Best Movies of 2009 -

With two lingering wars and the economy in the tank, the nation didn’t exactly have a very happy 2009.
Fitting that many of the year’s best movies were fantasies, comedies and cartoons. Apparently, there’s nothing like a good distraction to help ease the pain of tough times.

1. Up

While this Pixar masterpiece boasts several visually arresting action sequences, the film’s most powerful moments are the quietest ones– particularly a dialogue-free sequence that documents the love and loss of a long, happy marriage.

From there, “Up” becomes a refreshingly funny buddy comedy, teaming an 80-year-old grouch with a young, upbeat wilderness explorer. It seems like all fun kid stuff, but “Up” is more a movie about grief and how some of the greatest adventures in life can also be the simplest.

People go on and on about the revolutionary computer effects in “Avatar,” but only Pixar has ever made me connect with computer images on a human level.

Consider the climactic scene of “Up,” when heartbroken Carl Fredericksen opens the last page of his wife’s photo journal. The scene has no explosions, quips or bright balloons. The essence and brilliance of “Up” is in an old man’s gaze.

2. Inglourious Basterds

Quentin Tarantino’s epic riff on World War II, or more specifically, movies about WWII, is an unconventional, thrilling and superbly acted experience and arguably the director’s most original and cohesive film since “Pulp Fiction.”

Brad Pitt is a hoot as the cocky, unable-to-fake-an-Italian-accent leader of a group of soldiers sent to kill Nazis in France. All the performances are good, but Christoph Waltz is the real standout as the terrifying Nazi Col. Hans Landa. His smile alone is despicably menacing.

Some criticize the violence in Tarantino’s work. While there’s some gruesome stuff here, “Inglourious Basterds” is 95% dialogue, and the most exciting moments are those where characters are sitting around a table chatting. One particular bar scene goes on for 30 minutes (without Pitt or Waltz), and it’s far more tense than any second of “Transformers” or “G.I. Joe.”

3. The Hurt Locker
Here’s a heart-stopping, unmissable portrait of the Iraq war, focusing on an elite Army bomb-defusing unit. Jeremy Renner is especially convincing as the unit’s reckless leader, a man who seems to enjoy walking into bomb-infested war zones, often without his protective gear.

Director Kathryn Bigelow smartly avoids the politics and keeps “The Hurt Locker” focused on lifestyles and routines of modern warfare. It’s a visceral glimpse into the horrors our soldiers face on a daily basis.

4. Up in the Air
Timing plays a big part in the success of this dramedy starring George Clooney as a corporate suit who travels around the country firing people for cash-strapped employers. It truly is the movie of our troubled times.

Clooney is funny and charming, especially when teamed with engaging female support like Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. The likable presence of all three is especially impressive considering two of the three portray hatchet men for corporate greed. Expect all three to earn Oscar nominations.

Without drudging into heavy-handed melodrama, director Jason Reitman (“Juno”) takes an insightful look at the detached, empty lifestyle that is too often confused with financial stability and success. The film includes actual footage of recently laid-off employees, which adds a face and voice to those astronomical unemployment numbers.

Both sad and hopeful, “Up in the Air” captures the mood of the country in ways few films have in any generation. Now in theaters.

5. (500) Days of Summer

With the help of a non-linear narrative, an out-of-nowhere musical number and the natural chemistry between two indie superstars, “(500) Days” destroys all the irritating, overdone conventions of the romantic comedy genre.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is convincingly lovesick as the smitten everyman, and Zooey Deschanel is a perfectly believable dreamgirl in a movie that will make you want to forever avoid all future Kate Hudson projects.

6. The Cove
A documentary about dolphin poaching that plays like a (good) sequel to “Ocean’s 11.” It follows the filmmakers as they infiltrate a Japanese cove where fisherman brutally dispose of the planet’s smartest animals, all for some contaminated seafood few people would want to eat. It’s one-sided, sure, but shocking and convincing all the same.

7. Away We Go
John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph star as a young couple in search of a new home in this sometimes quirky, often moving road drama from “American Beauty” director Sam Mendes. Some critics have dismissed the protagonists as pretentious and too-clever-for-their-own-good. I say “too-clever” should only be reserved for jaded film critics.

8. Star Trek
A smart, exciting reboot to the science-fiction franchise, and easily the most entertaining ensemble acting effort of the year. Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto are perfect doppelgangers to William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy in an adventure that opens the franchise to a broader demographic. You don’t need to be a Trekker to enjoy this one.

9. Fantastic Mr. Fox
Who would have thought stop-motion animation would be the perfect vehicle for live-action director Wes Anderson (“The Royal Tenenbaums”) and all his eccentricities? While there’s plenty of energetic critter chases to amuse the kids, adults are more suited for the whip-smart dialogue delivered by an impeccable cast, notably George Clooney in the conniving, debonair title character.

10. In the Loop

A brilliant, foul-mouthed political satire that gives the best episodes of “The West Wing” a run for its money. Peter Capaldi spouts off one hilarious tirade after another as a rather irritable British aide trying to quarterback an escalating war in the Middle East.

11. Moon

This thoughtful, low-budget science-fiction film is just about the opposite of the flashier “Avatar.” Sam Rockwell stars as an astronaut presiding over a lonely moon base. Something wicked happens early on, and the twists just get better and better.

12. District 9

An exciting science-fiction spectacle sprinkled with a hint of social commentary, writer/director Neill Blomkamp’s “District 9” is a spectacular summer blockbuster made at a fraction of the cost. Attention Michael Bay: This is how you make an effects-driven movie without selling your soul.

13. An Education
Newcomer Carey Mulligan has the appeal of an old Hollywood starlet in this refreshing and insightful coming-of-age tale about a hardworking London teenager in the 1960s who falls for a charming older man.

14. Food, Inc.
An eye-opening and entertaining documentary that exposes the shortcomings and injustices of America’s big food industry. Like “Super Size Me,” it will make you think twice before biting into that Whopper.

15. Where the Wild Things Are

Spike Jonze could have made a lighthearted, kid-friendly romp out of the classic Maurice Sendak storybook. Instead, the director of “Being John Malkovich” explores just how sad and lonely growing up can be. Newcomer Max Records is Oscar worthy, and the film’s cinematography and creature effects are revolutionary.

16. Crazy Heart
The great Jeff Bridges turns the familiar story of a drunken musician into something unforgettable with a performance that will finally win the actor an Academy Award.

17. Drag Me to Hell
After a disappointing “Spider-man” entry, director Sam Raimi returns to his “Evil Dead” roots with this creepy, hilariously over-the-top horror romp destined for cult classic status.

18. A Serious Man

Joel and Ethan Coen take on more personal subject matter in this Job-like story of a physics professor as he struggles with disgruntled students, family and the unsatisfying advice of three rabbis. A quiet, engaging change of pace from the “No Country for Old Men” Oscar winners.

19. Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Lee Daniels’ uber-depressing drama about a poor, overweight, AIDs-infected teenage mother won’t be a movie you re-watch every Christmas. Still, the performances here are convincing, especially Gabourey Sidibe in the title role and Mo’Nique as her heinous mother.

20. I Love You, Man
The “bromantic” comedy of the year thanks to the hilarious teaming of Paul Rudd and Jason Segel as two dudes who share a slightly disturbing obsession with the band Rush.

Honorable Mention: The Messenger, The Informant!, Bad Lieutenant- Port of Call New Orleans, Pirate Radio, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, The Invention of Lying, Black Dynamite, Cold Souls, Big Fan, Anvil: The Story of Anvil, The Road

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