Best Films of 2008*

I've compiled a list of my favorites and reasons why you should love them too.



The Dark Knight-The Dark Knight is ultimately about the limitations of the "hero." His/her existence is a reflection of a problem they can never truly solve. No matter how sacrificing, no matter how incorruptible, the inequality that allows Bruce Wayne to stay ahead of the criminal element is what guarantees that criminal element's survival. Though the Joker is presented as an unstoppable force, free from motivation and explanation, he still must make alliances with those whose criminality DO have social causes. Batman is forever locked into a fight that will never end for him. This is the tragedy of the Dark Knight, but also our opportunity to present an alternative to a system that can only go so far.

The Wrestler-"With its grown men bellowing like comic book heroes and villains, pro wrestling has always been a cartoon, and that's the appeal to performers and fans alike: It absolves life's complexities with a turnbuckle to the skull. "The Wrestler" is about the seductions of superficiality and the dull ache of living beyond one's moment. It stares with compassion at the man pinned on the mat and wonders how he'll ever get out of this one." TY BURR Boston Globe

Revolutionary Road-a film not only about life and love never meeting expectations, but more importantly a film that meticulously demonstrates how sexism shapes our relationships. The film reminds us of a time when abortion was not a right, and the heavy consequences of it. Not only do we feel April's suffocation and the slow defeat of her soul, but we see how sexist gender roles trap men as well. It was Frank's insecurity every time his "manhood" was challenged that turned him into everything he never wanted to be.

Synecdoche, New York-"To say that Charlie Kaufman’s 'Synecdoche, New York' is one of the best films of the year or even one closest to my heart is such a pathetic response to its soaring ambition that I might as well pack it in right now. That at least would be an appropriate response to a film about failure, about the struggle to make your mark in a world filled with people who are more gifted, beautiful, glamorous and desirable than the rest of us — we who are crippled by narcissistic inadequacy, yes, of course, but also by real horror, by zits, flab and the cancer that we know (we know!) is eating away at us and leaving us no choice but to lie down and die." MANOHLA DARGIS New York Times

Milk-"In a scene reminiscent of the recent California initiative battle over Proposition 8 in which gay marriage rights were overturned, the audience is treated to a glimpse of a timely debate. Milk effectively challenges gay magazine magnate David Goodstein who insists on circulating fliers against the Briggs Initiative that never mention the word "gay" or explicitly argue what the battle is really about.
If only an unapologetic and openly gay civil rights movement had been organized this time around, perhaps Prop 8 would have had a similar fate." SHERRY WOLF Socialist Worker

Rachel Getting Married- "While battles between the sisters will continue throughout the film, there is a beautiful moment of reconciliation and tenderness between the two which comes much later in the work and doesn't feel cheated or forced. How permanently the peace will last is another question. One can be thankful that a neat, happy ending is avoided for the most part. The film is too honest for that."- HIRAM LEE wsws.org

Slumdog Millionaire-"Like all good fairy tales, this outsize celebration of perseverance and moral triumph contains within it a deeper idea -- in this case, the relative nature of what we think we know, and what's worth knowing at all." ANN HORNADAY Washington Post

CHE- "That helps explain another peculiarity of the film. Surprising attention is given to Che meeting the volunteers who join his guerrilla bands. Names, embraces. But little effort is made to single them out as individuals, to develop complex relationships. Che enforces an inviolable rule: He will leave no wounded man behind. But there is no sense that he is personally emotionally involved with his men. It is a man he will not leave behind, not this man. It is the idea."- ROGER EBERT Chicago Sun Times

Most Overrated
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button-The premise opens the film up for some interesting insights on living and dying, seen from the perspective of a life lived backwards. However the film doesn't say much at all, settling for such banal phrases as "...and some of us are dancers." The oddness of the story is blunted by its tired structure (the old woman telling the story through a diary).