Time for the second annual Part Time Awards! This is for 55 films 'released' in 2009 that I watched.
Published 3/1/2010.
Genre Favorites
Action: Taken. This was a bad year for action movies, the only other worthy contenders were Star Trek, Avatar and Red Cliff. Having said that, Qui Gon kicking butt was fantastic.
Animated: On the other hand, this was a great, deep year for animation. Any other year, Up, Princess and the Frog, Fantastic Mr. Fox or Ponyo would have won this title, but without a doubt, it was Coraline.
Chick Flick: (500) Days of Summer. Definitely not a traditional chick flick, but that's why it stood out. Admittedly this was the only chick flick I saw.
Comedy: I Love You, Man. The Hangover was very strong, and I laughed at such a great frequency, however, the nod goes to the Paul Rudd-Jason Segal bromance for its great characters and heart.
Dark Comedy: Inglourious Basterds. Easy choice for its violent hilarity and ballsy style of rewriting history.
Drama: The Hurt Locker. It's been a while since I recall such an emotionally intense and memorable film. Precious was a worthy second.
Documentary: Food, Inc. was as important as it was interesting. As much as I loved Without Bias, what I eat three times a day is more important than professional basketball.
Family-Friendly: Ponyo for its absolute cuteness.
Horror: Sam Raimi's Drag Me to Hell
Musical: None
Science Fiction: District 9
Suspense: Hurt Locker.
3D: Avatar.
Most Underrated Film:
I Love You, Man. Too much hype for Hangover clouded the brilliance of this fantastic, character-based comedy.
Most Overrated Movie:
Hangover. See above.
Most Disappointing Movie:
Invictus, Bruno, Public Enemies.
Biggest Surprise:
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Food, Inc., Red Cliff. I did not expect any of these three to be so good.
Great Acting Movies:
Precious. Tour de force acting from Gabourey Sadibe, Mo'Nique and surprisingly Maria Carey.
Inglourious Basterds. If Christoph Waltz does not win Best Supporting Actor, I will riot.
Up in the Air. Thanks to strong ensemble acting from top to bottom.
Observe and Report. Seth Rogen.
I Love You, Man. Especially Jason Segel and Jon Favreau.
'Do one thing, do it well' Award:
Taken for kicking butt, Hangover for making me laugh non-stop, and The Blind Side for making me feel warm and fuzzy inside.
'I am an EFF BEE EYE Agent' Award (movie most likely to score high on the Unintentional Comedy Scale in the near future):
G.I. Joe (Marlon Wayans as an action hero!) and Kobe Doin' Work (a joke of a documentary). Transformers Revenge of the Fallen was so bad, I don't know if it will ever reach this level.
Notable missed movies:
Zombieland, The Informant!, Twilight New Moon.
Third Tier (Good, re-watchable, or recommendable movies):
Adventureland
Angels & Demons
The Band that Wouldn't Die
Broken Embraces
Men Who Stare At Goats
Princess and the Frog
Serious Man
Up in the Air
Watchmen
Second Tier (Very good, re-watchable, or recommendable movies):
The Blind Side
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
District 9
Drag Me to Hell
Fantastic Mr. Fox
(500) Days of Summer
The Hangover
Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Michael Jackson's This Is It
Moon
Precious
Star Trek
Taken
Tyson
Most Memorable/Important Films of the Year:
Avatar
Coraline
Food, Inc.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
The Hurt Locker
I Love You, Man
Inglourious Basterds
Ponyo
Red Cliff
Up
Without Bias
Favorite Best Picture Nominee:
Hurt Locker, though I'd be ecstatic if Inglourious Basterds wins, that's my dark horse.
Favorite Film Not Nominated For Best Picture:
Coraline.
Movie I would I would force everyone to watch:
Coraline. Simply the best. I loved its visual creativity, its cool scariness, and memorable moments. A very close second would be Food, Inc. because it raised my awareness about what I think I'm eating, and want all my friends/family to have that awareness as well.
Thanks for reading! If you like these, please check out my friend's thoughts on 2009's movies, here.
