Top 10 of 2009

Even though I was not one of those who complained about how un-Star Trek this looked, I was still pleasantly surprised, and found this to feel much more like Star Trek than I expected. I was actually excited from the very beginning, even though I did watch TOS. The visual mood of the movie was definitely different, and some of the characters were a little different, but the story was very typical for Star Trek (believe it or not, that's a good thing), and I loved how they kept certain classic aspects of TOS, such as the sound the comm makes when you turn it on. And the music was perfect. Exciting and still slightly Star Trek inspired.

Most of the actors were excellent. I always thought Karl Urban and Zachary Quinto would be wonderful, and they were, but I was surprised to find that I loved John Cho and Anton Yelchin as Sulu and Chekov, even though I dont recall Chekov being a wiz kid. Chris Pine and Zoe Saldana I found to be sufficient in their roles, but Simon Pegg I did not enjoy a great deal. There were too many differences in the character that I did not find to be improvements. I loved the Spock/Uhura relationship. I must admit I was always a Spock/Uhura shipper, even though TV writers in the 60s didnt give us a lot of material to work with.

My only problem, which a lot of ppl had, is how the story seemed to cheat. Making this movie more like the beginning of a Star Trek spin-off series, than a reboot series. I enjoyed it greatly, and look forward to more, but I am slightly disappointed that I know these are not entirely the characters I grew to love.

Although I am easily satisfied by a movie with lots of chases and explosions and even have 3 Michael Bay movies among my favourites, the first Transformers movie didnt blow me away. I wouldnt even say it was awesome, it was just pretty good. But what that movie was missing, this movie had.


Besides the fact that the action was more incredible and there was more of it, what really pushed this over the 'awesome' line for me, is the scale of it. It took us around the globe, into space, and back to 17 000 BC. The story was more complex and much more interesting, giving the bad guys more purpose than just being bad. The battles were bigger, meaning everyone's heroics were bigger, and that is impressive especially from a normal guy like Sam. I also enjoyed John Turturro's character a lot more in this movie than the first. Once or twice the camera work made me a little dizzy, but it really didnt feel like 2 hrs. 30 min. It was well spent.

Considering how unimpressed I was with The Da Vinci Code, I am incredibly surprised how much I enjoyed this. There was awhile there when I though it might even earn a 4.5 from me. But the ending disappointed me a tad. I saw the twist coming early on, but then I thought to myself, "Nah, it cant be." Then later, I suspected the ending again, but dismissed it again. I was reluctant to admit it to myself because I am a huge fan of a certain actor involved in the twist.

However, it wasnt a terrible ending, it just wasnt the best one possible. And the rest of the movie was more than enough to make up for it. Being on the clock over a span of only a few hours, it was non-stop suspense, thrills, and action. This is a perfect example of "edge of your seat". At 2 hrs. 20 min, it did not feel long at all. And that likely had something to do with Hans Zimmer's score. It was absolutely beautiful and captivating. Sometimes you get caught up in the action or story of a movie, and dont consciously notice the score, but this is one that cant be missed.

I also greatly enjoyed the amount of decyphering and symbology used. It reminded me of National Treasure, revealing secrets about the past of the the Catholic Church, instead of the United States, both huge powers. This is one I will definitely want to add to my collection.

I went through quite a few different reactions through the process of watching this movie, but I like where it left me. The use of shots from interviews and news telecasts definitely worked to make it feel more real, and I admire the attempt to be different, but I'm not sure whether it was better than a traditional narrative. About a third of the way into the movie, I actually wanted to walk out. It was pretty disturbing for awhile there. Uniquely unnerving. But as it went on you realize thats not what its about and its just setting things up. The second half of the movie is really great. The story was interesting, the action was awesome, and I really enjoyed Christopher. Also the SFX were amazing, and the ending was perfect. As a sci-fi fan I have to comment that I loved the design of the aliens and their technology, I could definitely see more, since there is so much talk of everyone wanting a sequel. Its not a must, but I wouldn't complain.

A good sword movie for fans of Pathfinder and The 13th Warrior. A bit too gory for my tastes at parts, but I really enjoyed the sci-fi element. It was weaved into the familiar story very well and made it feel more unigue as well as added to the story. The Morwin was truly terrifying and had a really interesting design.

I really enjoyed Sophia Myles' character. Although it was obvious she was there to be the leading lady for the leading man, she was used more as another warrior to fight the Morwin. Her character was balanced well enough for her to seem natural in both roles. In a movie that could be called cliched, I really appreciate a female lead that is not.

This is a lovely movie. I'm a huge sci-fi fan but still a woman who appreciates a good romance now and then. So to be able to get both in one movie is much appreciated. I actually read the book before I even heard about the movie. I mostly appreciated the changes. They made Gomez a much nicer guy, which is good. With everything else Henry had to go through he deserved a good friend he could trust alone with his wife. I also like the ending better. They took the reunion between Henry and Claire out of Alba's class trip scene and moved it to the end, which was a better way to go, I think, then having them reuinte one last time when she is old. It left open the possibility that he could show up at anytime, just like Claire and Alba discuss as they walk away. Much more hopeful. The only change I was disappointed with was all that they took out of Claire's teenage years. Henry meeting her friends, and them bugging her about dating an older guy, and of course the boy that burned her. It was still a really touching movie. I cried. :P And I didnt find it at all confusing. Must be because of all the sci-fi and time travel movies I have watched before.

This was entertaining, with a great style and nice action, but it didnt really tell us anything new. The story is basically exactly what we already knew from the first movie, drawn out with lots of fighting.

This has incredible non-stop action, even more than its predecessors, but it seemed short for some reason, although there was a decent story. Anton Yelchin was great. I've loved that kid ever since I saw him in an episode of Criminal Minds years ago. He has done well for himself since then, especially this summer.

A lovely little feel good film involving teenage self discovery. The roller derby scenes were lots of fun, and the whole team was a riot. Drew Barrymore's character was outrageous and awesome. I also enjoyed Bliss' work friends, Pash and Birdman. Everyone was so quirky but real, so I easily felt involved with the movie, making Bliss' achievments really exciting.

Even tho I havent read this book yet, I found this rather disappointing. I have read the first 5 books but decided to wait till this movie came out to continue since it was only a few months away when I finished OotP, and reading the book would probably make the movie seem horrible. But now that I know how JKR writes, and how much was left out of the last two movies, I could see so many gaps. I'll assume thats the fault of the movie makers since JKR never missed a detail before.


There were a lot of things that really werent explained very well. It all feels so vague. The horcruxes, what exactly happened in the cave, what was up with Harry's textbook. Really, not that much happened. I dont understand how this movie ended up being 2 hrs. 33 min. There was very, very little action. A breif scene at the Burrow and a breif scene outside Hagrid's, both of which are almost not worth mentioning. There was very poor use of some favourite supporting characters. I think we only saw Hagrid once and Remus and Tonks were completely wasted and their relationship was only breifly hinted at. The relationships between the main characters, on the other hand, was focused on way too much. I find them quite cute in the previous movies when they just have a few awkward seconds, but when you have to cut out half the story in order to fit into movie length, there must be more important things to keep. Perhaps the target audience wants teen drama, but thats not why I decided to watch an action/fantasy epic series. Although the scene with Harry and Ron talking about Ginny and Hermoine's skin was entertaining. That would have been one of the few scenes I would have kept, if its originally in the book that is.


I dont know how to place this compared to the first two movies since they stand alone as children's movies, but this is definitely my least favourite of the last 4 Harry Potter movies.