UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES

Few would disagree that Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul is one of the more original contemporary filmmakers, but you could give that same distinction to everyone from Pedro Almodovar to Kevin Smith. What makes Weerasethakul a real visionary is more complicated. His movies are challenging but not inaccessible or avant garde. He often eschews narrative logic for a purely evocative effect. He emphasizes the textures of one’s environment over whatever drama is playing out in the foreground. He’s a kindred spirit to Tsai Ming-Liang, only even slower and with less slapstick.

All of these elements are present in Weerasethakul’s fifth feature: a playful, poetic rumination on death and how life itself isn’t necessarily so linear. The titular character senses his own death is near, so he recounts his past lives (or vessels for his soul) as various other creatures for his sister-in-law and her son, who have come to take care of him. However, they’re soon joined by his wife (who suddenly appears after having been dead for twenty years) and their long lost son, who reappears in the guise of a “monkey ghost”, a hairy, simian-like creature with tiny glowing red eyes that could have stepped out of a B-grade ‘70s horror flick.

At this point, you either simply accept what’s happening in the film or you don’t. Still, Weerasethakul mixes fantasy and reality together so fluidly that one comes to view both as interchangeable while still recognizing the former’s otherworldliness. Meanwhile, the film’s sound design builds to a masterful crescendo as the characters leave Uncle Boonmee’s home and partake in a spiritual journey of sorts deep into the woods: an endless mass of crickets has the same pull as sculpted, low-hum ambient noise, and the wind rustling through an extended take of the serene countryside stands in for a significant rite of passage.

Of course, all of this could seem unbearably, artfully pretentious if Weerasethakul’s sense of humor wasn’t present throughout. In addition to the dead mother asking her long-lost monkey ghost son why he’s grown his hair so long and a bout of catfish-on-woman sex, there is the film’s final scene which I’m still trying to wrap my head around. It throws a wrench (albeit not a monkey one) into what we’ve already seen, yet it’s so whimsical and unexpected (and scored to such an engaging pop song) that I was delightfully (rather than irritatingly) perplexed.

THE BEST FILMS OF 2010

1. EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP
When I saw graffiti artist Bansky’s documentary early on in its theatrical run, I did not even question whether it was real or a hoax—I completely bought the truth-is-stranger-than-fiction account of transplanted French shopkeeper Thierry Guetta, who captured nearly an entire artistic movement with his video camera and then turned it on its head by becoming its most outlandish participant. At face value, the film exhilarates via its ingenuous construction and shrewd critique of street art’s inevitable commoditization. That it might all be made up is less a cheat and more a fascinating study of just what an audience will take at face value.



2. WINTER’S BONE
Debra Granik’s award winner and surprise hit could be a textbook example of everything good about independent film, yet it’s almost too good to set aside as a mere example. The story concerns a teenager (the superb Jennifer Lawrence) in the Missouri Ozarks searching for her father, who has disappeared after selling the family house as a jail bond, but Granik is more concerned with creating a vivid sense of place and unforgettable characters such as John Hawke’s weathered, strung-out uncle and Dale Dickey’s vicious yet oddly maternal force-of-nature. Stark but deeply affecting and authentic, the film expertly humanizes a world foreign to most of us.



3. JACK GOES BOATING
I’m baffled as to why most critics underrated or altogether dismissed actor Philip Seymour Hoffman’s warm, poignant directorial debut. His adaptation of Robert Glaudini’s play is an actor’s showcase for sure as all four principals shine (particularly John Ortiz). However, Hoffman also demonstrates a real talent for combining a feel for life’s daily rhythms with a wistful, poetic style that points towards magic realism without seeming false or strained. He’s made a lovely little film about genuine people falling in and out of love, and I hope he gets to direct another one.



4. MARWENCOL
A masterful illustration of art-as-therapy but also a haunting, riveting profile—after years of supervised rehabilitation following a violent attack on him by six men, Mark Hogencamp deals with his trauma on his own by constructing an ever-more elaborate facsimile of a World War II era Belgian village populated with dolls which he then photographs. Serious and profound rather than kitschy and flippant, he creates great art—as does director Jeff Malmberg, who carefully reveals one by one the hidden layers of Hogenkamp’s astonishing story without any exploitative slant.



5. THE SOCIAL NETWORK
For something so closely linked to a specific moment in time (in this case, the social media boom of the early-mid Oughts), “The Facebook Movie” recalls 1970s New Hollywood auteur cinema in its preference to character development over generic plot fixtures and by placing faith in an audience’s ability to keep up with its moral ambiguities and briskly paced dialogue (it’s nearly the Arrested Development of biographical dramas). Director David Fincher and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin bring out the best in each other, but Jesse Eisenberg’s Mark Zuckerberg is for the ages: frightfully intelligent and ruthlessly deceptive, but also seriously flawed and almost someone to root for.



6. I KILLED MY MOTHER
Frankly, I’m a little scared of Xavier Dolan. He wrote, directed, produced and starred in this film and did it all before he turned 20. Not only has he made a personal, poetic work with a clear vision, he’s also uncommonly assured and perceptive—he sees the good in his screen alter-ego Hubert yet he also knows how much of a self-absorbed little prick he can be. Plus, he has an equally endearing/annoying counterpart in his mother (Anne Dorval)—their letter-perfect verbal sparing matches should resonate with any mother and son.



7. DOGTOOTH
Speaking of clear, unique visions, Giorgos Lanthimos is fully committed to his equally strange and compelling one. In his first feature to get any attention outside Greece, he presents a cautionary tale so theoretically outrageous that it sounds absurd on paper: a man and woman raise their children in complete isolation to protect them from the outside world and instill this artificial world with their own rules and language. A relentlessly black comedy, DOGTOOTH imagines an extreme but (as it plays out) startlingly plausible scenario and sees it through to the bitter (if deliciously ironic) end.



8. BLACK SWAN
Recognizing that the ballet provides an especially intoxicating setting for a psychological horror film, Darren Aronofsky more or less remakes THE RED SHOES with the wizardly, deliberate artificiality of a young Brian De Palma. Thankfully, by reveling in the narrative’s camp tendencies he doesn’t take himself too seriously; nor does he lose control of a roller coaster ride that forever threatens to spin off its rails. After years of showy, not-quite-there work, Natalie Portman gamely proves her mettle—she’s the film’s center, but she also gleefully, confidently loses herself in the process.



9. FISH TANK
Tough teenage protagonist Mia (Katie Jarvis) uses her love of hip-hop dancing as a means of escape from her rough housing project home. Tension mounts as Mia and her young, immature mother’s charming boyfriend (Michael Fassbender) develop a mutual attraction. In her second feature, director Andrea Arnold redeems this not entirely original plot with strong performances and an inspired, dense visual composition (shot in an immediate, TV-like 1.33 aspect ratio), but her decidedly feminine point of view fully distinguishes the film from other British working class dramas.



10. I AM LOVE
An unapologetically old-fashioned melodrama centered on a wealthy Milanese family, it will not appease those seeking subtlety (or even logic), but for me, its skill, sheer chutzpah and a divine Tilda Swinton speaking fluent Italian obliterated such concerns. When did anyone last attempt something even remotely like this film’s operatic, furiously-edited finale where the thrilling, maddening score keeps building and building until the whole thing practically explodes? Ridiculously massive and moving, it may take itself more seriously than BLACK SWAN, but it goes for broke (not to mention baroque) without falling apart.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

BEST WORST MOVIE
You can’t piss on hospitality, and you can barely find any flaws in this entertaining, oddly affectionate documentary about a most preposterous low-budget film called TROLL 2.

BLUE VALENTINE
A brutal (if not altogether bleak) dissection of a souring relationship made palatable by strong performances and an honest (if blunt) viewpoint that’s refreshing by most relationship film standards—both indie and otherwise.

EVERYONE ELSE
An even more intense (and thrilling) dissection of a romantic couple, or, to quote Scot Colford, “That moment in a relationship when you see your partner deciding whether he/she would rather be a freak or a douchebag.”

THE GHOST WRITER
An expertly executed Roman Polanski thriller (not so common these days) that uses its eye-catching setting brilliantly and gets good, subtle work from Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan.

THE GOOD HEART
Brian Cox and Paul Dano inhabit an un-gentrified New York that tempers its ancient corridors and outdated misogyny with camaraderie and offbeat humor that won’t appeal to everyone, although it should have reached more viewers than it did.

INSIDE JOB
This is how to make a film about the 2008 financial crisis—it lays out the facts in a clear, concise manner, then, without any snark, offers real solutions that favor rational thinking over manipulated emotions.

JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK
A year in the life of everyone’s favorite bawdy female Jewish comedienne that gains momentum and purpose by exploring how much her ability to work and keep pushing herself is a life force.

MICMACS
Shame on Sony Pictures Classics for almost burying Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s latest, in which a quirky assembly of misfits become a surrogate family and a makeshift army in typically, crazily inventive Jeunet fashion.

MOTHER
Bong Joon-ho (THE HOST) returns with an astutely, intricately plotted mystery anchored by a mother of a performance (literally!) from Kim Hye-ja as someone who takes the notion of protecting her son to an awesome, almost terrifying extreme.

NIGHT CATCHES US
Tanya Hamilton’s truly independent, long-gestating project is personal cinema of the sort one rarely sees anymore—her evocation of a specific time and place (1976 Philadelphia) matches her skillfulness in expressing its cultural meaning and significance.

PATRIK, AGE 1.5
Maybe someday an American will make a gay-themed film as sharp and cliché-free as this affable Swedish adaptation of a stage play about a male couple whose adopted son is not what they were expecting.

PLEASE GIVE
In her most accomplished work to date, Nicole Holofcener proves herself Woody Allen’s real heir, insightfully weaving together a colorful set of New Yorkers either wracked with too much guilt or lacking an adequate dose of humility.

TEN EXCEPTIONAL PERFORMANCES...
(that won't receive Academy Award nominations):

Paprika Steen in APPLAUSE
Emma Stone in EASY A
Katie Jarvis in FISH TANK
Brian Cox in THE GOOD HEART
Anne Dorval in I KILLED MY MOTHER
John Ortiz in JACK GOES BOATING
Kim Hye-ja in MOTHER
Anthony Mackie in NIGHT CATCHES US
Ann Morgan Guilbert in PLEASE GIVE
Miles Teller in RABBIT HOLE

ALSO RECOMMENDED:
(Other films which also received at least four stars out of five)

APPLAUSE
CYRUS
GREENBERG
HIPSTERS
HOWL
INCEPTION
IT CAME FROM KUCHAR
THE KING’S SPEECH
LAST TRAIN HOME
LESLIE, MY NAME IS EVIL*
MY DOG TULIP
NEVER LET ME GO
PRODIGAL SONS
RABBIT HOLE
THE SECRET OF KELLS
SHUTTER ISLAND
SOUL KITCHEN
TINY FURNITURE
TRUE GRIT
WINNEBAGO MAN

*released on DVD in the U.S. as MANSON, MY NAME IS EVIL, regrettably.

100 FILMS: 2000-2010

#55 - The Saddest Music in The World

This year's Chlotrudis poll is a survey of favorite films from the last decade or so (specifically, 2000-2010). Members were asked to submit a top 20 list, which was extended to 50, and then again to 70. I already counted down my favorite 50 films of the '00s about a year ago; here's my revised and expanded-to-100 list, with the inclusion of a few 2010 candidates.

I wouldn't put too much weight every single ranking, given how fluidly my opinions shift--a week after making this list, I saw BLACK SWAN a second time and would now place it slightly higher.

1. The Royal Tenenbaums
2. Mulholland Drive
3. Beau Travail
4. There Will Be Blood
5. Y Tu Mama Tambien
6. Me and You and Everyone We Know
7. Duck Season
8. In the Mood For Love
9. Yi Yi
10. The Return
11. Cache
12. Before Sunset
13. Still Walking
14. C.R.A.Z.Y.
15. Far From Heaven
16. Waking Life
17. Lost in Translation
18. Spirited Away
19. 49 Up
20. Let The Right One In
21. Exit Through the Gift Shop
22. Winter's Bone
23. What Time is it There?
24. Gosford Park
25. American Splendor
26. Synecdoche, New York
27. Punch Drunk Love
28. Man on Wire
29. Ghost World
30. Donnie Darko
31. My Winnipeg
32. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
33. Jack Goes Boating
34. Talk To Her
35. Judy Berlin
36. Hedwig and The Angry Inch
37. Tarnation
38. Clean
39. Best in Show
40. Marwencol
41. 35 Shots of Rum
42. The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou
43. Half Nelson
44. The Social Network
45. Dogville
46. Raising Victor Vargas
47. The Triplets of Belleville
48. Our Song
49. Mysterious Skin
50. Morvern Callar
51. Away From Her
52. The Squid and The Whale
53. The Hurt Locker
54. Volver
55. The Saddest Music in The World
56. Children of Men
57. The Best of Youth
58. Grizzly Man
59. I Killed My Mother
60. A Serious Man
61. The Visitor
62. The King of Kong: A Fistfull of Quarters
63. The Happiness of the Katikuris
64. Amelie
65. Not One Less
66. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
67. The Incredibles
68. Reprise
69. Shortbus
70. The Beaches of Agnes
71. Los Angeles Plays Itself
72. The Brand Upon The Brain!
73. Hunger
74. The Wind Will Carry Us
75. Double Dare
76. I'm Not There
77. The Gleaners and I
78. In The Loop
79. The Case of The Grinning Cat
80. The Host
81. Inland Empire
82. Goodbye Dragon Inn
83. The Flight of the Red Balloon
84. Elephant
85. 3-Iron
86. The Station Agent
87. Fantastic Mr. Fox
88. Revanche
89. Black Swan
90. Persepolis
91. Sideways
92. 25th Hour
93. Wonder Boys
94. Spellbound
95. Lilja 4 Ever
96. Dancer in the Dark
97. Tropical Malady
98. Day Night Day Night
99. Songs From the Second Floor
100. 2046

INTRODUCING FIVE THINGS

I have grand ideas for many potential blog posts, but procrastinator that I am, I can't seem to finish (much less start) any of 'em. So, to get this blog active again, I am going to try to post about five things that interest me every week. Some will have a paragraph written about them (or more); others may be lucky to get one sentence. I will also include photographs and links because sometimes I fear I won't have five things to write fluently about. But it will give me something to aim for.



1. OVO (Cirque du Soleil)

Before this weekend, my vague impression of Cirque du Soleil was that of an arty, expensive Quebecois entertainment setting up shop in town once or twice a year with one inexplicably named production (Kooza? Zumanity?) after another. Having now seen one of these shows, I can confirm I wasn’t too far off the mark. The insect-themed OVO opens with a ginormous egg in center stage, which hatches to reveal the cast, all men and women clad in elaborate, eye-popping costumes that resemble grasshoppers, red ants, a spider, a fruit fly, a ladybug, and many others I did not quite recognize. Combining graceful ballet with impressive acrobatics and accompanied by a lovely, airy score (performed live by an orchestra, some of whom appeared on stage dressed as snails), the show was equally wistful and weird. I enjoyed it immensely.

2. RESTREPO

I’ve always struggled with war films (both fiction and docs)—it’s possibly my least favorite genre. But I loved THE HURT LOCKER and if this isn’t exactly its real-life equivalent, that’s fine because it attempts something else. Not to say war’s psychological effects aren’t explored (they make for some of the most intense, touching moments), but Sebastian Junger's and Tim Hetherington’s in-the-trenches-of-Afghanistan doc amazes primarily for its access in which it closely follows a platoon in combat for one year. Fortunately, the filmmakers know they’re making a film and not just a document—the narrative threads and personalities that emerge cohere and compel as well as any screenplay without feeling scripted at all.

3. Just a few (of many) things to love about the MAD MEN Season 4 premiere (spoilers ahoy!):

*Peggy’s more sophisticated (but still not overly swanky) new ‘do.
*Henry’s refreshingly no-nonsense mother (she astutely refers to Betty as a “silly woman”).
*Adorable new office underling Joey (Matt Long), whom I suspect will turn out to be more than a random addition.
*Kiernan Shipka (young brat Sally Draper) has made the opening credits at last.
*Don Draper getting slapped in the face (repeatedly) by a prostitute.

4. As I’m less than a hundred pages away from finishing The Satanic Verses (at last!), which one of these unread books on my shelf I should try next? The Portable Dorothy Parker, or Word Virus: The William S. Burroughs Reader? Leave a comment if you feel passionate about one or the other.

5. A most fetching portrait spotted at the British Brewing Company in Framingham this past weekend:



Maggie should appear so classy.

OH, OSCAR

Most ghetto acceptance speech... ever!

Here's the transcript of my blogging last week's Academy Awards, in an easily digestible one-post format. Sandra Bullock aside, history will remember this year's slate of winners as unusually daring (I can't remember the last time one of my own five favorite films of the year won Best Picture); however, these comments paint a more accurate picture of how innovative the telecast was, which is to say, not very...

8:40 PM: "Gabourey and I both have something in common - in our first movies, we were both born a poor black child". Ah, Steve Martin, you make up for the Neil Patrick Harris opener (talented guy, but enough already with the award show shtick), the weird "82" logo (looks like it comes from '72) and the inexplicable appearance of a shot from Turner and Hooch. Loved Alec Baldwin's "cultured" accent (during the Avatar animation and introducing "young Zac Efron") as well.

8:54 PM: The first award of the night, Best Supporting Actor, predictably goes to front-runner Christoph Waltz for Inglorious Basterds. Well, it was a tremendous performance, and only Woody Harrelson probably deserved it as much.

That clip of The Lovely Bones actually makes me feel a little embarrassed for Stanley Tucci (who still wouldn't have won against Waltz if he had been nominated for his lovely work in Julie and Julia instead).

Gee, think these lengthy, multiple film clips for each of the nominees will last as the Midnight hour approaches?

9:05 PM: Pete Docter gives a sweet, humble acceptance speech for his sweet, ambitious Best Animated Film Up.

No performances for Best Song in a Motion Picture on stage this year! And no complaints from me... Jesus Christ, T-Bone Burnett's tall! Ex-wife Sam Phillips must have just come up to his waist.

9:23 PM: What a terrific, innovative year for Best Original Screenplay nominees - Up, The Messenger... and The Hurt Locker gets it. Love all the short, concise acceptance speeches; who will be the first to ramble on into the orchestra?

Ah, so that's why Matthew Broderick (first seen at the red carpet with the wife) is there: to pay tribute to John Hughes, look far more at ease than Molly Ringwald, and show us how much he's aged since Ferris Bueller's Day Off - though, apparently not as much as Andrew McCarthy or especially Judd Nelson, who is headed into Mickey Rourke territory.

9:42 PM: The night's first surprise: the gleefully deranged Logorama wins Best Animated Short. I like me some Wallace and Gromit, but the right short won.

Looks like Best Documentary Short winner Music By Prudence has the first rambling-into-the-orchestra speech of the night!

I've been avoiding seeing Avatar, but dear god I hope everyone in it looks as goofy as Ben Stiller. Quote for the night (as his tail gets tangled): "It's amazing how far technology has come."

9:49 PM: Precious gets Best Adapted Screenplay, which means Up In The Air will likely be entirely shut out. An overcome Geoffrey Fletcher's acceptance speech is the night's most moving moment thus far (and Steve Martin knows exactly how to transition the moment).

10:01 PM: Great to see Lauren Bacall and Roger Corman in the audience, but it would've been nice to hear from them (and less from Robin Williams, a random substitute for last year's Best Supporting Actor winner to present this year's Best Supporting Actress). Mo'Nique, Oscar Winner. Performance, not the politics--damn straight.

10:25 PM: Best part of the Paranormal Activity parody: Alec Baldwin falling out of bed.

Good horror montage, though not as horrifying as the amount of time Zac Efron's stylist spent making his hair look faux-messy.

10:31 PM: Come to think of it, flaws and all, it would be cool to see Inglorious Basterds win another award. Was that Father Time seated behind Tarantino?

10:42 PM: Gee, they must be running late, but of all categories not to show clips for - Best Cinematography??!!! They must have thought that The White Ribbon received enough screen time on the Golden Globes.

Demi Moore must have jumped at the chance to introduce the year o' the deceased because she aint gettin' on that stage any other way.

James Taylor alert! He sounds as alive as the souls being honored.

10:54 PM: Oh, it wouldn't be a true Oscar ceremony without a little interpretive dance (for the Best Score nominees). I was going to say they're trying to avoid cheese (although I would think Sherlock Holmes has nothing to do with West Side Story) but that weird The Hurt Locker sequence could've come from the mind of Corky St. Clair. The lilting, affecting score for Up wins, and deservedly so.

11:09 PM: The Cove wins Best Documentary Feature, so now we have Fisher Stevens, Oscar winner (and the evening's first explicit call to political action via a dolphin text)--but what's up with the swanky swing music leading up to Tyler Perry? Oh, he's so self-deprecating, but I'd rather see him shuffle on stage in drag.

That snuggie bit was worthy of vintage Late Night with David Letterman.

All the awards for The Hurt Locker are a promising sign that we won't have to see James Cameron on stage. Prove me right, Academy!

11:21 PM: "Hey Pedro: your film didn't make the cut this year. Wanna introduce Best Foreign Language Feature as a totally random pairing with Quentin Tarantino?" (although I don't doubt that Tarantino loves his work). Argentinians win and mangle their acceptance speech; Cameron (or is that Haneke?) looks a little peeved.

Oh god, the dialogue from Avatar sounds worse than I feared. And as I look at Kathy Bates, I can't help but think of her fabulous, frightening new character on The Office.

11:37 PM: After a series of exceptionally gushy introductions (Colin Farrell's for Jeremy Renner was the least gushiest and the most genuine), the Dude wins his Oscar, provides a shout-out to his family and, naturally, abides; it appears that he has also imbibed a little tonight, and why not? If this ceremony doesn't wrap itself up before Midnight, I may need another drink myself.

11:53 PM: When Meryl Streep can't even win an Oscar over Sandra Bullock, you know how much of a popularity contest this is. Bullock is extremely likable, and I look forward to the inevitable post-Oscar decline in her career.

11:58 PM: Kathryn Bigelow: "The secret to directing is collaborating." This is why she deserves the award.

12:04 AM: Sorry, Avatar. Well, not really--mark this down as the rare year where the most deserving and relevant film nominated (out of ten!) wins Best Picture.

Steve Martin: "The show is so long that Avatar now takes place in the past." And on that note, good night until next year, when a reactionary academy will probably award the latest Harry Potter film or something like Little Fockers.

BEST MOVIES OF THE '00s: RECAP

In summary, my top 50 movies of the '00s:

# 50-41
# 40-31
# 30-21
# 20-11
# 10-1

And 50 more that I would have liked to fit into my top 50:

2046
25th HOUR
3-IRON
AMELIE
AWAY FROM HER
THE BEACHES OF AGNES
THE BEST OF YOUTH
THE BRAND UPON THE BRAIN!
THE CASE OF THE GRINNING CAT
CHILDREN OF MEN
DANCER IN THE DARK
DAY NIGHT DAY NIGHT
DIG!
THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY
DOUBLE DARE
ELEPHANT
FANTASTIC MR. FOX
FLIGHT OF THE RED BALLOON
THE GLEANERS AND I
GOODBYE DRAGON INN
GRIZZLY MAN
THE HOST
I'M NOT THERE
IN THE LOOP
THE INCREDIBLES
INLAND EMPIRE
LAWLESS HEART
LILYA 4 EVER
LOS ANGELES PLAYS ITSELF
MOOLAADE
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
NOT ONE LESS
PERSEPOLIS
REPRISE
REQUIEM
REVANCHE
THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD
A SERIOUS MAN
SHORTBUS
SIDEWAYS
THE SLEEPY TIME GAL
SONGS FROM THE SECOND FLOOR
SPELLBOUND
THE STATION AGENT
TROPICAL MALADY
THE VISITOR
VOLVER
THE WAYWARD CLOUD
THE WIND WILL CARRY US
WONDER BOYS

TOP FIFTY MOVIES OF THE '00s: # 10-1

10. C.R.A.Z.Y.

Zac: "I want to be like everyone else."
Madame Chose: "Thank God, you never will."



9. YI YI

A three-hour familial tapestry and a meditation on mortality, urban alienation and human kindness that I'd call epic if it did not primarily focus on something so intimate and ordinary as the passage of time.



8. IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE

Wong Kar Wai's best film is a deceptively simple tale of a romance that’s never acted upon, told with such longing and restraint that it leaves me insatiably swooned and devastated every time I see it.



7. DUCK SEASON

This minimalist black-and-white gem, a Mexican film about four characters who spend a Sunday afternoon together reminds me why I value small-scale, little-seen independent films so much.



6. ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW

Richard: "I want to be swept off my feet, you know? I want my children to have magical powers. I am prepared for amazing things to happen. I can handle it."



5. Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN

What's most remarkable about Alfonso Cuaron's funny, raunchy, pathos-laced road-trip movie is how both the camera and the narrator keep pulling away from the main three characters, giving the viewer thrilling glimpses of an expansive world: a film is not necessarily a vacuum.



4. THERE WILL BE BLOOD

Daniel Plainview: "Aren't you a healer, and a vessel for the holy spirit? When are you coming over to make my son hear again? CAN'T YOU DO THAT?"



3. BEAU TRAVAIL

Honor, ritual, imbalance, jealousy, tension... and release.



2. MULHOLLAND DR.

Coco: "Honey, you're a good kid, but what you're telling me is a load of horse puckey, even though it comes from a good place. "



1. THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS

[Royal tells his children of his impending divorce]
Richie: "Is it because of us?"
Royal: "Well, of course, certain sacrifices had to be made as a result of having children. But heavens, no."

A few years ago, I wrote some notes on this film for the Brattle Theatre here.

TOP FIFTY MOVIES OF THE '00s: # 20-11

20. 49 UP

This seventh installment of Michael Apted's monumental series (which profiles the same dozen people once every seven years) may be the first to explore in depth the long-term effects of having one's entire life on display.



19. SPIRITED AWAY

Hayao Miyazaki's masterpiece, a fable about a girl stuck in a surreal, Oz-type fantasy world, brims with wit, grace, and a delightful, all-ages appeal that never condescends to its audience.



18. GOSFORD PARK

Morris Weissman: "How do you manage to put up with these people?"
Ivor Novello: "Well, you forget, I make my living impersonating them."



17. LOST IN TRANSLATION

Bill Murray at his rumpled, melancholic best, Scarlet Johannson when she seemed like the slyest actress of her generation (before she settled for less), and Sofia Coppola suggesting how much richer a life could become just for having known someone, if only fleetingly.



16. WAKING LIFE

Boat Car Guy: "The idea is to remain in a state of constant departure while always arriving."



15. FAR FROM HEAVEN

Raymond: "Here is to being the only one."



14. STILL WALKING

Instead of shocking revelations or artificial resolutions, this fully-realized family portrait only finds beauty in its simplicity, and it's enough.



13. BEFORE SUNSET

Celine: "I was having this awful nightmare that I was 32. And then I woke up and I was 23. So relieved. And then I woke up for real, and I was 32."



12. THE RETURN

A slowly waking dream where the intense emotional journey's cumulative pull far outweighs any literal outcome.



11. CACHE

Michael Haneke's look (in every sense of the word) at a bourgeois couple being watched by an unknown assailant eventually reveals itself as an allegory about social responsibility and guilt--and perhaps this decade's finest, most original thriller.

TOP FIFTY MOVIES OF THE '00s: # 30-21

30. MY WINNIPEG

Guy Maddin had an incredible run this decade, from the insane short THE HEART OF THE WORLD to this alluring "docu-fantasia" hybrid that critiques and celebrates his hometown like no one else could.



29. JUDY BERLIN

A low budget, black-and-white fable about a day in the life of a sleepy Long Island suburb--the type of little indie film that now seems lost to a cherished, almost mysterious, long-ago era.



28. DONNIE DARKO

Kitty Farmer: "Rose, I don't know if you realize what an opportunity this is for our daughters. This has been a dream of Samantha's and all of ours for a long time! I made her lead dancer! (pause) Sometimes, I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion!"



27. GHOST WORLD

Seymour: "Well, I have to admit that things are really starting to look up for me since my life turned to shit."



26. MAN ON WIRE

Philippe Petit’s 1974 tightrope walk across the World Trade Center was an extraordinary stunt and a breathtaking work of art; James Marsh's documentation/reconstruction of it unavoidably comes across as a requiem that doesn't even need to mention 9/11 to get its point subtly across.



25. PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE

Barry: "I have a love in my life. It makes me stronger than anything you can imagine."



24. SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK

Constructed much like a warehouse full of one secret compartment after another, Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut is an absolutely terrifying comedy and one that requires multiple viewings--I'm looking forward to them.



23. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN

Oskar: "Are you really twelve?"
Eli: "Yes. It's just I've been twelve for a very long time."



22. WHAT TIME IS IT THERE?

Another auteur with a great decade of work, Tsai Ming-Liang's best film is a variation on what he does in every film, but with a magnificent structure full of symmetry and echoes between twin narratives and a beautiful payoff at the end.



21. AMERICAN SPLENDOR

"Real" Harvey Pekar: "If you think reading comics about your life seems strange, try watching a play about it. God only knows how I'll feel when I see this movie."

TOP FIFTY MOVIES OF THE '00s: # 40-31

40. DOGVILLE

This played theaters at the same time as THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST: just imagine a world where millions lined up to see Lars von Trier's perceptive, droll study of self-awareness, cruelty and revenge instead of Mel Gibson's crucifixion porn.



39. BEST IN SHOW

Christy Cummings: "The heart and the soul, which was what my mom did, that was her role, she was there for the unconditional love and it worked for my family, you know... until mom committed suicide in '81."



38. HALF NELSON

With an unlikely protagonist (a good teacher who is also a drug addict), co-directors Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden take the frustration of the age and transform it into a poetic, unflinching study of how we find redemption through the support of others.



37. THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU

Steve Zissou: "Are you finding what you were looking for... out here with me? I hope so."



36. 35 SHOTS OF RUM

Claire Denis closes out an impressive decade of films with what may be her most likable one, a gloss on Ozu's LATE SPRING that communicates less through words or a plot than it does via small gestures and a hypnotic, evocative style and sense of place.



35. CLEAN

Maggie Cheung's apparent swan song as an actress was this delicately executed study of drug addiction and recovery (directed by her ex-husband) that had the uncommon insight simply not to demean its lead for being a junkie.



34. TARNATION

An autobiographical psychological portrait, a cinematic hallucinogenic, the ultimate underground non-fiction film. I feared that it would spawn numerous lesser imitations; five years on, I still haven't seen anything else remotely like it.



33. TALK TO HER

I debated between including this and VOLVER, for both have strong, unique narratives. But while the latter film works because of a typically fabulous Almodovar female ensemble, this one holds a special place in the director's filmography as a poignant study of loyalty between two male friends.



32. HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH

Hansel's Mom: "To be free, one must give up a part of oneself. "



31. 4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS

Two college-aged women attempt to secure an illegal abortion in Communist Romania in this painfully realistic (but at times darkly funny!) thriller that examines the contours of a friendship against a social backdrop it neither entirely condemns nor commends.