As always my caveat from previous years still apply: Film Fight is a knock-out tournament and, as such, will only select my favourite film. It makes no guarantees about any other place.
First, the non-finalists that deserve a nod:
- Slumdog Millionaire
- Milk
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- Anvil: The Story of Anvil
- Monsters Vs. Aliens
- Star Trek
- Antichrist
- Mesrine: Killer Instinct
- Zombieland
- Up
- Where The Wild Things Are
And then the monthly finalists:
- January: The Wrestler
- February: Revolutionary Road
- March: Bronson
- April: In The Loop
- May: Synecdoche, New York
- June: The Hangover
- July: Moon
- August: Inglourious Basterds
- September: District 9
- October: Fantastic Mr. Fox
- November: A Serious Man
- December: Nowhere Boy
Last year, it was very easy to give the title to There Will Be Blood (despite a good effort from No Country For Old Men), but this year the finalists are almost all fantastic films; The Hangover being the only one that slid through in a weak month.
I don’t know if I could pick a bronze medallist this year, the pack is so tight, but the silver (almost gold) goes to Darren Aronofsky’s fantastic movie, The Wrestler. It’s dark, and gritty, and will leave you a little sadder, but only because it’s such an excellent movie. An absolute must-see.
The winner, however, is Synecdoche, New York. Charlie Kaufmann’s film is so rich with imagery, imagination and an incredible spectrum of emotions that it can’t help but be an amazing film, in the truest sense of that word. It’s an instant classic, in my book.