2009: A Cinematic Odysey
My esteemed colleague has showcased the fine musical gems that have graced us over the past year, so I figured it is only right that I do the same to the equally enthralling world of film.
I will further the scope slightly and encompass the whole decade, as this has been a distinct decade in terms of movies. The OOs (or my preferred name for the decade, the Naughties) can undoubtedly be called the Decade of the Geek. From fantasy to science fiction to comic books hitting the mainstream – it seemed you could not look anywhere without being bombarded by some sort of once-geeky niche. Lord of the Rings introduced us all to the world of Middle Earth, the Super-Hero reigned supreme with movie after movie (some better than others), and legions of screaming girls were introduced to beauty that is Sparkling Vampires. Men made do with Sookie Stackhouse and the last gasping breaths of Buffy. Science Fiction also had its fair share of success (and failures) with Star Trek being rebooted, two Transformers movies and a plethora of sci-fi comic adaptations.
The key word in the above paragraph would seem to be “adaptation”. This decade will forever go down as the decade originality died. With only a few exceptions (Quentin Tarantion’s Kill Bill and Inglorious Bastards lead the charge on successful original films), most movies released over the past decade were adaptations or reboots. As I already mentioned, comic books were the main field from which movies drew inspiration, what with the visual effects technology finally able to do the cape & tights crowd justice. Literary works were also adapted, such as Lord of the Rings, Twilight and the recent Sherlock Holmes. Television also made an appearance on its large-screened cousin, with film adaptations for the Simpsons, Firefly and Sex and the City popping up.
Lastly, this decade had 23 film appearance by Nicholas Cage. That’s 5 more than the last. I leave it up to you to decide whether or not that is a good thing.
Thankfully, this didn't happen...
As a farewell to a decade filled with cinematic ups and downs, I leave you with this, a tribute to the films of 2000-2009:
