Top 10 Movies of 2009 That I Saw
I haven’t posted on New Movie Friday since the summer and haven’t reviewed anything since the beginning of the year, but that’s going to change in 2010. Yet, even with the lack of posting here, I was still going to the movies most weeks and posting a lot of 140 character instant reviews over @NewMovieFriday on Twitter. Overall, I ended up a bit light on the movie front this year, as I only got to the theater 40 times.
So, thought I’d get things restarted by listing my Top 10 movies of 2009. Below you’ll find my rankings of these movies with a little bit about why they were my favorite movies of the year.
Top 10 Movies of 2009 - That I Saw
- Star Trek - Going into the year, this was probably my most anticipate movie and for it to live up to the hype made it all-the-better. It really did a good job of rebooting a series and giving it new life. Can’t wait for the next one.
- Up - Oddly enough, this may actually be the best movie I saw this year, but it gets my second place. I had no real expectations for this one, as I don’t normally watch animated features, but if I recall, it was the only new option that week. The first part of the movie is absolutely brilliant, as it conveys so much with only picture and music, no dialogue. It was like a magnificent animated silent film.
- Inglorious Basterds - I wasn’t sure what to make of this one going in, but it was just outstanding. It might just be Tarantino’s “masterpiece.” It was dramatic and sad, yet unbelievably funny in places.
- Up in the Air - I don’t mind a movie that gets you thinking, as long as it is also entertaining. This movie does just that. Also, what would you do if you had 10 million miles?
- Sherlock Holmes - The duo of Robert Downey, Jr. and Jude Law was great. They played off each other remarkably well. If you don’t mind a little action with your deductive sleuthing, then you will enjoy this as much as I did.
- The Hangover - This was by far the funniest movie of the year. I went in skeptical, cause many comedies in the raunchy genre have brought plenty of raunchy, but very little comedy. This brings plenty of both, but I haven’t laughed that much at a movie in a while.
- District 9 - Was very light on the details going into this one, but came out with an appreciation for the special effects. They were seamless. It was a really good movie to boot, even if not wholly original as many deemed it to be.
- Defiance - This was just a great movie based on true events with a fantastic cast lead by Daniel Craig Casino Royale. Yes, technically it was released on the last day of 2008, but I didn’t see it until it was released nationwide on January 16th, 2009. So, I’ve included it on my list.
- Taken - This movie just kicked ass. It gave you just enough setup and then bam! It barely took a break until he got his daughter back. It was the best pure action flick of the year.
- Avatar - This is a great movie, but the 3D special effects overshadow what is really a basic plot that we’ve all see before. Also, I’m getting tired of sci-fi type movies that portray the humans in story as the assholes. This is a trend I hope comes to an end soon.
The next 10 would be: He’s Just Not the Into You, I Love You, Man, Fanboys, The Taking of Pelham 123, The Soloist, State of Play, Law Abiding Citizen, The Proposal, Fast and Furious, and A Christmas Carol.
And, the next 10 would be: Public Enemies, Surrogates, Gamer, Angels & Demons, Fired Up, Watchmen, Terminator Salvation, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Race to Witch Mountain, and Ninja Assassin.
The bottom 10 movies I saw in 2009 would be: The International, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra, 2012, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, The Twilight Saga: New Moon, 12 Rounds, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li, Push, and Dragonball Evolution.
Think something should’ve been higher on my list? Do I have something to high? What were your top 10 movies of 2009? Let me know in the comments.
Getting Back Into the Movie Reviewing Swing of Things
Over the summer of 2008 I stopped writing reviews of the movies I was seeing, but continued to go to the movies each week with the plan of catching up on the reviews. After awhile I was behind by quite a few and was going to just start back up. But, then another opportunity arose that fits with my first love of watching TV, which I write about at TVaholic.com.
The idea of putting out a weekly TV podcast came up at the beginning of the Fall 2008 TV season. Two other TV bloggers and I started working on it. We called it TV times Three and put out our first episode on September 23rd, 2008.
During that time I focused on getting the podcast up and running and the review writing over here continued to go by the wayside. I posted updates here at New Movie Friday with what was on tap movie-wise that week and what I was probably going to see.
Once the podcast got going, it turned out the best time for the three of us to record was on Fridays. So, we could talk about the week’s happenings on TV and edit it over the weekend to have it ready to go live each Monday. I continued to put off writing reviews, while I worked the podcast into my schedule and after awhile I was just out of the habit.
I work nights, so my normal schedule would be to come home from work around 4:00 a.m. and work on the daily post at TVaholic.com. Then maybe watch a DVR’d show or two before getting some sleep. Normally, I would get up around 1:00 p.m., but on Fridays I would usually get up around 10:00 a.m. to hit the early $5.00 matinee at my local AMC Theater. So, it became normal to come home from the movie and record the podcast in the early afternoon here in Seattle, but in the evening for my fellow hosts living on the east coast. After that I was just tired and had no interest in continuing to sit at the computer, as sleep or sleep-watching some TV was more in order.
Then the big winter snowstorm hit the Seattle area in December. Heading out into the snow with all the other drivers was not something I was interested in doing, so I ended up not going to the movies the last two Fridays of 2008. This ended my movie streak at 102 weeks. I had seen at least one movie at a theater each week, usually on a Friday, for almost two years. There wasn’t anything new starting the first week of 2009, so I didn’t go that week either.
I started up again with Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino on January 9th. That was a great movie and Worth a Full Price Ticket. Then the following Friday, January 16th, I went to see Defiance, which was outstanding as well and totally Worth a Full Price Ticket. On Friday, January 23rd, I went to see Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, which was more of a Worth a Rental type movie. I thought Rhona Mitra was doing a pretty good Kate Beckinsale (Underworld) impersonation in the terrible Doomsday, well she is at it again in this one, even more so. Last Friday, January 30th, I went to see Taken, which had Liam Neeson kicking ass all over Paris, which was Worth a Matinee, as it was a bit on the short side.
So, obviously I still like going to the theater. I still like watching movies. My new streak sits at four weeks. But, the question I have been pondering for the last month and a half is, do I want to continue with this site?
The answer is Yes. Yes I do. So, the plan is to return with reviews this Friday, as there is actually three movies I want to see this week. I may go all out to restart the site and see all three this weekend.
The original idea was to post on Tuesday or Wednesday what new movies were coming out that week. Then on Thursdays, I would post about which movie I was going to go see and why. What my expectations were for it, etc. Then on Fridays, I would go see the movie and write up and post a review. I going to give it another go, as my second favorite thing is to watch and talk about movies, so here’s to re-entering the movie conversation.
Well, that’s enough about that. Now, it’s time to take a look at what new movies are coming out this week.
What’s the Deal With the Lack of New Movie Friday Updates & Reviews?
Sorry for the lack of updating over here at New Movie Friday, but the Fall TV Season has overtaken me as of late with TV reviews over at TVaholic.
Not only that, but a new project came about recently. I partnered with two other TV bloggers to create a new podcast. It’s called TV times Three and we plan on talking about the goings-on in the world of TV each week. If you’re a TV fan as well, you might be interested in taking a listen.
I have continued to go see a movie each Friday, but haven’t been able to update this site or get to the reviews for each of those movies, which I was already behind on coming into this month.
I went to see Eagle Eye today, which was pretty good and Worth a Matinee. Once the action gets going, it doesn’t stop.
The plan is to get things back to normal around here starting next week with both what’s coming on Wednesdays and reviews of what I have seen on Fridays. Getting sick this week only helped to push it out another week. I’m also thinking of doing a series of mini reviews to catch things up.
What Has Been Going on at NewMovieFriday.com?
You may have noticed that the site looks a little different. Also, that it hasn’t been working recently and that it was even completely down for a day or so last weekend. Had some problems with my web host (HostGator) and in the trek to getting things solved, they were only made worse by one of the support techs, as he made a change that took down this site and a few others on my account that included my main site TVaholic.com.
It took a little while to get things back up and at least get the sites viewable to those trying to visit my sites. Everything is pretty much back up to where it was, except here at NewMovieFriday.com. For the most part, things are back in working order here. But, I am now in the middle of redesigning the site, which ended up needing to happen because of the problems that arose mentioned above.
Look for things like the video player, in the right hand column, with upcoming trailers and such. Also, will be adding a new section to the site with posts featuring clips, news, photos, posters, and trailers from movies that are coming soon.
Now, it’s time to get back to watching and then reviewing movies. Also, need to catch up on the past few weeks of reviews.
Here are three quick reviews from the last three weeks:
- The Dark Knight was awesome and totally lived up to the hype, which almost never happens. Rating: Pay Full Price and See It Twice.
- Hellboy II: The Golden Army was entertaining, but had a completely throwaway plot that was just completely useless. Rating: Worth a Rental.
- Hancock was great for the first 45 minutes or so, great setup, and then peters out in the second half. Rating: Worth an Early Matinee.
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