Movies for 2011, Part #1.
OK, this year I'm not just going to list films, I'm going to endeavour to at least briefly review each of them and give them a score. The scores are for people without enough time to read three sentences: remember, in the tradition of Edge (the greatest magazine on the planet), an average score is 5/10. A really good film would be 7/10. A masterful one 9/10. A movie rated 10/10 would be among the greatest movies ever made.
1 January
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
There are a few shaky moments, and an overriding desire by the filmmakers to be more like Tolkien and less like Lewis, but overall I still really dig The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It's got a solid, appealing cast, particularly James MacAvoy as Mr Tumnus and Tilda Swinton as the White Witch. Conversely, William Moseley (Peter) is oddly dreadful. (6/10)
2 January
Dave
This Ivan Reitman comedy hits a lot of appealing notes for me. First of all, it has a cast full of actors I always tend to enjoy: Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Dunn, Ving Rhames and Frank Langella. Secondly, it's got a nice light-hearted screenplay that's tight, effective and uncomplicated. Finally, it's based around the US Presidency, which is almost always a guarantee of making an interesting story. (7/10)
2 January
Close to Home
This is an exceptional low-budget drama from Israel, which follows two 18 year-old women as they undertake conscripted work for Jerusalem's border security. It has a very political edge lurking around the background (what film about Israel and Palestine could avoid it?), but at its heart this is a stunningly well-written and acted film about realistic women in a profoundly affecting environment. (8/10)
3 January
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
This was the second time I had watched Prince Caspian, and while I enjoyed it considerably more the second time than the first, it remains a bizarre string of poor choices and creative mistakes. Check out the oddly misplaced and boring castle battle, or the momentary re-appearance by Tilda Swinton - both promise so much and deliver so little. (5/10)
4 January
Jurassic Park
This is an exceptional example of carefully lining up a massive row of dominos for an hour, and then flicking the first one over at the 60 minute mark. It is a near-faultless action blockbuster, with inventive action sequences, appealing characters and brilliant visual effects. Thanks to a clever combination of animatronic puppets and CGI, the visual effects of this movie are still yet to date that much. Plus it has Bob Peck in it, who - if he were still alive today - would be about as famous to moviegoers and acclaimed by critics as Anthony Hopkins or Ian McKellen. (9/10)
5 January
Shaun of the Dead
Every time I watch this combination of Romero-style zombie action, parody of the same, and British romantic comedy, I am surprised all over again at how remarkably effective it all is. I particularly love how, despite its ridiculous premise and mostly ridiculous tone, it still finds moments of genuine emotion and confronting horror. (8/10)
6 January
Tangled
Walt Disney Animation's 50th feature-length animation has a big legacy to live up to, and I was overjoyed to find that it more than matches most of its predecessors. A smart script is combined with good voice acting, great characters and the best CGI interpretation of tradional cel-animated character design and movement I have ever seen. This is the best childrens film I have seen since... well, since The Princess and the Frog, actually. (9/10)
7 January
Withnail & I
Quite simply one of the most quotable movies ever written, combined with career-best performances from Richard E. Grant, Paul McGann and Richard Griffiths. If you have never seen this movie, you should track it down as soon as humanly possible, correct your unintentionally embarrassing oversight, and I shall prepare myself to forgive you. (10/10)
8 January
Morning Glory
All of the ingredients of this film are exceptional, except for the screenplay. Sadly this drags the whole affair down beneath mediocrity and into that awful region where the film becomes kind of boring. Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford are great. Sadly the screenplay doesn't seem to know it wants the story to be about, and so their performances suffer. Diane Keaton has it even worse. Either half her material was left on the cutting room floor, or she really isn't being too choosy with her material any more. (4/10)
8 January
Knight and Day
Less effective the second-time around, but still enjoyable. Part of the appeal the first time around was uncertainty over a particular character's allegiances. Once those allegiances are known, the movie suddenly becomes a whole lot less complicated and accordingly less intriguing. (6/10)
14 January
Conan the Destroyer
More fun that Conan the Barbarian, but an inferior film at the same time. It is what it is: a fairly silly fantasy B-movie that does what you'd expect it to do. That's never a bad thing. This was Grace Jones' first big onscreen role, and I do enjoy watching her wide-eyed glares and bizarre scenery-chewing antics. (5/10)
15 January
Jaws
Quite simply one of the absolute best motion pictures ever made. Tight, effective, restrained, frightening, funny, and just about every other adjective and accolade I could write. No matter how many times I see it, it never gets boring. At its centre, Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw deliver wonderful performances in beautifully-written characters. Shaw's delivery of Quint's Indianapolis speech is one of the best monologues in the history of cinema. (10/10)
1 January
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
There are a few shaky moments, and an overriding desire by the filmmakers to be more like Tolkien and less like Lewis, but overall I still really dig The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It's got a solid, appealing cast, particularly James MacAvoy as Mr Tumnus and Tilda Swinton as the White Witch. Conversely, William Moseley (Peter) is oddly dreadful. (6/10)
2 January
Dave
This Ivan Reitman comedy hits a lot of appealing notes for me. First of all, it has a cast full of actors I always tend to enjoy: Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Dunn, Ving Rhames and Frank Langella. Secondly, it's got a nice light-hearted screenplay that's tight, effective and uncomplicated. Finally, it's based around the US Presidency, which is almost always a guarantee of making an interesting story. (7/10)
2 January
Close to Home
This is an exceptional low-budget drama from Israel, which follows two 18 year-old women as they undertake conscripted work for Jerusalem's border security. It has a very political edge lurking around the background (what film about Israel and Palestine could avoid it?), but at its heart this is a stunningly well-written and acted film about realistic women in a profoundly affecting environment. (8/10)
3 January
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
This was the second time I had watched Prince Caspian, and while I enjoyed it considerably more the second time than the first, it remains a bizarre string of poor choices and creative mistakes. Check out the oddly misplaced and boring castle battle, or the momentary re-appearance by Tilda Swinton - both promise so much and deliver so little. (5/10)
4 January
Jurassic Park
This is an exceptional example of carefully lining up a massive row of dominos for an hour, and then flicking the first one over at the 60 minute mark. It is a near-faultless action blockbuster, with inventive action sequences, appealing characters and brilliant visual effects. Thanks to a clever combination of animatronic puppets and CGI, the visual effects of this movie are still yet to date that much. Plus it has Bob Peck in it, who - if he were still alive today - would be about as famous to moviegoers and acclaimed by critics as Anthony Hopkins or Ian McKellen. (9/10)
5 January
Shaun of the Dead
Every time I watch this combination of Romero-style zombie action, parody of the same, and British romantic comedy, I am surprised all over again at how remarkably effective it all is. I particularly love how, despite its ridiculous premise and mostly ridiculous tone, it still finds moments of genuine emotion and confronting horror. (8/10)
6 January
Tangled
Walt Disney Animation's 50th feature-length animation has a big legacy to live up to, and I was overjoyed to find that it more than matches most of its predecessors. A smart script is combined with good voice acting, great characters and the best CGI interpretation of tradional cel-animated character design and movement I have ever seen. This is the best childrens film I have seen since... well, since The Princess and the Frog, actually. (9/10)
7 January
Withnail & I
Quite simply one of the most quotable movies ever written, combined with career-best performances from Richard E. Grant, Paul McGann and Richard Griffiths. If you have never seen this movie, you should track it down as soon as humanly possible, correct your unintentionally embarrassing oversight, and I shall prepare myself to forgive you. (10/10)
8 January
Morning Glory
All of the ingredients of this film are exceptional, except for the screenplay. Sadly this drags the whole affair down beneath mediocrity and into that awful region where the film becomes kind of boring. Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford are great. Sadly the screenplay doesn't seem to know it wants the story to be about, and so their performances suffer. Diane Keaton has it even worse. Either half her material was left on the cutting room floor, or she really isn't being too choosy with her material any more. (4/10)
8 January
Knight and Day
Less effective the second-time around, but still enjoyable. Part of the appeal the first time around was uncertainty over a particular character's allegiances. Once those allegiances are known, the movie suddenly becomes a whole lot less complicated and accordingly less intriguing. (6/10)
14 January
Conan the Destroyer
More fun that Conan the Barbarian, but an inferior film at the same time. It is what it is: a fairly silly fantasy B-movie that does what you'd expect it to do. That's never a bad thing. This was Grace Jones' first big onscreen role, and I do enjoy watching her wide-eyed glares and bizarre scenery-chewing antics. (5/10)
15 January
Jaws
Quite simply one of the absolute best motion pictures ever made. Tight, effective, restrained, frightening, funny, and just about every other adjective and accolade I could write. No matter how many times I see it, it never gets boring. At its centre, Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw deliver wonderful performances in beautifully-written characters. Shaw's delivery of Quint's Indianapolis speech is one of the best monologues in the history of cinema. (10/10)