Top Ten (10) Favorite Movies of 2009

Below is a countdown list of my favorite movies of 2009. Mind you, this is not a list of movies that I believe are the best. Such a list would only be subjective anyway. So without further ado, here are my favorite movies of 2009:


TOP TEN (10) FAVORITE MOVIES OF 2009:




10. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" - Gavin Hood directed and Hugh Jackman starred in this well-made origin tale about X-Men Wolverine aka James Logan. Liev Schrieber and Danny Huston co-starred. Better than I had originally thought.






9. "State of Play" - Kevin MacDonald directed this surprisingly entertaining adaptation of the acclaimed British miniseries about a journalist's probe into the death of a congressman's mistress. Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams and Helen Mirren starred.






8. "The Informant!" - Matt Damon earned a well-deserved Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of industrial whistle blower Mark Whitacre, who also happened to be a chronic liar, an embezzler and all around bizarre individual. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the movie co-starred Scott Bakula, Melanie Lynskey and Joel McHale.






7. "The Young Victoria" - Jean-Marc Vallée directed this colorful account of Queen Victoria's accession to the British throne and her early years as queen. Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend shine as Victoria and Albert.






6. "2012" - Roland Emmerich directed this exciting disaster tale centered around the Mayan myth about a worldwide apocalypse during the year 2012. John Cusak, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Amanda Peet, Thandie Newton and Oliver Platt starred.






5. "Avatar" - James Cameron produced, wrote and directed this visually stunning science-fiction tale about a paraplegic ex-marine who becomes part of a unique science program on the moon of another planet and becomes torn between his employers' agenda and the world he has fallen in love with. Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang and Sigourney Weaver star.






4. "Sherlock Holmes" - Guy Ritchie directed this entertaining and thrilling adaptation of Doyle's character about Holmes' conflict against a nefarious aristocratic with plans to assume political control of the British Empire. Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams and Mark Strong star.






3. "Inglourious Basterds" - Quentin Tarantino struck gold at the box office in this fascinating and well written tale about two attempts to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944 Nazi-occupied Paris. Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Diane Kruger, Michael Fassbender and Mélanie Laurent co-starred.






2. "Terminator Salvation" - Director McG's entry in the TERMINATOR franchise became a surprise hit for me this summer. Christian Bale and Sam Worthington co-starred in this tale about a group of survivors led by John Connor who struggle to keep the machines from destroying humanity.






1. Public Enemies - Once again, Michael Mann proved why he has become one of my favorite directors with his direction of this exciting and well-made biopic about Depression era bank robber, John Dillinger. Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and Marion Cotillard co-starred.

Ten Favorite WORLD WAR II Movies

Below are ten of my top favorite movies about World War II. You will not find excellent movies like "SAVING PRIVATE RYAN" on this list. It is not about the best of World War II movies and miniseries. This is merely a list of my favorites:


My Ten Favorite WORLD WAR II Movies


1. "Band of Brothers" (2001) - This ten-part miniseries produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg is probably the best World War II production I have ever seen. This is one saga that will be hard to top.




2. "Kelly's Heroes" (1970) - Clint Eastwood, Telly Savalas, Donald Sutherland and Don Rickles starred in this great comedy adventure about a bank heist by a U.S. Army platoon in World War II France.




3. ""Valkyrie" (2008) - Bryan Singer directed this superb World War II thriller about the last conspiracy to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Tom Cruise stars as the main conspirator, Claus von Stauffenberg. Bill Nighy, Tom Wilkinson, Kenneth Branaugh and Terence Stamp give excellent support.




4. "Inglourious Basterds" (2009) - Quentin Tarantino struck gold at the box office, last summer, in this fascinating and well written tale about two attempts to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944 Nazi-occupied Paris. Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Diane Kruger, Michael Fassbender and Mélanie Laurent co-starred.





5. "The Longest Day" (1962) - Darryl Zanuck produced this all-star extravaganza in 1962, about the Allied Normandy landings. Not even the sprawling production and cameo of stars could overwhelm this exciting tale filled with personal stories about the landing.





6. "Pearl Harbor" (2001) - Upon learning that Michael Bay would directing this movie about the attack on Pearl Harbor and Doolittle's Raid, I did not think it would amount to much. But despite some hokey acting by the supporting cast and the occasional MTV-style camera work, I found this movie surprisingly entertaining and a favorite of mine.





7. "Defiance" (2008) - Ed Zwick's World War II tale about three Jewish brothers from Poland leading a resistance against their Nazi conquerors. Filled with delicious moral ambiguity, the movie starred Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell.




8. "Hope and Glory" (1987) - I love this John Boorman comedy-drama about a British family struggling to survive the first two years of the war. This Oscar-nominated movie starred Sarah Miles.




9. "A Bridge Too Far" (1977) - Directed by Richard Attenborough, this 1977 movie told the story of the unsuccessful Operation Market Garden campaign in September 1944. Excellent movie with exceptional performances by Anthony Hopkins, Sean Connery, Ryan O'Neal and Gene Hackman.





10. "Operation Petticoat" (1959) - Directed by Blake Edwards, this excellent 1959 comedy told the story about the crew of a Navy submarine during the month following the Pearl Harbor attack. Starred Cary Grant and Tony Curtis.

Top Ten (10) Favorite Movies of Summer 2009

Below is a countdown to my top ten (10) favorite movies from the Summer of 2009. Naturally, there are some movies that are missing from the list. Either I never got to see them or I did not like them very much:


TOP TEN (10) FAVORITE MOVIES OF SUMMER 2009



10. "Julie and Julia - Nora Ephron wrote and directed this comedy-drama about Julia Child's story of her start in the cooking profession is intertwined with blogger Julie Powell's 2002 challenge to cook all the recipes in Child's first book. Meryl Streep and Amy Adams co-starred in this charming, yet slow-paced tale.





9. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" - David Yates directed this sixth entry in the Harry Potter saga, based upon J.K. Rowling's novel. Pretty good, despite certain plotlines that seemed to be missing.





8. "The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3" - Denzel Washington and John Travolta co-starred in this solid, yet slightly unimaginative remake of the 1974 classic crime drama about the hijacking of a New York subway car. Tony Scott directed.





7. "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" - Stephen Sommers directed this action spectacle based upon the Hasbro toy. Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans and Sienna Miller co-starred in this curious mixture of typical action sequences and surprising character twists.





6. "The Ugly Truth" - Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler co-starred in this hilarious romantic comedy about a romantically challenged morning show producer who is reluctantly embroiled in a series of outrageous tests by her chauvinistic correspondent to prove his theories on relationships and help her find love.





5. "Angels and Demons" - Ron Howard directed this surprisingly well-paced adaptation of Dan Brown's novel about Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon's attempts to solve a murder and prevent a terrorist act against the Vatican. Tom Hanks, Ayelet Zurer and Ewan McGregor co-starred.





4. "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" - Gavin Hood directed and Hugh Jackman starred in this well-made origin tale about X-Men Wolverine aka James Logan. Liev Schrieber and Danny Huston co-starred. Better than I had originally thought.





3. "Inglourious Basterds" - Quentin Tarantino strikes gold at the box office in this fascinating and well written tale about two attempts to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944 Nazi-occupied Paris. Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Diane Kruger, Michael Fassbender and Mélanie Laurent co-starred.





2. "Terminator Salvation" - Director McG's entry in the Terminator franchise became a surprise hit for me this summer. Christian Bale and Sam Worthington co-starred in this tale about a group of survivors led by John Connor who struggle to keep the machines from destroying humanity.





1. "Public Enemies" - Once again, Michael Mann proved why he has become one of my favorite directors with his direction of this exciting and well-made biopic about Depression era bank robber, John Dillinger. Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and Marion Cotillard co-starred.