Here is my take on what made 2007 memorable from the movie point of view. In other words, 5 years from now, this is what I believe I will still remember. This is what made movie history in 2007.
Greatest Villain: Javier Bardem chills to the max in his amazing portrayal of Anton Chigurh in the simply awesome "No Country for Old Men". Flipping a coin and calling head or tail has a complete new meaning now to say the least. Mr. Bardem is my pick for 'Best Supporting Actor' and I will be quite disappointed if he does not nail it.
Most Unforgettable Movie: "Le Scaphandre et le Papillon" (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) Director Julian Schnabel is the master of his domain and astounds with this very effective, impressive, and original adaptation of the true story of Elle editor Jean-Dominique Bauby who suffered a major stroke leaving him with near complete paralysis except for his left eye. The cinematography is quite extraordinary as well and Janusz Kaminski managed with significant success to make us see the world the way a one eyed completely paralyzed man does.
Greatest Ending "The Mist" ends with a bang, a real effective one and it literally takes the movie to new heights beyond that of 'a well made horror movie'.
A Must See in Class "Into the Wild" is based on a true story of Christopher McCandless following his decision to abandon all materialism and live on his own in the wild. It offers fabulous scenery and a great soundtrack but I have serious problems with the main character as his whole master plan is flawed. In reality I find his decisions selfish, inconsiderate, unwarranted, and foolish not to mention fundamentally shaky. You can't simply devise a plan to abandon society and execute this plan through products of society like trains, and working at Burger King.
Great Horror: Two movies come to mind here, "The Orphanage" and "The Mist".
Bringing Alzheimer to the Masses "Away from Her" takes us the world of Fiona Anderson, an Alzheimer patient that falls in love with a fellow 'facility' inmate. And for the first time, we have a glimpse of what Alzheimer really is and what does to patients and their loved ones.
True Stories that Matter "Le Scaphandre et le Papillon" (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly), "Persepolis", "Into The Wild", "American Gangster", and "Charlie Wilson's War" are all must see movies that are based on true stories relevant to our day and time.
Shining light on Neglected History Ang Lee's "Lust, Caution" takes place in World War II in Shanghai China and portrays the horrific atrocities committed by the Japanese on the people of China.
Fabulous Animation "Persepolis" is a extremely well done and wonderfully animated tale of an iranian girl torn between her inability to live in her homeland and to fit in Europe. The animation is very simple and is by no means high tech yet it is extremely efficient. Doubt that Disney or Pixar could have done a better job.
Philip Seymour Hoffman Mr Hoffman steals every scene he's in all of his 3 movies this year, "Charlie Wilson's War", "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" and "The Savages". Most notable is his portrayal of CIA director Gust Avrakotos in "Charlie Wilson's War" where he outshines Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. I think of Mr. Hoffman as one of the greatest talents on the sliver screen today.
Afghanistan "The Kite Runner" and "Charlie Wilson's War" gave us a glimpse of Afghanistan at two different periods, during soviet occupation and later on under Taliban rule. One may argue that lots of what was depicted in "The Kite Runner" happened because, "Charlie Wilson's War" folks f***ed up the endgame.
Great points you raise in your article that sum up 2007 on the big screen!
Good choice of movies..you obviously are a good movie critic..a lot of your favorites are actually nominated for many things on the upcoming Oscars…We shall see if your Greatest Villain Javier will go home with an oscar…he is so freaky, I thinks he deserves the title!