2004 Ten Years Later

During the trailer reel for Annabelle there was a preview advertising the ten year rerelease of Saw.  I got to thinking why Saw?  Why a ten year anniversary rerelease?  What I was really doing was remembering 2004 as it related to cinema.

So what’s held up?  The Pixar flick The Incredibles stands out at the top of the back.  It’s a movie I enjoy rewatching constantly.  This is followed very closely by Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.  Charlie Kaufman wrote a great screenplay and the film is not only entertaining but one I get something new out of almost every time I watch.  Anchorman I still find my self quoting after all these years.  Man on Fire is an action movie of epic proportions.  One I still excites me when I watch.  In fact The Polar Express is one I watch every Christmas.  Hellboy, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, and the Dawn of the Dead remake are still fun to watch.

2004 also brought some great sequels.  Shrek 2, Spiderman 2, The Bourne Supremacy, Kill Bill Vol 2, and Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban all are great examples of how sequels live up to their original material.  

The Oscar contenders had a great feel to it.  The Aviator and Million Dollar Baby battled it out for best picture with Clint Eastwood’s boxing movie taking the heavy weight belt.  Jamie Foxx had the the duel nomination for Ray & Collateral, winning for his performance as Ray Charles.  Also sprinkled in the Oscar contenders were the wine tasting, road trip comedy Sideways; the powerful Hotel Rwanda, and Johnny Depp gave us the back story to the writing of Peter Pan in Finding Neverland.  All of those films are worth watching at least once.

The year was also marked with two big controversial films.  Those two movies are Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ and Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11.  Both movies were widely discussed and debated while enjoying record breaking box office results.

Of course every year has its fair share of bad movies.  The remake of The Stepford Wives led the way the worst category.  Oliver Stone’s Alexander, the kid friendly The Spongebob Square Pants Movie, and Kevin Smith’s Jersey Girl are also among the dishonors.

Looking back 2004 had some very strong high points with some very weak low points.  Some films I still talk very highly about and remember 2004’s flicks fondly.