There's a lot to like in the new Star Trek film, so it's understandable that both casual and hardcore fans are excited about it. It's without a doubt the best Star Trek movie since Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Unfortunately, that's damning with faint praise since the subsequent movies were just awful (with the possible exception of First Contact, which was half a good movie anyway). Unfortunately, Star Trek is a poorly written and deeply flawed film. But let's start with what's good about it. The special effects are absolutely stupendous, effectively capturing the grandeur of space and the majesty of its exploration, and the set design is wonderful. The Enterprise's bridge has never looked so good. It combines elements of the original series' bridge with a modern sensibility (reminiscent of Apple design aesthetics?). Engineering is vast, making previous Enterprises seem cramped and claustrophobic in comparison, with a set design seemingly inspired by the huge power plants of battleships or aircraft carriers. (Unfortunately, the Engineering set design is marred by the ludicrous and completely unrealistic coolant tubes that Scotty is trapped in when he and Kirk beam aboard.) The action sequences for the most part are very well done. The "space jump" from Pike's shuttle to the Romulan drilling mechanism above the surface of Vulcan was especially effective.

The casting is a bit of mixed bag. As far as performances go, Chris Pine and Karl Urban are absolutely perfect as Kirk and McCoy, respectively. They both capture the essence of their characters without actually impersonating William Shatner and DeForest Kelley. Zachary Quinto is slightly less successful as Spock, but he also has the biggest shoes to fill and it doesn't help that he has to share screen time with his iconic predecessor. That said, I'm not sure I can imagine anyone else doing a better job. Zoe Saldana is a revelation. Her performance as Uhura is touching and fully realized and expands upon Nichelle Nichols' performance. Her sex appeal is undeniable. Bruce Greenwood is wonderful and inspiring as Captain Pike. The movie is worth seeing for these performances alone. Unfortunately, I was far less impressed with Simon Pegg (Scotty), Anton Yelchin (Chekov), and John Cho (Sulu), who I think were either just not good at all or miscast. Yelchin is especially grating as Chekov, and Pegg's tone is completely wrong. Cho is fine, but his characterization is incomplete and it was completely inappropriate to cast a Korean in the role of a Japanese character.

If the casting of the lesser characters was the only problem with the film, it could be overlooked, but the film's major flaw is the writing. The story is littered with plot holes, poorly motivated characters, contrivances, and bad science. The biggest problem is Nero himself. If your home planet was destroyed and you suddenly find yourself 130 years or so in the past, your primary motivation would be to warn your home planet of its impending destruction and attempt to avert it. Nero is completely bent on revenge. It makes no sense whatsoever. The entire movie rests upon this character's motivations and actions, and it's completely ridiculous. Even if he were insane, surely one of the members of his crew would have enough sense to know that saving Romulus must take precedent over destroying Vulcan and Earth. One would think that Spock Prime would at least be motivated to prevent the disaster. If he were to prevent the supernova in the past, then Nero would never have a reason to destroy Vulcan. Bad science permeates the whole film. The impetus of the plot rests on a supernova that--we're told--threatens to destroy the galaxy. In a word, that's preposterous. A supernova could render one star system uninhabitable and maybe affect a nearby star system (or two) many years later, but it certainly cannot possibly threaten the whole galaxy. Then, there are the black holes. Black holes are not wormholes. They can't throw you backwards in time or across space. You can't go through a black hole at all. First off, you'd be crushed by tidal forces, but, more fundamentally, the closer you get to a black hole, the slower time gets. It would take an infinite amount of time to cross the event horizon of a black hole. The black holes aren't even written consistently. For some reason, Nero and Spock can travel through time using the black hole that Spock creates to contain the supernova, but the other black holes that are created just destroy things. The Romulans go to great lengths to drill into Vulcan (and later Earth) in order to insert the black hole, but it is wholly unnecessary. Simply creating a supermassive black hole in the vicinity of Vulcan or launching it at Vulcan would be sufficient to cause its destruction. No drilling necessary. The contrivances in the plot are another sign of poor writing. Kirk just happens to be dropped off on the same planet where Scotty and Spock Prime are located. It doesn't even make sense for them to take the time during an emergency to drop Kirk off when Spock can just have Kirk put in the brig. The scenes with the alien monsters on the ice planet and the previously mentioned sequence with Scotty in the coolant tubes verge on self-parody and Galaxy Quest territory. Then there's Kirk's meteoric rise to Enterprise's captain, which defies all logic and command structure. As a fan of the original Star Trek, I initially felt that the Spock/Uhura romance was just too heretical, but, in retrospect, it does lead to the best acted scenes in the movie, those involving Uhura's attempts to console Spock. If the script has one positive aspect, it's the dialogue, which had plenty of good lines.

If you're willing to overlook the many problems with the script, then you will find Star Trek a very entertaining movie. Even if you can't overlook these problems, there's still a lot to like in the movie: some great performances, well-made action sequences, and fantastic special effects. It's just unfortunate the script couldn't have been plotted better. A better script would have elevated Star Trek into the same lofty heights as The Wrath of Khan and The Voyage Home, but it misses the mark. We'll have to settle for second-tier Star Trek, but that's probably better than nothing, which is what Star Trek fans have had for many years.

It's time for my annual Oscar picks posting! Once again, these are generally my preferences for who should win, not my predictions of who will win.

Best Motion Picture of the Year: Slumdog Millionaire by a mile. I wasn't sure where Slumdog Millionaire would end up on my list of top movies of 2008 until I saw it a second time. It connects with audiences better than any of the other nominees. None of the other nominees even approach it. Speaking of which, this is a pretty weak field compared to last year's nominees. The Wrestler and Rachel Getting Married would give Slumdog a run for its money, but those films weren't nominated, unfortunately.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: I really loved Richard Jenkins' understated performance in The Visitor, but I have to go with Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler. Rourke put his whole soul into that performance.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: Kate Winslet in The Reader. It was a fantastic year for Kate. She was also excellent in Revolutionary Road, but her performance in The Reader exhibits a broader range and hits more poignant notes. The Academy got it right for once and ignored the studio's ridiculous campaign for her to be nominated in the Supporting Actress category for The Reader. Runner-up: Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. He gave one of the most amazing acting performances I've ever seen, regardless of the year and regardless of his death. He's the most deserving. Runner-up: James Brolin, Milk.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler. I expect Penélope Cruz will win for Vicky Cristina Barcelona, and she's a close runner-up for me. Tomei's performance isn't as flashy as Cruz's, but I can't imagine anyone doing better job in her role than Tomei did.

Best Achievement in Directing: Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire. See Best Picture above. Runner-up: David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, but I would have loved to have seen Jonathan Demme (Rachel Getting Married) and Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler) nominated.

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year: I've only seen Waltz with Bashir in this category (the others haven't made it into theaters yet), but it blew me away. I'm really rooting for it to win.

Best Documentary Feature Film of the Year: Man on Wire is a transcendant film, and the best movie I saw in 2008. When Philippe Petit achieves his dream of wire-walking between the WTC towers, it's like a man walking on the moon, only on a smaller scale, but it's no less of a grand achievement. Truly inspiring. Man on Wire is the best documentary I've ever seen.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen: Really tough choice here, but I'm going to go with the intricate plotting and black comedy of In Bruges. Runners-up: Frozen River, Happy-Go-Lucky.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published: Slumdog Millionaire. Runner-up: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Best Achievement in Cinematography: I have to go with Slumdog Millionaire, but I'd love to see Roger Deakins win for The Reader. Deakins has been the best cinematographer in the business for the past several years at least, and he still hasn't won an Oscar. He was nominated twice for two different films last year, both of which were deserving of winning, but the Academy's vote was split between them and Elswit ended up getting the Oscar.

Best Achievement in Film Editing: Slumdog Millionaire. Runner-up: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Best Achievement in Art Direction: Tough choice, but I'm going to go with Revolutionary Road over The Duchess. I would rather give the Oscar to Hellboy II: The Golden Army, but it wasn't nominated. The Academy rarely recognizes SF/fantasy genre films for art direction, sadly.

Best Achievement in Costume Design: I'll go with The Duchess. Runners-up: Australia and Revolutionary Road. Revolutionary Road's costumes were really great. I wouldn't be surprised if it upset The Duchess due to some sort of backlash against period costumes.

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year: This won't be a popular choice and it may be irrational, but I'm going with Kung Fu Panda over Wall-E. Wall-E was great, but it was ultimately a disappointment for me. I just have really high expectactions for any Pixar movie, and especially so for Wall-E, which had me with the first teaser trailer. Unfortunately, it fell short of those expectations. Meanwhile, Kung Fu Panda exceeded my expectations by a mile. It was just tremendous fun to watch. If I were given a choice as to which of the two to rewatch right now, I'd say Kung Fu Panda in a heartbeat.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score: I have to go with Slumdog Millionaire. None of the other movies' soundtracks even made an impression on me.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song: I'm rooting for "O Saya" from Slumdog Millionaire. Runner-up: "Jai Ho", Slumdog Millionaire. I'll be happy with either one winning. I really hope they don't split the vote and the Wall-E song ends up winning instead.

Best Achievement in Makeup: Wow. All three movies are extremely deserving in completely different ways. My first inclination is The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, but I think most of the aging and de-aging was really CG. Does CG makeup qualify? Hellboy II deserves an Oscar for something, so I'll go with Hellboy II, but I doubt it will win.

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing: Kind of a toss-up for me between The Dark Knight and Slumdog Millionaire. The non-genre film usually wins Sound Mixing, so I'll predict Slumdog in this category.

Best Achievement in Sound Editing: Ditto, but the action film usually wins Sound Editing, so I'll predict The Dark Knight in this category. I still think these two categories should be combined into a single Sound category that encompasses both editing and mixing.

Best Achievement in Visual Effects: I can't imagine The Curious Case of Benjamin Button not winning for its revolutionary and flawless visual effects.

These are my preferences for who should win, not my predictions of who will win.

Best Motion Picture of the Year: Without hesitation, No Country for Old Men. Nothing even comes close to it. No Country for Old Men is an incredibly profound movie. It tackles big questions on the nature of evil, the existence of God, and the human experience. It has the most to say about the most topics, and it says them in novel and entertaining ways. Runner-up: Michael Clayton.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: It's probably a foregone conclusion that Daniel Day-Lewis will win, but I'm leaning toward George Clooney. Day-Lewis' performance is very impressive and well deserving and Shakespearean in range, but it's a little on the hammy side for my tastes and it's a little too close to his performance in The Gangs of New York. Clooney's performance is controlled and subtle, but no less impressive in my estimation. He's also extremely well liked by the Academy, so I wouldn't be terribly surprised if he were to upset Day-Lewis, but that seems unlikely.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: I didn't see The Savages or La Vie en Rose, so this is a difficult category for me to pick. Of the remaining performances, I'm torn between Julie Christie's haunting performance as an Alzheimer's patient and Ellen Page's captivating and entertaining performance in Juno. To paraphrase Roger Ebert, my heart says Ellen Page, but my mind says Julie Christie. Let's call it a tie.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: I can't imagine Javier Bardem not winning for his riveting performance in No Country for Old Men. Runner-up: Casey Affleck. He was spectacular in two films last year: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Gone Baby Gone. Definitely someone to watch in the future.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Unfortunately, I didn't see I'm Not There, so I can't comment on Cate Blanchett's performance in that film. For me this category comes down to the two performances by Tilda Swinton and Amy Ryan. Both are excellent. I've been a Tilda Swinton fan for years though, ever since I saw Orlando in 1993, and I'd love to see her get some well deserved recognition.

Best Achievement in Directing: The Coen brothers for No Country for Old Men. See Best Picture above. Runner-up: Julian Schnabel for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen: Juno will likely win, and it's hard to argue with it's sparkling dialogue, but I'd give it to Michael Clayton.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published: Like there's any doubt? No Country for Old Men. Runner-up: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.

Best Achievement in Cinematography: Unfortunately, Roger Deakins was nominated twice for two different films, both of which are deserving of winning. He deserves the Oscar. I don't care which film he wins it for. If I had to pick one, I'd probably go with The Assassination of Jesse James. Here's hoping he doesn't split the vote...

Best Achievement in Editing: I'd give it to The Bourne Ultimatum, a fantastic film that deserves some Oscar recognition. Runner-up: No Country with Old Men.

Best Achievement in Art Direction: Tough category. I guess Sweeney Todd, but I'd rather give it to a number of other films which weren't nominated.

Best Achievement in Costume Design: I know this won't be a popular choice, but I'm going with Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Atonement's green dress is a one-hit wonder, and Sweeney Todd's costumes are too drab for my tastes.

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year: I loved Ratatouille. Persepolis was good too, but I found it less engaging.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score: I'd give it to Michael Clayton.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song: I'm rooting for "Falling Slowly" from Once. After seeing the movie, I sang this song all the way home, and, as soon as I got home, I immediately went online and bought the soundtrack. I'm praying the Enchanted songs all split the vote and allow Once to pick up this well deserved Oscar. Once should have been nominated for Best Picture!

Best Achievement in Makeup: I'm not going to pick this category this year as I didn't see two out of three of the films. I predict La Vie en Rose will win, however.

Best Achievement in Sound: I think the minimalist sound design of No Country for Old Men is revolutionary.

Best Achievement in Sound Editing: Ditto. Runner-up: Either The Bourne Ultimatum or Ratatouille.

Best Achievement in Visual Effects: The movie I want to win this category never seems to win. I don't understand it. Anyway, I'll give it to Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year: The Academy dropped the ball this year. I'm giving it to 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days. It wasn't nominated, but it should have been.

The movies that get released in the first half of the year are often forgotten by the time year-end lists are made, so I thought I'd post what I consider to be the best movies of the first half of 2007 (January through the end of June exactly). Many of these are already available on DVD; if not, they will be soon. My list is even heavier on foreign films than usual, partly because of the fabulous Chinese and Korean film festivals I saw at the American Film Institute and partly because the more mainstream, English-language films so far this year collectively have been rather weak. Of the English-language movies, I can safely say that only Grindhouse and Once stand out enough to make my end-of-year list. Grindhouse undoubtedly has limited appeal, though I'm sure it would appeal to more people if they just would give it a chance. However, if you must see only one of the films on the list below, I heartily recommend Once. It's both superb and a real crowd pleaser. It's the only movie I've seen so far this year in which the audience actually applauded at the end. Please check it out. Without further ado, here is my list:

1. Grindhouse
   
2. Once
   
3. The Banquet (Ye yan)
   
4. The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen)
   
5. Exiled (Fong juk)
   
6. A Dirty Carnival (Biyeolhan geori)
   
7. The Lookout
   
8. 300
   
9. Zodiac
   
10. Knocked Up
    

Honorable mentions (in no particular order): Paris, je t'aime; Black Snake Moan; The Namesake; Waitress; After the Wedding (Efter brylluppet); Away from Her; Bridge to Terabithia; Black Book (Zwartboek); Triad Election

Director: Sam Raimi
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, Bryce Dallas Howard, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons, James Cromwell
Theater: Muvico Egyptian 24, Hanover, MD

Spider-Man 3 is entertaining, but it's ultimately disappointing, falling victim to the same Hollywood "sequelitis" disease ("more/bigger/louder is better") that doomed PotC 2. The writing just does not live up to the exemplary standards of the first two movies. Sam Raimi should have brought in Michael Chabon to write the script like he did for Spider-Man 2, the best written super-hero movie ever. The Spider-Man 3 script is just a mess in comparison, with too many characters, too much plot (it takes like three or four plots from the comic book series and mashes them together into one movie), too many villains, and too many contrivances that could have been resolved by characters just sitting down and talking to each other. The first half of the movie is pretty good actually, but it falls apart in the latter half. It either needed to be an hour longer in order to fit everything in properly or the plot should have been pared way down, preferably the latter. Peter Parker is just kind of a jerk for about a third of the movie, squandering the affinity between the character and the audience. The music and dance sequence that comes out of that is a highlight, however, and made me wish for Spider-Man: The Musical. The movie is not a complete disaster, by any means. There are plenty of well directed, well acted, and well written scenes; they were just dragged down by an equal number of missteps, mostly in the script, unfortunately. Overall, if you're not a fan of the comic book or a completist, I would not recommend this one.

These are my preferences for who should win, not my predictions of who will win.

Best Motion Picture of the Year: This category is a toss-up for me. I enjoyed The Departed more, but Babel is more ambitious. I'll be happy with either film winning. If I had to pick one, I'd probably go with Babel.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: I like Forest Whitaker and would be happy to see him win. The only problem is that I haven't seen The Last King of Scotland. Limiting my choice to the films I did see (all of the others), I'll go with Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson. It was a really difficult role, and he excelled at it.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: I didn't see The Queen, but I'm always leery of acting performances based on living and well-known people. The resulting performances often end up being more about impersonation than real acting. Of the performances I did see, I liked Kate Winslet in Little Children best. I'd give Judi Dench the runners-up award, if there were one. It's disappointing to me that Maggie Gyllenhaal was not nominated. She gave three of the best performances of the year in Stranger Than Fiction, Sherrybaby, and World Trade Center. She really deserved to be nominated. I'd go so far as to say she was the actress of the year for me.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: Once again the leading candidate (Eddie Murphy) was in the one film in the category that I didn't see (Dreamgirls), but I cannot imagine a better performance than Mark Wahlberg in The Departed. He stole every scene he was in, and really made the performance his own.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Rinko Kikuchi in Babel for sure. She gave possibly the year's most impressive performance by anyone, male or female, in any role. I really, really hope she wins. Supposedly, she's a longshot. The thinking goes that she'll split the vote with Adriana Barraza, also of Babel, but I'm pulling for her.

Best Achievement in Directing: Alejandro González Iñárritu (Babel), Paul Greengrass (United 93), and Martin Scorsese (The Departed) all deserve the award, but I'd be happiest to see Scorsese win it.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen: As the years go on, I'm starting to believe that the winner of the Best Original Screenplay category is the real Best Picture of the year. Over the past ten years, I would much rather re-watch the Best Original Screenplay nominees than the Best Picture nominees. This year, I would give the award to Pan's Labryinth with Babel a close runner-up.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published: This may be the toughest category to pick. Only Borat doesn't deserve to be here. (It was mostly improvised, so how did it get nominated for its screenplay?!) I'd love to see Children of Men win some award, but I think Little Children is probably the best adapted screenplay of the year. The use of voiceover in that film to bring the language of the novel to the film-goer was bold and well done.

Best Achievement in Cinematography: Nothing comes close to Children of Men in terms of cinematography. I really hope it wins. I'd give the runner-up award to Pan's Labyrinth. It's a shame The Fountain didn't get nominated in this category. It was memorably beautiful film.

Best Achievement in Editing: This category has to be a slam dunk for Babel. Iñárritu spent almost a year editing this film, meticulously crafting the narrative and the performances.

Best Achievement in Art Direction: I'd love to see Pan's Labyrinth win. Or The Prestige.

Best Achievement in Costume Design: Can there be any doubt? Marie Antoinette better win or there's no justice in the Oscar world. Runner up: Curse of the Golden Flower.

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year: Cars is the only one of the three that I've seen. I heard Monster House was really good, even better than Cars, but I didn't see it.
 
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score: No clear winner here, but I liked Pan's Labyrinth's score. Babel's was also very nice. I might give it the edge actually. I really wish Superman Returns had been nominated. It was my favorite score of the year by far.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song: I haven't heard any of these except for Randy Newman's, so I'll abstain.

Best Achievement in Makeup: I'd like to see Pan's Labyrinth win, but I wouldn't be surprised if Apocalypto (which I did not see) won. The full-body makeup on the latter looks pretty impressive.

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing: I have to admit that I still don't understand the difference between sound mixing and sound editing. The same films are usually nominated for both, and you can't do one without the other. I would combine the two categories into one: "Best Achievement in Sound." The producers keep trying to make the Oscars shorter in length, and here's as good of a way as any, if you ask me. I'm going to abstain in this category because I didn't see enough of the films. Of the couple (Blood Diamond and PotC 2) I did see, I'd give the edge to Blood Diamond.

Best Achievement in Sound Editing: Ditto.

Best Achievement in Visual Effects: I'm really, really hoping Superman Returns wins this award because it deserves to win an award for something. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest epitomizes everything that is wrong with CG visual effects.

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year: I just saw The Lives of Others, and it was wonderful! But I still want Pan's Labyrinth to win this award.

Best Documentary Feature: I've pretty much ignored documentaries this past year. I hear Deliver Us From Evil is pretty impressive, but I haven't seen any of these, so I must abstain.

Here are the top 25 movies of 2006 according to me:

1. A Prairie Home Companion
   
2. Children of Men
   
3. Stranger Than Fiction
   
4. Pan's Labyrinth (El Laberinto del Fauno)
   
5. United 93
   
6. Babel
   
7. The Departed
   
8. Superman Returns
   
9. Little Children
   
10. Inside Man
    
11. Inland Empire
    
12. Three Times (Zui hao de shi guang)
    
13. The Fountain
    
14. Don't Come Knocking
    
15. A Scanner Darkly
    
16. The Proposition
    
17. The Prestige
    
18. Marie Antoinette
    
19. Little Miss Sunshine
    
20. Running Scared
    
21. The Good German
    
22. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
    
23. Casino Royale
    
24. Volver
    
25. Curse of the Golden Flower (Man cheng jin dai huang jin jia)

Honorable Mentions (in no particular order): Hard Candy, The Science of Sleep, Lady in the Water, Caché (Hidden), V for Vendetta, Letters from Iwo Jima, Half Nelson, Hollywoodland, Scoop, Crank, Akeelah and the Bee, Game 6, Miami Vice, Thank You for Smoking, Notes on a Scandal, World Trade Center, The Black Dahlia, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, Venus, The Painted Veil

Movie Review: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Director: Gore Verbinski
Cast: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Jack Davenport, Bill Nighy, Jonathan Pryce
Theater: Regal (Hoyts) Cinemas Bowie, Bowie, MD

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest epitomizes everything that's wrong with Hollywood sequels. It's an easy trap to fall into for the writers, the director, and the actors. If you did X in the first movie, then you need to do X++ in the sequel, right? Uh, no, the sequels that work the best tend to do Y instead, so Aliens is a very different film from Alien, for example. Anyway, unfortunately, it's an X++ sequel so that means Johnny Depp acts weirder, the bad guys are uglier and grosser, the stunts are bigger, the CGI more pervasive in a vain attempt to impress more, the fight scenes are longer (interminable really and often pointless), and the plot more convoluted. They took the premise of the first film and tried to make an epic out of it, but there just wasn't enough story for it to be a real epic in the first place, so they padded it with a lot of action, or worse motion (which is action without purpose). A lot of that could be forgiven if the plot would have just made sense (it makes even less sense than the first movie) and brought some sense of satisfaction. In case you didn't know, PotC 3 is coming out next year and it will conclude the story. Essentially, the writers and director tried to reproduce Empire Strikes Back in this film, but whereas Empire Strikes Back makes me want to watch Return of the Jedi immediately, I don't even care if I ever see PotC 3. Probably the thing that disappoints the most is that they (the writers, the director, and possibly even Depp) just got the character of Jack Sparrow wrong in this film. It's like they forgot what made the character so great, so unique in the first movie. Jack Sparrow isn't a good man who wants to be a bad man or thinks he's a bad man; he's a good man making his way in a world that thinks he's a bad man because he lives his life on his own terms rather than what society expects. I'm not sure if Depp's performance was lost in editing or not, but the Jack Sparrow of this film is a pale imitation of the first film's. I suspect that had as much if not more to do with the writing, direction, and editing than Depp's performance as an actor. Anyway, basically, it was a payday and everyone from the supporting cast to the stars to the writers and director (not to mention the producer and the studio, of course) decided to cash in. Well, I'm cashing out.

Best Motion Picture of the Year: Once again, my very favorite movies of the year weren't even nominated. Of the movies that were nominated, I probably liked Capote the most. If the pundits are correct, this is going to come down to Brokeback Mountain vs. Crash. Guilty admission time: I never saw Crash. I should have, but it just didn't sound all that great so it never made it to the top of my movies-to-see list. Usually, the Academy is notorious for forgetting about films that were released early in the year, so I was caught unprepared when this was nominated. I'm hoping Brokeback Mountain doesn't win, just because it's way overrated.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote. I was skeptical about his performance before I saw the film, but he really did a great job. I'd probably give Heath Ledger the runners-up award, if there was one.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: I'll be pulling for Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line, but I wouldn't be disappointed if Felicity Huffman won. How in the world did Keira Knightley get nominated here? It was a good performance for sure, but not exactly nomination worthy.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: Compared to last year's abundance of talent in this category, this year is very disappointing. I'll pick George Clooney for Syriana, I guess. William Hurt would be deserving if he had been in A History of Violence for more than five minutes.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Amy Adams for Junebug or Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener.

Best Achievement in Directing: I can't understand how Terence Malick didn't get nominated here for The New World. I'm not sure any of these nominees are particularly deserving, but I would give it to Bennett Miller for Capote.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen: As the years go on, I'm starting to believe that the winner of the Best Original Screenplay category is the real Best Picture of the year. Over the past ten years, I would much rather re-watch the Best Original Screenplay nominees than the Best Picture nominees. This year, I would give the award to Match Point.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published: The Constant Gardener must have been a very difficult story to adapt for film, and I think it was done marvelously.

Best Achievement in Cinematography: If The New World doesn't win this award, I may never watch the Oscars again. None of the other nominees even come close to the beauty of this film.

Best Achievement in Editing: The Constant Gardener again. The editing of this film is what made it so great, I think.

Best Achievement in Art Direction: Tough category. No clear winner in my mind, but I'd probably give it to King Kong. I would have liked to have seen Star Wars at least get nominated in this category.

Best Achievement in Costume Design: Colleen Atwood for Memoirs of a Geisha. She should have won last year for Lemony Snicket and was robbed.

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year: A very disappointing year for animation. Wallace and Gromit was a major disappointment. Corpse Bride was good, but no Nightmare Before Christmas. Howl's Moving Castle is far from Hayao Miyazaki's best work, but I would give him the award, I guess.
 
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score: No clear winner here, but I liked The Constant Gardener's score.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song: I haven't heard any of these, so I'll abstain. I'd be surprised if the Crash song didn't win though.

Best Achievement in Makeup: Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith. Duh.

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing: Walk the Line, I think.

Best Achievement in Sound Editing: I actually would give it to War of the Worlds. I don't understand how Star Wars wasn't nominated for this though.

Best Achievement in Visual Effects: Where's Star Wars?! King Kong should win.

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year: Surprisingly enough, I haven't seen any of these. The nomination process for Best Foreign Language Film is archaic and desperately needs to be revised.

Best Documentary, Features: I actually caught Murderball on A&E recently. (It will be airing again soon, so check your TV listings.) It must have sucked to film penguins in sub-zero temperatures in Antarctica for months at a time. If March of the Penguins wins, I certainly won't begrudge them for it. That said, it's a by-the-numbers animal documentary. I'd give it to Murderball. I haven't seen the other nominees, however.

Since the Academy Awards are this weekend, I thought I'd post this. Here are the top 25 movies of 2005 according to me:

1. 3-Iron (Bin-jip) (tie)
   
1. Oldboy (tie)
   
3. The New World
   
4. Sin City
   
5. Nobody Knows (Dare mo shiranai)
   
6. Kung Fu Hustle (Gong fu)
   
7. The Constant Gardener
   
8. Match Point
   
9. Serenity
   
10. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
    
11. Broken Flowers
    
12. Shopgirl
    
13. Downfall (Der Untergang)
    
14. Star Wars: Episode IIII - The Revenge of the Sith
    
15. Capote
    
16. A History of Violence
    
17. Me and You and Everyone We Know
    
18. Syriana
    
19. The Squid and the Whale
    
20. King Kong
    
21. Jarhead
    
22. Good Night, and Good Luck.
    
23. The Ice Harvest
    
24. Proof
    
25. Elizabethtown

Honorable Mentions (in no particular order): Millions, Crash, Brokeback Mountain, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Grizzly Man, Pride & Prejudice, 2046, Mirrormask, Walk the Line, Murderball

Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Orlando Bloom, Liam Neeson, Jeremy Irons, Eva Green, Alexander Siddig, Edward Norton (uncredited)
Theater: Regal (Hoyts) Cinemas Bowie, Bowie, MD

Well, I never quite got around to writing this review, but suffice to say that I liked it, although it wasn't as good as I had hoped for from Ridley Scott. Still, an underappreciated film that deserved to do better box office.

Director: Stephen Chow
Cast: Stephen Chow, Yuen Wah, Yuen Qui, Shengyi Huang, Leung Siu Lung
Theater: Muvico Egyptian 24, Hanover, MD

Writer/director/producer/star Stephen Chow's homage to the classic Shaw Brothers kung fu films of the '60s and '70s is the most visually inventive film since Amélie. Fans of martial arts films will love every frame of this film and its deft combination of highly kinetic action sequences, campy comedy, and touching romance. The story takes place in the gang-ruled Shanghai of the 1930's. Chow plays a street beggar who wants to be a gangster, if only so he could be someone important. He starts impersonating a gangster and acting tough. His hijinx result in an escalating conflict between the dominant gang and the residents of the poorest neighborhood in Shanghai, Pig Sty Alley. The story is actually very clever and my description simply cannot do it justice. Suffice it to say that the characters and the roles they play in the story are constantly evolving and will keep you guessing up until the climax. In addition to many classic kung fu film references, Chow's film also references The Matrix, Road Runner/Wile E. Coyote cartoons, Kubrick's The Shining, and Ghostbusters. This film may not be for everyone, but I think a lot of people who aren't fans of the martial arts genre would still enjoy it. Kung Fu Hustle is one of the best movies I've seen so far this year and certainly the most enjoyable.

Director: Todd Solondz
Cast: Ellen Barkin, Richard Masur, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Debra Monk, Richard Riehle, Walter Bobbie, Alexander Brickel, Rachel Corr, Will Denton, Shayna Levine, Valerie Shusterov, Hannah Freiman, Sharon Wilkins
Theater: Landmark Bethesda Row Cinema, Bethesda, MD

A very strange, daring, and thought-provoking film. Not for everyone though.

Director: Garth Jennings
Cast: Martin Freeman, Mos Def , Sam Rockwell, Zooey Deschanel, John Malkovich, Anna Chancellor, Alan Rickman (voice), Stephen Fry (voice), Helen Mirren (voice)
Theater: Muvico Egyptian 24, Hanover, MD

Kind of disappointing, but I liked it overall. I kept thinking that Terry Gilliam would have done such a better job directing this though.

Directors: Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly
Cast: Drew Barrymore, Jimmy Fallon
Theater: Muvico Egyptian 24, Hanover, MD

Very sweet and funny and romantic. Only a couple of mild Farrelly brothers moments, but I'm not a big Farrelly brothers fan so that's a positive thing in my opinion.

Directors: Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller, Quentin Tarantino ("special guest director")
Cast: Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Jessica Alba, Jaime King, Rosario Dawson, Brittany Murphy, Benicio Del Toro, Nick Stahl, Elijah Wood, Michael Clarke Duncan
Theater: Muvico Egyptian 24, Hanover, MD

Saw this movie on my birthday, so that may have colored my impressions somewhat, but I thought it was one of the best movies of the year. I really loved the visual look and inventiveness of the film.

Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Cast: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Chantal Goya, Marlène Jobert, Michel Debord, Catherine-Isabelle Duport
Theater: AFI Silver Theatre, Silver Spring, MD

French New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard deconstructed the conventional cinematic narrative in a stylistic tour de force in 1966's Masculin, féminin, one of his most innovative films. Godard audaciously mixed the usual pioneering French New Wave approach to editing, audio, and lighting with documentary-style interviews, quasi-improvisational acting, and a very literary structure in which gun shots precede the beginnings of most (all?) of the 15 acts. The film tackles inter-gender and intra-gender relationships by following the rise and fall of the love affair between the 21-year-old, idealistic, rebel-without-a-cause Paul (Jean-Pierre Léaud) and the exceedingly beautiful Madeleine (Chantal Goya), an assistant editor at a fashion magazine and possibly an up and coming pop music star. One of the interstitial cards that appears before the start of an act refers to them as "the children of Marx and Coca Cola" and that's very appropriate. She likes the Beatles; he only listens to Bach, though he's taken with Bob Dylan. She drinks Coca-Cola; he drinks sparkling water. The film is almost as much about the differences between capitalism and communism/socialism as it is the differences between men and women. The narrative is layered with metaphorical meanings that will reward multiple viewings. The film is full of frank dialogue about sex and love and the character's reactions to war, murder, and suicide. The most fun sequence, however, is when Paul and Madeleine and their friends go to a movie theater. At one point, Paul hilariously announces that the film is in the wrong aspect ratio and runs off to talk to the projectionist to have him correct it. We're then treated to Paul's rant about how films should always be shown in the correct aspect ratio, and it is obvious that it is Godard speaking through Paul. Paul/Godard also says that he and Madeleine went to the movies often, but they were usually disappointed by what they saw, as though Marilyn Monroe (i.e. Hollywood films) were no longer as attractive as she used to be. Paul says, "It wasn't the film we dreamed, the film we all carried in our hearts; the film we wanted to make, and, secretly, wanted to live." Well, I wasn't disappointed by this extraordinary film, and who wouldn't want to live in Paris and make films like Godard's?