Top 10 Movies 2006

Introduction

This was not the strongest year at the movies. But I think the top two movies on the list were important and powerful.  I hope you enjoy the list and find something you enjoy. 

Top 10 Movies 2006

#10 The Pursuit of Happyness  PG-13

This is the story of one man’s struggle to provide for his family in the face of poverty and discrimination.  It is compelling and worth seeing.  I thought it was a good movie, but not a great movie.  However, I thought Will Smith’s acting was great.  He captured a very real portrait of a person struggling to get by with all of the stresses that accompany a life not blessed with privilege.  He was multi-dimensional and moving.  If you haven’t seen it, it is worth watching. 

#9 Babel  R

This movie captures the universality of the human experience with three strong interlocking storylines.  It can get a little much in places, but overall, it is an ambitious movie with moving dramatic performances.

#8 Dreamgirls  PG-13

I enjoyed this musical quite a bit.  The movie was really fantastic.  I liked Jennifer Hudson and she was the story of the year winning the Oscar for her first movie.  Beyonce was also very good.  And I loved Eddie Murphy as Jimmy.  His performance alone was worth watching the movie. 

#7 Thank You For Smoking  R  

This is a witty, biting, satire about the lobbying industry in Washington.  Aaron Eckhart is very funny in this role and the script is clever and sharp.  The rights for the book on which it was based were purchased in the early nineties and it sat on the shelf for almost 15 years.  It was adapted for the screen and directed by Jason Reitman who does it proud.  

#6 Talledega Nights – The Ballad of Ricky Bobby  PG-13

This movie is laugh out loud funny!  This was the only movie all year I saw twice and both times I was rolling on the ground.  It is the most quotable movie to come out since Fletch.  Will Ferrell plays Ricky Bobby a NASCAR driver who hits the top then comes tumbling down after a French driver (Sacha Baron Cohen) steals the spotlight.  The dialogue between Ferrell and Baron Cohen is hysterical.  For weeks, Krista wondered about my sanity as I would go around the house saying “Ricky Bobby” in a drawn out French accent.  It is the funniest movie I have seen in years.     

#5 Cars  G

Wow.  Two movies about NASCAR in one list.  (Considering I never watch NASCAR, that is saying something.)  Pixar animation has never put out a bad movie and they don’t disappoint with Cars.  Of course, it helps to see the movie with a 5 year old.  But I can’t deny the fact that I cried when Lightning has the chance to leave Radiator Springs and chooses to honor his commitment to the town.  The movie is funny and thoughtful.  The story teaches the values of selflessness, friendship, and loyalty – something of a rarity in many movies today.  

#4 Rocky Balboa  PG

I first read about this movie in a New York Times interview with Sylverster Stallone and I knew then that the movie had great potential.  This movie is not about Boxing as the marketing campaigns implies.  Rather, it is about aging and examining the life one has lived.  Sylvester Stallone wrote and directed this movie and it is moving, touching, and inspiring.  The movie has a quiet tone and returns to understanding the personal struggles of the characters.  It deals with the realities of parenthood, fame, and loss.  The score by Bill Conti is fantastic.  Don’t be fooled by jokes about Rocky VI.  This is a wonderful film!

#3 Casino Royale  PG-13

When I heard there would be a new James Bond movie I had no interest in seeing it.  The last one I saw was Goldeneye in 1995.  But the movie had over 95% positive reviews nationwide.  The movie was fantastic and highly entertaining.  In fact, for me, it is the best James Bond movie I have seen.  It goes back to the roots of Bond before he had 00 status.  Daniel Craig, who was largely criticized by hard core fans of the franchise for having blond hair and not being good looking enough, can flat out act.  He brings a realism and humanism to the role that all of the other Bonds have not had.  Eva Green, who plays the role of Vesper, plays his equal – which is so refreshing in a Bond movie. Instead of being a disposable sex object, she is intelligent, witty, and competent.  The movie resurrected the Bond franchise.  Craig has 2 more Bond movies in his contract.  Hopefully they can capture the magic they did with this one.

#2  Flags of Our Fathers  R

Clint Eastwood’s movie about the flag bearers at Iwo Jima is compelling.  Some people did not like this movie, but I thought it told an important story and really examined what it means to be a hero and why people do what they do in war.  The story examines the lives of 3 men who were all involved in the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima.  However, there raising was actually a second raising of the flag and just happened to be captured by a photographer who had missed the first raising.  The men who raised it were deemed heroes by the government and were sent on an extensive PR campaign around the US to raise bonds to fund the war.  While they were greeted as heroes every where they went, they never felt that way since all they really do was raise a pole and place a flag a top of it.  They fraud they felt standing in front of cheering crowds in America, while they remembered their friends who died in combat on the island, shed light on the discrepancy between the governments’ efforts to take advantage of a public relations opportunity and the overlooked ramifications war has on the individuals involved. 

#1 Children of Men  R

This movie explores the social consequences of global infertility.  The movie begins 18 years since any baby had been born--leading most societies to war and chaos.  It then follows the journey of a small rebel group protecting a  young pregnant woman who they need to deliver to the human project (a group of scientists looking for the cure of infertility).  In my opinion, Alfonso Cuaron is one of the next great directors.  He brilliantly shows the ramifications of this situation ranging from chaos and global despair to the smallest glimmer of individual hope.  Don’t expect any explanations for the premise.  Cuaron is quoted as saying that exposition is one of the great weaknesses in filmmaking today.  What he does show you is the imagined world if this ever happened.  There are at least 2 scenes which are just astounding in their ability to communicate the film’s themes of despair and the beauty of life.  This is a great movie and one that will get more popular over time.  It is definitely worth watching.