Too-smart-for-his-own-good high schooler Brendan Frye (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is happy keeping to himself. The day his ex-girlfriend Emily (Emilie de Ravin) goes missing, however, he must use his keen intellect and the help of a guy nicknamed The Brain (Matt O'Leary) to track her down, all while keeping the vice principal at a safe distance. Soon Brendan is navigating through the school's tightly knit social groups and trying to find clues among the jocks, burnouts and cheerleaders. This movie steals from other movies. But so what? It steals all the right stuff, and from old noir films, Blue Velvet and everything in between. But what's best about it is how it could have taken some obvious mainstream turns — modern "teen movie" slang dialogue that would have been dated in five years, a cruddy alt-rock soundtrack or easier plot paths — which would have turned it into a bigger movie that would have sucked. As it is, it went down a few idiosyncratic paths and made itself essential viewing, and now it's the coolest high-school movie since Heathers.
09. UNITED 93 (D: Paul Greengrass)
This docudrama tells the story of the passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93, the fourth plane hijacked on Sept. 11, 2001. Told in real time, the film re-creates the doomed trip, from takeoff to the hijacking to the realization by those on board that their plane was part of a coordinated attack against the United States. I haven't seen a movie this deeply upsetting in years. And I can watch just about anything. Here's the thing: It's very well-made and resists exploitation at every turn. And even though a lot of it reads as speculation (there's a scene in which the passengers appear to be killing two of the terrorists), it's not wildly propagandistic. But the last 30 minutes are so gut-wrenching and unbearable — the final cockpit-eye view of the plane hurtling toward the ground is especially horrifying — that it brought me to tears. It's the best-made film I never want to see again.
08. A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION (D: Robert Altman)
A radio variety show that's managed to survive the age of television faces its last performance when home station WLT is sold to a Texas conglomerate. On a rainy Saturday night in St. Paul, Minn., fans crowd the Fitzgerald Theater to see "A Prairie Home Companion" for the final time. Starring in the show are the Johnson Sisters (Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin); Yolanda and Rhonda, a country duet act; Dusty and Lefty (Woody Harrelson and John C. Reilly), two cowboy singers; and more. Meanwhile, the backstage doorkeeper (Kevin Kline) and a pregnant stagehand (Maya Rudolph) have plans of their own. This movie is Stop Making Sense for people with mid-management spread. It's a sweetly humane, bluegrass, warm 'n' fuzzy, story-time concert film with fictionalized moments about aimless gumshoes, beautiful angels of death and corporate evildoers. Nothing much happens because it's a Robert Altman movie, but you won't care, really. "Nothing" for Altman (on a good day) is more entertaining than "something" from most Hollywood hacks.
07. NOTES ON A SCANDAL (D: Richard Eyre)
When Sheba Hart (Cate Blanchett) joins St. George's as the new art teacher, Barbara Covett (Judi Dench) senses a kindred spirit. But Barbara is not the only one drawn to her. Sheba begins an illicit affair and Barbara becomes the keeper of her secret. I love trashy exploitation films, and I especially love them when they dress themselves up in tweedy Britishness and flaunt Oscar-grubbing actresses in your face to make it all seem more significant than it is. It wants to be a thrilling portrait of obsession, but what it reminded me of most was Windows. 06. CHILDREN OF MEN (D: Alfonso Cuaron)
Based on a P.D. James science-fiction novel, Children of Men is set in a futuristic dsytopia where humankind is on the brink of extinction and a sole pregnant woman holds the key to survival. A disillusioned bureaucrat (Clive Owen) and a woman from his past (Julianne Moore) are tasked with shepherding the pregnant woman to a secret organization that's been researching how to restore fertility to the world's population. They're calling it Children of Men, because if they'd called it Brutality, Misery, Depression and Suicide, fewer people would probably want to see it. All that's missing from the future shock is gangs of roving zombies. Anyway, it's still a lot of fun and one of the greatest science fiction stories ever put on film. It's a moving experience hard to stop thinking about once you hear the children laughing over the first credit.05. PAN'S LABYRINTH (D: Guillermo del Toro)
First, if you've seen the trailer for this movie, then you still have no idea what you're in for. They're selling it as pure gothic fantasy. And it's much different than the one you've been led to buy a ticket for. Here's what really happens: In 1944 Spain, a tormented child, trying her best to save her mother and unborn sibling from the clutches of an evil captain in Francisco Franco's newly installed Fascist regime, realizes that the only way through the brutality of the real world is to submit to the rules of a demanding horned creature from the parallel fantasy world. She has to complete three impossible tasks to satisfy the creature and outsmart the bad guys, or else her life may end fatefully. Do not, I repeat, do not take kids to this movie unless you're somehow convinced of their innate worldliness, knowledge of the Spanish Civil War and its dour aftermath and ability to withstand nightmare-inducing horror. Because more than anything, this is a frightening, brutal adult fairy tale that really takes its cues from old-school fairy tales in which something evil never fails to befall hapless innocents. It's violent, creepy and unlike anything you've seen in a while. It's also insanely imaginative and beautiful - a masterpiece!04. LITTLE CHILDREN (D: Todd Field)
In a suburban town, two 30-somethings (Patrick Wilson, Kate Winslet) have early midlife crises and suffer through personal breakdowns and infidelity. As one would expect, the man's jilted wife (Jennifer Connolly) isn't exactly happy when she finds out about the affair. The situation only gets worse when a child molester (Jackie Earle Haley) moves into the neighborhood. It turns out Todd Field takes the opposite road than he did in 2001's best film In the Bedroom because in this wonderful dark adult tale is told in the light of a children's book and in the end is just another terrific example of exceptional storytelling. Winslet, Haley, Wilson, Connelly, and a smaller role by Phyllis Somerville are just a small example of why this film is Oscar-worthy in all respects. It's a terrifically jolting, disturbing, and lovely tale and one to think about long after you hear the squeaking swing of a playground.03. SHERRYBABY (D: Laurie Collyer)
Three years after entering prison for robbery as a 19-year-old heroin addict, Sherry Swanson (Maggie Gyllenhaal) begins her first day of sober life by trying to regain custody of her daughter, Alexis, who has been cared for in her absence by her brother, Bobby (Brad William Henke), and his wife, Lynn (Bridget Barkan). Maggie Gyllenhaal proves exactly why she is the Meryl Streep of her generation in this poignant and emotionally flawless slice of life in the eyes of a bold but put-down woman. Jolting, stunning, and exceptionally performed by supporting players Henke, Barkan, and Giancarlo Esposito. But Gyllenhaal gives one of the three greatest performances ever put on film! And this movie is so astonishing thanks to her.02. THE DEPARTED (D: Martin Scorsese)
Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) is an undercover cop in South Boston assigned to infiltrate a mob syndicate run by a boss named Costello (Jack Nicholson). Meanwhile, a young criminal, Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), has embedded himself in the police department's Special Investigation Unit. Both their lives become endangered when the two organizations realize they have moles within their ranks. Tired of really dull Martin Scorsese movies, like Gangs of New York and The Aviator? Fed up with his leading man of choice, Leonardo DiCaprio? Wish they'd both just go away? Well, they're back. But this time, it's a good movie. Really good, in fact. The kind of crime drama Scorsese knows best. It's tense, it never gets bogged down and you won't notice that two and half hours have passed when the final credits roll. And did I mention it's one of Scorsese's very best? That means a lot!01. LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (D: Michael Dayton and Valerie Faris)
The Hoover family (Alan Arkin, Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear and Paul Dano) and their 7-year-old, Olive (Abigail Breslin), travel from Albuquerque, N.M., to the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in Redondo Beach, California in this amazingly wonderful comedy classic! This is the coolest, smartest, funniest movie I've seen so far this decade! I suffered through other people telling me this and building it up for me until I knew it couldn't compete with its own hype. In fact, I was distrustful because I've already seen enough pageant parody to last me a lifetime. But they found a new way, one that's fresh and shocking and sweet, all at the same time. The best film of the year and the comedy of the decade!
