comment #1

Aguirre says ...

well, i certainly agree with the order in which jeff presented us this top five... in that there will be blood is perhaps the best american film of the decade, and i'm not there is a fascinating but hopelessly hollow essay piece.

comment #2

Aguirre says ...

and now that i've actually examined the lists, it makes me ECSTATIC to see that secret sunshine is by FAR the best unreleased film of the year... but not so ecstatic that it went unreleased.

comment #3

BurmaShave says ...

Damn straight, particularly I'M NOT THERE. Possibly the most underrated film of the year, other than BUG.

comment #4

EOTW says ...

Posted this on another site, but what the F, I just I'M NOT THERE tonight and am jazzed. Here goes:

"Ok, I just saw I'm NOT THERE for the first time tonight. I'm 35 and have been a Dylan fan since I was 15 yrs old. I heard BLOOD ON THE TRACKS and lots it for much of anything else after that. I love the man's music. Seeing this film tonight, and knowing all the views people have towards it, i sat there by myself and knew within the first few minutes, when I relaized it was jumping around and making complete sense to me, that it was a work of obvious genius.

I find it amazing this film got made. It seems like it was made for the me, the hardcore Dylan fan, and not for folks who don't care for his music at all.

I understand how someone could say Haynes rams the same points down your throat for 2 hours, but I just see how expansive he makes the mind of Dylan come alive and I think there is something amazingly touching about how people change over the course of their lives. I know people don't really change, and yet they do. I know I'm different and it's not just something I tell myself to feel unique or anything. I just know that I have a unique place in this world and when I'm gone, it's not gonna be there anymore.

A lot of things welled up in me watching it, mostly about how my ideas about his music have always been right under the surface of so much of what I love about art and things of this ilk. It made me think about the nature of film and about the ideas that go into creating anything trying to be original and in the end, the struggle is the whole point of it.

I just think that it no longer matters, and never did, why someone likes one thing and someone else doesn't. I can deal with someone disliking this picture, even if most people agree or not. What matters is that for two hours, I sat alone in a theater and someone else put moving pictures up on a wall and they were my own memories of a time passed, a time I was never part of and can never be a part of and it all felt right to me."

comment #5

TheLongshot says ...

While all of these films may be well made, I have absolutely no interest in any of them.

That's why I mostly care less about Oscar this year.

comment #6

Craptastic says ...

Just came out of TWBB...

I hate to say this, but Wells may be right about the whole "needs a second viewing" thing.

I know I liked it a lot...but the problem was: I liked so many things about it, it was sometimes hard to stay focused on it as a whole piece.

For example, a cue would kick in-- the one that stayed with me the most was when Daniel is carrying his son away from the explosion-- and I would be so into the music that was playing, it would cause my mind to focus on that as a singular entity and I'd be taken out of the movie momentarily.

I've never had this happen to me before while viewing a film. I'm consistantly focused on everything that is going on regarding sight and sound as a whole... but this one was like film nerd eye/ear candy.

I'm going to see it again but I'm hoping that my enjoyment will conform to that of a "piece" rather than just the parts of its sum.

comment #7

Craig Kennedy says ...

That's great EOTW. Even as a Dylan tourist, I loved I'm Not There. You're the 2nd huge Dylan fan I've heard say they felt that the movie was made for them.

comment #8

PerfectTommy says ...

So Long Shot...if none of these films appeals to you...um... why would you bother with this site?

comment #9

Craig Kennedy says ...

It did for me Craptastic, that's all I can say. I was a bit overwhelmed the first time through.

comment #10

T. Holly says ...

This is B.S., the "view ballots" link is spunk and here you need a pissword:

http://ballot2007.indiewire.com/ballots

comment #11

Walter Sobchak says ...

"Zodiac"? Who's in that? Did it come out already?

comment #12

cute4u23 says ...

It is a great movie. I saw the main actor's profile on millionaire dating site called http://WealthyRomance.com last week. It seems he is still single.

comment #13

Joe M. says ...

Saw "No Country For Old Men" the other night and really liked it (maybe even loved it), but I have a quick- and SPOILER HEAVY- question or two... Who ended up with the money in the end? It seemed to be the hitman guy (he gave the kid a hundred dollar bill for his shirt at the end, after all), and- more importantly- did Tommy Lee Jones' character make a big revelation at the end of the movie (about the money or something else)? There were a few gasps in the audience during the final line or two of the film, but I was distracted by my wife saying she had to go to the bathroom, and maybe I wasn't paying quite as much attention as I should have been anyway, because I honestly didn't expect that quiet conversation scene at the kitchen table to be the last scene of the movie. Sigh... it was really frustrating knowing you saw a really great movie but know that you missed something big that it was saying. So, please, someone tack on a spoiler warning and give me your two cents. Thanks.

comment #14

AJW says ...

NCFOM spoilers:
Joe M., after Chigurgh murders Carson Wells, Llewelyn recovers the satchel (not shown, but implied since he was then the only one alive who knew its location. We may actually see him carrying it later by the pool at his final motel.) When Ed Tom Bell enters the room Moss had rented, he sees the vent has been unscrewed with a coin. This shows us that Chigurgh has recovered the money, since earlier he figured out that's where Moss hides the satchel (plus the use of a coin).

What you missed at the end was Ed Tom's dream about his father. It dealt less with the plot than with the film's overarching themes.

comment #15

snackyx says ...

Did Poland see this list?

comment #16

Joe M. says ...

AJW: Thanks! I suspected I was right about the money thing, and that the final speech was more a thematic summation than a big reveal, but thanks for confirming.

comment #17

T. Holly says ...

Did Poland see it? He participated. You have to know who voted to see their ballot. He linked his ballot in a blog entry.

comment #18

truefaith says ...

I saw FOUR MONTHS, THREE WEEKS, TWO DAYS. Although I found it interesting, I wouldn't exactly put it in my Top Five list for the year. I just didn't find the characters that well rounded. It seemed like they were put in the movie for a purpose and that was it. And I felt the ending was too abrupt.

comment #19

lipranzer says ...

4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS & 2 DAYS hasn't opened here yet, and I'M NOT THERE didn't quite make my top 10, but the other three did:

There Will Be Blood
Black Book
Michael Clayton
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
No Country for Old Men
Away From Her/The Savages (tie)
Once
No End in Sight
Zodiac
Into the Wild

comment #20

Zimmergirl says ...

EOTW, you just made my day. I'm Not There is the great underrated masterpiece of 2007. Few films from this year will last beyond the hype but this one, sans hype, absolute will. It is brilliant. Perfect.

comment #21

Mario Borroto says ...

I am glad to see There Will Be Blood get so much love. The critic's awards were too early for the film to get recognized earlier this year, with the notable exception of the L.A. critics.

comment #22

EOTW says ...

You're very welcome, Zgirl. Love the name, too.