The Best Films of the Decade

Well, it's finally the end of the first ten years of the new century. A new decade approaches, and there are hopes for a brighter future for all. Especially, when it comes to films. I had to sit down and think hard to myself, "What were the films that defined this decade?" Well, I whittled it down and I have decided on what were the Ten Best Films of the last decade from 2000 to 2009.

10. Superbad - Directed by Greg Mottola

It was the film that redefined the high school sex comedy genre, and ended it with a bang. This uncontrollable whirlwind of sophomoric humor with an homage to American Graffiti came from the warped minds of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and spatted out by the ultimate spaz trio; Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse (aka McLovin) as three high school friends try to get booze and get laid before branching off towards a world that every 18 year old dreads; responsibility. American Pie was a titillating tiddler and Porky's amounted to glory-hole humor, but Superbad has a prose and style that is so perverse and insane that it would make David Mamet blush.

9. Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire - Directed by Lee Daniels

Precious is an intense and shocking look at the female equivalent of Job; an HIV-positive, obese, illiterate, raped teenager that tries to excel in her remedial studies and leave the world of abuse and neglect that she has grown up in. Gabourey Sidibe's breathtaking performance as Precious will be talked about in years to come; bruised and battered, she comes out strong and willing to take on anything standing in her way.

8. WALL-E- Directed by Andrew Stanton

Out of all the Pixar classics. WALL-E is a timeless animated film that explores a world in disarray and how a walking garbage disposal, with the nuances of Keaton and Chaplin, can help a dying planet. Prophetic, funny, and touching, the creative juices of Andrew Stanton mixed with an illustrious score by Thomas Newman make this film a visual and aural feast that stands on the shoulders with Brazil and 2001.

7. Venus- Directed by Roger Michell and 500 Days of Summer - Directed by Marc Webb

After being dragged by friend to see Hitch back in 2005, I walked out of the theater renouncing all romantic films. As soon as I saw Peter O'Toole and Jodie Whittaker onscreen in Venus, a legend with an aspiring actress, the sparks and emotions started to fly. O'Toole gives a stellar performance as an aging, impotent actor who falls in love with a young woman. At first, I thought I was watching Lolita: Redux, but as the story evolves, the film becomes a testament to the passage of time that we all must come across.

500 Days of Summer is another romantic comedy that caught my eye. Joseph Gorden-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel revive the humor and romance of Woody Allen and Diane Keaton with this modern take on falling in and out of love. The unique element of this fell-good flick is that it is non-linear; you don't see the typical beginning, middle, and end of a love story, which makes the film more funny and heartfelt.

6. The Wrestler - Directed by Darren Aronofsky

As the 2008 film season came to a close, the film that made me stand up and cheer, as well as cry, was The Wrestler. Mickey Rourke gives the performance of a lifetime as Randy "The Ram" Robinson, an aging wrestler trying to adapt to the modern world, despite being stuck in the 1980s. The myth of Icarus is displayed with grace and blood by Rourke as well as Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood as the women in his life he tries to connect to. Aronofsky adds another notch to his belt of celebrated films with this intense character study that mirrors Scorsese's Raging Bull and Lindsay Anderson's This Sporting Life.

5. Mystic River - Directed by Clint Eastwood

Based on the best-selling novel by Dennis Lehane, Mystic River is a powerful and provocative look at the aging friendship of three men, who are connected to a traumatizing moment in their past and are reunited with the death of one of their children. Sean Penn, Tim Robbins and Kevin Bacon ignite the screen thanks to Eastwood lighting the fuse with his ominous cinematography and haunting music. The ensemble cast that includes Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, and Laura Linney work like a string ensemble; you don't know who's playing next, but it each actors plays beautifully on screen.

4. The Hurt Locker - Directed by Kathryn Bigelow

This decade has delivered war films that have had no substance, or spark. I'm not talking about The Pianist, or Letters from Iwo Jima, I'm referring to the Iraq War films that don't add up to snuff (Lions for Lambs, The Kingdom, Redacted). After watching The Hurt Locker, I felt a sigh of relief mixed with war fatigue as I had just witnessed the greatest war film since Full Metal Jacket. The film follows an Army bomb squad led by Jeremy Renner as he, along with his platoon, teeter on the edge of the proverbial knife as they dismantle bombs around Baghdad and try to regain their sanity throughout their tours of duty. Kathryn Bigelow's intense eyes and Mark Boal's dark script cast aside the politics of the conflict in Iraq, it shows the daily routine of men trying to live and breathe another day.

3. Milk - Directed by Gus Van Sant

Sean Penn has always impressed me with any role he comes across; a mentally-challenged father in I Am Sam, A coke addicted lawyer opposite Al Pacino in Carlito's Way, and a criminal paying for his sins in Mystic River. His performance as Harvey Milk really takes the cake, and we all get a slice of it. Set in San Fransisco in the 1970s, Milk chronicles the life and death of camera shop owner and former Wall Street businessman, Harvey Milk, as he becomes America's first openly gay politician until his tragic death in 1978. The film is a beacon of hope for any oppressed minority; regardless of sexual orientation or skin color as Van Sant captures the spirit of the Seventies with a flamboyant eye that matches Dustin Lance Black's incredible script. Over thirty years after Milk's death, his life is preserved through this film like many other icons of the last century.

2. There Will Be Blood - Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

This haunting and powerful epic from 2007 revolves around greed, religion, violence, redemption, and father-son relationships. Daniel Day-Lewis gives an iconic performance as Daniel Plainview; an oil prospecter who redefines the word "greed" as he clashes with Paul Dano as the founder of a new religion during the turn of the century. Paul Thomas Anderson's intense and provocative eye focuses on this hell on earth that is Southern California circa 1900. Robert Elswit's haunting and stunning cinematography mixed with Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood's score leaves you visually and aurally stunned. Plus, you leave the film with a strong appreciation for milkshakes.

1. The Departed - Directed by Martin Scorsese

Martin Scorsese has reinvented the crime genre again and again from Mean Streets to Goodfellas. In 2006, he returned to the crime genre with his adaptation of the 2002 Chinese thriller, Infernal Affairs, blended with William Monahan's wild screenplay set against the backdrop of the South Boston Irish Mob. The result, one of Scorsese's best pictures throughout his 40 year career. Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon play cat-and-mouse as they both infiltrate the Boston Special Crimes Unit and the Irish Mob led by Frank Costello, a devilishly fun and insane Jack Nicholson (Forget The Shining, this performance takes the cake).

Scorsese's panache for violence and Thelma Schoonmaker's fast-paced editing amounts to an homage of the crime classics of the 1930s (Scarface, Public Enemy, and Angels With Dirty Faces). Also thrown into the mix is Scorsese's eclectic soundtrack that adds another shot of adrenaline to the ears; Dropkick Murphys, The Rolling Stones (as usual), Badfinger, and Pink Floyd. Scorsese's eye is as sharp and meticulous as he sends the audience into the bowels of South Boston filled with rats and the dead. The crime genre may seem like an unusual choice for being the best film of the decade; sometimes, their merely cult films. But with Scorsese at the helm and a stunning ensemble cast giving the best performances of their careers, it is hard not to mention that the best film of the last ten years was The Departed.

I realize that I will be bombarded with questions like "Where was this film?" I tip my hat off to the following in my own little award categories.

Auteurs of the 00s:
Sofia Coppola, Jason Reitman, and Wes Anderson

Old Dogs With New Tricks:
The Coen Brothers, "A Serious Man"

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire

There are very few films that have me in tears from beginning to end; Precious is one of those films. If you're still complaining about the economy and not being able to go on that holiday vacation, try taking a walk in Precious Jones' shoes. Set in Harlem in the late-Eighties, the film explores the life of Precious Jones, an illiterate, pregnant teenager trying to survive. Physically and emotionally battered by her deadbeat mother, raped by her father, and still in junior high, the sixteen-year old finds solace in her daydreams and at the alternative school she gets reassigned to. Intense and difficult to watch for the first hour, the film shows the bight side of life for a girl living in her own Hell.

Only his second film, Lee Daniels (Shadowboxer) is a marvel behind the camera. Not since Midnight Cowboy has anyone looked at desolation and dreams with such an unflinching eye and carry on a story that echoes the ominous passages of Hubert Selby Jr. One name that is sure to pop up during Oscar time is Gabourey Sidibe. A 26-year-old Psychology major with no experience behind the camera, Sidibe's raw and naked performance as Precious will leave you speechless. Take Joan Crawford, Ike Turner, and Frank Booth and roll it into one role and you have Mo'Nique giving a once-in-a-lifetime performance as Precious' psychotic mother. Mariah Carey not only can break the sound barrier, but give a stunning performance onscreen as Precious' social worker. Finally, the blood of Glitter can be wiped clean off her hands!

If I were to make a list of the best films of this year, Precious would definitely be up there. If you want to feel inspired and have hope, run (Don't Walk!) to Precious.

4 out of 4 stars: ****

Scorsese Recieves Cecil B. DeMille Award

It’s pretty early in the award season to place your bets on any winners, but there’s one person who is already a winner at the 2010 Golden Globes; Martin Scorsese. The Oscar-Award Winning auteur will receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award for his 40 year contribution to the world of cinema. Ironically, Scorsese presented last year’s DeMille Award to Steven Spielberg. Scorsese has been honored twice for Best Director at the Golden Globes for Gangs of New York and The Departed, which earned him the Academy Award for directing.

I am a true Scorsese fan; watching his films always leaves me speechless and mesmerized. I remember seeing him finally receive the Oscar in 2007 and shouting with joy as if the Red Sox won the World Series. Now that I got that off my chest, I’m overjoyed that Scorsese is being honored by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. A few months ago, I was eagerly waiting to see Scorsese’s new film, Shutter Island. Unfortunately, Paramount pushed the film back to February 2010. Needless to say, I was livid and my hopes of seeing the film and its filmmaker get nominated were dashed. After hearing today’s news, I exhaled a breath of relief.

In the Sixties, Scorsese channeled the French New Wave filmmakers, mixed with the grit of New York City, with Who's That Knocking at My Door ?, It’s Not Just You, Murray!, and The Big Shave. In 1973, Scorsese looked at the criminal underworld of Little Italy with Mean Streets. Stripping away the operatic structure of organized crime that made The Godfather a success, Scorsese’s tale of street thugs through the guerilla-styled filmmaking became a hit at the New York Film Festival. Scorsese raised the bar on the crime genre with GoodFellas, Casino, Gangs of New York, and The Departed.

Scorsese is synonymous within the world of music with his celebrated documentaries like The Last Waltz, Bob Dylan: No Direction Home, and Shine A Light. As a film historian and lover, he has made it a mission to preserve film and restore it to a new audience. At this year’s Cannes Film Festival, Scorsese premiered the restoration of Powell/Pressburger’s 1948 classic, The Red Shoes.

Forty years of film and many more, Scorsese rightly deserves the honor of being a recipient of the Cecil B. DeMille Award.

A Serious Man

When you’re going into a movie theater, you don’t know if you’re going to be watching gold, or watching pure crap. After watching the first ten minutes of A Serious Man, I knew I had struck gold. The next 95 minutes grabbed me by the throat and didn’t let go without laughing or crying. Arguably, the Coen Brothers have topped themselves with this crowning comical achievement. Set in Minnesota in the late Nineteen-Sixties- semi-autobiographical to the Coens- Larry Gopnik, a middle-aged physics professor embodies Job by being pelted with divorce, his job and his enigmatic brother while questioning his Jewish faith. The pain grows with Larry’s self-absorbed teenage daughter and his son, who soldiers through Hebrew school with a handheld radio and a lid of weed.

Playing first-mate aboard the Coen’s Cruiser is cinematographer, Roger Deakins. Deakins captures the monotony of Midwestern suburbia that echoes American Beauty with an approach that would make Hitchcock grin, along with towering angle shots and drug-infused sequences that mirror Schlesinger’s Sunday Bloody Sunday. Carter Burwell’s romantic, yet haunting, blend of piano and strings flows throughout the film’s damned protagonist as he cycles around through id and superego. On top of Burwell’s score is an unforgettable blend of Jimi Hendrix and, primarily, Jefferson Airplane.

Michael Stuhlbarg has pounded the floorboards of New York reciting Shakespeare for the past decade. After seeing A Serious Man, you will be talking about Stuhlbarg’s intense, brooding, and funny performance as Larry Gopnik; this is a performance worthy of speculation and adulation. Richard Kind takes his comedic shtick from “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and gets darker as Larry’s deadbeat brother. Amy Landecker adds another weight onto Larry’s back as a seductive neighbor who plagues his mind with the sexual energy and gravitas of Anne Bancroft’s Mrs. Robinson.

If you want cheep laughs and thrills, this is not the film for you. If you want to be philosophically and theologically mind fucked, than get as close to the screen as you can. A Serious Man is, seriously, the best film of the year. The Coen Brothers have created their cinematic Sgt. Pepper that will have the religiously devout or true agnostic reeling with laughter and self-loathing.

4 out of 4 stars: ****

The Damned United

I am not a sports film fan; I don’t even like sports, but what I do like are brilliant performances and images being captured on camera. After viewing The Damned United, I gained a strong appreciation for soccer and those behind the scenes. The film is loosely based upon the life and exploits of Brian Clough, the flamboyant football manager who went from coaching the working class County Darby League to heading Leeds United in the early stages of the 1974 season. The driving ambition and headstrong attitude brings Clough into becoming both a stubborn man destined to win for the sake of winning and an icon in English Football.

The Damned United is directed by the damn-brilliant Tom Hooper (Elizabeth I and John Adams). Hooper’s use of close-ups and static camera captures working-class England with an eye similar the social-realist auteurs of the Nineteen-Sixties, like John Schlesinger and Ken Loach, blended with stock footage that doesn’t leave you with the impression that you’re watching a documentary. Peter Morgan has had a series of successful screenwriting credits (The Queen, Last King of Scotland, and Frost/Nixon) and continues with his use of comedy and revealing telephone conversations, which flesh out the characters.

Michael Sheen can be the sweetest guy you ever saw, or the biggest jerk you ever laid eyes upon. Either way, he still leaves you smiling when the credits roll and his portrayal of Brian Clough is of no exception when he portrays him as a family man, a coach, and lover of the press. Timothy Spall delivers a stunning performance as Clough’s long-time friend and partner, Peter Taylor, who enjoys the fun of the game and the work he does. Rounding up the stellar cast are Colm Meaney and Jim Broadbent with their subduing, yet fierce, performances.

The Damned United is a fresh sigh of relief that segues from the discontented autumn of generic Halloween films and not-so-funny weekend flicks and entering the most ambitious time of year, awards season.

Stanley Kubrick: 10 Years Later

On March 7, 1999, Stanley Kubrick died at the age of 70. 10 years later, the myth, mystique and the man who created 13 epic films in the course of 40 years lives on. My venture into the world of this perplexing visionary started when I was just starting high school. At that time, I was fascinated with the subversive literature and beat poets like Ferlinghetti and Jim Morrison, and when I heard about "A Clockwork Orange" by Anthony Burgess, I read it like there was no tomorrow.

After reading the book, I rented the movie. At first, I thought it was going to be a cheesy sci-fi film; I was dead wrong. When I saw Malcolm McDowell staring at me with those Cagney eyes and drinking a glass of milk, I knew I was in for a trip like no other. 2 hours later, I was shocked and stunned as I asked myself, "Who the hell directed that?" The answer: Stanley Kubrick.

After Googling his name and reading the list of the movies he directed, I sampled each of his films one by one. At first glance, 2001 and Barry Lyndon left me lethargic. After watching these films again and again, I had nothing but full appreciation for the style, imagery, and tenacity of Kubrick and how he shot some of the greatest and unforgettable images in the history of film. Who else could have used NASA lenses to shoot the candlelit scenes in Barry Lyndon, or recreate the Vietnam War from the English countryside in "Full Metal Jacket"?

From a film critic's perspective, Kubrick made me look beyond the face value of the film. The different camera shots, regal (yet surreal) interior shots, music, all of that made me look at film with a more observant eye for detail and to embrace his obsessive compulsive style, rather than be turned off by it. There are so many words to describe him and the body of work that still remains as intoxicating and unflinching since it first appeared on the silver screen. Just saying his name amounts to the plethora of adjectives used to personify who he was and what his work meant to anyone who has dared to watch his films.

Oscar Predictions

Tonight is the 81st Annual Academy Awards, which means its the last chance to shout out those Oscar picks before running to your local bookie. So, there are my choices in the six major categories; Best Supporting Actors, Best Actors, Best Director, and Best Film.

Right off the bat, the Best Supporting Oscar will go to Heath Ledger. He gave a balls-to-the-wall performance as the Joker in The Dark Knight and despite his untimely death, his penultimate performance will be awarded this weekend. If I had to choose a runner up in the category, it would be Josh Brolin for his performance in Milk.

Best Supporting Actress will probably go to Penolope Cruz for her role as the icy wife of a highly sexual painter in "Vicky Christina Barcelona." Mind you, I haven't seen the movie, but Cruz is sweeping up as many awards as she can get for her work in Woody Allen's sexual farce. My runner up choice would have to be Marisa Tomei and her stunning performance in The Wrestler.

Best Actress will hopefully go to Kate Winslet and her performance as The Reader. She has been snubbed 5 times for an Oscar and she's only 33 years old! The vulnerability and complexity in her performance as a Nazi Concentration Camp worker has been getting a lot of attention and a lot of awards. With respect to the fellow nominees- Angelina Jolie, Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Melissa Leo- I think this will be Kate's year unless the Academy wants to tease her with another nomination and another loss like past legends like Al Pacino (8 nominations until he finally got one) and Peter O'Toole.

The category that has me sweating is the Best Actor category. Its going to come down between Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke's performances in "Milk" and "The Wrestler." Both performances were so incredible and astounding that I cannot choose between the two of them. I'm just going to predict a Hail Mary by hoping that another tie be given at the Oscars. Exactly 40 years ago, Barbara Streisand and Katherine Hepburn were the first actors to win for the same category. I'm hoping that this once-in-every-40-years chance comes along for Penn and Rourke.

I am 99.9% positive that "Slumdog Millionaire" will pick up Best Picture and Best Director for Danny Boyle. The film was simply remarkable! Boyle's intense camera picks up the story of a kid from the slums of Mubai, India and how he is steps away for winning a fortune on "Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?" As simplistic as the story sounds, it is an astounding work of art that deserves all the recognition and praise it deserves.

Okay, here's the recap of winners and tonight's awards will either be a huge sigh of relief for my choices, a succession of surprise slaps in the face, or a night of fury and anger (as if I'm not already angry over Peter Gabriel boycotting his performance and Springsteen being snubbed!).

Best Picture-Slumdog Millionaire
Best Director- Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)
Best Actor- Sean Penn"Milk" /Mickey Rourke "The Wrestler"
Best Actress - Kate Winslet "The Reader"
Best Supporting Actress - Penelope Cruz "Vicky Christina Barcelona"
Best Supporting Actor - Heath Ledger "The Dark Knight"

The Wrestler

****

Every decade has at least one sports film that is timeless and original. In the 1960s, it was This Sporting Life. In the ‘70s, it was Rocky. In the ‘80s, it was Raging Bull. Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler fits the list as the best sports film of the decade. The film follows Randy “The Ram” Robinson, a burnt-out, broke and downtrodden wrestler who tries to relive the glory days of his success by trying to make the ultimate comeback.

In the ring, Robinson takes down the wrestlers with guts and glory as he jumps from the turnbuckle and onto the mat. Behind the ring, he’s either stocking shelves at a grocery store, befriending a middle-aged stripper, or alone in his van with only his memories and painkillers to keep him company. As he heals the wounds that would make a biblical stoning seem like a massage, Randy tries to remain upbeat and ready for anything as if the audience- at least what’s left of them- are always there for him.

Aronofsky brilliantly captures the distinction between reality and fiction with a raw and unflinching eye mixed with Robert D. Siegel’s original story of the jagged paths of glory Robinson tries to cross. Behind Siegel’s script is a stunning cast. Marisa Tomei is stunning as Pam, a sexy and fragile stripper who befriends Rourke. The fragility and isolation Tomei faces while giving a lap dance or working the pole strikes similar chords to Sandra Oh’s performance as an artistic exotic dancer in Dancing at the Blue Iguana. Evan Rachel Wood channels the emotional angst of her troubled protagonist in Thirteen in a mature fashion in her portrayal as Randy’s estranged daughter.

The word “comeback” has been casually thrown around during awards season in the past when mentioning John Travolta in Pulp Fiction, or James Coburn in Affliction. Calling Mickey Rourke’s performance as Randy “The Ram” Robinson a comeback would be an insult; it is watching a phoenix rising from the ashes of seclusion and personal defeat. Richard Harris’s tenacity and battered body from This Sporting Life mixed with the self pity and fury of De Niro in Raging Bull equals Rourke’s wrestling antihero. Seeing Rourke emotionally and physically battered and beaten to a pulp is like watching Icarus fall from grace; tragic, yet beautiful.

The Wrestler is a cinematic cocktail of Dante’s Inferno and Dylan’s “Like A Rolling Stone”; a profound tale that will leave you emotionally and physically drained as if you spent 105 minutes in the ring.

Berlin

Steve Buscemi once called him “one of rock’s most unflinching artists.” After 40 years of recording and performing, it is a title that still underrates Lou Reed. In 1973, after the success of his post-Velvet Underground album Transformer, Reed created one of his most ambitious projects, Berlin. It was a commercial bomb. In 2006, he brought Berlin back to the stage and it was captured by artist/director Julian Schnabel in his new concert film, Lou Reed’s Berlin.

Berlin is as powerful on screen as it was on the turntables 35 years ago. Reed’s searing indictment of urban sprawl, drug abuse, and sadomasochism will leave you craving for another musical fix. From the first note (and frame) to last, Reed and his band deliver a strong and powerful performance of a lost work of art. Like Brian Wilson reviving SMiLE in 2004, Reed digs up his own musical Lazarus.

At his performance at St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn, Reed doesn’t make it into a rehashing of old material; he comes on stage armed with his band, a string and wind ensemble, and the haunting, yet beautiful voices of the Brooklyn Youth Chorus. Julian Schnabel recruits his daughter, Lola, and fellow artist, Alejandro Garmendia, to film short films projected onto the stage emphasizing the drug-induced melodrama Reed presents to the audience. The short films, entwined with Reed’s bombastic performance, are a dazzling spectacle for the eyes and ears. Looking at it makes one reminisce about the early days of Reed and his live gigs at Warhol’s Hit Factory.

The sporadic rhymes of Lou Reed and his powerhouse chords will leave you stunned. Check out Reed’s performance of “Men of Good Fortune” as he casually strums a powerful A- minor chord during the song’s adrenaline-fueled coda. Notice his homage to the early German novelty songs of Kurt Weill in “Caroline Says” or the Brooklyn Choir’s ominous voices personifying the destruction and decay of Reed’s musical protagonist. The list goes on and on like an 18 minute performance of “Heroin.” The credits roll to Lou breaking out one of his signature hits; “Sweet Jane.” The DVD features include a road film of Reed’s 2007 European Tour of Berlin.

Don’t expect a revealing Madonna: Truth or Dare atmosphere. It’s more of a sobering montage of Schnabel’s elaborate sets being built and displayed to audiences in Paris and Italy. Also on the DVD, Reed and Julian Schnabel sit down with Elvis Costello on his new show, “Spectacle.” What could be more satisfying than seeing 3 great artists shooting the breeze?

Lou Reed’s Berlin is worth watching and listening at top volume. If you can’t wait to get Lou Reed’s soundtrack to the film, “Live from St. Ann’s Warehouse” (available on November 4^th), rush out and get this DVD. The chemistry of Schnabel’s camera and Reed’s music leaves you asking “why such a musical masterpiece, like Berlin, was shafted by audiences after its original release 35 years ago?”

Critics Choice Awards

Happy (belated) New Year to you all! Sorry I haven't gotten around to the blog like I said I would, but with the holidays and all, I was pretty busy. Last night, I caught the Critics Choice Awards and there seemed to be no surprises for who won.

Heath Ledger received the Best Supporting Actor Award for The Dark Knight, which adds on to the plethora of awards he has gotten for his twisted and masterful performance as The Joker.

Best Supporting Actress went to Kate Winslet for her performance as a Nazi War Criminal in The Reader.

In the new category, Best Action Film, The Dark Knight took home the award. It seems that the category was another way of saying "Here, you made a shitload of money and we don't want to get crucified by the Batman fans when they realize that The Dark Knight didn't win Best Picture. Just take the award"

The surprise of the evening was the tie between Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway for Best Actress. Anne focused on her former "Devil Wears Prada" co-star during the bulk of the speech as if she were receiving a lifetime achievement award. The tie signifies that it is neck to neck between the two actresses on getting the gold at the Oscars. Who knows? The last tie for an Academy Award was 40 years ago, and it could happen again.

Milk took home honors for Best Ensemble and Best Actor for Sean Penn. Despite the amazing nominees from Mickey Rourke and Clint Eastwood, Penn might be getting another Oscar.

Slumdog Millionaire came out as the winner of Best Director for Danny Boyle and Best Picture. This love story from India could come out on top as the film of 2008 at the other major award ceremonies.

Sunday's Golden Globes will be the deciding factor on who will be in the Oscar circle. Hopefully, there will be an actual awards ceremony this year unlike what happened during last year's writer's strike.