Best of: Movies

If there is blame to be had by posting a "best of movies '07", in Febuary '08, let that blame fall on Charlottesville, a small hamlet in central Virginia, not known for its vast selection of art-house movies. That, and a real job that pays:


1. There Will Be Blood: I’ve already written about why this is the best movie of the year (here), but I would like to take this moment to mention something I forgot to talk about in my review by stating that it takes nothing from the greatness of Anderson’s film to give credit where credit is due: namely the fact that the first half-hour of Anderson’s masterpiece owes a lot to Mathew Barney’s Cremaster Cycle—specifically Cremaster Cycle 3 and that film’s spotlight on the Masonic quest of The Apprentice. Barney’s obsession with work, material, the earth, the body and physical labor—or his “worship through works and labor” in solitary wish-fulfillment removed from religion (if not its own type) and demagoguery—is all over Anderson’s film. It seems that, for the opening portion of the film, much inspiration has derived from Barney, including Johnny Greenwood’s eerie score. This isn’t meant as a criticism as much as it is meant to acknowledge the relationship between art and craft, because once Day-Lewis sits down with his adopted son, H.W., and begins to sell himself as “an oil-man”, Anderson sends Plainview on his own fiercely independent journey—into the muck of human interaction, rather than the euphoria resulting from transcendent work (the Empire State Building in The Cremaster cycle). Art has always laid the groundwork for culture’s advancement (from the Renaissance, to Modernism, to Post-Modernism), regardless of how some societies (especially American) would claim that it is an interest of the elites and intellectuals—in short, only for those who can afford it. It should be acknowledged that There Will Be Blood is a perfect example of how when art lays the groundwork it can provide a compelling blueprint for master-craftsmen (like Anderson) to share with the common man (your average moviegoer), at affordable prices, those things they might not know about themselves.

2. No Country For Old Men: Feel free to read my review of the book (here), or my thoughts on the narrative discrepancies between this book and McCarthy’s subsequent Pulitzer Prize winner The Road (here). For this post, I would simply like to applaud the Cohen brother’s for making their best film in a decade. Kudos to the brother’s for finding the black humor in McCarthy’s prose that those of us who read the book could not see (for it was too bleak). Bravo, Javier Bardem, for so completely inhabiting Anton Chigurh that I couldn’t help but sit in fear throughout the movie and hope that he, Chigurh, wouldn’t notice me deep in the dark theater spying on him and his work, thus making me a priority. A round of applause for Tommy Lee Jones who, at the end of the film, delivers one of the more emotionally wrenching monologues in recent film. Finally, let us not forget to give major props for Brad from Goonies—I mean Josh Brolin—who has been lights-out this year (stealing the show in Grindhouse, and being one of the only actors in film, specifically American Gangster, to effectively intimidate Russell Crowe), and who nails the resolute but hapless Llewelyn Moss.

3. Zodiac: Am I crazy or has this been a forgotten film during awards season? It may not be David Fincher’s neatest film (that would be Fight Club), but it may be his best. For almost three hours Fincher’s ability to multi-task during a scene is on full display: effectively directing the slightly boring Jake Gyllenhal, standing back and letting Robert Downey Jr. do his thing, and, at the same time, knowing when to center the camera on Mark Ruffalo, a criminally underappreciated actor (one wonders if he sweated more and had bigger chest muscles, would he not be a dead ringer for early Brando?). A film with an ending as ambiguous and as powerful as any of the above mentioned films.

4. Ratatouille: If you feel like it, read my extended review here. Pixar has never made a bad movie, and Ratatouille is one of its best—right up there with The Incredibles, which was, oddly enough, also a Brad Bird film. As anyone who has sat through food-critic Anton (what is it with this name this year?) Ego’s wonderful soliloquy about art and food and criticism can attest, Brad Bird isn’t simply an animating marvel, he is an Oscar worthy screenwriter. You say there are rats in the kitchen? C'est parfait avec moi! (note: I take no responsibility for the accuracy of internet translations.)

5. Juno/Superbad: I wrote about Superbad earlier this summer (here), but haven’t gotten around to saying much about Juno. So, in the “Best of” tradition (of which there is none), let’s simply look at these films as the entertaining bookends on the teen-sex comedy/drama genre they are. Hopefully Hollywood recognizes the cross-marketing potential here and continues to give us well acted films with an emotional core that might attempt to make Juno a little more Seth, and Seth a little more Juno. Michael Cera and Ellen Page are my new Hollywood power couple. Cera will, in no time, be staring in Groundhog Day 2, and Miss Page seems clearly destined for a stardom of almost Roberts-like magnitude as she proceeds to, if not grow (she is 20), put on a few more pounds of age.

Best of: TV

Since I don’t have cable, the following is a list of the best TV shows I watched (on DVD) all year (Netflix is awesome):

1. The Wire (Season 3&4): While not being as literary as The Sopranos, or as beautiful as Deadwood, The Wire is, without a doubt, THE MOST IMPORTANT SHOW IN THE HISTORY OF TELEVISION. Much like Paul Thomas Anderson did this year with There Will Be Blood (more on that later), David Simon (with help from Ed Burns, Dennis Lehane, George Pelacanos, and Richard Price) has, with divine insight, tapped into what it really means to be American and created a saga that makes The Godfather films look like a high school prepatory course on the American Dream (that’s right, I said it!). And, while The Godfather looks decadent and dark on a theater or widescreen TV, Simon’s show has found an equal home within the confines or 4:3 TV (seriously, I can’t get the show, no matter how bad I want to, to fit the widescreen setting on my TV—because they film it that way). Since, with a gun to my head, I couldn’t point to a single character on this epic show and say, “that dude/ette is what The Wire is about”, I’ll instead take this as an opportunity to list my favorite characters in no particular order (single names only please): Bunk, McNulty, Bubbles, Kima, Lester, Prez, Rawls, Snoop, Avon, DL, Bodie, Marlo, Daniels, Carcetti, Carver, Hurk, Wee-bey, Bunny, Randy, Michael, Sobotka, The Greek, Cutty, Cheese, Omar, Prop Joe, Stringer Bell and Brother Mouzone (okay two names).



2. Lost (Season 3): The Wire may have been the best show on television, but Lost is what brings me to Best Buy at 9 AM on new release Tuesday. The only show that successfully manages to provide more questions than answers—and I don’t care! Jack and Locke are iconic television characters, but let us not forget the fantastic Josh Holloway, whose “Sawyer” is currently redefining the anti-hero on non-premium cable. A show with genuine moments of drama and wit. Sure the season finale should be applauded for its’ surprise twist (for people who didn’t know beforehand—sadly not me, I can’t abide a surprise on this show, I have to know what is happening even if I’m not watching it. Thank you EW!), but what should be praised instead is the creative the nerve it took to make that leap in order to open up the show for the next few seasons. Coolest line: Sawyer to Mr. Friendly (in the season finale), “That’s for the kid.” If you saw it you know what I’m talking about. Awesome.



3. Battlestar Galactica (all of it so far): Take the politics of The Wire and mix it with the sci-fi mystery of Lost, and you have Battlestar Galactica. Props to Starbuck for being the strongest female on TV, and let us heap praise on the dynamic duo of Admiral Adama and President Roslin, not to mention the ever expanding mystery of the great Cylon “plan”, and you have something you can’t take you’re eyes off of. At one point during the mid-season finale of Season 2, when Helo and Chief Tyrol are racing through The Razor, I actually yelled at the television. Now that’s good TV.



4. The Office (Season 2&3): Let us hope that the movies never take Steve Carrell away from this show. I never thought Carrell would be able to outdo Ricky Gervais, but he has made Michael Scott his own kind of awkward beast. Bravo to a show that has never been as painfully awkward as its’ British counterpart, but has found its’ sweet center by regularly going beyond the whole Jim and Pam thing (example: Michael’s presence at Pam’s art show—one of Carrell’s finest bits of acting).



5. The Sopranos (Season 6, Part 2): For being one of the best things on TV and ending strong. By the way: Tony dies. Did you catch that?

Honorable Mention (in no particular order): Angel (all of it), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (all of it), My Name is Earl (season 1), Arrested Development (season 1 & 2), 30 Rock (season 1), Rome (season 1)

Best of: Reads

What follows are the best books/articles/reviews I’ve read all year:

1. Under the Banner of Heaven by John Krakauer: One of the more mind-boggling and terrifying books I read all year. A must read for anyone obsessed with the blotchy path of religious/political history between the crucifixion, Constantine’s dream, and ascension of Charlemagne. If at any time you’ve wondered how a poor Jewish carpenter, with a few words and a glorious death, could have taken over the world, might I suggest looking no further than Salt Lake City, Utah, a place where history is being gathered and vaulted by the LDS. That Joseph Smith lived during the modern age (the fact that there are book reviews of the Book of Mormon blew my mind) and thrived during the Second Great Awakening, having established one of the fastest growing religions, is, on the one hand, perfectly American—which is to say that Joseph Smith and Brigam Young’s (one of the true criminals of American history) legacy has been one of violence and subjugation during the age of manifest destiny should be a given. That Mormonism's more fundamentalist aspects still exists and are growing should be terrifying (seriously, see if you feel safe driving through Colorado City). Anyone who looks at Mitt Romney and is perplexed at how one could have risen so high so fast, for essentially tailoring his message (a nice way of saying contradicting himself) to an exceedingly desperate audience (republican voters in the wake of W. Bush), need look no further than his religious idol Joseph Smith: a first rate, handsome, showman, who always seemed to have the “perfect story”, not to mention a peep stone and a black hat that gave him all the answers.

2. All The Shah’s Men by Stephen Kinzer: No other book I’ve read this year better illustrated the way in which American arrogance and small mindedness has damaged the Middle East. After reading this book, it was not hard to fathom the idea that had America stood with Mohammed Mosedegh, rather than orchestrating his downfall (Kermit Roosevelt making James Bond look like a pussy), a progressive Middle East might not have seemed like such a pipe dream. It also goes a long way towards illustrating America’s willingness to forego its’ integrity and principles for the sake of economic supremacy. Not to mention those fucking British…

3. His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman: After a good week spent raging against the last Harry Potter, I needed my pallet cleansed. I remembered a friend mentioning Pullman’s books as a better example of young adult fiction. Boy was he right! Let me go on record as saying Pullman’s canny and vicious Lyra Belacqua could kick Harry Potter’s pouting ass, and that Will Parry could make mincemeat of Ron and Hermione (that is assuming he could handle Hermione’s dangerous EXCLAMATIONS!!!). A saga in which the young heroes actually aged, while, with great vigor, rigorously dissecting the confusing morality and complexity of the adult world. A believable relationship between two budding adults, no short cuts, no neat tidy thirteenth-hour revelations—oh, and two words: Gay Angels… (Note: Avoid the movie adaptation at all costs!)

4. Into Thin Air by John Krakauer: Everything I ever wanted to know about Mt. Everest and an effective missive about why I should never go. Adventure writing at its peak (heh, heh…)

5. “Disaster Capitalism” by Namoi Klein (Harper’s Magazine): If reading this doesn’t put you into an existential funk, then might I suggest her book The Shock Doctrine. Word of advice: Do not read said book with a loaded gun in the house. You may not survive.

Honerable Mention (in no particular order): The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright, Lost Girls by Alan Moore, Y the Last Man by Brian K. Vaughn and Pia Guerra, 100 Bullets by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso, The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, “Clueless into Kabul” by Michael Scheuer (The American Interest), “Making Enemies” by Anna Simons (The American Interest), “The Vacationers” by Colin Mort (Virginia Quarterly Review), “Utopianism Redux”: a review of Leszek Kolakowski’s Main Currents of Marxism by John Gray (The American Interest), “Their Men in Washington” by Ken Silverstine (Harper’s Magazine), “Literary Entrails” by Cynthia Ozick (Harper’s Magazine), “Moby-Duck” by Donovan Hohn (Harper’s Magazine), “The Madness of Jewcentricity” by Adam Garfinkle (The American Interest), “Shepherdess by Dan Chaon (Virginia Quarterly Review), The Headmaster Ritual by Taylor Antrim.

Best of: Music

The top five albums I bought in 2007:


1. Boxer by The National: A late edition to my music collection, but something that has dominated my headphones more than any other record all year. The first two-thirds are as perfect as anything I’ve heard in a long time. And while the last quarter of the album begins to fray around the edges, it still recalls Nick Cave-esque musings circa The Boatman’s Call—not necessarily a bad thing. And, although comparisons to Cave and Cohen are apt, when they’re really rocking, lead vocalist Matt Berninger sounds more like an older, grimmer, Richard Butler (Psychedelic Furs), only without the all the psychedelic. Two songs to hear: Seriously, the first seven are required…but if I had to pick two: “Mistaken for Strangers” and “Brainy”



2. Because of the Times by Kings of Leon: This Nashville Band of preacher boys are the closest contemporary thing to Lynyrd Skynyrd—you know, if Lynyrd Skynyrd didn’t, like, you know… suck. There’s music out there that takes me back to a time (Michael Jackson, Nirvana, Huey Lewis, etc.), but it’s not often an album takes me to a place: Knoxville, Northshore Drive and Kingston Pike, my mom’s 300Z—good times. Two songs to hear: “Black Thumbnail” and “Arizona”


3. Datarock by Datarock: See my review here. The exact opposite of The National’s Boxer, which pretty much makes it the awesomnest party disk of the year. Two songs to hear: “See What I Care” and “Laurie”

4. Neon Bible by Arcade Fire: From the collapsed ashes: More band members! Even better music! The album Bruce Springsteen would have made if he were younger and hipper. Two songs to hear: “Antichrist Television Blues” and “No Cars Go”

5. The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter by Josh Ritter: See my review here. One of the few white male singer-songwriters who values metaphors rooted in concrete imagery without neglecting a good hook, as opposed to the usual solipsistic wank-offs. Why some of these songs haven’t blown up on the radio, I have no idea. Two songs to hear: “Open Doors” and “To the Dogs or Whoever”


Honorable Mention (in no particular order): Arular by M.I.A., Because of You by Ne-Yo, Boys and Girls in America by The Hold Steady, Magic by Bruce Springsteen, Beauty & Crime by Suzanne Vega, Shock Value by Timbaland, The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance, Epiphany by T-Pain