2007 was a pretty decent year - I’ll give it a B+. But it’s not all that hard to make my year end list. There are some excellent films that don’t make the Dozen, but I feel strongly that all the ones that do make the list really belong there.
1. Ben X - At Montreal, this film got a loud standing ovation, won the festival jury’s prize, the ecumenical jury’s prize, and was voted most popular film of the festival. A story of struggle, despair, and a revenge that is especially sweet because it is just. The ecumenical jury wrote in its commendation: Using religious imagery of the Passion of Christ, Ben X represents the possibility of a different response to violence. Afflicted more by others’ bullying and misunderstanding than by his autism, the main character responds to this violence with creative intelligence and effective use of media. The film’s stylistic innovation presents different versions of Ben’s reality in a way that thwarts spectators’ expectations and that implicates the viewer within habitual social responses to violence.
Since Ben X has yet to make it to American theaters yet, I think I deserve to have a second #1 choice:
1.5 The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - Incredible story of Jean-Dominique Bauby, exceptional vision from director Julian Schnabel, amazing cinematography by Janusz Kaminski, and brilliant adaptation by Ronald Harwood of a very internal book.
2. Once - Great blend of music and love story. This one has stayed with me far longer than films I saw the same time and liked better at first.
3. Lars and the Real Girl - Healing through delusion—but also through community. Such a tender story of hope.
4. After the Wedding - A father’s sacrificial love is central to this story—actually more than one father’s sacrificial love.
5. Away from Her - The pain of losing someone you love—even when they aren’t really gone. Great performances. Wonderful work from director Sarah Polley.
6. Ratatouille - That this isn’t in the top five is evidence of a good year. This was a delightful story about living out one’s passion. Brad Bird and Pixar are a great combination.
7. There Will Be Blood - That this isn’t in my top five is evidence of my disappointment. To be sure it is a powerful film, but I could never quite get into the passions that drove the story.
8. Waitress - Bordering on fairy tale, this story of a young, pregnant woman’s discovery of self and freedom is heartwarming and as satisfying as one of Jenna’s wildly named pies.
9. I’m Not There - Some of the many faces of Bob Dylan. Part biopic. Part music. Part fiction. As confusing and profound as Dylan’s songs.
10. No End in Sight - Insiders’ analysis of all the mistakes made in the Iraq War and the occupation that followed. There are a lot. It certainly paints the Administration as (at best) incompetent.
11. Venus - Peter O’Toole plays an aging actor who finds renewed life in teaching a young woman about life and love.
12. Breach - Best psychological game on screen. Real life story of the effort to catch FBI agent Robert Hannsen - devout Catholic and Soviet spy.
There are some other films that are certainly good enough to be include, but I’ve run out of slots. In alphabetical order:
Atonement (My wife’s favorite of the year. I’d better mention it or she may never speak to me again.)
No Country for Old Men
Favorite performances of the year:
Frank Langella in Starting Out in the Evening
Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose
Favorite older film I discovered or revisited: The Magnificent Seven
