The Top 25 Movies of 2009, Part 4

Ponyo

"That was weird."

From the always-reliable animators of Studio Ghibli comes the oddest animated movie of 2009.  Well, okay, all Studio Ghibli movies are weird, but that's part of their undeniable (if unexplainable) charm.  Ghibi's head honcho and master storyteller Hayao Miyazaki (called the "Japanese Walt Disney" by many) writes and directs "Ponyo", the story of a 5-year-old kid named Sosuke.  Living in a swank seaside house with his overburdened mom and his often-gone dad (a sailor), he finds a strange little fish near the beach, names her Ponyo, and takes her home.  This "strange little fish" is actually a princess of the sea (obsessed with ham) who's escaped from her overburdened father and often-gone mother (the goddess of the sea).  Unfortunately, her escape has triggered a fatal chain reaction in the balance of the Earth, and the fate of the entire world hinges on her growing relationship with Sosuke.  Loosely based on Hans Christian Anderson's "The Little Mermaid", this is old fashioned hand-drawn animation at it's best, filled to the brim with brilliant (and odd, did I mention that?) little touches of detail.  There are many strange mythological creations on display here (typical Ghibli), and yet they fit perfectly into the world of the movie, even if you don't quite understand what they're all about.  Just go with it, people, says I.  And it's so dang cute, certainly the cutest movie of 2009, and possibly Miyazaki's cutest film since 1988's "My Neighbor Totoro".  There is also an English-dubbed version for all you non-readers (what the hell are you doing here, then?) featuring reliable voice performances from Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Liam Neeson (voicing a very un-Liam-Neeson-like character), Betty White and others.  Check it out.

Moon

"You look like a radioactive tampon."

In the future, fossil fuels will be replaced by a new, clean energy source called helium-3. The corporation Lunar Industries will provide H-3 to the masses via a series of harvesting sites on the moon.  Each harvesting site will be manned by a single employee, bound to service by a 3-year contract.  Sam Bell is one such employee, and his contract will be up in just a few days time.  Looking forward to reuniting with his wife and daughter, he performs his daily tasks like a good little worker - until strange things start happening.  He starts to have waking visions.  His helpful computer servant GERTY seems to be hiding something.  He starts to feel a little "off".  Then something malfunctions with one of the harvesters. . .  To give away any more would be criminal.  While the upcoming plot twists aren't entirely unguessable, they aren't the point of this movie.  Sam Rockwell, as Sam Bell, owns this movie.  In one of (if not the) best performances of 2009, he plays multiple characters and each one of these characters is real, relatable,and interesting to watch in their own unique ways.  And not even an Academy Award nomination for the guy?  Stupid Oscars.  Director Duncan Jones does a lot with a little (it's a very low budget movie), using old-school special effects techniques to convincingly bring to life "the future".  It's a loving tribute to classic sci-fi flicks like "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Alien", while carving out a niche all its own, but the entire movie relies on Rockwell's acting abilities and thrives on them.   Side note:  Jones' upcoming movie "Source Code" apparently takes place in the same fictional world and features many references to "Moon".  Neat.

Thirst

"Absoposilutely."

No Top Movie list would be complete without something from South Korea.  They've been churning out so much quality stuff over the past couple of years it's insane.  My list for 2010 will most likely feature at least two movies from South Korea.  Smart, stylish stuff.  "Thirst" is the new flick from Chan-wook Park, director of the classic Vengeance Trilogy ("Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance", "Oldboy", and "Lady Vengeance").  In it, Father Sang-hyeon (played by the talented and prolific Kang-ho Song) is tired of watching people die in hospital while he attends to their spiritual needs.  Wanting to make a difference, he volunteers to be a test subject at a facility which is dedicated to finding the cure for something called the Emmanuel virus.  One day he receives an emergency blood transfusion from anonymous donors - and becomes the only survivor out of 50 volunteers.  He returns home to recover, staying with the dysfunctional family of a sickly childhood friend.  Then he begins to have strange urges - for BLOOD.  Yup, it's another vampire film.  But a damn good one.  Father Sang's vampiric awakening triggers all sorts covetous feelings within his soul, especially for his friend's entrapped wife, Tae-ju.  The title does not refer only to blood drinking, my friends.  Oh.  Hell.  No.  It's not long before events spiral out of control for Sang in a whirling tornado of blood and sex.  Highly erotic and brutal yet filled with large dollops of weird black humor, this is a visual feast for the senses bolstered by solid performances and subtly done special effects.  I gotta give special kudos to actress Ok-bin Kim, who plays beleaguered wife Tae-ju.  Not only is she as fearless an actor as Song, but her role is the most volatile, going from pent-up wife to out-of-control monster.  This movie is frank, odd, and sumptuously delectable.

Taken

"I know the world, sweetie."

Probably the best straight-up action movie of 2009, this movie was actually released around the world in 2008.  Us Americans didn't get to see it until over a year later.  Produced and co-written by action icon Luc Besson ("La Femme Nikita", "The Professional", "The Fifth Element"), this was directed by French guy Pierre Morel, who gave us a little action movie gem called "District B-13" in 2007 (no relation to "District 9").  Peppy teenager Kim (Maggie Grace) is on vacation in Paris with a friend, when suddenly she's kidnapped by a group of faceless baddies.  Fortunately for her, her estranged father Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) is an ex-spy and is very skilled in the art of Badassery.  Guess who's on his way to Paris?  Look out, faceless baddies!  It's a straight forward action thriller, full of implausibilities and lacking any deep character development.  Doesn't matter.  At all.  It's an A-to-B asskicker that satisfies.  Liam Neeson is totally convincing and kind of scary as a badass spy dad.  His phone speech to the villains is legend, Neeson's most memorable movie moment.  Well, until 2010, that is -  "Release the kraken!"  And there's a lot of lead-in time as well.  It's not until 30-40 minutes into the movie that we get any action scenes and, you know what, it works perfectly.  I've noticed that many of the best action flicks take their sweet time to get to the goods.  Also - there's no main bad guy in "Taken", just a couple of little groups of bad guys whom Mr. Neeson plows through in sequential order.  But I don't miss a "big bad".  It's something different, and it works.  While derivative of the "Bourne" films and "24", this little rollercoaster does exactly what it promises.

Where the Wild Things Are

"I don't like frozen corn."

While watching this film, based on the classic children's book by Maurice Sendak, I realized one important thing:  this is not a movie for kids.  It's a movie for adults who still remember what it's like to be a kid.  When "creative types" write a novel, or paint a picture, make a movie, or do whatever their creative juices tell them to do, you need to realize one thing - doing something creative is a way for a person to come to terms, psychologically, with certain aspects of their life.  Every character you create is an aspect of you, is you.  When engaged in the act of creation, you never truly realize this fact.  It's often pointed out to you later on, by others, and that's how it should be.  Kids have a lot to work out.  They're still growing, still trying to figure out the world around them, what they're going to become.  They play, they imagine, they create.  And psychology never enters into it.  Max is one of these creative kids.  He's a very volatile young man with issues.  After a particularly bad incident (biting his mom in anger), Max runs away, ending up on an island full of wild Muppet-like beasts.  They crown him king, and he begins to change their lives.  My interpretation:  this entire movie takes place within the imagination of little Max.  All of the Wild Things clearly (to me, at least) represent various aspects of Max himself.  The entire island does seem to run on kid-logic, no?  Which characters represent which aspect is up to you, this is a very subjective movie, and while digging deep into it's hidden meanings may be be all fine and dandy, it's not necessary.  Essentially, this movie is pure emotion.  The ending has always moved me and, you know what, I've never tried to figure out exactly why.  It's intangible. The movies of director Spike Jonze ("Being John Malkovich", "Adaptation") have always worked like this.  And Max Records (as Max) is a great kid actor, very natural.  In the end, this is not a living cartoon.  It's an experience.