The Aughts Project

What is the Aughts Project you ask?  Well, it all started at the end of last year when everyone and their mother started putting out “Best of the Decade” lists for everything from magazines to reality TV stars to eating trends.  Of course, I decided I would put together a top-50 list of my own and throw it out into the ether. But, as much as I like to pretend that my opinions are correct (and that anyone gives a damn what I think), I was curious about what my friends, family, and co-workers considered to be the cream of the Aughts.  So, the call went out from Coast to Coast and 13 stalwart film lovers responded. Their lists were entered into the secret Paulies database and scored using the methodology described below.

The 2009 Paulies

Welcome once again to that wonderful post-Oscar tradition known as the Paulies.  Unlike the Oscars, this top-10 list will not feature two over the hill movie stars spitting on the corpses of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, a nonsensical NPH musical production, or Ben Stiller in blue body makeup (though it will hopefully elicit more forced laughter).  Also unlike the Oscars, the Paulies will be shorter this year.  I am finishing up work on The Aughts Project (a list of the best movies of the decade as voted upon by my friends and family members) and I’d like to get it posted before the next decade ends.  So, this year I am going with an illustrative quote from the movie and a couple of (hopefully) pithy lines instead of my usual rambling diatribe. Check back in the next day or so for the Aughts posts…or, better yet, sign up as a follower of The Paulies and get notified whenever there is a new post.

As always, my usual disclaimer applies: I am not a  professional critic and I didn’t see everything this year (despite my best efforts).  Some notable movies I missed are: Summer Hours, The Blind Side, Sin Nombre, Antichrist, The Road, Julia, The Last Station, Broken Embraces.