2001 Film List - Page 3

Or a masterstroke of paring it down to essentials.

(I know, I should let the British guys make the cricket jokes...)

Just added 3 more films

Hearts in Atlantis - 6
Man, is King out of ideas or what. Dead Zone meets The Body for this one that feels like King died and people pasted together another story by him from previous work.

Maybe the book is much better than the film to be fair. Nothing terribly wrong, just not exactly a great script nor great pacing. Some scenes sort of lead nowhere completely, lots of stuff not fully pursued to me, and a bit empty on the whole.


Last Castle - 7
A very good, functional action drama. A pretty basic premise but done with enough originality and skill to keep it entertaining. A good popcorn flick. Gandolfini is strong as always.


No Man's Land - 9.5
This is now my #9 film of the year. It's excellent. It has humor, warmth, sorrow, thoughtfulness and politics all equally blended in to one. It has those Catch-22 elements of crazy military rules/situations, but it goes beyond that in search of the loss found in such fruitless wars of hate. Men hating each other who don't know why they do exactly. The film stays honest in it's answers to these situations or lack thereof.

It's close enough to mainstream even by US standards that it can be enjoyed by a wider audience than it's getting, which is too bad. Maybe DVD will help it reach it's full potential of audience.

And a couple more
Training Day - 7
Good film, but not great. Another popcorn action/thriller like Last Castle. Denzel is solid but not the best of the year by any means. I don't think I would have even nominated this role to be honest. I can see how Crowe has been running strong against him lately.

Ethan is actually really solid, on par almost with Denzel I'd say. It's just that these characters aren't really exploring a lot of emotions thanks to a script that is just average.

Joy Ride - 6
Well, I got my $3 worth of entertainment out of it. At times it's predictable, at times the characters do the less than smart thing, but at other moments they at least react reasonably close to what you would expect. Plus, no matter what actions get them into some moments, those moments ARE thrilling and exciting in that fun, popcorn way. No harm in that.

Worth a rent for some thriller fun if you keep your expectations at an average level.


On deck Va Savoir.

Also, just watched Following by Christopher Nolan (Memento). Really solid film, though obvious budget limitations kept it from being as good as Memento. I think the film could benefit from 95 minutes of screen time rather than under 70, color 35mm film, and a better lead actor. But the script and direction are solid. Should please all Memento fans.

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Quite frankly, I didn't think I was going to like this movie that much. I pretty much thought that the cast couldn't carry the movie and I'm also not that big of a shakespeare lover.
I was wrong.
I liked all of the main cast and thought they moved the story along very nicely. I really liked the way it was told from begin to end. I kinda of thought that there was a little too many basketball scenes, but it wasn't too distracting.
The best thing I loved was the cinematography.
Alot of the shots of the camera hovering over, under and across the areas was really terrific.
RATING=B+

Donnie Darko Comments in the best of 2001 list!
RATING=A

Sexy Beast
I liked this movie, only for the fact that Ben Kingsley did a great performance as a tepermental gangster.
The scenes of him throwing a tantraum was funny yet powerful.
The story was nice, but felt like it didn't go anywhere or really drew in my attention untill the last minutes.
RATING=C+

SECOND VIEWING-Zoolander I first gave this movie a D+. But after a second viewing, I have now given it a B+.
I guess the film grew on me. Stiller and Wilson are just great togther.[/font]

Saw K-Pax and will be watching Donnie Darko. I'll update both after watching DD.

But K-Pax was "eh" to me, not bad but not great. If you want to see a guy shake up the looney bin watch One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest instead, a much more honestly thoughtful film.

Avoid Our Lady Of The Assassins a film that has quite a few good
reviews, but I found to be mostly awful. A writer returns to his home of
Medellin, Columbia where he hasn't been in 30 years and finds basically hell
on Earth. He picks up a teenage boy in a club and they begin a
relationship. The film proceeds from there in ponderous fashion, they take
walks through the streets as the man reminisces about locations from his
childhood and the boy alternates between killing anyone who threatens the
writer even slightly, and avoiding drive-by shootings by gangs that are
after him. Then there are "quiet" moments in restarants, churches or at the
writer's apartment where we hear the writer give banal, nihilistic speeches
on the emptiness of life, the non-existence of God, blah blah.......and then
there's the bizarre supernatural elements, a boy who can predict death,
dream/hallucinatory scenes of ghostly bikers with uzi's blazing.

This thing was a chore to sit through, I couldn't believe some of the
reviews I read. Maybe it's different on film in a theater, but transferred
directly from digvideo kills whatever sort of realism this film was going
for in my mind. It has the look of porn/Mexican TV soap operas/Baise Moi,
ie. overly bright video. It feels exactly like a movie, not the documentary
effect described in some of the reviews (Ebert, Village Voice). While the
naive might be shocked at the cheapness of life presented here, it's hardly
revelatory, similar scenes could be found in dozens of locales around the
world. It might have been better if they'd just dispensed with the awful
script and shot a straight documentary.

The DVD from Paramount is nice video wise, but has burned in subs and not so
much as a trailer.

Updated with the excellent documentary Kurosawa, the awful Exit Wounds (partially filmed in my home town), the mediocre See Spot Run, The Invisible Circus, Just Visiting and Startup.com

Updated with this year's Oscar winner for Documentary feature, Murder on a Sunday Morning

I don't watch nearly as many new movies as the rest of you, and the simple truth is, I will never waste my time seeing about 70% of the movies that were released. Given that, I made a top 9 list. I coldn't come up with ten from what I have seen. I won't bother listing all the 2001 releases I have seen, which is probably around 40. I also included the notable titles I still have to see.

top nine, in order. I included a couple guilty pleasures.

1) Donnie Darko
2) The Man Who Wasn't There
3) Memento
4) Snatch
5) A.I. Artificial Intelligence
6) Mulholland Drive
7) Moulin Rouge
8) Legally Blonde
9) Josie and the Pussycats (that's right)


Notable ones I haven't seen

Lord of the Rings
Black Hawk Down
In The Bedroom
Ghost World
Gosford Park
Sexy Beast
The Others
Monster's Ball
Lantana

Once I see all these, my top list will obviously change a bit.

Caught Training Day which started out pretty good and grew more dismal and cliche as it went along. The performances were fine, but the script was the usual Hollywood laziness. The ending was good for a laugh, though.
C

Updated with Trouble Every Day, which apparently got a one-week Oscar-qualifying run last November. Hey, they can dream, and this did barely avoid my bottom ten. Still, pretty bad movie. It's French in tone and setting, but much of the dialog is in English (that is, about half of the maybe twenty lines of it). I'll give it some credit for a couple of the more disquieting scenes of bloodsucking in recent memory - as much as it ties vampirism to sexuality, it's not romantic at all - but otherwise, a real waste of two hours and five buck.

Updated with Series 7 which was interesting in concept but boring in execution and Osmosis Jones, a script packed with corniness, but really well done and inventive animation. I would give both C+'s

Added Training Day and revamped the list to match my 2002 list.

Updated with Jason X, a routine updating of the Friday the 13th franchise.
This outing takes place on a spaceship which (luckily for Jason) just happens to be populated by scantily-clad horny youngsters and guys with big muscles!.
The entire film is shot with dull blue lightning to disguise the fact that the 'spaceship' is actually an empty warehouse in Toronto.
Still, the film still has its few moments (Cronenberg & Robert Silverman cameos, the freezing face death, Jason and the 2 Camp Crystal Lake bikini babes) which make the film mildly entertaining in spite of itself.
Also updated with Heartbreakers, Cats & Dogs, The Forsaken, Mulholland Dr., One Night at McCools and The Tailor of Panama

oK here is comes the 2001 list of the most open minded guy on the forum:
1:Spy Kids
2:Shrek
3:The Mummy Returns 1/2
4earl Harbor
5:Moulin Rouge
6:Atlantis
7:Cats and Dogs
8:Atlantis
9:K-PAX 1/2
10:The Fast and the Furious
11:The Musketeer 1/2
12: Harry Potter
13:A.I.
14:Hearts In Atlantis 1/2
15: Lord of the Rings
16: A Beautiful Mind
17:The Royal Tenenbaums
18: From Hell 1/2
19: Jurassic Park 3
20: Black Hawk Down

I mentioned Dark Blue World in the 2002 thread but I think it really belongs here as a NY/LA 2001 film. I gave it 8 of 10.

Also Jeepers Creepers which I mentioned in the 2002 thread. 5 of 10.

Working on Majestic and From Hell next.

I realized I didn't keep this list up to date. Of course no one really cares , but I feel the need for completion anyway.

Here's stuff I didn't add, besides the stuff just mentioned.

Dark Blue World went to 28th on my list, by the way.

Others added:
Bandits - 8
Ali - 7.5
The Score - 7.5
Spy Game - 7.5
K-Pax - 6.5
Serendipity - 6.5
Behind Enemy Lines - 6
13 Ghosts - 5
(Jeepers Creepers) - 5
Black Knight - 4
Corky Romano - 4
Not Another Teen Movie - 2

Jimmy Neutron 5.5

Runs a little dull at points for adults, but I would think this film is a true 10 for kids 5-10. I just can't promise that adults will walk away from the film more than mildly entertained.

Shipping News 3.5

Shipping News is so horribly manipulative and poorly scripted I wanted to puke. Remember the Steve Martin film "The Lonely Guy"...now imagine that played as serious drama. That's the first 20 minutes of this film. Yet I am later expected to believe this naive simpleton who at one point says "Has your friend left yet" to start with smart-alec sarcasm. Makes Forrest Gump's manipulation look subtle. The film induced more from me than I can remember in a film.

My biggest fear is that I have yet to see I Am Sam and I expect more of the same from that film.

Seen a few more

American Pie 2 - D
Behind The Sun - B
The Devil's Backbone - C
Ali - B-
The Closet - B
Oceans 11 - B
Crazy/Beautiful - C+

Too late to start a list? Well, I'm going to give it a shot anyway. Ratings out of ****.

Latest Additions:7/15 Exit Wounds, Joy Ride
Total Seen:38
Total to be Seen:40

[c]#[/c]
61*-****

[c]A[/c]
American Pie 2-***
Animal, The-**1/2
Anti Trust-***

[c]B[/c]
Bridget Jones's Diary-***1/2

[c]E[/c]
Exit Wounds-**1/2

[c]F[/c]
Fast And The Furious, The-***
Freddy Got Fingered-**

[c]G[/c]
Ghost World-**1/2

[c]H[/c]
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone-***1/2

[c]J[/c]
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back-***1/2
Joe Dirt-***
Joy Ride-***

[c]L[/c]
Last Castle, The-**1/2

[c]M[/c]
Made-***
Memento-****
Monsters Inc.-***1/2
Mummy Returns, The-**1/2

[c]N[/c]
Not Another Teen Movie-***

[c]O[/c]
Ocean's 11-***1/2
One, The-**1/2
Osmosis Jones-***

[c]P[/c]
Planet Of The Apes-*1/2

[c]R[/c]
Rat Race-***
Royal Tenenbaums, The-****
Rush Hour 2-**1/2

[c]S[/c]
Saving Silverman-***
Scary Movie 2-**1/2
Score, The-***
Serendipity-***
Shrek-****
Summer Catch-*
Swordfish-***

[c]T[/c]
Training Day-***1/2

[c]W[/c]
Wash, The-***
Wedding Planner, The-**
What's The Worst That Could Happen?-*

Z
Zoolander-**1/2

[c]Films by Rating[/c]

[c]****[/c]
61*
Memento
Royal Tenenbaums, The
Shrek

[c]***1/2[/c]
Bridget Jones's Diary
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Monsters Inc.
Ocean's 11
Training Day

[c]***[/c]
American Pie 2
Anti Trust
Fast and the Furious, The
Joe Dirt
Joy Ride
Made
Not Another Teen Movie
Osmosis Jones
Rat Race
Saving Silverman
Score, The
Serendipity
Swordfish
The Wash

[c]**1/2[/c]
Animal, The
Exit Wounds
Ghost World
Last Castle, The
Mummy Returns, The
One, The
Rush Hour 2
Scary Movie 2
Zoolander

[c]**[/c]
Freddy Got Fingered
Wedding Planner, The

[c]*1/2[/c]
Planet of the Apes

[c]*[/c]
Summer Catch
What's the Worst That Could Happen?

I didn't realize I hadn't updated my list since January. Oops!:b

That has now been remedied with multiple changes to the top ten. Still a few more to see and that is going to be tougher now that the local M&P that I rented from has gone out of business.

Rob

Jeepers Creepers - B-
Dark Blue World - C+
Storytelling - B+
Bully - F
Waking Life - B
Tape - B+

I have No Man's Land coming today or tomorrow. That will leave me with 3 movies on my "to see" list from last year:
Gosford Park
The Majestic
Spy Game

All are currently out of stock at Netflix.

Wow, I'm surprised you didn't like Dark Blue World more.

Bully is a polarizer, so I can understand that.


Don't worry guys, I'm not updating our top 10 "vote" list anymore anyway. But this thread is nice to see what other people thought of these films that we are now renting/buying.