There were quite a few films that I missed out on seeing last year, and intend on somehow seeing them soon if not now. For me, 2009 was my first foray into Australian cinema. I'd volunteer at as many film festivals as I could to one, gain work experience; two, meet friends; and finally three, to watch free films. Apart from that, I was heavily influenced by my boyfriend (Kieran from now on) to apply for as many freebies and competitions (for free things) as I could - and in doing so, with my compulsion to work for free, I managed to see more films in the theatre last year than I could ever see in my entire lifetime. Note: I'm not old enough to make that last sentence sound as epic as it could potentially be, so calm down.
The majority of those films were Australian - meaning they were either funded completely or partially by an Australian funding body like Screen Australia, or directed and/or produced by an Australian. These days, nobody really knows how to distinguish what makes a film Australian as a lot of local films get distributed or theatrically released by big international companies like Paramount or the BBC (but I won't get into that as it could work as a completely different entry). Anyhow, as the majority of these free films I went to see last year were Australian, I simply didn't have the time (especially with film school taking up most of my time) to watch anything else.
Here is my list of Top 5 Films from 2009 that I would really like to see this year. The idea behind this list is that some of these films either don't have screenings in Sydney any longer, or are in their last week of theatrical release in town.
A Serious Man
This latest film by the Coen Brothers (Burn After Reading, No Country For Old Men) is almost completely washed out of cinemas in Sydney. I'm absolutely gutted I missed this one last year. I've heard many great things about this, including an outstanding performance by theatre actor Michael Stuhlbarg and some very clever filmmaking by the Coen Brothers.
Where The Wild Things Are
Spike Jonze's latest is not your average children's bedtime story. After listening to reviews of this, I still don't understand how it could appeal to parents who want to take their kids to the movies on a Tuesday night. This film seems to me much deeper than that, and I absolutely can't wait to see it.
An Education
A coming of age story about a young teenage girl living in 1960s suburban London, with the prospects of joining the elite at Oxford. She risks throwing away her future when she meets a charming man twice her age, who tempts her into the lifestyle of a full-time female companion. This sounds to me like a modern day story of something from the likes of Jane Austen. Directed by Lone Scherfig and starring the promising new-comer Carey Mulligan, and Peter Sarsgaard.
Up
Yes, I know, how could I have missed this film last year? This Disney-Pixar animated feature is meant to make hearts soar new heights.
Antichrist
I honestly feel dirty with this being in my Top 5 due to what I've heard about this. I think the tagline "When nature turns evil, true terror awaits" says it all in this Lars von Trier horror film. This is supposed to be a whole different experience in itself, and I intend on sitting through this.
Where The Wild Things Are
Spike Jonze's latest is not your average children's bedtime story. After listening to reviews of this, I still don't understand how it could appeal to parents who want to take their kids to the movies on a Tuesday night. This film seems to me much deeper than that, and I absolutely can't wait to see it.
An Education
A coming of age story about a young teenage girl living in 1960s suburban London, with the prospects of joining the elite at Oxford. She risks throwing away her future when she meets a charming man twice her age, who tempts her into the lifestyle of a full-time female companion. This sounds to me like a modern day story of something from the likes of Jane Austen. Directed by Lone Scherfig and starring the promising new-comer Carey Mulligan, and Peter Sarsgaard.
Up
Yes, I know, how could I have missed this film last year? This Disney-Pixar animated feature is meant to make hearts soar new heights.
Antichrist
I honestly feel dirty with this being in my Top 5 due to what I've heard about this. I think the tagline "When nature turns evil, true terror awaits" says it all in this Lars von Trier horror film. This is supposed to be a whole different experience in itself, and I intend on sitting through this.
Note: obviously there were many more films other than these that were released worldwide in 2009. This list is made of films that had theatrical releases in Australia.
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