#2: Stranger Than Fiction

Directed by Marc Forster
Starring Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson and Dustin Hoffman
An IRS auditor suddenly finds himself the subject of narration only he can hear: narration that begins to affect his entire life, from his work, to his love-interest, to his death.

This film is charming, funny, heartwarming, touching and sweet. Will Ferrell proves he can play serious characters but maintain his comedic charm. And Emma Thompson and Dustin Hoffman? Oh come on, they're fabulous no matter what they do.

I won't bore you with what worked in this film because it all did. The cast was excellent. The visuals were great. The premise and story were interesting blah blah blah. But I will point out the sub-character/love interest that was Maggie Gyllenhaal who played the baker Ana Pascal. Her nugget of story (excluding the tax audit bit) was she used to attend law school and during her study nights with fellow law students, she would bake cookies, cupcakes and any delightful treat. It started innocently as a late night study snack but seeing how happy it made her classmates, she would bake every time. Then it hit her: she'd rather be doing something that made people happy and something she enjoyed doing and therefore left law school and eventually openned her own bakery. Sounds pretty sweet to me... all except the tax audit bit.

#3: Superman Returns

Directed by Bryan Singer
Starring Brandon Routh, Kate Bosworth and Kevin Spacey
After a long visit to the lost remains of the planet Krypton, the Man of Steel returns to earth to become the peoples savior once again and reclaim the love of Lois Lane.

What's this? A blockbuster made it to my list? Hey, I'm not one of those people who turn their nose down on a film because it grossed $391 million worldwide. If a movie rocked my world and the world of many others, how can it sucked?

Permission to geek out.

This film was awesome! What could have easily been a disaster (X-Men 3, I'm looking at you) was a such a great add-on to an already established franchise (and no, I am not counting Superman III or IV which just adds more credit to this movie). It had subtle and not-so subtle references to Superman I and II as well as "The Death of Superman", Brandon Routh shared the mannerisms of Christopher Reeve that made Clark Kent Clark Kent, Superman looked so idealistically unreal, there is an total "mark-out" scene involving an airplane and a baseball stadium - what more could you ask for?

Bryan Singer knows how to make a comic book movie.

#4: Clerks 2

Directed by Kevin Smith
Starring Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson and Rosario Dawson
Free from his dead-end job (and lodged in a new one), Dante begins to break free of his rut, planning to move away and get married, but Randal - always the more hostile of the two - starts to become overwhelmed by his own rancor.

I read this interview with Kevin Smith recently where he's asked who would he be more of, Dante or Randal. He states in the first one he identifies with Dante - the guy stuck in a dead-end job always wanting more but failing to "shit or get off the pot". And it was the Randal character who he wanted to be. But when he wrote Clerks 2, the view kinda shifts. Though Dante is the one who is closer to Smith as in he is thinking about family, marriage etc (though still failing the "shit or get off the pot" mentality), it is Randal whom he relates to more. The frustration of when did everything change, when did the status quo change? Why do I feel so left out, why do I feel so behind the times and shit?

When Clerks 2 came out, I was pretty much expecting the same repetoire of dirty jokes (with a splash of inter-species erotica) plus his usual point of view on pop culture but with current references - and it had all that. But, and dare I say, it also had heart. It had a bigger task to perform - showing growth in both the characters (particularly the former "trusty comic-relief sidekick" Randal) and the writer/director, Smith himself. It needed to follow up on a cult hit film without necessarily being a cult hit film. Clerks 2 won't be remembered the way Clerks was and is, but it was the appropriate sequel - beginning in Smith's budget black and white and ending with it.

#5: The Queen

Directed by Stephen Frears

Starring Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen and James Cromwell

An intimate and fictitious behind the scenes glimpse at the interaction between HM Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Tony Blair during their struggle, following the death of Diana.

Slow-paced but far from boring. The characters were actually human and not headline names. And Helen Mirren eerily embodied Queen Elizabeth. The movie tastefully incorporated Princess Diana's death without exploiting it more than it already has by not focusing on the night she died, just the days following it and the people around and also not showing the children's faces.

Don't think I have much more to say about this one. To be honest, I think I'm just boning up to write about movie pick #4. In any case, The Queen is very good and you should watch it. My room mate's boyfriend refuses to watch it because it looks boring. It really isn't as dry as you'd expect it to be. Quite the contrary, it's the human aspect of all the characters from the Queen to Tony Blair to Prince Charles and Prince Philip and even the Queen Mum that make this film so compelling and interesting.

#6: Pan's Labyrinth

Directed by Guillermo del Toro
Starring Ivana Baquero, Sergi López and Maribel Verdú
The story of a young girl who travels with her pregnant mother to live with her mother's new husband and Captain, in a rural area up North in Spain, 1944. Post-war Fascist repression is at its height in rural Spain and the girl must come to terms with that through an imaginative fable of her own.

Hearing this movie was graphic and difficult to watch, I was still intrigued because I love fairy tales. I have an appreciation for them because a) they are written by adults for children and b) sometimes they are not for children. This one is not for children. Despite its violent and graphic nature, I was ready to watch this movie thinking the most violent and graphic content would be during the fantasy sequence though I will still anticipate those scenes because the "reality" part of the story would be boring and dull - an escape from reality if you will. This was half true. I looked forward to the fantasy scenes because it was the reality side that was more frightening, more graphic and more uncomfortable to watch - a definite escape from reality.

Sergei López as the Captain was so terrifying that I would choose to face off against a baby-eating, wormlike monster with his eyes in the palms of his hands any day over the chance of bumping into Captain Vidal in the hallway of my so-called home. And our protagonist is simple: an innocent little girl in a not-so-innocent world. Watch this film... but be prepared to uncomfortably place that hand loosely over your eyes from time to time.

#7: Children of Men

Directed by Alfonso Cuaron
Starring Clive Owen
In the chaotic not-so-distant future, where humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child's birth may help scientists save the future of humankind.

This film was very gritty, very rough and somewhat raw - and it was effective. I remembered when indie film directors (Tarantino and Smith, I'm looking at you) used hand-held cameras a lot in 1994, but eventually it got tiresome (circa 1998). But when you get a taste of it now from time to time in doses, you remember why it worked in the first place. Example (though not about this movie but about a movie by Alfonso Cuaron) in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, that one scene in the beginning that was shot with a hand-held was refreshing, particularly because the other films were by Chris Colombus and conventionally shot. With Children of Men, it felt like the whole movie was shot hand-held. This added to the atmosphere, creating discomfort and some nausea - though it may not sound like it, but that is a good thing in establishing its mood.

And if I may brush on Clive Owen's character, Theo - he was much more human than I was expecting, providing mild laughs in an otherwise depressing yet uplifting film.

#8: Curious George

Directed by Matthew O'Callahan
Starring the voice talents of Will Ferrell, Drew Barrymore, Dick Van Dyke, David Cross and Frank Welker (he's done A LOT, including the voice of Abu from "Aladdin")
When the Man in the Yellow Hat (named Ted) tries to save the museum he works at from being turned into a parking garage, he forms a special kinship with the curious little monkey that followed him from Africa.

Okay, I know what you're thinking: What is this movie doing on this list? Well, let me axe you a question: Do you like to smile? 'Cause I do! So therefore, this movie made the list! This monkey will make you smile. This film will make you smile and if you don't, clearly you have no soul.

Also, I gotta say, I appreciate the 2-D animation. Instead of eff'n up a childhood memory (*cough cough* Garfield), this film was very reminiscent of the books I grew up with. Sure they gave The Man in the Yellow Hat a name but I guess without a narrator, it wouldn't make much sense for the other characters to be constantly calling him "The Man in the Yellow Hat" - he could develop quite the complex growing up like that.

Anyway, the movie was funny and cute. 'Nuff said.

#9: Brick

Directed by Rian Johnson
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt
A teenage loner pushes his way into the underworld of a high school crime ring to investigate the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend.

I’d say this is “Dawson’s Creek” meets Hitchcock but attaching the name “Dawson’s Creek” would be insulting. My point is it was teenagers not talking or acting like they should. The tagline for this film is “A detective story” – but had this not been pointed out to me, the 1940s-esque film noir, “who dunnit?” talk might have been lost on me and I might have been turned off on the whole idea all together. Instead, it works on many levels; afterall the dialogue adds to mood, setting, theme etc.

Oh and yes, that is Tommy from “3rd Rock From the Sun” – baby’s all growns up! And also has an edge I wasn’t expecting from that character. He has the appearance of a timid, lonely teenage boy but really is not afraid to back up his words with actions and will do so. Dare I say, Tommy got cool.

#10: An Inconvenient Truth

Directed by Davis Guggenheim
Starring Al Gore
A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.

What I liked most of this film was the class lecture hall way of getting information across. I know, that doesn't sound like much of a documentary but it did get its point across. No slick charisma. No guerrilla camera crew. Just facts. It took me back to school - with slides, graphs and charts and it accomplished what it set out to do: educate.

Though the film sticks to solid facts, it also looks at Al Gore's personal feelings on the matter; his campaign to reverse the effects of global warming, in hopes to invote the audience to do that same. Though I didn't share the same reflections as Gore in those little interludes between lectures, I did feel a personal awe in the effects the subject matter had on this earth and to me, combined with the charts and such, and the personal reflections, made the point all the more clearer. And if by the end of the movie you're feeling despair or fear, the move tells you exactly what you need to do... how many more clear can you be?

Unless you're a sly email writer like Mr. Ian Morrison... who?

The miVi Top Ten Films of 2006 - an introduction

There was a time when I used to watch a movie at least once a week. There really wasn't a lot to do in Thunder Bay if you're not into bowling, hunting or muddin'. But never have I thought of compiling my favourites of the year until now despite that I really haven't seen a whole lot of films in 2006 (I think I'm at 31). Why now you ask? I'm not sure. Could be that the few I did see had a profound effect on me. The kind of effect that, though the movie may not have been the greatest film of all time, refused to leave my head days later.

Some films that didn't make the cut though were very enjoyable:
Casino Royale
Happy Feet (yes Happy Feet)
The Prestige









Some films that made me want to hurt enfants:
Eragon
X-Men 3
Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest

So, with that cleared up, the following posts will discuss what I consider the Best of 2006. These aren't necessarily going to be the movies I think everyone should watch. It's very hard to do that considering I haven't seen every movie this year nor do I have the same taste as everyone. I am not going to explain or review these from an objective point of view (I mean for crying out loud... Clerks 2 is somewhere on this list!)

A Collection of Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down (mainly downs)

Brought to you by the good people of Thunder Bay

THUMBS Down to the City of Thunder Bay “for refusing to clean blood off my stairwell and door after two unknown stabbing victims tried to enter my house early Tuesday morning. The city refused on the basis that it is residential property. I was forced to clean the areas myself and could have been exposed to various health hazards. It was especially upsetting to my young son who had to witness the blood stains while leaving to go to school. Shame on you!”

ON Dec. 19 at 11 p.m., at the corner of Churchill Drive and James Street, an orange Pontiac Sunfire with four teenagers inside pulled up alongside me, rolled down their windows and egged my vehicle. They sped off and I was stunned and unable to get a plate number. Merry Christmas and thanks for the mess that froze on my brand new Trailblazer. Happy Holidays.”

THUMBS Up to our readers who support this corner with submissions. Whether small or substantial, they share daily bits of city life that showcase the best, and worst, of our neighbours. Hopefully, the latter, and those who might identify with them, can learn that human kindness and consideration is a far better characteristic than carelessness. Much more important are the examples set by those who are recognized for their selflessness by those who take the time to do so. We are happy to provide a forum for all readers’ opinions and look forward to many more of them. Merry Christmas.

Dec 23

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THUMBS Down to the person(s) who dumped a box of moose bones and carcass on the 20th Side Road (between Riverdale & Hwy. 61). Thumbs Up to a couple of good Samaritans (Bill and Roy) who walk the 20th Side Road each day and cleaned up those old bones!

Dec 2

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THUMBS Down “to the person who stole the gravestone out of the car parked at a Bay and Algoma business. It wasn’t a Halloween decoration, it was a real headstone for someone’s beloved family pet. Maybe you didn’t realize its importance or maybe you’ve found your conscience. If so, than return it to anyone who works at the same business and they would be more than happy to return it to its rightful owner!”

Nov 4

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THUMBS Down to the person who broke a raw egg over my car Friday night, Oct. 20. The next time you have eggs that you don’t need, please take them to the Thunder Bay Food Bank at 129 E. Miles St., where the volunteers can give them to people who need food to eat, not to perform acts of vandalism in the dark of night!

Oct 28

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THUMBS Down from this reader “to all of the people who use this forum to complain about useless crap. Get a life!”

Oct 14

Phone Conversation With My Married Sister

Me: To tell you the truth, couples have been annoying the hell out of me lately.

Her: To tell you the truth, I'm a little sick of them too.