Half Nelson

On my continuing quest to review the best films of the year, Half Nelson cannot be overlooked. While this is indeed a small, independent story about people trying to overcome their holdups in life, whether addiction or family problems, this film hits every note perfectly. This is what movies can and should be. Stories of real (types of) people, struggling but overcoming, even if it is only one small hurdle at a time.

Since Ryan Gosling broke out with his role in The Believer, critics have taken notice of him. But it wasn't until his 2004 role in The Notebook that the general public recognized him. But even with that hit on his hands, he still takes on roles that challenge him. Stay is another example of that. He embodies the characters he plays until you think you're just watching a documentary about a real person. That's acting. If Gosling is not at least nominated by the Academy early next year for his performance here, it will be the final straw. I will finally agree with the majority that there is no justice with the Oscars and it is purely a political game. The optimist side of me wants to believe otherwise, that the Oscars are there to truly rewards the best of the year, but if Ryan isn't there, I just won't be able to believe that any longer. He gives the best male acting performance of the year without comparison. I was moved beyond explanation by his performance and left the theatre smiling, hopeful for the human race.

This is not your typical Hollywood film. It's a realistic story about a teacher and one of his female students (played wonderfully by Shareeka Epps) who form a true friendship. They are people that actually desire the best for one another and do all they can, in their own small and unspoken ways, to help each other.

Buy Half Nelson as soon as it's made available on DVD. It is the second best film of 2006 (thus far) and I cannot recommend it enough. It will move you, empower you, give you hope... all human responses too rare to pass up. After watching and rewatching this movie, you'll realize the truth: that your glass is actually Half full.

The bottom line: Rewatchable

United 93

As we near the end of 2006, I feel compelled to write reviews for the films I believe have been the best (though not necessarily the most rewatchable) of the year. While some of these are not yet available on DVD, by beginning to write these reviews now, I will be able to quickly point people to them as they are released on DVD.

Currently, of all the movies I have seen thus far through 2006, United 93 stands high above the fold. Hands down, this is the best, most powerful film of the year and Paul Greengrass, the writer and director, deserves congratulations, recognition and the opportunity to do whatever he wants next. Studios should just hand him a blank check. He does not sensationalize the event, but creates a very realistic picture of what happened that tragic September day, truly capturing the true courage of those United flight 93's passangers. He depicts how these ordinary men and women united together to respond courageously and extraordinarily in the face of fear.

Seeing this opening night, I experienced something I had never before witnessed at the movies: complete silence. After the chaotic, frantic ending you hope to end happily, like most Hollywood endings, and the screen cut to black, no one in the entire theatre made a sound. They didn't move an inch. People sat in their chairs, quiet, still and sober, internalizing everything that had just taken place on screen in one of the most terrifying one hour and fifty-one minutes ever captured on film. And even once people began to shuffle their way out of the theatres, people still did not talk.

Now, this film is not extremely rewatchable. The tragic material makes it a movie that you will rarely, if ever want to rewatch. Nonetheless, it is an important film. And it's one I can't recommend you see enough. Rent United 93 as soon as you have the chance and sit down to watch and marvel, in humble silence, a few of your fellow Americans' bravery.

The bottom line: Rarely Rewatchable

The Queen

After seeing the trailer for The Queen, I had no desire to see it. Both my wife and I thought it looked no better than a made-for-TV movie you might find on PBS long after it had originally aired on BBC. But then, I read the reviews and, much to my surprise, they were in universal agreement: The Queen was not only a good film, but according to them, a great film. (On a side note, here's why I listen to critics as a general rule.) So, my wife and I and our six-week old daughter headed to the movies for a Sunday afternoon matinee. And we were glad we did.

While my wife didn't enjoy the film quite as much as I did, I found The Queen an immensely entertaining, insightful, and wonderfully scripted and performed docudrama. Also, given the fact that this deals with the tragically true story of Princess Diana's unexpected death, the movie is surprisingly (and tastefully) humorous and witty. The audience chuckled throughout.

But the script is not the only star here. Undoubtedly, the true reason this movie succeeds is due to the outstanding performances. Michael Sheen, who plays Tony Blair, brilliantly reenacts how Britain's youngest Prime Minister in history responded to the sad event so shortly after being elected. He commands the screen, and yet at the same time, plays the character with a certain down-to-earth verisimilitude that makes you understand how he won over England's people. And of course, Helen Mirren, as you may have heard already, gives a career-crowning performance as the title character. I've always loved her, but this gave me a new appreciation for her range. Mirren's depiction of HM Queen Elizabeth II will assuredly be seen as the lasting portrayal of who the figure was, a truly dignified and respectable leader even if the public did not always understand her more traditional values. There are still some female performances to look out for in the next couple months, but come Oscar time, I would not at all mind seeing Helen awarded for her pitch-perfect performance.

This isn't the most rewatchable of films. However, given the film's outstanding performances, unexpected humor, and insightful commentary on modern day royalty, I look forward to seeing The Queen again sometime in the future, and recommend you visit the theatres for this delightful surprise or rent it as soon as it makes its way to DVD.

The bottom line: Rarely Rewatchable

Flags of Our Fathers

Flags of Our Fathers is the perfect example of a well done movie that just isn't that rewatchable. Even with movies like Saving Private Ryan and Braveheart, you could bare to watch them more frequently because the payoff appeals to all of us: ordinary men overcoming great odds to do something extraordinary.

Then again, that's the point of Clint Eastwood's latest directorial venture. That these soldiers were ordinary men, and maybe not so much "heroes" as they were just guys trying to live through the madness of war. So, it's not a fair reason to discount the movie, but purely a reason that I won't be antsy to pop this one in the player when it comes out on DVD. It's a historical account of the flag raisers at Iwo Jima and, while there is no real payoff, the message is quiet and profound. As one of the characters puts it in the film, "Maybe there were no heroes, but just men like my dad."

It's not an action-packed film, nor is it one where you leave cheering and stirred to go try great things, but it is a moving, honest, new perspective of the war we have come to admire as a "Good War..." and Flags of Our Fathers may persuade you to think a little differently. While I enjoyed the film immensely and appreciate its new take on an old genre, it's not a movie I'll be eager to rewatch anytime soon.

The bottom line: Rarely Rewatchable

Marie Antoinette

The sets are lavish and the costumes, gorgeous, but as for everything else? Well, let's just say it's hum drum. While Sophia Coppola may have been purely trying to depict the decadence of an era and ruler, as well as the redundancy of such a royal life, as a movie, it's pretty boring. Like I said, the visual aspects of the film are beautiful, but the story is virtually non-existent and the acting is sub-par. Most of all I was disappointed because, especially after The Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation, I expected more of Coppola's third writing and directing effort. Her two previous films were superb freshman and sophomore outings by any standard, and this just doesn't come anywhere close to the depth or power of those movies.

If you like watching movies for their sets and costumes, you may enjoy Marie Antoinette. But if you want insight into history, acting range, and a three-act story structure that moves a film along at a steady pace, you won't find it here.

The bottom line: Watchable

The Prestige

Immediately after seeing The Prestige, I wanted to rewatch it. Christopher Nolan, the director of this movie, has a pattern of doing that, as he was also the writer and director of Memento and Batman Begins, two movies I find frequently rewatchable. While this movie does not quite make it to that level of rewatchability, it's an enjoyable film I definitely look forward to purchasing and seeing again when it comes out on DVD.

Personally, however, I don't want to rewatch The Prestige for its magic and the tricks it has up its sleeves, but purely for the performances, period and story that so expertly unfolds before your very eyes. That's the true magic of this film. This marks Hugh Jackman's best performance to date, and while it may not be Bale's or Caine's strongest ever (they both have a longer resume anyway), they are equally strong. Also, with as much jumping back and forth in time that the film does, it never feels like Nolan uses it purely as a plot device, as it has been most often used since Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction. Instead, it actually aids the story and allows for the audience to try and figure things out a little longer as the magic show take place before our very eyes.

This is one I was glad to see before the masses, on its opening night, and don't want to spoil anything for anybody. Go see The Prestige before being told anything about it. I enjoyed piecing the puzzle together before the secrets were revealed, but that's not to say it's a cheap trick. Go in with your mind and eyes open, ready for anything. It's an entertaining movie that had me intrigued all the way through, from the first frame to the last. The first line of the film asks the audience, "Are you watching closely?" I did. And I can assure you, I'll be rewatching the movie just as closely.

The bottom line: Rewatchable