Best of 2009 in a few easy categories: Movies and TV

Movies in Theaters

Best capers:

Duplicity and The Brothers Bloom. Each delightful in its own way.

Best use of Melanie Lynskey as a pivotal travel destination:

Away We Go. (Honorable mention in this category: Up in the Air. As in Away We Go, the main characters take a trip to see Lynskey’s character and it changes everything.)

Movies on DVD

Best documentary:

Every Little Step. Absorbing and entertaining even if you have no interest in Broadway or auditions or musicals or dancers or singers or ambition.

Best movie that is more uplifting than its title, despite the fact that one of the main characters dies:

Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself. Spoiler: Wilbur is not the one who dies.

Best movie with aliens:

Torchwood: Children of Earth. These Brits manage to make even apocalyptic alien thrillers seem realistic.

Best cinematic use of Lee Pace (miss you, Pushing Daisies!):

The Fall. Bonus points for also including the amazing Justine Waddell.

Best Dickens adaptation:

Little Dorrit. Oh, and the book is really good, too. But don’t even bother with the new Masterpiece Classic adaptations of The Old Curiosity Shop or Oliver Twist.

Best Freudian screwball comedy in Spanish:

Unconscious (Inconscientes). Hang around for the tango at the end.

Best Japanese Amelie:

Kamikaze Girls. A lot like Amelie. Except it’s a manga adaptation. And includes a biker chick fight. And has scenes with these guys:

TV Shows

Best shows that no one else watched and now they’re canceled, thank you very much:

Better Off Ted (not officially canceled yet, but it will be) and The Unusuals. At least put these on your Netflix queues, please?

Best (only?) reason to think that Starz might actually be a real TV channel:

Party Down. The main cast includes Adam Scott, Ken Marino, and Jane Lynch. And pretty much everyone from Veronica Mars has made guest appearances.

Most relevant show from the early ‘90s:

Northern Exposure. Really, it holds up so, so well. I meant to watch the entire series in 2009, but thanks to the vagaries of Netflix, I still have to finish half of the final season. Look for a full analysis in January 2010!