Was 2006 a good year for movies? I don't think so. Sure most of the big budget wide release pictures were perfectly fine, but they really failed to push the envelope. Average is the word that springs to mind for most of the "good" movies I have picked this year, and hell even coming up with a Top 10 of movies I really enjoyed was difficult. If it wasn't for the fact that Munich and Jarhead came out in 2006 over here in the UK this list could have been even worse....
The Departed is one of the finest pictures of this decade. It is truly amazing. Sitting in the theatre back in October, I could feel "death" hanging over every minute of Scorsese's masterpiece and an intense black cloud hung over every character and scene. This is a man's man's film, a fine edition to Scorsese's catalogue, and one that I am going to revisit more times than I would probably like to admit in the coming years. The biggest compliment I can give
The Departed is that it's the most entertaining Scorsese picture he has ever made. Not on par with
Goodfellas and
Taxi Driver, but I have a sneaking suspicion it may soon become the one I will watch the most times. Great job Marty, I hope the Oscar comes to you this year!!
The Prestigewas the movie I was most looking forward to in 2006 and
Christopher Nolan really didn't let me down when it came to game time. Superbly directed with another fine performance from
Christian Bale (although
David Bowie stole the show for me), Nolan continues his cinema of obsession but this time on a much more frightening and deadly scale.
The Prestige is one bleak film,
Top Ten Movies of 2006
10.
X-Men 3: The Last Stand -
Brett Ratner Much better than I thought it would be this time 12 months ago but still a big drop from Bryan Singer's X-Men 1 and 2. Too many characters, weak plot and some actions from characters that I don't agree with from a movie rushed into production. Still, an entertaining movie albeit with a watered down version of a killer X-Men story.
9.
Mission Impossible III -
J.J. Abrams Wow, this movie was going a 100mphs but I think that was to it's credit. It's such a small plot that by having the non-stop action like it did you didn't mind. Cruise is still the master, Hoffman was awesome and needed more screen time and Abrams did a good job of basically directing a 2 hour length episode of Alias here. When movies with problems entertain me as much as this, I gotta praise it rather than diss it.
8.
Jarhead -
Sam Mendes Released this year in the UK, I really enjoyed Mendes' spin on this genre. A different type of war picture, but one that I think carries an important message that you can definetly relate to our current problems with Iraq. Mendes didn't quite make it a hat trick knockout of 5* movies, but I'm not complaining when a movie is this good.
7.
V for Vendetta -
James McTeigue Again, released this year in the UK, V for Vendetta was (for the most part) a faithful adaptation of one of my favourite "non-superhero" graphic novels. Hugo Weaving nails V but Natalie Portman once again nearly ruins it with her weak acting. Some fine visuals, but a badly put together film from a first time director (especially pacing wise) but one that I never thought would be able to be made from an Alan Moore novel.
6.
Munich -
Steven Spielberg First movie I saw this year and for a good 6 or 7 months it was right at the top. Spielberg has grown up here, and made a totally adult themed flick which had some of the most tense "Hitchcockian" scenes of film this year. Daniel Craig, Eric Bana and Geoffrey Rush were off the charts awesome and this is easily the best directed Spielberg film since Schlinder's List.
5.
Clerks II -
Kevin Smith The funniest film of the film year hands down and one that shows Kevin Smith growing not only as a storyteller but as a film-maker also. Probably the film I can personally relate to the most and IMO is galaxies ahead of the original movie.
4.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest -
Gore Verbinski Loved it even more the second time. Not as good as the original but still much better than a Disney Pirate movie should have any right to be. Don't like the direction they seem to be taking Jack Sparrow in, and Orlando Bloom is pointless for me in this series and Davey Jones isn't as interesting as Barbosa but the movie is still lots of fun. Great adventure flick.
3.
Pan's Labyrinth -
Guillermo del Toro Del Toro's best film to date and the only foreign movie I ended up seeing this year. Great cast, great story, some fucking incredible set pieces including the creepiest scene of the year and one of the most tense involving the Fascist Spanish captain. 2.
The Prestige -
Christopher Nolan The movie I was most looking forward to in 2006 and one that didn't let me down one inch. Superbly directed with another fine performance from Christian Bale (although David Bowie stole the show for me) and a movie that got me excited and at times in complete awe of what Nolan was presenting to us. If Sam Mendes struggled to make it a knockout 3, Christopher Nolan made it a knockout 4/4 (yes I really like Insomnia, go figure!)
Matt's worst Movie of the Year
Confetti -
Debbie Isitt I only went to see this because my girlfriend has dreams of being a wedding planner. The movie is mostly "improvisational" which only enforced my view that movies are scripted for a reason. A quote from Robert Webb who is one of the actor's who appeared in the movie says it all "
"I had a miserable time making it and I think the finished film is an underwhelming mess." The Rest of 2006 The Good The Bad The Ugly 16 Blocks Devil Wears Prada Cars The Break-Up Lucky Number Slevin D.O.A.P. Casino Royale Scoop Final Destination 3 Da Vinci Code Silent Hill Fun With Dick and Jane Deja VU Starter For Ten Miami Vice Inside Man Superman Returns Nacho Libre Lake House World Trade Center Night at the Museum Over The Hedge Poseidon Slither Renaissance United 93 Movies I missed that might have made the list (others I didn't see and not listed didn't stand a chance e.g. You, Me and Dupree) The Black Dahlia (
read about that here), Borat, Crank, Children of Men, Flags of our Fathers, Little Miss Sunshine, Marie Antoinette, Monster House, The Queen, A Scanner Darkly, Snakes on a Plane, Stranger than Fiction, The Hills Have Eyes, Lady in the Water, Hollywoodland, Brick
Movies that didn't get a fucking U.K. release in 2006 Apoclaypto, Blood Diamond, The Illusionist, The Fountain, Rocky Balboa, The Science of Sleep
Is their any movies that you think really shouldn't belong on my list? Did I get it wrong with anything, either good or bad?What's your favourite film or top 10 list of movies you have seen in 2006? Do you think it was a good year for film? Expect a 2007 preview article around New Year, it promises to be an exciting 12 months ahead.