Top Ten movies that I’ve seen in 2008…

Was supposed to post this around the end of December but got sidetracked with other things. Well here it is now, my top ten movies that I’ve seen in 2008. You have two movies starring Robert Downey Jr., two superhero movies, two animated movies and three movies starring our old beloved heroes:

10. Tropic Thunder

I enjoyed:

• The over the topness quality of the action scenes (eg.the opening scene, the end scenes, all the explosions)
• the hollywood satire
• Robert Downey Jr.
• TOM CRUISE!!

9. JCVD

A movie with a thin plot: a washed up star gets into a hostage situation and gets wrongly accused of robbing a bank. What made this movie special is that it’s not some guy playing a washed up actor, it’s JEAN CLAUDE VAN DAMME, a washed up star himself. The movie is fictional yet it touches upon real facts about Van Damme (eg. drug addiction, child custody, rivalry with Steven Seagal, his recent work on ‘Direct to video’ movies). The ending was the biggest surprise for me. It’s not quite a happy ending yet not a sad one either.

8. Rambo

While Jean Claude Van Damme is reinventing his on screen image with JCVD, Stallone is reintroducing one of his iconic characters to the new generation. ‘Rambo’ doesn’t follow the usual 3 Act formula and instead it’s a one constant build up that ended with an explosive finale. Stallone, bring on ‘The Expendables‘!!

7. Iron Man

Iron Man aka “How Marvel movies got her groove back”. You have a hero who’s cool, crazy rich, a playa, drives cool cars, wears an indestructible armour, can fly, can blow things up, hook up with Gwyneth Paltrow and go toe to toe with Jeff Bridges (who looks badass in this movie). Add to the fact that this hero is played by the talented Robert Downey Jr. and you have a winner 😎

6. Wanted

F***ing ridiculous but I love it. You have curving bullets, crazy car chase, violence, John Woo/Matrix style gun ballet and Angelina Jolie.

I liked the twist in the middle too which saved the story from being the typical “I’m the chosen one and must avenge my father” angle.

5. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull

I loved it. That’s right, I enjoyed this movie. On my second viewing, the parts that I did have a problem with were still problematic for me (CGI beaver, Indy inside the fridge to save himself from nuclear explosion, etc) but I enjoyed the rest.  I didn’t have a problem with the aliens which wasn’t much of a surprise for those who have been following the development of the 4th installment of Indiana Jones (you thought that was ridiculous for an Indiana Jones movie?? Come on, we had a box with mysterious powers that melts Nazis, an Indian cult group that takes out the hearts of children and a sacred cup in which you get immortality if you drink from it). Overall,  it was a fun adventure movie.

4. Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Highly entertaining movie. It’s funny, frightening and action packed. I cared about the characters and I even kinda felt sorry for the main villain too. The main highlight of the movie for me are the creature designs; from evil little “tooth fairies” to giant plant monster, the ectoplasmic german guy to the angel of death (my favourite). The audience were in awe whenever some new creature shows up and it proves that the director have limitless imagination. Del Toro, bring on ‘The Hobbit‘!

3. Wall E

Wall E is a preachy movie with an environmental message like ‘Happy Feet’. But its brilliance lies with the way it kept the central focus of the story on the main characters instead of the message itself. The first part of movie where you follow Wall E’s daily life and his unrequited love for Eve is sweet and adorable. Best Pixar movie since Finding Nemo.

2. Kung Fu Panda

Wall E is epic but Kung Fu Panda is just pure fun. I’ve lost count on how many times I’ve seen this movie but I’m still not bored with it. Introducing the classic Kung Fu story formula (clumsy guy trained into a Kung Fu master and save the village) to a younger generation through an animated feature is a smart move. You add a loveable Panda (the national animal of China aside from dragon) as the hero, hire a wide range of actors to do the voices (Comedians like Jack Black & Seth Rogen to superstars like Angelina Jolie & Jackie Chan and a Hollywood veteran, Dustin Hoffman) add some action and sprinkle it with humour and what you get is a work of genius Haha

1. The Dark Knight

You must be tired of how this movie is on everyones top list but seriously, it is a really good movie. A psychological and sociological study that touches on themes of anarchy, heroism, law & order under the disguise of a summer popcorn superhero movie.

The Dark Knight is not just a Superhero movie, it’s a two and a half hours long epic crime drama that touches on themes like law & order, the price of heroism and what people can do when their comfort zone get disturbed…The movie is about Gotham City and the efforts of three men (Batman, Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent) in saving it from the Joker, the self proclaimed agent of Chaos.

Read my DARK KNIGHT review here