12/5/08

Just some thoughts as the award season gets underway. No matter how many award winning movies will be released this month, it appears The Day the Earth Stood Still will win the months box office.
The National Board of Review has already come out with their movie awards for the year and the top prize for best movie of the year went to Slumdog Millionaire. I plan to watch it tonight, so I will give a full report on the movie tomorrow. As for their top 10 list, here it is:

BURN AFTER READING
CHANGELING
THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
THE DARK KNIGHT
DEFIANCE
FROST/NIXON
GRAN TORINO
MILK
WALL-E
THE WRESTLER

I have only seen two of these ten movies and of course this list is the top ten films of 2008 after Slumdog Millionaire. The Dark Knight and Wall-E are definitely top 10 movies, although The Dark Knight has a chance to drop out of my top 10 after watching the above. Here are my top 10 movies of the year thus far.

Wall-E
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
The Bank Job
The Dark Knight
The Other Boleyn Girl
Be Kind Rewind
Bolt
Miracle at St Anna's
Quantum of Solace
Iron Man

I don't get to travel the film festival circuit so I don't have any early reviews of this coming award season's films. Yes, that is an animated film on the top of my list. It is absolutely worth the hype. Besides Slumdog Millionaire, I am very excited to watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I have a coworker has just saw it last night and her one line review is "I cried for two hours of the two hour forty-five minute movie." It certainly looks like a tear jerker from the trailers. Having originated from an F Scott Fitzgerald short story, I'm sure this is an amazing creation and with David Fincher behind the camera, I can't wait to see what he's done with the fascinating character. Next on my list to watch is Gran Torino. I have no real desire to watch Changeling. I'm not sure why. So far, I've yet to be disappointed by an Eastwood film, so maybe its something about Jolie, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Gran Torino looks phenomenal and sounds like its right up my ally, since I am Asian American after all. The last film is Frost/Nixon. I am a fan of Peter Morgan and love The Queen as well as The Deal, and obviously with The Other Boleyn Girl on my top ten right now, he's yet to write a film I don't like. With Ron Howard helming, I'm excited for the finished product.
I'll probably skip Milk, or at least wait for the DVD. It looks terrific, but not really a theater film. I also can't wait for the Wrestler, but also seems like a smaller film, and like many of Arnofsky's past films, seems best to watch in the comforts of my own home.

As for this weekend, there are three films being released wide:

Punisher: War Zone
Cadillac Records
Nobel Son

I won't watch any of these even though Nobel Son is very intriguing. Cadillac Records also has an outside chance of getting my attention. Unforutately for the Box Office, it is praying that Cadillac Records can really pull some good numbers. The numbers will likely come in like this:

1. Punisher - $35mil
2. Bolt - $20mil
3. Cadillac Records - $18mil
4. Four Christmases - $15mil
5. Twilight - $13mil