Top 15 Favorites of 2007

There's a beauty to it that American films can't quite capture anymore.

I loved it. It couldn't have been better. Better than I expected and better than anything Disney and Pixar have done since Toy Story 2. My favorite movie of the year so far.

Yes, it's not the best film, but it was one of the few really good films in theaters this summer. The plot is realisticly scary and Bruce Willis is such a charasmatic hero that you can't help but want the good guy to win like the old school films of Wayne, Eastwood, etc. Obviously, the film lacks the crackle of the first one, but its 17 years later; it's okay... The second best of the series.

One of the best movies so far this year. Amazingly addictive despite its 2 hr. 45 mins.

The cast is perfect. The music is perfect (especially Depp's voice - who knew). The direction is great and the overall feel is such that you realize only Burton could've done this story this well. What more could you ask for...

The one thing I was afraid of going into this film was that Javier Bardem's character had been overplayed as a "great villian." Boy, was I wrong to be in any way worried. To me, Anton Chigurh is the most unnerving character I've seen in a movie since Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs. Everything else is perfect as well, but to me, this film is about Bardem and the nihilistic tone his character creates for the audience.

Bardem's performance dominates the film, but Jones, in his subtly, crafts his second memorable character of the year. The direction again is exquisite from the Coens and the atmospheric music factor creates a beautifully lonely feel. Without true music, the Coens use accentuated sounds which give an aethestic/realistic quality.

What is the most amazing part about the Coens is that you don't immediately sense the epic quality of their films; it's sometimes hours or days later that it starts to seep in. Here is another, but this one is much more striking in its immediacy. Through a certain line or character, No Country... exposes the barest of each human characteristic.

Being one of my favorite books, I was nervous, but ultimately fulfilled. The ensemble acting was perfect, although it seemed that Knightley was just pouting her way through; Ronan and McAvoy stand out with exceptional performances. The directing was fantastic, with a couple of shots that seem destined to become classics (that 5 and a half minute shot was breathtaking). Finally, the best part for me was the score with the typewriter. Not only does it add to the intensity of the music, but keeps with the twist at the end. The one thing that seemed unfortunate (for those unfamiliar with the book) was the jumping around in settings which seemed to be a lot more complicated here than in the book. Still, for all that, it challenges you and that's a lot more than you can say for most of the stuff that's out there.

Genuinely creepy movie. I like that the ending is a bit of stumper, it adds to the creepiness of the film.

I don't think I've seen a film that has both gutted and inspired me at the same time. It's going to haunt me for a long time... on both accounts

Certainly one of the best movies I've seen this year. The fine line of drama, comedy and poignancy are so well executed in the screenplay and Gosling's performance has not one flaw. Supporting performances all-around provide a cushion that most films like this lack and the direction is assuredly warm which is very much needed for the setting.

This is the perfect example of every major aspect of a film coming together to make an overall great product. Too bad Hollywood can't do this more often...

I didn't think they could outdo Shaun of the dead. They did.

I laughed a lot at the beginning, but as the film progressed, it became more about amusing humor and biting satire, than being laugh-out-loud funny. But, the Simpsons have almost always been that way haven't they.

I finally got to see this and it was well worth the wait, especially after all the hype had died down. Washington and Crowe are both exceptional, both delivering Oscar-worthy stuff; it wasn't quite the two man game I was expecting (like The Departed), but no matter.

Washington was not the devilishly evil character he was in Training Day, but a regular man, a family man, with flashes of that evil. I don't know if it belongs in the realm of his great performances like Malcolm X, He Got Game, Glory and Training Day, but it's his best since that last Oscar. Crowe, on the other hand, has never really been a favorite of mine, but here, I felt differently. (When the spotlight's not on him, I like him more.) I came to believe in his character a lot more whole-heartedly than Washington's, which is why I feel the performance is underrated by critics and overshadowed by Washington's performance. For what each role was supposed to be, Crowe's was better.

What I like about Scott's direction for American Gangster is that, for the first time, there was no embellishment, no "I think I need another shot here;" it was simple straightforward, non-showy direction that lets the actors and the screenplay tell the story, yet you still get the full scope of the story and of Harlem. Because of this, he has one of his best directorials

The rest of the cast is exceptional, filling in the smaller characters with good character actors like Ejiofor, Josh Brolin, Ted Levine, Cuba Gooding, Jr. and best of all Ruby Dee, who, really, just in that one scene towards the end, proves she is worthy of Oscar talk as well.

The critics seemed to slight this a bit as they were expecting something grander than what it was. It didn't blow you away immediately. It's one of those films where, when it's over, it gives you this kind of revelatory "Wow!" While I don't see it as the classic people are saying it is (although, in the future, that might be different), it's certainly one of the best and most ambitious films I've seen this year, along with Zodiac, and I hope it gets the recognition it deserves.

Hilarious! It drags a bit in the middle, but the gags make up for it.

Strong costume drama telling the life of William Wilberforce. A fantastic cast is led by Ioan Gruffud who is perfect in the title role. Though not without its cliches [based on its genre], the subject matter which it deals with makes it rise above the mediocre pile.