Happy New Year's Eve 2009

Once again, wow I suck at having a blog.

Maybe my New Year's resolution will be to update this blog more :)

What a year it's been...

I applied to grad school, got accepted into grad school, started going to grad school for journalism because I am determined to write about films "when I grow up". And the sad thing is, I haven't been able to watch as many films nor write about them b/c I felt overwhelmed with school and assistantship work.

I'm in the last few days of my (glorious) 6 week winter break. And while I surely haven't done the amount of reading or writing I should have (as of right now, I still have yet to finalize a thesis topic/proposal), I have been able to catch up on some movie watching. I haven't watched the greatest of films, but even getting to sit through a few "meh" films in one day is better than watching no movies at all. Plus, I got to watch The Hangover and Star Trek (both 2009) with commentary... nice.

As I type this, I see my binder of movies (i.e. the hundreds of movies that are out of their cases and slid into a CD binder) as well as the hundreds of DVDs on my make-shift bookshelf (wooden crates - woot). They're so colorful :)

I got a few movies for Christmas this year, as well as ordered a few of my own from Overstock and I put them in their rightful place on the shelf the other day. All of my DVDs (whether in the binder or on the shelf) are in chronological order according to release date. (Exceptions being boxed sets, such as the Harry Potter films, my James Dean collection, the Pirates movies, Star Wars movies, and Indiana Jones movies... those are arranged chronologically within their own sets... as are the 16+ seasons of TV on DVD in my collection...)

Some of the DVDs are still encased in their plastic wrap. Some are movies I have seen, several are movies I have yet to see for the first time. Perhaps another goal this year could be to watch the DVDs in my collection which I haven't seen yet... that's probably around 5-10 movies. Yikes.

As I scan the titles on my shelf, I see that my collection is a real hodge-podge. There are some old classics (Casablanca, Lawrence of Arabia, West Side Story, Bonnie & Clyde, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) as well as some more recent fare that are borderline embarrassing (Dirty Deeds, Dukes of Hazard, Hot Rod, Meet Bill, Twilight). Surely there is a reason for each DVD to be there...

Let's start from the most recent ones and work our way down. I'll give myself an hour to do this - let's see how far I can get:

1. Star Trek - Christmas present from my sister. We saw it together over the summer and she remembered that I liked it a lot.

2. Role Models (unrated) - I hadn't seen it before, but will watch anything with Paul Rudd in it. Turned out to be super funny.

3. Milk - Again, hadn't seen it before but am a fan of Sean Penn and James Franco. I now understand why Sean Penn won Best Actor over Mickey Rourke - I don't think I've ever seen him smile that much before in my entire life. Very powerful film.

4. Australia - Saw it in theaters and wasn't super impressed, but I liked the epic scope of it all, the director, and cowboy Hugh Jackman (not gonna lie, he looked super sexy in this movie). Means more to me now that I've seen Hugh Jackman on Broadway and have his autograph.

5. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - Saw it in theaters and like Michael Cera and Kat Dennings. Plus, it's all about NYC :)

6. Tropic Thunder - Not a fan of Ben Stiller or Jack Black, but loved RDJ. Bought it so I can listen to the commentary at some point.

7. The Duchess - Never saw it before, but am a HUGE fan of Ralph Fiennes (he's my favorite actor - woot). Turned out to be a decent period piece.

8. Twilight - Not a fan of the franchise after reading all the books and seeing the movies. I was curious to listen to the commentary to see if the director and actors were sincere in thinking that this was a good film. The plot infuriates me, as does the entire series. Bella Swan is not a good role model for young girls.

9. Sex and the City: The Movie - LOVE this movie. I loved the TV series and this movie was just the tastiest icing on the tastiest cake. I love strong women characters, and it's a plus with all the fashion and settings.

10. Pineapple Express - Fan of Judd Apatow produced films and the pairing of Seth Rogen and James Franco. James Franco needs to do more comedy.

11. Be Kind Rewind - I love Mos Def and was a fan of how they Sweded the movies. Very cute movie from the director of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

12. Forgetting Sarah Marshall - Dear Jason Segel, I love you and your Dracula puppet musical.

13. Atonement - Great book, great movie. James McAvoy was great as Robbie and should have been nominated for more awards.

14. Meet Bill - Still haven't watched it. I only bought it b/c it stars Aaron Eckhart. Since I bought it, however, I became totally over Eckhart and no longer respect him as an actor (he was only good in Thank You For Smoking and Conversations with Other Women).

15. Becoming Jane - James McAvoy again! Hathway does a decent job at portraying Jane Austen, though this was a poor-man's Pride & Prejudice.

16. The Painted Veil - Good book, good movie again. Edward Norton and Naomi Watts are great actors. Gorgeous film.

17. Starter for 10 - James McAvoy (do you see a small theme?) is great as a quiz bowl contestant. I was on the Academic Challenge team when I was in high school and this brought back memories...

18. Hot Rod - After becoming a fan of The Lonely Island, I decided to check out their feature film. Not the best movie ever by far, but it makes me chuckle.

19. Hairspray - I love movie musicals! Plus, this one addresses a lot of themes like body image, racism and overall tolerance. Great music, mostly great cast, just a fun movie.

20. Diggers - I thought this was going to be funnier than it was, but Paul Rudd gives another solid performance.

21. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - I completely dug Johnny Depp as Todd. Another great film from Tim Burton... great cast and really eerie feel to it. I wish they would have kept the main song in the film, though, instead of just as part of the underscore.

22. Superbad - One of the greatest buddy comedies in recent years. Jonah Hill and Michael Cera are great together. A solid script from Seth Rogen.

23. Knocked Up - Though I am not a fan of Katherine Heigl in the slightest, I do like Rogen and his buddies a lot.

24. In Bruges - Colin Farrell's best performance to date for sure. Dark and darkly funny film with a great cast of Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes.

25. Hot Fuzz - TOO FUNNY! Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are so great together in this hysterically funny and violent British cop romp. "Punch. That. Shit."

26. The Prestige - A solid film from Christopher Nolan with a great ensemble of Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman and Michael Caine. So dark... and you want to watch it again because of all the twists and turns.

27. Little Children - Great book, great film, solid cast. Kate Winslet (my favorite actress) gives a phenomenal performance. Plus, I'm a big fan of Patrick Wilson (who is just as hot in person as he is on film... oh yes)

28. The Illusionist - The "other" magic film (came out the same year as The Prestige). Underrated, but there were solid performances all around. Edward Norton is great, as always.

29. Borat - I hadn't laughed that hard in a long time. Perhaps I can laugh because I was not offended by the exploitation of ignorant Americans.

30. The Departed - Soooo good. My favorite Scorsese film of all time. Great cast - you can't get any better than this. I love the violence and deception. Glorious.

31. Capote - Phillip Seymour Hoffman was amazing as Capote, but it was Clifton Collins Jr who stole the show, in my eyes, as Perry Smith. That scene where the gun shots just rang out scared me so much, I nearly leapt out of my seat.

32. I Could Never Be Your Woman - Odd movie from Amy Heckerling. Paul Rudd is adorable - and that dance sequence is funny.

33. High School Musical - Yep, guilty pleasure alert right here. The movie is pure Disney cheese, but the songs are catchy and the theme of expressing yourself is always nice to see.

34. Little Miss Sunshine - Quirky family fun. I remember seeing this in theaters and laughing hysterically during Abigail Breslin's dance number.

35. The Squid and the Whale - One of my favorite "indie" films. Great cast - Jeff Daniels and Jesse Eisenberg are brilliant.

36. Clerks II - Perhaps my favorite Kevin Smith film. Randal Graves is my favorite Smith character of all time.

37. Thank You For Smoking - Oh Aaron Eckart, you were so good in this film, what happened since then? Great cast and script.

38. Superman Returns - I really dug this movie when it came out. Brandon Routh made a great Superman, but I don't think this franchise should continue...

39. Casino Royale - I was so happy when they announced Daniel Craig as James Bond. This is my favorite Bond movie ever - it would have been a great movie even if it wasn't about James Bond. I love Chris Cornell's theme song and the plot of the film. Because of this movie, I will gladly see future Bond movies.

40. A Prairie Home Companion - Robert Altman's last film :( Loved Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly together.

41. Notes on a Scandal - I still have yet to watch it. I just bought it b/c Cate Blanchett is my 2nd favorite actress.

42. Batman Begins - Made me a fan of Batman again. Great cast (except for Katie Holmes) and solid re-into of how Bruce Wayne came to be Batman.

43. Hard Candy - F-ed up movie! Patrick Wilson and Ellen Page are great in this F-ed up movie about pedophiles.

44. The Chumbscrubber - Not a great film, but a decent ensemble cast. I don't know how they assembled these people.

45. Everything is Illuminated - Bought it w/o seeing it, and I ended up liking it a lot. Really emotional movie about finding out about your roots.

46. Good night, and good luck - Great movie about Edward R. Murrow. Made me a George Clooney fan. Plus, amazing ensemble cast!

47. Conversation(s) with Other Women - Interesting film... I appreciate the split screens throughout the entire film.

48. Jersey Girl - Not Kevin Smith's best film, but a good performance from Ben Affleck. It's nice to have something to remember George Carlin by...

49. The Aviator - I didn't like this movie much, even though it has a good cast. My sister was getting rid of her DVD, so I kept it.

50. Dirty Deeds - Not gonna lie, I only bought this b/c I had just started watching Heroes and thought Milo Ventimiglia was hot.

51. Dukes of Hazard - Another one my sister was going to give away... saw it in theaters and laughed. Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott are funny and there was an Air Supply reference.

52. Frequency - Dennis Quiad + James Caviezel = awesomeness.

53. How to Lose Your Lover - I went through a big Paul Schnieder kick a while ago and though this wasn't an awesome movie, it was only $3 at Big Lots.

54. The Upside of Anger - I will watch Kevin Costner in just about anything, and this turned out to be a decent movie (I saw it in theaters when it came out).

55. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason - Not as good as the first movie, though I remember liking this book a lot. My dad has a funny Colin Firth story, so it makes these movies extra special to me.



Well, my hour is up... perhaps I will finish this list in the new year :)

Have a great end of 2009 and start of 2010 everyone!!