Best Films (That I Saw) of 2008

2008 was a pretty good year for movies. Here's list of my favs from 2008.

Cloverfield- I almost forgot that this came out in 2008. It feels like it's been around for a lot longer but i loved this film. I like how they hardly show the monster and the "footage" felt like 9/11 footage. I felt like it was real, not just a movie.

Rambo- I waited for this on DVD and I wish that I didn't. It was so fucking gory and everyone got blown away. My TV felt too small for so much action.

In Bruges- One of my top 5 for this year. Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson were hilarious together. One of the best films featuring midgets, ever.

The Bank Job- Ok, so I have a man crush on Jason Statham and will most likely go see anything he's in (except for In the Name of the King). But this was a really good bank robbery film. Way better than the Italian Job and based on real events no less. And there was a character name Michael X... it was weird hearing my name every 5 minutes in a film.

Miss Petegrew Lives for a Day- I missed this in theatres because it felt too much like a chick flick but it was actually really good. I thought Frances McDormand and Amy Adams were perfect for the roles they played. It felt like i was watching some old movie with Marilyn Monroe and some other old actors. A really good date movie if you wanna laugh at good old comedy.

Never Back Down- I know this movie looks stupid and it kinda is. But i thought for a modern take on the Karate Kid storyline, it was a good movie. A brainless watch if you just wanna see some kids get there asses handed to themselves.

21- Based on real events my ass. This film was an over dramatic, pretty predictable representation of a true story, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I love Vegas and this film caught that part of me and took it for a little joy ride. The writing was way too perfect, people don't talk like that, but Kevin Spacey pulled it off (who else could?).

Forgetting Sarah Marshall- The Apatow crew pull another winner out of there collective asses. I loved this film as much as I loved any other of their movies (except Superbad, still the best). If you like male nudity and a Dracula, you gotta see this film.

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay- Not as good as White Castle but if you like Harold & Kumar then it's a good watch. This film had the best idea for a party though, the bottomless party.

Iron Man- Fucking awesome. I think they tackled the becoming of a superhero better than Batman Begins. Plus the set up for The Avengers was pretty cool.

Speed Racer- I'm probably the only person putting this on his list. I wish I had seen it in theatres. I thought it was a close enough story to the cartoon and the graphics were pure eye candy. Some of the actors looked like they were right out of the cartoon. The movie is a throw away but a fun watch (for Speed Racer fans).

The Incredible Hulk- Along with Iron Man, this was a good setup for the direction that Marvel is taking their films. Ed Norton was a bit of a hack but I thought this was a really good reload of The Hulk storyline.

Get Smart- A fun take on the TV show. Steve Carrell is always good and I liked the fun spy story. Makes up for the realistic changes made to the Bond series.

Wall*E- Pretty bleak for a Disney/Pixar film, but a few fun little characters to cheer you up and not make you think too much about the direction the Earth is headed in.

Hancock- A good superhero movie (minus his origin) that could have been better. it was missing that certain something. Jason Bateman was awesome as always tho.

Journey to the Center of the Earth- See this in 3D if you can. It's a fun action movie for people who like to see Brendan Fraser yell and do impossible jumps. Good for kids.

The Dark Knight- Better than Batman Begins. It's what the first film should have been. Heath Ledger gets all of the acclaim for his performance as the Joker (which he deserves) but lets not forget about Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Two-Face, he was awesome. This was one of the best Batman films I've ever seen (but I still like Batman Returns the best).

Pineapple Express- The second Apatow crew film this year, and the best. Not just a stoner movie. Hilarity and action violence, a perfect mix.

Tropic Thunder- Again, hilarity and action violence wins. And Robert Downey Jr. in his second best performance this year. Everyone was perfect in this movie, even Matthew McConaughey made up for his Fool's Gold Performance. Tom Cruise makes the best cameo of the year.

The House Bunny- Anna Faris is the queen of comedy. Anything she is in is pure gold (except my Super Ex-Girlfriend). She needs to break away from the "dumb blond" but she plays it way too well.

Burn After Reading- The Coens do it again. This time comedy was on the main stage but shocking violence sprung out and stole the spotlight. A shooting in the face and a hacking on the street, fucking awesome.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno- What do you get when Kevin Smith gets some of Judd Apatow's players? One of the raunchiest/funniest films I've ever seen (about porn). And one of the smartest moves a film maker could make. Kevin Smith is making a good move away from the Jay & Silent Bob stuff. I hope he keeps it up. You can tell that there was a lot of stuff cut out and I can't wait for the unrated DVD to come out.

Role Models- Again, someone else using some of Apatow's players to make a good film. Seann William Scott makes a pretty good comeback of his Stiffler style of character but Paul Rudd made a really good effort at a lead role. I hope Rudd does more like this, he's always good as a background character but I loved him in the lead.

The Promotion- Again Seann William Scott was good (and not in a Stiffler way). John C. Reilly was awesome. This was a good movie about rivals. I liked it alot.

These were the best of all the films I got to see from 2008. I'm still waiting for some of them to come out on DVD. Also check out my list of worst films of 2008.