2000's In Review: Top 10 Movies According To Me

CLEVELAND - As the first decade of the 21st century draws to a close, I am looking back on the best and worst, the highs and lows and everything in between. Today, I'm naming my favorite movies of the decade.

Just my opinion, folks.

1. Training Day, 2001: When it was in theaters, I had the most difficult time trying to see it. One thing after another kept occurring which prevented my viewing of the flick. But when I finally saw it on DVD, I was blown away. Denzel Washington's unbelievable and Oscar winning portrayal of L.A. narcotics detective Alonzo Harris was both intimidating and hilarious. Every line he spoke in the film was either legendary or just plain funny. In any event, me and several of my friends consistently imitated his lines...and the cadence of his voice: "You've been smokin' PCP all day," Harris said to his understudy Jake Hoyt after forcing him to do the illegal narcotic, to which a mortified Hoyt responded: "You've been planning this all day?" Washington's Harris snapped back with an ominous and arrogant flair: "I've been planning it all week, son. You talk that crazy s**t, I'll make sure your blood gets back to the lab." As always, Denzel Washington was the quintessential master of cinematic excellence. 
2. Deja Vu, 2006: Once again, Denzel Washington delivered an ingenious performance, this time as an ATF agent who must travel four days back in time to prevent a terrorist attack on a ferry in New Orleans. Along the way, he also decides to save a murdered woman whom he falls in love with. This film wowed me greatly with its complex plot and storyline, especially the way it was intricately laced and woven through events early in the film and at its climax and denouement. In the middle of it all was Washington, who mastered the science fiction element of the film as expertly as a Steven Spielberg disciple.
3. Unfaithful, 2002: I never knew Diane Lane was such a hottie. This is the film that proved that for me beyond a shadow of a doubt. With her wayward portrayal as [Richard Gere's] adulterous wife, Lane was delicious in her deceit and stunning in her brazen audacity which was sparked by nothing that Gere as her husband did or didn't do. Erotic scenes and imagery aside, the cautionary tale about the impossibly tragic consequences that infidelity can bring to a relationship was both resonant and compelling.
4. 8 Mile, 2002: At the height of his glittering music career, Eminem was also a movie star. This film, loosely based on his pre-fame struggle to become a rap star was for me, much deeper than just a simple movie about rappers. It told a subtle story of being aware of how others view you and how those negative stereotypes can be used as a major advantage. This was evident throughout the film, but most notably in the climactic rap battle sequence. All in all, a very underrated movie with many great performances by its cast.
5. The Pursuit of Happyness, 2006: This film, arguably star Will Smith's most inspirational is based on the real life rags-to-riches story of Chris Gardner. Smith's nuanced and emotional portrayal was first rate and the underlying moral of "never give up on your dream" made for a truly indelible flick.
6. Hustle and Flow, 2005: This is when I became a Terrance Howard fan. Similar to 8 Mile in the sense that its urban musical elements obscured its true inspirational personality, this movie was a surprise hit and told the story of DJay, a small-time pimp who aspires to be a rap musician. Through many setbacks and false starts, his steely determination to realize his goal resonated with me greatly.
7. Seven Pounds, 2008: The great Will Smith continued to show his evolution as an actor in this film. Even though it wasn't as commercially successful as many of his films, the story was original and delivered in a very intricate way. Smith, as IRS agent Tim Thomas made a very careless and tragic mistake in his recent past and through intense guilt, sought major redemption. This set his unique yet vague-to-the-audience plan in motion and through it all, ended in a major tearjerker conclusion. I felt that Smith had grown and diversified as an actor, and this flick illustrates that.
8. American Pie 2, 2001: The original film in the trilogy was very popular with me. When the sequel came out in the summer of '01, I was over eager to see it. The plot follows Jim, Kevin, Finch, Oz and of course Stifler on their summer vacation from their first year in college. With all of its usual sexual themes and the crude humor of Seann Willian Scott's Stifler, this was a delightful and fun movie for me. Of course, the "kissing lesbians" set-piece was very well written and acted and made this installment better than Part 3, and nearly equal to the original.
9. White Chicks, 2004: The Wayans family have been a comedic powerhouse for 20 years and this film once again showcases that. With Marlon and Shawn at the controls, this film soars into uproariously funny territory. They are FBI agents who get extensively transformed to become white women in order to solve a crime. The writing is trademark Wayans, but the awesome Terry Crews steals the show with his laugh-out-loud portrayal of obsessed-with-white-women football star Latrell Spencer. At one point, I watched this movie three times a day.
10. Gran Torino, 2008: I never knew Clint Eastwood was so awesome and believable as a tough guy, but this movie made me a late arriving fan of the man. His gruff, raspy voiced and subtly racist portrayal of Walt Kowalski was genius. His habit of drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, sitting on his front porch armed with a shotgun and his trademark sneering at anyone he felt like sneering at were things that I enjoyed and soon imitated. In short, Eastwood was freaking awesome, even at age 78. The utterly unexpected conclusion upset me, especially in light of his tough guy claim in the film that "Me, I finish things."

Smith's Latest Masterpiece Showcases His Amazing Evolution

CLEVELAND -  Once upon a time, Will Smith was known as a rap artist named "The Fresh Prince." On his popular 1990's television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, he was often called Master William.

That name has never been more fitting than right now.

Smith, 40 has been a Hollywood phenomenon for several years now. His latest film, Seven Pounds hit movie theaters nationwide today and will most likely open at number one, the 9th consecutive Smith flick to do such a thing, which would add to his all-time record. I attended an early morning screening of the film today and was blown away.

For real.

Smith plays conflicted and mysterious IRS agent Ben Thomas, who seeks out seven ailing strangers for an initially unknown reason. One of them is Emily, beautifully played by Rosario Dawson and whom Smith's character develops an intimate, if not complex relationship with. Emily has a serious heart condition, which in many ways drives the narrative to its tearjerker conclusion. 

With something awful in Ben's past haunting him (through perplexing flashbacks), his unlikely mission becomes less altruistic and more of a guilt-ridden, self-cleansing which somehow comes off as near revolutionary, as far as spiritual, thought provoking films go. 

I had to fight hard to keep those tears locked up.

In addition to Seven Pounds, Smith's previous three films have signaled a dramatic shift in the stories he wishes to tell the world and have showcased his stunning development as an actor. In 2006's The Pursuit of Happyness, he skillfully stepped into the unglamorous shoes of a tough luck homeless man who stopped at nothing to achieve the life he wanted. 2007's I Am Legend was brilliant because of Smith's outstanding execution of a script that essentially called for him to power the film singlehandedly and with no other actors to feed off of.

He pulled that off in a huge way.

This past summer, Hancock was, on the surface, just another superhero action flick. But add in the drunken, dysfunctionality of the title character and Smith's nuanced portrayal becomes even more magnified.

Seven Pounds may or may not be Smith's tour-de-force. But in his 15-year film career, I cannot find another performance nearly as well done or as meaningful as this one.

He is LEGEND.