General Chat / Top 25 films of 2003

7. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Gore Verbinski) ****



"Me, I'm dishonest... and you can always could on a dishonest man to be dishonest."

When I think back on Pirates of the Caribbean, it does not take me to other Disney themepark movie abortions like The Country Bears (shudder), or The Haunted Mansion because that is just an unfair fight. Instead, The Pirates of the Caribbean is something much greater. This is the kind of summer popcorn adventure film that harkens back to Indiana Jones. It's undoubtedly the most fun I had in theaters all year. What's more, it's fun that doesn't cater to the lowest common denominator like the majority of summer movies these days. Turning off your brain is not a requirement for entertainment here, in fact it is rather forbidden, as the script is quite clever and intelligent (there is an interesting examination of fame in the film), and you will miss quite alot of you're not paying attention. Alot of that comes from Johnny Depp, who took an Errol Flynn type character and turned him into a sly mixture of Pepe le Peu and Keith Richards. He looks like he's bumbling around, but Captain Jack Sparrow is always under control of the situation. This is one of Johnny Depp's finest roles, and it almost singlehandedly makes the film. With someone else as Sparrow, this still would have been a fine adventure movie, but with Johnny Depp, it becomes one of the most crowd pleasing movies this decade. He's perfect, and finally he's got some popular recognition for just how much of a brilliant actor he is. Someone who doesn't get enough credit in this picture is Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa, a campy yet subtle role that is only forgotten because of Johnny Depp. The production values are great, proof of money well spent, and Gore Verbinski is still great with atmosphere, as he had shown previously with The Ring and Mouse Hunt. When one considers how much of a success this was, it's perplexing how Disney manages to destroy just about everything else they create nowadays.
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6. Whale Rider (Niki Caro) ****



"My name is Paikea, and I come from a long line of chiefs."

First time director Niki Caro has brought us one of the most heartwarming experiences this year. Whale Rider has an ethereal quality, it feels like fantasy. It introduces us to another culture of people (the Maoris of New Zealand), who have been pushed aside by industry and growth and struggle to maintain their rituals and ancient ways, through a modern myth. Paikea (Keisha Castle-Hughes) is a twelve year old girl, granddaughter to a stubborn chief, Coro, who is endlessly searching for his successor. She would be the next chief herself, but Coro (Rawiri Paratene) will not accept a girl as leader of their tribe, despite loving her as a granddaughter. Paikea must overcome everyone including her own family to attain her birthright. Keisha Castle-Hughes is near or at the front of a long line of great child actresses to come around this year. She is convincing and real as Paikea, which is probably understating how brilliant this performance is. At thirteen, she has already accomplished what many actresses strive for their whole lives without ever doing. Being nominated for an Oscar is no easy task, especially in a year like this where there were so many other deserving performances. If most of the film was ethereal, the ending was an absolute dream. I can honestly say this is one of the few films to draw a real tear from me this year.
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5. Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola) ****



"[inaudible whisper]"

Earlier, I said David Gordon Green's "All the Real Girls" was an honest film. Well, if that's an honest film then Sofia Coppola's sophomore outing is the truth. It is a film so truthful about human relationships that one has to wonder where Sofia Coppola got all this experience. According to imdb, she's 33, but she wrote Lost in Translation with all the verve and worldliness of someone her father's age. Anyway, it's not important where it came from, just that it came. Lost in Translation is a slice of life tale about two people Bob (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johannson), bonded together because they're both alone in a strange world they don't really understand or particularly like. Bob is married (somewhat unhappily it would seem), and what he has with Charlotte is almost purely platonic, though we feel at times that she wants more. It's only temporary, as both must go their own separate ways in a few days. There is really no beginning and no big ending. It ends when Bob leaves, leaving us with nothing no clues to go on, just our hope, for their future. The last words spoken in the film cannot be heard. They were "only between lovers". Bill Murray has gone mostly missing in the last few years, electing for projects like Charlie's Angels and Osmosis Jones, only interrupting this streak of mediocrity with two Wes Anderson films (Rushmore and the Royal Tenebaums). But it's definitely good to see him back. His performance is very understated, something he's known for, though I think he takes his usual schtick to an entirely new level here, along with his ad-libbing. The great majority of the comedy in this film was improvised and can be found in no script. Parting with this film was such sweet sorrow. Much like what the characters were probably thinking, I had a hard time accepting it was over.
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Up next... 4-2.

4. Thirteen (Catherine Hardwicke) ****



"I love you and you're brother more than anything in the world, and I'll die for you but I will not leave you alone right now."

Catherine Hardwicke's first foray into directing is hard to watch. Definitely not because it's a bad film, far from it or it would not be occupying a spot in the Top 5 of last year. No, it's a tough film to watch in the same way that Darren Aronokfsky's 2000 masterpiece, Requiem for a Dream, is tough to watch. Like Requiem, Thirteen takes a section of society that we like to ignore and gives us a look that is all too real instead of sugar coating it or turning it into a dark comedy as many in the past have tried. It pulls no punches with its material and Hardwicke shot in digital, often draining the color from the film for a very unsettling feel. Thirteen utterly relys on the strength of its actors, and that is exactly where the film shines. Evan Rachel Wood gives perhaps the best performance of the year, outshining both Naomi Watts and Charlize Theron in my eyes. She melts into the role of a good teenager turned angry slut. With her work this year in Thirteen and The Missing, she has almost instantly become one of my favorite actresses. Holly Hunter and Nikki Reed (who's life the film is based and who co-wrote the screenplay with director Catherine Hardwicke) also give award worthy performances, especially Hunter. There was a great amount of talent on and behind the screen here who got to prove their value with this picture. It's an amazing and powerful film, and I should hope this not not the apex of any of their careers.
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3. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (Peter Weir) ****



"Though we be on the far side of the world, this ship is our home. This ship is England."

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World was billed as an epic swashbuckler at sea, obviously trying to take advantage of the craze over The Pirates of the Caribbean (it even borrowed the same trailer music for one of the TV spots). And though there is some swashing of buckles to be found (at the beginning and end), 90% of the film is an intimate and totally accurate look at life aboard an early 19th century British warship. I've never seen a better portrayal of life aboard a ship. Master and Commander has it all, the bookend battle scenes are tense, crazy, and loud. It is technically perfect. The CGI and model work are flawless, continuing the trend that WETA Digital has become the premier special effects house in the business right now. This is a movie that required a theater viewing to fully appreciate it. The sounds of cannon and ocean storms crashing are almost too close to their real levels. Even the music is from the era. The only new musical score that we hear is the beating of drums with some violin flourishes. In between, we get to see a slower and more intimate movie (as well a surprisingly funny movie with a great dry wit). Peter Weir managed to perfectly capture the themes of friendship and duty as well as explore the idea of leadership all while keeping the film captivating. This would not have been possible without the ensemble cast. Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany have a terrific chemistry together as old friends with ideals exactly opposite to each other. Their relationship is touching, an obvious hold over from the great work they did together previously in A Beautiful Mind. Even newcomer Max Pirkis, as the young Lord Blakeney puts on a great show. The scene where they must amputate his arm is one of the most cringe-inducing and nerve-wracking (in a good way) this year. It's an epic that has decided to forego action almost completely in favor of compelling characters, a welcome change of pace to what we have come to expect.
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2. Finding Nemo (Pixar, 2003) ****



"P. Sherman.
42 Wallaby Way, Sydney."

I could sit and watch Finding Nemo all day with the sound off if I had to. Rarely do you see such flowing beauty and color. Every single frame is a work of art. It is not perfectly life like, which is the intention as everything Pixar has ever made has been stylized. You could say it's better than real life in some cases. It is surreal, and while watching you feel the calm of the ocean waves wash over. It has a very relaxing effect, assisted by Thomas Newman's angelic and peaceful score. Pixar is also known for great voice work by their casts. This is no exception. Albert Brooks is not out of his comfort range here as Marlin the overprotective father, but is perfectly in character doing the "worried" schtick he has perfected over the years. The real star here is Ellen Degeneres. Her Dory is no doubt one of the finest voice performances ever, at least on par with such greats as Robin Williams or Tom Hanks. Not only is she laugh out loud hilarious as a Blue tang fish with no short term memory, but she is the core of the emotional journey of the film. She stands in for Nemo (as she is just like a child herself) that allows him to undergo a transformation, and undergo a transformation herself. The speech she gives at the end of the film is heartbreaking as we see just how much their frienship had meant to both of them. The cast also includes a number of interesting and cleverly created side characters who make the entire film extra enjoyable. Only in Finding Nemo can you see a group of vegetarian sharks, an obvious send up of AA meetings or an obsessive compulsive french shrimp with an affinity for cleaning. It's a film that is endlessly watchable, as I'm sure a number of parents with young children can attest. And as far as I'm concerned, it's Pixar's best work of an illustrious but short existence.
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Up next... #1.

Da Da Da Da Da DAH!

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Peter Jackson) ****









"Eomer, take your Eored down the left flank. Gamling, follow the kings banner down the center. Grimbold, take your company right after you pass the wall. Forth, and fear no darkness!

Arise! Arise Riders of Theoden!
Spears shall be shaken!
Shields shall be splintered!
A sword day, a red day, ere the sun rises!

Ride Now!
Ride Now!
Ride!
Ride for Ruin! And the World's Ending!

DEATH!
DEATH!
DEATH!

Forth Eorlingas!"

I vividly remember Thursday December 20th, 2001. Mid-term exams had just finished up, and my brother and father were dragging me to see this movie called The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. It probably would have been against my will, since I really had no interest in seeing it, but I had nothing better to do so it was more a general apathy. Fine, I'll see it. A way to waste two hours I guess. What, it's three hours? Ah, ****. Whatever. So I sat down in the middle of a packed theater, ready to waste some time. My experience with Tolkien at this point what next to nothing. I had never read any of the books (though I had heard of them) though I had watched the Rankin-Bass adaptation of The Hobbit a few times and remembered almost nothing from it other than there were some cool songs and a scene about some wolves chasing people up some trees where they were rescued by some talking eagles. Suffice to say, I had no clue what so ever of what was about to happen. Two hours and fifty-eight minutes later, I was stunned. I laughed, I cried, and alot of my muscles hurt because I realized I had tensed up and not moved at all for three hours. It was a cinematic revelation. I think I saw it four more times in the span of two weeks.

Picking up where we left off at the end of The Two Towers, Saruman is defeated and the entire focus of the film shifts toward Sauron for the first time in the series. Despite the victory at the end of the second film, things have never been bleaker in the series, and Peter Jackson milks it for all its worth. There are few movies that can get away doing what Return of the King does. By the time it starts, we have already been with these characters through thick and thin for 2 years and 6 hours of celluloid (7 hours if you're a fan of the Extended Editions), so all that is left is the climax. If The Lord of the Rings is sex, then the Return of the King is a three hour long orgasm, throwing us climax after climax, money shot after money shot. It's a buildup that is all the more satisfying because we've been waiting two full years to see it. There is a particular stretch in the film, starting at about the 50 minute mark and ending at about the 2:20 mark where once Peter Jackson has us, he does not let up for an hour and half. It's an experience like almost nothing else I've ever seen in my life. Scenes of extreme pathos, followed by scenes of extreme tension, and scenes of extreme triumph. This is movie making on a grand scale, bigger than anything we've seen before. Peter Jackson harkens back to David Lean, to Akira Kurosawa with the way he crafts this film. There are shots of epic grandeur and beauty that are jaw-dropping. When Theoden gives his speech (detailed in the above quote), I wanted to jump on a horse a ride to the end of the world with a spear in my hand yelling "DEATH!" He paints with broad strokes and emotions, but it is no less the masterpiece. It is in these scenes where the technical accomplishments of this film can be felt in full force. Never, I believe, has there been a better use of model-work and CGI. There are one or two scenes here and there where it is a little obvious that there are computer effects in play (Legolas scaling the Mumakil), but the film is so gripping that you just take it all at face value. Howard Shore's score is, again, pitch perfect. He stated that he scored these films like an opera, and here we see all the themes and leit-motifs come full circle, leaving us with rousing cue after rousing cue.

I said earlier that Peter Jackson recalls Lean and Kurosawa with these films, people that imbued their epics with a profound sense of intimacy, and there is no difference here. Throughout the numerous scenes of armies clashing and cities burning, the heart of the story is still the relationships. It's still about the friendship between Frodo and Sam as they sneak their way into Mordor. Jackson puts as much into the small scenes as into the grand ones, or the friendship between Merry and Pippin, or the love between Aragorn and Arwen. The Return of the King is just as strong in the quiet moments as it is in the heat of battle. Take for example, a small scene in the middle of the Siege of Minas Tirith, where Gandalf describes Valinor and the after-life to Pippin. It's almost a throwaway scene, but it's powerful.

The entire cast acquits itself very well here, but in particular, Ian McKellan and Sean Astin rise above the rest. Ian McKellan's Gandalf is a masterpiece in and of itself. He is a man of wisdom, strength, and compassion. Sean Astin, on the other hand is essentially asked to carry most of the emotional weight of the other story line as Elijah Wood is almost completely under the ring's spell. You can see the care and love in Sean's eyes when they're on the side of Mt. Doom.

Thankfully, we are given a twenty minute epilogue that follows the characters after the War of the Ring, up to four years into the future. Giving us all the closure we could ever want. We've spent nine hours with these people, and I for one did not want some truncated and hasty ending, as has become a fad among certain people who think it's artistic or something.

It's hard to believe it's been more than three years since that night, and that the perfect ending to the perfect trilogy has already come to pass. It's bitter sweet. On one hand, the entire thing can now be appreciated in its full glory (and it is glorious), but on the other it's almost sad that the entire thing is over. There's nothing left to anticipate, except to wishfully dream that this crew comes back to do the Hobbit. Of course that will have to wait until at least after PJ finishes his tango with a giant ape named King Kong. But for now, we can sit and enjoy what is surely a landmark in cinema history. Not often do we see something that so breathlessly and easily surpasses all hype and anticipation, but that is what we have here. Jackson has legitimzed the genre and taken us into a Golden Age where we can finally see all those great fantastical stories we read as children or adults treated with respect and intelligence.

Everything Else

The rest is organized in grouped according to score then listed alphabetically.

Blue- I saw in theater
Black- I saw on DVD
**- Ineligible for list

City of God (Fernando Meirelles, 2003) ****
Finding Nemo (Pixar, 2003) ****
Kill Bill: Volume I (Quentin Tarantino, 2003) ****
The Last Samurai (Ed Zwick, 2003) ****
**The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Extended Edition (Peter Jackson, 2003) ****
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Peter Jackson, 2003) ****
Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003) ****
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (Peter Weir, 2003) ****
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Gore Verbinski, 2003) ****
Thirteen (Catherine Hardwicke, 2003) ****
Whale Rider (Niki Caro, 2003) ****

All the Real Girls (David Gordon Green, 2003) ***½
Big Fish (Tim Burton, 2003) ***½
Gerry (Gus Van Sant, 2003) ***½
House of Sand and Fog (Vadim Perelman, 2003) ***½
In America (Jim Sheridan, 2003) ***½
Intolerable Cruelty (Coen Brothers, 2003) ***½
Love Actually (Richard Curtis, 2003) ***½
Matchstick Men (Ridley Scott, 2003) ***½
Mystic River (Clint Eastwood, 2003) ***½
Open Range (Kevin Costner, 2003) ***½
Peter Pan (J.P. Hogan, 2003) ***½
Phone Booth (Michael Schumacher, 2003) ***½
The Rundown (Peter Berg, 2003) ***½
School of Rock (Richard Linklater, 2003) ***½
Seabiscuit (Gary Ross, 2003) ***½
Swimming Pool (Francois Ozon, 2003) ***½
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (Jonathon Mostow, 2003) ***½
Winged Migration (Jacques Perrin, 2003) ***½
X2: X-Men United (Brian Singer, 2003) ***½

American Splendor (Urbaniak & Friedlander, 2003) ***- Solid acting and good comedy props up a meager story that peters out before it ends.
Bad Boys II (Michael Bay, 2003) ***- Overlong, mindless, and completely morally corrupt… but one hell of a time.
The Blue Collar Comedy Tour (C.B. Harding, 2003) ***- Sue me, it’s funny.
Bruce Almighty (2003) ***- Hilarious at times, and mildly touching, but it doesn’t take advantage of its premise.
Buffalo Soldiers (Gregor Jordan, 2003) ***- The cast (Joquain Phoenix, Ed Harris, Anna Paquin) shines in this entertaining satire made in the style of Catch-22.
Daredevil (Mark Steven Johnson, 2003) ***- Entertaining(Farrell as Bullseye) more often than it is horrendous (seesaw fight), most of the movie is only harmless entertainment.
Down with Love (Peyton Reed, 2003) ***- A laugh riot parody of superficial “classic” romance films, would have been that much better without the unneeded final act.
Gods and Generals (Ron Maxwell, 2003) ***- An epic that is too all-encompassing in what it tries to show. Amazing when focused on the generals and soldiers, terrible when it isn’t. Remove the worthless fluff and you have a great film.
Holes (Andrew Davis, 2003) ***- Forgettable, but it entertained and told me a story I would have never bothered with in any other medium. A nice surprise from last spring.
Freddy vs. Jason (Ronnie Yu, 2003) ***- A fanboy wet dream for some, I thought it was a blast. But that’s it
The Hulk (Ang Lee, 2003) ***- An intelligent comic book movie that is incredibly high on style, but unsure about what it wanted to be. A aesthetically beautiful climax is also almost incoherent.
The Italian Job (F. Gary Gray, 2003) ***- Norton and Sutherland phone it in in this fun remake.
Lost in La Mancha (Fulton & Pepe, 2003) ***- An insightful and depressing look at the disaster that was Terry Gilliam’s unfinished “Don Quixote”.
The Matrix Revolutions (Wachowski Brothers, 2003) ***- It threw all the psychobabble crap from Reloaded out the window and left us with an imaginative adventure.
A Mighty Wind (Christopher Guest, 2003) ***- It wasn’t “Best in Show”, but it was another fine Guest Mockumentary. I loved the original music.
The Missing (Ron Howard, 2003) ***- A pretty good western with great atmosphere, but the story is pretty by the numbers. Maybe I’m just a sucker for newcomer Evan Rachael Wood.
Old School (Todd Phillips, 2003) ***- Will Ferrell absolutely steals the show here. Funny, but not nearly as funny as I was told it would be.
Once Upon a Time in Mexico (Robert Rodriguez, 2003) ***- Johnny Depp proves he is the man of the year by putting up another great performance in this fun but messy actioner.
Out of Time (Carl Franklin, 2003) ***- A decent thriller that manages to keep the viewer in suspense despite the outlandish plot twists. Miami is a novel setting for a film like this.
Owning Mahowny (Richard Kwietniowski, 2003) ***- Philip Seymour Hoffman owns this film. Too bad the rest suffers from a bad case of miscasting (Minnie Driver).
Pieces of April (Peter Hedges, 2003) ***- Katie Holmes shows acting chops in this solid black comedy pulled together by its beautifully emotional ending.
The Recruit (Roger Donaldson, 2003) ***- It twists and turns so much that I’m not sure it knew what it was doing, but despite this I was thoroughly entertained throughout.
Spider (David Cronenberg, 2003) ***- A solid, if slow movie (much of it spent in silence) that relies a little too much on its twist and the performance of Ralph Fiennes.

American Pie 3: American Wedding (Jesse Dylan, 2003) **½- Mildly entertaining, but there was never any reason for either of the sequels in the first place.
The Animatrix (Wachowski Brothers, 2003) **½- Some of the shorts were excellent (The Second Renaissance, A Detective Story), others were just plain useless.
Brother Bear (Disney, 2003) **½- Another “safe” ultra-cute effort from the mouse-house. The realistic animation style had potential, but it was quickly replaced as soon as the main character became a bear.
Cabin Fever (Eli Roth, 2003) **½- A typical horror movie that sometimes showed flashes that it was self-aware. I’m not a fan of the genre, so this rating shows I rather enjoyed it.
The Core (John Amiel, 2003) **½- A hilarious send up of those 50’s style b-scifi films. A completely absurd premise where every character has a sacrifice/hero complex makes this film so bad that it’s actually pretty decent.
Elephant (Gus Van Sant, 2003) **½- I understand what Van Sant was trying to do, but I was just completely bored.
The Hunted (William Friedkin, 2003) **½- A forgettable action-thriller that’s only remarkable feature is the sweet knife fight choreography.
A Man Apart (F. Gary Gray, 2003) **½- Not nearly as bad as many of the critics would have led you to believe. But it’s still too long and too unsure of itself to rise above mediocrity.
May (Lucky McKee, 2003) **½- The movie has trouble living up to its premise.
Millennium Actress (Satoshi Kon, 2003) **½- MA takes way too long to get you involved with the characters, by the time you care, the film is over. Leaving you will little in the way of poignant scenes. The two “documentarians” are simply annoying.
Northfork (Polish Brothers, 2003) **½- The Polish Brothers crafted a film that is visually beautiful but too obtuse and symbolic for its own good.
Paycheck (John Woo, 2003) **½- A competant sci-fi action film, though the premise made it come off as one giant piece of deus ex machina. I was very dissapointed with the mundane look of the future. Not much imagination.
Runaway Jury (Gary Fleder, 2003) **½- A standard Hollywood political thriller. It is mediocre in every sense of the world.
Secondhand Lions (Tim McCanlies, 2003) **½- The talents of Robert Duvall and Michael Caine are mostly wasted in this overly sentimental film.
The Shape of Things (Neil LaBute, 2003) **½- Mean-spirited, I don’t really have a rational reason for not really liking this film. I just don’t.
Shattered Glass (Billy Ray, 2003) **½- One critical darling that left me completely cold despite the above-average performances from Christensen and Sarsgaard.
Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (Dreamworks, 2003) **½- Michelle Pfieffer and Gregson-William’s magnificent score are the only things worth talking about in this lifeless film. The blend of 2-D and 3-D animation was horrid. This type of harmless fare is what “ruined” handdrawn animation.
Spellbound (Jeremy Blitz, 2003) **½- I didn’t see what was so fun about this film. Blitz seems to enjoy making fools out of the people he followed around. Still, sometimes entertaining.
Timeline (Richard Donner, 2003) **½- A movie that wasn’t nearly as bad as advertised, but it still wasn’t very good. I enjoyed watching the flaming arrows and trebuchets.

2 Fast 2 Furious (John Singleton, 2003) **- Completely stupid... but watching the cars is still fun.
21 Grams (Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2003) **- A promising production completely destroyed by a gimmicky shattered narrative.
Anything Else (Woody Allen, 2003) **- A typical Woody Allen film, too neurotic to be enjoyable. The characters stop being quirky and become irritating rather quickly.
Basic (John McTiernan, 2003) **- It twists and turns so much, becoming so convoluted, that it becomes predictable. I had some fun laughing at the absurdity of it all.
Identity (James Mangold, 2003) **- It just gets worse every time I think about it. There is not a single thing to like about this film until the twist. After that, it becomes surprisingly decent.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider- The Cradle of Life (Jan De Bont, 2003) **- Better than the original, but not by much. It tries to be Indiana Jones for women, but there is no magic to be found. The fantastical ending was a highpoint.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Stephen Norrington, 2003) **- A giant cluster **** of absurdity, plot holes, and bad twists. How does a giant submarine fit into the Venician canals? ** stars for the character of Dorian Gray, who was great.
The Matrix Reloaded (Wachowski Brothers, 2003) **- A red herring, Reloaded was made obsolete and worthless as soon as everything it built up was dropped and never answered in the finale. It sucked before that happened anyway.
Monster (Patty Jenkins, 2003) **- Charlize Theron is excellent, but it's not enough to keep Monster from floundering.
The Triplets of Belleville (Sylvain Chomet, 2003) **- Original and beautifully strange, it does not have any substance that can even fill up its 75 minute runtime. It would have worked as a short film, but as a full length feature it’s a failure.

Cold Mountain (Anthony Minghella, 2003) *½- Natalie Portman shows the only real emotion that could possibly be found in this cold (no pun intended) film, leaving you to feel each and every minute of the 160 minute running time.
Dark Blue (Ron Shelton, 2003) *½- A movie of missed chances. Instead of taking an original route and being something akin to a modern “Gangs of New York”, it uses the LA Riots as a backdrop for a lame and derivative internal affairs plot.
Looney Tunes: Back in Action (Joe Dante, 2003) *½- At some point, it becomes so self aware that you just want to turn it off, which is what I did.
S.W.A.T. (Clark Johnson, 2003) *½- It’s a neutered version of Bad Boys II. Actions films live and die by the quality of their action (obviously), and this sucked.

28 Days Later (Danny Boyle, 2003) *- A promising first 10 minutes is left for a whole lot of terrible zombie action and a lord of the flies story, all of which were embarrasingly bad.
44 Minutes (TV, 2003) *- A bad TV movie, about what I expected.
Bend it Like Beckam (Gurinder Chadha, 2003) *- There are so many bad teenage plots going on during this film that it could have been a quadrilogy of bad films. As soon as one problem is cleared up, another one begins. Soccer scenes are decent.
Dreamcatcher (Lawrence Kasdan, 2003) *- King’s books always manage to become terrible movies. An alien with a cockney accent? sh</>it weasels? You have got to be kidding me.
In the Cut (Jane Campion, 2003) *- Meg Ryan’s attempt to repeat Diane Lane’s success with “Unfaithful.” There is nothing redeeming about this film, it’s essentially a soft core porno.
The Life of David Gale (Alan Parker, 2003) *- Cheesy and about as blatant as a propaganda film could possibly get. Kevin Spacey has been making a lot of terrible career choices lately.
Russian Ark (Aleksandr Sokurov, 2003) *- A good idea, but a good idea alone doesn’t make for a good film. Ark would have no reason to exist if not for being the longest single shot in cinematic history.
Tears of the Sun (Antoine Fuqua, 2003) *- Fuqua has no command of the camera (Training Day was made good by Denzel and Hawke’s performances), and it shows in this cheap rah rah garbage.
Underworld (Len Wiseman, 2003) *- I’m running out of ways to say hilariously bad.

Irréversible (Gaspar Noé, 2003) ½*- A complete cinematic abortion, one of the worst films that I’ve ever seen.

I have seen quite a few of those on the list and I must say Lord of the Rings: Return of the King was well deserving of number one. I believe Seabiscuit should have been put up alittle higher, but thats my opinion. Nice list.

Well I disagree with a lot of those, but for the most part, you're a pretty good reviewer.

My fav. movies of 2003 (in no particular order):

1. May - just really twisted and funny.. exactly my type of movie.

2. Cabin Fever - has potential to become a cult classic. There were some parts that were also really twisted and funny.

3. Lost in Translation - Scarlett Johansson rules, and I could relate to the feeling that the movie got accross.

4. 28 Days Later - really thrilling and inventive.. I loved the soundtrack and I've never felt that way watching a movie before.

5. Spellbound - This was suspenseful, and also very interesting.

6. Monster - Charlize Theron was great.. and the movie as a whole was very gritty and compelling.

I'm glad you placed Master and Commander up there at three, but I really hate Lord of the Rings. I guess that puts me in .01% I think a lot of people overlook Master and Commander though, and those people probably never saw it in theaters. I've seen it both in the theaters and on DVD, and the experience is much better in theaters, where you're submerged in the incredible sound, effects, and atmosphere it offers.

It's hard to believe it's been more than three years since that night, and that the perfect ending to the perfect trilogy has already come to pass.  It's bitter sweet.  On one hand, the entire thing can now be appreciated in its full glory (and it is glorious), but on the other it's almost sad that the entire thing is over.  There's nothing left to anticipate, except to wishfully dream that this crew comes back to do the Hobbit.  Of course that will have to wait until at least after PJ finishes his tango with a giant ape named King Kong.  But for now, we can sit and enjoy what is surely a landmark in cinema history.  Not often do we see something that so breathlessly and easily surpasses all hype and anticipation, but that is what we have here.  Jackson has legitimzed the genre and taken us into a Golden Age where we can finally see all those great fantastical stories we read as children or adults treated with respect and intelligence. [SIZE=3]

u fucked up

Well I disagree with a lot of those, but for the most part, you're a pretty good reviewer.

My fav. movies of 2003 (in no particular order):

1. May - just really twisted and funny.. exactly my type of movie.

2. Cabin Fever - has potential to become a cult classic.  There were some parts that were also really twisted and funny.

3. Lost in Translation - Scarlett Johansson rules, and I could relate to the feeling that the movie got accross.

4. 28 Days Later - really thrilling and inventive.. I loved the soundtrack and I've never felt that way watching a movie before.

5. Spellbound - This was suspenseful, and also very interesting.

6. Monster - Charlize Theron was great.. and the movie as a whole was very gritty and compelling.

A horror fan I see... then I'm afraid we'll never agree on much of anything.

May- **1/2
Cabin Fever- **1/2
Lost in Translation- #5
28 Days Later- *
Spellbound- **1/2
Monster- **

I was expecting more out of Master and Commander. It left me with a sense of "Hey, where'd the movie go?" I hope they continue where they left off with some kind of sequel. If not, then it may sink on my unimportant list.

You can get your sig back for that, cos it entertained me for the last however many minutes of reading

My favourites from last year were Finding Nemo, Kill Bill, ROTK and Pirates. Was Elf last year too?

Oh and although I did enjoy Swimming Pool, the whole twist totally passed me by...I left completely and utterly confused. Was this because I missed the first 5 minutes?

You can get your sig back for that, cos it entertained me for the last however many minutes of reading

My favourites from last year were Finding Nemo, Kill Bill, ROTK and Pirates.  Was Elf last year too?

Oh and although I did enjoy Swimming Pool, the whole twist totally passed me by...I left completely and utterly confused. Was this because I missed the first 5 minutes?

Funny, my favorites list from last year is rather similar, though I didn't see Kill Bill (waiting until both are on DVD and watching all at once)...

I did enjoy A Might Wind, though I agree it's no Best In Show...can't wait for Guest's next film.

Thanks vTd for my first the last 1/2 hour at work this morning. Your reviews seem rather insightful, and will likely encourage me to rent some films (give them a shot) that I might have not otherwise. Also, the list I will copy and note which films I had planned on seeing that I almost forgot about.

Thanks, and the ROTK review was particularly thrilling, as that's likely one of my all-time favorite films.



Mantis, regarding Swimming Pool...I don't know if the first 5 minutes would have helped as much as watching the ending a few times...it's been a few months, and I honestly can't remember (but I'd like to be reminded)...

Perhaps vTd can explain, as honestly my memory is a bit fuzzy.

About Swimming Pool's ending...

The Publisher's real daughter is the little girl we see at the end of the movie, meaning everything that we see at the summer home never happened. It was a look at the creative process.

And I missed Elf in theaters... but the kick in the balls is they aren't releasing it on DVD until November, which I don't understand.

Hey, you're early this year! Last year it took you until August to compile the list, eh?

Anyway, I'm no film critic, and I almost always like the movies I watch, so you'll see no arguments from me. LotR is definitely #1, and your other films seem pretty spot on. Great analysis and great list!

The Publisher's real daughter is the little girl we see at the end of the movie, meaning everything that we see at the summer home never happened.  It was a look at the creative process.

Aaah I see now...so it was all in 'er 'ead! Loon.

Cabin fever was the funniest movie of 2003.

The only problem I have with this list is Pirates of the Carribean should have been higher.

^I didn't see many of those but I personally think that Seabiscut needs to be higher, X2 is exactly where it should be, and Pirates and Finding Nemo could be switched.

Pixtar's genius there still doesn't match the comical entertainment of the Toy Story pair. And as much as I'd heard about Pirates I was amazed. I expected a minorly entertaining disney attempt at an adult movie, what I got was easily the best movie of the summer.

I will say that from what I've seen in the first two Lord of the Rings film, the story is dry. It'll be that Star Wars (the first three) of this generation, maybe, but that doesn't mean that I have to like them.

Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions were okay at best and I am neither suprised nor disapointed by the fact that they didn't make the list. It's sad how bad those two are in compairison to the first one (which remains my favorite movie).

ride6

I will say that from what I've seen in the first two Lord of the Rings film, the story is dry.

Please. It's the most famous story ever.

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Thanks for the read, vtd.

Please. It's the most famous story ever.

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Thanks for the read, vtd.

Second most famous... behind some little known piece called The Bible.

and no prob.