The Formula returns...
From the immensely correct to the thoroughly correct, these 2007 entries will stand the test of Film Correctness over millennia. Ranked in the name of science, using The Formula for Film Correctness.
If you're still confused about the numbers, read this.
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Once // 297.5fc
Directed by John Carney, 85 min
Leaving behind the glitzy baggage of the big budget movie musical, John Carney’s Once makes a clean break from the trend with its efficient handheld camera and low-key style. By remaining heartfelt, sparse, and so quietly genuine in traveling with two musicians as they fall totally and convincingly in love, Once manages to be the complete opposite of Rent. For this reason it needs to be acknowledged. And for this reason, it will be remembered.
Superbad // 288fc
Directed by Greg Mottola, 114 min
Very rarely does a film so clearly understand what it is. A sweetly absurd high school fracas, Superbad maintains that delicate balance of tenderness, empathy and vulgar comedy. While packed with irreverent lowbrow wit, it manages to seamlessly transition from penis odes to heartbreakingly tense situations before you realize you’re watching a tightly paced, smartly written and well-directed film.
Hot Fuzz // 285fc
Directed by Edgar Wright, 121 min
Attention to detail, elaborate set pieces, flawless comedic timing, and ace acting augmented by top-notch writing make Hot Fuzz more than just an homage to the action genre, and anything but a spoof. Sharper and funnier than Shaun of the Dead, in their second go round writer/director Edgar Wright and co-writer/star Simon Pegg cobble a million motivated pieces into a blinding package that beats the essence of filmgoing back into your skull… by any means necessary.
Two Days in Paris // 266fc
Directed by Julie Delpy, 96 min
The biggest surprise of 2007 is Julie Delpy’s directorial debut: a delightfully tense comedy of errors that manages to be self-absorbed yet unselfconscious in its dissection of what it can be like to find out where the person you love came from. Acutely painful and actively funny, Delpy recalls the best of Woody Allen without pausing to reference – which, in the opinion of The Formula, makes for freshness.
Atonement // 255fc
Directed by Joe Wright, 130 min
From what The Formula hears, no two-hour film could ever capture all the riches of Ian McEwan’s supposedly masterly novel (The Formula doesn’t read these kinds of books.) But director Joe Wright must come very close in this gorgeous, well-paced, and sensual study of both the hurtful and redemptive effects of imagination. Impossible coincidences aside, The Formula agrees that while not as unforgettably easy as 2005’s Pride and Prejudice (The Formula likes to feel good once in a while) this 75-year-covering-period drama packs a worthy enough punch to draw a long-ish glance.
The Bourne Ultimatum // 248fc
Directed by Paul Greengrass, 115 min
Our third peek into Jason Bourne searching for answers to his unknown past moves relentlessly, intelligently forward as everything extraneous gets chucked starboard, then after a breath, it continues thrumming with an unbelievable amount of energy, making wonderful use of otherwise disposable actors (see: Stiles, Julia.) While sure to be ignored in the coming award season, The Bourne Ultimatum is undoubtedly one of 07’s best, and is proof that hellacious action films can be fun as hell without being mindless.
*Winner: Best Hand-to-Hand combat scene (indoor) involving both a magazine and a hand-towel.
The Savages // 238fc
Directed by Tamara Jenkins, 113 min
For what it is, The Formula believes Tamara Jenkins’ sophomore effort is nearly perfect. Featuring some of the best writing and acting on screen all year, it’s the very nervous humanity of the characters involved that makes it a successful and unique work of art. Grimly funny and brazenly unsentimental (save the last 30 seconds), it has the effortless grit often missing from indie movies. Maybe because it’s not an indie movie after all. The Formula believes it’s just a great story.
Away From Her // 224fc
Directed by Sarah Polley, 110 min
The Formula is pleased to report that while Sarah Polley’s directorial debut is at times over-written and tough to bear, it manages to more than adequately strike chords heartbreaking and intense thanks to majestic performances by Julie Christie and Gordon Pinsent. Polley proves a natural talent for storytelling, delicately weaving this quiet story of love and frustration with a journey through the clouds of a disappearing mind.
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Check back next week for the Ugliest and Best films of 2007, as determined by The Formula for Film Correctness.
To Be Continued...
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