2011 was a year of giant ups and downs in the cinema. We received long stretches of films so bad that you just wanted scratch out your eyeballs and fill the sockets with silly putty just to stop the pain. Then there were large stretches of films that were, quite frankly, surprisingly brilliant.
There is one moment that I look for when compiling a list like this. It’s that split second in the theatre where you find yourself leaning in and think to yourself “This is not what I expected”. It was that spark, that moment of shock that I looked for. These were the movies that pushed me to the edge of my chair and pulled me closer to that screen.
As always this is an inevitably subjective list so please be kind. Without further ado and in no particular order... here goes:
127 Hours
Yes, yes, I know it’s that movie where the guy gets his arm chopped off. Director Danny Boyle fills this movie with so much imagination, humour and catharsis. When I reached the end I didn’t simply feel like I’d survived with James Franco... I felt positively triumphant. That’s a rare acheivement these days.
The Ides of March
It’s hardly a revelation that politics is a dirty game but this was skillfully directed, very well acted, smartly scripted with great twists and a sly sense of humour. I’m starting to think that George Clooney might be a better director than he is an actor.
Super 8
A blast from the past in so many ways. Super 8 was the sort of film that we haven’t seen since, well, we were kids. With lashings of Goonies and E.T the plot of Super 8 had genuine mystique. The cast had charisma. It was a thriller humour, awe, fear and heartbreak in spades.
Black Swan
Far more divisive with audiences than it was with film critics (same goes for Drive) I loved the mystery, the brutality and the unashamed melodramatic art-wank of it all. So sue me.
We Need to Talk about Kevin
The less you know about this film the better. It is a seductive, mysterious, almost tactile experience that unfolds before you (to your utter horror). Kevin also happened to be one of the blackest comedies of the year with some diabolical slapstick scenes.
Red State
Kevin Smith. What can I say? The man knows how to make a comeback.... and he also knows how to write a rant. Which, of course, what this film was. A terrifying, funny and occasionally charming rant on religious cults, government and more. Red State defied so many of the rules of storytelling but it would be hard to argue that it wasn’t compelling.
Moneyball
Brad Pitt’s performance as a failure-plagued baseball manager is magnetic. Not bad for a movie that is essentially about statistics, management theory and failure.
Crazy Stupid Love
THIS. IS. HOW. YOU. DO. AN. ENSEMBLE. ROMANTIC. COMEDY. Yes, it had a few cheesy bits in there but it also had more than enough moments of instantly recognisable brutal honesty that pushed far beyond what other Hollywood rom coms were offering. It also had Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone (Still my number one dream celebrity sex tape pairing)
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
It was about an hour into the running time when I, appalled at the actions of the human characters, was ready to cede control of our planet to the Apes for how badly we had treated them. This movie defies all the odds to become a compassionate, compelling, surprising take on humanity told through the eyes of a chimp named Caesar.
Pom Wonderful Presents The Greatest Movie Ever Sold
Fabulously meta documentary about product integration in movies.
Honourable mentions:
Drive, Catfish, Submarine, The Help, Attack the Block, True Grit, Hanna, Warrior, Oranges and Sunshine, X-Men First Class, and Source Code (except for the last 10 minutes...seriously, that movie had a perfectly good ending. Why did they fuck it up?!)
Missed: Senna, The Guard, Incendies, Melancholia
Worst:
Just Go With It, The Green Lantern, Priest, Battle: Los Angeles, How Do You Know, New Years Eve, Zookeeper.... the list goes on.
Alright... your turn
Missed: Senna, The Guard, Incendies, Melancholia
Worst:
Just Go With It, The Green Lantern, Priest, Battle: Los Angeles, How Do You Know, New Years Eve, Zookeeper.... the list goes on.
Alright... your turn
