10 BEST MOVIES OF 2002
This year’s best films are full of brilliant performances and the like. However, each film earned its spot because of its director.
Each film is a great story, made better by the person behind the camera pulling at the strings.
“Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”
Director Peter Jackson’s second film of the middle-earth epic is just as dramatic, violent and awe-inspiring as the first installment. What more could anyone ask for?
If there is any better film released this year, then I sure as hell haven’t seen it.
“Signs”
For the third year in a row, a M. Night Shyamalan film has made the ten best list, each film climbing higher than its predecessor.
A truly terrifying film in its own right, this latest smashing success from writer/director M. Night Shyamalan will keep audiences on the edge of their seats. Style and tone follow in the tradition of Alfred Hitchcock, a real emotional thriller.
“Punch Drunk Love”
P.T. Anderson’s charming, unpretentious gem of a film showcases the superb, greatly underutilized talent that is Adam Sandler.
Like Tom Hanks and Jim Carrey before him, Sandler’s career seems to be taking a turn for the better. Here he delivers an Oscar caliber performance.
“Road to Perdition”
With wonderful performances by Tom Hanks, Paul Newman and Jude Law, director Sam Mendes combines gritty gangster epic with homespun drama.
Atmospheres collide with seamless tranquility. The film glides along to a dramatic finish that might leave some audience members close to tears.
“Minority Report”
Steven Spielberg returns with another sophisticated sci-fi film. There’s even plenty of action to spare as a convincing Tom Cruise races around an equally convincing futuristic world.
But just like his latest sci-fi opus, Spielberg opts for a happier, fairy-tale ending.
Here’s to waiting for the day when Spielberg will take a risk and end things on a downer.
“Insomnia”
Director Christopher Nolan creates a successful remake of a Norwegian film thanks to solid performances from Academy Award winners Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Hilary Swank.
Unlike Nolan’s last film, the mind-boggling “Memento,” the form takes a backseat to content this time around.
“Red Dragon”
Better than the original (“Manhunter”) and nearly equal to “Silence of the Lambs,” this film serves up a tremendous ensemble cast under the careful eye of director Brett Ratner.This cat-and-mouse detective story is top-notch, with just the right blend of laughs and suspense.
“Panic Room”
David Fincher is another director channeling Hitchcock.
His dark, soulless films are jammed with such raw energy and tension.
It is impossible to deny Fincher’s genius for the cinema.
“Frailty”
Delving into issues of faith-based murder madness, this low-budget horror flick pushes all the buttons at just the precise times.
It’s thoroughly original and haunting.
And the surprise ending actually comes as a surprise. Imagine that.
For those further interested in being creeped out, go and rent “The Mothman Prophecies.”
“Solaris”
Steven Soderbergh deserves an Oscar nomination for Best Director. His transcendent space opera hovers just out of range of superficiality and delivers genuine philosophical and psychological drama.
Some will say this film is a watered down version of “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Even so, it’s still better than most.
10 WORST MOVIES OF 2002
Honestly, I don’t know which is worse. Knowing that a movie is bad beforehand and still seeing it because you have to, or going to see a movie that shows promise, only to be disappointed.
When arranging the worst movies of the year, I went back and forth between disappointments and absolute bombs.
All even numbers are the disappointments and the odd numbers are bombs.
This list took longer to narrow down than my best of the year list, which really is disconcerting.
“Fear Dot Com”
Earlier in the semester, I called this movie one of the worst ideas ever put to film. Guess what? It still is. These filmmakers deserve swift and decisive punishment. How about defenestration?
“Windtalkers”
John Woo delivers a swift slap to the face of every Navajo code talker during World War II. This movie was supposed to be their story. Instead, they’re relegated as secondary characters while Nicholas Cage, looking hammered as ever, stumbles about in this over-the-top, heavy- handed war flick.
“Swim Fan”
Best described as “Fatal Attraction” for 15 year-old girls, this is a showcase in how pretentious and self-aggrandizing movies that are marketed toward younger audiences can become.
“The Four Feathers”
This “Lawrence of Arabia” wannabe is horribly paced and full of stuffy British accents. If you looked up the word boring in the dictionary, I’m sure you’d find a reference to this movie.
“Rollerball”
Rule of thumb: remakes are rarely any better than the original. You’re better off watching the sophisticated 1975 version than this over-charged, testosterone-filled piece of rubbish.
“Men In Black II”
Unoriginal and uninspired, Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones simply go through the motions to pick up their big paychecks to prove once again that sequels-most of the time-fail to capture the joy of the original.
“Collateral Damage”
Whatever happened to Arnold Schwarzenegger? The man hasn’t made a decent movie since 1996’s “Eraser,” and he’s still getting paid $20 million to star in these flops? Worst of all, Arnold fails to spout some cheesy colloquialism before killing the bad guy. What gives?
“Changing Lanes”
With every single character just as morally bankrupt as the next, the movie waits until the bitter end before offering up some semblance of context or theme.
That’s too little and too late.
“Jason X”
The latest in a never-ending series of duds, this horror flick shows little in the way of actual scares and more along the lines of intentional comedy.
“The Transporter”
Take pity on Jason Statham, folks. His extraordinary stunts and carefully choreographed fight scenes are the only thing worth seeing.
That would’ve been just fine, except the movie takes itself far too seriously and attempts clever plot twists that amount to nothing.
The opinions stated in this article are the opinions of the writer only, and do not represent the opinions of the Maroon staff.
George Clooney plays an astronaut in the philosophical space opera, Solaris. Even though it has hints of 2001 (20th Century Fox)
