Around this time last year, we did a mid-year stocktake of sorts, wherein the site’s various contributors named the best (and worst) of what the cinematic year had presented thus far. You may have noticed that we haven’t offered up a similar piece for 2009. Time constraints may have had something to do with it, but given the slow start we had to the year, I suspect regular readers won’t have found it particularly hard to pick our favorites from the crop.
As we’ve made clear on these pages, Kris and I are united in our admiration for such 2009 releases as “Public Enemies” on the large end of the scale, and “Sugar” on the much, much smaller end and, of course, “The Hurt Locker” somewhere in between. On our own individual tangents, Kris loudly declared his love for “Star Trek,” while back in May I went to bat for Olivier Assayas’s gorgeous “Summer Hours” – with the caveat that it wasn’t a 2009 release for me at all.
(Release dates play havoc with such lists – using the U.S. release calendar as my guide, I could just as well hand year-best status to something like “Hunger,” if I hadn’t already done so in 2008. Even in the list below, I’ve technically cheated three times by including films that saw the light of day in my neck of the woods last year.)
In any case, all of these are films that, wonderful as they are, either have already built devoted critical and/or public followings, or (as in the case of “Enemies”) hardly need further exposure. (Do you really need one more critic this summer to remind you about the wonders of Pixar?)
So for this week’s list, I thought I’d do things a little differently by singling out the Stateside releases from 2009’s first 6 months that haven’t got the response they deserved – whether from audiences or from critics or, in several cases, both.
I’d hesitate to call them the year’s “most underrated,” necessarily – a couple of them are specialist items that are rated very warmly indeed by critics, but still haven’t been championed to the extent of certain similarly-scaled peers, and consequently never garnered word-of-mouth traction with audiences. On the other hand, we have something that found favor with the public to an extent, but was needlessly lambasted by the critics. Why can’t we all just get along?
I don’t make claims for greatness in this list: several of the entries are flawed 3-star (or even 2.5-star) efforts that I can’t imagine cropping up in my year-end list considerations. But they all, I believe, bring something of value to the table that escaped the notice of a large faction of viewers – and deserve a second chance on the small screen. Needless to say, subjectivity is the name of the game here … as the bruised reputations of several titles here show, this man’s meat is many a man’s poison.
10. “Donkey Punch” (Olly Blackburn)
A low-budget slasher pic named after a violent anal sex maneuver, and released Stateside in the cinematic purgatory of January, Blackburn’s deeply unpleasant yet rather clever debut feature was never destined to be embraced by all and sundry. But I’m slightly surprised that, after acquiring a measure of cult cred on its UK release last summer, American genre aficionados didn’t really take to this one. Still, before going off the rails in its last act, this tale of vacationers gone bad shows real wit and discipline, as well as insight into the socials ills of Brits abroad. Look again.
9. “Sunshine Cleaning” (Christine Jeffs)
It’s possible that my viewing of Christine Jeff’s amiable character comedy last weekend benefited from greatly diminished expectations, given the number of critics who wrote it off as a toothless knockoff of “Little Miss Sunshine,” a film I’m less than crazy about in the first place. As it happens, I understand, and share, a lot of their reservations: the quirk is indeed overly calculated and Megan Holly’s script spiders in too many inconsequential directions. But I’m surprised more hasn’t been made of the two sparkling lead performances: Amy Adams and Emily Blunt have genuine comic chemistry and their sisterly dynamic is surprisingly affecting. Watch it for their sake.
8. “Tokyo!” (Michel Gondry, Leos Carax and Joon-ho Bong)
Portmanteau films are almost always interesting-but-bumpy viewing experiences, if not due to the wildly variable quality of the individual contributions, then because of the opposing aesthetics of the participating directors. So it’s to the credit of “Tokyo!” that it assembles the talents of three filmmakers whose sensibilities are intelligently matched, even if the returns aren’t equal. (Bong’s contribution is the weak link here.) The project is worthwhile if only to get Carax back in action for the first time this decade, but the gem is Gondry’s sweetly fantastical short about a young apartment-hunting couple that plays like a parallel-universe redreaming of “Away We Go.”
7. “Lemon Tree” (Eran Riklis)
40-something Palestianian thesp Hiam Abbass was one of the great crossover discoveries of last year as she illuminated Thomas McCarthy’s “The Visitor.” It’s probably thanks to that exposure that we even got a chance to see her wrenching, film-carrying turn in this impassioned study of Palestinian-Israeli conflict, but many of her newfound American admirers could be forgiven for not noticing the film amid the dearth of promotion. As a humble rural worker whose livelihood is threatened when the government declares her lemon grove a security threat, Abbass earned a European Film Award nod last year; further recognition likely won’t come her way, but that’s not her failing.
6. “The International” (Tom Tykwer)
I’m not sure whether the fact that I’m more of a Tom Tykwer apologist than most – I stand by his Kieslowski interpretation “Heaven” as one of the most misunderstood films of the decade – made me more or less well-placed to appreciate this unexpected foray into overtly mainstream territory. Either way, I think his elegantly steely corporate thriller got the short end of the stick back in February. Admittedly too muted and leisurely to live up to its action-oriented marketing to many audiences, it nonetheless boasted a number of ingeniously conceived set pieces – the Guggenheim sequence is one of the year’s finest so far. Dig it out on DVD and be surprised.
5. “12” (Nikita Mikhalkov)
Amid the specialist-circuit attention given to the awards-buzzed likes of “Gomorrah” and “The Class” back in February, few noticed as Mikhalkov’s film, one of the previous year’s surprise Oscar nominees, quietly slipped onto U.S. screens. Even more surprising, however, was that it was really rather good indeed. A remake of “12 Angry Men” from the long-slumping Russian veteran not known of late for his subtlety may have sounded like a recipe for disaster, but in politically recontextualizing the familiar story (and allowing it to breathe at a generous 160-minute running time), Mikhalkov renewed its – and his own — relevance.
4. “Chéri” (Stephen Frears)
I’m already on the record as defender of Frears’ film, whose critical and commercial reception seems to have suffered from misplaced expectations – neither the sweeping, awards-driven costume drama implied by its production values nor the frothy period rom-com the marketers tried to sell it as, it’s a low-key, melancholy relationship story with a boldly bitter aftertaste. Critics complaining of the film’s slightness and emotional remove would probably have similar reservations about the film’s literary source, to which it hews remarkably close; meanwhile, Michelle Pfeiffer’s award-caliber performance deserves to weather the indifference to the film itself.
3. “O’ Horten” (Bent Hamer)
One of my longest standing, and ultimately wholly misjudged, predictions of the last awards season was that Hamer’s moving, quietly wry study of old-age defiance and disorientation would find favour with the Academy’s foreign-language branch. I remain surprised that it didn’t: for all the eccentric absurdity of its comic style (the film’s skewed worldview lies roughly halfway between Jacques Tati and Roy Andersson) , there’s a humanity – even a touch of sentimentality – here that seems to speak to a range of audiences. (The ones who bother to seek it out, at least.) A straightened-out Hollywood remake would not surprise me in the least.
2. “He’s Just Not That Into You” (Ken Kwapis)
No other film on this list has met with as much critical disdain as this one, perhaps not surprising given the oppressive ubiquity of the book that inspired it, not to mention the presence of now-resident critical punchbags like Scarlett Johansson and Ben Affleck. I fail to understand the vitriol: the film I saw was a smart, self-assured effort, more ambitious and inquisitive than any other mainstream rom-com of its ilk in recent memory, boasting a keen, engaging lead turn from the wonderful Ginnifer Goodwin, and bright support from Jennifer Aniston and Kevin Connolly. Yes, its insights are glibly presented, but they’re there nonetheless. I’m into it.
1. “Julia” (Erick Zonca)
That a film with pockets of critical support as ardent as this one is sitting on a paltry Metacritic rating of 58 proves why the industry places far too much stock in silly review-scoring sites. Not that greater critical consensus would entice any more viewers to this giddy, prickly and ultimately rather brilliant melodrama that borrows a central conceit from John Cassavetes’ “Gloria” (female mobster goes on the lam with kid) and pushes it into dreamy arthouse country. Graced with a masterful, possibly career-best performance from Tilda Swinton that merits serious Oscar consideration (BAFTA predictably missed their shot last year, though the Césars didn’t), this one’s a grower.
Agree? Disagree? What favorites of yours do you think got short shrift in 2009 so far? Have your say in the comments section below!
Comments
39 responses to “THE LISTS: Top 10 first-half releases that deserved better”
I have wanted to see Julia, 12, O’Horten, and Chéri, but they haven’t come anywhere near me. Shame.
Just yesterday i saw “Julia”. Great movie, Tilda is incredible. I’m surprised as you are about the low score at Metacritic, btw.
I’ve also seen “Lemon Tree” and I agree that Abbas has a great performance.
Anyway, my two cents.
Just a few comments, otherwise the list looks like I would’ve made it myself:
– I didn’t like too much Sunshine Cleaning: maybe I expected something else, but it was just meh. I liked Emily Blunt though. Also, it made the most money as of now, so I wouldn’t say it was underrated at least by the audience.
– Haven’t seen “He’s Just Not That Into You” – maybe I was put off by critics, I never even dreamed of going to see it. I’ll give it a chance when it arrives to DVD.
– I absolutely liked ’12” and was very surprised of the muted critic reaction. It’s like the film never happened.
– “Cheri” is just in the second week here and I still hope for a miracle audience-wise, but I really think it was not only not promoted enough ( there wasn’t even a trailer on TV) but where it was promoted they did a very bad job. Miramax used to be much better at this.
– and finaly, “Julia”, I think is among the best films I’ve seen this year so far. It hasn’t even played in my city .
Just saw “He’s Just Not That Into You” because I wanted to give it a chance. NO. Just now. I think the problem it had for ME at least is that among that 10 different stories happening at once, I think I only really cared about Ginnifer Goodwin’s relationship with Justin Long. The other storylines just did not hold up to me at all.
I am looking forward to seeing “Sunshine Cleaning” and “Julia” whenever I can.
I’d add Duplicity. Loved that film, especially with two sparkling leads.
The International was fine too, I like talky thrillers and this one was just plain good.
“Adventureland.”
I’m going to get trashed for saying this, but there are some films that I refuse to see simply because of its title. Donkey Punch is one of them.
BTW, on an unrelated note, have any of you guys seen the new trailer for Big Fan? Patton Oswalt might have an Oscar nod in his future…
The International was good thriller (7/10) and worth a rental and yes the Guggenheim scene is one of the best action scenes of the year so far.
Jonathan Spuij I agree with you on both accounts.
He’s just not that into you is by far the worst movie I’ve tried to watch this year (I don’t think I was able to bare it more than 30mins). I don’t understand what was smart about it. I thought almost all of the characters were as stupid as non-mentally handicapped movie characters go. I can’t understand how women can support movies like this which portrays them so shallow.
“Sunshine Cleaning” is a TERRIBLE film.
For what it’s worth, I’d add State of Play to the list for consideration.
Donkey Punch is comprehensively one of the worst films I have ever seen.
The script is just so damn godawful, you cannot enjoy a single minute of running time without cringing at some of the dialogue or the inept decision-making employed by one of the characters. Amazingly though, that isn’t even the biggest problem with the script. The biggest problem is that instead of a central villain, everyone in the film starts killing everyone else and the contrivances required for such a concept are way beyond anything you’re prepared to accept. At no point is there any tension at all because at any one time the characters may be best of friends working together to survive or a split second away from trying to kill each other. Not knowing where a crazed psychopath is or what he’s about to do is frightening. Not knowing where the next contrivance is coming is not.
You at least prefaced your list with ‘some of these aren’t that good’, but Donkey Punch is not even as good as its title, which is one of the very worst in motion picture history.
I’d add “Adventureland” — the poor box office take for that sterling dramedy saddens me. My favorite movie of the year thus far is “Duplicity”, but I’m not sure it meets your criteria for this list; care to clarify, Guy?
Good call on “The International” — I passed on it in theatres due to poor reviews but checked out the Blu-ray a few weeks ago and was pleasantly surprised. The Guggenheim sequence is spectacular, and I like Tykwer’s slow-burn approach, although the ending didn’t work for me.
I also agree on “Sunshine Cleaning”. The film was a bit of a mess, but Adams and Blunt are both terrific in it.
Looking forward to “12” next week when it arrives on DVD.
As it happens, I did consider “Duplicity,” which I thought was a terrific little trifle, for the list. But I figured it already has quite a number of defenders, so I booted it for something a bit more neglected.
I saw “Adventureland” at Edinburgh and must admit I didn’t quite get it. The critics I spoke to afterwards were quite muted too … maybe it doesn’t travel well.
As for “Donkey Punch,” I knew including it would raise some people’s heckles, but from where I’m standing, it’s efficient, genuinely frightening and does exactly what it sets out to do. And I have no issue with the title — it ain’t pretty, but neither is the film.
Good list Guy — I quitre liked “Duplicity” as well, nice chemsitry between the leaads, and thought “Sunshine Cleaning” was inventive and well acted, I love Amy Adams — “The Hurt Locker” is merely astounding, at this writing the years very best film — saw “Julia”…fuck…what an astonishing performance from Swinton…just hand her the Oscar RIGHT NOW — that is among the most courageous pieces of acting I have seen in many years — brilliant, just brilliant of her to tackle such a dark and contradictive character — and I adored “Up”, a delightful film full of lovd and hope, among the very best Pixar has made —
Completely agree with you on ‘The International’. A couple very good dramatic scenes coupled with that memorable Gugenheim sequence make ‘The International’ an overlooked film. It wasn’t great, but I thought ‘State of Play’ was a deserving film earlier this year as well
John: As you know, I’m totally in agreement on “The Hurt Locker,” and I’m really pleased to hear that you’re also down with “Julia.” I fear the Academy’s acting branch simply won’t be able to move past the challenges of the film to get to Swinton’s performance. I mean, they couldn’t even get “Happy-Go-Lucky,” for Christ’s sake.
I’ve seen Big Fan and Patton Oswalt will be lucky to get a Spirit Award nomination. Not that he’s bad, but it’s just not flashy enough for the Academy.
I think Oswalt is all-out great in “Big Fan.”
But yeah, “Julia’s” phenomenal — in a three-way tie for my favorite of the year so far.
Definitely State of Play…I thought Crowe gave one of the better lead male performances of the first half and even though it wasn’t showy, the movie was a very effective thriller
In agreement with ‘He’s Just Not That Into You’, which I found to be highly tolerable (quite a feat considering the current state of the romantic comedy) and fairly enjoyable. Not so much with ‘O’Horten’ which I can’t say did much for me.
Sadly, I missed ‘The Lemon Tree’, ‘Tokyo!’ and ’12’ when they played here in Toronto, although I can’t say I find myself compelled to seek out ‘The Lemon Tree’.
And, ‘Julia’ hasn’t arrived here yet, but as soon as it does, I’ll be first in line.
I would add a few to this list: ‘Tokyo Sonata’ and ‘Three Monkeys’ are easily two of the best films I’ve seen this year, but I’ve heard very little talk of both of them. I’m not entirely sure if they’re 2009 releases by US standards, but they premiered here this spring.
Have you seen either , Guy?
I’m surprise to see He’s Just Not That Into You on this list, considering all it is is two plus (plus!) hours of people making the wrong decision and then crawling back with their tail between their legs. At least the casting director had the foresight to cast the most adorable woman acting today in Ginnifer Goodwin, because her and Justin Long saved the film from being a complete disaster. Every other storyline was dull and uninteresting.
Of these I’ve only seen “The International” and “Chéri” and I couldn’t disagree more. I think “The International” so far deserves worst of the year honours , and “Chéri” was pretty disappointing apart from the lovers’ last meeting. Funny that I feel so differently about the only two films on your list that I’ve seen.
I would definitely like to add “In the Loop” which was brilliantly written and acted.
Lev: Unfortunately, I missed “Tokyo Sonata.” “Three Monkeys” I saw last year and liked, but I think it’s some way off Ceylan’s best work.
Chris: “In the Loop” hasn’t yet opened Stateside, so not eligible for this list.
I actually think Jennifer Aniston is quite great in “He’s Just Not That Into”. Definitely a perf that has stuck with me for one reason or another.
Glenn: Glad to hear it — you know I’m an Aniston defender. Staying human within the realm of light comedy is harder than a lot of people realise.
I really liked Sunshine cleaning. The script could have been a little tighter, but overall I really liked it. Amy and Emily were great together.
almost 100 million at the box office for He’s Just is more than enough….it didn’t even deserve half that much money….don’t know why somebody would consider it deserved better…
Benito: In the case of “He’s Just Not That Into You,” I think it deserved better from critics. As I explain in the foreword, the list of is a mix of critically and/or commercial neglected titles. (In my own humble opinion, of course.)
Guy, I actually think “Duplicity” should have more defenders than it does. It’s hovering just above 60% on the Tomato-meter, and it was considered something of a box office flop. On a side note, it was the victim of one of the most vicious slams I’ve ever read, from some guy named Dustin Putnam of TheMovieBoy Review. I definitely think “Duplicity” deserved much more than it got.
I also wouldn’t have minded a mention for “State of Play.” Critics liked it, but it flopped. I thought it was a pretty strong adaptation of the miniseries, though.
“Chris: “In the Loop” hasn’t yet opened Stateside, so not eligible for this list.”
Now the question I have to ask is, of course: would it have made the cut otherwise? ;)
Good film, certainly. Didn’t think of it as particularly underappreciated, though. Maybe I’m wrong.
I saw “He’s Just Not That Into You” on DVD recently. It started in promising fashion, like an intro course in Cultural Anthropology. But it needed to be a lot funnier and more insightful to garner any kind of critical acclaim.
I agree with some of the above assessments about the movie, but I’d like to add that I found the casting offensive. What kind of movie depicts 8-10 young professionals in Baltimore and makes them all white? The filmmakers ruined what was supposed to be a universal theory about gender roles by giving it a kind of country club exclusivity. Interestingly, that one desperately diverse scene with Drew Barrymore’s coworkers only accentuates the problem.
Sometimes Hollywood’s choices are just backwards and embarrassing.
Booo to the last line of your He’s Just Not That Into You blurb.
THANK YOU so much for including Donkey Punch on this list Guy! That film is such a fun film experience that makes no apologies for being perverse and offensive. That was quite a surprise to see a film like that on a list from you but it was a very happy surprise. Every person I have “forced” to watch that movie has left it thoroughly entertained so hopefully it will build a cult following in the U.S. over time.
“That was quite a surprise to see a film like that on a list from you…”
I do worry sometimes that y’all think I’m some 80 year-old codger in a tweed blazer.
I kid, I kid ;)
Glad SOMEONE’s taken my side on “Donkey Punch.”
well I do not know what a codger is but I assure you I didn’t think you were one! ;-P
I myself was surprised to enjoy “He’s Just Not That Into You” as well.