Movies of the 00's: 2005

[RhodyYanksFan]

Took a break for the holidays but he we go with the 2nd half of the decade.


Here's a link to the 2004 thread which has links to the other years.
http://forums.nyyfans.com/showthread.php?t=121638

[penguin4]

I voted for Good Night and Good Luck because they took something that could've potentially been very boring and made it into a gripping story. The way they merged archive newsreel footage with the fictitious film footage blew me away -- half the time you couldn't tell which was old and which was new. I read somewhere that one of the critics thought "the guy playing Senator McCarthy" was grossly overacting; someone had to tell him, hey, that actually was Senator McCarthy himself at the time. Plus I thought David Strathairn nailed the Edward R. Murrow character (based on the footage I've seen of him, of course, since I'm obviously too young otherwise, lol).

Brokeback, on the other hand was exactly the opposite -- taking something that could've been interesting and making it odiously dull. It should've been an hour shorter -- at the length it was, it was absolutely insufferable. We get it, two guys in a forbidden relationship -- don't have to show it a million different ways in a million different permutations; methinks "I wish I could quit you" was Jake Gyllenhaal's character referring to all the people who stayed around in the theater so long to watch this boring tripe. Plus the makeup job on Heath Ledger was horrible. He and his grown daughter at the end of the film looked more like brother and sister. Beautiful scenery, though -- I think the director reward for Ang Lee was well-deserved, but you're only as good as the script you have to work with.

See Capote. Much more interesting and a much cooler gay guy. And a true story, no less. Philip Seymor Hoffman was more Truman Capote than Truman Capote was.

Munich I liked a lot better than I thought I would, though I can see how people could misconstrue it as anti-Semitic or sympathetic to the terrorists. If you watch it for what it is, though, ignoring specific events and nationalities, it's definitely an interesting take on the way we deal with terrorism and the government -- the quintessential Bush administration movie.

Didn't see Crash, but half the people I know who saw it loved it, and the other half couldn't stand it because they thought it was over-the-top preachy. Someday I'll be the judge.

Loved Batman Begins -- it was an excellent reboot of the series (though naturally The Dark Knight was better). However, the camera and cuts were often too jumpy, particularly during the fight scenes -- which, in a superhero movie (particularly one as dark as this one) are numerous.

Haven't seen the others. (Haven't even heard of Oldboy. Where was I that year?)

[Ram Man]

Didn't see any of them, however I did see a rerun of the Shawshank Redemption in 2005 and really enjoyed it.

[YankeePride1967]

Wow, if those are the best movies of 2005, 2005 was a very bad year.

[mjdlight]

My favs of 2005:

Grizzly Man - The great Herzog produces a very compelling, captivating piece about Timothy Treadwell, the infamous "grizzly man" who was ultimately eaten (along with his girlfriend) by a grizzly bear. Didja know Treadwell grew up middle class on Long Island and was runner up to Woody Harrelson for his role on "Cheers", a professional defeat that led to Treadwell descending into alcoholism, and ultimately led him to find solace in a group of grizzly bears in Alaska? The best film of 2005.

Match Point -- Woody Allen's best film since Radio Days, a period of almost 20 years.

The Squid and the Whale -- You know what they say about not being able to choose your family...

Brokeback Mountain -- A bit ham-fisted, but Ang Lee's incredible filmmaking skills cover up a lot of its weaknesses

[penguin4]

The Squid and the Whale -- You know what they say about not being able to choose your family...

Didn't realize that was 2005, but yes, have to second that. Excellent, excellent little film that really didn't get its due.

[bigwampum]

Oldboy was 2003, at least according to IMDb. I voted for it anyway, but Serenity holds the '05 title for me.

Sin City, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and Thank You For Smoking should all be on the list.

[JL25and3]

My favs of 2005:

Grizzly Man - The great Herzog produces a very compelling, captivating piece about Timothy Treadwell, the infamous "grizzly man" who was ultimately eaten (along with his girlfriend) by a grizzly bear. Didja know Treadwell grew up middle class on Long Island and was runner up to Woody Harrelson for his role on "Cheers", a professional defeat that led to Treadwell descending into alcoholism, and ultimately led him to find solace in a group of grizzly bears in Alaska? The best film of 2005.

Match Point -- Woody Allen's best film since Radio Days, a period of almost 20 years.

The Squid and the Whale -- You know what they say about not being able to choose your family...

Brokeback Mountain -- A bit ham-fisted, but Ang Lee's incredible filmmaking skills cover up a lot of its weaknesses

Grizzly Man was fantastic, but not for the faint of heart.

Match Point was terribly overrated. It was a retread of Crimes and Misdemeanors, only not as good. Woody in London is ridiculous; he loses half his game away from NYC.

I liked Brokeback Mountain a lot. I thought Heath Ledger was the reason to watch it, as he was in The Dark Knight.

[GiambiRocks]

I can't decide between Crash and Brokeback Mountain.

[fredgmuggs]

Wow, if those are the best movies of 2005, 2005 was a very bad year.

Cinderella Man was a 2005 release. I love that movie.

The Constant Gardner was also very good. Wedding Crashers and the 40 Year Old virgin were also from 2005.

[YankeePride1967]

Cinderella Man was a 2005 release. I love that movie.

The Constant Gardner was also very good. Wedding Crashers and the 40 Year Old virgin were also from 2005.

I didn't see Constant Gardner, but I agree the other three movies were very good.

[fredgmuggs]

I didn't see Constant Gardner, but I agree the other three movies were very good.

Off the top of my head I would be hard pressed to think of a weaker Academy Award best picture winner then Crash.

[YankeePride1967]

Off the top of my head I would be hard pressed to think of a weaker Academy Award best picture winner then Crash.

Agreed.

[penguin4]

Off the top of my head I would be hard pressed to think of a weaker Academy Award best picture winner then Crash.

Gladiator? The Departed? Shakespeare In Love?

[YankeePride1967]

Gladiator? The Departed? Shakespeare In Love?

Shakespeare in Love was, in my opinion, the worst Oscar winning picture period. But Crash, also in my opinion, was much weaker than Gladiator or the Departed.

[JL25and3]

Shakespeare in Love was, in my opinion, the worst Oscar winning picture period. But Crash, also in my opinion, was much weaker than Gladiator or the Departed.

Seriously? I loved Shakespeare in Love...anyway, I never saw the Departed, but all of the other movies are much, much better than Oliver!

[fredgmuggs]

Seriously? I loved Shakespeare in Love...anyway, I never saw the Departed, but all of the other movies are much, much better than Oliver!

I think that makes, I believe, four of us on this forum who likes Shakespeare in Love. I always knew you had good taste, Dr. John.

[YankeePride1967]

Seriously? I loved Shakespeare in Love...anyway, I never saw the Departed, but all of the other movies are much, much better than Oliver!

I hated Shakespeare in Love. But thinking back I take it back, it was the second worst winning movie. English Patient was the worst.

[Sam18]

Why bats master Wayne?

[penguin4]

I think that makes, I believe, four of us on this forum who likes Shakespeare in Love. I always knew you had good taste, Dr. John.

Don't get me wrong -- I liked the film; there's a difference, though, between movies you like and movies worthy of Best Picture.

[fredgmuggs]

Don't get me wrong -- I liked the film; there's a difference, though, between movies you like and movies worthy of Best Picture.

Honestly, I liked that movie much more than Saving Private Ryan but I'm not getting into that argument again.

I think Shakespeare in Love is a wonderfully entertaining and clever movie. Others don't feel that way - I can live with that.

[JL25and3]

Don't get me wrong -- I liked the film; there's a difference, though, between movies you like and movies worthy of Best Picture.

I think you overestimate the sanctity of a Best Picture award. Considering that the previous two winners were The English Patient and Titanic, I'd say they came out OK.

[mgpenguin]

Batman Begins. I've seen most of the rest, and I thought Batman was the best of all of them. The worst of the movies was Crash. It was nearly two hours of being beaten over the head with the "everybody's racist" message. There's absolutely no subtlety in that movie. At least that's my view of it.

[penguin4]

I think you overestimate the sanctity of a Best Picture award. Considering that the previous two winners were The English Patient and Titanic, I'd say they came out OK.

Never saw The English Patient, but I heard it was three hours of boredom. 1996 was a weak year, but Fargo and Secrets and Lies were certainly worthy.

And Titanic is an excellent film if you watch it on mute.

Honestly, I liked that movie much more than Saving Private Ryan but I'm not getting into that argument again.

Saving Private Ryan made me dizzy after the first 20 minutes in the theater. (I can't believe it won Best Editing!) The rest of the movie suffered because of it -- or maybe I just suffered because I felt for half the film.

I was pulling for Life is Beautiful that year, I think, though again, they refuse to give the award to a foreign film. But who knows, maybe if I saw it again it wouldn't stand the test of time.

[yankeesAZ]

Brokeback Mountain-groundbreaking and a good story.

[MassNYYfan]

I'm gonna go with Madagascar.

[RhodyYanksFan]

No love for Munich?

[Sam18]

No love for Munich?

I have love for munich, one of my favorites.

[ajra21]

capote, probably.

[NYDCYankee]

King Kong might be the worst movie of the decade.

[NYDCYankee]

Oh and I love Munich, but Brokeback was the best movie of the year.