The year 2009 saw the release of many films. Seven made the
top 50 list of highest-grossing films. Also in 2009, the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motio ...
announced that as of that year, their Best Picture category would consist of ten nominees, rather than five (the first time since the 1943 awards).
Evaluation of the year
Film critic
Philip French
Philip Neville French Order of the British Empire, OBE (28 August 1933 – 27 October 2015) was an English film critic and radio producer. French began his career in journalism in the late 1950s, before eventually becoming a BBC Radio prod ...
of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' said that 2009 "began with the usual flurry of serious major movies given late December screenings in Los Angeles to qualify for the Oscars. They're now forgotten or vaguely regarded as semi-classics: ''
The Reader
''The Reader'' (german: Der Vorleser) is a novel by German law professor and judge Bernhard Schlink, published in Germany in 1995 and in the United States in 1997. The story is a parable, dealing with the difficulties post-war German generations ...
'', ''
Che'', ''
Slumdog Millionaire
''Slumdog Millionaire'' is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel '' Q & A'' (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Patel ...
'', ''
Frost/Nixon'', ''
Revolutionary Road'', ''
The Wrestler The Wrestler may refer to:
* ''The Wrestler'' (1974 film), an American film directed by James A. Westman
* ''The Wrestler'' (2008 film), an American film directed by Darren Aronofsky
* "The Wrestler" (song), a song from the 2008 film written and ...
'', ''
Gran Torino
''Gran Torino'' is a 2008 American drama film directed and produced by Clint Eastwood, who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Christopher Carley, Bee Vang, and Ahney Her. This was Eastwood's first starring role since 2004's ''Million D ...
'', ''
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button''. It soon became apparent that horror movies would be the dominant genre once again, with vampires the pre-eminent sub-species, the most profitable inevitably being ''
New Moon
In astronomy, the new moon is the first lunar phase, when the Moon and Sun have the same ecliptic longitude. At this phase, the lunar disk is not visible to the naked eye, except when it is silhouetted against the Sun during a solar eclipse.
...
'', the latest in
Stephenie Meyer
Stephenie Meyer (; née Morgan; born December 24, 1973) is an American novelist and film producer. She is best known for writing the vampire literature, vampire romance series ''Twilight (novel series), Twilight'', which has sold over 100 mill ...
's ''
Twilight
Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this il ...
'' saga, the best the subtle Swedish ''
Let the Right One In'' and the worst the British horror spoof ''
Lesbian Vampire Killers
''Lesbian Vampire Killers'' is a 2009 British comedy horror film directed by Phil Claydon and written by Stewart Williams and Paul Hupfield. The film stars James Corden and
Mathew Horne, with MyAnna Buring, Vera Filatova, Silvia Colloca and ...
''. Documentaries continued to flourish, introducing us to fascinating new worlds: Afghan TV talent shows (''
Afghan Star
''Afghan Star'' is a reality television show competition that searches for the most talented singers across Afghanistan. The program broadcasts on the TOLO channel. ''Afghan Star'' premiered in 2005, four years after the fall of the Taliban, w ...
''), Australian exploitation cinema (''
Not Quite Hollywood
''Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation!'' is a 2008 Australian documentary film about the Australian New Wave of 1970s and 1980s low-budget cinema. The film was written and directed by Mark Hartley, who interviewed over e ...
''), haute couture (''
The September Issue
''The September Issue'' is a 2009 American documentary film directed by R.J. Cutler about the behind-the-scenes drama that follows editor-in-head Anna Wintour and her staff during the production of the September 2007 issue of American ''Vogue'' ma ...
''). Animation thrived, the 3-D comeback threatened to become permanent rather than a gimmick, and the two were conjoined in a dozen 3-D animated features, the finest being
Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californi ...
's ''
Up''. Remakes and sequels abounded, none of any merit. The same went for films based on comic strips and graphic novels. British cinema generally bubbled in the doldrums. The well-acted ''
Fish Tank
An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...
'' was overrated, as was the dull costume drama ''
The Young Victoria
''The Young Victoria'' is a 2009 British period drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Julian Fellowes, based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Produced by ...
''. The best films by native directors were fuelled by our obsession with soccer (
Ken Loach
Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a British film director and screenwriter. His socially critical directing style and socialist ideals are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty (''Poor Cow'', 1967), homelessne ...
's ''
Looking for Eric
''Looking for Eric'' is a 2009 British-French film about the escape from the trials of modern life that football and its heroes can bring for its fans. It was written by screenwriter Paul Laverty and directed by the English director Ken Loach. T ...
'' and
Tom Hooper
Thomas George Hooper (born 5 October 1972)''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005''. 5d: 2485. is a British-Australian filmmaker.
Hooper began making short films as a teenager and had his first professional short, ...
's ''
The Damned United
''The Damned United'' is a 2009 British sports drama film directed by Tom Hooper and adapted by Peter Morgan from David Peace's bestselling 2006 novel ''The Damned Utd'' – a largely fictional book based on the author's interpretation of Bria ...
'') or directed by foreigners (New Zealander
Jane Campion
Dame Elizabeth Jane Campion (born 30 April 1954) is a New Zealand filmmaker. She is best known for writing and directing the critically acclaimed films ''The Piano'' (1993) and '' The Power of the Dog'' (2021), for which she has received a tot ...
's ''
Bright Star'', and two films by Danes:
Nicholas Winding Refn
Nicolas Winding Refn (; born 29 September 1970), also known as Jang, is a Danish film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is known for his collaborations with Mads Mikkelsen, Tom Hardy and Ryan Gosling.
He gained great success early in h ...
's ''
Bronson'' and
Lone Scherfig
Lone Scherfig (; born 2 May 1959) is a Denmark, Danish film director and screenwriter who has been involved with the Dogme 95 film movement and who has been widely critically acclaimed for several of her movies, including the Oscar-nominated film ...
's ''
An Education
''An Education'' is a 2009 coming-of-age drama film based on a memoir of the same name by British journalist Lynn Barber. The film was directed by Lone Scherfig from a screenplay by Nick Hornby. It stars Carey Mulligan as Jenny, a bright school ...
''). The most original British film was Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor's low-key, low-budget ''Helen'', a formally innovative look at provincial life. 2009 was a mostly undistinguished year for Hollywood, with indifferent films from
Woody Allen
Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...
(''
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
''Vicky Cristina Barcelona'' is a 2008 romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. The film stars Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz, Rebecca Hall and Scarlett Johansson in lead roles. The plot centers on two American women, Vick ...
''),
Michael Mann
Michael Kenneth Mann (born February 5, 1943) is an American director, screenwriter, and producer of film and television who is best known for his distinctive style of crime drama. His most acclaimed works include the films ''Thief'' (1981), ' ...
(''
Public Enemies'') and others, and deadly blockbusters such as ''
Angels & Demons
''Angels & Demons'' is a 2000 bestselling mystery- thriller novel written by American author Dan Brown and published by Pocket Books and then by Corgi Books. The novel introduces the character Robert Langdon, who recurs as the protagonist of B ...
'' and ''
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
''.
The Coen brothers
Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...
, however, were on form, examining their midwestern Jewish roots in ''
A Serious Man
''A Serious Man'' is a 2009 American black comedy-drama film written, produced, edited and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Set in 1967, the film stars Michael Stuhlbarg as a Minnesota Jewish man whose life crumbles both professionally and pe ...
'', and
Kathryn Bigelow
Kathryn Ann Bigelow (; born November 27, 1951) is an American filmmaker. Covering a wide range of genres, her films include ''Near Dark'' (1987), ''Point Break'' (1991), '' Strange Days'' (1995), '' K-19: The Widowmaker'' (2002), ''The Hurt Locke ...
's ''
The Hurt Locker
''The Hurt Locker'' is a 2008 American war thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal. It stars Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, and Guy Pearce. The film follo ...
'' was the best film yet about Iraq. From Europe we had several striking revisionist accounts of violent resistance to Nazi occupation in the second world war: ''
Flammen & Citronen
''Flame & Citron'' ( da, Flammen & Citronen) is a 2008 historical drama film co-written and directed by the Danish director Ole Christian Madsen. The film, a fictionalized account based on historical events, stars Thure Lindhardt and Mads Mikkelse ...
'' (Denmark), ''
Max Manus: Man of War'' (Norway) and ''
The Army of Crime
''The Army of Crime'' (french: L'Armée du crime) is a 2009 French drama-war film directed by Robert Guédiguian and based on a story by Serge Le Péron, who is also one of three credited for the screenplay. It received a wide release in France o ...
'' (France). But they were drowned in the tsunami of
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...
's lunatic second world war fantasy ''
Inglourious Basterds
''Inglourious Basterds'' is a 2009 war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, starring Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Michael Fassbender, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Daniel Brühl, Til Schweiger and Mélanie Laurent. The film tells an alter ...
''. The most likable European picture was the Italian ''
Mid-August Lunch
''Mid-August Lunch'' (originally released as ''Pranzo di ferragosto'') is a 2008 Italian comedy-drama and the directorial debut of Italian actor and screenwriter Gianni Di Gregorio. It was produced by Italian writer-director Matteo Garrone wh ...
'', the directorial debut of 60-year-old
Gianni Di Gregorio
Gianni Di Gregorio (born 19 February 1949) is an Italian director, screenwriter and actor.
Life and career
Born in Rome, Di Gregorio trained as a stage actor and director in the Drama School of Alessandro Fersen. He started his professional ca ...
(screenwriter on ''
Gomorrah''), and the three most memorably argumentative and provocative were
Paolo Sorrentino
Paolo Sorrentino (; born 31 May 1970) is an Italian film director, screenwriter, and writer. His 2013 film ''The Great Beauty'' won the Academy Awards, Academy Award, the Golden Globe Awards, Golden Globe, and the British Academy of Film and Te ...
's ''
Il Divo
Il Divo (; ) are a multi-national classical crossover vocal group. The male quartet, which originated in the United Kingdom in December 2003, consists of tenors Urs Bühler, David Miller, and Sébastien Izambard. It also included baritone ...
'',
Lars von Trier
Lars von Trier (''né'' Trier; 30 April 1956) is a Danish filmmaker, actor, and lyricist. Having garnered a reputation as a highly ambitious, polarizing filmmaker, he has been the subject of several controversies: Cannes, in addition to nominat ...
's ''
Antichrist
In Christian eschatology, the Antichrist refers to people prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus Christ and substitute themselves in Christ's place before the Second Coming. The term Antichrist (including one plural form) 1 John ; . 2 John . ...
'' and
Michael Haneke
Michael Haneke (; born 23 March 1942) is an Austrian film director and screenwriter. His work often examines social issues and depicts the feelings of estrangement experienced by individuals in modern society. Haneke has made films in French, G ...
's ''
The White Ribbon
''The White Ribbon'' (german: Das weiße Band) is a 2009 German-language drama film, written and directed by Michael Haneke. Released in black-and-white, the film offers a dark depiction of society and family in a northern German village just be ...
''. The performances I most enjoyed were impersonations:
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...
's
Julia Child
Julia Carolyn Child (née McWilliams; August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American cooking teacher, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, '' ...
(''
Julie & Julia
''Julie & Julia'' is a 2009 American biographical comedy-drama film written and directed by Nora Ephron starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci, and Chris Messina. The film contrasts the life of chef Julia Child in the early years of her ...
'') and
Christian McKay
Christian Stuart McKay (born 30 December 1973) is an English stage and screen actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Orson Welles in the 2008 film ''Me and Orson Welles'', for which he was nominated for over two dozen awards includi ...
's
Orson in ''
Me and Orson Welles
''Me and Orson Welles'' is a 2008 period drama film directed by Richard Linklater and starring Zac Efron, Christian McKay, and Claire Danes. Based on Robert Kaplow's novel of the same name, the story, set in 1937 New York, tells of a teenager hir ...
''."
Highest-grossing films
The top 10 films released in 2009 by worldwide gross are as follows:
''Avatar'' surpassed ''
Titanic
RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...
'' as the highest-grossing film of all time on January 25, 2010. ''Avatar'' then became the first film to earn more than $2 billion at the box office on January 31, 2010. ''Avatar'' was surpassed by ''
Avengers: Endgame'' as the highest-grossing film of all time on July 21, 2019. Due to a re-release, ''Avatar'' retook the title from ''Endgame'' on March 13, 2021.
Events
Awards
2009 films
The list of films released in 2009, arranged by country, are as follows:
*
American films
*
Argentine films
This is an index to pages listing Argentine films ordered by year of release. For an A-Z list, see :Argentine films.
1897-1929
* List of Argentine films before 1930
1930s
*List of Argentine films of 1930
* List of Argentine films of 1931
* List ...
*
Australian films
The cinema of Australia had its beginnings with the 1906 production of ''The Story of the Kelly Gang'', arguably the world's first feature film. Since then, Australian crews have produced many films, a number of which have received internati ...
*
Bengali films
*
Bollywood films
*
Brazilian films
Brazilian commonly refers to:
* Something of, from or relating to Brazil
* Brazilian Portuguese, the dialect of the Portuguese language used mostly in Brazil
* Brazilians, the people (citizens) of Brazil, or of Brazilian descent
Brazilian may also ...
*
British films
The United Kingdom has had a significant film industry for over a century. While film production reached an all-time high in 1936, the "golden age" of British cinema is usually thought to have occurred in the 1940s, during which the directors D ...
*
French films
This is a list of films produced in the French cinema, ordered by year and decade of release on separate pages.
Before 1910
*List of French films before 1910
1910s
* List of French films of 1910
* List of French films of 1911
* List of Fren ...
*
Hong Kong films
The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of po ...
*
Italian films
*
Japanese films
The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2021, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. In 2011 Japan produced 411 feature films that e ...
*
Mexican films
*
Malayalam films
Malayalam cinema is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ''Elippathayam' ...
*
Pakistani films
Cinema of Pakistan, popularly known as Lollywood ( ur, ), refers to the film industry, filmmaking industry in Pakistan. Pakistan is home to several film studios centres, primarily located in its three largest cities – Karachi, Lahore, and ...
*
Russian films
A list of the most notable films produced in the Cinema of Russia. Russia, since beginning to produce films in the late 1890s, has experienced three political regimes; the Russian Empire, Pre-1917; the Soviet Union, 1917–1991; and the Russian Fe ...
*
South Korean films
*
Spanish films
*
Tamil films
Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywo ...
*
Telugu films
Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, Hy ...
Births
*January 23 -
Winslow Fegley
Winslow Burke Fegley (born January 23, 2009) is an American child actor. He has starred in the films '' Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made'' (2020), ''Nightbooks'', '' 8-Bit Christmas'' (both 2021), and '' Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile'' (2022).
Life a ...
, American actor
*January 26 -
YaYa Gosselin
Felisita Leon "YaYa" Gosselin (born January 26, 2009) is an American actress. She began her career modelling for commercials and made her acting debut in ''After Omelas'' (2017). Following this, she made minor appearances in ''Peppermint (2018 ...
, American actress
*April 15 -
Julia Butters
Julia Butters (born April 15, 2009) is an American teenage actress. She received critical acclaim for her role as Trudi Fraser in Quentin Tarantino's '' Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'' and as Reggie Fabelman in Steven Spielberg's '' The Fabelman ...
, American actress
*May 18 -
Hala Finley, American actress
*June 23 -
Xia Vigor
Xiamara Sophia "Xia" Bernardo Vigor (born 23 June 2009) is a British-Filipino child actress and TV host in the Philippines. She was the first grand winner of It's Showtime (Philippine TV program), It's Showtime's segment, ''Mini Me 2'' as mini ...
, British-Filipino actress
Deaths
Film Debuts
*
Gal Gadot
Gal Gadot-Varsano ( he, גל גדות ; born 30 April 1985) is an Israeli actress and model. At age 18, she was crowned Miss Israel 2004. She then served in the Israel Defense Forces for two years as a combat fitness instructor, whereafter sh ...
– ''
Fast & Furious
''Fast & Furious'' (also known as ''The Fast and the Furious'') is a media franchise centered on a series of action films that are largely concerned with street racing, heists, spies, and family. The franchise also includes short films, a t ...
''
*
Chris Hemsworth
Christopher Hemsworth (born 11 August 1983) is an Australian actor. He rose to prominence playing Kim Hyde in the Australian television series ''Home and Away'' (2004–2007) before beginning a film career in Hollywood. In the Marvel Cinemat ...
– ''
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
''
*
Gabby Sidibe – ''
Precious''
References
External links
2009 release schedule at Box Office Mojo
{{DEFAULTSORT:2009 In Film
Film by year