Best Film of the Year - Nomination

[Alex The Great]

Transformers
The Simpsons Movie
POTC AWE

 

[War Party]

I think there is a difference between having fun with a movie that you know is flawed and enjoying a movie that you also know is brilliantly made. I.e I had a lot of fun with Transformers but i also thoroughly enjoyed Last king of Scotland, they aren't comparable in how and why i enjoyed them, but when asked which was the better film it's clearly The Last king of Scotland from a cinematic viewpoint, which is what the question of this thread is.

Yeah, I agree. There are many movies people are mentioning that are really not best film material, from a filmmaking stand point. But I'm sure they enjoyed and had tons of fun watching them. Transformers and AWE are far from best film material, but I thought they were tons of fun, but too flawed.

 

[Warhammer]

My "favorite" films are films that I enjoy and can watch over again, yet, if I didn't think that they were the "best" of something, why would they be my "favorite"? For example, The Shadow. I wouldn't regard it one of my favorite films if I didn't think it was the "best" at something. Obviously, I wouldn't regard it as a sub-par film and my favorite film at the same time. I think some people use "favorite" as an excuse to list a film that is not critically hailed. Like L0ngsh0t said, it is your opinion. Stand up for it. Not to rib on anybody, but I'll also use a Transformers example. I had so much fun watching it, and me being a Transformers fan made it even better. It was one of my favorite films of the summer, however, it was not my #1 favorite of the year. There were far more films that I thought were better. To me, most times "best" and "favorite" are one in the same.

That's just me, though.

 

[Speedball]

Of what I've seen:
The Bourne Ultimatum
Stardust
Beowulf

 

[JP]

Well lucky for me, my favoirte films (Sweeney, Hairspray, Superbad) were also some of the most acclaimed/best reviewed films of the year.

 

[Kanon]

My "favorite" films are films that I enjoy and can watch over again, yet, if I didn't think that they were the "best" of something, why would they be my "favorite"? For example, The Shadow. I wouldn't regard it one of my favorite films if I didn't think it was the "best" at something. Obviously, I wouldn't regard it as a sub-par film and my favorite film at the same time. I think some people use "favorite" as an excuse to list a film that is not critically hailed. Like L0ngsh0t said, it is your opinion. Stand up for it. Not to rib on anybody, but I'll also use a Transformers example. I had so much fun watching it, and me being a Transformers fan made it even better. It was one of my favorite films of the summer, however, it was not my #1 favorite of the year. There were far more films that I thought were better. To me, most times "best" and "favorite" are one in the same.

That's just me, though.

I agree with you. How can we judge movies for anything besides how make us feel, when they are art, and art is about stimulating our senses

 

[Warhammer]

I agree with you. How can we judge movies for anything besides how make us feel, when they are art, and art is about stimulating our senses

Exactly. When saying a film is "flawed," or "well made," it applies that we have a some sort of standard. The only one who can set that standard is you, not the critics, not the general audience, not your friend.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Exactly. When saying a film is "flawed," or "well made," it applies that we have a some sort of standard. The only one who can set that standard is you, not the critics, not the general audience, not your friend. That is why I sometimes don't see when people say stuff like "It was one of my favorites, but it was not one of the best."

I think you can do that quite easily, there are films i enjoy for kickass action and laughs but i have to admit there are plot holes you can drive a Mack truck through and poor dialogue also included in those movies. I can then see a movie that i found totally engrossing but that also featured great acting, a smart script and good dialogue. So when asked which is the better film, I'll look at the cinematic qualities.

 

[Agentsands77]

That is why I sometimes don't see when people say stuff like "It was one of my favorites, but it was not one of the best."

Because they are different judgments. Both are subjective, admittedly, but they deal with very different areas of how I'll judge a film. Enjoyment and emotional response aren't all that I evaluate a film on, but they do decide which ones are my personal favorites.

When I'm judging a film for artistic merit, I'll judge whether the script was well-written (Does the dialogue sound natural to me? Are the characters fleshed-out? Does the story flow well?), whether the cast is believable and poignant, whether the direction is natural, whether the visuals enhance the story, etc. It's all subjective, but a different kind of judgment than as to whether or not I enjoyed it.

A movie can be a favorite in spite of failing for me in a number of, perhaps even all of, those categories. I'd just never call it a work of brilliance, as it were. A lot of my favorite films have ugly cinematography, awkard pacing, and some bad performances... so I'd never hold them up as great pieces of work, just work that I enjoy regardless of what I perceive to be as failures on their part.

 

[Warhammer]

I think you can do that quite easily, there are films i enjoy for kickass action and laughs but i have to admit there are plot holes you can drive a Mack truck through and poor dialogue also included in those movies. I can then see a movie that i found totally engrossing but that also featured great acting, a smart script and good dialogue. So when asked which is the better film, I'll look at the cinematic qualities.

I see your point. To me, my "best" are simply the what I think are the top of my "favorites" list.

Because they are different judgments. Both are subjective, admittedly, but they deal with very different areas of how I'll judge a film. Enjoyment and emotional response aren't all that I evaluate a film on, but they do decide which ones are my personal favorites.

When I'm judging a film for artistic merit, I'll judge whether the script was well-written (Does the dialogue sound natural to me? Are the characters fleshed-out? Does the story flow well?), whether the cast is believable and poignant, whether the direction is natural, whether the visuals enhance the story, etc. It's all subjective, but a different kind of judgment than as to whether or not I enjoyed it.

A movie can be a favorite in spite of failing for me in a number of, perhaps even all of, those categories. I'd just never call it a work of brilliance, as it were. A lot of my favorite films have ugly cinematography, awkard pacing, and some bad performances... so I'd never hold them up as great pieces of work, just work that I enjoy regardless of what I perceive to be as failures on their part.

I gotcha. I guess that I was somewhat wrong, because what I said only reflected my opinion. I'll edit it. Alot of what you said qualifies for most of what I consider my favorite films, btw. That is probably why I seemed so close minded about it. We all think differently, though.

 

[Kanon]

Best, is the "more" good, and good is what you enjoy. If those technichal qualities doesn't make the movie good for you, what are they good for?

 

[Warhammer]

Best, is the "more" good, and good is what you enjoy. If those technichal qualities doesn't make the movie good for you, what are they good for?

I think with the recent posts, we've all come to the conclusion that we all judge films different, and nobody can judge a film better than you can. Your opinion is your opinion, and nobody can tell you any different. You, Hunter, War Party, Agentsands, L0ngsh0t, and I have all showed how we judge films, and nobody can tell us any different.

 

[Bruce_Wayne29]

From the ones I've seen:
American Gangster
Mr. Brooks
The Last Time

 

[patrickbateman]

Bourne Ultimatum

 

[primemover]

Amazing how many people don't quite grasp the idea of listing '3' movies.

 

[Shuley]

Why do ppl keep listing Transformers? It was corny,and I grew up with Transformers!

 

[The Chris]

No Country for Old Men
The Bourne Ultimatum
I am Legend

 

[Cito]

Still haven't seen There Will Be Blood so my list is:

1)No Country For Old Men
2) Hot Fuzz
3) Eastern Promises

 

[Mr. Socko]

Sweeney Todd
Eastern Promises
Beowulf

Close list but I had to go with those 3. Runners up would be Harry Potter & Order of the Phoenix, Hairspray, 300, Stardust, & Mr. Brooks.

 

[bingy13]

1. American Gangster
2. No Country for Old Men
3. The Lookout

 

[Rorschach II]

Transformers was pretty craptacular from a cinema-as-art standpoint. Watching it was comparable to watching Michael Bay wipe his ass with millions of dollars and then proceed to light the turd-stained bills on fire.

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Transformers was pretty craptacular from a cinema-as-art standpoint. Watching it was comparable to watching Michael Bay wipe his ass with millions of dollars and then proceed to light the turd-stained bills on fire.

It was a hell of a lot of fun though.

 

[Flexo]

It was a hell of a lot of fun though.

Not really.

 

[Boom]

No Country for Old Men
American Gangster
3:10 to Yuma
Hot Fuzz
Superbad
Gone Baby Gone
Borne Ultimatum
Knocked Up
Sweeney Todd

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Not really.

I'm not the only one who would disagree with you. But I'm not in an argumentative (sp?) mood right now so whatever.

Maybe in the future you shouldn't pay to see movies about giant robots when you're really looking for poorly produced movies about people sitting around in boring locales having boring discussions about their dreary lives. Or whatever it is you're into.

Soldier on, brave internet warrior.