2005 in (cinematic) review, part one

Everyone is posting lists of their top ten (or five, or 15) 2005 films. I thought I might want to make some lists myself, but first I needed to remember which films I actually saw in 2005. The great advantage of reviewing or just writing about movies on a weblog like this is that theoretically, I would have a record of every movie I saw and even when I saw it.
For the first few months of the year, I wrote at least a summary review of nearly every movie, even the number of films I saw at SXSW. Somewhere in the long, hot, overtime-filled summer, I started slipping. I used my Netflix list and my stack of ticket stubs to help me figure out what I saw and didn’t write about, but a few movies may have slipped through the cracks. And while I know I saw Bright Leaves on PBS, I can’t figure out exactly when (it wasn’t the first viewing in August).
Still, I managed to pull together a fairly thorough list of all the movies I saw in 2005. I’m dividing it into two entries because it is so long. The films marked with an asterisk are movies that had a U.S. theatrical release in 2005, although in a few cases “theatrical release” means “a couple of nights at Alamo Drafthouse” or even “an airing on PBS.” It’s more difficult than I realized to determine what was released in 2005 and what was not. (The list actually includes a few 2006 releases, which I saw at various film festivals.)


The list includes movies I saw for the first time in 2005, in theaters and on DVD. It does not include short films, with a few notable exceptions. It also does not include not-yet-released and/or unfinished films I saw privately and can’t discuss. I noted the films I saw at various film festivals, such as South by Southwest.
Whenever possible, I linked to what I wrote about each movie, whether here or at Cinematical. For the movies I neglected to write about, I included a short one-sentence summary. If I ever review any of these movies, I’ll go back and add the link later.
And now you can understand what my New Year’s resolution is for 2006: Write something, even if it’s only a couple of paragraphs, about every movie I see. It’s best if I write a full review, of course, because that’s good practice for my writing, but even the six-minute reviews are better than nothing.
This entry includes January through June 2005; the next entry covers July through December.
Reminder: films marked with an asterisk had a U.S. theatrical release in 2005.
January:

February:

March:

April:

May:

June:

  • The Cooler—I did write a review of this movie … on paper, in May or June. Guess I need to find a notebook and transcribe the review, then I’ll post a link. Summary: This was one of the best movies I saw this year. Go rent it.
  • My Little Chickadee
  • *Howl’s Moving Castle
  • *Batman Begins—Entertaining superhero movie, but I like the Spider-Man films better. Supporting actors (except Katie Holmes) were the best part of the movie.
  • Shaolin Soccer—I did write a review of this movie … on paper, in May or June. Guess I need to find a notebook and transcribe the review, then I’ll post a link. Summary: Possibly funnier than Kung Fu Hustle.

One thought on “2005 in (cinematic) review, part one”

  1. found your blog googling for “if you like oceans eleven, you’ll like” too bad kiss kiss bang bang isn’t showing anywhere near me. anyway, i like your movie reviews, so thanks for making them available on the web. cheers -ellen

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