10 Best Films of 2007: The Runner's Up

Before I unveil my top three, here is a small list of films that I have seen previews for, but either haven’t been to Portland or Salem yet or I haven’t had the chance to get out there and see them. Also a small list of films that almost made the cut and were still some of my favorite films this year. Plus, I just wanted an excuse to put that creepy picture from The Orphanage (which looks like a really cool homage to Argento and other Italian horror films) on here. As fot the films that almost made the cut: I would gladly swap out any of those for any other five on my list.



At one point The Lookout was sitting pretty at number 5. But then a ton of good movies came out that frankly were fresher on my mind or held more weight that The Lookout. But like Michael Clayton, The Lookout is a near perfect genre film that decides to get into the psyche of the characters rather than rely on shoot 'em up action scenes. It's Scott Frank's first film directing (he also wrote) but he is an established screenwriter (Minority Report, Out of Sight) and wisely moves away from the cliches of the heist film and paints the genre in a new (but still gloomy noirish) light.

I'm Not There was one of the more bizarre and risky films this year, with great performances by Heath Ledger and Cate Blanchett. Superbad was brilliant as was Ratatouille proving that we should all thank the Simpson's for giving us Brad Bird. 3:10 to Yuma was a great western (a genre I have much admiration for) and No End in Sight was one of the more engaging film experiences this year. So enjoy these alternatives, they are good enough to be in the top 10, I guess it all depends on my mood.

Films that were oh so close: The Lookout, I’m Not There, No End in Sight, Ratatouille, Superbad, 3:10 to Yuma


Films I have yet to see that are supposed rule: There Will Be Blood, Into the Wild, The Orphanage, a slew of foreign films, The Bucket List (okay that ones a joke), but I am sure there a tons more

Read More

0 comments

10 Best Films of 2007: #4 - Michael Clayton

Classic in its execution, few films are as enjoyable and flawless in their exercise of the genre as Michael Clayton. George Clooney plays the title character that looks like he has been doing his job (a “janitor” for a big time company) for a little too long. Clooney looks dogged and tired and like he wants out of the business. He owes money for a failed restraint/bar experiment and you get the feeling that is the only reason why he is sticking around: the money. His ever-growing conscious and suspicions about his job are the only sings of moral responsibility in this corrupt and cold (suggested by the beautiful cinematography) business world. Also, Tilda Swinton is so good at being so loathsome.

For the character of Michael Clayton, his monetary obligations cause him to remain committed to his employers in doing one last job that is the catalyst for how the film plays out. A silky smooth thriller which pays homage to the great 1970 films that trusted their audience to have patience and try to figure things out for themselves. There are no double turns or last second revelations, there are no hidden clues that will reveal one character is actually a mole or some crap like that. The director Tony Gilroy (he wrote the Bourne movies, but wisely stays away from the shaky cam) is obviously influenced by 3 Days of the Condor and The Conversation, smart adult thrillers that understood how to tell a story simply and let the actors do their thing.

He and cinematographer Robert Elswit (Syriana, Magnolia, There Will Be Blood) create an icy blue corporate world, a landscape where Clooney and his superb costars Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson can show off their acting chops.

I think what I liked best about Michael Clayton was that it wasn’t trying to be some political thriller or a message movie. It is simply a genre picture that excels on every level. And that last shot is maybe one of the best shots of the year, where the viewer is invited to look just a little bit longer at the title character. There isn’t much else I can say about the film other than how technically masterful it is. I guess the word I am looking for is efficient. Every cog in its machine is in place and runs smoothly. Or simply, everyone who worked on this film hits a home run.

Read More

0 comments

10 Best Films of 2007: #5 - Juno

I had bad thoughts during the opening moments of Juno. I labeled it as throwaway hipster dialogue that served no purpose other than to congratulate itself on how smart it was. A self aware film that proved nothing other than another entry into the already crowded genre of the modern independent comedy, ala Napoleon Dynamite and Rushmore. I mean I GET it, the character of Juno (Ellen Page) is hip, she’s cool, she’s post modern and self aware, she drinks Sunny D straight from the carton and walks (half animated, half live action) through her town to the tunes of some indie songstress. Oh and she lives in a room, that to call kitschy is an understatement…plus she has a hamburger telephone. We then get the scene where she calls someone and tells them to hold on because the sound is cutting out on her hamburger phone. We get it! We can see the phone right there. You don’t have to draw attention to it.

But this sounds like I hate the movie. I don’t. I love it. It was a bright spot among many dark (but great) films this year. The movie (once you get past those rough first fifteen minutes) is a delight to watch and the characters are perfectly human, people we feel like we interact with everyday. The difference between Juno and Rushmore or Napoleon Dynamite is that the central character, Juno, is not a caricature like Max Fischer or Napoleon, but is based in reality. Giving weight (no pun intended) to the performance is Ellen Page, who is sly and steely but also warm and real. You feel like you have come across a girl like that before.

There are moments of true insight into what it’s like as a teenager trying to be more adult, or what we may think of Jennifer Gardner (until a crucial and touching scene in a mall, where we realize along with Juno, that Gardner’s character is not as icy as originally thought) and her husband played Jason Bateman.

There are some moments that touch deeply upon the hard decisions people have to make; especially teenagers who are thrust into adulthood when they think they're ready, but find they are not. It’s a great experience that by the end of the film you realize, hey, the parents of Juno (JK Simons and Alison Janney) acted like normal parents, not like teen sex comedy caricatures, and the moment when she drops off a letter for Jennifer Garner after a crucial moment in the end of the film…a moment that in 90% of movies like this would have been horribly conventional and groan inducing, seems just about perfect and surprisingly not contrived. It’s amazing that a film could convert me so quickly. After 15 minutes (which aren't so bad that I couldn't place it on here) I was ready to hate it, and then I became one of its biggest cheerleaders.

Read More

1 comment

10 Best Films of 2007: #6 - Into Great Silence

For 2 hours and 43 minutes, Into Great Silence offers images of an existence that is appropriate for the subject matter. You are speechless watching the film. You sit in silence (at one point, you can hear the snow fall) and simply observe these monks in the French Alps as they live their daily lives with their morning recesses and recitals, their daily walks where conversation is allowed, but few take part in. Throughout the film all I could think of was one of the great writers and radicals of our time Thomas Merton. I have read almost all of his books and have respect for someone who can remove themselves entirely from the world and live a totally devoted life to God.

Philip Gröning wrote the monks (secluded deep within the French Alps) in 1984 to see if he could make a documentary about them. It took sixteen years for them to get back to him. It only seems appropriate that they would take their time.

The film is a different religious experience than say an Ingmar Bergman film (silence meant God was not there, here it is a way of communing with the divine) but it is an experience that transcends film and will leave its mark long after you have endured the 2 hours and 43 minutes. There is no artificial lighting, no interviews, Gröning wisely removes himself and any form of voice over (there is no need for narration or explanation) from the project even though he lived with the monks for six months. The film embodies the monastery rather than simply observing it. It touches the deep spirit and the deeply spiritual and all of the credit goes to the director.

Into Great Silence is like an eloquent and elaborate piece of music --- your attention may drift in and out at times, but you seem to always be aware that you are in the presence of beauty and something that is capable of altering the way you see the world.

Read More

0 comments

10 Best Films of 2007: #7 - Atonement

If there was one film I was most looking forward to seeing this year it was definitely Atonement. Was this going to be a great film like I thought it could be? Or was this destined to be a butchered version of the Ian McEwan novel I have so much admiration for. I admit that my immediate reaction to the film was: yeah, that’s good. And I think I was disappointed in my own response to the film; I wanted to love it, and I didn’t. I was weary of the film, yes, but I was also counting down the days until I could see it for myself, and after all of that build up (mostly by me, and now by the Focus Films ad wizards pining for Awards) I feel like it’s not the film of the year I was hoping for, but it’s still an affective and beautiful looking picture.

Many people called this one of the most unfilmmable books, and I have to say I was weary of the film, wondering how in the hell they were going to translate that ending to film. But the film is impressive, in a David Lean sort of way. Which, I am not slighting the film, it is classical British filmmaking. Every shot seems to have been excruciatingly storyboarded and meticulously shot, and I found myself moved by the film (yet somewhat at an arms length) and I think part of that is McEwan. I just had finished the novel for the second time in preparation for the film and I think it was McEwan, not Joe Wright that was in my brain as I sat in the movie theater. And that's a problem when reviewing a film based on such a tremendous novel. It is not the novel I am reviewing, but the film and that is where Mr. Wright falls just a little short with his adaptation of McEwan. There are impressive shots for sure, especially one where a tired, wounded, and drunk Robbie is backlit by a scene from Brief Encounter in a movie house (there is also a scene that is straight taken from that film earlier on). Another shot that found my jaw agape was the five minute tracking shot on the shore of the beach – something that impressed me more than the shot in Children of Men – this shot takes you out of the film (much like I have always felt the details of the war does for the book) but it is impressive, no doubt.

But it left me with an almost cold admiration for it. The closest thing I can compare it to is the admiration I have for some of Kubrick's films. I am not a Kubrick fan, but I admire 2001, Paths of Glory, and most of all (his masterpiece) Barry Lyndon - which oddly enough, reminds me of Atonement. That's high praise and for its set pieces and cinematography alone, Atonement is one of the best films of the year.

Read More

0 comments

10 Best Films of 2007: #8 - Inland Empire

I fear that I have too much to write about Inland Empire and its insane (maybe inane?) labyrinthine narrative. So, I will do something Lynch didn’t do and keep this short. The film is about…well…it’s about exactly what it says on the cover of the film: a woman in trouble. And it’s good, really good, effing brilliant…but what the hell does it mean? How do I go about writing a normal synopsis of the film and then my feelings about the film? There were times I wanted to turn it off, times where I looked at the time code and said to myself, “huh, only 1:34:00 into it?” Check out the teaser trailer below, it only last one minute, but I defy anyone to claim that it doesn't at least look interesting.

So, I will just leave it to you to see for yourself. Trust me, it’s a film experience worth experiencing, and that is why it’s on my list. If Lynch can be this bold and have the balls to make this film, well then, I respect him for that. That is why you find this film at number eight, with little to no explanation as to why it’s here…in fact I am still trying to figure out those weird jack rabbit people in that room with the laugh track and the phone that just rings…yeah…onto the next film!

Read More

0 comments

My Ten Favorite Albums of 2007

I will admit that I do not think about music in the same way as film or literature. I can appreciate artistic music, music that really makes you think and can make you feel really smart and like you are apart of a smaller subculture, patting yourself on the back for being the only people who know about a certain artist. I know that feeling. I remember feeling that way about Radiohead, Bright Eyes, Cursive, and others. But something has changed for me recently; my music experiences have become more organic. Basically, I like what makes me feel good. This list of my favorite albums in no way represents what may be the “best” albums of the year. I don’t know what those are, music is so subjective. People who like one genre but not another fail to see the little things that make that genre so good. And vice versa. I can never understand the appeal of Hip Hop or Rap, because I don’t like it. That doesn’t mean there aren’t good Hip Hop musicians out there, I just don’t like it enough to care and take the time to notice the subtle differences.

You will notice there is no Feist, Rilo Kiley, Radiohead, Spoon, Interpol, Arcade Fire, or any other beacon of the Indie scene, because even though I liked those albums, you are going to see those on every music magazine top ten list. Some of those albums I really like, others were huge disappointments, but this list is to provide a diverse and hopefully unheard of group of albums so that you will become aware and seek them out, and perhaps give a listen. Enjoy.

10. Every Time I Die – The Big Dirty




A great metal album that sounds good with the stereo up and even better with the windows down (I was hoping that would sound like some cheesy infomercial).

9. Sigur Ros – Hvarf-Heim



The Icelandic postmodern power pop band do it again. The film that this score accompanies is amazing. There is a scene where they are playing one of their songs in a cave. Magical music.

8. Rocky Votolato – The Brag and Cuss



The best folk musician alive today. This isn’t his best album, but it has more of that bluesy bar room sound to it that is great chill music.

7. Circa Survive – On Letting Go



The post hardcore champions do it again. Oddly enough this album is not as good as their first, but the improvements lead it down some unfamiliar and semi-brilliant paths. It doesn’t always work and sometimes the songs seem too long, but it’s a great addition to any list.

6. Look Mexico – This is Animal Music



One of my favorite moments of 2007 was discovering this little gem. The band from Florida create some of the most laid back music, easy to get lost to, or if you prefer, it’s good for other things too. The epitome of chill music.

5. Portugal. The Man – Church Mouth



The ex Portlander’s are at it again with their best album to date. Imagine a group of Northwesterner’s who move to Alaska to make some of the craziest jazz/punk/funk albums to date. Also, imagine said group were to create an indie version of blues music from the 20’s. It’s a trippy and worthwhile experience.

4. Bright Eyes – Cassadaga



This was just a few songs short of being the best album of the year. But unfortunately there are two real stinkers on here. Other than that, it’s Bright Eyes at their best with Conor Oberst giving the cautionary lyrics a rest and focusing more on the storytelling aspect of folk music. I know the Dylan comparisons are said ad nauseam, but this really does remind of the “electric” Dylan. Great stuff…just skip track 4.

3. Minus the Bear – Planet of Ice



I admit that I have a bias towards Seattle bands. In fact, for the last three years my favorite albums have been by The Blood Brothers (2004), Minus the Bear (2005), and The Blood Brothers (2006). This isn’t the easiest listening (like their previous albums about beer, weed, boating, and women) with its complicated beats and guitar solos, but it is a lot of fun and is reminiscent of Wish You Were Here and Animals, two of the best Pink Floyd records. Not too shabby.

2. The Dear Hunter – Act II: The Meaning of, and All Things Regarding Ms. Leading



With a title like this you know a band has aspirations to be something besides the typical post hardcore rock band. The second part to a dizzying story ( the first part, a five song EP, was 30 minutes long) clocks in at a little under 1 hour and 20 minutes, but it is possibly the best 80 minutes you will ever spend listening to music. Using every instrument he can think of, front man and brain child of The Dear Hunter, Casey Crescenzo creates a cinematic feeling while listening to the story, complete with one of the catchiest piano tunes and a somber (but fitting) end to the album where it is nothing but noises from a pier. It’s a prog rock fans wet dream.

1. The Snake The Cross The Crown – Cotton Teeth





Well, no other album made me as happy or feel as good as The Snake The Cross The Crown’s newest album Cotton Teeth. Despite what their name may suggest, the band doesn’t dip into themes of religion or what it means to be alive, but rather they play simple southern rock in the vein of The Band. And that’s a big compliment. Simple is not to say easy, in fact rock music this good and this simple is one of the hardest things to do. There is never a hint of grandstanding and there isn’t a pretentious thing about it. Simply put, it’s the best rock album of the last five years. It’s a shame this band remains so unknown, but part of me thinks they like it that way.




Almost made the cut:

Band of Horse – Cease to Begin
Saves the Day – Under the Boards
Feist – The Reminder
Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
Two Gallants – s/t
Thrice – The Alchemy Index: Volumes 1 & 2

Really disappointing albums:

Emery – I’m Only a Man
Rilo Kiley – Under the Blacklight
Interpol – Our Love to Admire
The Good Life – Help Wanted Nights
Ben Lee – Ripe

Read More

1 comment