2009: At the Movies

I'm a sucker for YouTube videos that review the year in film. This one wraps up 2007 set to "Falling Slowly" from Once, and this one reviews 2008 to "Hoppipolla" by Sigur Ros from the "Slumdog Millionaire" trailer. Now, a new video examines cinema in 2009 to Arcade Fire's "Wake Up" from the "Where the Wild Things Are" trailer.

The way these videos review some of cinema's greatest moments from the year in the span of a few minutes, set to such beautiful songs, gives me a swell of pride about film. It reminds me why I love film so much, why I find it so magical. In this case I think the music and images are worth a thousand words, so check out "2009: At the Movies" below.

Review: New York, I Love You

Though I’ve never seen “Paris, Je T’aime,” an anthology of French short films that focuses on finding love and connection in Paris, I’d heard such good things about it that I was excited to see an American version, “New York, I Love You.” While some of the vignettes were moving and beautiful, others missed the mark.

“New York, I Love You” features 11 short films, each helmed by a different director, about relationships that form among people living the city’s five boroughs. Some are sexual and others are romantic. Some are about parents and children and others are about complete strangers. Some are cute, some are haunting, some are heartwarming and some are a bit depressing.

Review: Invictus

Any time the names Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman are attached to a movie, more often than not some sort of Oscar buzz will emerge from it. "Invictus" is no exception, even if the story is unusually optimistic for an Eastwood film.

"Invictus" tells the story of how in his first term as president of South Africa, Nelson Mandela (Freeman) turned to an unlikely source to unite the country - the Springboks South African national rugby team. After spending 27 years in prison for his anti-apartheid activism, Mandela is elected president in South Africa's first fully representative election. South Africa remains racially divided, and Mandela desperately wants to find some way to reconcile the country following apartheid.

At a Springboks rugby match, Mandela notices that the white South Africans are cheering for the Springboks while the black South Africans are cheering for the opposing team. It dawns on him that if he can get the whole country to unite in supporting the Springboks for the 1995 Rugby World Cup, it may drive the country to be united permanently.

He communicates his plan to Springboks captain Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon), and as the team works harder than ever to reach the World Cup, together Mandela and Pienaar attempt to unite South Africa through the power of sport.

The title refers to a poem by William Ernest Henley that Mandela uses as inspiration and references several times throughout the film.

"Invictus" succeeds on many levels, first and foremost in its directing. Eastwood directs the film beautifully, capturing the initial turmoil and rising spirit of South Africa and the blood, sweat and tears the rugby team endures to unite the country with Mandela's help.

Freeman gives a passionate performance as Mandela, cementing his deserved reputation as one of the best actors around. Damon, who I've always thought is very underrated, also gives a great performance as Francois, conveying his seamless transition from a cynic to a caring and proud South African. Michael Stevens and Eastwood's son Kyle also provide a beautiful score.

My only complaint is that the film tends to drag a little in places, but the remarkable story is more than enough to make up for it. It's riveting enough to bring tears of joy to the eyes of sports fans and non-sports fans alike. Overall, "Invictus" is an inspiring story that everyone should make an effort to see. A-

Best movies of the decade

5. “Almost Famous” (2000): Cameron Crowe’s coming-of-age story about a teenage freelance reporter for Rolling Stone is a brilliant love letter to rock ‘n’ roll of the 1970s, in all its untamed glory. Featuring a killer soundtrack and one of the best movie scenes involving music to date (“Tiny Dancer”), one can feel Crowe’s own love of music reverberating right off the screen.



4. “The Departed” (2006): Martin Scorsese finally won an Oscar for his intricate tale of undercover cops, the Irish mob and the blurred lines between good and evil. Featuring an outstanding ensemble cast led by Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg, Scorsese’s complicated morality tale never slows down and is always surprising, even after multiple viewings.



3. “Once” (2007): Deeply moving in its subtle storytelling and performances, “Once” is everything a great indie should be. This tiny $160,000 Irish import depicts an unnamed man and woman connecting through their love of music, proving more powerful than any big-budget production number. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova’s magnetic screen chemistry and phenomenal Oscar-winning music make “Once” an instant indie classic.



2. “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004): Visually and emotionally beautiful, Charlie Kaufman’s best script to date tells the story of love outlasting memory. Set against the sci-fi backdrop of memory erasing procedures, the rocky relationship between Joel (Jim Carrey) and Clementine (Kate Winslet) unfolds in unexpected ways that will resonate with audiences long after the credits stop rolling.



1. “The Dark Knight” (2008): Christopher Nolan’s epic sequel to “Batman Begins” completely changed the face of comic book movies. Rather than just another effects-driven blockbuster, Nolan’s adaptation is haunting, complex and deeply psychological. The flawed heroes of Nolan’s Batman universe make the story feel much more raw than other comic book flicks, and Heath Ledger’s Joker, rooted in anarchic chaos, is perhaps the decade’s most iconic performance.



Honorable mentions: “WALL-E” (2008), “Children of Men” (2006), “Pan’s Labyrinth” (2006), “No Country for Old Men” (2007), “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” (2005), "Lord of the Rings" (2001-2003), "Memento" (2000), "Donnie Darko" (2001), "The Bourne Ultimatum" (2007), "Slumdog Millionaire" (2008)

Review: Brothers

If you've seen the trailers for the ensemble drama "Brothers," you probably think it's just another tired, melodramatic love triangle story. But this movie is the perfect example of why you shouldn't always judge a film by its trailer.

"Brothers" actually has very little to do with the love triangle aspect that dominates the trailer, but rather explores the tragic effect war can have on families, and how that effect doesn't always go away after the soldier returns home.

Tobey Maguire plays Sam Cahill, a marine who is happily married to his high school sweetheart, Grace (Natalie Portman). Sam has always been a do-gooder and is the favorite son of his father (Sam Shepard), an alcoholic and retired military man. As Sam deploys to Afghanistan, his younger brother Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal) is released from jail, where he did time for robbing a bank.

Not long after Sam deploys, two soldiers arrive at Grace's house telling her Sam is dead following a helicopter crash. Feeling lost and alone and unsure of how to raise her two young daughters on her own, Grace develops a friendship with Tommy, who has been hit hard by Sam's death. He changes his bad boy ways and takes it upon himself to care for Grace and the girls, fixing up their house and acting as a father figure.

But, as is revealed in the trailer, Sam actually isn't dead. He and another marine made it out of the crash alive but were taken prisoner. As his family copes with his supposed death at home, the audience sees Sam tortured as a prisoner of war. In order to see his family again he is forced to make an impossible choice, one that haunts him long after he returns home.

Suffering from intense post traumatic stress disorder, Sam becomes increasingly paranoid and is convinced his wife and brother's friendship is actually something more. Destroyed by the trauma of war, Sam clearly isn't the man he once was. His family desperately tries to get him to tell them what happened in Afghanistan, hoping to help him heal as the family unravels around him.

Yes, there is an obvious attraction between Grace and Tommy, and as is shown in the trailer, they do kiss once, though the kiss is mostly out of their shared grief about losing Sam. Sam is paranoid their relationship runs deeper, but it's one of many things Sam is paranoid about as a result of the PTSD.

The studio likely felt people wouldn't want to see a deep and harrowing film about the emotional ramifications of war, so it was marketed as being focused almost entirely on the love triangle angle. But "Brothers" is actually a gripping story featuring outstanding performances from its three leads.

I was most surprised by Maguire, who was unimpressive in his last major role in "Spider-Man 3." In "Brothers," he achieves a performance with much more depth than I've seen from him previously. You can see the pure anguish in his eyes when he is being tortured in Afghanistan and you can feel the mental suffering he feels after he returns home and is traumatized by his experiences during the war. When placed in the hands of director Jim Sheridan, Maguire's acting is at its best.

Bailee Madison and Taylor Geare are also fantastic as Sam and Grace's daughters, desperately wanting their father back but afraid of the tormented man he's become.

"Brothers" isn't easy to watch, but I think exploring PTSD in soldiers and its effects on their families is an important issue to capture on film, and Sheridan and his cast achieve it beautifully. Rather than judging "Brothers" by its trailer, I would definitely recommend giving it a chance. B+