Best Movie 2005

[Graf Zahl]

Morris said:

I'm impartial about King Kong. I'll admit the Skull Island part is some of the best film I've ever seen, but the other 2 hours make it almost not worth seeing. And Jack Black is possibly the worst choice for that role. WTF Peter Jackson? Could have just as easily been 2 hours, and much better for it.

Hmm, I see it the other way around. The other 2 hours were a good (but not great) movie but Skull Island was one cheap B-monster movie cliché after another which followed in such close succession that it became total overkill. The sequence was far too long and seemed completely out of control in its insane madness - and for an hour I felt I was in a completely different movie - the kind I have come to loathe in recent years - and of which there was far too much already in 2005.

[Morris]

Well, I do LOVE b-movies, especially when they involve ludicrous action scenes. edit: Especially when those b-movies are giant animals pwning the hell out of each other.
And yet another edit because my thinking is slow at the moment: The original King Kong did have the natives and a T-Rex, and I guess Peter Jackson must've thought Skull Island was the chance to shine the movie. My main complaint is that, at least to someone who likes movies that are overdone for the humour of being overdone, the middle shouldn't be the best part of a 3 hour movie, which it was for me.
I also forgot, if Undead was 2005, then that's another movie on my list.

[Fredrik]

I didn't like Sith much when I saw it the first time, but it got better on the second viewing. In fact, I'd probably say it's about as good as Return of the Jedi. What I can't get over, is the crappy acting. Ewan McGregor and Ian McDarmid are perfect, but the rest all suck, CGI actors (especially Hayden) included.

I agree that King Kong could have been a bit shorter, but it doesn't matter much. The first and last acts are great, and the middle is awesome just because it is so over the top. The CGI creatures are wonderful, especially Kong (unlike Gollum). Being in a crowded theater helped, too.

[Enjay]

King Kong was a good movie. The special effect were superb, the look was great, the acting fine, some really interesting monsters - including the Half-life suckery-people-eating-things - and it was very faithful to the original. There were a bit too many slow motion emotion building scenes for my liking though. I'm not saying they shouldn't have been there, but I got the point already, I don't need to repeatedly sit through minutes of teary eyed emotional drama to drive it home. However, that's a personal choice thing and I guess some people (Peter Jackson for one I suppose) would argue for those scenes.

However, bottom line, good movie and very faithful but somehow it just didn't row my boat. I think I knew that even before I went in to see it. There's just something about King King that I just don't get. I like action movies. I like special effects movies. I like dinosaur movies. I even quite like movies where some big creature is stomping around a city. I don't even mind when such a movie has a message. However, for some strange reason I don't like Kong. I didn't like the original much, I certainly didn't like the 1970s remake and there is something about this that leaves me slightly cold too.

Something else that bothers me - why take the ape home? I mean, the world hasn't seen dinosaurs for 65 million years. They are the stuff of legend and every school-boy's dream or obsession. Why not chloroform a T-Rex instead of a big gorilla?

And another thought. When the original was made, it was a contemporary movie. This one is set in the same time period, thus making it a "historical" piece. A good choice, I feel, but interesting none-the-less.

[Joe]

King Kong was meh. I liked a couple of bits but the bulk of it was rubbish. I agree about the slow motion/blurry bits, they were pointless, it's like "oh noes jack black i about to be split open like a ripe coconut let's slow it and make it blurry!". Gay. On another note, what did they give the girls to Kong for anyway o_O I hope it isn't what i'm thinking.

However my favourite movie of 2005 had to be Sin City, though i have to agree with what someone said earlier that a few scenes are quite boring to watch again.

[Morris]

Enjay said:

...slow motion emotion building scenes...

"S - K - U - L - L Island". I couldn't help but laugh at that.
And while on the most worthless character of the movie (the sailor boy), the whole reference to "Heart Of Darkness" was completely senseless, and a waste of about 15 minutes right there. Also, I love it when characters are built up for no reason. He didn't die, he didn't do anything special. He just used up screen time. We never find out where he goes after the Skull Island incident. I'm glad Jackson accomplished NOTHING with a character he made sure to be careful about giving a background. That's ace script writing right there.

However, that's a personal choice thing and I guess some people (Peter Jackson for one I suppose) would argue for those scenes.

I'd like to see him do that. Most of them were at nonsensical times, which leads me to believe Peter Jackson is trying to score "artsy" points, and failing at it.
And I'd like to know why he thought Jack Black fit to be anywhere in the movie. He's a terrible actor, especially for a role like that. It does really bother me, Jackson's casting has always been PERFECT in all of his movies. And yes, seeing Jack Black trying to pull off that role is probably the main reason I disliked the other acts.
I didn't hate the movie, I was just very disappointed and expected a lot more. This was supposed to be a mammoth remake of a legendary film. That's how it was hyped, advertised, and raved. Peter Jackson always delivers what is promised, except (in my opinion) for Kong.
And after the Skull Island part, the trademark NYC part was just like "whatever".

[sargebaldy]

Hands down, the best 2005 film I've seen to date is Capote. Although there's still a number of others I need to see.

[PumpkinSmasher]

I enjoyed King Kong for the most part, but some scenes could have been left out. The film was a little long. My biggest problem was trying to take Jack Black seriously. I like some of his comedies, but I just have trouble adjusting to seeing him in a serious role.

[Technician]

PumpkinSmasher said:

I enjoyed King Kong for the most part, but some scenes could have been left out. The film was a little long. My biggest problem was trying to take Jack Black seriously. I like some of his comedies, but I just have trouble adjusting to seeing him in a serious role.

King Kong hands down for me. I do agree that they could have cut out stuff to keep timing. Like the car chase and ten minutes of the air plane death scene. Mostly what I didn't care for was some poor character develops.

[Enjay]

Morris said:

And while on the most worthless character of the movie (the sailor boy)...

Yeah, I forgot about him. He had a huge build up and it all came to nothing. There was this big mystery about where he had come from (I assume maybe S-K-U-L-L island, but I don't think it was stated explicitly - then there was the fact he'd been mentored by the other sailor, the whole Heart of Darkness thing, the whole "I'm not a coward" thing and keeping him away from guns etc etc, then he was just forgotten about. :/

[Sharessa]

I'm rather saddened by the fact that no one else mentioned Steamboy.

[caco_killer]

PumpkinSmasher said:

My biggest problem was trying to take Jack Black seriously. I like some of his comedies, but I just have trouble adjusting to seeing him in a serious role.

I didn't take him seriously at all during the movie. He looks too goofy to be a serious actor.

[Morris]

Enjay said:

...whole "I'm not a coward" thing and keeping him away from guns...

Ha, I had forgotten about that! Come to think of it, he was the most developed and personal human character in the movie.

[Nautilus]

Syriana and Lord of War were the best movies of 2005 I've seen, in my opinion.

[Coopersville]

That's a no brainer. Bloodrayne indisputably the best movie of 2005. Uwe Boll is a genius, and a wonderful, wonderful man.