The best films of 2007 that were actually seen in the theater in 2007

1. No Country For Old Men. I saw this movie over 6 weeks ago and images from it still pop into my head on a daily basis. A lot has been said about the movie and I am sure there will be future posts on this blog about it. It's brilliant. It had the balls to not have hardly any musical score (something I have been waiting years for). And it contains my new favorite word. Friendo.

2. Charlie Wilson's War. This was just a superbly written and acted political comedy drama of the highest popcorn eating order. The kind of movie that makes you want to run out and see another movie because it reminded you how good it feels to see a great movie. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is in top form. The movie also provides a younger generation a insiders look at how the background of the mess we are in was originally created. One enemy swapped out for another. Tragic.

3. Grindhouse. You are not going to see the Grindhouse movies on very many top 10 lists. For me, the B-movie indulgences of fake trailers, ultra-trashy graphics, missing reels, burned and scarred film, out of synch audio, balls to the wall mayhem and the fact you got two movies for one is enough to make it on the list. Both movies rule for totally different reasons.

4. The Bourne Ultimatum. I was a little skeptical of this one on the grounds that Paul Greengrass, although a competent director, had some major problems with the Bourne Supremacy. The Supremacy was good, but marred by herky-jerky handheld camera work and an overly dark tone. Too much hand wringing and a little short on the ass kicking. Balance is the key. I was wonderfully surprised to see Greengrass rescue the trilogy with a film every bit as good as the first installment.

Juno, Atonement and There Will Be Blood having been disqualified for not having been seen in 2007 because Kansas City theaters are second rate. I'll have to consider them for next year.

Great & unexpected things about the film adaptation of Atonement

1. The sophistication of the events in the "misunderstanding". The main plot point of the first half of the film could have easily resorted to a simplistic "sister is jealous of older sisters romance and seeks to destroy it" kind of story. Thankfully it did not. The events of the first half of the film that lead to the major turning point are wonderfully nuanced, strange, funny, tragic, and as genuinely difficult to interpret as anything in real life. You can really see how this could really happen and it's difficult to assign who is right and who is wrong. Yet at the same time it rises beautifully above a pure depiction of reality to give the audience a narrative work of art.

2. A masterful & surrealistic play with sound and time. Many sequences in the film are shown out of order and they really emphasize the interpretive nature between what is really happening and what we, the audience, are actually seeing. Plus the cinematography is absolutely beautiful, rivaling thewrok of Roger Deakins with the Cohens or Emmanuel Lubezki on Children of Men. The use of real sound clips within the score are brilliant as well. Typewriter keys bleed from active sound into the score, establishing a taught rhythm. Later on, an umbrella slamming on the hood of a car perfectly segues one scene to another by synching perfectly with the score.

3. A mind-blowingly amazing 5.5 minute long tracking shot that rivals that riveting scene in Children of Men. Words can't even describe. My jaw was dropped the whole time. It wasn't as suspenseful as COM but it was as gnarly, wild and tragic all the same. I read that the scene was born out of necessity because of the number of extras and the location. They did it in one day with only 4 takes before they exhausted the Steadicam operator.

4. An on-screen romance that is nuanced, complex, tragic and god forbid genuinely sexy. The love story at the center of the plot is very untraditional in its depiction. It makes you really yearn for the characters. I also appreciate the one sex scene's ability to transcend the blandness of most hollywood takes on lovers' passion. It felt messy and real without being overly explicit.

The most plausable theories on the ending of No Country For Old Men in decending order (Warning: Spoilers!)

1. Chigurh is NOT in the room. He was at one time but is not once Bell returns. The shot of Chigurh that we the audience see (of him hiding behind the door with only the light coming through the keyhole on his face) is a visualization of what Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) believes is on the other side of the door. The fact that the only light on Chigurh's face is from the keyhole connect the image with how Bell would imagine the killer waiting for him.

The whole scene is about Bell and his battle between fear and duty. As he stands there staring at the keyhole, he knows he is choosing between life and death. He knows this is his "coin toss". He goes in anyway. His body language signals he's given up and is prepared to die. When Chigurh is discovered to not be there, Bell is relieved and retires at that moment. This is indeed No Country for Old Men. The shot of the vent confirms that Chigurh was once there and that Bell narrowly escaped death.

This is my favorite theory and I'm sticking to it. It's simple. It doesn't rely on magic and makes the scene all about Bell's decision. Which is precisely what the whole end of the movieis is all about. Bell Decides to retire. The consequence is that Carla dies, and Chigurh gets away and he has to live with that.

2. Chigurh is in the room and is merely behind the door when Bell enters. The door sticks kinda funny and never bangs against the wall. It's plausible that he is behind the door. When Bell sits on the bed and looks at the opened vent, it may be inferred that Chigurh emerges from behind the door and kills Bell. The remaining scenes of Bell are in some kind of fever dream while dying. It is widely recognized that the Cohens purposefully diminished the visual violence as the movie progressed, trusting that the audience can complete the picture in the mind. An alternate to this theory is that Chigurh is behind the door (as in option 2) but sneaks out while Bell briefly checks the bathroom window. I find this implausible and there would be no reason for Chigurh to let Bell live.

3. Chigurh is actually in the adjacent room and the shot we see is him hiding behind the door of the other room, which also is missing it's keyhole in the same manner as any room he tends to enter. This "mirrors" the fact that Chigurh occupied the adjacent room to Moss earlier in the film.

4. Chirgurh is a supernatural being that has the ability, albeit limited, to vanish at will.

The best groupings of songs formerly know as albums that were released in 2007

1. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
A legendary classic of the genre. Equally moving forward as it looks back. Digital yet warm. James Murphy bounces from heart warming reverence to eye rolling irony all the while crafting perfect guitar/electro pop.

2. M.I.A. - Kala
MIA's second record tones down on the 8 bit assault of her debut. But she is single handedly making world music cool. And that is one hell of an achievement.

3. Akron/Family - Love is Real
These guys are giving Animal Collective a run for the money. It's a little hippy, but their pop sensibilities and avant garde experimentalism are perfectly joined here.

4. St. Vincent - Marry Me
Holy crap this woman came out of nowhere. A formidable talent and record thats good for endless spins.