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Saturday, September 05, 2009

Almost done with the aughts: 10-6

10 25th Hour (Spike Lee, 2002)
9 Mamma Mia! (Phyllida Lloyd, 2008)
8 Into the Wild (Sean Penn, 2007)
7 Gosford Park (Robert Altman, 2001)
6 Changing Lanes (Roger Michell, 2002)

25th Hour has another cry-like-a-baby ending--well, at least I thought so, but I know some hate the way the film ends. I've never been a huge Ed(ward) Norton fan, but he's great, as is the supporting cast (Barry Pepper, PSH, etc.).

Mamma Mia!: My DH couldn't believe I had this in the top ten. To him, I offer this reply:

PIERCE SINGS!

I liked a review I read that compared Into the Wild to Candide. I can unbiasedly say that Emile is awesome, but there are stellar performances all around, except for that Twilight girl. Thankfully she's not in the film for very long.

I'm an Anglophile. How could I NOT include Gosford Park? And that cast? Oy vey. GP is definitely a film that needs to be seen more than once. Take that, those of you who claim it's confusing.

While I've commented on this blog how I feel that Crash is unfairly maligned, Changing Lanes is an even better look at race relations. It's Ben Affleck's finest hour, and the supporting cast is full of folks I dig--Toni Collette, Richard Jenkins, Dylan Baker, etc. (Good casts are a trend in this part of the list.)

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More commentary on Sirius 1st Wave:

Someone who programs this station must really like these two songs:


4 Comments:

Blogger Yum-Yum said...

Again, I had no idea you were a fan of 25th Hour.

I've only watched Mamma Mia! in small chunks so far. And I can safely that I love Amanda Seyfried and think Christine Baranski is peachy keen (she has killer gams).

DH? Dental Hygienist?

Twilight girl? Ouch. :D

I find her (Kristen Stewart) so-called thoughtful mopiness to be off-putting.

Candide was written by Voltaire.

Only saw Gosford park the one time, and I must say, I'm having serious trouble remembering it. Umbrellas and Clive Owen sitting on a bed with a book and a cigarette is all I can muster at the moment.

I know for sure what three of the top 5 are gonna be, but I'm having difficulty coming up with the other two.

I recall wanting the hat Mick Jones wears in that BAD video when I was a little person.

6:14 AM  
Blogger Yum-Yum said...

Did you see that retro '80s episode of Jeopardy on Monday? Trippy.

10:12 PM  
Blogger Karim Amir said...

Learning is fun. 25th Hour is one of those films I made my sister watch because it had such an impact on me.

d. and I had the same complaint about Twilight girl--every performance is the same. We just watched Adventureland, and it was the same-old, same-old, as you put it, "thoughtful mopiness."

Umbrellas. Hee. Yeah, it was set in England. There was rain. And Clive.

Watch Mamma Mia! in one big chunk, preferably with other people singing along.

I was in a college production of Voltaire's Candide.

DH and I did a double take last night when we put on Jeopardy! Wow. The audience's sound effects were very annoying.

6:29 PM  
Blogger Darius Whiteplume said...

I'm not the only one who remembers GLG?!? I saw them on Joan River's talk show in the '80s(?) and went out to get the album. I only have "Kiss of Life" these days, but still love their sound.

Candide was the inspiration for Sade's Justine character. Voltaire was the lover of one of his long dead relatives, whom Sade had an affinity for. I believe he appreciated Voltaire, but wanted to perv the story up a bit :-)

8:19 PM  

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