If Only

...there were more hours in a day. Or more days in a year. Or fewer movies in a year. What am I babbling about? As 2009 presses on, the list of movies I've missed while engaging in other work so as to keep the bills under control is steadily growing. Unlike most critics, I'm only allotted space for one full review per week, with a few additional web-based critiques and juicy compilation pieces thrown in. But, on average, there are about seven films released each week, which, if you do the math, means quite a few have slipped through the cracks. I try to see as many additional titles as I can in my leisure, but, while also attempting to maintain a fulfilling life outside of the cinema, I'm usually no match for the frequency in which modern flicks are churned out.

This week, I'll be reviewing "District 9," which looks outstanding. However, since going to the movies recreationally has grown exorbitantly expensive, that also means I'll likely be missing Hayao Miyazaki's "Ponyo," also opening Friday (I will, of course, at the very least, catch it on DVD, but by that time the relevance, naturally, will have diminished somewhat). I find it personally shameful that I've not yet caught Kathryn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker," the press screening for which I was unable to attend and the venues for which are currently limited. The fact that I might not view this highly lauded picture on the big screen is not something I take lightly. And, hell, I wouldn't even mind sitting through a showing of "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra." After all, there's always room for a little Stephen Sommers bashing.

But, alas, I simply don't have the time. Film writing, though without question my number one professional passion, is not my official full-time job. Sadly, I do not have the resources or the outlets to view and review every release that comes down the pike. So, I suppose this is a good time to throw out an open plea: Reader, if you are affiliated with an entertainment publication and enjoy what you see here, give me a shout. I'd be happy to share my insights and passions with your readership. In the meantime, since I'm such a big fan of lists anyway, here are the 2009 films that have thus far eluded me, and that I simply can't wait to watch. That is, when I find the time.

-The Class (now on DVD!)

-Duplicity (arriving on DVD soon!)

-Moon

-The Girlfriend Experience

-Rudo y Cursi

-Departures

-Outrage

-Anvil! The Story of Anvil

-Sugar

-Adam

-Paper Heart
-The Cove

-Tetro

-The Beaches of Agnes

-Cold Souls

...and more, of course.