The State of Movies--2005

It's nearly November, and I've only seen fifteen movies this year. By this time last year I had seen 23 of the year's releases. I can attribute some of this year's decline to writing a thesis and discovering Bollywood, but I've been done with my thesis for a couple of months now, and while I love Bollywood, I still crave and love to watch Hollywood movies. So I've decided that the problem isn't that I was super busy for a few months or that I watch 2-3 Bollywood movies a week--sometimes even two a day (BW movies average 3 hours in length, btw). The problem is that Hollywood doesn't release their good films until October. And this year there are fewer movies I want to see--or at least fewer movies I'm willing to spend $9 or $10 dollars to see. But I have seen a few films I've really liked, so I present my Top Ten of 2005 of the 15 movies I've seen.

Not making the list (from worst to not nearly as bad): Elektra, Star Wars: Episode III--the Revenge of the Sith, Rory O'Shea Was Here, Bride and Prejudice, and The Upside of Anger.

10. Just Like Heaven, starring Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo.
When I saw the trailer for this movie I thought it looked cute even if the premise looked stupid. But a couple of recommendations from some trustworthy friends and my undying crush on Mark Ruffalo won out in the end. And what a delightful movie this was! I won't spoil the film or why it works, but if you want to see a movie that will make you laugh and smile, go see this film.

9. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, and Freddie Highmore.
Linsey forced me out of my apartment this summer to watch this movie, and I had a great time! The problem with remakes or new adaptations of a novel is the movie will always be compared to the first film. I haven't seen the Gene Wilder version since I was a wee lass, so fortunately I couldn't compare the two. But Tim Burton is a genius with color and the bizarre and Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka is wonderfully creepy. Go see it just to watch dolls burn!

8. Salaam Namaste, starring Saif Ali Khan and Preity Zinta.
This might be the first anti-Bollywood Bollywood film, meaning that SN is very much a Bollywood film but feels a lot like a Hollywood film. For some fans of Bollywood, this westerinzation ruined SN in their estimation, but I don't think a movie has made me laugh so much this year. I still have the songs "Salaam Namaste" and "My Dil Goes Mmm..." in my head (and I don't even own the soundtrack--yet). I saw this on opening night with a theater packed with Indians. I might have been 1 of 5 persons in the room out of 300-400 not of South Asian decent. Scott and I had a blast, even if we were in the front row!

7. Fever Pitch, starring Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon
OK, so I'm a sucker for Rom-Coms, but as I've said before, this year has generally sucked. FP isn't as good as Nick Horby's memoir of his obsession with the Arsenal football club in England, but it is better than the other adaptation of the book starring Colin Firth. But for an obsessive, er, passionate, person like me, this movie is a lot of fun.

6. Saving Face, starring Joan Chen, Michelle Krusiec, and Lynn Chen
Few people have probably heard of this delightful film about a Chinese family coping with their anti-traditional children. But see this film! It isn't about a lesbian daughter coming out to her family and community. It's really about the relationship between mothers and daughters and finding the courage to live. Watch out for a short homage for The Graduate--one of my favorite parts of the film!

5. Bunty aur Babli, starring Abhishek Bachchan, Rani Mukherjee, and Amitabh Bachchan.
My first Bollywood film in the theater remains one of my favorites for this year! It's sort of Bonnie & Clyde meets Catch Me If You Can. It's a lot more fun if you've seen Amitabh Bachchan's early movies, so you can understand the disguises Bunty, played by Bachchan's son, Abhishek, pulls off during the film. But I haven't seen any of Amitabh's early work, and I still loved this movie. Abhishek and Rani are so good together. The songs are also brilliant.

4. Black, starring Rani Mukherjee and Amitabh Bachchan.
Black is essentially a Bollywood remake of The Miracle Worker, about the life of Helen Keller, but that shouldn't diminish the beauty that is Black. Rani Mukherjee is brilliant as Michelle McNally, a woman deaf, blind, and mute. Amitabh Bachchan is also good as Michelle's no-nonsense, washed up teacher. But apart from the film's strong performances, Black is a visual masterpiece, typical of all of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's films. It's amazing what DP Ravi K. Chandran does with shades of black, gray, and white.

3. The Constant Gardener, starring Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz.
Who says art doesn't have the power to effect social change? TCG is an eye-opening film about the evils of government and coporate alliances. Told mostly in flashback, Fernando Merielles follows his brilliant Cidade de Deus (2002), with first- and third-perspective narrators. And though Ralph Fiennes is great in this movie, Rachel Weisz steals the film with her bold performance.

2. Parineeta, starring Saif Ali Khan, Vidya Balan, and Sanjay Dutt.
How Saif Ali Khan manages to make you like his character is beyond me because Shekkar isn't someone I'd usually root for. But then, we like Shekkar because Lolita (Vidya Balan) loves him, and she is the heart of the film. And Balan is revelatory in her first film, giving Lolita subtle grace and strength. Like Black, Parineeta is a visual masterpiece, relying on shades of yellows and golds. It's really a shame India didn't submit this for the 2006 Oscars.

1. Crash, starring everyone.
I don't know that I've seen a movie so honest about humanity. There are no good guys or bad guys in this movie--just people who have been conditioned to be afraid of what/who they don't know. See this film now!

There's still more I want to and will see. I'll wait until the year's end to present my final Top Ten list!

As for me, I'm in San Francisco this weekend!