Best movies of 2003

[Mog Elffoe]

In no particular order, my favorites were:

American Splendor
LotR: Return of the King
Kill Bill Vol. 1
School of Rock
X2: X-Men United

Out of the films above I really recommend American Splendor--it's not necessarily my favorite for the year, but it's the one most folks would be likely to overlook on the video rental store shelves.

I'm jealous that you got to see Bubba Ho-Tep. I don't think it'll ever hit the theaters around here. Luckily, I work for major video distributor so if a screener ever becomes available I *WILL* see it!

 

[Aeolius]

"Pirates of the Caribbean". Nothing else comes close.

 

[Teflon Billy]

I really loved Kill Bill vol. 1..adored it actually. I am anxiously awaiting Vol 2.

This movie looks and plays a lot like the films I used to see back when I was a teenage insomniac. Stuff like Fearless Fighters, Dragon Lee vs. The Five Brothers, Bride with White Hair, Return of the Street Fighter and suchlike were exactly the kind of things I was overjpyed to run across on late night TV.

I love Quentin Tarantino's previous body of work, and Kill Bill is a near perfect recreation of the crappy Kung Fu movie genre, given the Tarantino treatment.

I also liked Bad Santa a lot. It managed to convey some Christmas spirit to me in a way that, say Elf, could not (what a waste fo two hours that was). It's terribly profane, and definitely not for the youngsters...but by God if it wasn;t a fresh take on a Christmas movie! That's something I haven't seen since A Christmas Story and that was what? 15 years ago?


School of Rock also made my cut, as I thought the Jack Black character was hilarious. Unlike apparently everyone else who saw I didn't find the kids all that brilliant, though they were atypical of the Hollywood kid machine.

the quotes from School of Rock have infected the lexicon of my peer group.

 

[Seonaid]

It turns out I did see American Splendor, I just forgot the name. It's good too, but I don't know that it deserves Top 10 billing. I wouldn't recommend it to everyone I know.

 

[Welverin]

There were so many good documentaries this year I had to give them their own list.

Best Documentaries
"Bus 174"
"Capturing the Friedmans"
"The Fog of War"
"Lost in La Mancha"
"Spellbound"
"Stevie"
"Stone Reader"
"To Be and To Have"
"Tupac: Resurrection"
"Winged Migration"
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What no Gigantic?

 

[Shadowdancer]

Wow, you didn't like X2?

You know, I am kicking myself for forgetting this movie. It should at least be on my Honorable Mention list, because I did like it, even more than the first one.

 

[WizarDru]

This movie looks and plays a lot like the films I used to see back when I was a teenage insomniac. Stuff like Fearless Fighters, Dragon Lee vs. The Five Brothers, Bride with White Hair, Return of the Street Fighter and suchlike were exactly the kind of things I was overjpyed to run across on late night TV.

Personally, my favorite is Return of the Master Killer. And who was the star of it? Gordon Liu, who is awesome in Kill Bill Vol. 1 as the head of the Crazy 88 fighters (and who'll be playing the white-haired master in Vol. 2). It's one sign that you can tell that Tarantino didn't just cobble together the movie, he genuinely loves them, too.