TALK TO ME.  Pretty darn good, not quite great. Cheadle is of course awesome, and Chewitel has been one of my favorite actors for a while now. They nailed that 60s/70s gritty urban funk cold. Never heard so many N-bombs in my life (made me think Tarantino consulted on the script). I was sort of just expecting a black version of Private Parts, all fast-talking ex-con, but it had resonance.
TEETH. I'm reminded of Jaws, where you want to see the shark, but it's more suspenseful when you don't. This gets at the core of some Freudian male fears and female insecurities. The kid from Nip/Tuck was pretty creepy as her step-brother. I wonder how many sequels we're in for.
TENACIOUS D IN THE PICK OF DESTINY.  I am a huge fan, really, from the HBO series to the first album and tour, etc. Which does not explain why I skipped it theatrically, other than I just didn't think it looked very good, and the soundtrack sounded thrown together. It's pretty entertaining, it's just that there were so many places where they could've upped the funny factor considerably. I hate to think this is the definitive D movie. If they did a whole series of adventure flicks I could be more forgiving, but I doubt they'd make another one unless Jack's career tanks (not likely) and they do some direct-to-video stuff. They did say they'd drafted like four scripts and just picked one.
THANK YOU FOR SMOKING.  Lots of plot holes, but I enjoyed it so much I was able to look past most of the flaws. Had a real Election vibe in the visual style that I really liked. Great cast. I mean, Sam Elliott as an aged Marlboro Man? Brilliant!
THERE WILL BE BLOOD.  The greatest acting performance ever committed to celluloid, and I don’t mean Paul Dano (miscast). When Daniel Plainview says he’s “an oil man,” you believe him wholeheartedly. His utter selfishness and heresy make for a tragic character whom you can’t remove your eyes from. P.T. Anderson is one of my heroes, and this film did not call attention to itself with his usual cinematic flash, though the photography is beautiful and natural.
THE THIRD MAN. Awesome. The music, though, sometimes it was just perfect, but that major-key main theme that kept cropping up was so un-noir it felt out of place. And I didn't like that the main character was such a putz. Orson Welles was great, and his greatness is amplified by the fact that he's barely there, that buildup to his introduction.
THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED. I didn't get to see it theatrically for obvious reasons, and it's a genius title. Really pricks the balloon of the MPAA, and the bastards deserve it. Sure, it's nice to have some guidelines for parents as to what may or may not be appropriate for their children, and if there was any consistency this might be okay, but their schizo interpretation has zero consideration for precedence, especially when it comes to R versus NC-17 ratings. I also wouldn't have so much of a problem with it if they weren't in bed with the studios, and studios refusing to release movies that are NC-17. My favorite part (which is in the Deleted Scenes, actually) is when the great piracy watchdog MPAA admits to making an illegal copy of the film. And of course their ridiculously conservative suggestions for edits throughout.
TIDELAND. I can't say it was awful, but it put me to sleep halfway through, and then I caught the last 30 minutes. Basically once Jeff Bridges's (who continues to defy typecasting) character, um . . . did his impression of his wife's performance in The Door in the Floor (for which I still maintain a better title would've been Kim Basinger's Vagina), I lost interest. That kid turned in a tour-de-force, though. Gilliam's stock is highly unstable, and I can't imagine what it must be like trying to work with him.
TOP GUN. At the time, this film was completely tainted by my contempt for its star. When asked if I'd seen the latest Tom Cruise vehicle, my reply would inevitably be, "Oh, you mean the one where he's the young hotshot who plays by his own rules, alienates everyone around him, and gets the girl in the end?" And then ever since Jerry Maguire, I've placed him among our finest actors. His performances were never to blame, it was just the persona-defining roles I despised. Anyway, this movie's clichés are still unnerving (Hot Shots actually plays on some parallel track in my brain while watching), with the forced machismo and forbidden romance and Tony Scott's grad-filtered skies. To their credit, the film is technically well made, exciting, and it does have a certain timeless quality about it (as do most military films).
TRANSFORMERS. A visual feast, no doubt, and my eternal whipping-boy Michael Bay did a much better job with the characters in the first half than usual (Shia saves this movie), but it devolves into comic-book melodrama once it goes full-on action. They should've simplified the robots; while they're beyond awesome, there's just too much detail, and when they're fighting each other it's a total mess. Bay should stay away from directing/development and be a DP or something. And what the fuck happened to "You've Got the Touch"?? Man, I wanted to hear this song, even if performed by Dirk Diggler.
TRANSSIBERIAN. American missionaries get tangled up with suspected drug mules and murder aboard the infamous train bound for Moscow from Beijing. Claustrophobic and paranoid, the fish-in-foreign-water scenario adds to the film's tension, along with its shady characters and bleak skies. As usual, director Brad Anderson emphasizes atmosphere and subtext to invest the viewer. Ben Kingsley and Emily Mortimer are terrific.
TROPIC THUNDER. Solid comedy. Downey, Jr. steals his scenes as a method Aussie playing a soul brother, while Jack Black's skills are somewhat wasted. I'd like to have seen more of the behind-the-scenes moviemaking before the principals are dropped into the shit, but I guess the second act's gotta start sometime. The best thing is the trailers that precede the movie, promoting previous films made by the "actors." That, and an excellent supporting role featuring a megalomaniacal studio head.
TRUE ROMANCE. One of my favorite flicks in college, fro when I first started taking such things seriously. I still love it, but the *SPOILER* Mexican stand-off at the end is predictable and cheesy. And the lame happy ending. Oh, and I absolutely hate that music theme that runs throughout, like a recycled "Music Box Dancer." But otherwise, classic. The scene with Hopper and Walken is a staple of acting workshops, and this may have been the film that really cemented Gary Oldman at the top of my list. I mean, the guy's played: a pimp, Beethoven, Sid Vicious, a dude with his face eaten off, Commish Gordon, Dracula, Lee Harvey Oswald . . . and each with a unique accent, it seems.
TSOTSI. Now this is a character with an arc. Hardcore gangsta finds infant in the back seat of a car he stole, and caring for it causes him to make life changes. It’s beautifully shot, volatile, and full of heart. One of the best films this year.
THE TV SET. A small-scope flick that seems more like a made-for-cable thing, but it had lots of great moments. The humor hit really close to home – even if you've never tried to get your pilot produced and picked up by a network – for anyone who's ever compromised their creative vision for those in power. Sigourney Weaver is perfect, as is Judy Greer, and Duchovny does well enough. Worth a Netflix peep or catching it on the tube.
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