2008 at the Movies: Looking Back on the First Half

Wow, the months sure do slip away, don't they? It's hard to believe we are already halfway through the 2008 campaign. It feels like only yesterday that I was sitting down to see Cloverfield, wondering just what we were all in store for. Wasn't it just last week that I was catching up on late 2007 releases like There Will Be Blood, The Bucket List, and El Orfanato? All of those films crossed my sight line nearly six months ago.

The months in between have been littered with their fair share of potential classics and definite stinkers. Time will tell where they will all ultimately land, but in the meantime I thought now would be a good time to take a look back on the past six months and filter out the best and the worst. Without any further adieu, let's take a look at the top and bottom six films of the first six months.

Let's start with the top films. These six are easily the best films I have seen on the big screen so far this year. Each of these films have a very good chance of making it to the ultimate "Best of 2008" list at the end of the year.

Before getting to the list, I just want to toss out a few other titles that impressed me, are among the better films of the year, but did not quite make the cut:

• Rambo
• The Spiderwick Chronicles
• Definitely, Maybe
• Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day
• Horton Hears a Who
• Doomsday
• Leatherheads
• The Ruins
• Speed Racer
• The Strangers
• Kung Fu Panda
• Wanted

As you can see, they cover a wide variety of genres with widely varying target audiences. All of these films are well worth spending some time with. Okay, now we can get to the top films of the first half.

Wall*E. Simply the best film to arrive on screens this year. Here is an animated film that combines adventure, romance, and social commentary into a gorgeous looking passage and told through lead characters who say, maybe, two words the entire movie. Andrew Stanton, the man behind another Pixar classic, Finding Nemo, far outdoes his earlier outing, which is no small feat.

When I sat in the theater watching the film unfold before me, I was drawn in by the childlike innocence and profound sadness that they were able to capture within Wall*E. I found it extremely easy to get caught up in his unending curiosity and desire for romance. Beyond the story, the film is a technical wonder; Pixar continues to show how they are far and away the premiere computer animation house. Going past the technical aspects, this is brave filmmaking, trusting the audience to come along in what is essentially a silent film. What dialogue is there could just as easily been done silently. There were times I was expecting title cards to appear like in an old silent film.

Article Author: Chris Beaumont

Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about music and movies when he isn't indulging in them. He is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Follow: Twitter and Tumblr. Visit: Critical Outcast. …

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