The Year in Film: The Best and Worst of 2008 - Page 4

But it was 2008 when Downey Jr. truly returned to the spotlight, first as the title superhero in Iron Man, the critically acclaimed blockbuster that both comics nerds and film buffs fell for (being both, I was the target audience). Working under Jon Favreau, who seems born to make movies about cocky personalities like Downey's, he delivered a strong, sympathetic performance as a billionaire arms maker who realizes that violence is not the way. Downey, of course, doesn't let anything feel pat, and based largely on the strength of his performance, a film about a superhero relatively unfamiliar to those who tread outside the walls of comics shops became one of the year's biggest successes.

Then there was his offensively awesome portrayal of, in the character's own words, "A dude playin' a dude disguised as another dude." As pretentious Oscar-winning actor Kirk Lazarus, a Method Australian who had his skin dyed in order to play a black soldier in a Vietnam War movie, Downey was the icing on top of Tropic Thunder's satirical cake. If there's anything we learned at the movies this year, it's that America wants — and Hollywood needs — someone like Robert Downey Jr. Thanks for returning to us.

The Saddest Losses of 2008

We lost many familiar faces this year, some expected and some not. And far be it for me to gauge the importance of someone's death; all I know is what they meant to me, and here are the four celebrity farewells that pained me the most.

First there was Heath Ledger, an actor who by all rights should've had a wonderful, Oscar-laden career ahead of him, lost to us through an accidental overdose of sleeping pills on January 22. He left behind a number of terrific performances, and probably has a posthumous Oscar on the way for his work in The Dark Knight, but damn it, he's gone from us forever now.

On June 22, we lost George Carlin, likely the greatest stand-up comic we've ever had, to heart failure. The man was profane, literate, and gut-bustingly funny; his film performances were few, but they were always worth watching, especially when he played the slimy Cardinal Ignatius Glick in Kevin Smith's Dogma.

Paul Newman was a titan among titans, and when he passed away on September 26 after a long illness, you could feel the void he left. A great actor and an even greater humanitarian, Newman was simply one of the best the film world ever turned out. Here was an immensely talented person who, by all accounts, never forgot to feel immense gratitude for the life he lived. He will be sorely missed.

Article Author: Arlo J. Wiley

Arlo J. Wiley is an aspiring filmmaker who has a deep love of movies, music, television, and most other artforms. He is also totally obsessed with Joss Whedon and the Beatles. You kind of need to know that.

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