mention a surprisingly effective turn from newcomer Jack O’Connell in the usually-all-too-easy-to-ruin lead villain role. Most importantly though it has a truly devastating ending that isn’t cheaply earned and will linger with you long after the film has finished. A really good British thriller with a horrifically dark spine running through its centre! [Unreviewed By Me]
16. Burn After Reading (17/10)
Many claim that it’s a ‘Coen’s Tradition’ to follow their “dark, serious fare” with something “light and dispensible”. But to honour such a theory based on the Fargo / Big Lebowski evidence is to disregard Lebowski, one of the greatest – if not THE greatest – cult movies of all time, as “light and dispensible”. Which is almost a criminal act! This all-starrer (Clooney, Pitt, Malcovich, McDormand etc.) follows their lauded No Country For Old Men and, yes, it’s The Coen Brother’s return to lighter fare following that movie, but it is not one to be pushed aside – it is extremely well-performed, very, very funny, brilliantly executed and has one of the greatest surprise scenes of the year! It’s under-seen and under-appreciated all ready and its only been out a few months! [Unreviewed By Me]
15. The King of Kong: A Fistful Of Quarters (06/05)
The second greatest documentary of the year plays like a great sporting underdog movie, except we’re spending our time in the company of geeky middle-aged men and their Donkey Kong arcade obsession. Arguments still linger about Michael Moore style narrative manipulation and heavy fictionalisation but the hard facts are this: what makes this film one of the best of the year in terms of what it is, is because of those moments caught on camera of words spoken and acts carried out that cannot fall foul of the “it was all in the editing” argument. It’s all very clear cut in terms of its hero and its villain, but look to the background for some of the most sneering, snivelling, drunk-on-power-and-corruption-without-actually-having-any-power-or-anything-worthy-of-corrupting side characters you could ever hope to experience in a feature this year! [Unreviewed By Me]
14. Tropic Thunder (19/09)
You can resist it as much as you like, you can pick fights with it over the use of the R-word or the race-angle or whatever the hell you so like, but at the end of the day this is a very funny (even when you take out the controversial humorous elements, it is still hilarious!) and is a fantastic satire of the movie industry and movie-making in general. On top of that, it’s surprisingly impressive in the action stakes – the tongue-in-cheek opening movie-within-a-movie is nothing if not thoroughly involving, even with its intended awfulness on show! From it’s fake advert and trailer pre-studio logo “false start” right the way through to Robert Downey Jnr’s audacious supporting turn and Tom Cruise’s ‘dance’ over the end credits, this is just great entertainment! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
13. Man On Wire (01/08)
This is the true story of Philippe Petit’s utterly amazing tightrope walk between New York’s twin towers on August 7th 1974. It is just as enthralling as any mainstream high-octane thriller, it will have you engaged and on the edge of your seat like one of the best heist movies (which it is executed in a similar vein to) and it will reveal itself to be the most gripping, spellbinding and extraordinary true-life feature you will see in a long time. This is 2008′s best documentary, I kid you not. [Unreviewed By Me]
12. Pineapple Express (12/09)
This film knows that it is stupid. It almost wears the label as a badge of honour. That’s what makes it so goddamn likeable. It realises that the very notion of a “stoner action movie” is ridiculous and all involved have sat back, acknowledged this then simply set about finding a way to sell it convincingly. And that it does. It is hilariously funny but invests its action sequences with an absolute pitch-perfect sense of tone so that we’re thrilled at the same time that we’re laughing – and boy do we laugh! This has got massive re-watch potential and an enormous quotability factor! The ‘Must See’ action-comedy of the year… and ignore Kristina! Lol [Read my full review by clicking here!]
11. Iron Man (02/05)
This is the film that opened the gates for the ‘Summer Silly Season’ to come bounding out – and what a standard-setter it was eh? Jon Faverau has delivered one of the best blockbusters of the summer, and he did so whilst everybody elses gaze was in the direction of Indiana Jones and Bruce Wayne. It’s not just all about his staging of the action sequences either. Uniquely his action beats play second fiddle to his choice of cast which is a massive rarity in a blockbuster! Robert Downey Jnr gives as utterly sublime a turn as you could rightfully expect from a ‘respected character actor’ going mainstream. Watching him as Tony Stark is as magnificent as the first time you saw Harrison Ford with the whip and trilby in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Seriously. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
10. Hellboy II – The Golden Army (22/08)
This film is beautiful, wonderous, inventive, original and a thorough, thorough joy (You may well doubt what I’m saying to you and label it hyperbole but my two word defence is simple: “Troll” and “Market”). Del Toro delivered a great sequel when he gave us Blade II. He’s surpassed that film and then some with this, and in the process he has made a masterpiece! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
9. Zack and Miri Make a Porno (14/11)
With this, Smith has made what is quite possibly the best film of his career. Chasing Amy is his masterpiece but this could quite easily stand beside that, possibly even unsurp it, and that is for a plethora of very simple factors; namely Smith’s growth as both a writer and a director, his choice of supporting cast (Craig Robinson walks away with the entire movie!), but most importantly, the two lead actors (Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks) he has chosen to carry this movie. This, in a year when the genre has never been so strong, is one of the best comedies of the year! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
8. The Foot Fist Way (26/09)
Jody Hill hasn’t made a dead-eyed mockumentary like most would do. He and his partners, Danny McBride and Ben Best, have crafted a fully-rounded comic creation with McBride’s Fred Simmons and they’ve put him in a well-realised “world” and just switched the camera on and let it go. I’ve seen glossier comedies this year. I’ve seen better shot ones too. But I haven’t seen anything funnier. This isn’t a “cult gem”. It’s a little, scrappy comedic masterpiece just waiting for your attention! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
7. [REC] (11/04)
Quite frankly, for me personally, this was THE horror movie of the year and possibly one of the most terrifying films I have ever seen. It is lean both in its running time (it’s just over an hour in length) and in terms of what characterisation it has to offer but in terms of the all important scares it is nothing short of astounding. Following a deliberately stale and leisurely paced establishing act, the flick kicks into gear and does not let up. The “filming within a film” notion works less as a gimmick then you’d imagine too – Diary of the Dead take note! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
6. In The Valley Of Elah (25/01)
Without this film, I would have been deprived of Jimm’s brilliant Rihanna related gag (“Elah, Elah, Elah – Eh! Eh! Eh!” … Damnit, it doesn’t work in the written form, but trust me, it’s a good one!) – and that would have been too great a crime to even think about! This is a genuinely masterful piece of work. It’s as close to flawless as you could ask for and even said flaws are of the type that you have to kind of hunt out for something to criticise as opposed to them bugging you whilst you watch. The script is stellar. The direction magically unobtrusive yet noticeably skillful and, overall, this felt to me like the greatest police procedural I have seen in a long time. In fact, the last time I was blown away by a film of this ilk was back in the late 90s when Curtis Hanson delivered LA Confidential upon us very grateful movie buffs! A ready-made modern classic if ever there was one! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
5. There Will Be Blood (08/02)
A masterful, sublime, awe-inspiring, transcendent, magnificent, strikingly beautiful piece of cinema… but was there ever any doubt that it would be anything else except that? Either way, you can’t help but salvate at the mouth wondering what Paul Thomas Anderson will come up with next, to follow this. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
4. Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (11/01)
It’s been a long time since I’ve watched a film that put my arse on the edge of the seat and my heart in my mouth as effectively as this. It’s a film layered to absolute perfection where every single foreground, background and speech detail counts for something the next time the story intersects upon itself. I urge every single person on the planet, who has not done so already, to check out a genuinely brilliant piece of cinema by Sidney Lumet, a cinematic master at the top of his game, driven as it is by two truly sublime performances by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Marisa Tomei. This is a masterpiece in every sense of the word! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
3. Out Of The Blue (14/03)
This is an under-seen, under-appreciated gem that is shot with great restraint but also with an eye for the unconventionally beauty held within the New Zealand landscape and superbly mixes professional actors with amateur performers (This is none more the case then when you witness the work of seventy-two year old amateur thespian Lois Lawn, who will undoubtedly break your heart like she did mine in her portrayal of the real-life Helen Dickson, an old infirm neighbor who crawled repeatedly along a ditch to check and comfort a wounded man AND continually try for an ambulance, despite having just had hip surgery). Hunt this out and show it the respect it deserves. [Read my full review by clicking here!]
2. WALL-E (18/07)
This film transcends pretty much anything and everything you have seen in the animated genre before. It genuinely broke my heart. I haven’t sobbed like this through a viewing experience in quite some time. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It made me gasp. In parts it made me genuinely forget that I was watching an animated movie. Truly, truly, truly an audacious piece of work! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
And, here we are, at my number one movie of 2008 – absolutely no surprises but based on impact, levels of rewatchability and… Oh, why drag it out, you all know what it is:
1. The Dark Knight (25/07)
If you’re one of the unfortunates out there who has yet to experience this film, then give yourself over to it finally. It is every bit as majestic as you have been led to believe. It’s not perfect but it damn well feels it thanks to a great script and a postively sublime cast led by the late Heath Ledger in THE performance of the year! This script deserves to not only win an Academy Award but to also be studied in Film Classes. I’m not joking. They do some unbelievable work in terms of tight, structured plotting and characterisation. The phenomenal script, coupled with those unbelievable performances, make you give a real shit about all involved. Name another blockbuster, of recent years, which has made you care about the characters so much that you start to feel a tighteness in you chest, a sense of anxiety, a welling in your eyes and a yearning for them to suceed in their plans even though if we take ourselves out of the film for at least a second we’ll be reminded that lore dictates they cannot.
This is a film that had no need to be this good. All involved sat down and decided to make a movie of real weight, with something to say and put out a product that mattered – a movie that wants to lure you in with the pretence of ”another Batman movie” but then hit you up with a detailed study and discussion of doing the right thing and how sometimes what you feel could’ve been the right thing at a given time may not well be anymore but you’re too trapped to turn back, of choices and the pain that comes from having them forced upon you in the most savage and unpredictable of ways, of – in some ways – the current ’War on Terror’ over in Iraq, of fate, of sacrifice, of trying to find order within chaos when the odds are so ridiculously stacked against you. This isn’t a film that just throws itself out there as “The New and Continuing Adventures of Batman”. This is a film of real integrity and intelligence.
Whatever you hoped to get from this it will give to you. It most certainly won’t disappoint you. If Batman Begins was a hybrid of a revenge, conspiracy, super-hero action, fantasy drama then this takes those ingredients and throws them into an even bigger pot to mix in with some even fresher stock; this is a comic-book movie by way of a police procedural movie, a detective noir, a raging terror-themed thriller, a cascading multi-character drama and a balls-to-the-walls action blockbuster extravaganza. And, for me, the best film of the year! [Read my full review by clicking here!]
Stay tuned this time tomorrow for Kristina’ Top 25 picks!!
13 Responses to “2nd ASPEYA 2008 # 4: Gazz’s TOP 25 OF THE YEAR!”
the whole list was good
but clover field!!!dude!
dude i loved it…the way it was made…and did you see after the credits when the soldier picks up the camera? i mean i just love how it was made…to NOT be a movie…but it was..because they recorded it..its hard to explain and sure everyone gets it but i loved it
i KNOW people didn’t like it as much as i did…and i know this is just like that one time i lived the movie “S.W.A.T.” and everyone else didn’t…but clover field was AWESOME!
and they played the ironman commercial before it began..so when i watched it i was like..AWESOMMEE!!
they tried to make another movie like that..”quarantine”…like- hand held camera; but it failed. it was easily the scariest movie of the year but it failed miserably into the deep abyss of shitty unsuccessful scary movies
by the way cloverfield was my number 7
Very strong list, but there’s some stuff on here that I saw and just did not like. Forgetting Sarah Marshall did nothing for me. I watched Burn After Reading and HATED it. I mean, I despised that film.
I have a feeling that my list is going to get a few more “WTF”s than yours:)
And Pineapple Express? No sir!
Do NOT ignore meeeeeeeee! 
I dunno like Kris, I think your list is STRONGER then mine! Definitely! I’m expecting – if anyone takes the time to read it outside of you two – to be heckled a little bit.
Oh, by the way, Hazmat:
1) I rate SWAT quite highly too – great bit of pure escapist fun!
2) QUARANTINE is a US remake of [REC] which is #7 on my list!
SWAT is a bunch of fun. I’ve heard a lot of good things about REC from a friend, so I’m going to check that one out.
Oh it’s like that is it?!?!?!?!?!?
You’ve heard a lot of good things from “a friend”?
I’ve been banging on about that film’s greatness on this very site for half a friggin’ year and… what?
NUTTIN’!
A “friend” tells you and you’re straight off to check it out!
Damn you Kristina, damn you to mother****ing hell!
And give me back my heart!
well i was the only one that stood up and cheered when i saw swat..looked over..and my whole family was looking at me like i was on crack…
and ive never heard of REC…but quarantine sucked balls so..REC has to be better
im never really game for horror movies..i just really dont like them. not because of the scare factor…but because they lack that sence of…”oh shit, this is a movie not 2 minutes of zombies popping out of corners”
unless you consider 28 days later a horror movie, which i loved
im sure theres liek 2 more horror movies i like..that i consider decent..cant think of them at the moment
If you didn’t like QUARANTINE then don’t bother with [REC] because QUARANTINE is a scene-for-scene remake of that film. My original review to [REC] is linked in this very article. You should click on it, have a read and decide whether it is for you or not. That’s, you know, what the reviews are there for!
Also, SWAT was good but the original script back when George Clooney was attached is waaaaaaaaaaay better! It was much more of a play on Walter Hill’s THE WARRIORS and was really darker and grittier.
The SWAT team end up holed up in this apartment block in a really down and dirty housing estate and basically every ****er on the planet lays siege to it to get the reward money offered, and its this bat shit crazy action fest that was much closer to DIE HARD meets THE WARRIORS then the fun piece of fluff that eventually ended up on screen.
Back on its release, Chris at our old stompin ground Filmrot (and who know runs the really quite awesome DreamLogic site) ran a series of random screenshots from the movie, with subtitles of actual dialogue being spoken from those moments, and in doing so, he revealed that SWAT is actually one of the most gay movies you are ever likely to see!
It was great fun!
But no, Haz, USE the site the way it is meant to be intended fella. There’s reviews of QUARANTINE and [REC] up on the site. Read them, comment on them, use the Top 25 to research – the links ARE there for easy use!
Gazz…what if I meant that the friend….WAS YOU?????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!
pal that review is from april…
even if i did know about this website when that review was up i wouldn’t have watched it because A) i didn’t LIKE quarantine so maybe i wouldn’t like a movie that was scene by scene the same thing and B) because ive never heard of it and it didn’t show in my local theater here in coral springs Florida
i would have read the article though if i ever came across it…
and when you mentioned it was a remake i did click on the link but didnt leave a comment…because it was from april…(dude and ive honestly never heard of REC ever)
SWAT ruled, case closed. SWAT is in no way shape or form gay…thats..beyond me. geaorge clooney? aaah i saw the colin ferrel one lol never clooneys
LMFAO
i see that a capital B and a “)” equals that smily face lolol
Pretty solid list, though I wouldn’t have put The Dark Knight at #1.
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