The cutest, most creative, and awe-inspiring movie I saw from the 2009 crop, and that’s saying something. The amount of craft and ingenuity in nearly every frame of the film is astounding, somehow capturing the Wes Anderson essence perfectly but also delivering absolute manna from stop-motion heaven. The trailer does this film absolutely no justice. None at all.

This is a smart, crafty, and somewhat anarchist little project and though it’s aimed at the heart of the kid’s market this is only a kid’s film if it had been released in 1975. It’s perfect for smart kids or the parents of kids who grew up in the late 60’s and early 70’s, ones who aspire for their kids to have the spark of mischief and questioning of the system present in a lot of Roald Dahl’s books and the best stuff to come out of that era. It absolutely doesn’t insult the intelligence of its audience once, in fact loaded to the gills with little subtleties and comments that will make it one for many repeat viewings.

I’d put it up against any Wes Anderson film and anything this side of Pixar for actual merit of work in films aimed towards the younger set.

Contributing Factors: The craftsmanship and level of detail. Every frame, particularly the sets, are worth framing. The little things, like the way the opossum’s eyes glaze over, the designs of the human characters, the way the animals in the back are digging in the digging scenes even though they aren’t digging. The way Schwartzman’s character spits. The ‘Peter wrote a bad song’ scene. Brilliant is a word tossed around too often. That scene is brilliant.
Performance to Savor:
Michael Gambon. Not a lot of lines, but great work when he has them, including the best laugh in the film. The guy has his own turn on the Top Gear track and now he is officially a king of Earth.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Fantastic is too weak a word!”
4. In the Loop (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

There are some movies you watch over and over because there are special moments you want to experience again and again. There are some movies you watch over and over to discover new laughs or thrills. There are some movies you watch over and over because there’s just too much shit for you to process the first time.

This is all of the above.

Whip-smart, lightning fast, excellently performed, and loony, this is political satire at its best. Many have compared it to Wag the Dog and Dr. Strangelove but it’s not. It’s its own thing, owing more to today’s world of docu-comedies (which have made Ricky Gervais a wealthy man) and the way the public has sort of become more of an eyewitness to the people who comprise the power structure [real or implied] and made celebrities of them, and the fact the world has been quite a clusterfuck of late.

Armando Iannucci’s movie is one you simply get all the grace and scathing brilliance of in one sitting. Or two. Or three.

Contributing Factors: “Turn that fucking racket off! It’s just VOWELS! Subsidised… foreign… vowels!”
Performance to Savor: Peter Capaldi is a whirling dervish of venom in this film and it’s lovely. That said, James Gandolfini rocks this film hard and I was frankly impressed with how he held his own in this grouping.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “This loop is de pacte with laughs!”
3. Watchmen (CHUD Review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

When I saw this movie the first time it was sort of a numbing experience. I’d read Watchmen the week it came out in comic book shops (thanks to my then closest buddy Bert Cox) and had sort of grown up with it over the years, always hoping for but never expecting the film to actually come out. After being utterly psyched for the Paul Greengrass version I was skeptical but thrilled when Zack Snyder took it on.

I was numb. I knew I liked it a lot but wasn’t sure if I loved it. Then I saw it two more times and knew I loved it. Just didn’t know if it was for the right reasons and if that love translated to the film deserving its place on this list.

Thankfully, home video has made this film better and better for me and I can say without any doubts that it’s a film I love and a rather sizable cinematic accomplishment. Not without its flaws, mind you, but the films I love the very most tend to be ones with some serious flaws (Heat, Collateral, Out of Sight, and The Shining come to mind).

I loved this movie first because it actually got made and wasn’t a sellout. Now I love it because it’s one I can watch end to end anytime and find new things to be amazed by. And really, in a world where so many sacrifices are made on the journey from page to screen, I have no problems at all with this being a ‘cover’ over the graphic novel.

That said, I wish Malin Ackerman and Matthew Goode had been replaced with someone else. The cast would have been impeccable then. 

Contributing Factors: The opening credits. Jackie Earle Haley. The stunning visual work. The adherence to the source. A great story that’s still relevant and great today. Stephen McHattie classing up the joint. Eye candy and ear candy galore.
Performance to Savor: Jeffrey Dean Morgan. As great as Jackie Earle Haley is, it takes a knockout performance to make The Comedian anything other than a totally arch black hat. Morgan is sexy and dangerous and he has just something that makes his heinous actions almost worth it if the end result is a guy like him out there fighting crime with slightly less crime.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “You’ll be glad you’re locked in here with Rorsharch, rather than he being locked in with you!”
2. Inglourious Basterds (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

This is really a case where the top two films could be flipped and I’d have no problem with it. In fact, they’ve changed spots on this list about ten times as I’ve worked on it. It’s a case of 1A and 1B really.

As far as cinema goes, Quentin Tarantino’s movie is the best in many years. In many ways his best film. Definitely his most mature. Definitely the one boasting the least ‘look at me’ dialogue, the most confidence, and the least amount of moments where you feel the director is more concerned with his brand and legacy than in delivering something of true merit. There’s none of the embarrassing idol worship of Death Proof here [seriously, you take the crash and Kurt Russell out of that movie and it’s an abomination and even with them it’s a huge misstep]. There’s none of the excess of Kill Bill. This is his considerable talent distilled to one manageable movie. And it’s such a celebration of cinema.

The dialogue is like fine champagne and the actors (except for Eli Roth) deliver it like maestros. The scenes are well thought out and executed that the movie feels like a greatest hits collection from history. The sleight of hand in taking what would have been a boys with guns movie and making it about a Jewish girl’s revenge is breathtaking and bold. Everything about it (except for Eli Roth) is top notch and it keeps bearing fruit on repeat viewings.

Tarantino for a while there was a guy I was wary of. With this he delivers not only something truly great, but something truly great that isn’t kept afloat by cool or edgy sizzle. Amazing stuff.

Contributing Factors: Tarantino firing on all cylinders. The fact it suckers people into thinking it’s a combat film. Amazing work by everyone in the cast not named B.J. Novak or Eli Roth. Brad Pitt as an Italian filmmaker. The scene at the milk farm. The lunch scene. The theater scene. The basement scene. Most every other scene. Hans Landa’s pipe. Fassbinder’s farewell speech. So many great little moments. In reality this is the best film of the year, because it’s the best film of Quentin’s thus far. It’s just narrowly nudged by another film with a director playing a lead character. Except the director in the other film isn’t Eli Roth and someone whose work takes you out of the movie.  
Performance to Savor: Obviously Christolph Waltz is the breakout star but Mélanie Laurent is just as good and Michael Fassbender is the secret weapon. His work in the basement scene is as strong as anything in the movie.

Performance to Sever: Eli Roth.

CHUD.com Pull Quote: “If you don’t love this movie, you don’t deserve to scalp Herrman!”
1. District 9 (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

What an electric film. I was a little worried it wouldn’t hold up on repeat viewings, because there’s no way some video low budget [though, without Peter Jackson and Weta this’d have been a massively expensive film] South African film can be this good and hold up.

Five Blu-Ray viewings later, yes it can. It doesn’t have the richness of some of the films on this list, nor the performances, nor the depth. But as a package it is just about perfect. The craft, the brains behind it, and the absolute wringing of every drop of value and quality from every aspect of the movie makes it the film of the year for me. And that’s saying an awful lot, because terrific filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino, James Cameron, Spize Jonze, and Wes Anderson delivered some of the best work of their careers.

Plus, this film has put a justified nail in the coffin of the documentary style sci-fi films. This can’t be topped…. until District 10. Bring it on.

Contributing Factors: Amazing use of digital effects. Great sense of confidence. Really good example of limitations being a virtue when it comes to creative filmmaking. The arrival of a major directorial talent. That rare non-event event movie that lends itself to many follow-up stories. Christopher Johnson and his little boy are 100% believable characters and engaging as hell.
Performance to Savor: Sharlto Copley, which came from the bleachers beyond left field. First time I saw the movie I wanted this guy dead or out of the movie ASAP, but over the course of the film, as intended, he got better and better and became one of the deserving breakout stars of the year. That said, Neill Blomkamp is the real star of this..
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Best father/son alien story of ever!”

10. Up in the Air (CHUD review)(Buy the Book)

This is almost a great movie. Almost.

As
it stands it’s a damn good one, carried on the back of three excellent
performances from the leads and a nice revolving door of familiar
faces. Jason Reitman’s got a very snappy style that has led to him
coming out of the gates with three very effective, polished, and
entertaining features. The movie just sucks you in and as you follow
these people through a world of routine and lost souls, it just
delivers on most every level as a grown-up mainstream drama.

Clooney
is such a fine actor that people don’t often give him the credit he
deserves, and on the back of his great work in Syriana and Michael
Clayton this just guarantees that he’s his own breed of actor. The kind
of which we don’t get in this era.

The film’s flawed at times and it’s not quite as great as some have said [I’m still partial to Thank You for Smoking], but with Reitman doing what he does as well as he does and the three stars absolutely owning their material this is the best movie of its kind this year.

Contributing Factors: Great performances, snappy dialogue and plotting. Really great work behind the lens, and material that is just enough off-center to not cater to the audience that thinks this movie is made for them.
Performance to Savor: Clooney, though Vera Farmiga is always good and one of the least appreciated in the business. Or at least was until now.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “A first-class film. Because, you know, of the flying…”

9. Where the Wild Things Are (CHUD Review/Pre-Order the Blu-Ray)

It’s
hard to define this movie. It doesn’t adhere to nearly any of the rules
of movies in its structure, execution, communication with its audience,
or rule book in general. And it’s beautiful in every way. How do you
adapt that book anyway? You don’t. And the results of Spike Jonze’s
amazing vision quest are so amazing that even the book’s author is in
its thrall.

Imagine the wildness and blindly aggressive love
of being free and carefree distilled onto celluloid and this is it. Max
Records is a revelation as a boy who really isn’t built for our
reality, a wild spirit whose loving and supremely patient and
understanding mother (the delightful Catherine Keener) can’t even keep
up with him. Sent into an amazing world of bizarre (and perfectly
realized) monsters where his social limitations get him into all sorts
of shenanigans, the boy and in turn Jonze deliver us to a place that is
absolutely fresh and unique and unforgettable.

It’s weird, certainly not a kid’s movie, and features one of two amazing performances from James Gandolfini this year.

I
still don’t presume to understand exactly how this happened, but it’s
is a singular experience and a film that in ten or twenty years will be
even more compelling and special than it is now.

Contributing Factors: The
creation and execution of the ‘Wild Things’. Spize Jonze’s amazing use
of the frame. A complete lack of concern for what an audience is used
to and expects. Somehow, it still maintains the sense of Maurice
Sendak’s work.
Performance to Savor:
Something about Gandolfini’s voice work just blew me the hell away. I
always loved him as an actor but didn’t know he had THIS in him.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Proof positive that Spize Jonze operates on a completely different level than anyone else.”
8. Up (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

Yes, this film accomplishes more genuine emotion in its first ten minutes than any others this year were able to in their entire running time. Yes, it’s a beautiful movie and a great showcase for the divine Ed Asner (has that word ever been used to describe Ed Asner?). Yes, it’s just another resoundingly effective Pixar movie.

But it does kind of have some third act issues. The movie doesn’t really need a villain. It’s a beautiful story and though the talking dogs are cute, it’s almost sad to see the film become something of a formula with its chase scenes and whatnot. Luckily some great moments come out of those scenes but for a while this felt like an old school adventure, a character piece. It still is much richer than most every other mainstream animated film and it still works like a charm.

It was on its way to being something transcendent, but it’s my policy to judge a film but what it is rather than what it isn’t.

It’s a beautiful movie. One for everyone’s bookshelf. If you’re not misty after the beginning I have no idea what died inside of you. 

Contributing Factors: Glorious storytelling. Phenomenal style. A mature approach to emotional material that never tries to sell toys or be a prototypical kid’s flick. A sense of adventure that’d make George Lucas’ chins vibrate with envy.
Performance to Savor: Ed Asner is even hotter than Jules!
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Balloon boy’s got nothing on Ed Asner!”
7. The Hurt Locker (Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

Concussive. Smart. Gritty. Great.

That’s this movie, the rare war centric film in a good while that doesn’t have a political agenda but just tells its story [in this case a compact one] and does it with no bullshit. Jeremy Renner is excellent and Kathryn Bigelow reminds us why we idolized her for Near Dark and Point Break (Strange Days still sucks).

It’s such an intense movie, but it never succumbs to action movie-itis. It also doesn’t overstay its welcome or abuse the guest stars peppering the margins. It just does its one thing very, very well.

Contributing Factors: Great gritty and uncompromising filmmaking. Anthony Mackie and Jeremy Renner are phenomenal together. It feels timeless, which is rare in a modern war flick.  
Performance to Savor: Renner. I don’t know about stunt casting him for every upcoming role but he is rock solid in this and still somewhat of an enigma.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Twice as good as The Kindness Armoire.”
6. Avatar (My review)(Buy the DS Game)

Avatar is great. It’s not going to set the world on fire with its story or message, but there are a lot of great moments within the architecture of the story that are absolutely winning and the film has delivered upon repeat viewings. I’ve seen it three times and have no problems with a fourth or fifth.

It’s great. I love the performances both real and motion captured. I love the immersion into the world of Pandora as well as humanity circa 2155. I love the tech of the movie both onscreen and in making the onscreen a possibility. I love the creatures and the way they interact. I love the sense of wonder. I love seeing James Cameron take elements from his previous work and mix it into a cocktail that feels ripped from (sorry Devin) the kind of pulp literature that has informed the work of all the major big storytellers of our age and do wonders with it.

One of the problems with the people rallying against this movie (both the ones who assumed it’d be bad and attacked ahead of the curve and those reacting to its success) is that they are giving it flak for what it isn’t. It’s not the best story, the coolest movie, the sexiest movie, or even the movie with the best special effects this year. It’s just a phenomenal experience and something that is truly transportive. Magical at times even.

It seems people expect the movie to be EVERYTHING. An Oscar-worthy screenplay backed by an Oscar-worthy score backed by Oscar-worthy acting, directing, cinematography, and so on and so on. It’s not that kind of movie. Well, it may be… but it’s not. Avatar works to me on the level Fellowship of the Ring does. The way The Matrix did. The way Star Wars did. The way Jason and the Argonauts did. The way King Kong did.

Oh, and that song at the end is the worst thing since asshole.

Contributing Factors: Beautiful usage of the frame and motion capture technology. These characters live. Amazing depth to the world of Pandora. Great work by Sam Worthington, Stephen Lang, and Zoe Saldana. A great, big event movie that actually delivers an experience. James Cameron exorcising every creative demon he’s seemingly ever had. A great mixture of genre archetypes that enhances them rather than coast on them.
Performance to Savor: Stephen Lang has the juiciest scenery chewing, but the more I see it the more in love with Sam Worthington’s work I get. I totally get why he’s the next big thing now.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Right up there with The Lord of Rings when it comes to big movies that actually deliver.”

Movies I love that just barely missed the cut:





15. A Single Man


It’s fitting that this film would feature Julianne Moore, as it bears a passing resemblance in tone to Todd Haynes’ amazing Far From Heaven, which also featured the ageless class act. A Single Man
also deals with people dealing with repressed lifestyles in an era that
doesn’t understand them and it also features some beautiful use of
light and shadow, showcasing first time director Tom Ford’s skill as a
director after years as a leading fashion designer.

Using a lot of Mad Men‘s
crew and resources allow the period film to have a legit and warming
style, but this is all about texture and Colin Firth’s central
performance is everything it’s been hyped as. Elegant, nuanced, and
magnetic. And in many ways, sexy.

Contributing Factors: Great tone, great music, beautiful use of color, and a terrific bit of work from Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, and Ozymandis.
Performance to Savor: Firth is unstoppable. I never liked the guy all that much. Now I am a fan for life.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Worth coming out of the closet for.”
14. (500) Days of Summer (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

It’s very hard to make a romantic movie that doesn’t absolutely suck a room dry of all its honestly. Too often there’s too much comedy, too much melancholy, or too much reliance on the magnetism of the cast. It’s a hollow genre built on the backs of date night and the need of two people to find something to make them either feel better about their relationship or strive for something more.

This is just a good little movie. Expertly made, wonderfully acted (Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues to impress), and surprisingly inventive. A sweet, honest, and special flick.

Contributing Factors: Elegant filmmaking. Just enough coldness to balance the heart. Great work by the leads and a willingness not to keep things too tidy.
Performance to Savor: Levitt. I GET it now.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Don’t change Deschanel when this comes on!”
13. Brüno (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/Buy the Blu-Ray)

It’s not as consistently funny as Borat. It’s got a few moments that try too hard. Bruno isn’t nearly as lovable a character as some of Sacha Baron Cohen’s creations. If you can’t stand the sight of penis…

But this is a very smart, bold, and hilarious movie. One that knows what buttons to push and just how to hold a mirror to society in a way that is both subtle and sledgehammer-esque. There are a few really big laughs here and they really deliver but there are some great little moments that help maintain the charm. There are also some really borderline moments where it seems the star is just asking someone to either kill him or maim him terribly.

Regardless, it’s a brilliantly loony bit of work. 

Contributing Factors: The willingness to hold a mirror to the insane shit we do as a race, even if life and limb are at risk. The love of the taboo. The absolute fearlessness of Cohen. A sybian used as a parenting tool.
Performance to Savor: Gustaf Hammarsten. It takes a lot of nut and skill to hang with Cohen. The guy is aces.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “So great your penis will scream your name!”
12. The Brothers Bloom (CHUD review)(Buy the DVD/ Buy the Blu-Ray)

I like Brick. It’s a cool little movie…

But I love The Brothers Bloom. It’s as if Wes Anderson and David Mamet had a baby and that baby was adopted and breastfed by Steven Soderbergh and then allowed to live with Rian Johnson for the summer. The result is a bouncy and energetic con movie that never forgets to have fun. It could have too easily gone into dark territory but instead always has a mischievous streak running through it that keeps the sometimes familiarity of the story from becoming leaden.

Adrien Brody is terrific, as are Rachel Weisz and Mark Ruffalo. Robbie Coltrane does that Robbie Coltrane thing. But it’s a chance for the filmmaker to really have a lot of fun with the visuals, editing, and an amazing old school movie score supplied by his cousin Nathan.

The resulting film is just sublime. Nothing really that new about it (well except for Mrs. Aronofsky juggling chainsaws), but it all goes down like sweet nectar.

Contributing Factors: The best soundtrack of the year. Great work by all the leads. A terrific sense of energy and playfulness from Rian Johnson. A terrific ending, one better than I could have hoped for.
Performance to Savor: Brody. The guy is good, really good.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “If you love filmmakers riffing and having a blast, this is the movie for you.”
11. Moon (CHUD review)(Pre-Order the DVD/Pre-Order the Blu-Ray)

This was a pleasant surprise. An actual smart science fiction movie not built around the typical backdrop, and one that tells a very concise and small story that is engaging and as enriching as any that have been done in decades. And by David Bowie’s kid of all people!

Sam Rockwell gets a place to showcase his considerable acting skill in a movie that the audience is best left knowing NOTHING about going in. It feels like a movie that was left in a vault in 1971 and released on the sly, a contemplative and unique one that will hopefully joing stuff like Primer in the all-too-small subgenre of post-2000 thinking person’s science fiction.

A great little movie people need to see without watching the trailer of or doing any research about. It’s not going to rock your world with its mysteries, but part of the charm of Moon is that it’s truly its own unique animal that starts good, continues to be good, and finishes good without any lulls or stupid action sequences.

Contributing Factors: Much appreciated stillness in a film. Sam Rockwell at the top of his game. The hilarious facial features of the Kevin Spacey robot (slang). Smart filmmaking and a true science fiction story. Great, unique visuals. Low tech loveliness.
Performance to Savor: Rockwell. Rockwell, and Rockwell.
CHUD.com Pull Quote: “Tom Cullen’s favorite movie ever!”