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I know there are people who make favorite lists. If you have one, Id like to see whats on it. What were the best films of 2001? Even if you dont have a list, Id like to know. Need more rental suggestions. NetFlix probably doesnt want the abuse Im going to try and give it. Id like to have a constant flow of dvds coming in the mail ;>
Solang
I'm never quite sure what year movies came out, but Amelie was definitely 2001, and so was Donnie Darko. You've probably at least read about Amelie, but Donnie Darko is a little more unknown. It is a very insightful and intelligent movie, and is also very very weird. I can't really say a lot without giving it away, but it is about a boy who has these "visions" and he is given warnings of impending doom... And he must choose, if he can, how to do what is best for everyone.
I'm going to try and start a forum on it, so you will probaly see more there.
Fermented
Amelie was cool. I think Ive heard of Donnie Darko, but havent seen it? Whos in it? Wonder if its out on video yet?
Thanks for the recomendation.
Sola
Yah, Donnie Darko was pretty cool. Not many people have heard of it but in my opinion it was one of the better movies of 2001.
Some flicks from last year you should definitely check out:
A.I.
Apocalypse Now Redux
Ghost World (good god was this one awesome)
Ali ( most people hated it- of course, I LOVED it)
Moulin Rouge
Iris -stunning
From Hell
The Royal Tenenbaums (BEST FILM OF THE YEAR)
In the Bedroom (Nick Nightingale directs! Kubrick inspired?)
I'll add my favorites from 2001, though I won't be able to name 10 of them, because I can't remember 10 movies from that year that were worthy of consideration:
"The Man Who Wasn't There" - I'm surprised other lists I've seen don't include this movie. The Coen Brothers are at the top of their form right now, and the last few movies they've made (this one and "O Brother") are flawless, in my opinion. Every time I watch one of their movies, I pick up on something new, and I'm constantly amazed at how perfect the film is, from the writing to the acting, to the directing. I consider them to be the best filmakers in the history of film, and they're still only in their mid 40's. This was a funny and thoughtful movie, beautifully written and filmed. Billy Bob Thorton was perfect for the part; The Coens Brothers hit the nail on the head in casting the lead in every picture they make.
"Ghost World" - Really an original, funny, poignant film about growing up and entering the real world. Why wasn't Thora Birch nominated for this role? Same with Steve Buschemi.
"Royal Tennebaums" - Another completely original film from W. Anderson, though it tended to wander at times. I laughed from start to finish, except during the suicide scene.
"Apocolypse Now Redux" - I liked the original version much more, and I think the added scenes make the movie more choppy and reduce its rather mystic mood. Still, got to include it because the original was so good.
I'm ashamed.
How did "The Man" slip my list? It may well be the Coens' best. (Although I'm REALLY partial to Barton Fink & The Big Lebowski, for sheer entertainment)
Cinematography students would do well to look long & hard at "The Man Who Wasn't There". Who says black & white is crap?
My favourite Coen films are Barton Fink and The Big Lebowski too. Favourites of 2001 include "The Fellowship of the Ring" (I've been waiting years to see this made), "Moulin Rouge", "The Man Who Wasn't There", and "A.I." I can't think of many more I could really recommend as being quite outstanding. Too many average or poor films released last year.
I have lists for everything...feel free to check out my site below. I have Top Tens by Year, Decade, categories(just starting).
Top Ten for 2001
A Beautiful Mind
i am sam
The Others
Blackhawk Down
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Das Experiment
Enemy at the Gates
Monsters, Inc.
Shrek
Lantana
I actually posted this on a movie group site a few days ago, so I'm tickled to get to discuss it again!
First of all, there are still SEVERAL key 2001 movies I have yet to see! It takes me a while to catch up on newer films, so my list never looks the same as other people's! lol Yet I have trouble imagining any of these top 5 being knocked out of the top 10.
1. The Shipping News (Lasse Hallstrom) -- A gem of movie craftsmanship. The trailers & video boxes do not do its plot justice. It has a nice combination of romance, determination, supernatural & a touch of dark humor. It is also a gorgeously filmed movie with great diologue and a tremendous cast. I can't recommend this one enough!
2. The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson) -- I am now a Wes Anderson fan! What superb craftmanship. I disagree with those who say that it is bogged down by TRYING TO PORTRAY an artistic gem. This is not for those who cannot laugh without a groin being crushed or pay attention without buildings exploding. I think most serious film fans will love it. This entertaining film works on several levels & takes at LEAST two viewings to really digest & interpret. And, may I ask, has Gene Hackman EVER disappointed????
3. Amelie (Jean-Pierre Juenet) -- I just saw this one last night & found it very much on the order of the two films listed in front of it. Striking cinematography, clever and innovating film editing, snappy dialogue, dark humor and poignancy and a fine cast make this one a real keeper.
4. Conspiracy (Frank Pierson) -- This HBO story of the infamous Wannessee Conference in Jan., 1942, at which "The Final Solution" to the Nazi's Jewish "problem" was discussed over an elegant dinner, is a chilling & rivoting movie. Kenneth Bronaugh will give one nightmares with his charming, erudite, yet (immediately below the surface) inhumanely cruel Oberstgruppenfuhrer Reinhard Hydrich. Kuddos to HBO for having the guts to tackle something like this -- and for doing it so well!
5. 61* (Billy Chrystal) -- One of the best baseball films ever made, 61* is a treat for baseball fans and non-fans. The story of Roger Maris & Mickey Mantle and their 1961 chase of Babe Ruth's legendary home run record is very accurate, historically, perfectly casted & very well-done. Another grand slam for HBO!
That's my humble top 5. Like I said, there are at least half a dozen from 2001 that I still really want to see. My list might well change after I do!
MarkMyWord
If one DOESN'T allow me to count HBO movies on my list, then Rat Race & Ali would probably be # 4 & 5 on my list. I found Rat Race refreshingly funny. It was a perfect tribute by David Zucker to the old chase/race classics of the 1960s. I loved it. Ali was good, too, especially the incredible fight scenes! It could have been better, though. Am I the only one a bit miffed that it seemed to slam M.L. King & the peaceful Civil Rights movement?
Speaking of Donnie Darko, that is definitely one of the 2001 movies I plan to see. I love a good horror flick, though not the stupid slasher types. I'm a "dark fantasist" rather than a "splatter punk," to borrow two terms from horror novels.
MarkMyWord
Whether it makes sense or not, making Best Lists becomes a focus for the obsessive filmgoer. It's a way of organizing the experience of many evenings out. And for those stay-at-homes, one's list can be useful for lining the pockets of Netflix et al. and catching up. I've begun making two Ten Best lists, one domestic and one foreign, because there seem to be so many good foreign movies (especially French) lately, but I don't want to be a snob and have them outnumber the local products.
T E N B E S T O F 2 0 0 1 ( U. S.)_______________________________________________
THE ANNIVERSARY PARTY (LEIGH, CUMMING)
A.I. (SPIELBERG)
BULLY (CLARK)
MEMENTO (NOLAN)
GHOST WORLD (ZWIGOFF)
L.I.E. (CUESTA)
WAKING LIFE (LINKLATER)
OCEAN’S ELEVEN (SODERBERGH)
IN THE BEDROOM (FIELD)
GOSFORD PARK (ALTMAN)
T E N B E S T F O R E I G N (2 0 0 1 )_____________________________________________
IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (KAR-WAI)
WITH A FRIEND LIKE HARRY (MOLL)
SEXY BEAST (GLAZER)
COME UNDONE (LIFSHITZ)
TOGETHER (MOODYSSON)
CURE (KIYOSHI KUROSAWA)
BANGKOK DANGEROUS (PANG AND PANG)
VA SAVOIR (RIVETTE)
AMORES PERROS (INNARITU)
LANTANA (LAWRENCE)
These are the lists I made at the end of 2001. They're in the order that I originally saw them. The problem with lists for the non-professional is that you may not be able to see all the good stuff from that year till the following year. That's why I make another list:
O N E S I W I S H I ’ D S E E N B E F O R E I M A D E T H E S E L I S T S (2001)
_________________________________________________
TIME OUT (LAURENT CANTET)
Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN (CUARON)
CODE UNKNOWN (HANEKE)
FAITHLESS (ULLMANN)
ELOGE D’AMOUR (GODARD)
A WINTER’S TALE (ROHMER)
LOIN (TECHINE)
LUMUMBA (PECK)
If these are mostly foreign, that's my problem (I'm sure there were US movies I ought to have seen but missed but I didn't even know what they were). I have still not caught up on this list, by the way, except for TIME OUT and Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN. They are so good I would probably have moved a couple of the original foreign ones out -- maybe BANGKOK DANGEROUS and COME UNDONE -- to make room for them. Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN is a truly great and deliriously enjoyable movie and looks better at each successive viewing.
Before I made up the American list I saw most of the titles others have included, but chose to include lesser known movies such as BULLY and A.I.E., and also the generally unpopular A.I., because I happened to have liked them very much and I want to get other people to see them.
This year, perhaps my favorite American movie actually was to have been released in 2001 -- Henry Bean's amazing and powerful THE BELIEVER. It's gotten a raw deal, supposedly because of 9/11 but really because it's controversial and smart. The brilliant star can't be nominated for an Academy Award, and the movie was hardly seen by anyone in theaters, and it's still not available yet on a US video or DVD.
I did see DONNIE DARKO and found it interesting, especially the promising young star, but though it's potential cult material I don't think it quite hangs together enough to put on any Ten Best list -- and I can clearly see by now that it doesn't need me to hype it. It's being released in England now with much hype, and it's getting a lot of video word of mouth support these days. It's looking like its director and its star will both go on to great things.
P.s. I loved BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF. I didn't quite think it was Ten Best material, though. But a really fun, mainstream movie fully deserves to be on any list: OCEAN'S ELEVEN.
The problem with making lists is it's all personal. Considering there are over 300+ films released a year, it's easy to miss great stuff & be prejudiced only to what you have seen. That's why the "Academy" rankles me every year. Those voters are severely prejudiced (dare I say bribed) into handing the golden dude to whoever tickles their fancy. That said, I love to hate watching the ceremony. (I usually get completely wasted on oscar night and the next day mumble while puking: Denzel is not better than Sean Penn ugggghh Denzel is not better.....)
I'm glad you mentioned Va Savoir- I saw it three times I liked it so much. Even got the poster. Great lists- you have some titles I haven't seen. I thought From Hell was a great movie-it's on my list for the ten best of 2001.
Gotta see this Donnie Darko I hear so much about.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE TOP 10
1. Mulholland Drive
2. Apocalypse Now Redux
3. A.I
4. Gosford Park
The Lord of the Rings:Fellowship
6. George Washington
In the bedroom
8. Ghost World
Our Song
Waking Life
Runners Up
The Royal Tenenbaums
Lantana
Memento
Bully
The Deep End
Monster's Ball
Monsters Inc.
Donnie Darko
The Others
Iris
Man Who Wasn't There.
FOREIGN LANGUAGE TOP 10
1. In the mood for love (Hong Kong)
2. Code Unknown (France/Norway)
The Swamp (Argentina)
4. Amores Perros (Mexico)
Divided we fall (Czech Rep.)
Eureka (Japan)
6. The Circle (Iran)
7. Chunhyang (South Korea)
The Gleaners and I (France)
Me, You, Them (Brasil)
One fine spring day (South Korea)
Runners Up
Together (Sweden)
Day I became a woman (Iran)
Faithless (Denmark)
My Sassy Girl (South Korea)
Under The Sand (Fra)
Perfume de Violetas (Mexico)
Our Lady of the assassins (Colombia)
Cure (Japan)
Nueve Reinas (Argentina)
Audition (Japan).
Johan--Sure, lists are personal, is that bad? True, I'm not seeing 300 movies a year. But I’m seeing a lot of movies: that’s what made me start making Best Lists. I don't see everything but I try really hard to see all the ones there's a clear chance I'll like. I miss some of those due to logistics if I’m not in NY or LA the end of the year. Some of the best year's end releases don’t make it to northern California where I live till early the next year. That's where my Ones I Wish I'd Seen Before I Made This List comes in. Maybe I don't see enough out and out bad movies. That's my resolution: to try to see more movies I expect to be bad. Maybe I'll find some good ones among them. If not, at least I'll know more about what's out there. Yes, do see DONNIE DARKO.
I haven't seen FROM HELL.
Oscar Jubis--I like your list and we have quite a few choices in common. The only one of your Ten Best I have any reservations about is ROYAL TENNENBAUMS, which seemed too cute and contrived to me, but of course many discerning individuals liked it. GEORGE WASHINGTON came out in 2000, not 2001. I know because I was in NYC in late 2000 and just missed it. I still haven't managed to see it, but it sounded excellent and was on many critics' Best Lists. I want to see it, but I go out to see so many new movies, I don't have much time to stay home and rent a video. I have still missed CODE UNKNOWN. After seeing LA PIANISTE I definitely want to see it. I have to say I hated THE CIRCLE. Too relentlessly bleak; but then that is typical of Iranian films as I see them, and I'm not much of a fan of them. I would like to see those of your other foreign choices that I've missed; your lists look good. I just saw NUEVE REINAS in London. It was great. I'd heard about it, but it came and went here in a single week.
I urge everyone to see Henry Bean's THE BELIEVER as soon as you can get hold of a video of it, if you didn't see it in a theater, which is very possible. It was supposed to be released in 2001 and is dated 2001 officially.
My Best List for 2002 so far is this:
THE BELIEVER (Henry Bean)
THE GOOD GIRL (Miguel Arteta)
IGBY GOES DOWN (Burr Steers)
ONE HOUR PHOTO (Mark Romanek)
PUMPKIN (Anthony Adams and Adam Larson Broder)
PUNCH DRUNK LOVE (P.T. Anderson)
TADPOLE (Gary Winick)
My Best Foreign list for 2002 so far is this:
ALL OR NOTHING (Mike Leigh)
ATANARJUAT: THE FAST RUNNER (Zacharias Kunuk)
LA PIANISTE (Michael Haneke)
TALK TO HER (HABLE CON ELLA, Pedro Almodovar)
THE SON'S ROOM (LA STANZA DEL FIGLIO, Nanni Moretti)
READ MY LIPS (SUR MES LEVRES, Jacques Audiard)
TIME OUT (L'EMPLOI DU TEMPS, Laurent Cantet)
WHAT TIME IS IT THERE? (Ming-Liang Tsai)
Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN (Alfonso Cuaron)
Of course as usual many of the foreign ones originally showed somewhere a year or two before they came here.
FAR FROM HEAVEN (Todd Haynes) is going to be on a lot of Ten Best lists. I'm hoping to find other candidates because I found it overrated, as I did MONSTER'S BALL and THE DEEP END last year.