mixtapes & cupcakes

being a film major, my whole life pretty much revolves around cinema, and sad enough to say it, 2009 wasn’t it’s greatest year.  i’ve seen most of the movies that are getting oscar buzz and i wasn’t really impressed with any of them.  now, there are a few films i haven’t seen that might be good (nine, inglorious bastards, where the wild things are) and there are some films i wanted to see, but didn’t get the chance too (new york i love you, its complicated, a single man, the imaginarium of doctor parnassus) but other then that, i’ve pretty much seen it all.  so just because i won’t mention up, broken embraces, up in the air, the hangover, etc…on this blog, doesn’t mean i didn’t see it, because i did, i just didn’t find anything special enough to talk about.

my music of 2009 post is out of pure enjoyment, but i will be in debt until the age of 203 because of my education telling me whats right and whats wrong with cinema, my cinema of 2009 post is extremely technical.  i’m just programmed that way.

now that you understand where i’m coming from, let’s get started! also feel free to click on names and watch the trailers.  the post is going to go a little something like this:

there there some movies i finally saw this year that weren’t new…harold and maude- as soon as i walked out of the screening of harold and maude, i instantly knew that it would be one of my favourite movies for the rest of my life.  first, its hysterical!  harold’s endless attempts at suicide are so funny, you wonder how he’s going to try it next.  maude is a free-spirited, loving woman that is full of life.  the chemistry and love between these two opposites are so wonderful not to mention a great score by cat stevens.

the apartment- made in 1960, this film is so clever and the writing is really phenomenal.  jack lemmon lends out his apartment to his co-workers so they can have affairs, meanwhile he climbs up the social ladder.  all is good until the head boss wants to sleep with the woman lemmon’s secretly in love with.  a must see!

some kind of wonderful- a lot of celebrities passed away this year, but none will be as heartbreaking for me as john hughes.  as a filmmaker, he is my idol and what i strive to be.  i never really knew why i didn’t get around to watching some kind of wonderful, that is until john died and i realized its so i can still introduce myself to some of his work (since no more is to come.) john still holds an element of mystery for me.  some kind of wonderful isn’t his best by any means, but it’s fun and i can totally relate to watts!  (the downside, amanda jones bangs are so awful. see how she’s covering them in this picture!?!? it’s because they are horrible!!!  where was the films hairstylist?)

i found these movies to be worst than 17 again and medea goes to jail.

that should be saying something………

taking woodstock- hey i got an idea!  let’s make a movie about drugs and hippies and bisexuals and promote it as being about woodstock, but not really show anything about woodstock…

funny people- guess what?  not funny.

g.i. joe- even channing tatum and sienna miller in tight leather didn’t save this film.  HELLO? CHANNING TATUM and SIENNA MILLER in LEATHER. awful storyline, awful chemistry and direction, not to mention awful acting, but that’s not really a stretch for the two of them, now is it?

these films were neither awful or great…

the time travelers wife- with the exception of pride and prejudice this novel by audrey niffenegger is probably my favourite book.  it’s so beautifully written and of course books are better than the films, but let me tell you why this one is.  there are some story lines and characters in the book that are so wonderful.  reading about claire growing up and henry’s visits are so very special and beautiful, and also hearing both of their perspectives.  you don’t get that in this film.  i love the story so much though, i can’t say the movie was horrible, because it wasn’t, but skip the flic and read the book.

julie and julia- julia’s story was really great and filled with laughter and stories of paris, julie’s story was crappy about a lackluster relationship and whiny woman.  and that’s how this film is so-so.  (they also ended on a freeze frame and unless you’re judd nelson that is a big NO-NO!)

whip it- roller derby is awesome and so was juliette lewis.  drew barrymore’s character was not needed and i don’t care for ellen page.  there is a really fun make-out scene however…

district 9- okay, maybe because i have a y chromosome i didn’t think this film was fully amazing and awesome and kick-ass.  but seriously, if you took your girlfriend on a date to this film, then shame on you.  first off, i don’t want to see guys fingernails and body parts falling off.  secondly, aliens=shrimp, or prawns.  thirdly, did you really have to say that the man was doing it “doggie style” with these “prawns?”  i don’t care that this man/prawn was blowing everyone up.  i don’t care that it’s the humans that were the bad guys.  i don’t really care about anything at all to deal with this film.  i hadn’t been that pissed off leaving a theater since cloverfield.

the brothers bloom- written by rian johnson- a story about to two brothers that are con men- as the audience, you are constantly guessing if you’re being fooled or what you’re watching is for real.  i love second guessing myself.  love it!  the writer didn’t care if i would be smart enough to get it or not, and i think that’s a really wonderful trait to have as a writer, to not guess the intelligence of your readers.

avatar- written by james cameron- i’m not on the avatar high horse like everyone else, but the story was extremely emotional, and also by the end of this film you despise your own race, and that’s a pretty powerful thing to do and i seldom see it in movies.

(500) days of summer- written by michael webber & scott neustadter- first time writers!  woah!  you really got the realism and depth of relationships and why they don’t work out.  it’s cutesy antics mixed with painful truthfulness and they blend perfectly.  not to mention that line zooey deschanel says at the end of the film.  if you’ve seen it, you know what it is.  WOAH.  now if that doesn’t kick you in the gut, then you’re not human.

star trek- written by roberto orci & alex kirtzman- i’ve never, ever seen star trek before.  all i knew was that it was about some guys on a space ship fighting the evils of the universe.  so this film is the first of anything i’ve seen, and i completely got it.  i understood it, i was excited about it, and i loved each and every character.

maybe these supporting actors weren’t in the spotlight, but they still did one heck of a job!

paul schneider (bright star)-

hands down, probably the best acting i saw from anyone in a film in 2009.  you mean to tell me this was the hippie in elizabethtown?  he was beyond brilliant!  his character was an @$$ and as soon as he came on the screen you’re insides turned because you loathed him so much.  really, his acting was phenomenal!

alfred molina (an eduction)-

i don’t have many positive things to say about this film, but i do remember walking out and thinking, “hey, he was pretty darn good.”  he plays a stern and protective father, yet lovable and knowledgeable at the same time.  his character had many layers and he played each one really nicely.

nick frost (pirate radio)-

i’m not going to say his acting was brilliant, but like no other character, i always lit up when he came on the screen.  he was charming, funny, and there is just something about him that makes you want more.

anthony hopkins (city of your final destination)-

this film was released in 2o07, 2009, and still to come in 2010.  no one really knows when this film was/or will be released, but i saw it in 2009, so there it goes.  the movie was pretty lackluster, but anthony hopkins playing an old and wise homosexual was actually really refreshing to see from him.

supporting actresses who deserved just as much screen time as the leads…

laura linney (city of your final destination)-

she was a b***h, and a very good one at that.

charlotte gainsburg (city of your final destination)-

theoretically she would be the lead actress, but there wasn’t really a lead actress, so i put her here.  charlotte is always lovely to watch and i thought her character was like watching poetry.

paula patton (precious)-

everything paula patton has ever been in, i thought was just alicia keys trying out her acting skills.  lol.  i’m glad i got that straightened out!  i felt her acting was very believable and relatable.

peter sarsgaard (an education)

i realize that his co-star carey mulligan is getting all of the attention (who was so-so in the role, i much prefer her as kitty in pride and prejudice however) but let’s not forget peter sarsgaard here.  i mean this is the guy who was smoking bongs and robbing graves in garden state! come on people!  watching him in this proves to me that he can actually act!!!  he’s charming and mysterious.  now that that’s said, i was extremely disappointed in this film!!

joseph gordon levitt ( (500) days of summer)

again, this was the kid in 3rd rock from the sun.  after seeing him in brick (which i didn’t like) and this, it proves to me that he can act.  sure he might always be that cute, charming, emotional guy, but at least he’s a good one.

hugh dancy (adam)

i didn’t come out of the film thinking “wow!  hugh dancy was great!!!” but then i thought about all of the other roles he’s played like in confessions of a shopaholic, the jane austen book club, ella enchanted (and the list of bad films goes on, although i secretly love 2 of those films) and you know what?  he WAS great in adam.  it’s far away from his confident, sexy, stunning self he usually plays.  so i applaud you hugh dancy.  maybe stick with the less attractive roles and you might actually make it in this business as a respectful actor.

bryce dallas howard (the loss of a teardrop diamond)

you know, this film seemed like a lifetime movie from the start, and although i am programmed to not like this film, i can’t not like this film.  there is just something about this movie that keeps me thinking about it.  bryce dallas howard was so lovely in this film.  she was the happiest girl in the world on the outside and the saddest on the inside, and i thought she portrayed it so well!  you wanted to be everything like this character and nothing like her at the same time, and i think that’s how every character should be.  if you’re 100% in love with them, something is wrong, there is no room to grow or for improvement, and i don’t think that’s a bad thing at all.

meryl streep (julie and julia)

when i was younger meryl streep would piss me off so bad for being nominated for every single thing she was in, and now that i’m older i can clearly understand why.  the women is a genius (adaptation is on the top of my list for meryl) and i really hated julia child growing up.  i thought she was creepy and gross, and meryl made me love julia.  so thank you.

sandra bullock (the blind side)

i did not like the blind side.  i do not like sandra bullock.  and to top it off, i didn’t really care for her character much.  so why is she on my list?  sandra acts the same way in every single movie.  i’m just watching sandra bullock as an undercover cop one day, and sandra bullock as an l employee another.  here sandra is driving a bus, and here sandra plays a mean canadain trying to get her green card.  do you get my point here?  but in the blind side, for the first time in my entire “growing up with movies starring sandra bullock” life, i didn’t see sandra bullock as a country soccer mom, no.  instead i saw a country soccer mom, and THAT is why sandra is on my list.

mo’nique (precious)

if mo’nique does not get an academy award for this film, then i would seriously question the academy.  did i like precious?  it was okay.  sure the acting was great, the directing was great, the writing was great.  but overall, and call me awful, i wasn’t that entertained (not that precious is suppose to be an entertaining film, but it is possible to be entertained in a certain way about an overweight girl with an abusive mother, and this was not it.)  mo’nique however was so over-the-top, phenomenal, and brilliant as an abusive mother (does that sound awful) i mean this lady does stand up comedy for crying out loud.  don’t even put in the effort, just go ahead and give her the oscar.

so before we get to the best movies of 2009…

i’m not really sure if 2010 should be judged by these films (because i’m sure they will be awful) but that doesn’t mean i can’t get excited about them!!!

released: march 26th

john cusack returning to the 80′s?  what could possibly go wrong!?!?  (according to this trailer and my subconscious, a lot of things) but one can still dream of boys in trench coats with peter gabriel lullaby’s, can’t we?

released: april 16

not to be cliche, but this film does look pretty kick ass.  the thought of nicholas cage being in a decent film is non-existent in my mind though…so we’ll see.  regular trailer below, red band trailer below that (which is way cooler) but its also called red band for a reason meaning don’t watch while you’re at work, if you don’t like violence, or if a potty mouth upsets you.  (but you’re really missing out)

as warned before, this is NSFW

released: february 12th

i really hate scary movies, and i really hate movies about mental institutions.  but i really love martin scorsese and i really love leonardo dicaprio and i really really love the two of them together.  so i guess i’m just going to have to suck it up.

released: march 12th (limited)

i have a bone to pick with ben stiller.  i think he makes the worst movies ever (with the exception of tropic thunder, and even then i hated his character) but……this looks pretty darn good.

released: april 16th

jennifer lopez somehow sucks me into her sucky films, and more than usually i keep continuing to watch them and subject myself to these awful stories.  when it comes down to it though, i’m a girl, and sometimes i want to watch a girly movie, whether it’s good or bad.

released: may 28th

hot guy, explosives, jerry bruckheimer, love story, da*m it i’m sold!

lastly, if you’re extremely bored with nothing to do and enjoy the occasional average film, then going ahead and watch all of these trailers too: salt, knight and day, toy story 3, letters to juliet, sex and the city 2, repo men, why did i get married too (it’s personal and a little bit epic,) the last song, date night, alice in wonderland, valentine’s day, leap year, extraordinary measures, when in rome– there, go knock yourself out and be occupied for 30 minutes.

not to mention that the trailer for macgruber is yet to be released, but it’s something i’m keeping my eye out for.

so here we go, the whole point to the blog.

directed by: ken kwapis — starring: jennifer aniston, ben affleck, jennifer connelly, bradley cooper, scarlette johanson, drew barrymore (and more and more)

–so it’s not going to go down in history as one of the best chick flics by any means.  but it’s still funny, and cute.  each character is interesting and seeing how everyone connects is fun too.  if you liked this movie?  read the book!  better yet, read the book as an overweight black woman would.  you’ll be rolling in your chair!!

directed by: ron clements and john musker — starring: anika noni rose, bruno campos, jennifer cody

i’m a sucker for disney animated films.  sure up was cute, but traditionally animated disney films are just magic!  i loved the story, i loved the animation, i love princesses.  case closed.

directed by: rian johnson — starring: rachel weisz, adrian brody, mark ruffalo.

this movie didn’t care about the audience, or what majority wants.  it just be’d what it was meant to be.  it was told how it was suppose to be told, and not for a certain demographic.  and i love that.  was it confusing?  heck yes.  but that just means that it was different.  i feel like so many films go by a certain outline these days and this one didn’t.  it’s was beautiful, poetical, and original.  thank you!!!  (plus bang bang is such a cool character!)

directed by: richard curtis — starring: phillip seymore hofman, nick frost, rhys ifans, bill nighly, etc.

the ending was a complete and total cop-out!  whew!  i’m glad that’s off my chest.  but that doesn’t excuse the fact that a.) each and every character in the film was awesome, funny, and loveable.  b.) why are we all not living on a boat? and c.) radio is the most kick ass job in the world.  as far as capturing the vibe and love for radio, this film did it perfectly.  yes– radio is like that.  yes– people at radio do those thing.  yes– you should be jealous of us.

directed by: jane campion — starring: ben whishaw, abbie cornish

this film got a lot of good reviews, and a loooot of bad ones too.  i like to agree with the former though and stay on the more optimistic side of life.  the film is about poetry, so it plays like poetry, it speaks like poetry, and it sounds like poetry.  both in the physical and spiritual sense.  it stuck with me– for some reason.  i really feel as if i should not like this film, but i do like it and i don’t know why.  and maybe that unknowing is why i would recommend you to watch it.

directed by: j.j abrams — starring: chris pine, zachary quinto, zoe saldana

that’s right.  i put it on here.  why?  because star trek rocked!!!  i’ve never seen star trek and always considered myself as a star wars gal.  but wow, this film was action packed, had great characters, a great story, it was entertaining, designed well, etc.  fun from start to finish.  so if you need 2 hours to get your mind off of things, this is the film to do it!

directed by: sam mendes — starring: john krasinski, maya rudolph

this was a treat.  i never really wanted to have kids until i saw this film.  john krasinski is the most charming guy ever (not that that’s a stretch) but his character’s want and sincerity to have a child and be a great father is so heart warming.  i don’t care much for the side stories or side characters, but this couples journey to become parents and be happy is really beautiful to watch.

directed by: max meyer — starring: hugh dancy, rose byrne

as soon as i walked out of the theater, if you asked me this would be my number 3 movie of the year, let alone even on my top 10 list, i probably would have said no.  but as each day has passed, the more and more i am so in love with this film.  it’s beautiful and soft and small and happy and sad, all into one.  you fall in love with adam, and you want adam to have the best life ever, but he can’t, and you understand that too.  this movie is such a gem and i really encourage you to watch it.  you might not be head-over-heels in love with it first, but give it time and you will see.

directed by: john hamburg — starring: paul rudd, jason segel

can i be a dude for a day and do dude things like this?  this movie is sweet, funny, and very loving.  it makes me happy to know that males can bond with each other just like females can.  this duo is so perfect for each other.  from the rush sessions, to the nicknames, and that lizard smoking a cigarette.  i love it all.  i love this movie, i love this story, and i love you man.

directed by: mark webb — starring: zooey deschanel, joseph gordon levitt

make me fall in love with you, then break my heart, rip it out, step on it, stick it back in, and let’s do the whole joy ride over again.  call me cliche because every young/art kid is in love with this movie.  but i am in love with this movie.  and i can’t do anything about it.  everyday we all want to meet our soul mate, right?  and there can only be one, so we meet thousands of people all the time, who can’t be our soul mates.  and why not?  what are the rules?  why can’t that guy across the street and i be together for the rest of our lives?  well, this movie explains why, and also makes me mildly content with why.  it’s beautiful and it’s sad.  but isn’t that life in general?

and so you have it.  2009 cinema in a nutshell.  i would like to add that my sister’s top two films of 2009 are:

so maybe if you’re a normal person who doesn’t go to film school, you shouldn’t take my list so seriously.  but i pay a lot of money for formal education, so then again, why wouldn’t you take my list seriously?

xoxo.lindsay