"you know your fat friend? well her nickname is minivan"

As one of the film reviewer for BEATS and another website (Not gonna name the name...I'm not sure how big ups will like me writing for another site... I'm like Andy Lau in Infernal Affairs, a freaking mole. Oh wells... let's just say I'm Anton Chigurh) I've seen my fair share of movies this year.

Anyway, there were many great flicks this year. Daniel Day Lewis' performance in There Will Be Blood was amazing and if not for Heath and Javier Bardem outdoing his ass, DDL woulda had this year's top performance. I quite liked Juno even though it was overrated (Best Picture Oscar nod...really?). Iron Man was the essential "perfect summer comic book movie" and would have been ths biggest film this summer if not for this world wide phenomenon called THE DARK KNIGHT (no wonder Robert Downey is bitter...I guess I'd be too if I made such a good flick and then all the thunder was stolen). Then there's the intense Before The Devil Knows You're Dead, highlighted by Philip Seymour Hoffman's amazing acting and Marissa Tomei's even more amazing naked tits.

Wall-E was one of the deepest animations ever, and Burn After Reading was dark comedy at its finest form.

Lots of great films have made their way to our theaters in 2008.

But still, two films stood above all.

I recently had to compile a list of "Best Movies of 2008" for work... actually even if I didn't have to do it for work, I do this on my own anyway for fun because I'm a movie geek.

Basically, when it came down to it, The Dark Knight and No Country For Old Men were head and shoulders above all other films this year. (No Country actually is a 2007 film, but didn't make it here locally until 08).

I said earlier that Iron Man was essentially the perfect summer comic book movie. And it was--Iron Man is action packed, had great visual effects and strong performances by a star studded cast...and it was FUN. So if Iron Man was so perfect, how was TDK above it?

Because The Dark Knight transcends the genre of "comic book movies". It's not a light, fun, summer comic book popcorn flick you go watch and walk out daydreaming about being a superhero. The Dark Knight is a staggering crime drama of epic proportions.

Is the film flawless? No. But as a lifelong Batman fan, I was left utterly speechless after the IMAX screening back on July 10th. The lush visuals, thunderous score, grand action setpieces, and top notch performances (let's not just credit Heath and overlook everyone else. Gary Oldman was amazing in this) left an impression on me--and just about every comic book fan--for days and days.

But despite all this, I can't even say The Dark Knight is a better film than No Country For Old Men.

The Coen Brother's modern day western is a flat out masterpiece. You know the most impressive thing? There was no music in the entire film. Now think about all your favorite movies and how big a part the background music/score play in crucial scenes. Halloween wouldn't be the same if Michael Meyers was sitting up to dead silence. Rocky jogging up the steps in West Philly (born and raised, on the playground is where...) would have been quite boring to watch if not for the iconic Gonna Fly Now Rocky anthem. Music convey emotion. 99.9% of films take advantage of it. Yet No Country For Old Men managed to set the tone and mood with no music. Just brilliant filmmaking by the Coens. The pacing, the camerawork, the acting, the setup, all masterfullly done.

Watch the coin toss scene between Anton Chigurh and the clueless gas station owner. It's chilling and harrowing even though the scene had no blood, violence, or dramatic music cue. Just two men talking...yet the life of the gas station owner was teetering on the edge of a cliff. You felt it watching the scene. You knew the gas station owner was in grave danger. All that and Anton Chigurh never even raised his voice.

"What's the most you've ever lost in a coin toss?"

"What?"

"Heads or tails, call it."

"Now wait a minute here, I need to know what I stand to win."

"Everything. Just call it, friendo."

Now let's get to Javier Bardem's Anton Chigurh and Heath Ledger's Joker.... Two of the greatest villains in cinematic history...both came out in theaters within a few months time (in HK anyway). Amazing. That's like when Magic and Bird came into the L together. Or when The White Stripes and The Strokes exploded in the same year and saved music.