I'll go with the crowd and say that SO FAR, it's "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." As someone noted earlier on this board, it's also better than anything I saw last year. So for me, I'll be surprised if I see a film that surpasses this one in 2004.
One of my best friends said that "Dawn of the Dead" was magnificent, and I pretty much laughed at her. But with comments on this board, perhaps I need to rent it.

I just saw Napoleon Dynamite and absolutely LOVED it. It's really a must see. And yes, Dawn of the Dead was also wonderful. Wasn't so wild about Eternal Sunshine. It was missing a heart.

I saw Dodgeball the other night and it was hilarious. I would defintely go see it. Ben Stiller and the rest of the cast do a great job. I was crying I was laughing so hard.

Well the best movie is one that just recently came out in my humble opinion. However, I'm not able to watch limited releases here without driving a good distance and I don't really watch that many movies at the box office.

My top 5 picks for 2004 movies so far in numerical order

1. Spider-Man 2 (A)
2. Shrek 2 (A)
3. Mean Girls (A-)
4. Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind (B+)
5. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (B-)

two other really good films I've seen that didn't really come out this year but say 2004 on rottentomatoes include

Shaolin Soccer (A)
Twilight Samurai (A-)

going to check Fahrenheit 911 out sometime when I get the chance and Kill Bill Vol. 2 whenever it gets to dvd I should probably check out also. Just recently got Touching The Void but haven't watched it yet but heard it was a good film as well. Now if only they would show Before Sunset somewhere local for me but that probably won't happen and I'll have to wait for the DVD release. I also have Tokyo Godfathers which is a Japanese Anime film that was in theaters in January which I heard was pretty good but nothing like Miyazaki's works (Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, etc.). Well I hope to be back later this year with my top 10 of the year or so I should of watched enough by then.

Lumiere

I'd say Shrek 2, but my opinion is different for 2 reasons:

1. I haven't been to the movies much.

2. I haven't seen Spiderman 2, Eternal Sunshine, The Day After Tomorrow, and other movies.

Plus, Harry Potter 3 was very good.

the whole experience of movies for me is being able to experience them in a theater of different people and recognizing their reactions so i whole-heartedly agree with k-dog.

i have been i guess kinda blessed to live in Los Angelas-the biggest movie capital next to New York- i have watched pretty much every movie mentioned in all the different posts. eternal sunshine was such a great movie because of it's depth and manipulation of our thoughts. Kill Bill 2 is just unexplainable in how great it was. Spider-man 2 is just about the best super hero movie i've seen because it was able to capture it's character's emotions. all the other movies mentioned- day after tomorrow, mean girls, dogville, hellboy...etc. just didn't register as much intrigue for me and were forgetable. but my favorite movie was one that i watched just 2 days ago- the notebook. it may have been sappy but it was honestly the best movie i've seen this year. i have never seen such a unique love story in the way it unfolds nor have i seen such dedication to the phrase "till death do us part." the movie is also beautiful and all the characters are alive and have thoughts and feelings. even though it may be scorned for it's over-the-top melodrama i thought it was perfect, timeless, memorable and my favorite.

Mine would have to be Anchorman!!!!

Easily one of the funniest movies in a while!!

ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, definitely. An amazing film!

Also, Lost in Translation grabs my heart everytime I see it, just a beautiful film.

quote:

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Originally posted by SparkleMotion:
I just saw _Napoleon Dynamite_ and absolutely LOVED it.

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Yes, Napoleon Dynamite is hands down the funniest movie of the year, and probably one of the most heart-warming. I've seen it a couple of times now, and the audience roared both times. See the flippin' movie before it vanishes.

Good Bye Lenin! a black comedy satire from Germany is the best of 2004 so far, followed by Dogville

The best movie of 2004 is Spiderman 2.

Goodbye Lenin was a really good film indeed, but I thought the ending was somewhat unsatisfying, i dunno why....

Spiderman 2 is ONE of the best films of 2004 but not THE best!Here's my best films of 2004 list(so far):

1. Eternal Sunshine
2. Lost in Translation
3. Spiderman 2
4. Shrek 2
5. Big Fish

quote:

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Originally posted by lover_of_movies_in_theaters:

all the other movies mentioned- day after tomorrow, mean girls, dogville, hellboy...etc. just didn't register as much intrigue for me and were forgetable.

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Dogville was forgettable ??

It's controversial, and I could understand if a person didn't like it, but forgettable is a word I wouldn't use to describe that film.

It's powerful. It hits you like a ton of bricks. The acting is superb.

Even those who hate it are affected by it.

Your reaction is surprising.

8 films have earned an "A" rating from me so far this year...

FAHRENHEIT 9/11
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
KILL BILL: Vol. 2
THE VILLAGE
FACING WINDOWS
DOGVILLE
THE DREAMERS

quote:

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Originally posted by tccandler.com:
8 films have earned an "A" rating from me so far this year...

FAHRENHEIT 9/11
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
KILL BILL: Vol. 2
THE VILLAGE
FACING WINDOWS
DOGVILLE
THE DREAMERS

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Whoa now...opinions are opinions are opinions...but, "The Village". You're...joking, right???

Wow... so many movies I need to see from just this year.

Someone mentioned Big Fish, so I guess I'll go with that. I'm almost positive it came out in 2003 in at least a few places, though.

Otherwise, Shrek 2 and Spiderman 2 were good, but I haven't really seen much else of note.

quote:

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Originally posted by Eccentro:

quote:

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Originally posted by tccandler.com:
8 films have earned an "A" rating from me so far this year...

FAHRENHEIT 9/11
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
KILL BILL: Vol. 2
THE VILLAGE
FACING WINDOWS
DOGVILLE
THE DREAMERS

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Whoa now...opinions are opinions are opinions...but, "The Village". You're...joking, right???

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I thought THE VILLAGE was a wonderful film. You can read my full review on my site if you would like to know why.

Hmm... it seems people are starting to post their favorites, so I might as well jump on the bandwagon:

Here goes:

1. Dogville
2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
3. Before Sunset
4. Kill Bill, vol. 2
5. The Bourne Supremacy
6. Free Radicals
7. Maria Full of Grace
8. The Saddest Music in the World
9. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
10. Spider-Man 2

As for my least favorites: I found Fahrenheit 9/11 to be superficially sympathetic and shamelessly pornographic. Troy completely trashed The Iliad to the point of hilarious amazement, and, well, I found The Village to be banal, predictable, and above all, lame.

Yikes! Of course, this is in no way finalized, as there are still several months left in the year, but if were forced to make a list now, I suppose that's how it would look.

I also was deeply moved by The Passion of the Christ, but it is something I would never sit through again, nor would I recommend it to anyone who wasn't prepared to sit through 2 hours of enlightening, though profoundly unsettling, footage. It's phenomenally executed, but very unpleasant, and to endure it again would be quite an achievement.

I thought The Bourne Supremacy was outstanding. Paul Greengrass follows up the remarkable Bloody Sunday with a film using similarly frenetic camerawork to create a thriller with a style all its own. The movie seems to be a little underappreciated... oh well.

Still, nothing tops Dogville, which shook me, kicked me, shocked me, and utterly fascinated me. I can't believe somebody found it "forgettable." Love it or hate it, it is certainly a film that sticks with you. Some of the lines the narrator said literally plagued me with the chills (e.g. "nobody's going to sleep in this bed tonight..."). I couldn't shake the movie's effects for weeks.

All in all, it's been a great year for sequels and semi-sequels (KBv2), as well as truly original and extraordinary works (see top 2 in particular).


PlatypusQuest

Thus far, top 5
Eternal Sunshine
Kill Bill 2
Broken Wings
Tokyo Godfathers
Touching the Void

I do have to admit, although I hate to..I liked Spiderman 2.

Definateley Eternal Sunshine and Kill Bill v.2!