My (and only my) best movies of the decade: The top 10

Quickly before I get into any of that, I was just thrilled to see that "The Muppet Movie," a staple for kids who grew up when I did and hopefully still required viewing in households everywhere there are kids big and small, has been added for preservation to the 2009 National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

The only question that great news gives me is why in the world did it take so long? As you can see from the list below, there are a lot of other great choices this year, and even a music video from Michael Jackson. Hey, why not? Here it is:

1. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
2. The Exiles (1961)
3. Heroes All (1920)
4. Hot Dogs for Gauguin (1972)
5. The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)
6. Jezebel (1938)
7. The Jungle (1967)
8. The Lead Shoes (1949)
9. Little Nemo (1911)
10. Mabel’s Blunder (1914)
11. The Mark of Zorro (1940)
12. Mrs. Miniver (1942)
13. The Muppet Movie (1979)
14. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
15. Pillow Talk (1959)
16. Precious Images (1986)
17. Quasi at the Quackadero (1975)
18. The Red Book (1994)
19. The Revenge of Pancho Villa (1930-36)
20. Scratch and Crow (1995)
21. Stark Love (1927)
22. The Story of G.I. Joe (1945)
23. A Study in Reds (1932)
24. Thriller (1983)
25. Under Western Stars (1938)

So there you have it. But here today, it's all about the final cut. Before I do my top 10 list for 2009, which I'm still putting off until the end of this week because I will finally see "Up in the Air" today, I've decided that the reigning champ isn't going to be dethroned, so I can go ahead and do my top 10 movies of the 2000s. I did, however, see one movie that will probably make the 2009 top 10 list coming Monday, Pedro Almodovar's "Broken Embraces," which is just a wildly fun movie and a valentine to moviemaking (when and if you see it, you'll probably agree that it's really a valentine to making specifically Pedro Almodovar movies, but again, why not?)

OK, with the rules being one per year, here are my best movies of the oughts, or whatever you want to call them, with some video clips thrown in just for fun.

2000: "Almost Famous"
Judging from how Cameron Crown started out the '00s, you would think it would have been the most fruitful creative period of his life, but of course that was not to be. "Elizabethtown" almost made me claw my own eyes out, but this rock 'n' roll road movie chronicling Crowe's own ride as a too-young correspondent for the Rolling Stone is as fun as it is moving, and even made me a fan of Elton John again with one of the best uses of a pop song ever, the band rebonding with "Tiny Dancer." Enjoy that clip below.



2001: "The Royal Tenenbaums"
What made "Fantastic Mr. Fox" so good was that, after two instantly forgettable films in "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" and "The Darjeeling Limited," it showed that Wes Anderson had returned to the top form he showed with this flick. At his best, Anderson has a natural gift for storytelling and an artist's eye for details that make you smile broadly if you pay close enough attention, and those two talents just converged perfectly with "The Royal Tenenbaums."

2002: "City of God"
If I had to pick just one, this would be my favorite movie of the '00s, and easily in my top 10 of all time too. Fernando Meirelles' chronicle of street life in Rio de Janeiro focuses on two boys, one who gets caught up in the gang culture that rules the streets and another who escapes to capture its harsh reality with his camera. It works as both a coming-of-age tale or a riveting gangster pic of sorts, and is just packed with searing visual images that are still burned on my brain to this day. Enjoy the clip below showing Lil' Dice transformed into the much more deadly Lil' Ze.



2003: "American Splendor"
Though Paul Giamatti had appeared in plenty of movies before this one from Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, he certainly chose the right flick to make his real impact as the star of the show. The two directors interweave Giamatti's take on the colorful character that is cartoonist Harvey Pekar with insight from the man himself, and its just a joy to watch as the lines between the two interweave. It also turns into a moving romance with Hope Davis as Pekar's love and salvation, Joyce Brabner, and Judah Friedlander is also just a hoot as Pekar's oddball buddy Toby.

2004: "Maria Full of Grace"
Still the only movie I've ever seen from writer/director Joshua Marston, "Maria Full of Grace" was ahead of its time in putting a very human face on the issue of immigration in America. It certainly doesn't hurt that that face here belongs to the simply stunning Catalina Sandino Moreno, or that the story of Maria Alvarez's role as a drug mule from Colombia and her road to redemption just make for a tremendously entertaining flick.

2005: "Hustle & Flow"
Though I enjoy straightforward musical biopics to a certain degree, I'm much more amenable to movies like "I'm Not There," "Cadillac Records" and this flick from director Craig Brewer that take the genre and twist it into something new. "Hustle & Flow" isn't, of course, a biopic at all, but with the character of struggling pimp and aspiring rapper Djay, brought to vivid life by Terrence Howard, Brewer brings all the corny joy of the rock fable to hip-hop, and though his story of dreaming big while often living small just sounds incredibly corny on paper, it works to near perfection on the big screen. In any language, this clip of Djay and Taraji P. Henson's Shug is just one of the great movie kisses of all time. Enjoy.



2006: "Pan's Labyrinth"
In the year of the three Mexicans, this flick from Guillermo del Toro still stands just a notch taller than Alfonso Cuaron's "Children of Men" in my book, though it's nearly a tie. With "Pan's Labyrinth," Del Toro explores the power of the imagination - both it's light and dark side - as our heroine, played by young Ivana Baquero, crafts an elaborate and often harrowing fantasy world to escape the harsh reality of her life in post-Civil War Spain. It revels in this talent that we all used as children but too often forget once we turn into "adults."

2007: "Into the Wild"
Sean Penn could have gone in many directions with his movie about doomed dreamer Christopher McCandless, but by keeping his own politics out of it and just letting the story unfold at a natural pace, he managed to craft a great American road movie. It's as moving as it is frustrating to watch how McCandless, played by Emile Hirsch, could have avoided his fate if he had simply let in one of the many people who reached out to him in his travels. Hal Holbrook should have won the Oscar he was nominated for with this flick, and Catherine Keener should have had her name called that night too.

2008: "Let the Right One In"
Just the other day, my brother and I were discussing the many fantastic scenes in director Tomas Alfredson's flick, and whether or not any of them will have nearly the same impact in "Cloverfield" director Matt Reeves' upcoming American remake, "Let Me In" (we both have rather serious doubts.) Alfredson's movie, based on John Ajvide Lindqvist's novel, is equal parts coming-of-age story and horror flick as it tells the tale of what happens when bullied Oskar meets the new girl next door - who just happens to be a vampire. Among the many things this movie gets rights is the moment at the pool when - after urging Oskar to stand up for himself - Eli takes matters into her own rather lethal hands. Easily the best horror movie scene of the last 10 years and more. Though I strongly watch you watch it in the movie first if you haven't seen it yet, here's a clip of that amazing sequence. Enjoy.



2009: "Inglourious Basterds"
Watching this movie unfold and just get better and better as it goes along drives home the point that Quentin Tarantino really was just treading water with the two "Kill Bill" movies and his half of "Grindhouse," because this was clearly the movie he was meant to make. It should really have a different name, because the titular "Basterds" are the weakest link in this saga that weaves together several plots to kill Hitler. Whether you call it revisionist history or revenge fantasy, it's also just wildly inventive storytelling. Two scenes in particular, the opening gambit with Christoph Waltz and a later one involving some kind of crazy game of celebrity Indian Head poker, are among the best Tarantino has ever written, just perfectly building all the tension that is finally released in that finale that I guarantee you won't ever forget.

So, there you have it. I hope you enjoyed at least some of that, and if you haven't seen any of them, I guarantee they'll all well worth a rental. And with that I'm finally off to see if George Clooney and "Up in the Air" are really worth all the hype. Peace out.

Can Sam Raimi "Drag Me to Hell"? Hell yeah

Judging from the trailer that came out yesterday, I'd say Sam Raimi is finally and thankfully having fun making movies again, but first a short word or two about Jay Baruchel.

Know who he is? Even if you don't think so, you probably do. He played Sandusky in "Tropic Thunder" and Norah's ex in "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist," and had his best big-screen part to date as that Zeppelin-obsessed fan in "Almost Famous." And even though Fox only felt fit to air about 15 episodes of it, he was also great as the lead in Judd Apatow's second TV series, "Undeclared," which while never quite as good as "Freaks and Geeks" was still just a damn fine series (and one I have on DVD.)

And now it seems Mr. Baruchel is finally gonna get to carry a movie by himself, and one he had a hand in creating at that, too. Based on a character that Baruchel came up with, "Johnny Klutz" will be about a lovable loser who is impervious to pain. The comedy possibilities are already spinning in my mind. With Ben Stiller involved as a producer, I'd imagine there has to be a pretty good chance this will all come together.

Now, before we get into all the horror goodness from Raimi, there's more news out there that just might impact the future of my favorite current TV drama by far, "Friday Night Lights."

Former cheerleader-turned-Jesus-freak-turned-Tim-Riggins'-girlfriend-once-again Lyla Garrity, a k a Minka Kelly, has signed on to play the lead in something called "Body Politic" for the CW, where she joins co-star Jason Dohring, also known as Logan Echolls on my beloved "Veronica Mars."

On the new show, which according to Variety takes a look at "Washington politics through the eyes of optimistic, up-and-coming staffers," Minka plays Hope, who leaves Michigan after the death of her mother to join the staff of her father, who has just been appointed attorney general. Logan will play a Washington Post reporter. (Just as an aside, I was once an "optimistic, up-and-coming" Washington staffer as an intern for Maryland's great but quick-tempered Democratic Senator Barbara Mikulski, and once saw her throw a telephone receiver at someone's head. That was about enough for me.)

I'm not expecting the second coming of "The West Wing" here, but assuming this is also not just completely stupid it will be yet another CW show I'll tune in for despite the fact that I'm way too old to do so without shame.

But what does that mean for "Friday Night Lights"? Well, word is that negotiations are still ongoing between NBC and DirecTV for a fourth season, and insiders are "optimistic" about it happening. Here's hoping, because season three has easily been the best yet. And take note: If not this week's, an episode to come very soon will be all about the future of Lyla and Tim, so definitely stay tuned.

OK, finally, it's down to the horror, and like I said, from this brief glimpse it seems like Sam Raimi has really cooked up something fun with "Drag Me to Hell," which is set to come out May 29.

My first thought watching it was it's just too bad that young Ellen Page dropped out of the lead role, because seeing her as a scream queen would just be a blast. As you can see, Alison Lohman has stepped into her shoes, and I'm betting she'll do just fine.

We're almost there, but if you'll indulge me, here are my three ingredients for horror movie success:

1. Remember people, this should be about suspense rather than simply gore. I'll never understand the entertainment value in watching someone get meticulously tortured.
2. No matter how familiar your idea is, at least have one. I'm almost certain I have yet to see any kind of horror movie remake, and intend to stubbornly hold to that rule from here on out.
3. Keep it simple. You don't need an elaborate curse to unleash all the evil, so just get to it. Raimi certainly seems to have that down here since, as you'll see from the trailer (in just a sec, really), here an old woman turned down for a mortgage extension curses our heroine to hell. Nothing but cool there.

OK, here it finally is. Enjoy the trailer, and have a perfectly pleasant Thursday. Peace out.

What in the world ever happened to Cameron Crowe?

There are really few movies in the world I loathe more than Cameron Crowe's "Elizabethtown."

Now, obviously, I'm not saying by any objective standard that that semi-autobiographical rom-com is one of the worst movies ever made, because it clearly isn't. But I only reserve the word "hate" for films from directors from whom I expect a whole lot but really let me down. Therefore, you'll probably never hear me use it for a Uwe Boll movie (unless I ever bother to see "Postal"), but there's a very good chance you might hear it this weekend for M. Night Shyamalan if he disappoints again with "The Happening."

(If I can digress just a bit about that, does anyone else find it ominous that the only way they can find to promote "The Happening" in commercials is that it will be Shyamalan's "first R-rated movie"? SFW!?!?)

OK, I'm back. My rather circuitous point here is that I used to have tons of love for Cameron Crowe. I just love movies that make heroes out of possibly the most inappropriately loathed workers in the world - journalists - so I just adore "Almost Famous," probably beyond any rational amount it might deserve. I also have tons of time for "Say Anything," and of course he also wrote the timeless "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." So I certainly welcome any news of a Cameron Crowe comeback to wash away the rather bitter taste of "Elizabethtown," even if the details so far are very scarce.

Now comes word that he's apparently completed the script for an as-yet-untitled romantic comedy and signed on to direct it for Columbia Pictures, with Reese Witherspoon and Ben Stiller set to star.

I still like Stiller quite a bit when he's not starring in movies for either himself or the Farrelly brothers, and have nothing but love for Reese, so here's hoping this will be a return to top form for the formerly-fairly-great Mr. Crowe. Stay tuned for details as soon as I get them.

What will the new "Muppet Movie" look like?

Although I found Jason Segel's "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" to be a bit of a letdown, there's no denying that that "Dracula" puppet show he put on at the end was a classic. And, luckily, the Henson folks took notice too and have handed him and bud Nick Stoller the rights to make a new "Muppet Movie."

But just what will that mean? Will it be a good, old-fashioned Muppets flick suitable for all audiences? I certainly hope so, and from what Segel recently had to say to IESB.net, he does to. Here's some of what he had to say.

IESB: Is Sam the Eagle in it?

JS: Sam the Eagle is definitely in it. Statler and Waldorf - the whole gang!

IESB: Can you tell us a little bit about the story, which way you are headed with the MUPPETS?

JS: All I can say is that we are trying to bring it back to the early '80s movies where it's not Muppets in the Sahara or Muppets Underwater. It's the Muppets getting back together to put on a show, to save the studio.

IESB: No Pigs in Space?

JS: I can't give that away.

IESB: And the hope is to stay 100% traditional with the Muppets right?

JS: Oh yeah, absolutely.

IESB: No CGI Muppets or some horseshit.

JS: No, no, no. Hopefully it will fall right in the pantheon of The Great Muppet Caper, Muppets Take Manhattan, Muppet Movie, you know, we're trying to make one of those.

IESB: You said you had written something for Charles Grodin?

JS: Yeah, a brief cameo. We'll see if he wants to do it. There are some great cameos in there.

You can read the rest of the interview here.

Well, I was already fairly confident this flick was in the right hands, but now I'm sure. Here's hoping Segel - who said he just turned in his first draft of the script to his corporate handlers - is able to follow through on this and get the movie he, and all the rest of us, really want.

A new trailer for "Valkyrie"

If I'm not mistaken (as I definitely sometimes am), Bryan Singer's "Valkyrie" was first set to hit theaters, well, right about now. For whatever reason, and hopefully none of them terribly bad, it's now been pushed back until at least Feb. 13, 2009.

Which has made it fairly easy to forget all about what should be a more-than-fairly-cool flick. Personally, I'm still eager to see it, 'cause I'm always amped for a good World War II flick (especially Spike Lee's "Miracle at St. Anna," set to drop Sept. 26), and one that features a reteaming of the "Usual Suspects" team of Singer and Christopher McQuarrie with a plot to assassinate Hitler is right up my alley.

Anyways, here's the latest trailer, which indeed looks pretty intriguing. Enjoy, and have a perfectly pleasant Tuesday. Peace out.