Movies of 2007

Netflix continued to be the source of much of my film watching this year, as I found out the hard way that Gainesville’s film “scene” made Jacksonville feel like the East Village. Here are some of my favorite rentals.

1. The Lives of Others – This brilliant look at East German life during the Cold War won the Oscar for Foreign Language Picture this year and couldn’t have been more relevant in our own contemporary police state.
2. Into the Wild – Sean Penn’s adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s book has more big ideas than any other movie this year. Even if you know Chris McCaffrey’s story, you’ll be captivated.
3. Away from Her – Julie Christie is a marvel as a 60 year old woman who is trying mightily to cope with her early onset Alzheimer’s condition. She’s a must for Oscar.
4. After the Wedding – In this Danish film, an Mads Mikkelson plays an aging hippie living and working in a charity hospital is called back to Copenhagen to do some fundraising. While there he’s invited to a donor’s wedding party where he encounters an old flame and the plot thickens.
5. Chalk – This indie film gives the audience the most honest look at public school teaching in years, filmed in that industrial film verite style of “The Office.”
6. Sicko – Michael Moore’s latest on the broken health care system brings the usual goods and may well have more influence on the American political agenda than any of his other films.
7. The Savages – This dramatic comedy about two fortysomethings dealing with their father’s dementia was so close to home for us that it seemed as if director Tamara Jenkins had crawled into our heads and stolen a screenplay.
8. The Year of the Dog – A new Mike White film rich with darkly comic moments with Molly Shannon as a young single woman becomes unglued when her dog dies.
9. La Vie en Rose –Marion Cotillard absolutely inhabits the skin of “The Little Sparrow” – the great French chanteuse Edith Piaf.
10. Margot at the Wedding: Noah Baumbach latest dysfunctional family drama, with Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Jason Leigh as the fiercest of sibling rivals,
Jack Black along for comic relief.

Other Notables:
• Zodiac – David Fincher San-Francisco serial killer police procedural.
• The Hoax – Lasse Hallstrom’s portrait of the con-man Clifford Irving.
• Hot Fuzz – Simon Pegg’s hilarious take on the Hollywood buddy cop picture.
• The Bourne Ultimatum – An authentic thrill ride from start to finish.
• In the Valley of Elah – Hollywood’s most sucessful attempt at an Iraq movie.
• Michael Clayton – A conspiracy movie for a conspiratorial time.
• I’m Not There – Todd Haynes’ trippy look at the many faces of Bob Dylan.

Disappointments:
• Knocked Up – The most hyped comedy of the summer was anything but funny; why go out to the movies to see a couple bickering?

So, what kept you watching this year?