35 From 3: My Favorite Films From 2003

 When I went to go see this movie at the theater, it was literally one of the very last showings at the end of its run. I had heard only negative things about Daredevil and as a result, I sort of dragged my feet when it came to seeing it. I remember sitting at the very back of an almost. empty theater.  (I think they were maybe like fifteen other people sitting in the. audience) with a big ass bucket of popcorn that was topped off with shiny butter-flavored goo and topped off with some Sno-Caps sprinkled all over it (Yeah, that's how I roll when it comes to concessionary snack offerings over at the cineplex) And with a half barrel sized plastic cup full of bright blue raspberry flavored Icee slush to wash it down with.
 And when this big screen adaptation of The Man Without Fear was over, I have to admit I really enjoyed it. I honestly don't know where all the hate was coming from. Now I pride myself as being quite the faithful hardcore comic book nerd, and I'm not going to claim that this is the greatest superhero movie ever made, but I honestly don't believe that this warranted all the negative press that it did. I mean, sure., I think that I would have preferred to have seen Ben Affleck's real life partner in crime Matt Damon in the role (especially after watching Damon's fighting scenes in the Bourne Identity series which makes me of the opinion that his look would've fit the Matt Murdock persona a lot better than Affleck), but I don't think it took away too much from the character that was the blind attorney  at day who donned a red mask and tights at night to leap and  swing acrobatically between the concrete canyons that was Hell's Kitchen and fought any and all evil doers who tried to litter the back streets below with their law breaking shenanigans.
 Since that first viewing in the theater, I've watched Daredevil again a couple of times on both video and streaming platforms, and Every time that I did., I saw. nothing that. changed my mind. from my initial opinion. here. 
  So, I guess what I'm left here with is that DD might not be a movie that I'll probably be recommending to any fellow comic book aficionados in the future (particularly considering that now that the streaming series has gotten such rave praise from the fans of superhero entertainment), but personally, since I very well entertained by it, it will continue to be included my lists of movies faves of 2003.

 For me, The Room is the epitome of acting so SO bad, that it actually swings around to being not just good, but unforgettably classic.



  It's a piece of cinematic crap-art that has been playing in theatres since its initial release in 2003 and is still going. And the main reason for that is b'cuz it has developed a reputation as an audience-participating event.
It is now standard for movie-goers to quote or yell out responses to specific scenes,
or to even throw plastic spoons at the screen whenever a certain prop makes an appearance.
 You will even spot a football being tossed back and forth from one side of the theatre to the other during certain intervals.
In other words,
it's the straight person's answer to the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

And to be honest,
isn't it about time we got one?

  So yeah, I grew up as a hardcore comic book nerd, and my favorite comic book series as a kid was The Uncanny X-Men. Which I think explains why this X movie has such a low spot on this list. People always accuse us comic collectors of wanting these movies to be more in canon with their printed versions, speaking truthfully, I don’t think they have to be exactly like the comics, but I do feel strongly that Hollywood tends to throw the baby out with the bath water when it comes Marvel and DC properties. I understand that some things drawn on paper don’t look as cool or practical in a real-life presentation. But IMO, there are many aspects to superheroes that could work effectively if just given half the chance. And that is something Hollywood will not do, because, in my estimation, they are out to make these superhero properties more their own than that of the comic book industry. And if you don't believe me, just go to the local comic bookstore, pick up an issue of the X-Men, and notice how the comics have changed more towards the movie versions as opposed to the classic style that were long establish by the print medium.

Just when you thought it was safe to look forward to the future.
Next thing you know, you have an unfeeling female automation stalking you. Particularly, one who seems to possess a will to terminate you and with a tenacity that's so relentless, you'd almost swear she was an ex-girlfriend or somethin' (...that is, an ex-girlfriend who is as impervious to restraining orders as a Terminator robot who is impervious to bullets).



Personally speaking, I'm of the opinion that after a movie has been made by James Cameron, it's sequel should not be touched by any other director (with The Alien series providing as a good example).
In The Terminator "trilogy", while I believe that it's third installment didn't need to get made, it at least wasn't so bad that it completely ruined the franchise. As a stand alone sci-fi action flick, I thought it was able to hold it's own. As part of the franchise, though it is nowhere near as good as the first two, and depending on one's mood during it's viewing (it can easily be regarded as forgettable), it's story at least manages to run alongside with the that of it's predecessors, without diminishing their impact of greatness in the sci-fi world. It's serves it's purpose to just be a period at the end of a really great statement.
Which, As Terminator: Salvation proved, is where the series should've ended for good.

  Two of the most likeable actors in modern times, Bonnie Hunt and Steve Martin, play a couple of parents who've spawned twelve children and are trying to raise 'em right in the white bread portion of the American Dream.
  Cheaper By the Dozen is a very typical family formula flick with the kind of down-to-earth quality that is required in order to make it fit into the modern times despite having a classic core that has been done to death by now in Hollywood. It is barely enough to avoid the typical sugary distance that has desensitized the genre to audiences of the last decade or so. From my perspective, I see it is as a film that can almost be perceived as a poor man's Parenthood (another movie in Steve Martin's filmography where yet again, he plays the role of a good-natured dad).
  And even though this is a subject matter that, since the dawn of cinema, has pretty much covered the same ground over a hundred times by now, I still was surprised at how much I ended up enjoying this "story-straight out of Disney theme machine" flick. And that's a feeling I've really been able to appreciate considering how many more of these kinds of movie have splurted out of that Disney machine since CbtD, none of which, I thought was worth seeing. 
  I don't know if it's because of the aforementioned domestic duo of Martin and Hunt that warms my heart in the corny way that these family features are designed for, or if some kind of chemistry quality that the oversized kid cast of siblings evoke, or just simply because this is an example of a fixed formula done so right that it is a demonstration of why the formula became a formula in the first place. All I know is that when this Dozen was done, the intended family friendly feeling had hit its target right on the mark with me. Never had a such a movie filled with so much milquetoast make me feel, all at the same time, so warm, so fuzzy and so cheap. 



  BTW, before anyone out there reading this raises a finger to point at me and accuse me of being maasively mushy, I should mention that I am very proud to declare that this is the only movie that I have ever watched that features Ashton Kutcher in it.

  Ever since John Belushi broke out of the Saturday Night Live sketch comedy show and became a big motion picture star, that has become one of the trend with almost each new cast that has fronted the changing seasons. There's has always been one or two (or three) names that graduated from the boundaries of TV screen onto the more expansive dimensions of the silver screen.  Eddie Murphy, Dan Akroyd, Michaels Myers, Tina Fey, Kristin Wig, Chris Farley, Chris Rock, etc..
 But at the turn of the millennium, it was Will Farrell's turn. Even though he was featured as a secondary character in a few previous films, he hadn't reached headline status until this film, Old School, and he wasn't even in the headline role. Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson shared top billing, but the promoters of this film had by now recognized Will's start status and pushed his name in the marketing for this movie.
 Farrell sort of followed in Chris Farley's footsteps in that it seemed as though he was willing to do just about anything in order to get a laugh, even go naked onscreen if it would get a laugh (of course, it didn't appear as extreme as Farley, but it still was a "high risk maneuver, for both the actor and the audience), which is one of the things he's remembered for in this movie.    
 The plot that makes up the core of Old School is basically a new school version of Belushi's iconic college classic Animal House, but with middle-aged men filling in for the renegade frat boys that JB and crew made so infamous. There is an effort somewhat to distinguish this sophomoric farce from AH, but with anti-establishment themes like going against the university dean, over-the-top the rebellious party antics, and the group of immature grown-ups performing in various competitions in order to earn some validity to their chapter, it's kind of hard to not notice this a premise that had gone through the Xerox copy machine in the hopes of landing a passing grade. And, don't get me wrong, I laughed at OS enough to give a spot on this list, but it's also that something that we've all scene before.

  Throughout the history of the motion picture industry, there have been certain actors who, through a combination of talent, charisma and the ability to pick good roles, manage to step into the spotlight and stat there for a while. From about 1995 up until 2009, the name who's marquee seem to shine the brightest was that of Russell Crowe. Often compared to Richard Burton in terms of his heavyweight presence on the screen, Crowe was someone who commanded one's attention in just about every movie that he starred in during that period. 
 It seems like these days, if the theatres aren't full of a slew of GCI-infested blockbusters, then they're trying to cash in on a flock of usually over-top horrors and/or comedies. Or they're trying to promote their every-day down-to-earth dramas.
And even if a buncha these flicks turn out to be pretty good, I usually start to feel the urge for something outside the realm of what is currently considered the standard genres that seem to occupy the majority of today's silverscreens. As I said with Open Range, Master And Commander is one of those films that came into my life just when I really needed a good "period" movie shot into my system and deliver to my move-enjoying ass a brief respite from the same ol' same ol'.

 Since the very first Toy Story movie, the collab betwwen Disney and Pixar was one that was producing some of the best family features that were shown in movie theaters. And while, on general level, there will always be deabte of when this new Golden Era of 3-D animation was set in stone, for me personally, it was when I found Finding Nemo.
  But as the years pass on and every time I give this ocean-themed adventure yet another rewatch, I get closer and closer to the conclusion that not only is it perfect as it is, but also that Finding Nemo is one of those examples of how the New Millenium was the new Golden Era of family friendly films at the cineplex.

Jack Black needs a paycheck.
So he decides to go to school and become both a teacher and the leader of the band. With a bunch of fourth graders.
Class is now in session.
Time to rock on.
And then to enjoy a fruit snack and a mid-afternoon nap time.

Okay, first there was Once Upon A Time In The West. Then there was Once Upon A Time In America. Then, in 2003, there's this film, Once Upon A Time In Mexico. Finally, in a year that I can't remember right now and don't feel like googling it, there was Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. And what do all these films have in common?
  Well, with the exception of having Once Upon a Time in their name, absolutely nothing.



  Now I'll admit that this Movie is Probably an example. of a film that I like my. much more than it really is . I was such a massive fan of Robert Rodriguez's. first film. , the uber- independent feature. , El Mariachi. . And I wasn't the only one because not only has it become what are the most successful independent movies of all time, and not only is it a massive cult favorite, but also, It's one of my favorite indie films of all time. Therefore, when I heard that Robert was going to do a sequel, but this time he would be armed. with the kind of budget that most major Hollywood releases have, which in turn would attract some pretty big-name superstars. such as Antonio Banderas. , Johnny Depp, Selma hi. yak. became my most anticipated film for 2003. So, when I went to go see it and its opening weekend, I was watching it through. fan biased goggles. And when it was over, I came out of the theater thoroughly satisfied. and thinking that this would truly be one of the best action-adventure films of the year. there really isn't all that much to the plot of this particular Once Upon A Time "saga" other than it's just abuncha good-looking people doing really bad-ass things (which, around the time of this movie, is when I first noticed that this a typical habit of most Robert Rodriguez films).
  But in the stylish manner in which the characters are presented and in the way the action unfolds, along with its connection to the El Mariachi Trilogy, on the surface level it does sometimes come off as if there was more to the story than first meets the eye. Which was enough for me to enjoy it as a solid, entertaining thrill-ride from just south of the border.

  Matchstick Men is a con movie about a conman getting conned.
  Now, for me, this is a good metaphor that fits here for this entry because there a bit of slight at hand involved. Because from where I'm standing, this is an example of one of those pretty good movies that I genuinely believed had the potential to be a really great movie. And that's the path I saw it taking when it started.  It all has to do with the father-daughter chemistry between Nicolaus Cage and Alison Lohman that is at the very heart of this grift-driven melodrama. In my opinion, that was a relationship that worked so well in the manner that it unfolded, particularly on an emotional level, and which seemed to flow so naturally, that from my point of view, it became a case of an onscreen daddy/daughter relationship that worked too well. As a result, I had a hard time buying that what eventually would happen to Nick's character would've been something that his experience as a seasoned confidence man, would've made very difficult for him to fall  for, especially in the manner that he did (I apologize if this all sounds a bit vague, but that's because I fear that if I mention too much more here, I'll be unable to avoid a spoiler).
 Because of this, it made the jolt of the twist ending just a tiny bit too hard to swallow. At least, in a way that kept this otherwise worthy flim-flam effort from receiving a higher entry on this list. 
 I won't say any more about MM because, as I already mentioned, the more I type, the greater the potential for possible spoilers. And when it comes to the descriptions and critiques that I write about these movies, I don't want anyone who reads my lists to approach them with any lack of "confidence" between us. 

Mark Wahlberg leads a kind of an all-star cast (I say "kind of" because I don't know how much weight Seth Green and Mos Def bring to this flick in terms of star power....) in this modern version of a classic heist film.
In a nutshell I guess I would describe this movie remake as the thief-world's version of Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch racing around in custom made Mini Coopers in some really cool chase scenes. And when you think about it, how hard is it to make a movie with that kind of a description and yet not have it end up being boss?
Yep,
you guessed it...

it's pretty frikkin' hard.

True love knows no bounds.
Even in the midst of an intergalactic war with a buncha Martians (in this case, they are particular type of Martian known as "Tarsians"),
this movie shows that as long as you've got a cell phone, a good distance carrier and a hell of alot patience,
long distance relationships can work.

And as most of us who've been stuck in a short distance relationship for awhile know,
sometimes, the idea of flyin' around in space in cool manga tech-gear and battling a buncha aliens, light years away from Earth, sounds alot like heaven.

  After the success of Ocean's 11 two years earlier, Hollywood tries to repeat the formula of a sexy cast trying to commit a slight-of-hand heist but more in the vein of a confidence scam with this movie, which is aptly (and uncreatively, in my opinion) called Confidence. With its cast consisting of Dustin Hoffman, Ed Burns, the ever-so-beautiful Rachel Weisz, Luis Guzman and Paul Giamatti, and the one runover from the 11 movie, Andy Garcia, it comes pretty damn close to matching the star power that gave Danny Ocean and his crew of Sin City sneakthieves a popular franchise.
 Not the greatest con movie ever produced, but since I'm a big fan of this genre, along with a plot that features a scam that was able to keep its characters on its toes, it all adds up into a film that's still solid enough to warrant a place on my list.
Plus, it's a cadre of culprits who move through the caper with enough confidence to make its complicated components colorfully convincing.

After this movie came out, could you feel it?
Could you feel the idea and use of special effects in the entire sci-fi genre take a major step forward?
I know I did.

In certain spanish countries, this movie was called "Tiburones Muerden Buzos".
Which, literally, in the english language, translates into "Sharks Bite Divers".
Which in shark language probably translates into something more like "Om Nom Nom".

Will Ferrell fits very comfortably into the role of an elf who finds out that his elfin roots are alot shorter than even the height of his colleagues.
An engaging heartwarmer of a holiday tale as Santa's largest little helper journeys out to the big city to discover that as an elf in the North Pole, he might be unusually big, but out in the real world, he's still got alot of growing up to do.
A hell of alot.

Covering ground that hasn't yet been covered in the myriad of other Las Vegas casino flicks that came previous to this one, The Cooler is a story that shows that no matter how good his "roll" in the game of gambling, even a sad sack loser can get lucky sometimes and win over the heart a hot babe.



Starring an actor whom's body of work I really like, William H. Macy.
For me, he's one of those actors that seems to make more right decisions than bad when it comes to choosing a part in a film.
And while it's always cool to see him in any movie no matter how small the role, when he's the lead character, it's usually even cooler.

A hard-bitten, no-holds barred tale of revenge that bites hard and holds no bars. And while I know that sentence is doubly redundant, it seems to fit the situation as far the level of emotional ravishing that this story leads it's characters up to. Brutal it may be, it's a film that depicts it story at an operatic level and with a refreshing energy to give the film a distinct life that widely separates it from the standard vengeance theme of traditional Hollywood-fare. I found Oldboy to be a great flick that is armed with an in-your-face type of plot twist and proves that the medium of the graphic novel and comic-book (of which this movie is based off) is a world full of potentially good cinema, if one is willing to shuffle passed the mainstream same old same old.

Back during the tail end of the 80's, the Berlin Wall and all that it represented was crumblin'. Well, actually, the wall itself was still holding up pretty good, but the politics behind it was starting to come apart. Germany, after it's decades long history of turbulence and social strife which resulted in it's country being literally divided (by the wall) was ready to be unified and made whole again.



Goodbye Lenin! is the story of a young east German citizen who's mother, after suffering from a serious stroke, holds on to her fragile sanity with the delusional belief that East Germany is still separated from it's evil capitalistic western twin. And in order to spare her from any more emotional grief, her son, along with the daughter, finds himself performing daily acts of deceptions to keep her believing that.
A 2003 "tragicomedy" set in late 1989/early 1990 that skillfully dances twixt the tragedy and the comedy that gives the rarely used cinematic term it's name.

A career thief and compulsive gambler comes out of his drug-addicted funk in order to make the score of a lifetime. But first, he must put together a crew capable enough to help him pull off the complicated heist, along with the proper tools required for such a security surrounded target. The mark: a bunch of priceless pieces of art. The obstacle: a tipped off police detective following his every move. The payoff: a comfortable lifestyle, along with the knowledge that he is still a good thief.

Many years earlier, I watched a movie called Heavy Metal. And though it lacked the technical and story skills required to make it something really worth mentioning, I did see in it a potential for an interesting anthology series whose rock'roll/sci-fi/animated integrated format was bound by neither PC rules or those that result from the kid-targeted genre.
Then came the Animatrix and showed us (well...me, at least) what that potential could look like.

  Here's a movie about what is probably the most famous fantasy novel series ever published and yet, is one that I've never read. Helmed by the ambitious vision of Peter Jackson, this was the film franchise that finally took the genre of sword & sorcery and raised it the level of respectability and regard that most often was reserved for more dramatically themed "Oscar-bait" type of material.
   However, as great as the material for The Lord of the Rings is, for me, this series suffered from what I always thought the problem would be of trying to condense such a full and detailed storyline into three movies. So much can be filled within the pages of three novels, that when the story is put onscreen, it can easily end up leaving a lot areas for the viewer to fill in.  Certain ideas seem to almost come out of nowhere since there was almost no room in the span of the three filmed chapters to introduce them, which left these ideas to be trimmed down to almost just being a hint that a viewer needed to catch and then "do the math" in their own head.

 

   The lack of room also prevented the series from establishing any background or depth to any of the antagonists and thus create the kind of hatability towards the villains (Gollum seem to come closest in this trilogy) that is essential to these grand scale good vs evil sagas. Now don't get me wrong, they're kick-ass looking villains and the concepts behind them are fantastic, but because so much is trying to be fit in the limited space of the running times, it doesn't feel to me like anyone one can really jump up and down when the good guys ultimately beat 'em.
   There are more problems that I noticed as I watched each installment of the LotR's, but I don't want to give the impression that any of these quibbles were enough to take my enjoyment of the franchise. I only bring them up because one of the elements that make good fantasy style stories is the complicated dynamics that are needed in order to make these make-believe worlds engaging to the more adult oriented fans who enjoy this kind of stuff.  And as the world of entertainment evolves more and more towards the streaming side of content availability, it seems like the genre of sword & sorcery is one that may go hand in hand with this type of service that "binging" has become so closely associated with.   
   None of that will diminish what was accomplished with adapting The Lord of the Rings onto the medium of film. These are still great motion pictures that will endure the test of time. Seeing dragons and giant spiders come to life in the manner that they were always meant to, magic being blasted with the power to awe, not to mention, giant sword and sorcery war scenes with a sweeping and mythological epic quality that used to be incomprehensible for the cinema in earlier years make up for any sacrifice that was made in order to be able to fit all this stuff onto the silver screen.
  And they will always have a place not just in my heart, but also, a spot on my lists of favorite movies. 

The "based-on-a-true-story" story of a journalist who, for the span of three years, made up stories for magazine that he wrote for, all for the sake of his career.
After watching how his downfall came about in this film,
I've decided to come clean now and admit to all of you reading this That I also have been making up everything that I've posted on this site.
Everything I've written is all a sham.
So, y'know....
There you go.

Robert McNamara, Secretary of Defense during the Kennedy years, explains "The Fog of War", a term which describes all the ingredients that result in why's, who's and whats of the political decisions involved.
And even though this is basically just a film about a guy talking, what he talks about is pretty damn fascinating. Covering everything from his years during the New Camelot presidency, moving into the Vietnam War, and eventually leading to his vision of enlightening philosophy and overall outlook on American politics.

Two mountaineers decide to scale the wall of a South American mountain called Siula Grande, located in the Peruvian portion of the Andes. After successfully reaching the summit, one of the men is injured and breaks his leg during the descent. When his partner releases him, the crippled climber falls into a crevasse, thought for dead. However, he survives the fall and on one leg, must find a way to make it the base camp or perish in the icy bowels of the mountain. I won't spoil it for anyone out there reading this who hasn't seen this film by commenting on the outcome lest to say that when climbing the steep face of a huge, ice covered mountain, if there's one thing you don't wanna do, it's "touch the void".
Although, when you think about it, there aren't too many situations anywhere on Earth where "touching a void" would be considered recommendable.

Is it possible to watch a tale of a family that struggles to make their dreams come true without it seeming too corny? Or to watch 'em suffer personal traumas that bind 'em with friends from completely different worlds that doesn't come off as formulaic? Or is it possible to watch a film where they try to come to terms with life's hard curveballs in a manner that will make you laugh and cry but without having to worry about embarrassingly getting a face bloated with the snotty tears of over-sentimentality?
In a word,
yes.
But only In America.

Kevin Costner and Robert Duvall make a partnership that is the center of Open Range. Just a good solid cowboy flick that feels like a genuine modern update of the genre that has become an American classic.
I remember that when I went to go see Open Range, after watching so many films at the time, which while on average were pretty good, were still of the standard genres that seem to occupy the majority of screens in theatres these days,
So when a "period piece" like a good solid western comes into my life, it tends to feel like a good shot into my movie-viewing system,
pard'ner.

The main reason I like this movie is because it's alot like Dances With Wolves.
Except, instead of wolves, it's with a buncha samurais.
And instead the ol' West, it's the ol' East.
Of course.

Sword infested back-in-the-day Feudal Japan versus the machine-gun laden power of the New World.

I had heard of Zatoichi, but never bothered looking up anything about this long-lasting character of the East. I stumbled on this DVD, and found myself enjoying it so much, that the end result was multiple viewings with no diminishment in enjoyment. The movie, just like the series of an earlier time, follows the latest adventure of a mystery traveler commonly referred to as the "blind masseuse", who in actuality is a gentle samurai warrior who's lone wolf journeys could've well been the inspiration of the Italian counter-part, "Man With No Name" of spaghetti western fame. Silent, noble and despite his blindness, the ability to see with more clarity, not just the world around him, but also the will and intentions contained within the hearts of all he encounters.
A great classic character of the Japanese tradition.

Old St. Nick as a drunken, thieving, waste of a man who has a thing for big booty babes.
In other words;
Best.
Santa.
Movie.
Ever.

Best.
Station.
Agent.
Movie.
Ever.

Directed by the daughter of a godfather of cinema, this movie is a perfect example of being able to do so much with so little.
The simple story of two lost souls from two different generations who's dashed hopes and aimless directions lead them to find within each other a quiet and shared longing for connection through acceptance, love and understanding.
Lost in Translation features one of my favorite endings of all time, not because it's a twist or any kind of explosive revelation, but simply because it relies one hundred percent on human emotion. An emotion that is evoked with a whisper so private and silent to the ears but oh so loud and clear to the heart.

Speaking as someone who has worked the majority of his life as an illustrator and cartoonist, I was surprised at how close this flick was to the specific style of drawing that got me interested in the field to begin with. Gritty yet beautifully rendered, cartoonishly exaggerated yet realistically animated. I could look at artwork like this all day.
Plus, even though it is a foreign film, it has no dialogue in it, at all. And therefore, no need for sub-titles. So if some bizarre accident occurs (heaven forbid, of course) whereby that part of your brain that's responsible for reading becomes inexplicably cancelled out, you'll still be able to watch and enjoy this flick.

"Here comes the Bride,
all dressed in white,
dum dee dee da dum,
here comes the Bride...."



You wanna know just how bad-ass Beatrice Kiddo, the Bride really is?
At her wedding, not only does she show up looking like she's late into her trimester of pregnancy, but also at the same time, she has enough balls to wear a wedding dress that is white, the traditional color that is supposed to symbolize virgincy.
So then, the question arises,
how does one stop such an act of blatant aborition towards such an endeared long-standing nuptial tradition?
Try sending her a Bill.