December 2010
LIST: FAVORITE FILMS OF 2010 (SO FAR)
This year was, if you dug deep enough, an abnormally beautiful year at the movies. Probably the best since 2007. Not only were there the great art house films like Black Swan and The American, but there were plenty of memorable blockbusters, comedies, foreign films, documentaries and, well, so on. Enough talk, let’s get on with it; here they are, my so-far Top 25 films from 2010 (plus nine additional lists):
Ten Favorite Films of 2010 (So Far):1. Un Prophete - Not just my favorite of 2010 but one of my new all-time favorites, Jacques Auidard’s fifth film is his by-far best, telling the story of a convicted felon and his unlikely rise to power while in prison. The endlessly soulful performance by powerful lead actor Tahir Rahim is one of the best I’ve ever seen and easily my favorite of this still-young millennium. The music, the editing, the photography, etc. is all so good. If you see one movie from 2010 - and have a brain that you like to use - make it Auidard’s epic gangster/prison classic. 2. Inception - John Ford. Then Akira Kurosawa and Orson Welles. Then, of course, Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg and even Quentin Tarantino and Michael Bay. Now: Christopher Nolan. I’m talking about is the progression of movie magic. Filmmakers who have crafted pictures that were, at their time, so big, impressive, magical and unthinkable that everything else of the time looked, by comparison, simple. Nolan’s latest film somehow tops his last (The Dark Knight), standing as one of the most complete and masterful all around productions of all-time. That something so strange and artful did so well amongst both critics and crowds is somewhat confusing. That so many also seem to denounce it is, for cinephiles, a comfort. A complex art house epic dressed up as a summer blockbuster … who’d have thunk it? 3. The Social Network - My third viewing of this masterpiece from director David Fincher was the one that mattered. Sure, the direction is smart and clean and the acting is spot on. Sure. But it’s Aaron Sorkin’s masterful adaptation of Ben Mezrich’s book that makes this film an instant classic. Rarely will you see writing so precise anywhere in modern pop culture. Everything else about the production, from the score to the cinematography, being so spot on doesn’t hurt either. 4. The American - As much a Western as it is a spy story or nuanced art film for fans of cinematography, this, the second work from director Anton Corbin (Control), feels very retro, very European. The story is small and has been told many times before, but add a cool leading man (George Clooney), a visually masterful director, an Italian beauty (Violante Placido) and countless breathtaking locations (Castel del Monte) and you have a tight, satisfying story that simultaneously feels classic, familiar and new. Corbijn, simply puts, speaks the language of film. 5. Black Swan - A gritty, nightmarish look at the behind-the-scenes life off competitive ballerinas, Darren Aronofsky’s highly stylized fifth film is his best work since Requiem For a Dream, the movie that earned him a lifelong pass behind the camera. The style, as expected, is amazing, detailed and unique. What really pushes this very simple story beyond the competition is the acting, most notably by leading lady Natalie Portman, who gives the performance of her career and the most memorable from a female lead since Audrey ... (Continued)
LIST: FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2010
1. Deerhunter: Halcyon Digest - Of all the lists I’ve made here at the end of 2010, this one, usually the most stressful, was surprisingly the easiest. The easiest because, in my opinion, of the many great albums released in 2010, Deerhunter’s third national release was the by-far best I heard. Brainchild Bradford Cox here perfects his hazy bedroom version of indie rock, effortlessly adding some of the more mellow and nuanced elements from Logos, his recent Atlas Sound album, with the more rock-based approach of Deerhunter. The result is a varied-but-cohesive collection of moments that take from (and build on) the work of many of the greats of indie rock past. Hidden in the details is both the scope of late-90s Radiohead and the oddball pop understanding of 90s underdogs like Pavement and Built to Spill. A new must-own record made perfect for fans of both classic-era college rock and modern real deals like Animal Collective and Arcade Fire.
2. The National: High Violet - It’s always nice when a band you love, a band you think has already hit their peak, blows your mind. This rare occurrence happened to me before High Violet’s opening track, “Terrible Love,” was even half way complete. I’ve read many times over how The National have, with this record, completed some sort of trilogy they started with 2005’s Alligator. I couldn’t disagree more. Violet is, to me, a whole new era for the band. An era where very thick, detailed and ingenious compositions (as well as the band’s best ever lyrics) change their status from stellar also-ran to era leader. High Violet, stuffed full of perfect compositions, is the kind of record I return to every few weeks to judge the greatness of my current rotation against. Needless to say, most everything pales. A new classic.
3. Sufjan Stevens: All Delighted People EP - The most curious release of 2010, ADP was released at first as a download-only record with no advance press. Eventually the album was released on CD and LP, still classified as an EP despite being long enough to warrant four 12” record sides. The songs are long, the album cover is a mess, the sound is new and the title track appears twice. All that said, the strangest factoid about ADP to me is that people, in large, seem to very much prefer Stevens’ “proper” 2010 release, The Age of Adz. Granted, I love Adz too, but All Delighted People is Stevens’ best-yet record, showcasing what he does best while also flirting with new directions. Hopefully, in the tall shadow of Adz, ADP doesn’t end up a forgotten record.
4. Yann Tiersen: Dust Road - Known mostly as the Frenchman who scored Amelie, Yann Tiersen’s first proper Stateside release has more in common with a Godspeed or Silver Mount Zion record than it does the sound of Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s quirky classic. Guitars, mostly, take the place of accordions and harpsichords. The songs armed with multiple movements and boasting big, grand arrangements that often feature full choruses and string arrangements, Dust Road is the great (mostly) unheard indie release of 2010. Everyone I know who has heard the record loves it; everyone else? Well, hmm … they‘re probably busy ... (Continued)