5 for 2005

From the start, it was because my friend sent me his top ten list, and that's why I made mine. That exchange continued for a couple of years. This year, however, I'm only doing a top... 5 favorites. For one reason or another in 2005 I watched roughly half the movies I normally catch, and therefore coming up with a top 10 list felt a little laborious.

Here goes...

1.
- La Nina Santa or The Holy Girl, Lucrecia Martel, Argentina: I admit that this movie probably might not deserve the top ranking treatment it's getting here (I am sure Chrissy liked this flick too, but even she would be surprise I put it at the top), but it's fun and engrossing, and a very different sort of moviemaking than what's generally out there these days. That it ultimately ends up working on a more minor scale, rather than as a "statement", is... well, ok. Early-teens are such an awkward time period.

2.
- Terrorizer, Edward Yang, Taiwan: This movie was where, years ago, I realized that Mr. Yang was special. Images are pulled together and built up and molded until they become amazement.
- Professione: reporter or The Passenger, Michelangelo Antonioni, USA: Anything Antonioni is special. Many exceptional sequences and moments in this journey.

3.
- Good Men, Good Women, Hou Hsiao Hsien, Taiwan: The finale to Hou's masterful history of Taiwan update/cycle.
- Masculin/Feminine, Jean Luc Godard, France: I don't know, the fact that this movie has dated less than perfectly may have led to my overcompensation for its good intentions and the parts that do work well.

4.
- Cinevardaphoto, Agnes Varda, France: Idiosyncratic, playful, and somewhat precious. Perhaps a little lacking in apparent "gravity"; it's charming and perceptive nonetheless.
- L'intrus or The Intruder, Claire Denis, France: Ms. Denis brings her viewers to learn about and experience the mysteries of this movie together.
- Kung Fu Hustle, Stephen Chow, HK: Buddha Palm's newest follower.
- Revenge of the Sith, George Lucas, USA: At last, a good Star Wars prequel.

5.
- Born into Brothels, Ross Kauffman and Zana Briski, USA: Serviceable doc technique by two do-gooders. All kids are precious and cute, even kids of whores.
- Nenette et Boni, Claire Denis, France: Gregoire Colin with hair and screened for free too!
- The Squid and The Whale, Noah Baumbach, USA: This movie reveals why kids spending time in the library might not be the best idea.
- 2046, Wong Kar Wai, HK: Retro pop cool, dipped in color, chain smoking, - must be WKW.

Honorable mentions
- Vital, Shinya Tsukamoto: A little slow, but that it's a sincere love story of sorts, I'll put it here.
- The Constant Gardner, Fernando Meirelles: I like Rachel Weisz, and the love story is interesting enough. Though I still think Meirelles sucks.
- Upside of Anger, Mike Binder: Binder shows some promise and the largely chick cast worked nicely.
- In Good Company, Paul Weitz: Another Hollywood flick, but I do like Weitz's earnestness (more so than the actual execution).

Not honorable enough mentions
- Nobody Knows, Hirokazu Koreeda – I wasn't amazed enough, the artsy touches and tone didn't go well with the relative gravity of the subject, and at the same time the subject was sort of tv-movie-of-the-week-ish.
- Taipei Story, Edward Yang – A lot of Ed Yang signature touches, but I don't feel his full style came together enough in this early movie.
- Head-On, Faith Akin – Turkish immigrant story. It was sort of promising, but didn't feel good enough.
- OldBoy, Chan-wook Park – Stylish, sadism, & nihilism. No thanks.
- Izo, Takashi Miike – I should give extra credit for Miike's boldness, but I think the experimentation and concept might simply be beyond my comprehension.
- Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan – This could have been good, but it wasn't.
- The Beat That My Heart Skipped, Jacques Audiard – I don't like vanity vehicles generally, so I wasn't too impressed by Romain Duris' star turn.
- Jarhead, Sam Mendes – Certain images reminded me of Beau Travail, that was cool. Otherwise, this movie was sort of whatever.
- South of the Clouds, Wen Zhu – That I barely remember any detail about this Chinese movie (even if I remember liking the movie generally) sort of forces this movie into the also-ran section.