ROTTEN TOMATOES: 10th Annual Golden Tomatoes

10th Annual Golden Tomatoes

January 14, 2009

Welcome to RT's 2008 Golden Tomato Awards, in which we honor the best-reviewed movies of the year. From action-packed blockbusters to thought-provoking documentaries, we've got the movies that won the critics' hearts in 2008 -- and probably inspired you as well.

In 2008, The Dark Knight reigned critically and commercially, thanks to Christopher Nolan's able direction and an outstanding performance from the late Heath Ledger as the diabolical Joker. Not to be outdone, Pixar's WALL-E proved that dystopian sci-fi could be the basis for delightful family fare. In indieland, Mickey Rourke proved that rumors of his career demise were greatly exaggerated, winning plaudits for his powerful turn in The Wrestler. And Man on Wire, a documentary about a mad plot to walk on a tightrope spanning the Twin Towers, found itself with plenty of impressed onlookers. Which of these films -- along with the rest of the pundits' favorites from 2008 -- will go home with our coveted Golden Tomato Award? Read on to find out!

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(1-20 of 58 posts) | Reply

Henry Ham writes:
on Jan 13 2009 07:59 PM

Glad to see bbutton get some love.

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jokerboy1991 writes:
on Jan 13 2009 10:18 PM

Nice list!
Also my top 10 this year (haven't seen Waltz With Bashir, Man on Wire, and Che yet though)
1-The Wrestler (A)
2-Slumdog Millionare (10/10)
3-Benjamin Button (10/10)
4-Grand Torino (9/10)
5-The Dark Knight (9/10)
6-Wall-e (9/10)
7-In Bruges (9/10)
8-Doubt (9/10)
9-Frost/Nixon (9/10)
10--Revolutionary Road (9/10)
My honorable mentions of the year- Milk (9/10), Hellboy 2 (8.75/10), Burn After Reading (8.5), Iron Man (8.5/10), Vicky Christina and Barcelona (8.5/10), Synecdoche New York (8.5/10), Cloverfield (8/10), Role Models (7.5/10), Valkyrie (7/10), Australia (7/10), Speed Racer (7/10)- I also haven't seen Zack and Mirri Yet (ARG! Sorry Kevin Smith!), maybe a blind buy for the first time though. Well thats my 2 cents.

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Detrs writes:
on Jan 13 2009 10:22 PM

Very thorough.

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Domiku U. writes:
on Jan 13 2009 10:38 PM

Pretty good list. I don't see Tropic Thunder though?!

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The One Coz writes:
on Jan 13 2009 10:44 PM

'The Dark Knight', 'Iron Man' and 'Hellboy II: The Golden Army' all in the top 5 of wide released films in 2008 according to the tomatometer - Awesome.

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Lang S. writes:
on Jan 13 2009 10:51 PM

I think the list is reasonable and Slumdog Millionare worth that price.

Friends

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Ethan T writes:
on Jan 13 2009 11:17 PM

I was really disappointed with Hellboy II, and the obvious exclusion of Speed Racer was no surprise but still disappointing.

Let's not forget the classics that came out last year:

- Speed Racer
- Before the Devil Knows Your Dead
- 3:10 to Yuma
- Tropic Thunder
- Pineapple Express

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Alex Vo writes:
on Jan 14 2009 12:04 AM

Very strange year! All the wide release releases were from during the blockbuster/summer season. The limited release winners are largely absent of Oscar bait that have dominated recent years; critics preferred really oddball stuff (Guy Maddin on the list! Amazing!) and documentaries.

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Zeiram D. writes:
on Jan 14 2009 01:43 AM

I don't know why everyone was giving Baz Lurhman's "Australia" such a hard time. It doesn't deserve all the criticism it's been getting. For those of you who wish to visit my defending articles about "Australia" on Roger Ebert's movie blog, just visit the following links and type in my username on your web browser's "find" ("Ctrl F" or "Edit") feature. I'm NOT plugging myself, I just don't have room to describe the things I feel about that particular film. Here's an excerpt from one of those blog entries found at:

"http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2008/11/death_to_film_critics_long_liv.html#comments" (1st Link)

for the other one visit: "http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2009/01/gossips_as_birds_of_prey.html#comments" (2nd Link)

the following are excepts from both and film critic Roger Ebert's response. I hope he doesn't get offended that I used his quotes.

-"...Criticism has ruined people's ability to truly questions things. It has replaced those questions with an illusion of authority... In plain terms, there is no amount of information or intellect which can hope to identify or pinpoint these elements which makes a film good or bad. By simply critiquing the intended vision of the artists we deny ourselves the exploration of open ended observation..." (1st Link)

"Wow. You sent me back for another look at my own review. I think I got the movie about right." -Roger Ebert*

-"Lurhman is a painter, his canvas is the dramatic space; and he is playing both the atmosphere and the audience like a piano. The results are exhilarating. For example: recall that brilliant scene at the party when everyone is dancing in the rain. Each character at that moment exists in a space in time, which seeks to illuminate their emotional transformation."
(2nd Link)

-"Well, you're right, right, and right again. But now I'm more depressed than when I wrote my original entry." -Roger Ebert

Again. Not plugging my articles, just wanted to share my thoughts on Australia.

Other great movies of the year deserving of praise. The Wrestler, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire, The Dark Knight and Wall-E.

Benjamin Button is drastically over-rated. Technically, amazing. Sure. But as a film, not that great. Get over yourself people.

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dgcritic writes:
on Jan 14 2009 06:35 AM

Changeling
Wall-E
Gran Torino
The Wrestler
Slumdog Millionaire
Revolutionary Road
The Dark Knight
Benjamin Button

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Poor_Frisco writes:
on Jan 14 2009 09:06 AM

4 films at 0% wow

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rle4lunch writes:
on Jan 14 2009 10:18 AM

Speed Racer doesn't deserve anything other than maybe having to sleep in the wet spot in bed. That movie was awful. The ONLY redeeming quality of that movie is how it looks in BluRay in HD. that's.it.

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Bigbrother writes:
on Jan 14 2009 11:25 AM

I had the fortune to actually watch Speedracer in two parts. I watched the first half and told everyone I saw that it was horrible, then I watched the second half and thought it actually came together pretty well as an action piece. The last race actually sent a bit of a chill up my spine, so I kinda see where both parties are coming from. I actually enjoyed it much more the second time through knowing that the cringe worthy beginning was leading somewhere.

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Mr. Dufresne writes:
on Jan 14 2009 12:22 PM

Definitely agree with the #1 spot. WALL-E is by far my favorite movie from last year (though I didn't see every single movie like some did). Sure, The Dark Knight was good, but it doesn't have quite the same timeless lasting quality that WALL-E has (for example, I get much more worn out watching TDK multiple times than I do watching WALL-E multiple times).

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ChronoSpark writes:
on Jan 14 2009 12:56 PM

Alas, I was not able to see many, many films in 2008, thanks to my work on the Obama campaign taking up all my time, and a complete lack of funds. But of the ones I did see, and have been watching since, I have a few films that are my favorites of 2008. It's not a complete list. I still have yet to see things like Revolutionary Road and Milk, but...

In no particular order, some of my favorite films of 2008:
The Wrestler
Slumdog Millionaire
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
WALL-E
Frost/Nixon
Topic Thunder

I also really enjoyed Doubt, and Hellboy II, though I don't think they would be on a hypothetical top 10 list. Honestly, although it's fun to see others' "Top 10" lists, I kind of dislike the idea of _numerically_ listing the "Best Films of the Year".

Films I still really want to see:
Milk
Rachel Getting Married
Synecdoche, New York
Happy-Go-Lucky
Waltz With Bashir
Let The Right One In
The Visitor
Frozen River
Pineapple Express

I'm sure there are certain movies that I'm forgetting. I'll eventually get around to seeing them all, though.

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Landon B. writes:
on Jan 14 2009 12:59 PM

The Scorsese / Rolling Stones concert film 'Shine a Light' should've got a mention somewhere: it scored 86%, but didn't seem to fit into 'wide release' or 'musical' where it would've been in the top 10.

Hellboy II is the most overrated movie of the year. Even though I hated everything about it, I have to begrudgingly admit the special effects had a lot of effort put into them, but the dialogue was HORRIBLE. I haven't talked to a single person who actually liked that film, but there it is at 88%??

I haven't seen 'Speed Racer', but it seems the world is finally catching on to what I've known since the first Matrix: the Wachowski Bros suck!

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steelneil writes:
on Jan 14 2009 02:34 PM

Ok seriously people, where the hell is Waltz with Bashir? Beautifully animated, with a superb score and depicting war in an new and powerful manner, this film should be in every film fan's top 10 of the year!

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Zippedychick writes:
on Jan 14 2009 03:13 PM

I love Let the Right One In, amazing.
In Bruges and Slumdog Millionaire were my other favorites

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spitting into the wind writes:
on Jan 14 2009 04:08 PM

I have to say I much prefer last years format.
This is just the same movies listed over and over again.
You used to be able to look at the top 50 movies list and see films you had never even heard of, hunt them down and discover a hidden gem.

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lister20 writes:
on Jan 14 2009 05:36 PM

It really wasn't a good year for sci-fi if your list is any indication. And, just curious, what is WALL-E if not sci-fi? It sure beats the crap out of Hell Boy II any day of the week.

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