Hi Again Friends and Fellow Film Fans:

Here are Dick Pigott’s Favorite Films, theatrical releases only, for 2001.

Add Titus (6.5) to the Favorite Films I missed in 2000.

Near misses, that is, 2001’s best 5.5’s included Panic, Shadow Of The Vampire, The Claim, The Shipping News and, I suppose, Mulholland Drive.

The only theatrical documentary I saw in 2001 was a good one, The Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition. 

There were 34 films which I rated 6.0 and above for 2001. For the past several years these totals were 22, 42, 36, 34, 34, 25, 20, 27, 22 and 14. 

The trend of releasing of a disproportionately high number of favorite films during November and December continued for at least the tenth straight year.

Surprise! There are six comedies among this year’s favorites!! And, this does not include as a comedy The Anniversary Party, which had a damn funny script but which winds up as melodrama at the end.. 

This number of favorite comedies compares with zero comedies among favorites in 2000, two in 1999, one in 1998 and three in 1997. There were ten subtitled films included in last year’s favorites doubling the recent average of 4.5 per year.

The best actor of 2001 was Gene Hackman in The Royal Tenenbaums (he was also excellent in Heist) and other very fine actors’ performances in no particular order included Jack Nicholson in The Pledge, Billy Bob Thornton in The Man Who Wasn’t There, John Turturro in The Luzhin Defense and Russell Crowe in A Beautiful Mind. My best actresses selections are best Charlotte Rampling in Under The Sand followed by Emily Watson for Gosford Park and Sissy Spacek for In The Bedroom.

I plan on seeing but have not as yet seen these critically acclaimed films: Bully, Liam, Tape, Iris and An American Rhapsody.  I have no intention of seeing either Life as a House or Moulin Rouge.  Nor will I see any Harry Potter or Lord Of The Rings movies.

The Taylor Of Panama was probably my biggest disappointment in 2001 but Sidewalks of New York and Together were also major underachievers. I did not really see any bad movies in 2001. I’m certain that the bad movies are out there but I just managed to avoid them. As always many of the favorites are out of the mainstream but none was particularly obscure.
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Based strictly on the trailer my most anticipated film for 2002 is The Count Of Monte Cristo.

If you wish to read my reviews please go to Film Reviews 2001, which my niece Deborah Pigott Hornstra has gone to a lot of work to put together and maintain. Thanks Deb.

As always I love to receive your comments about films that I overlooked and about which you disagree. My address remains:

77 Evergreen Avenue, New Providence NJ 07974

email is: richpigott@worldnet.att.net 

All the best.