The Top Ten Films of 2011

Oh hi there.

Guess who's back? He's back again, to talk about some of the better films of the year prior. But, first thing's first... this last year was a pain in the arse. This is not my most satisfying list. Hey f#&k you fella, you think it's easy?! Think about 2011, and what just kinda, plopped, into theaters. We (yet again) had a "Twilight" movie. Not a single non-franchise/sequel/prequel/comic movie cracked the top ten at the box office. Martin Lawrence afforded himself more blow (cocaine) with a third "Big Momma's House". "We Bought a Zoo" and "Zookeeper" existed. "The Green Hornet" and "Green Lantern" too. Oh, god, "The Dillema" happened.

..."Chipwrecked." Tell you what, I'll just quit 2011 while it's behind us.

BUT, at the end of each year, some good stuff comes out... or, rather, I make/have time to see movies worth seeing. And, by the sheer force of will, met with my still heated passion for the movies, I created a new Top Ten list (because a Top 11 is corny, predictable, and just too got damn hard at this point). I will share my brief thoughts, and some worthwhile clips. Also, there are some consistencies... meaning, I seemed to really dig nostalgia, film history, and the French in 2011.

So, for the Sixth Year running, it brings me pleasure to share with you the top ten films of 2011 (that I saw in theaters, because YOU KNOW I'd see "Shame" if I could for a fun time with Fassbender... what?).

10. Of the four comic book films in 2011, "Captain America: The First Avenger" was not only the most enjoyable and least messily assembled of the bunch, but it was a legitmitately entertaining and involving throw-back. A pastiche of (obviously) "Indiana Jones" and "Superman", the Cap had handsome sets, spiffy effects, nicely staged action and an affable, almost meditative lead in Chris Evans ("Fantastic Four") as the good Captain. His performance brought something to the performance that all the other comic flicks didn't - earnestness. Great escapist entertainment.

To catch a plane - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSvG2Gr4md8

9. This was one helluva literary adapation. With the assured hand of master director David Fincher ("Social Network"), handling the kind of dark, serious, genre matter he handles best, "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" had the tremendous luck of being the third iteration of a much lauded story... that was actually more exciting than prior adapations! "Dragon Tattoo" boasted stunning, sumptuous and controlled photography that helped frame this story perfectly. With a story like this, the devil's in the details, and that was a big thanks to Jordan Cronenweth ("Social Network"). All together frightening, sexy (really sexy), and fascinating. Thank god the sequel barely got greelit. I can never tire of Salander.

Credits can't be spoilers, right? - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcp9Ysi75f0

8. This is arguably a poor man's Alexander Payne film. But, more accureately, "Cedar Rapids" is a scathing, darkly hysterical look at middle America, what people will do to get ahead, and oddly enough, the weird ways we can find friends. Miguel Arteta's ("Youth in Revolt") black comedy was a Sundance hit, that could both make you bitter, and start smiling. Ed Helms ("The Hangover Pt. II") is perfectly cast as a mild-mannered insurance salesman and John C. Reilly ("Step Brothers") is in his element as a crass, over-active jackass, bringing the best cheap laughs we got in 2011.

What about the Tiger? - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJr-WMS91c0

7. "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory" was a powerful observation of the American legal system, religious hysteria, lost youth and innocence, and so much more. Perhaps you've heard of the West Memphis Three. I had not, prior to the documentary. Their story, what has happened, and how everything has played out since 1993... well, it's a lot of ground in this third doc, and it's truly riveting and infuriating stuff. The impact of this film is huge. My only regret is not seeing the first films, and knowing about the West Memphis Three sooner.

The lawyers. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqRyHfhP83g

6. It felt so great to see a film and feel like a grown-up. Intrigue. Convoluted, slow plotting. Involving stories and intrigue. Ooh, this was fun. "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" was a careful, precise spy film deserving of comparison to "Spy Who Came in From the Cold" or "Day of the Jackal". At surface level, this is a mundane spy film. But, in actually, this is a scary thriller about suspicious, squirrely men, looking to assert power and control in the most passive of ways. Gary Oldman ("The Professional") is aces as the iconic George Smiley, bringing a patient, stately grace to the film. You never know what guy's up to... You may not know where the story is going all the time, but you're more than happy to follow it.

Also, catching a plane... - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ouqe85vvTsw&feature=relmfu

5. Within, oh, about the first 30 seconds of "Midnight in Paris" I was swept away into the film's magic. Perhaps Woody's most enjoyable film in ten years, I'd argue that "Midnight in Paris" is among the mans' very best work. Clever, beautiful, and lead by a shockingly well-casted Owen Wilson ("Hall Pass"), "Midnight in Paris" is pure whimsy. With it's blend a romanticized Paris (sweet crackers, I want to go there) with a clever cast of 1920's Parisian icons (Ernest Hemingway, The Fitzgeralds, Man Ray, Salvadore Dali...), and assured Woody Allen sense of humor, "Paris" was great this past year.

I want to go to there. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVoDASJ27CQ

4. Now, here's where we get to the movies I really start to love. Specifically, films dealing with the French, nostalgia, and film history. Oh, look! The first film to embody all three! It only makes sense that Martin Scorsese delivered one of the greatest love letters to cinema, free of mush and sap. Also, while proving that 3D could be a thing of beauty (in the right hands, of course), and that there's still magic in theaters. Sure, it's also an adventure, a mystery, a tragedy and more.. but interestingly enough, this seems to be about Scorsese's long-term realtionship with the movies. We're lucky he was willing to let us in. "Hugo" is a big-time movie about about the movies, through the eyes of a lonely little boy. "Hugo" makes you fall in love with the movies, really.

What's in the box? - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CX35WGxTQrQ&feature=related

3. A last minute addition, brimming with nostalgia, for the movies... by Parisians! "The Artist" was the year's shocking crowd-pleaser, offering laughs, tears and all that good cliched stuff you hate to admit you want in a movie. And it was silent! Ha! Jean Dujardin gives the best performance of 2011, as George Valentin, a silent-era super star, who can't come to terms with the sea change coming with films: sound. Dujardin commands with a dapper, smooth and incredibly nuanced performance, as the titular "Artist". It's a star-making, charismatic performance (that makes me want a pencil mustache...), and Dujardin doesn't really need words to do it. All at once heart-breaking and heart-felt, "Artist" is another kind of letter for a bygone era. Makes you really wanna watch some "Vertigo", William Powell and Douglas Fairbanks films.

Nice stems. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvUQuabFoEQ&feature=relmfu

2. To hell with film school. This movies' got everything you need to know. Imagine a hybrid of "Chinatown", the films of Sergio Leone, Don Knotts, Clint Eastwood, thrown into a Looney Tunes-brand blender. "Rango" was a postmodern classic, that was thoroughly enjoyable, unique, and above all, extremely entertaining and fun. Gore Verbinski (those damned "Pirates" movies) was let loose and gets down with his inner Chuck Jones- style excitement for the movies. "Rango" was the most fun you could have at the movies in 2011, because the film itself loved the movies. Crytal visual, gonzo music, great voice casting and more were only cherries on top of this ridiculously good cake.

Birdy num-num. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YooEU0AiFA

1. It would haunt me not to call this the best film of 2011. You ever feel like you're in the midst of watching a masterpiece? Something so powerful, moving, grand and memorable? No, this is not an easily susceptible, new-ager speaking. This is someone saying, if there was a more fascinating and momentous film in 2011, then I certainly didn't see it. "The Tree of Life" was Terrence Malick's ("The Thin Red Line") haunting ode to that amazingly pretentious thing we call life. You can't deny the man's epic ambition with this. "Life's" scope is seemingly limitless. And, the thing is... that's just my interpretation! I've argued about this a lot. Some feel like it's a glorified screen-saver at times, or a cheap drama at others. The thing is, in the end, "Life" makes so much sense. Life is just nothing in the great, grand scheme of it all, so appreciate it. There are inexplicable feelings and sensations that bring us together, and Malick boils those down to a series of just, perfect moments. Would you like to see the formation of the universe, or a child learning of anger for his father? The sights and sounds are exquisitely presented to come together in a way that wouldn't make sense any other way. "Tree of Life" is a moving experience, that will stay with you. You will feel it. It is deep, true, and the best film of 2011.

The beginning. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkUBECRoAwM&feature=related

_______________________

THANKS AGAIN, PASS IT ON, AND SEE YOU NEXT YEAR! - Blake