Below are my top ten choices for the best films of 2001. Here are some excerpts from my film reviews:
Frank's top ten best films of 2001 were (in alphabetical order):
Below are the movies that film critic Frank Ochieng thought were the best that 2001 had to offer. Let's see his 10 best selections below: *******************************************************************************************************************
1.) A Beautiful Mind: "...the direction by Ron Howard and the script by Akiva Goldsman keeps "A Beautiful Mind" on a riveting, psychological pace...(an) absorbing and challenging personal drama ...the potency of the intense performances add up to an edgy cinematic experience"
2.) Amelie From Montmartre: "...Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet instills a supreme giddiness to the charming French comedy...sprawling with unlimited flair, "Amelie" is one postcard from Paris that delivers the essential goods...pragmatic, light-hearted, imaginative, and clearly one of the best romantic charmers to come along in a year that has been dominated by posturing fluff..."
3.) A.I.: Artificial Intelligence: "...no doubt the Spielberg indelible touch and the posthumous injection of Kubrick's imprint make for a wondrous collaboration of insurgent, festive filmmaking...an undeniably surging, deeply heartfelt piece of moviemaking..."
4.) The Business of Strangers: "...This sharp-minded and crafty estrogen-driven character study about power plays and complex mind games is the feature debut from writer-director Patrick Stettner...the film counters its message of sisterhood with one of the psychological scheming by ambitious women...a disturbing, finely-acted showcase that sheds new light on female angst and its place in office politics..."
5.) Fat Girl: "...an intensifying inquiry into the unexplainable appetite of female adolescent sexuality...blunt and polarizing...vividly imaginative and compounding...Catherine Breillat's heavy exploration of feminine absorption is blistering..."
6.) Ghost World: "...in Terry Zwigoff's stridently astute Ghost World, he examines the nature of youth-oriented alienation with offbeat poignancy and supportable depth...a haunting and taunting winner that will put you in that reflective, redemptive frame of mind..."
7.) In The Bedroom: "...actor-turned-director Todd Field delivers a penetrating feature (in his mainstream debut) that suggests he has a knack for helming solid, gripping heartfelt stories that are shocking and uniquely absorbing...ambitious and convincingly involving...it's one of the most impressive and intoxicating independent films to arrive on the big screen in a long time..."
8.) The Royal Tenenbaums: "...in writer-director Wes Anderson's brilliantly dysfunctional family comedy "The Royal Tenenbaums", he delighfully skewers the indelible psychology of an overachieving bunch...engagingly irreverent and deliriously slick..."
9.) Sexy Beast: "...cheeky thriller with animated flair...stylistic, absorbing and intensely paced...crackles with vaunting confidence and substance...Ben Kingsley is absolutely mesmerizing in his hypnotic naughtiness..."
10.) Shrek:..."an energetic, animated comedy from the Dreamworks SKG machine that delightfully entertains audiences of all ages with its spry computerized animation and the three-dimensional uniqueness of its beloved characters, particularly the big green ogre who yearns for acceptance...a fairy tale adventure that's sweet, smart, and entertaining..."
Now to recap Frank Ochieng's top 10 best films of 2001, here's the listing one more time:
1.) A Beautiful Mind
2.) Amelie From Montmartre
3.) A.I.: Artificial Intelligence
4.)The Business of Strangers
5.) Fat Girl
6.) Ghost World
7.) In The Bedroom
8.) The Royal Tenenbaums
9.) Sexy Beast
10.) Shrek