As the year draws to a close, its a time to look back and reflect on what I think are some of the best films of the year.
5) Bridesmaids
Kristen Wiig of Saturday Night Live fame co-wrote and leads this laugh-out-loud comedy on the virtues and insanity of planning a wedding. The film has a feminine surface with a raunchy layer proving that comedy is not always in the hands of men who know how to fluff it up (case in point, Hangover 2) as it gives the lazily drawn wedding films, like Bride Wars and 27 Dresses, a stiff middle finger with hilarity and earning a spot as one of the most surprising and funniest films of the year.
4) The Adventures of Tintin
Steven Spielberg gives just service by adapting Herge's classic comic books of the young journalist, his dog, Snowy, and the inebriated Captain Haddock uncovering the secrets of a lost treasure. The 3D animated adventure emphasizes Spielberg's staying power as one of the great blockbuster filmmakers and compensating for the loss of his last venture into adventure with the fourth Indiana Jones movie.
3) We Need to Talk About Kevin
Lynne Ramsey's third motion picture and one of her most praised films about the struggle and acceptance of evil in society as a mother (Tilda Swinton) attempts to move on after her son committs a school shooting. Swinton gives one of the best performances of the year, as well as Ezra Miller giving a chilling performance as Kevin. The Oscar is definitely in Swinton's favor for Best Actress.
2) The Tree of Life
Seeing a Terrence Malick film is like seeing a meteor shower; it happens very rarely and hits you when you least suspect it. Tree of Life focuses on the life of a family in 1950s Texas whilst segueing into a stunning look at the beginning of life and the cosmos that is as visually and aurally intoxicating as Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain give exceptional performances as the polarizing parents raising their three sons, while Sean Penn plays the older version of one of their sons reflecting on his troubled childhood. It may be overwhelming at first glance, but so is 8 1/2, Doctor Zhivago, and other masterpieces that have tested audiences and critics.
1) Hugo
Martin Scorsese takes a giant leap from the mean streets of gangsters and into the world of 3D with his adaptation of Brian Selznick's story of a young orphan (Asa Butterfield), who lives within the walls of a Paris train station, trying to complete a robot first developed by his demised father. Whilst building the robot, Hugo and his literary friend, Isabelle (Chloe Grace Moretz), try to discover the private life of Isabelle's guardian, Georges Melies (a stunning Ben Kingsley), and the legacy of films he had left behind. Scorsese's film is not just a step forward into the world of 3D filmmaking, but a history lesson for all ages on the birth of cinema and how the past should never be forgotten as the medium advances into new territory. It is this blend that makes Hugo one of the best films of the year.
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2 comments:
Super, Hugo, Midnight in Paris and Stakeland makes it on to my list. Another Earth and Contagion look exceptually but I didn't actually get to watch them yet. Let you know.
It was a difficult list, considering that the best films usually don't appear until the last few months due to the Award season, but what I wish I included in the top ten were Young Adult, Living in the Material World, and Rampart.
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