Movies Update

Just one random thought after my rant last night about the division among the American people. Isn't Pennsylvania a good representation of the U.S. as a whole? Pretty cool, populous places on either side and a whole lot of empty nothing in the middle. The two cities are enough to push it blue. Hopefully this will hold true for the nation in 2008.

What I did tonight inspires this list, so with a bunch of interesting movies coming in the next few months, Your List Sucks! brings you My 5 Favorite Movies of 2007:

• 5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: I give this a slight edge over The Bourne Ultimatum, because I thought the overlap between the second and third Bourne movies was a little weird. Harry Potter 5 was edgy like the third and started to take on the darkness that dominates the last three books of the series. With their ever-advancing age, this one was also the first where the actors, especially Daniel Radcliffe, stood out.
• 4. Hot Fuzz: The second funniest movie of the year. The source material was more accessible than that of Shaun of the Dead and the way that the spoof came together in the end was fall-down funny. Plus, forget the requisite Bill Nighy and Martin Freeman appearances -- cameos by Cate Blanchett and Peter Jackson? Awesome.
• 3. Hairspray: This was the first movie I saw this year that had me saying "potential Best Picture nominee" as I walked out of the theater. I didn't love Travolta for the most part; he's the only one with a Baltimore accent and he kind of overdoes it. However, Queen Latifah is as brilliant as she was in Chicago, Nikki Blonsky (an amateur) is fantastic in the starring role, James Marsden surprises with his singing and dancing prowess, and Elijah Kelley steals the show. In other words, the ensemble makes this movie.
• 2. Superbad: What can I say? This is easily up there with Fast Times as one of the great high school comedies ever. From McLovin to the Seth Rogen/Bill Hader duo to beer in a detergent bottle to the force that is Jonah Hill, this movie will require many re-watches to get all of the memorable lines.
• 1. American Gangster: It comes in at two hours and forty minutes, but after an initial slow set-up period, the movie flies by. The supporting cast is great (with Ruby Dee, Roger Bart, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Josh Brolin standing out) and the story is engrossing, but there's no surprise why this is number one. The direction is superb, leading up to the key climactic shot that the trailers don't do justice, but everything in this movie hinges on the performances of Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. Shocker, they manage to pull it off.