Movie Standouts of 2008

TIVO got loads of free advertising in Ben Stiller's politically incorrect comedy movie Tropic Thunder. Matthew McConaughey plays a high-powered agent who's frustrated that his client (played by Stiller) was supposed to have TIVO in his trailer on a film set, but it was never installed by the company producing the film. And after a running plotline involving the lack of TIVO, a TIVO unit actually plays a major part in the outcome of a crucial action sequence.

To be truthful, that should read 'Best Performances by Animals' as many four-legged actors played the role of the totally goofy, uncontrollable Yellow Labrador in Marley & Me. 'Marley' grows up before our eyes in the film, and so of course there are a variety of Marleys used throughout the movie. But no matter how many dogs it actually took to pull off the job, the end result is a film that's this generation's Old Yeller thanks mostly to the performances of the various Marleys.

Most people want to erase Ang Lee's Hulk movie from their memories, and the 2008 rebirth of the franchise with The Incredible Hulk went a long way in helping to do just that. Edward Norton proved to be a formidable Bruce Banner/Hulk, handling the action scenes without a hitch and pulling off the more dramatic moments with style. This Hulk movie might not have been incredible, but it was hugely entertaining and easily 10 times better than Lee's version.

Who would have thought millions of people would fall head over heels for a trash compacting robot? Pixar managed to once again take an unlikely leading character and build a completely mesmerizing film around it. WALL-E's not only the best animated film of 2008, it's also one of the best movies of the year, period.

While Twilight showed audiences a chaste love story between a high school student and a teenage vampire, Let the Right One In served up a vampire story with real teeth to it. But the stylish Swedish film is more than just a horror movie. Let the Right One In is an interesting character study and a touching romantic story (albeit one with lots of blood).

British TV personality/comedian Russell Brand showed up for the auditions for Forgetting Sarah Marshall and actor/writer Jason Segel wound up rewriting a key role to fit Brand's personality. The result was a movie-stealing performance.

Big screen newcomer Dev Patel showed he's an actor we can expect big things from with his starring role in the critically acclaimed film Slumdog Millionaire. If Patel's career takes off like it should, he can credit director Danny Boyle's daughter with making sure he was on her dad's radar. Also bursting onto the scene this year was German actor David Kross who plays Kate Winslet's teenage lover in the dramatic movie The Reader. All three actors caught our attention and deserve recognition.

I can't understand why Definitely, Maybe never caught on with audiences. Ryan Reynolds plays a divorced dad who talks to his young daughter about three women from his past, using fake names to disguise the real identity of each lady. His daughter's job is to try and figure out which one is her mother. Definitely, Maybe is a smartly written, well acted, quirky romantic tale that should have been at the top of every romantic comedy fan's list of must sees in '08. You missed it in the theater - everyone did - so check this one out on DVD.

Frank Langella's getting all the attention for his astounding performance as disgraced ex-President Richard M Nixon, but the entire cast of Frost/Nixon truly deserves attention. From Langella's onscreen opponent Michael Sheen (as TV personality David Frost) to Kevin Bacon as Nixon's right-hand man to Sam Rockwell and Oliver Platt as Frost's researchers, Frost/Nixon is perfectly cast and brilliantly acted. I can't imagine any other actors in any of the roles.