Originally published in Cinema
Knife Fight, January 14, 2012
I’m always amazed, when I
compile these “Best Of” lists, how many movies released this year I
actually managed to see. I don’t remember going to the cinema that often. Of
course, some of the following movies I watched on my TV via Amazon or Netflix.
Even so, I did well, though I have yet to see a number of films I really wanted
to. For instance, MELANCHOLIA, for some strange reason, was only
showing for a couple of weeks at the Coolidge Corner Theater in Boston. A bit
far for me. But it’s a film I have on my “To See List.”
Well, what did I
see and enjoy this year?
Let’s start with the plethora
of superhero films from 2011. Having been a comic book geek in my youth, these
usually rise to the top of my Have To See thingy. Of the five I
watched, X-MEN: FIRST CLASS was by far the best. This
surprised me—after the last couple of left-me-wanting sequels/prequels
to this franchise, my expectations were low. But FIRST CLASS was
just that, a first class film in acting, writing and
special effects. It did loving homage to such an established comic
franchise. And there was no cameo from Nick Fury that I
can remember.
Before seeing FIRST
CLASS (on DVD), THOR had been at the top as the best
of these types of films for 2011. Thor was one of my
oft-read comics, and the guy who played Captain Kirk's Dad (yes, I’ve decided to
write this column without the use of my faithful friend, IMDB.com)
kicked ass as Odin’s adventurous son. I watched the 2D version by the way. But
let’s not get into that.
GREEN LANTERN was a surprise pleasure. Mind you, growing up I
was a Marvel kid, and my friend Kevin was the DC fan. But there were a
few DC series I’d read regularly: Green Arrow and Aquaman for
example. Green Lantern sometimes, and to be honest this
whole “space cops protecting the universe” mythos must be a recent theme
because I don’t remember all these other “Lanterns” in the seventies. For the
movie, I had read complaints abut the back story being too long, the story too
silly. I rented the film—maybe they edited it for the DVD—and the opening story
was maybe a minute long, no more. I thought the movie was as fast-moving and
enjoyable as any superhero flick can be. Good effects, too. Maybe my
expectations were low enough to actually enjoy the movie, who knows?
On the flip side, one movie
where my expectations were high but the film did NOT smack
me upside the head was CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER. It was
good, mind you. Well acted, good script, but… I don’t know. Cap was one of my
favorites, and maybe because this movie was a period piece—more war movie than
modern-day tale—or maybe — and I think this had a lot to do with it —because
I’d already seen most of the movie in the trailers, something felt
missing for me. The previews for this film pretty much showed
everything. I did enjoy parts (how he was commercialized by the army for
propaganda, etc), but overall, the move fell a bit flat.
Lastly in this category, and
I only mention it for one reason:TRANSFORMERS: DARK SIDE OF THE MOON was
a feast for the eyes visually. The special effects were mind-popping,
especially with the 3D glasses. The story itself was inane and
well beyond silly. But it made this list for the sheer
over-the-top audacity of the visuals. Nothing else.
The final half of the final
chapter of the story of the Boy Who Lived,HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY
HALLOWS, PART 2, rocked. Perfect adaptation of the last half of the book,
and it even managed to improve on parts, especially the climactic battle. In
this year of overly-long film titles, HPATDHP2 stands above the rest. At least
to me—quiet Prince of Geekdom, that I am.
TROLLHUNTER is probably not a 2011 film, but was released
this year in the US, played for a bit in theaters before rushing onto Netflix’s
Instant Watch. It was AMAZING (caveat: amazing
considering its budget and the obvious restrictions that come with it). The use
of the camera (yea, it’s one of those hand-held camera flicks a la BLAIR
WITCH) worked well as a student documentary/expose. The acting was quite
good, and the trolls were very, very cool! The best thing, and I’m not giving
away anything, (I promise!) is they stayed away from the most
annoying aspect of this film subgenre. The filmmakersdid not kill
off every character at the end of the movie. Big Yay!(Lesson
to be learned here….). Oh, and it was subtitled – I believe it was Norwegian or
Swedish or something. (Remember, promised not to IMDB this one).
I have to admit, PARANORMAL
ACTIVITY 3 was at least as good as any three-quel could
be. There were some scary parts, and since it “scared the shit out of” my
then-16 year old daughter Amanda (and that’s a quote), I had to put it here.
RED RIDING HOOD was another surprise. Quite good, cleverly done,
decent acting. One thing that helped was that it was kind of a weird and
eerily-shot movie. Everything from the sets to the music to the performances
themselves were dream-like and creepy. Targeted to a teen audience, it did not
succumb to the need to condescend, or lower itself to some imaginary mental
level. The creators assumed, rightly, that teenagers have a brain and an
imagination and made a unique little film with some clever twists.
It took me until a couple
weeks ago to see COWBOYS & ALIENS, but it was worth the wait.
Great performances all around, nice special effects that did not go
too overboard (it was a western after all). The concept
of old west cowboys trying to defend themselves against high-tech aliens was
well done. The introduction of one character halfway through the film who seemed
to have all the answers was a cop-out, truth be told, but aside from that, a
great film.
Quick shout out to a few
other movies that I enjoyed, but I’m running out of room: THE
ADJUSTMENT BUREAU (I liked it, clever in anINCEPTION kind
of way, though it got a bit sluggish in the middle);LIMITLESS (great
movie, another which got itself tied in knots midway but which unraveled
nicely); THE LINCOLN LAWYER (not horror or science fiction,
but a great date movie); SUPER 8 (disappointing for me as a
Spielberg and Abrams fan—and an example of how a vastly stupid ending can ruin
an otherwise great movie), and J. EDGAR (I just watched it
last night—amazing performance by Leonardo DiCaprio and every other cast
member—though not the most exciting film ever made… if you like historical,
semi-period pieces, you’ll enjoy this. See it for no other reason than to watch
the guy from the television showBURN NOTICE playing Bobby Kennedy).
I saw other films as well,
but they weren’t in the Best Of category in my mind, so
we’ll skip them.
Before I leave, I just wanted
to give a quick list of my favorite movies from prior years which I finally got
to see for the first time this year:
THE KING’S SPEECH (2010) and THE FIGHTER (2010)
—we saw these in January to get ready for the Academy Awards. Both deserved the
Oscars they won. Both are Must See Films in my mind.
BLOOD DIAMOND (2006) —another DiCaprio flick and one which
almost won the Oscar in its year. I finally got around to seeing it at Linda’s
urging and it blew my mind.
VALKYRIE (2008) —yes, Tom Cruise should not do talk show
circuits, but yes, he should make movies. He and everyone
else in this “Based on a True Story” film about a plot to
kill Hitler was amazing. Watch it. Yes, yes, I know he’s wearing an eye patch,
but the real life soldier being portrayed had an eye patch. Get over it. Eddie
Izzard’s in the movie, too, so watch it for that if for no other reason.
ADAPTATION (2002) —I devour all writer-themed movies andADAPTATION was
no exception, though “bizarre” does not do this one justice.
RED CLIFF (International Version, 2008) —was the
bestwar/samurai/epic film I have probably ever seen. Period.
THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (1976) —is a movie everyone my generation should
see because it was so unique for its time and David Bowie didn’t suck in it,
though the film overall wasn’t great—a bit long and low budget—but it was
curiously interesting.
MIDNIGHT COWBOY (1969) —finally projected itself into my brain
and I am so much better for it. What a fantastic performance not only from
Dustin Hoffman—who won an Oscar for the role—but in my mind more so by
Jon Voight.
ONDINE (2009) —was reviewed here earlier this year.
Loved it, loved it. Tender and warm and simple. Watch it with your best girlie
by your side.
And, finally, got caught up
with the amazing television series THE WALKING DEAD (2010 –
2011). If you like traditional zombies, this is the series for you. The second
season got a bit slow, but has been picking up nicely.
OK, that’s it. Everything you
wanted to know about Dan’s movie-watching year, and likely far more than you
probably wanted to know. I hope and pray 2012 finds
everyone better, happier and closer to those you love and cherish. And remember
one important event coming, if you must remember anything in
2012: there are less than six months remaining before Ridley Scott’s PROMETHEUS is
released! A prequel of sorts to ALIEN (1979) by the man who
first introduced such nightmarish creatures into my psyche. Hopefully the
Mayans weren’t off by a few months and I’ll get to see this when it comes out
on my birthday. And so should you.
So should you.