At the Movies: 2005 Top 10 List

"God loves you just the way you are, but he loves you too much to let you stay that way."
-Ashley (Junebug)

With 2005 long behind us, finally, here it is, as promised: The 10 Best Films of 2005, counting down:

10. (tie) The Squid and the Whale

Noah Baumbach's The Squid and the Whale holds all the ingredients of a great film. The acting is first class, the writing is sharp and witty, and the story is one we all can connect to: a family going through tough times. I saw no better performances this year than by this ensemble; Jeff Daniel's gives a career best performance, Laura Linney is calm and endearing, and not enough praise can be sung for the two young actors: Jesse Eisenberg and Owen Kline.


10. (tie) The New World

Terrence Malick never fails to disappoint. The New World tells the age-old story of Pocahontas (Q'Orianka Kilcher) and her Capt. John Smith (Colin Farrell), in the most poignant and poetic manner imaginable. Mallick handles unsaid words better than any other director, ever! This is the most beautiful love story's I have seen in along time. The passion Smith and Pocahontas feel for each other is written all over these actors' faces, instead of in trite, or cliché words you might hear in another film. The imagery in this film is outstanding and was properly awarded yesterday with an Academy Award nomination for Achievement in Cinematography.


9. Munich

Boiled in controversy, Munich simply is, a great film. I hesitate to look at films beyond a mere display of characters and their story. Munich is filled with great characters, and their story makes for an extremely compelling drama. I tend not too look so specifically at the claim that Avner's (Eric Bana) struggling soul is merely a statement against the Palestinian terror over Israel--and vice-versa--but more importantly a statement against all acts of terror and war and vengeance. This is Spielberg's darkest, most unrelenting film to date, and he crafts it like the master he is.

Kudos to the Academy for recognizing both the film and its director!


8. Walk the Line

I love this movie! James Mangold gets up close and personal with Johnny and June Carter Cash in this thrilling and epic story of love and amazing music. Among the best, if not the best of the year are both Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon's performances as Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. Their embodiment of these people and their connection to one another on screen is simply amazing. The cinematography, and specifically the use of the camera and its interaction with the actors, is an outstanding display of cinematic storytelling.


7. A History of Violence

This film packs a huge punch. One of the darkest films of the year, A History of Violence is solid storytelling, never ceasing to surprise. This is David Cronenberg's most accessible film to date (most commercial) and every bit as wonderful as any of his previous works. The drama and tension Cronenberg creates in this film are shocking and completely gripping. The implied past and uncontrollable current events, unraveling the family's lives, are captured with such precision and truthful emotion by both Viggo Mortenson, as Tom Stahl, and Maria Bello, as his wife, Edie.

6. Crash

So much has been said about Crash this year, both negative and positive, that it's hard to find something new to say. Crash is definitely a love it or hate it film. As someone who fits into the former category, I'll just say this: Crash is great, pure drama. It is filled with irony and beautiful, flawed characters. We all live in this world together, and we are all connected, and we need to find some ways to get along, despite our differences. In this viewer's opinion, that is what Crash is ultimately all about.

Paul Haggis has displayed himself as one of our premiere screenwriters working today, after just two films. He has a brilliant way of creating a natural, complete scene, with dialogue that feels so incredibly real. No enough could possibly be said of every player in the great ensemble cast in Crash. Every single actor in this film gives a fantastic performance.


5. Good Night, and Good Luck.

Good Night, and Good Luck. is the most elegant film of the year. George Clooney has mastered the art of time and place, creating a very real, very harsh, yet beautiful world. He, also, elicits one of the year's best performances out of one of our finest actors, David Strathairn (L.A. Confidential). In a film filled with important dialogue, the most powerful moments are crafted with the silent expressions and emotions from the faces of the wonderful cast.

Clooney paces this film beautifully. With editor Stephen Mirrione (Traffic) at his side, Clooney builds speed at times of urgency and chaos, while mixing in beautiful, long takes/sequences, at precisely the right moments. Good Night, and Good Luck. is poignant, succinct, and utterly gripping. Easily, one of the best films of the year!


4. Syriana

Syriana is fast-paced, unrelenting, and always confusing. All of these things, including the confusion, are what makes this a great film. First time director, Stephen Gaghan (writer Traffic) balances a huge cast of characters and an enormous plot with amazing affluence in the language of filmic storytelling. He manages to captivate the audience, in moments when we share the grand lack of understanding that the characters on screen feel. In the world of politics, where it is easy to point fingers and take sides, this film absolutely recognizes the absurdity of such childish behavior, and boldly points out that this is not a black and white issue. We have an oil crisis in this country and in the world; we are all, both good and evil, addicted to it, and it is paving the way for much unnecessary destruction and evil.

Clooney gives one of his career best performances, in a supporting roll, as CIA operative, Bob Barnes.


3. Capote

Philip Seymour Hoffman is one of America's finest actors working today. His work in such films as Boogie Nights, 25th Hour, and Magnolia (in supporting rolls) is some of the best work committed to screen in the last couple of decades. The way he inhabits a character has always been remarkable, but never will we forget his most recent turn, as the eccentric writer of fiction, Truman Capote.

Capote is based on a short period of the author's life, amidst his research for one of the most well thought of books in modern American Literature, In Cold Blood. Bennet Miller (director) and Philip Hoffman are the greatest tandem of any film in 2005. Together they have created a film that is breathtaking, and heart wrenching, and funny, and completely genuine. Philip Seymour Hoffman's performance as the ever eccentric and life-of-any-party, Truman Capote, is a landmark achievement in film acting.

2. Junebug

Movies like this do not come around too often. Each moment takes you completely by surprise. I saw Junebug in January 2005 at the Sundance Film Festival and immediately knew it would be one of my favorites of the year. Phil Morrison (director) and Angus MacLachlan (writer) have crafted a heartfelt story of a Southern family, filled with love, dysfunction and beauty. The emotional honesty and integrity of this film, and each of its wonderful characters, are pitch perfect. When the credits roll at the end of this film, you cannot help but desire more time with the characters of Junebug.

To sing a little praise for one of the players: I saw no better performance by an actor, male or female, in 2005 than the one from Amy Adams as Ashley, in this wonderfully moving picture: Junebug.

1. The Constant Gardener

The best films of any year usually share something in common. They surprise me, in one-way or another, or, more often than not, in many ways. They are usually films that I hear good things about, but upon seeing them, any specific expectations are thwarted and I am hit with unexpected jolts of intrigue, passion, and emotion. This years best film, The Constant Gardener, is, certainly, no different. Fernando Meirelles (City of God) has emerged in the last few years as one of the great auteurs working today. His style and balance of characters and time are brilliant and unique.

I recognize Meirelles' City of God as a great work of cinema, but it failed to elicit powerful enough emotion, necessary to call it one of the top 10 films of the year in 2003. Without giving anything away, just when I believed The Constant Gardener was heading down a similar path, it filled itself with gritty, raw, all-consuming-love and emotion. The Constant Gardener became the greatest love story of 2005; something it never tried to do, but merely existed as such. Meirelles has a distinct point of view, which makes his films so engaging.

Some of the best performances of the year were contained in this film. Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz shared the screen with undeniable chemistry. They were these people. They lived these lives. I believed in the truths they uncovered and the love they gained for one another and for their lives.



There you have it: My top 10 films of 2005. I'll be back with more cinema reviews (as I write them) and a few other lists in the coming days. Also, I'll be counting down towards the Academy Awards on March 5, with more news and info. And, as we get closer to the date, my final predictions...

Until then,
Good night, and good luck...