Oscar Season

So, it's that time of year again. Time for me to put out my list of movies from this past year. Now, it's true that I really haven't seen all that many movies this year (well, movies that were released this year, at least), so you'll have to keep that in mind as you look at this list.

1. Little Miss Sunshine
Reason for ranking: Everything about this movie works so well. The soundtrack is great and fits perfectly. The cast is amazing and hilarious. And it makes fun of beauty pageants. What more could you look for in a movie.

2. The Departed
Reason for ranking: While mob movies usually aren't my cup of tea (nothing against them, they just all pale compared to The Godfather), this one was good. I was constantly wondering when the moles were going to be discovered, and who wasn't going to die (because there are more that die than don't).

3. Children of Men
Reason for ranking: I'd like to put this one at the number 2 spot, but feel like it could have been better. Granted, the cinematography was amazing and I'm a sucker for movies with long, continuous shots, but some of the plot was lacking, and I felt like it was a little too preachy.

4. Pan's Labyrinth
Reason for ranking: This was a very visual movie, and I absolutely loved it. If this was a list of my favorite movies, it would probably be ranked second, but it's a list of which were the best, in my opinion. There were gaps in the story that I think could have been plugged, and it jumped a little bit, but I still loved it.

5. Brick
Reason for ranking: I love film noir, and this new thing - teen noir - isn't much different. This film put new life into a genre that has sadly seemed to lose it's place in our current society. The cast of young actors was great, too.

6. A Prarie Home Companion
Reason for ranking: There's just something about ensemble movies when they're done correctly. This movie was short on plot, but made up for it with randomness and great acting.

7. A Scanner Darkly
Reason for ranking: A very difficult movie to follow, and one that deserves a re-watching. There was some amazing voice acting, and the process of animation that they use is pretty cool. I don't want to say too much about it because most people haven't seen it, still.

Worst movie: Eragon
While the first book wasn't the best thing out there, it was far superior to the movie that came out. It was so bad, I'm not sure if I'll see the second one (if they make it). The only good thing about the movie was that Saphira looked wicked cool. Before the movie came out, I said that the entire movie would rest on how much effort they put into making the dragon look awesome, but it seems that's the only effort they put into the movie. Perhaps next time more script and character development, and the same amount of special effects. It wasn't the actors' fault, it was the writers and developers.