End of 2007 movie roundup…

I always end up watching a bunch of movies over the holiday break. This year was no different. The following are definitely worth your time:

A few years ago, after seeing his abysmal film, Spider, and having previously been burned by Crash (not to be with Crash), I had entirely given up on David Cronenberg. But my love for Viggo Mortensen drug me out for A History of Violence, and it was great, one of the best films I saw that year. So I was eager to see if Viggo and Cronenberg could do it again with Eastern Promises. Adding Naomi Watts into the mix certainly doesn’t hurt. And it turns out that Eastern Promises (IMDB) is an excellent crime film, and, like all good crime films, an excellent ethical drama. I loved every second of it. I think it’s the only film I’ve ever seen about the Russian mafia in America.

As with Cronenberg, I find Spike Lee’s films to be hit or miss. He’s capable of great works, but he doesn’t always deliver. Inside Man (IMDB) is solid. It’s a really smart heist movie with great writing, great acting, and excellent cinematography. Denzel Washington and Clive Owen are predictably good.

I didn’t know anything about The Dead Girl (IMDB) when I picked it out at the video store. The cover art and title made me assume it was a suspense or horror picture. But it turns out to be a smart little indie picture of five interrelated stories, all centering around a murdered girl. Brittany Murphy, who has perfected the art of portraying abused, slightly-crazy, drug-addled, hard-luck characters, gives a fine performance here. Even more impressive is Rose Byrne‘s very moving depiction of Leah, sister of a missing child (and daughter of a mother obsessed with finding her). There are nice performances throughout, in fact (e.g. Giovannai Ribisi, Toni Collette, Mary Steenburgen). The acting and story are top notch. Its writer/director, Karen Moncrieff, is one to watch.

Sometimes I admire historical fiction for its historical accuracy. Other times, I admire it more for its departures. Such is the case for Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven (IMDB), which I’ve been meaning to see since it was in the theaters. Most of the characters depicted here are based on real historical personages, as are many of the major events. But screenwriter William Monahan, who also wrote the screenplay for The Departed (IMDB) and is working on the screenplay of Blood Meridian (IMDB), does an amazing job of taking these raw materials and recasting them into an emotionally appealing story. I find its departures from the historical record–it is, after all, a fiction–every bit as interesting as the events themselves. Like many films that draw on history, it leaves me wanting to know more about the details while knowing full-well I won’t have time to investigate them (the second DVD in the two-DVD set includes some documentary episodes from A&E and The History Channel for the curious).

I hear that the director’s cut is even better than the original. So I’ll have to add that to my Netflix cue.