The Ten Best Films of 2004

More than anything else, 2004 will be remembered as the year of the documentary. Perhaps because of the important U.S. presidential election, political documentaries competed against each other in an attempt to inform viewers of the “truth.” In the left corner, engaging documentaries such as Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11 and Jehane Noujaim’s Control Room questioned the presidency of George W. Bush; in the right corner, these films were countered with the likes of Michael Wilson’s Michael Moore Hates America and Alan Peterson’s FahrenHYPE 9/11. Other documentaries, such as Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry, Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me, Jonathan Caouette’s Tarnation, and Kevin Macdonald’s Touching the Void were in leagues of their own, staying clear of the political battle arena. In any case, make no mistake: The documentary was the champion of this year’s cinema. Of my picks for the best ten of the year, four are of this genre.

Remakes were also popular this year—Dawn of the Dead and The Manchurian Candidate both performed strongly at the box office—as were martial arts films: 2004 finally showed the American release of Yimou Zhang’s much delayed Hero as well as his House of the Flying Daggers and action-packed sequels like Zatoichi and Kill Bill: Volume 2. Independent films like Sideways and the controversial The Passion of the Christ also received high marks and performed well.

The films that finally came out on top were a little mixture of all of the above, as well as a few strong entries by some major Hollywood players. That such a healthy mix of genres and filmmakers are represented on my top ten list reveals what a good year 2004 was for films. I do not envy the Academy come Oscar week—they are going to get migraines trying to narrow the Best Picture category down to only five picks. When the Oscars were originally established, up to ten films could get nominated, and I have a feeling that they’ll wish that they could revive that tradition. In any case, if I could pick ten nominees, here they are:

1. Touching the Void. A flawless, harrowing documentary depicting the journey of three men who encounter the Suila Grande, the highest peak in the Peruvian Andes. The film begins as a fascinating look at the psyche of the mountain climbers, but when one of them shatters their leg and is left for dead, the film suddenly becomes a maddening essay on human endurance that leaves us at our wits end as we endure the struggle with the characters. Convincingly mixing reenactments with interviews from the three men, Touching the Void is a moving, gripping exercise in cinematic skill and storytelling.

2. The Aviator. Leonardo DiCaprio must be Martin Scorsese’s new DeNiro—they have worked together in both this film and Gangs of New York, and so far, they’re two for two. After Cape Fear and moments of Gangs (which I overall admired), I feared that the low-budget perfectionist in Scorsese would be muddled by these big-budget Hollywood films. The Aviator confirms that the maestro still holds his bag of tricks, even when crossing over. This biopic about the golden years of Howard Hughes is a both throwback to the lavish filmmaking of the Errol Flynn era as well as a deep, probing examination of Scorsese’s familiar motifs of lust, greed, and men trapped in their own conflicting realities. DiCaprio will hopefully be able to drop his pretty-boy image forever after this role; he is simply riveting as Hughes and is likely to earn an Oscar nomination.

3. Million Dollar Baby. Clint Eastwood’s quiet examination of boxing and redemption came out of nowhere at the very last minute, right when the critics were already compiling their lists and the countdown to the new year had begun. Marvelous performances by Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, and Hilary Swank and a terrific story about three people whose emotional baggage seem to perfectly compliment one another. Perhaps the best film about boxing since Raging Bull—or, as both of these films were less about boxing and more about the souls of the people in the ring, the best film about boxers since Raging Bull.

4. The Passion of the Christ. Mel Gibson’s fiercely-debated, controversial film is really a very simple ordeal: Closely following the gospel of John, it painstakingly details the suffering and death of Christ and regards it as the focal point of Christian theology. On that level, it is a powerful piece of filmmaking, perhaps more directly related to ancient religious murals and sculptures than narrative cinema. Opponents of the film have branded it as anti-Semitic; if you are paying attention to the content and have an understanding of Christian theology, you will see that the film’s only attack against the Jews come from the Romans.

5. Sideways. The tagline says it all: “In search of wine. In search of women. In search of themselves.” Director Alexander (“About Schmidt”) Payne’s coming of middle-age/road-trip film is the best adult comedy of the year. To say anything else would give away the twists and revelations that the characters have, and this film is all about character twists, revelations, and the well-written dialogue in the meantime. Go see it.

6. Tarnation. Now here is an original, refreshing movie! Jonathan Caouette began filming this with a Super-8 camera as a child, using the camera as a journal to record his thoughts throughout the years. He edited these entries together with pictures and various interviews to tell the story of his mother, who has been in and out of mental wards for most of her adult life. A gripping, touching love letter to his mother as well as a shattering look at a man’s struggle with his identity, Tarnation was edited together for somewhere around $200 using a Macintosh program. Hollywood take note.

7. Hero. Yimou Zhang’s answer to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was finally released in the United States after a two-year delay, and it was worth the wait. A retelling of the story told so well in The Emperor and the Assassin, Hero is a clever mix of that film and Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon, filmed with the poetic, colorful elegance of Ang Lee’s 2000 epic. Citing Hero’s inspirations should probably be enough to convince you of its worth. It is beautiful to behold and features some of the most moving sequences of martial arts ever put to film.

8. Super Size Me. Morgan Spurlock’s account of his thirty-day MacDonald’s diet quickly turns into both one of the most delightful comedies and most terrifying horror films of the year. Super Size Me is a witty, insightful look at the omnipotence of Corporate America, and what happens to Spurlock along the way as he chows down only on MacDonald’s is a pretty frightening ordeal. Bold, fun, and informative.

9. A Very Long Engagement. An honest look at the illogicality of war, this is a well-told love story set to the backdrop of World War I. From director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, director of Amélie and City of the Lost Children, so it goes without saying that you can expect the type of visual absurdity found in both films here, and it works to create a sincere, bittersweet picture that consistently strikes the right note.

10. Touching the Void: Return to Suila Grande. This half-hour documentary was made for the Independent Film Channel and is included on a special feature on the Touching the Void DVD. It is an experience nearly as powerful as its prequel. It details the three original adventurers’ return to the Andes, fifteen years after their terrifying ordeal. In addition to painting a frank, moving picture of how the men’s relationships have progressed in that time, it is also a haunting reminder of how certain ghosts will always be with us, and how they can sometimes be rekindled to create experiences just as terrifying as the events that shaped them. Touching the Void is not complete without viewing this sequel.

Most Anticipated Films of 2005:

1. George A. Romero’s Land of the Dead. If Martin Scorsese is our country's greatest living director, George Romero is our greatest commentator on American society. After a twenty-year hiatus, he returns as director to his world of flesh-eating zombies, his metaphor for the ever-growing depravity in western civilization. I have had the opportunity to read the current shooting script for this film, and it is his most insightful (and exciting) since Dawn of the Dead: It is a careful, thoughtful look at the attitudes and mentality that might have caused 9/11, and Romero doesn’t apologize for pointing the blame at the United States just as much as he does to the terrorists.

2. Beowulf & Grendel. An independently-made production, filmed on-location in Scandinavia. It will be nice to see a serious attempt at adapting the poem, and the website indicates that it will be an exciting, philosophical retelling of the story.

3. Nirvana. Italy’s 1997 cyber-punk fantasy is finally getting released in the United States. A pre-cursor to reality/fantasy-blending films such as Dark City and The Matrix, the film was met with rave reviews when it originally premiered at Cannes. It has since developed a massive cult following in Europe, and American distributors have finally decided to share the love. Let’s hope that the years and hype have been kind.

4. War of the Worlds. Spielberg. Cruise. Post-Minority Report. H.G. Wells. Martians. A blank check. What more can I add?

5. A Love Song for Bobby Long. One of two films that will hopefully be a comeback for John Travolta, who needs another hit. From the trailer, this looks like an intense, well-made drama.

6. Be Cool. The other John Travolta film that will be potentially career-reviving and it’s a sequel to Get Shorty to boot. Sounds fun!

7. Batman Begins. The first Batman film since 1997. Batman is one of our last, great Byronic heroes, and none of the previous films have done justice to the dark, psychological complexities of his character. Hype indicates that this entire film is about those complexities, and Christian Bale is an inspired choice for the role. Here’s hoping that this is the film that finally gets it right.

8. Sin City. Another comic book adaptation, this one from Robert Rodriguez. The trailer promises a throwback to film noir, combined with comic book absurdity and fantastic visuals. Think along the lines of Dick Tracy, only significantly darker. It should also be mentioned that I think Frank Miller is to comic books what Charles Dickens is to Victorian literature. And if you disagree with me, you’re probably wrong.

9. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. And you thought The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King had a long title! C.S. Lewis' beloved fantasy novels were quieter and simpler than his buddy Tolkien's, but perhaps equal in terms of fascinating characters and believable fantastic worlds. After the success of film adaptations of Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, some Narnia movies are due, and they look like they're going to be family-friendly adaptations that take Lewis' themes seriously. After the initial promo images, I can't wait!

10. The Merchant of Venice. A film made in 2004 that is finally getting a wide release this year. It is the first cinematic attempt at adapting William Shakespeare’s anti-Semitic comedy, and director Michael Radford evidently adapted the work so that it plays as an anti-Iraq war piece. Interesting. The cast includes Al Pacino, Joseph Fiennes, and Jeremy Irons.