2002

BEST PICTURE NOMINEES

*In the Bedroom
*Gosford Park
*Moulin Rouge!
*A Beautiful Mind
*The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

AND "MY" WINNER IS.. A Beautiful Mind
And "The" WINNER IS.. A Beautiful Mind

A Beautiful Mind(2001) directed by:Ron Howard
Main Cast: Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Paul Bettany, Ed Harris and Christopher Plummer

While attending Princeton University in the 1940's, John Nash (Crowe) struggles to make a worthwhile contribution to the world of mathematics. He finally has a breakthrough, that will eventually earn him a Nobel prize. After graduate school he turns to teaching, where he meets Alicia (Connelly) Whom he eventually marries. Meanwhile the government is asking for his help with breaking Soviet codes, which gets him involved in a terrifying cospiracy plot. Nash grows more and more paranoid until a discovery that turns his whole world upside down, and only Alicia can save him. Definitely worth checking out, I have this one in my collection, but if I didn't I would be making a special trip to buy it!

RATING: 10/10

BEST OF THE REST

RUNNER- UP:

In the Bedroom (2001) directed by: Todd Field
Main Cast: Tom Wilkinson, Sissy Spacek, Nick Stahl, Marisa Tomei and William Mapother

Matt (Wilkinson) and Ruth (Spacek) have a college aged son named Frank (Stahl) who is dating an older , married woman named Natalie (Tomei). Natalie and her husband Richard (Mapother) are seperated and living apart but, when he finds out she is dating Frank the unthinkable happens, that will tear everyones world apart. This was a great movie, the only one so far where I needed a box of tissues. I highly recommend you check it out. I will be adding In the Bedroom to my DVD collection as soon as possible.

RATING: 10/10

HONORABLE MENTION:

Moulin Rouge! (2001) directed by: Baz Luhrmann
Main Cast: Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, Jim Broadbent and Richard Roxburgh

It's Paris in 1899 Christian (McGregor) a young English poet comes to Paris to persue a career as a writer. However he soon meets a group of Bohemians who tell him he should write a musical show for them to be performed at the Moulin Rouge, the most famous underworld nightclub in Paris. The night they arrive at the Moulin Rouge Christian meets Satine (Kidman), the clubs star and a courtesan. He falls head- over- hills in love with her and though it takes a bit of convincing, she soon falls for him as well. Meanwhile the club's owner Harold Zidler (Broadbent), invest in a wealthy Duke (Roxburgh) to help pay for the club, however the Duke will only pay if Satine is his. The crazy love triangle takes some unusual twist and turns. Little does Satine know she has a deadly secret that could end everything. Terrific movie, definate for my collection!

RATING: 9/10

THE Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) directed by: Peter Jackson
Main Cast: Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Orlando Bloom, Billy Boyd, Ian McKellen, Dominic Monaghan, Viggo Mortensen, John Rhys-Davies and Sean Bean

The ancient ring that had been thought lost, has been found and now it has been given to a small hobbitt named Frodo Baggins (Wood), When Gandalf (McKellen) discovers the ring, he soon realizes it is the ring created by the Dark Lord Sauron. Gandalf tells Frodo the ring must be destroyed by tossing it into the Cracks of Doom, that is the only wat to destroy it! So Frodo along with Gandalf, Legalos the elf (Bloom), Gimli the dwarf (Rhys-Davies), Aragon (Mortensen), Boromir (Bean), Pippin the hobbitt (Monaghan), Merry the hobbitt (Boyd) and his best friend Sam the hobbitt (Astin). The fellowship of the ring faces danger at every turn, their quest to destroy the ring is the only hope to destroy the dark lords reign! This was a very long movie, but a very enjoyable movie from beginning to end. I recommend you see it for yourself. It is already a part of my collection, and if it wasn't it would soon be!

RATING: 8/10

THE REST:

GOSFORD PARK (2001) directed by: Robert Altman
Main Cast: Michael Gambon, Kristin Scott Thomas and Maggie Smith

The McCordle's (Gambon & Thomas) are hosting a weekend murder mystery party, Mr. McCordle actually ends up being murdered, no one really seems to have cared for the man. Take the journey to find out who really killed him and why, when everyone had reason to want him dead. Not really my cup of tea, certainly don't think this one will make it in the collection.

RATING: 2/10

So all in all 2002 was a great year for me, only one movie out of five I really didn't care for. Alot of these movies I will definitely be viewing again, some hopefully soon!

Rating for 2002 as a whole: 9/10

Next up: 1953- which includes The Greatest Show on Earth, High Noon, Ivanhoe, Moulin Rouge and The Quiet Man