freakishly prompt - embracing my inner weirdo

52 movies in 52 weeks

in 2004, i decided that i would try to watch 52 movies in 52 weeks (that's one movie per week, every week, all year). i'd subscribed to an online DVD-by-mail service, so i meant to make the most of my $20/month subscription fee. i think i did pretty good...

1. morven callar (02/15/04): slow, strange. it lost all thought provocation after the first half. i can see why the arts community rave about it, but i think it's out of the reach of average sensibilities.
2. lost in translation (03/20/04): i'm glad i tried hard to avoid the reviews, the previews, the ads, the trailers, and the oscar hype for this film. i'm also glad in the snippets i did see, they never revealed the real story. it's so much more than just a man suffering culture shock. it's an amazingly touching story about people connecting and letting go. i wish i knew what he whispered in the street.
3. the last samurai (06/18/04): it's a beautiful ode to the way of the samurai. i wasn't entirely pleased with the ending, but i thoroughly enjoyed the ride. hai.
4. spirited away (06/19/04): i loved this movie. i thought i'd like it, but i really loved it. i almost forgot it was animated. it was lovely. simply lovely.
5. the house of sand and fog (06/27/04): i think i'd like the book much more. that being said, i did feel the pride, frustration and desperation of the characters. the acting was odd; while one character seemed too subdued, another was over-the top. i wonder if the director did that on purpose or if he just didn't have enough control.
6. big fish (06/23/04): very sweet, very beautiful. i didn't cry as much as i thought i would.
7. bruce almighty (02/15/03): you know, i liked this movie much more than i ever though i would. jim carey was just jim carey enough, not completely over the top as he's been in the past. the best part though: morgan freeman. i'd convert if i could be guaranteed he's really god.
8. alex & emma (04/11/04): very sweet, very predictable, still enjoyable.
9. finding nemo (05/22/04): stop following me! hehe. yeah, i can't believe it took me so long to see this movie. it's awesome, dude. like, whoa.
10. don't say a word (06/12/04): brittney murphy plays crazy really well. yeah, that's about it.
11. the others (08/10/04): i knew the twist before i watched it, but i still managed to enjoy it.
12. all the real girls (03/28/04): i'm surprised that i could love white trash so much. not the film, the characters. i kept trying to figure out just where people live like that to avoid it. that being said i cried a lot, mostly because i was jealous of the tenderness between the lead characters. then i got uncomfortable because the betrayal hit a little too close to home. i'm not sure i really understood what the ending was supposed to explain, but i would watch it again.
13. monsters ball (07/05/04): words cannot express how much i didn't give a flying fuck about the characters, the story or the entire film. not for one second did i believe halle berry was anyone but halle berry (she acted more when she received the oscar for the role (why did she win an oscar? why?!)). billy bob was billy bob with hair. and puff daddy was, well, puff daddy with hair. there was so little character development everyone was wooden and flat. why was this acclaimed? please, someone enlighten me.
14. kate & leopold (05/16/04): it was fluffy fun! it's a testament to hugh that even meg's new duck lips didn't distract me entirely from his charm.
15. spellbound (06/16/04): i think i was expecting more because everyone raved so much about it. it was entertaining, but i mostly came away with the feeling that i've completely wasted my life and i have absolutely no drive to accomplish anything. uplifting.
16. the royal tenenbaums (06/13/04): i enjoyed this much more than rushmore, that's for damn sure.
17. o (05/01/04): it felt a little... terse. which, considering it's based on shakespeare has got to be the weirdest description ever. it was okay. i don't think i'd recommend it for anything other than julia stiles' smile.
18. life as a house (10/23/04): i'm not sure why it deserved an R rating (other than the implied homosexual prostitution), but i cried through its entire predictible two hours, goddammit. hayden should have stuck to misunderstood, angry, young men instead of... wait, that's just what george lucas was going for. it's all so clear to me now!
19. the count of monte cristo (06/13/04): took too long to get interesting. took too long to end once it stopped being interesting. saw the ending coming a mile away. all i could think every time the count appeared on screen was "hey, that's jesus!".
20. frailty (08/15/04): awful. bad. bad, bad, bad. slow, boring, bad. yuck. it took me two days to finish watching it. bill paxton shouldn't direct, nor should he hire an editor who doesn't know how to cut a film. bad. ptooey.
21. the majestic (08/16/04): a little long, but very emotionally rousing and just plain beautiful to watch.
22. snatch (07/03/04): i only have two things to say: i loved it and thank goodness for mickey-only subtitles.
23. swordfish (02/04): i happened to notice that this was on the tv channel that doesn't edit out boobs and profanity so i set up the vcr to tape it. gah, what a waste. the introductory scene was very promising. i loved johnny's monologue about the media and it's effect on terror. then it went for shit. you know, i think i hate halle berry. she's a crap actress who's got 'tude written all over her face since she won the oscar. don't waste your time with this one. her boobs aren't even worth it.
24. 15 minutes (12/04/04): okay. not great, not bad. just okay.
25. planet of the apes (2001) (02/04): oddly satisfying for a remake. maybe it helped that i've never seen the original in one sitting or maybe tim burton turned the premise on it's head in just the right way. i still want to know how the apes manufactured all those uniforms and other household goods. i didn't see a factory anywhere.
26. chocolat (10/31/04): very interesting. it kept me in a time warp. i can't imagine little villages like that still existing. i want to be judy dench when i grow up.
27. pearl harbor (09/18/04): very long, historically improbable and josh hartnett only has one fucking facial expression.
28. wonder boys (08/22/04): strange, yet lovely. stellar cast. slightly familiar story. good laughs. dead dog.
29. tomb raider 2: the cradle of life (01/17/04): if you liked the first tomb raider, then you'll like this one better.
30. bring it on (06/12/04): very entertaining and i honesty didn't know which way it was going to end. that doesn't happen very often.
31. ~~suicide club~~ - unavailable.
32. dr. t & the women (08/24/04): three things: very weird; texas scares me more now; and, farrah fawcett's breasts still look fabulous.
33. the sea is watching (10/23/04): beautiful, japanese film taking place in a geisha house. tragic and lovely, like most japanese film.
34. red planet (08/28/04): it felt like they were trying to get too much done in 106 minutes. that being said, it was somewhat interesting. just remember to suspend your disbelief.
35. apartment hunting (11/06/04): i hate to say it, but it was far too canadian to be any good.
36. the order (09/18/04): it's not the prophecy, but i liked it. i actually wouldn't mind a sequel.
37. dirty pretty things (08/07/04): i had no idea what this was about before i watched it. it was very well done and very enjoyable. it's definitely not amelie II.
38. le divorce (09/18/04): a little slow, a little "uh, what's the point?", but not any kind of stinker.
39. bollywood/hollywood (09/18/04): delightful, wonderful, fun, funny, entertaining, amazing, great!
40. punch drunk love (11/07/04): didn't live up to the hype; but, i really did enjoy the way it looked.
41. gangs of new york (11/07/04): i'm never watching another fucking scorsese film. EVER. ugh.
42. bend it like beckham (03/25/04): fun, energetic, sweet, funny. i'm not a ~~soccer~~ football fan, but man that girl can handle a ball. i wonder if she had a footwork double. not very intellectually challenging, but good for a vacation from serious thought.
43. basic (10/30/04): twisty ending. i love middle-aged john travolta so much more than 1970's john travolta. the blonde chick's southern accent kept disappearing.
44. matchstick men (04/10/04): good acting, telegraphed twist. two thumbs up.
45. identity (11/21/04): i enjoyed this quite a bit. of course, what could go wrong with a movie starring john cusack? the right-before-the-real-ending really got me. so did the real ending. two thumbs up!
46. the human stain (11/22/04): slow and only slightly interesting. what a waste of such great actors. why did nicole kidman try to be meg ryan? coleman's story was much more interesting than any of the rest.
47. elf (11/25/04): fun for the whole family, but not as laugh-out-loud funny as i thought it would be.
48. mona lisa smile (03/20/04): i love julia roberts. i love maggie gyllenhaal. i love julia stiles. i think kirsten dunst, while a great actress, looks evil. it was a very nice film. i cried at the right spots. it's so hard for women of my generation to connect with the culture which that film depicts. we weren't raised to be married and have children. we get to watch the film and nod and say "yes, that's a shame. all those women wasting their potential." and feel very superior.
49. paycheck (06/11/04): nice fake train in the tunnel. that's about all i can say. entertaining, but way too long and the more i look at it, the more uma's nose freaks me out.
50. runaway jury (05/01/04): there wasn't much of a twist. you knew they'd stick it to the bad guys in the end.
51. love actually (06/12/04): i laughed. i cried. i sang. i sighed. my heart soared. my heart broke. this is probably one of the best movies on this list. see it. that's an order.
52. in the bedroom (12/05/04): one of those movies that just tells the story, until it acts like a movie.

i'll need more weeks this year:

53. the singing detective (11/29/04): weird and i couldn't finish it. weird. icky weird.
54. the photographer (01/18/03): a dark, yet hopeful film which seems to inspire finding yourself and what you love to do. a journey for an artist and three strangers through one new york night, with sunrise bringing the return of hope.
55. s.w.a.t. (02/15/03): you'd think with all that shoot-em-up it would move a lot quicker. surprisingly disappointing. maybe it was the lack of naked colin farrell.
56. intolerable cruelty (03/27/04): not quite what i imagined, but intertaining. i could swim in george clooney's voice. did you notice catherine's trachyotomy scar? love billy bob. i guess i don't have much to say about the story. hm.
57. intacto (03/28/04): i picked this up on a whim. a spanish film about luck and fate and how far people will go to test both. i'm not sure i "got" all of it, but it was interesting nonetheless.
58. thirteen (05/01/04): this was kind of hard for me to watch. i remember all too well the rage and angst of being a teenager. what i couldn't "get" was the extent of the debauchery. i'm long past 13 and i still haven't done half the things she got into. are kids really that fucked up now or was it artistic license?
59. win a date with tad hamilton (05/15/04): i want to win a date with topher grace!
60. an evening with kevin smith (06/27/04): i fucking love this man. you will too. watch it.
61. girl with a pearl earring (07/02/04): excellent, beautiful.
62. 50 first dates (07/04/04): adam sandler's not so annoying when he's not yelling like a moron. good, clean fun.
63. the butterfly effect (07/29/04): who knew ashton could actually act? by the way, if you can, watch the director's cut version. it's got a much darker, yet better, ending.
64. 13 going on 30 (08/12/04): i love jennifer garner. i love happy endings. i loved thriller. all around good time flick.