More 2009 movies

Falling REALLY behind here

Favorite movies of 2009...

6. STAR TREK

Speaking of straightforward blockbusters (which Red Cliff would be in America if it was in English), how about blockbusters that tap into a decades old mythology while remaining fresh and entertaining! With a use of time travel that did not seem like a cop out because of the lack of interesting ideas (Star Trek IV, with the whales), this movie provided a clean slate for a lot of potential adventures.

5. IGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

I did review this the first time I saw it because I thought exclamation points were enough to express the consistent joy that comes with seeing a Quentin Tarantino movie. Whether this is something I will not tire of upon a second viewing well the jury might be out on that. Some Tarantino haters or particular film snobs were just looking for a reason to nitpick this movie, while I believe that if we were going to be upset at the faults of his movies, we would have given up on him as soon as The Bride when from a coma to wiggling her big toe to paying for a plane ticket to Japan in a day. I will give credit to those who said the scenes of tension (after the holy-crap heart-pounding opening scene) repeated themselves and seem to have the same climax. The odd twist into a Nazi revenge fantasy and alternate history was also difficult to take in, but exciting. But the dialogue, the style, the shattering of expectations... all here and in full force. The only thing I can say is that maybe, just maybe, some of the films flaws will make it so I might not be eager to see a particular TYPE of Tarantino movie in the future if, for example, it was strictly about gangsters covering the same territory as Pulp Fiction. The familiar tropes are there to see and if front and center I might not want to see them again knowing that Quentin is much more able to confuse and confound and mesmerize by bending expectations and tackling different types of topics.

4. SILENT LIGHT

Talked a lot about this WIFF movie here. I still think it's a uniquely crafted movie that is beautiful to watch and awards patience with meditative transcendence. And call me culturally ignorant, but I still can't believe that there are Mexican Menonites. From Speedy Gonzales to Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite, thanks a lot popular culture for making me think of our Southern neighbors as a diverse but ultimately non-Plaudeitsch speaking Hispanic country.