10. March of the Penguins
March to the Box Office is more like it. This small film about a throng of penguins marching 75 miles in Antarctica did monster business in 2005. The interesting thing about the film is that it wasn’t like the other “pre-packaged, take your kids to see it so they can be quiet for two hours” fare. Director Luc Jacquet and his crew spent a year with the penguins documenting their movements and interactions. The penguins are funny, but the underlying story of breeding and what it means to be a father is what interested me most. Morgan Freeman is the narrator for this life-affirming tale that could be watched alone or with the entire family. A definite must see for couples thinking about having children.
9. Capote
Philip Seymour Hoffman, once the character actor who stood a part from the rest, is the center of attention as Truman Capote. He was an enigma, a complicated man whose gift was gab and the written word. Written and directed by Seymour’s friends (Dan Futterman and Bennett Miller, respectively) the film is not a biopic. It is a moment in Capote’s life that would haunt him until his death. While researching In Cold Blood, a non-fiction work about two men who kill a family of four in rural Kansas, he meets and soon empathizes with one of the killers, Perry Smith (Clifton Collins, Jr.). The film is an interesting psychological drama about understanding man and the demon within.
8. An Unfinished Life
A film that felt like it was here today and gone tomorrow. Jennifer Lopez (yes, that Jennifer Lopez) delivers a surprising performance as she plays a woman trying to get away from her abusive boyfriend. She finds herself on the run with her daughter Griff and takes refuge with her former father-in-law Elnar (Robert Redford) and his debilitated friend Mitch (Morgan Freeman). It is a story of picking up the pieces and how people come to grips with tragedy and understanding. On the shelf for a number of years, An Unfinished Life is a diamond in the ruff and a film that should have been embraced by the mainstream, not given a limited release.
7. Nine Lives
This is not a chick flick. Women occupy every space in this film, but I insist it is not just for women. Nine Lives is an anthology containing nine separate stories by writer-director Rodrigo Garcia. The stories are about women, truth and humanity. The vignettes are not told in a linear fashion but there is some continuity. Characters that appear in one story may show up in another. This may have been Garcia’s intention after all. He creates his own little world where the audience is like a third party listening in on a conversation. He also has an amazing ensemble that includes Sissy Spacek, Glenn Close, Dakota Fanning, and Holly Hunter.
6. Mysterious Skin
The hardest movie to stomach in 2005 was not a horror flick, but rather a harrowing film dealing with the most horrific of subjects. Based on Scott Heim’s acclaimed novel, Mysterious Skin is a drama about child abuse and its lingering influences on two children. Any movie about child abuse is not for the weak of heart, especially if the abuse is sexually motivated. No longer that kid from “3rd Rock from the Sun” Joseph Gordon-Levitt delivers a powerful performance as Neil McCormick that is sad and engaging. Together with Brady Corbet’s portrayal as the teenage Brian Lackey, you see each boy grow through the hate of child abuse and how they live with its fears and terrors everyday.
5. Batman Begins
Back in June 2005, I wrote as my final word that this movie may well be my favorite film of the summer and definitely one that will earn recognition on my Best of 2005 list. Eight months later and here it is. This was one of the few films that did not fluctuate in my top 10 list throughout the year; it always remained in the top 5. While some may prefer Spider-Man or the X-Men, Batman is of greater interest to me. He has no special powers. He is not superhuman. As the child the untimely deaths of his parents compelled Bruce Wayne to become something more. Memento helmer Christopher Nolan along with writer David S. Goyer redefine Batman’s origin by examining Bruce Wayne’s grief-stricken soul. The directing, story, and impressive cast make Batman Begins the best superhero movie since Christopher Reeve donned a big “S” on his chest.
4. The Constant Gardener
City of God director Fernando Meirelles meticulously crafts an engaging thriller that works on so many levels. At the heart it is a fascinating depiction of the suffering hundreds of thousands of African natives endure each day. This adaptation of John Le Carre’s novel also works as a love story. Jeffrey Caine’s plot and dialogue make the characters appear real. They are real people with real problems in a fictional situation that could indeed be happening. In a commanding performance as Tessa, Rachel Weisz’s commitment to humanity is unparalleled. She works to help the suffering and in the process suffers a calamitous fate. Ralph Fiennes plays her husband who, in her death, rediscovers the love they once had.
3. Murderball
What is Quad rugby? I had never heard of the sport or its nickname “Murderball” until I happened upon a sports journalist on the radio talking about it. Watching the trailer all I knew is that leagues around the world play a game using wheelchairs. Ah, but don’t be dissuaded by the extreme sports antics illustrated in the documentary Murderball. Filmmakers Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro are objective in their approach at showing a number of quadriplegic athletes who are able to grow and live through the wheelchair sport. Next time anyone says a bad thing about someone confined to a wheelchair, show him this movie. They will eat their words. This is classic storytelling at its finest.
2. Brokeback Mountain
Coming a long way since 10 Things I Hate About You and Bubble Boy, Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal star in a romance the transcends all others. Adapted from a short story by E. Annie Proulx – by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Larry McMurtry (Lonesome Dove) – and directed by Ang Lee, Brokeback Mountain is a remarkable film about two men who love one another. They cannot be together because back then that type of behavior was just unheard of. Jack and Ennis may not roll off the tongue so eloquently as Romeo and Juliet, but they are star-crossed lovers nevertheless. For a love that lasts a lifetime Ledger delivers a heartbreaking performance as one man who struggles to come to grip with forbidden love.
1. Crash
Writer-director Paul Haggis is new to being in the spotlight. Up until he penned the screenplay for 2004’s Best Picture winner (and my #1 for 2004) Million Dollar Baby, his greatest claim to fame was creating the TV series “Walker, Texas Ranger.” That was then, and this is now. The press may be lavishing tons of praise to Brokeback Mountain, but in a decade I predict this will be the film that will resonate more strongly with the public. Unlike some of my colleagues, when it comes down to deciding a good movie from a great one it’s all about the characters. Each of the films in my top 10 has a character that goes through some kind of struggle, whether it be nurturing, a disability, or something that hides beneath the surface. Crash is not about the good and evil in people. Instead this multi-layered drama deals with the conflicts of bigotry in our daily life. Though the moral of the film may be preachy to some, I disagree. Maybe it is because I was fortunate to see this film three times in theaters; one time it was a mostly black audience. Each viewing was different but the story still had a lingering affect on me all the same.
