2007 was a mixed bag as far as quality films. There were more surprises than disappointments though, unlike last year. But, overall, it seems the quality of films are in an upswing. Live Free or Die Hard was a very, very good sequel to an action series compared to those other sequels in which the last installment were released over a decade ago, namely Rocky VI: Rocky Balboa. There was also a nice sprinkle of smaller films like Death at a Funeral, Waitress, Stardust, 30 Days of Night and Reno 911!: Miami that were just great to watch. Still, there was an unusual amount of sequels, it seems this year, most of which I avoided. Six of which were the top grossing films in 2007 (Superman 3, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Shrek the Third, The Bourne Ultimatum and Live Free or Die Hard). This should be telling for future years to come, but I’m pretending not to hear. I’ll just look forward to the good films as I always do, sequels or not.

So, here is a list of my favorite films of 2007:

• Best overall: 300 and 3:10 to Yuma
• Best Sequels: Live Free or Die Hard and The Bourne Ultimatum
• Best Comedy: Hairspray
• Best Movie based on a TV Show: Reno 911!: Miami
• Best Fantasy: The Golden Compass
• Best Independent: Eastern Promises and Waitress
• Most Worth Walking Out On: Ocean’s Thirteen
• Silliest and Enjoyable: Blades of Glory
• Best “Based on a True Story”: American Gangster
• Strangest, Yet Oddly Quite Good: Stardust
• Most Disturbing: No Country for Old Men
• Best Brit Film: Death at a Funeral
• Most Disappointing: Elizabeth, The Golden Age
• Most Surprising: 30 Days of Night, I Am Legend
• Most Curious About, Not Yet Seen, but Looking Forward to Renting: Lust, Caution; Before the Devil Knows Your Dead; The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford; Sicko; Gone, Baby Gone (All currently in my Netflix queue)
• Most Unimpressive Despite the Hype: Michael Clayton

Here are my favorites of 2007 in order and with some one to three word descriptions that I think best describes why I loved these films:

• 300 – Beautiful
• 3:10 to Yuma – Perfect
• Hairspray – Plain fun
• I Am Legend – Smart
• Live Free or Die Hard -Bloody fun
• Waitress – Perfect delight
• Eastern Promises – Subtle and brilliant
• Reno 911!: Miami – Silly fun
• The Bourne Ultimatum – Strong finish (to a trilogy)
• 30 Days of Night – Welcome surprise
• The Golden Compass – Intriguing and fun
• American Gangster – Smart
• No Country for Old Men – Disturbing