Hey surf slurpers, Harry here with Quint's rundowns of the year that was... He's got some peculiar notions and my list is coming very soon. And believe it or not, I'm choosing 10 films - no runner ups - no expanded list, just the 10 I'm choosing from a very exceptional and exciting year of film! Here ya go...
Ahoy there... Quint here with my little list to add to the bunch you've already read. I usually don't go in for this stuff. In fact this'll be my first published Top 10 list. That damn peer pressure got the better of me, so I'll throw out my personal favorite films of the year.
I'm not going much into honorable mentions, worst films (COUNTRY BEARS anyone?) or 4 separate runners up lists. That's a bit overkill for me, but I will give you guys two separate lists. One, the best overall films and two, my favorite fun movies. My personal tastes in film tend to favor films that I can rewatch a thousand times over, but I also recognize great cinema when I see it. The best overall are the movies I found I loved this year, but can feel safe in recommending to even the most serious filmgoer. The top 10 fun films are for me and me alone. If you agree with any on the favorites list, then great, but I don't expect anyone else to share my a lot of my picks in that category.
The reason you might see some flicks missing, like THE HOURS or THE PIANIST is because I haven't seen 'em yet. I'm looking forward to them and fully plan on watching them soon, but have not yet. Also, SPIRITED AWAY would be on this list, but I've only seen 2/3s of the film as I got called out of the theatre while watching it while in LA to see CABIN FEVER. The 2/3s that I saw would rank in my Top 10 Overall, but I can't in good conscience list a movie I haven't seen all of.
Anyway, enough of my blubbering and shit. Time to get on with it.
TOP 10 OVERALL FILMS OF 2002 (In order from 1-10)
1. LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS - D'uh. LORD OF THE RINGS is the savior for us geeks, left confused and frightened by what happened to our beloved STAR WARS series. The Gollum work alone in this film sets it above everything else I've seen this year.
2. SIGNS - I don't make any apologies for my love of M. Night Shyamalan's work. THE SIXTH SENSE was my favorite movie of '99, UNBREAKABLE kicked my ass hard and now he hits another one outta the park with SIGNS. The best suspense captured in a film this whole year, plus James Newton Howard's score would make Bernard Herrmann proud.
3. PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE - I'm a romantic, what can I say? PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE is a movie I will carry with me for a very long time. The final third of the movie makes my heart smile just thinking about it.
4. CHICAGO - I'm a sucker for a good musical and CHICAGO is most definitely a perfect fit in that category. Fun, smart, hilarious, catchy... I love it. Believe me, no one's more surprised than I am that a movie with Richard Gere in it is in my Top 5 of the year! The soundtrack CD will be well used, that's for sure. Might even give my copy of the MOULIN ROUGE soundtrack a run for most often played.
5. LILO & STITCH - Best traditional animated movie since THE IRON GIANT and the best thing Disney has put out since THE LION KING. I was one of the first to shout out praises to the film when I saw it a month early and I still feel exactly the same way about it. Perfect family fare.
6. ADAPTATION - Continuing the brilliant legacy of Charlie Kaufman and Spike Jonze's collaboration. Extremely entertaining, very moving and completely involving in every way. It shifts gears so dramatically in its third act that it threw a lot of people and jarred me a bit, but ultimately the payoff is worth the jarring. Nicholas Cage at his very best x2.
7. ROAD TO PERDITION - Great old school throwback. Reminds me a bit of MILLER'S CROSSING, but a little less fun. Jude Law is amazing in the film and after seeing what the filmmakers did to his appearance there I will never see a better candidate for Sirius Black, though I can't complain about Gary Oldman. Tom Hanks is at his best. If it were a little less obviously narrated, it'd be higher up on my list, but I'm a big fan of this film.
8. THE RULES OF ATTRACTION - I have a feeling that much like THE BIG LEBOWSKI and FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, Roger Avary's twisted look at college life will find it's audience years after its release on DVD and video. I was lucky enough to have visited this set (completely out of my own pocket, mind you) for a couple of days and the awesome vibe I felt on that set did indeed get captured on film. This movie is a little too much for most people, but it's right up my alley.
9. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN - I loved the book and I love the movie. Most definitely Spielberg's most assured film in quite a while. MINORITY REPORT was fun and had some great design to it, but the Spielberg movie I'll walk away with this year is CATCH ME IF YOU CAN. Besides, MINORITY REPORT didn't Christopher Walken at his charming best! A light, but very effecting cat and mouse flick.
10. 8 MILE - If you had told me last year that I would even consider putting a movie about and starring Eminem in my Top 10 of the year list I wouldn't have believed a damn thing outta yer lyin' mouth. Gritty, emotional and engaging. Just want I want from Curtis Hansen. He made a movie about a real person, not a rapper. Damn good movie.
Now for the more fun list...
TOP TEN FUN MOVIES THAT PROBABLY ONLY QUINT COULD COME UP WITH! (In reverse order for dramatic purposes!)
10. SPUN - Crazy-assed drug flick starring John Leguizamo, Jason Schwartzman, Mena Suvari, Patrick Fugit and Mickey Rourke that I saw at the CineVegas Film Festival last summer. Weird, crazy, but never boring. The Pussy speech Mickey Rourke gives in the porno shop is one of the classic scenes of hilarity in cinema history. Most of you folks will probably be getting this film this year.
9. HAPPINESS OF THE KATAKURIS - I know, I know... Technically this is a 2001 movie, but I saw it halfway into 2002 and it didn't really get a US theatrical release, so for me it counts. More wackiness from one of my favorite filmmakers working today, Takashi Miike. I fell in love with his work when I stumbled upon his brilliant ICHI THE KILLER at the Vancouver International Film Festival back in October of 2001 and KATAKURIS doesn't disappoint. A remake of THE QUIET FAMILY, but as a musical comedy. God bless you, Miike! Best claymation used in a feature this year, that's for damn sure.
8. THE TRANSPORTER - Unapologetically fun actioneer starring Jason Stratham as a huge badass. Pure entertainment, great fun. A wild, fun ride. One that will undoubtedly watched over and over by drunken college students at universities across the US.
7. POOLHALL JUNKIES - Christopher Walken indie flick that blew me away at the CineVegas Film Festival. What a blast of a movie about a young pool hustler (Mars Callahan) on a quest to take down the dude who trained him as a child, but ultimately sold him up the river (Chazz Palminteri). Chris Walken is a pure joy in this flick as a rich guy who financially backs Callahan. Also one of Rod Steiger's last movies. Top shelf movie. Very entertaining, but a great movie on top of that. I heard some rumors of IFC releasing this film, but haven't heard of anything since. IMDb says Samuel Goldwyn Films is distributing the movie... They got a pretty wide release with THE CRIMES OF FATHER AMARO, hopefully they'll do POOLHALL JUNKIES justice.
6. UNDERCOVER BROTHER - Fun, hip, full of funk. For any fan of Blaxploitation flicks, this film is a must. Where else are you going to get Billy Dee Williams pimping Fried Chicken and "Nappy Meals?" Helluva lot of fun.
5. BLADE 2 - What a blast of a movie! Some of the CG is obvious, but not any less affective. Wesley Snipes is a badass through and through, though it is Ron Perlman who steals this movie. Can't wait to see what Guillermo del Toro and Ron Perlman give us with HELLBOY. I've watched this movie at least 15 times since it was released in theatres. It's a very easy movie to throw on and have fun with. A family favorite.
4. CABIN FEVER - Most of you folks will see this in the upcoming months. Eli Roth busts out on the scene with this great throwback horror flick that turns the gore up to 11. Great gore, great fun. It's aces for any hardcore '80s horror fan.
3. BUBBA HO-TEP - I've been the number one supporter of this film from day one. I avoided reviewing the movie as I was super close to the production, having spent 2 weeks onset and being good friends with director Don Coscarelli, but I couldn't come up with a list of my favorite movies of the year and not include BUBBA HO-TEP. It's still in limbo, looking for distribution. It doesn't surprise me as its premise is a bit offcenter, but it does surprise me that a studio like LION'S GATE or NEW LINE can't see how easy it would be to market as a fun, whacky comedy. Sell the camp and the people will be surprised when they find detailed characters and thought out story. I don't know when most of you people will get to see it, but I do know there is a screening being held at the Egyptian Theatre that'll be attended by Don Coscarelli, Bruce Campbell and myself at the end of February. More details coming soon!
2. DOG SOLDIERS - Easily one of my favorite horror movies in the last few years. What can I say? I'm a sucker for werewolves and this movie plays out equal parts ALIENS and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD with a touch of TRAINSPOTTING thrown in for good measure. No CGI, sweet lookin' werewolves, great cast. For those that only saw it on the Sci-Fi Channel and thought it was so-so, give the R-rated cut a look. It's out on DVD, go get you some!
1. RUN RONNIE RUN - The long awaited Mr. Show flick that looks like it'll be forever viewed on bootlegs of bootlegs of bootlegs on college campus around the country due to New Line getting cold feet and some trouble between director Troy Miller and David Cross and Bob Odenkirk. Whatever the behind the scenes bullshit is, I still love the movie. Next to UNDERCOVER BROTHER it is the funniest flick I saw last year. It's definitely the most quoted flick of the year between me and my friends. Jack Black's musical number in the film is classic, the Two Times One Minus One music video is rib-bruising and Chow-Chow and his special shoes nearly put me into a laughter induced coma. Shame it'll be a lost movie. Here's hoping something happens and we at least get super-packed DVD.
There you have it, squirts. There's my list. I have a hundred more flicks I really dug, like SOLARIS, ABOUT SCHMIDT, FRIDA, CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND, FEMME FATALE, ONE HOUR PHOTO (wanna visit director Mark Romanek's cool-ass personal webpage? CLICK HERE!), BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE, AUTO FOCUS, THE RING, SALTON SEA, WELCOME TO COLLINWOOD, G, THE CAT'S MEOW and RED DRAGON, but for some reason or another they didn't make either list.
I'll be back with some coolness in the near future, like my long awaited set report of the time I spent on Robert Altman's THE COMPANY set in Chicago. 'Til that day, this is Quint bidding you all a fond farewell and adieu.
-Quint
