TOP TEN: Best Movies Mid-Way Through 2007
Not a lot to love, but I managed to find ten
 | Zodiac |
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My only complaint with David Fincher's Zodiac is that it is just too long. This is a complaint that I heard from a lot of people, but I didn't hear from many that they didn't like it, and for good reason, this is a really good film.
Fincher put together a perfect cast comprised of Robert Downey Jr., Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Edwards as he told the story of the Bay Area's Zodiac Killer. The film is just as methodical as the man they were trying to catch and offers up some truly creepy moments.
I have my doubts about whether or not it will end up on my top ten list for the Best of 2007, but at least I can give it some mention here mid-way through the year.
 | Broken English |
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Not many people have seen this film and I have a feeling it is not a film that will ever be seen by many people, but Broken English is one of those movies that is hard to get right but really works when you do get it right. This is a human drama centered on Nora Wilder (Parker Posey), a thirty-something woman that just can't seem to find love. She dates all the wrong men and just can't seem to figure life out.
Working in a upper class hotel in Manhattan she finds her monotonous life unbearable, but things soon change thanks to a chance meeting with a young Frenchman at a random party. She goes through all the human emotions of love, self doubt and ultimately denial before she decides to do something about her situation.
Broken English is along the same lines as movies like Before Sunset, Before Sunrise, Once and 2 Days in Paris. It is a movie about people, and it has the right mix of good dialogue and a good story. It isn't as good as those films I just mentioned, but it is far better than most movies out there and it gives us a chance to see Parker Posey in a role you aren't likely to see her in again for a long time and she nails it.
 | Smokin' Aces |
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The bottom half of this top ten is made of movies that aren't exactly perfect, but they are unique enough that you are willing to forgo some of those imperfections in lieu of a unique story and rare cinematic experiences. Joe Carnahan's Smokin' Aces certainly fits into those two descriptions.
This is a balls to the wall action spectacle that is more and more fun every time you see it. I had a chance to interview Carnahan and chat about this movie and the man is just as intense and fun as the movie he made.
Aside from the gratuitous violence it is the characters he has written and the actors he find to take on the roles that makes Smokin' Aces so good. From Taraji Henson and Alicia Keys as female assassins to Peter Berg as a wise ass bounty hunter this flick has everything needed when it comes to movies where you just want to turn your brain off and watch the action on the screen.
 | 300 |
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You may be wondering why I chose the image I did for 300 and why it isn't of one of the 300 Spartans in their leather outfits wielding a sword and stabbing someone as blood sprays all over the place. Well, while I truly enjoyed the comic book violence of 300 and the spectacular visual style of the film I don't think I would have enjoyed the film at all had it not been for Lena Headey playing Queen Gorgo.
Without Queen Gorgo 300 was simply a film of battles, she added the human element to the film, that sense of something worth fighting for. Sure, the Spartans were fighting for their land, but the strong-willed nature of Gorgo gave audiences something to connect with, she gave us reason to cheer for those 300 men that were about to die. On top of that she had some of the best lines of 2007:
Queen Gorgo: Because only Spartan women give birth to real men.
Truly one of the greatest moments in 300 is when she reads that line.
 | Bridge to Terabithia |
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Bridge to Terabithia is the surprise film of 2007 for me. I fully expected a corny little kid’s flick when I first saw this film on DVD, but it is so much more than that. This is not only a film for kids, I would actually say it is more a film for adults considering the nature of the story.
I never read the Newbery Award-winning novel by Katherine Paterson, and I can hardly imagine how I would have felt if I had read it as a young child. This film has some hard hitting emotional moments and if it wasn't for the acting by young stars Anna Sophia Robb and Josh Hutcherson it really would not have worked. On top of that, one of the best choices was made by director Gabor Csupo and his decision not to let the fantasy aspects of the story outweigh the human elements. The drama is truly in the relationship formed between the two young kids, the fantastical elements are just a means to an end.
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