We Need the Eggs

I’m excited. This year I feel that my list of the best of films is complete. I’ve seen most of the films that have become major “contenders” for awards, but still I have yet to see: Charlie Wilson’s War, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, I’m Not There, and There Will Be Blood.

And now, my picks for the best of 2007!

1. Once – “Once” is about love. Specifically unrequited love, but that’s of no importance. It’s honest and innocent and simple, and refreshing because of those qualities. Writer/director John Carney uses two completely unknown actors and makes them give the performances of their lives. The plot in a sentence is: Two lonely musicians meet in Ireland and record music during one eventful week. It’s a musical, but not in the traditional sense. It’s a musical because it’s about music and uses music to tell a story. Even though Guy and Girl only know each other for a brief time, their interactions together are life-changing. And like a good film should, we feel a bit changed as well. See it, see it, see it.

2. No Country for Old Men – The Coen brothers write and direct an adaptation of a novel by Cormac McCarthy. This is a story about pure evil and how people react when they are faced with it (or rather him). The “him” is Javier Bardem and he is scaringly convincing. Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones, and Woody Harrelson round out the cast. More terrifying than just about any “horror” movie that comes to mind.

3. Juno – Witty, classy, and very smart. Sounds like I’m describing myself, but no, I’m talking about “Juno.” Ellen Page is so convincing as our 16 year-old pregnant hero. Its theme of “kids with adult issues and adults with ‘kid’ issues” is more a reality than some might think. Every character is fully formed no matter their screen time. It’s unconventional, funny, and sweet.

4. Atonement – Joe Wright’s second feature is even better than 2005’s “Pride and Prejudice.” There is a lot of like here in “Atonement.” Keira Knightley is perfect, as is Wright’s ability to weave multiple points of view into one story. More than anything “Atonement” is about lies and the fine line between a writer’s life and her fiction. Plays out much differently than the trailers would have you believe and having never read the novel, I didn’t see that ending coming.

5. Michael Clayton - A slick, original thriller written and directed by Tony Gilroy. George Clooney is at his best playing the title role, a lawyer for a huge law firm. Gilroy’s story is nonlinear, but shows us depth of situation and character. Also starring Tom Wilkinson and the wonderful Tilda Swinton.

6. Away from Her – I heard this joke once in middle school, “What’s that disease called? The one where you get old and can’t remember anything? I’ve forgotten.” What this young comic was getting at is Alzheimer’s disease, and as this film proves, it’s no laughing matter. Julie Christie is receiving much praise for her performance as an Alzheimer’s patient, but I think the real star here is Gordon Pinsent as a shattered husband who deals with the ‘loss’ of his wife and her affections.

7. The Kite Runner – “The Kite Runner” is about the depth of friendship and the power of redemption. Although it is not nearly as good as Khaled Hosseini’s novel, it captures a culture that Americans typically write-off. Despite what my students might tell you, not everyone from Afghanistan is a terrorist. Marc Foster continues to deliver very varied, yet quality cinema.

8. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – This is a nearly perfect adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s amazing musical. Tim Burton completely understands the purposes of Sondheim’s music. This musical film gets it right: the voices don’t have to be big, the actors are on film, not in a thousand seat theatre. They don’t have to sing to the third balcony, they just have to sing to me. This provides an intimacy that is rare in film. Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter should make pies together more often. And best of all, memories of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” were completely washed away.

9. La Vie en Rose – I was first introduced to Edith Piaf’s music by my French professor in college. Her stories of Piaf’s life always seemed so colorful, yet sad and this movie really captures those qualities. Marion Cotillard gives the performance of the year as she transforms herself into France’s “Little Sparrow.”

10. Eastern Promises – David Cronenberg directs a film about crime and its consequences. When a midwife tries to help a newborn child she crosses paths with the Russian mafia, a situation that is even less appealing than it sounds. Naomi Watts is solid and Cronenberg’s new muse seems to be Viggo Mortensen. Good for him and good for us.

I also enjoyed: 3:10 to Yuma, American Gangster, Bug, Paris, Je T’aime, Rescue Dawn, Superbad, and Zodiac.

Watch a movie, it’ll do you good. See you in 2008!