Project: Over. Blog...not so much.

I hate having to give up on something. Unfortunately, due to time constraints, availability of movies, money issues and a stack of other things, I've been unable to view and write about it. I haven't stopped watching movies, just not at the same pace. And I haven't been able to write about them as I should have been. I've seen about forty movies since I Office Space, both old favorites and new challenges. I can't possibly write reviews for all of them (I'd have to find all my tickets, for one thing). I can say that Resident Evil was a great movie experience, in the sense that I have no idea what the plot was, but Milla Jovovich delivered the expected asskickery. The Golden Compass was a promising addition to the fantasy pantheon. The original Halloween was startlingly good (though I really need to start giving John Carpenter more credit). It's always fun coming back to Hellraiser and The Fifth Element, and Beowulf was a pretty kicking tale of norse heroism-booze, babes, and total idiocy.

I think I'm going to close 'the project' with my very own little awards show, and then I'll carry on this blog with my thoughts on movies, my further learning in the areas of film theory and whatever else I happen to come up with that's tangentially related to 'flicks'. So without further ado...

Worst Thing I Watched: Tempo. Oh god, if there was ever a viewing experience I wish I could take back, it's Tempo. The promise of Rachel Leigh Cook sucked me in, and how wrong I was. When Stephen Dorff movies and Milla Jovovich sequels can't sink lower...when PORN, for crying out loud, has a more believable plot and better acting, you know a movie is utterly awful.
(Honorable Mention: Blood Creature. Wicker Man. Blood and Chocolate.)

The "I think I just threw up a little" moment of the year: The climax of Oldboy. The whole movie lead up to a moment so brutal, so hard to handle that my stomach heaved. The last time a movie did that to me was 28 Days Later.
(Honorable Mention: Man Bites Dog-Christmas sequence.)

Best Overall Viewing Experience: I started this project not just to learn about myself, but to learn about the people around me, what they like and why. When I sat down with Broomie to watch Godzilla: Final Wars, I was struck by how much he loved this movie he'd never seen. I learned more about Godzilla and about one of my best friends in the world in those two hours than I ever thought I would. Movies influence us in unimaginable ways, and not just the good films. His love of Godzilla movies translated to a love of the environment (due to their heavy emphasis on the dangers of pollution) and ecology, which then became a deep interest in biology. I can't comment on whether or not he's planning on creating Monster X or anything, but sitting my butt down and getting a lesson on kaiju film theory from him was a great experience.
(Honorable Mention: Introducing KV to Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Learning of the fabulous existence of John Waters via Cry Baby.)

Moments That Elevated The Film: Multiple nominees in this category, which is all about those little touches in movies that make them more than just their genre.
-Alicia Keys and Ryan Reynolds (Smokin' Aces): In a movie that is low in plot and high in action, there's a beautiful moment. As she's being carried away from the violence and chaos happening on an upper floor, Alicia Keys' gun-toting-assassin-babe crosses paths with Ryan Reynolds' FBI Agent. There's a confrontation with so many layers and challenges that it's uncommonly intense...and then it's over.
-Meryl Streep (The Devil Wears Prada): I love Meryl Streep. She's just so goddamn good. I think possibly her best moment this year was the speech she delivered about fashion, its purpose and its trickledown effect. In one swoop, we come to understand just how powerful her character is and why her choices are important (in context).
-Angela Goethals (Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon): I can't praise this movie enough for everything it did to take on the challenges of inverting the slasher genre, examining while simultaneously chomping through the standards. The point where it really rises above is truly an excellent moment in film. And Angela Goethals is really great.
-Elizabeth Mitchell (Running Scared): This one almost makes it into the stomach-turner category. Her scenes are short, her part is minor, and like an awful lot of people in Running Scared, she meets a nasty end. But I love Elizabeth Mitchell so very much for being utterly disconcerting in her role as Edele. Just watch her eyes.

Surprise of the Year: High Noon. I'm not much for cowboy movies. Just never had any interest in them. High Noon blew me away. It had depth and texture, it was bold and interesting and it was just an excellent movie all around. If I had known there was a single cowboy movie out there that was this good, I would have been watching them since the beginning. Now, I have to catch up.
(Honorable Mention: Down With Love. Love Actually. Point Break. The Jacket.)

Movie of the Year: Children of Men. Good god was this ever an amazing experience all around. I loved this movie, I still love it, and I'm going to love it forever. It was spectactular, and incidentally it was also bloody well robbed by the Academy. It at least deserved a nomination, and it got hardly anything.
(Honorable Mention: American Beauty. The Fountain.)