2007

I am eschewing the traditional year-in-review in favor of a list of the Academy Award-eligible films for 2007 which I have seen.  You're welcome.

1. +ALPHA DOG  Don't judge me!  I was lured by the siren song of Justin Timberlake and I fell asleep during it anyway.  I have no idea what it was about, really.
   
2. +BECAUSE I SAID SO  Again with the not judging.  I love Mandy Moore and I don't care who knows it.
   
3. *BLADES OF GLORY  Not great.  I about fell out when my parents said they were going to see it when they were on vacation this summer. 
   
4. BREACH  Excellent movie.  I really liked everyone and nearly everything about this film.  It was so careful and deliberate, which normally grates on my nerves, but it worked.
   
5. CATCH AND RELEASE  Dreckish.  Awful.  Unbelievably stupid, even for a movie with Kevin Smith.
   
6. *DAN IN REAL LIFE  LOVE.  Dane Cook was even tolerable, and that is saying a whole fucking lot for me.
   
7. DISTURBIA  Loved it.  Shia LeBouef is totally fucking awesome and I was genuinely scared and totally creeped out.
   
8. *EVAN ALMIGHTY  Eh.  Would have been better with less preaching and more animation.  Steve Carrell is totally awesome, just not so much in this.
   
9. HAIRSPRAY  LOVE.  I could do without John Travolta in a stupid fat suit, but it was fun anyway.
   
10. *HOT FUZZ  I liked it well enough, but not nearly as much as Shaun of the Dead and not 1/10th as much as Anthony loved it.
    
11. HOT ROD  It had potential, which it mostly squandered.
    
12. I THINK I LOVE MY WIFE  Again with the potential.  I think this movie was marketed as a comedy, when really it was a character study of a tremendous asshole.
    
13. *KNOCKED UP  The movie which introduce the term "dick skin condom" to my life.
    
14. *LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD  So much fun!  Killing helicopters with cars!  Shit blowing up!  Kevin Smith redeemed his cameo career with this one.
    
15. *MUSIC AND LYRICS   Irresistably cute.  Loved the chemistry between Grant and Barrymore.  POP! Goes my Heart might be my favorite (fake) 80's tune of all time.  
    
16. *NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS  More big, dumb fun.  It doesn't work if you think about it too much, so I didn't and just enjoyed the ride.
    
17. *OCEAN'S THIRTEEN  Loads better than 12, but that's not saying much.  It was a fun way to spend a hot summer afternoon.
    
18. *PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END  Not great.  Not at all.  Save for Keith Richards's cameo, I could live without it.
    
19. *RATATOUILLE  Terribly cute. 
    
20. REIGN OVER ME  Loved it.  Adam Sandler's performance makes the film, even though the subject matter is very heavy and handled a bit roughly.
    
21. *RENDITION  Hate.  The movie seemed to revel in the torture it professed to condemn.  I had to leave before an hour was up.  Totally awful.
    
22. RENO 911!: MIAMI  Anthony made me.  So bad.
    
23. *SHREK THE THIRD  Disappointing.  We wore our Shrek ears to the theater in Oklahoma City, and that was almost as much fun as the show. 
    
24. *SICKO  Depressing. 
    
25. *THE SIMPSONS MOVIE  Ralph likes men now!  I've seen Bart's penis!
    
26. *SUPERBAD  Awesome.  I no longer want a baby.  I want a young teenager who is a mixture of Bobby Hill and Michael Cera.
    
27. 300  Impressive.  I thought the violence was perfect and the story well-executed.  I wish I'd seen it in the theater, because I'm thinking the spectacle was a little lost on the small screen.
    
28. ZODIAC  Brilliant.  Normally, I do not have the patience for movies this long, but the story and performances were so engaging, I was able to stick with it.

*Seen in the theater.
+Seen on HBO.

And, because Netflix is totally awesome, I will also list all the films I watched from them.  God, I see a lot of movies.  When you add in HBO, the TV on DVD I watched, and the few rentals from the local joint ... wow.  Anyway:

1. BORAT  Awful.  I couldn't even make it through 30 minutes.  I get why other people would like it, but I tired of the schtick very quickly.
   
2. CAN MR. SMITH GET TO WASHINGTON ANYMORE?  Probably one of the best documentaries I've ever seen.  I love Jeff Smith and hope someday to have the chance to vote for him.
   
3. EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH  Better than it had a right to be.
   
4. FEAST  The third Project Greenlight movie.  Lots of bloody fun.
   
5. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION  Dissappointing.  I think I slept through most of this one.
   
6. JESUS CAMP  This movie really helped Anthony understand my childhood and the disdain I have for much of organized religion.
   
7. KANSAS CITY  Just like every other Altman film I've seen, pretty to look at, but shitty plot.
   
8. LADY SINGS THE BLUES  Excellent.  Love Diana Ross and Billie Holliday.
   
9. LEONARD COHEN: I'M YOUR MAN  Great music, but the interstitial interviews were boring.
   
10. MAN OF THE YEAR  Was it a comedy?  An political thriller?  A scathing comment on corporate corruption of our political system?  All the above?  Totally weird.
    
11. PREMONITION  Horrible piece of shit.  We made it until Sandra Bullock's dead/maybe-not-dead husband's head rolled off the bed or whatever and then we gave up.
    
12. SHUT UP & SING  So wonderful.  I love the Dixie Chicks anyway, but this movie made me cry and love them even more.  FUTK, indeed.
    
13. THE DEPARTED  I guess it was good?  The accents were terrible and Marky Mark was very Marky Markish. 
    
14. THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA  Surprisingly good.  Loved Meryl Streep in this.
    
15. THE GOOD SHEPHERD  Okay.  Clooney looks good in black and white.  And Technicolor.  And naked. 
    
16. THE GUARDIAN  Awesome predictable cheese.  It thought itself a Top Gun for the Coast Guard, but no.
    
17. THE HOLIDAY  Did I watch this?  It's on the list and it stars Queen Latifah, so surely I did, but I do not remember it at all.
    
18. THE PRIZE WINNER OF DEFIANCE, OHIO  Very cute.  Still hate Woody Harrelson, though.
    
19. THE QUEEN  Helen Mirren was amazing in this film.
    
20. THE STATION AGENT  I still don't get it.  Sorry.
    
21. THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED  Infuriating.
    
22. WE ARE MARSHALL  I am a sucker for a sports movie, but goddamn.  I was nearly sobbing in the first 40 minutes.  Unfortunately, the film climaxes emotionally then and the rest feels like a let down.
    
23. WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR?  Infuriating some more.
    
24. WORDPLAY  So very cute.  Plus, Bill Clinton and Jon Stewart.