My Favorite Films of 2009

Inglourious Basterds - there are 2 scenes in this film that just may be 2 of the greatest scenes ever put to celluloid. The opening scene and the Tavern scene. Any of these 2 scenes alone would have made this my favorite movie of the year. These 2 scenes featuring just a handful of characters but have such intricately written dialogue, spoken perfectly by the cast. It's just so compelling and edge of your seat, you don't know what's going to happen, and you can't wait for it to happen. So well-written and the actors so perfect, this is truly Tarantino's masterpiece. And can I also say, a movie where Germans speak German and not English with poor German accents, how crazy is that?

(500) Days of Summer - it just gets better every time I see it. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, easily the best actor his age in Hollywood, the only other actor that comes close to his pure acting ability is Ryan Gosling. A romantic comedy from the point of view of the guy this time, Levitt portrays Tom, the everyguy, with Zooey Deschanel playing Summer, the everyguy's dreamgirl. Both are perfect in their roles and have to be for this movie to work. The narrator warns you at the beginning that "this is not a love story" and Tom believes in the whole "one true love" bit while Summer doesn't want anything serious. Remember what the narrator said? Well things don't end well.....or do they?

I was hooked from the beginning with simple text explaining:
The following is a work of fiction.
Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
Especially you Jenny Beckman.
Bitch.
And how can you say no to that musical sequence?

Up - Another year, another of the year's best movies. If the opening wordless married life segment didn't tug at your heart then you have no heart. What else can I say about Pixar? They just deliver every time, they aren't just on another level in terms of animated film, but filmmaking in general. Their focus on story ensures a great time every time you watch their films. They don't rely on cheap jokes or catchy pop songs. The very definition of a perfect family film, there's something in it for everyone.

The Hurt Locker - this movie about a Bomb squad technician works both as an action-thriller with tense bomb defusing segments and also as a condemnation of war. The opening quote that says that "war is a drug" is something that haunts modern times. It's a sad thing when a man feels the need to abandon his newborn baby boy to defuse bombs halfway across the world, not because he doesn't love his son, not because he needs to help others, but because it's an addiction. War is a drug in the worst way.