The experts’ 3 Most Interesting movies of 2009
Here are the 3 best movies of 2009 that got our adrenaline pumping and the dynamite exploding. We love good movies and have seen hundreds in our time.
- Food, Inc. Denial. It’s what’s for dinner… breakfast, lunch and snacks. It’s also why you might want to put that cheeseburger down (if you didn’t after seeing ‘Super Size Me’) and face the hard facts presented in this stunning expose. Oft-referred-to as the “scariest movie of 2009,” this Food Inc 2009 is a mind-boggling — and stomach-turning — look into the bowels, er, mechanics of the companies and government agencies largely responsible for America’s E.coli-related illnesses and escalating obesity epidemic.
- Invictus. Clint Eastwood’s true-life tale of how newly elected South African President Nelson Mandela (a spot-on Morgan Freeman) teamed up with the captain of the nation’s rugby team (Matt Damon) to unite the apartheid-torn land with a run at the 1995 World Cup hits all the right notes. Invictus 720p is both an inspirational sports drama and a portrait of an inspired leader, with Oscar-caliber performances from its two leads and a heavy helping of that magical ingredient: feel-good.
- Up in the Air. With three feature films now under his belt – ‘Thank You for Smoking,’ ‘Juno’ and now this instant classic — is there any doubt that 32-year-old Jason Reitman is one of Hollywood’s best directors? George Clooney somehow makes a corporate downsizer (topical!) lovable and magnetic in a superb lead turn (his best yet), while Anna Kendrick and Vera Farmiga kill as the distinctly powerful women who change his life. Up in the Air online is a near-perfect film that is at times bitingly funny, at other times heartrendingly sad — sort of like life, come to think of it.