Year in Review – Best Films of 2009

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I saw fewer new movies this year than in any other since I started putting together my top ten lists. That’s not bad news. I just cut out a lot of… well… crap. No, I didn’t see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and no, I didn’t see Sherlock Holmes. I love movies, but what’s the point in watching all the bad when there’s so much good out there. (That doesn’t explain how I ended up seeing Nine, though. Ugh.)

The good, in fact, was so good that I could have chosen any one of the 11 pictures on my top 10 list to be the best movie of the year. That’s a testament to the quality of all the pictures listed below. All the films on my list, from Tarantino, Reitman, the Coen brothers, Bigelow and more, may very well be the best work these directors have ever done. But when I rewatched Ramin Bahrani’s Goodbye Solo and was more moved than I was the first time around, I knew that it was the best film of the year.

Without further ado, here are my best films of 2009:

1. Goodbye Solo (dir. Ramin Bahrani)
   No other American director focuses his or her lens on the world that Barhrani does. In doing so, Bahrani tells a story about the human experience that can shift paradigms. Quiet and understated, but with more power in any given scene than any other film this year, Goodbye Solo is a genuine masterpiece.
2. A Serious Man (dirs. Ethan & Joel Coen)
   As brilliantly made as any other Coen film, but with added personal significance for the filmmakers. A Serious Man makes the Coens’ previous work seem so much clearer and, yes, more important.
3. Inglourious Basterds (dir. Quentin Tarantino)
   Tarantino defies history and in doing so shows the power of the medium. Who knew Tarantino had this, his best film since Pulp Fiction and maybe ever, in him?
4. Summer Hours (dir. Olivier Assayas)
   This French drama about our relationships with and through the objects around us is mesmerizing. Skillfully and delicately pieced together from script to screen.
5. The Hurt Locker (dir. Kathryn Bigelow)
   When it comes to pure, visceral filmmaking, no other film this year has anything on The Hurt Locker.
6. Up in the Air (dir. Jason Reitman)
   Reitman’s film about white-collar unemployment and personal isolation, isn’t at the top of my list, but I can’t think of any other film that defines the decade like Reitman’s third feature.
7. Up (dir. Pete Docter)
   Part three in Pixar’s trifecta of greatness, following Ratatouille (2007) and WALL-E (2008)
8. Sin Nombre (dir. Cary Joji Fukunaga)
   A riveting feature debut, Sin Nombre could have been a simple border-crossing drama, but instead evolves something grander. It’s a thriller, a gangster film, and a tragic love story all in one. It’s epic in just 96  minutes. Can’t wait to see what else Fukunaga has in store for us.
9. Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire (dir. Lee Daniels)
   If nothing else, Precious contains two of the most powerful performances you’ll see this or any other year courtesy of Gabourey Sidibe and Mo’Nique.
10. Alexander the Last (dir. Joe Swanberg) & Humpday (dir. Lynn Shelton)
    Mark it down: 2009 was the year mumblecore came of age. While I didn’t get a chance to see Andrew Bujalski’s Beeswax, the two films listed here turned a self-indulgent film movement into a pointed storytelling powerhouse. This is what all the earlier viewers were waiting for.

Honorable Mentions
Sugar (dirs. Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck) | Avatar (dir. James Cameron) | Star Trek (dir. J.J. Abrams)

Best Actor – George Clooney, Up in the Air
Best Actress – Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Best Supporting Actor – Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
Best Supporting Actress – Mo’Nique, Precious

Quote of the Year – “That’s right, things aren’t so bad. Look at the parking lot, Larry. Just look at that parking lot.”- Rabbi Scott, A Serious Man.