Popshifter‘s Best Of Lists

Top Five Movies (That I Saw) In 2008

By Laura L.

Why only five? Because, between grad school and the resulting lack of funds that occurs post-grad school, I didn’t have the time nor the money to enjoy a whole lot of movies this year. However, I saw enough movies (including some on DVD) to make this top five list. Granted, I still need to see some of the movies that came out at the end of 2008 to make this list more accurate, but you’re sick of reading my rambling by now and are wondering when I’ll get to the movies already. So here we are, in no particular order. . .

Milk, directed by Gus Van Sant: Now, I’m normally not a big fan of Sean Penn, but he gave a truly Oscar-winning performance in this movie. Detailing the life of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person elected to public office in the United States, this film did what very few films do for me—it made me cry! I only wonder how the film, had it been released just a few weeks earlier, would have affected Prop 8’s fate.

Burn After Reading, directed by The Coen Brothers: The Coen Brothers did it again with this film. Then again, any movie that has John Malkovich as an ex-CIA agent is enough for me. His character’s memoirs, written after his departure from the agency, land in the hands of two fitness center employees. The cast is excellent, with Brad Pitt stealing the show as the bumbling fitness center employee. And for those of you usually grossed out by Coen Brothers’ movies, I will assure you that this is their least-violent picture to date.

Persepolis, 2007

The Dark Knight, directed by Christopher Nolan: Now, Christian Bale in that Batman costume alone is enough for me to like this film. But with Heath Ledger bringing a new dimension to the role of The Joker, this movie goes from “good” to “great.” It will take mighty big shoes for anyone to fill the late actor’s role for the next Batman movie.

Persepolis, directed by Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi: Yes, this is actually a 2007 release, but it didn’t come out where I live until 2008, so it counts. An animated account of Marjane Satrapi’s Iranian childhood, European-schooled adolescence, and college days back in Iran (before she immigrated to France), Catherine Deneuve and her daughter, Chiara Mastroianni, provide voices. (Sean Penn provides his voice in the English-language version.) It is a gripping account of what life was like during the Iranian Revolution and its aftermath.

Hamlet 2, directed by Andrew Fleming: As someone who hung around the drama crowd in high school, I have to say that Hamlet 2 gets it right. Steve Coogan is excellently cast as the drama teacher who stages a high school production of his self-penned sequel to Shakespeare’s play. Elisabeth Shue also makes an appearance as a version of herself—an actress-turned-nurse.

To go back to the list of contributors, click here.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19