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Our top 10's of 2000 - Time to throw down - Page 6

post #151 of 388
2/19/01 at 7:04pm
Edited list after finally seeing Pollock today.
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post #152 of 388
2/19/01 at 7:51pm
Last Update: 3/17

1. Gladiator (Screw all the negative views that make me feel stupid for picking this! )
2. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
3. Almost Famous
4. Wonder Boys
5. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
6. High Fidelity
7. Fantasia 2000 (minus Pomp and Circumstance)
8. Traffic
9. Pollock
10. Shadow of the Vampire

Most notable no-sees: Requiem, YCCOM, Best in Show, and Dancer in the Dark.

Evan


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"* * * * * * * * * * * * *" - Buster Keaton
AFI List: Meesa finished!
S&S: 36 films left
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post #153 of 388
2/20/01 at 10:43am
Well, dammit.

I don't know why I take it so personally, but I'm just shattered that Dancer in the Dark fell off our list here. It's still the only movie I saw this year that really mattered to me...

But, on a brighter note, I finally saw O Brother, Where Art Thou, and have added it to the list!

The updated list:

1. Dancer in the Dark
2. Yi Yi
3. Quills
4. Croupier
5. You Can Count On Me
6. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
7. Chicken Run
8. Traffic
9. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
10. High Fidelity

(Sorry Tao of Steve - something had to give! Also, In the Mood for Love has yet to open in Boston, but if it's on-par with Chungking Express or Happy Together, I'm fairly sure I'll be updating that list once again...)

On a slightly different topic (but still Dancer in the Dark related), I've provided a link below to an article from today's Boston Globe about the Oscar best song category. Those who know me well will understand just how much Dancer in the Dark means to me when they find out I'm rooting for Bjork (who I love and respect dearly) over Bob Dylan (who I regard as nothing less than the greatest artist working in any medium in the latter half of the 20th Century). And I guess I'd have to admit that any awards show that nominates both Bjork and Dylan can't be all bad.

Oscar nod a big step for singer Bjork

Quote:
In all likelihood, Bob Dylan will win the best original song Academy Award next month for ''Things Have Changed'' from the film ''Wonder Boys'' because he's Bob Dylan, and that's just the way the world works.

But it would be absolutely delightful if when that envelope is opened March 25, the name announced belonged to Bjork...
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post #154 of 388
2/20/01 at 2:17pm
Thread Starter 
Al, bear in mind that Dancer is #5 in AVERAGE vote which was intended to show either films that haven't been seen or which really click with some people if not with all.

I'm not sure about Way of the Gun, but I am sure than just not enough people got to see Dancer, which includes me.

Of course it still might not make it, but you never know. The DVD might rearrange things on our lists.

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"We keep you alive to serve this ship. So row well, and live."

"This is the new cut. Y'all be bad. Woo, woo, woo.
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post #155 of 388
2/21/01 at 6:09am
Edited 2/21/01 to add The Way Of The Gun and Me, Myself & Irene, neither of which posed a danger to my current tops list.

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The Wheel of Time turns, and ages come and go...
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post #156 of 388
2/21/01 at 3:41pm
I'd like to see Bjork win for best song as well. To me there's just something so sad about the fact that Bob Dylan was deemed a disenfranchised, dangerous miscreant in his younger days, but now that he's older, softer and more contemplative, people are lining up to praise him and give him awards. I like the song well enough, but it's the least memorable thing about Wonder Boys and it probably wouldn't make a top 100 list of Dylan songs for me. The practice of ignoring an artist at the top of their craft and condesceningly honouring those on the downward slope is just...I don't know. Blech. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Pardon my cynical musings. Carry on.
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post #157 of 388
2/21/01 at 11:23pm
Updated for a couple of movies, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Oh Brother,Where Art Thou?. Both of which pushed their way into my list , ranking #2 and #4, respectively.

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"All your base are belong to us."

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post #158 of 388
2/23/01 at 12:55am
Updated list with Before Night Falls
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post #159 of 388
2/23/01 at 9:45am
This is amazing. A lot of these movies are now finally opening in my area. Last week it was You Can Count On Me. This week, Quills. Next week, Before Night Falls is scheduled to open.

Anyway, Quills cracks into my Top Ten at #8. You will find my comments here .

~Edwin
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post #160 of 388
2/23/01 at 12:23pm
Updated my post to add You Can Count On Me but it doesn't crack my top ten.

This is a real shocker to me as I had much higher expectations for this one. The performances were terrific, especially Mark Ruffalo and Rory Culkin. Unfortunately, the story didn't quite work for me. Laura Linney's character, Samantha, seemed a lot smarter than some of the choices she made and that really kept me at arm's length.

In the interests of full disclosure/disclaimers, I'm an only child with both parents still living and together. With the orphaned brother/sister relationship so close to the heart of this story, I wonder if there's a key element or two I just can't relate to.

Notes in the margins: with this, I've now seen all four of Paramount Classics releases for 2000: The Virgin Suicides, Sunshine, You Can Count On Me, and The Gift. That's a helluva roster and I, for one, would like to commend Paramount Classics for a great year in film!

Rob

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"That suits me down to the ground."
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post #161 of 388
2/23/01 at 12:29pm
Added Chuck & Buck and Cast Away. I thought both were good, but enjoyed them less than anything currently on my list. Thought C&B suffered from average acting, and CA suffered from one of the most anti-climactic marketing campaigns ever.

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The Wheel of Time turns, and ages come and go...
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post #162 of 388
2/23/01 at 5:28pm
I updated my list on page 5 after watching Titan A.E (***) & The Road to El Dorado (** 1/2, nice film but a bit disappointment)), Me, Myself and Irene (**), What Lies Beneath (***, a pleasant surprise) and Jesus Son (*** 1/2).
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post #163 of 388
2/25/01 at 12:27am
Adding Traffic to the list finally. I believe everyone did a
good job with the material but Don Cheadle and Luis
Guzman made the show for me. Good job, guys!


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"All your base are belong to us."
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post #164 of 388
2/27/01 at 2:59pm
List updated that I saw Malena and almost wish I hadn't. One scene was so offensive I almost walked out of the theater. The only thing that kept me in my seat was the fact that I've never walked out on a movie. There were a few bright moments, but I thought this was mostly an awful, exploitative and mean-spirited film. The thought that the same man who made this also made Cinema Paradiso, a film which never fails to move me to tears, is mind-boggling.

I guess I need to post some thoughts on Quills. I thought the last 20m or so was terrible and a complete cliche that spoiled the rest of the film.

This weekend both Pollack & In The Mood For Love finally open here. I'm taking a couple of days off next week and can hopefully get completely caught up on 2000 films, except for the fact that Yi Yi never played in Atlanta!!

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"It's funny how the colors of the real world only seem really real when you viddy them on the screen"

S&S Challenge: 72 ...32
DVD BEAVER

My DVD Collection

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post #165 of 388
2/27/01 at 8:37pm
Thread Starter 
Brook, Anson and I both agreed that Quills simply went to long with the story. I don't think I would have found any of the ending moments too "cheap" but the fact that they tack on about 3-4 "endings" that don't allow for a smooth resolution really bugged me. I felt like the director wanted to have too many moments, and had also pursued a few storylines to far.

We both agreed (I think) that the film really needed to lose 20-30 minutes from various parts. I mean, all that and no real Caine/Rush showdown.


Anyway, I just wanted to pop in and say I just watched The Virgin Suicides and it goes to #8 on my list, bumping down Snatch and American Psycho off. I wasn't quite sure what to take away from the film, although I suspect some of it was the awkwardness that youth feels with the more impersonal relationships of adults. Especially as it applies to death or appreciating others while they are alive. It certainly did a good job displaying those feelings.

I actually feel really good about my top 10 at this point, 10 films I'm really completely happy with having seen. If I see a couple more good ones and I may have to retract my complaints of 2000 (at least thanks to 2001 ). Where were half of these last summer? Oh well.
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post #166 of 388
2/27/01 at 9:42pm
Quote:
I don't think I would have found any of the ending moments too "cheap" but the fact that they tack on about 3-4 "endings" that don't allow for a smooth resolution really bugged me.

Ah, looks like a comment from the Almost Famous crowd where the ending is neatly tied in a big red bow.

~Edwin
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post #167 of 388
2/28/01 at 12:13pm
Thread Starter 
As a matter of fact in my Almost Famous review I mentioned that a "flaw" is Crowe's typical prolonged ending with all the resolutions. But I let him indulge himself because it still involves the primaries and the resolution is to the main threads of tension, goody-goody though they might be.

My problem with the "extra" endings in Quills was that by following some threads in too much detail early, the awkwardness of "not done yet" after each resolution in Quills was more apparent. In the Quills thread I suggested that some simple rearrangement and trimming of earlier film moments would have drawn the focus to what the "master" thread was, which would be resolved last. That being the resolution of Phoenix's plight, then with Caine's moment being the coda as it was.

Instead I felt that de Sade was the main resolution w/ Winslet's being the 2nd most important based on what the film shows. After seeing it to completion I realized (or assume to understand) that the main journey was w/ Phoenix. The film that proceeded the final resolutions did not foreshadow this very well, and it felt like "here's some more story" when we went on with him because it was certainly more than a coda. BTW, I liked Quills despite these complaints.


What you say?
For great talking. Seth set us up the spoilers.

I sure am wordy. Hope that was vague enough not to spoil Quills for anyone, or Almost Famous for that matter.
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post #168 of 388
2/28/01 at 3:52pm
Seth (and others),

I checked out The Virgin Suicides on IMDb and it
stated that it came out in 1999. Is this wrong? Are all
our perceptions skewed do to this vast oversight?
Seriously though, just curious to see if it were a true
Y2K film.

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"All your base are belong to us."
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post #169 of 388
2/28/01 at 4:18pm
John:

Well, The Virgin Suicides was made in 1999 and premiered in some film festivals, but 2000 is when it got it's largest American release. I don't know of too many people that are actually considering it a 1999 film rather than a 2000 one.
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post #170 of 388
2/28/01 at 4:40pm
Thread Starter 
I didn't check it because the DVD just came out and others had it on their list already.

I don't know what to do with this one because I wasn't counting Ghost Dog as a 2000 either. Maybe I will take it off my list. I know it got wide release in 2000 but if that's what we are using then half our lists will be gone.

I would say that if Virgin Suicides and Ghost Dog stay, then CTHD and Traffic have to go. If it made AA 1999 eligibility then it should not be here, by my opinion.
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post #171 of 388
2/28/01 at 5:28pm
I think the way I'm going to go is to use IMDb for the
actual release date. Seth's right in that our lists would
vastly change and to keep a consistent listing, using
a database such as IMDb would be the best way to go.

So, no Suicides on my list o' 2000. Maybe 1999..

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"All your base are belong to us."
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post #172 of 388
2/28/01 at 6:16pm
Festival releases and time when they are made don't count. Always go by the first offical release date into public exhibition.

Jason
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post #173 of 388
2/28/01 at 9:03pm
...which IMDb does or doesn't do?
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post #174 of 388
3/1/01 at 11:01am
Thread Starter 
IMDb's "film year" is not the AA year based on my conversation with Jase last night. It is just the first released anywhere year.

So Suicides for everyone again!

The key that I want to follow and that others are following is Academy Award year. VS is a 2000 Oscar contender (or was).

By IMDb we have Sundance premiere in JAN 2000 and the official Academy release (NY/LA, 1 week at least) in April 2000.

The 1999 comes from Cannes and 2 other non-US film festivals. In fact, it was at Cannes a year before the US could see it.

Ghost Dog is a March 2000 AA release.


If you have questions, go to IMDb for the film, then check release dates link (other info section), look for USA (NY/LA) release date.

Not trying to exclude our foreign friends or dis BAFTA or anybody, just that we need to pick a standard and the AAwards seem to be the most natural one for film year.
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post #175 of 388
3/1/01 at 12:25pm
I've been going with the Academy's criteria for consideration in compiling my list (which is why I yanked Titus from my list a few weeks ago).

This is the link I've been using to check whether to include certain movies or not.

Rob

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"That suits me down to the ground."
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post #176 of 388
3/1/01 at 10:59pm
So this is a list of all movies releases in 2000?
Thanks Rob!

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"All your base are belong to us."
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post #177 of 388
3/3/01 at 7:56pm
After watching In the Mood for Love again tonight, I think it has managed to break in to my top 10. It is the kind of movie that will improve with multiple viewings, as so little is going on in the narrative, but so much is being told on the screen.

And on a totally separate note, I watched Rocky & Bullwinkle this week as well. Not a great movie, but Boris and Natasha were great, and I especially liked the water tower gag.


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My:Hardware LDs DVDs Top Tens
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post #178 of 388
3/3/01 at 10:43pm
I think for our purposes here, In The Mood For Love would be considered a 2001 film release.

~Edwin
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post #179 of 388
3/4/01 at 9:19am
Ahh you are correct, Edwin, In the Mood for Love is a 2001 film(as far as the Oscars are concerned, which is what we are using here as our reference). I'll go add it to my 2001 movies post... (Shezze finally another movie I've seen of 2001, now I can bump Hannibal out of first place)
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post #180 of 388
3/4/01 at 4:37pm
We are using the actual first release date in the
United States? In the Mood for Love was at a
Canadian Film Festival in 2000 and was released in several
other countries in 2000. Released in LA/NY 2/2/01 and
wide on 2/26/01.

Added Best In Show in at #3..great movie, where are
the Oscar nominations? I'll probably go see it again before
it leaves. Eugene Levy was great in his role.
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"All your base are belong to us."
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