Top 6 Favorite Films of 2011

Screw what that other guy said yesterday – I’m going to put up my TOP 6 favorite films of the year because I feel like it! Why should it be just 5? I can stretch it out to be 10 if I wanted to add in a few other titles – but I want to just put down my absolute favorites of the year – not just the movies I liked. I liked X-Men: First Class, I liked The Ides of March, I liked The Muppets, I liked Super 8 – if you feel the need to make it a full round 10 – but below are the movies that I give a solid 5 outta 5 – not an iffy 5 outta 5 – or a hesitant 5 outta 5 – or a drunk 5 outta 5 – below are my only real 5 outta 5 films of 2011.

#6. Super – what I really liked about Super was that it didn’t let down at what it was advertised as – it was a dark comedy involving topics and situations that you wondered if you should laugh at – disturbing and graphic – tragic and funny – the heart ultimately is to save himself he must save the girl – there’s something wonderful about that to me

#5. Rise of the Planet of the Apes – great performances – solid effects – and a truly believable story of the scientist who sets in motion the end of the world at the hands of the apes – Andy Serkis was outstanding as Caesar blending in a mind boggling way the differences between what is ape and what is human in the performance

#4. Win-Win – Thomas McCarthy’s knack for turning what could be a depressing topic and finding the human spirit that lifting out the optimism without forcing it – this time with a displaced kid who’s looking for the home he never had and the coach/lawyer who was looking for inner strength but not knowing where to find it

#3. Source Code – what stuck with me about Source Code ever since I made it the first film I saw in the theater this year – was the optimism – science fiction tends to lean toward the loss of humanity and the hopeless struggle of it all – but with Source Code the idea of the hopeless struggle and pulling victory out of the jaws of defeat was so wonderfully conceived and executed
#2. 50/50 – a pleasant surprise – figuring I was in for a raunchy stoner comedy (thanks to Seth Rogen) but turned out to be a true comedy with some heart – laughing at the face of tragedy – no cheese – just great performances – the strength of the script – the fact that it never discounted the situation but never used it to drag the viewer down – it wasn’t just a “cancer comedy” – it was more of a true to life cancer story #1. Drive – intense, atmospheric, mesmerizing action, pitch perfect acting – Drive kept my excitement up well after I saw it – thinking about scenes – thinking about the execution – thinking about so many aspects – it’s the mark of a great film the resonance of it well after watching it – still feeling that atmosphere lost in questions and memories of it

50/50 [2011]

A young man is diagnosed with a rare type of cancer that the internet says he’s got a 50/50 shot at survival – this is the story of how he copes.

Honestly, this was a great movie. Much better than I had hoped - but my presumption disparity was geared toward expecting a lower brow stoner comedy – with “heart”. Mainly due to the fact that Seth Rogen was involved – I find him amusing at times – and much (much) less than amusing at other times.

Happily, the film remained in the correct tone throughout – it had its ups – it had its downs – and the performances remained strong. Not once did I feel like it betrayed the topic and tried to make it all a big laugh. The film generated laughs organically – from the story and from the characters – not from gags. The only thing crude and/or low-brow was some of the language – but who the fuck cares anymore?

The film kept up a good pace – allowing us to dwell in some of the down times for just long enough as to not be depressing – but to get a solid feelings across. I’ve seen a lot of great performances on the big screen this summer as I’ve been picky with what I’m paying to see these days – and Joseph Gordon-Levitt gave a powerhouse performance. That scene of sudden intense fear before surgery was subtle and beautiful – that scene will stick with me. I expect Levitt and Angelica Houston to both get a lot of much deserved Oscar buzz.

The film was written by Will Reiser based on his experience with having cancer – so the truths explored in the film were rooted in reality – and all that makes it all the more hopeful of a film. It’s a great screenplay – something I would like to read – time to do some research.

I don’t know if it’s too early for me to say this – as it’s still all too fresh – but it’s certainly the frontrunner for my movie of the year.

Up In The Air [2009]

Sometimes people know their weaknesses – sometimes people will even admit to them – sometimes people will even embrace them. Most of the time – those weaknesses are hidden behind something – and uprooting them in a film can be interesting – and make for both interesting drama but interesting comedy.

George Clooney plays Ryan Bingham – a man who works for a company that’s main purpose is to fire employee’s for other companies that have bosses that are too weak natured to fire their own employee’s. Bingham is great at his job – and it gives him an excuse to travel – A LOT – and rack up a ton of frequent flier miles. When Natalie (played by Anna Kendrick) a girl half his age, comes in with grand plans to take Ryan out of the air – and in an office firing people over a teleconference – his lifestyle is threatened.

Bingham is an anti-hero – from a Lost Generation of kids who grew up with no discernable values. He doesn’t value human relationships like everyone else – that’s what makes him great at his job. He can give motivational speeches to crowds of strangers – because he actually believes that people who load up their “backpacks” with the stuff he doesn’t value – are somehow weaker for valuing those things.

It’s not really explained in the movie – exactly why he’s like this – why the only thing he values is the frequent flier miles – and not the human interaction and bonds that everyone else values – but that’s not the point of the film. It can be from any number of issues or excuse - the point is Clooney plays the character in a believable fashion that you don’t need excuses. If Clooney doesn’t put his weight behind the performance it wouldn’t matter if it was explained or not. There’s no condescending Hollywood monologue that will be shown as Clooney’s Oscar nomination clip - which is much appreciated.

I would also like to note – that George Clooney isn’t showing you new sides of himself in this role – this is a tailor made Clooney role. He plays confident and unaffected well – and the casting of him in this role was a wise choice – and I feel it’s a great performance – but not much new for George Clooney.

The story is about watching him cope – not explaining why he is. He tries to push his values back on to Natalie – in his way of nullifying the threat and maintaining his status quo. Once he feels that he’s not going to win – he starts grasping for human relationships to fill those gaps in his life whether it’s reconnecting with his family or reaching out to his new love interest Alex (played by the lovely Vera Farmiga – who absolutely shines in this role) – with results that are best left to viewing the film.

The theme of the film is about the various gaps people have in their lives. Bingham in his job creates holes in people’s lives – but hands out literature and gives an uplifting speech to fill in that hole. Every character seems to have a hole in their life – whether it’s as obvious as a spouse that just left them – or in the case of Bingham’s boss (played by Jason Bateman) a soul. Some people want to embrace the missing pieces of their lives – and some would rather grasp onto something to fill those holes – some don’t realize what they are missing until it’s pointed out to them. It’s a very interesting concept – and should speak to the viewer and have them give it a thought.

Natalie comes off as a person without any gaps in her life – therefore somewhat of a personal threat to Bingham – but he plays it cool and of course her façade falls apart. This is where the other main theme of dreams versus reality really comes into focus. She describes how she thought her life would play out and those dreams haven’t been realized – Bingham and Alex are more than happy to explain how life is really like – as callous as it may seem to a young dreamer. It’s a universally spoken theme – of the grandeur and hope of youth and the disappointments of age – and how people are still looking for the fountain of youth - I wish I knew what I knew now when I was younger.

The performances were strong – with possibly the exception of Anna Kendrick’s mini-awkward-breakdown was the low-point in the film – even though it provided a laugh. The script was strong, funny and bittersweet. The direction by Jason Reitman was spot on – he’s turning into one fine director. He’s got a great sense of composition and pacing - and an ability to keep it light – though this film could easily be a trudge through a depressing matter.

It’s tough to watch a film with your main character going around firing people without acknowledging the current economic climate – and how people are losing jobs every day – helping make Up in the Air a film that finely represents the current malaise of our time. It works as a statement film – with the cinema verite kind of interviews that have people expressing what it’s like to lose a job – and what they’ve done to cope with it and bridge that gap that was created in their lives. It’s uplifting – in that bittersweet way.

Not all hope is lost.

This is a great film on many levels - and even though I don't particularly think this has been a really strong year for Hollywood - this gem of a film is clearly in my mind the best of 2009.

Weekend Viewing - Jan 29-31 (part 1)

Up in the Air [2009, directed by Jason Reitman]

This is a story about filling holes in your life. Ryan Bingham fills holes in his life by flying across the country to create holes in other’s lives by firing them – but his goal isn’t to bring others down – it’s the frequent flier miles. When a girl half his age begins at his company and presents a more cost effective – way to fire people over teleconferencing – Bingham is obviously threatened. Bingham is left once again with a gaping hole – and he looks to fill it once again. This is my favorite film of 2009 - a full review should be coming later this week.

A Perfect Getaway [2009, directed by Dave Twohy]

A murderous couple is out killing newlywed couples on the islands of Hawaii – what are we ever going to do? Well first off – let’s not be so self referential that you make the actual movie obsolete – it’s fine that the character works in Hollywood – but talking about plot structures and “red herrings” only goes to further my initial theory of the film (seriously figured this one out almost immediately). “Oh, we’re going to throw you off the trail – because we’re clever Hollywood types! That’s why we made the reveal awkwardly long as to prove how dumb you are as the viewer that you didn’t see it coming! Ha ha ha!” Anyway – this film is getting 3 out of 5 because I’m that big of a fan of Steve Zahn – he’s hilarious (even if he can’t get a role in a decent film to prove it)!