Top ten movie favorite from 2009

By: Joe Jarosz

Posted: 2/4/10

What did we learn from the movies in 2009? The phrase "bromance" is created to describe what Paul Rudd and Jason Segel felt for each other, Pixar must be Latin for gold, why a bachelor party in Las Vegas isn't always a good idea, Quentin Tarantino's version of WWII is much more interesting than actual events, and that James Cameron's imagination is still worth a billion dollars.
When people talk about their favorite movies of the past year, they seem to usually go for what they would want to watch over and over. They forget about the ones that illicit the most emotion from them. Sure I will probably watch The Hangover more than any other movie that will be on this list, but that does not make it the best of the year. With that in mind, I present my Top Ten Movies of 2009.
10. Moon
Sam Rockwell plays an astronaut finishing up a three-year stint in the station trying not to crack from loneliness. His only interaction is with the computer GERTY, voiced by Kevin Spacey in a more humanized version of HAL. There is an accident and the rest is up to you to find out what happens. The film is a riveting take on the Sci-fi genre.
9. Invictus
It's a sports movie in the league of Hoosiers or Rudy, about the country of South Africa rallying behind its rugby team in the World Cup. Matt Damon is the captain of the team and Morgan Freeman is President Mandela, a role he was born to play.
8. The Hangover
It's rude, crude, lewd, and any other -ude sounding word, but none the less hilarious. Four friends head to Las Vegas for a bachelor party only to experience the most unforgettable of weekends.
7. Away We Go
John Krasinski, Jim of "The Office," and Maya Rudolph, SNL fame, both give heart-warming performances as a couple with a child on the way traveling across the U.S. trying to find a place to live. It's a deceptively sweet movie.
6. Avatar
James Cameron must have a rabbits-foot up his…well, never mind. The man behind Alien, Terminator, and Titanic came roaring back after a 12-year absence to create this visually stunning piece of work. Even if this film were made into a silent picture, which some people might prefer to the green and anti-war overtones, it would still be a marvel to watch.
5. 500 Days of Summer
This movie is one of the most honest takes on love I remember seeing in a long time. The movie begins with the line, "This is a story of boy meets girl. But you should know upfront, this is not a love story." This is a movie in which we are reminded that when we look back on failed relationships, we have to look at the whole picture, not just joyous parts or the confusing ending.
4. Up
If anyone could make it believable, Pixar are the people that can make you believe a friendship between an angry old man and a plump little kid is possible. The movie is touching, funny, and beautifully colored.
3. Up in the Air
Based on the novel, George Clooney plays a man whose profession is to fire people. This painfully comedic movie shows us how we actually need connections with people from time to time in order to feel human. A film could not be more telling of the current economic climate.
2. Inglourious Basterds
Quentin Tarantino's ode to movies (a full-on Western score, a nod to the Dirty Dozen, and a climax in a movie theater) gives the viewer a fresh take on the tired old WWII genre. Brad Pitt plays the head basterd, but the movie belongs to German actor Christoph Waltz, Col. Hans Landa, a man so sadistic that when he rationalizes his nickname of "Jew Hunter" we actually accept it and believe him.
1. Hurt Locker
The word suspenseful doesn't even begin to describe this astounding movie. An Iraq movie that doesn't preach about the war, but shows us that war is like a drug, it is just hard to give up. Jeremy Renner plays Staff Sgt. William James, a bomb defuser new to a squad of men that just lost their Sgt. Is he a reckless, battle junkie? Or does he simply just know what he is doing and no one else is better than him? Check out the film yourself and try and decide.