My Top 10 Films of 2011
From An Odyssey Through Film and Nothing Special
I’ve seen a lot of pretty terrible things this year both in and outside of theaters. A LOT. In fact, to say that 2011 in general was a pretty lackluster year for cinema wouldn’t be too far from the truth much to the chagrin of my closest cinephile cohorts. Aside from not seeing a good chunk of my top ten in theaters due to their very limited theatrical releases, this unfortunate defining attribute was most likely brought about thanks to a record-breaking number of adaptations, remakes and sequels, almost all of which were either unnecessary or a complete waste of time.
Agree or disagree, you can’t help but wonder just why the lesser-known, infinitely more worthwhile labors of the industry aren’t as appreciated as the next Transformers sequel always is. An oft discussed, moreover redundant topic as of late, however it’s always good to keep stuff like this at the (continue...)
Adeus, 2011.
From A Luz Silenciosa
Two Books
Admittedly I haven’t read much last year, but the words contained in these books had a profound impact on me.
& Five Albums
Those were my favorite sonic moments of 2011, non-classical or film related.
The Conversations #29: Alexander Payne
From Only the Cinema
In our latest installment of The Conversations, Jason Bellamy and I discuss the films of Alexander Payne, from his debut Citizen Ruth to his acclaimed, recently released The Descendants. We talk about Payne's satirical targets, his balance of comedy and drama, and the performances in his work. And of course we focus on what seems to be the big critical question regarding Payne: the debate over whether or not he's condescending towards the types of characters who frequently appear in his films.
Join us at The House Next Door for the full conversation, and be sure to leave a comment with your own thoughts.
Ripping Off Trip – 2011 in Film
From A Luz Silenciosa
Films seen: 8 (I’ve moved home…)
# of rewatches: 1
Top 10 (3):
01. Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (Bird, 2011)
02. A Separation (Farhadi, 2011)
03. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Alfredson, 2011)
Worth mentioning: n/a
Dumpster: Anonymous; Fallen; Chasers; Altitude; In Time
Short Reviews: Like Crazy, Puss in Boots, Weekend
From A Journey Through Cinematic Heaven and Hell
Like Crazy | Drake Doremus, 2011
Warning: Spoilers
I’ll go straight down to it: I absolutely hated Like Crazy and for my money it is the worst movie of the year. It doesn’t start out that way. Up until the last 30 minutes it is purely a terribly-written movie filled with stupid characters doing stupid things, all in the name of love. Why else would a silly young girl living on the U.S. with a student VISA outstay it? Well, that comes back to bite her in the ass, and she proceeds to do more stupid things, such as believing that she can make a long-distance relationship work. Ok, fine this is a love story and love conquers all. Then at the 60 minute mark there really is nowhere else to go as they get married so she can get her green card, and there really is nowhere else to (continue...)
Review: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
From An Odyssey Through Film and Nothing Special
Directed by: David Fincher
Starring: Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara, Christopher Plummer
Considering roughly one out of four releases looming on the horizon are adaptations based on their best-selling literary mediums, this now tiresome trend has still managed to remain one of the more widely accepted ones in Hollywood. As for the wilder side of things, pre-existing foreign takes on their source material have been getting the A-list English language treatment as of late, making themselves inherently more accessible to a wider audience at the risk of discrediting what the original film had to offer. Make of this what you will, but the fact of the matter is last year’s Let Me In effectively set the bar high for this questionable new format, assuring us that director Matt Reeves’ ambition in pairing his signature style with literally the same central premise helped his go with the material come out (continue...)
Du côté d’Orouët
From Only the Cinema
Jacques Rozier is one of the unfortunately forgotten filmmakers of the French New Wave. He finished his debut film, the excellent Adieu Philippine, only with difficulty and some monetary help from his friend Jean-Luc Godard, and afterwards he wouldn't make another feature for over 10 years. His second feature, Du côté d'Orouët, is, like his debut, a charming and moving depiction of young people on vacation. Ambling and nearly plotless, the film meanders through two and a half hours of beachside antics as three friends — Caroline (Caroline Cartier), Joëlle (Danièle Croisy) and Kareen (Françoise Guégan) — take their September vacation in a seaside cabin owned by Caroline's family. It's a relaxed and simple film, and also a really beautiful one, progressing slowly and organically from carefree goofing around to the rich and subtle emotional complexity that begins to develop later in the film. Rozier is paying tribute (continue...)
My Week in Movies: December 24, ’11
From We Told You What to Dream
Béla Tarr, 2011
In what I've gathered is par for the course with Tarr, this fascinatingly bleak hell - resoundingly inspired by Nietzsche's death of God - defies traditional critical evaluation, in this case while gazing down the well of life's brutal futility through a father and daughter whose close neighbors are none but the earth's harsh reminders of said futility. It is a portrait of our inability to affect any fragment of grander existence; our enslavement to our own conflicting mortality. The chill bites at your outer ear, the breath your nostrils, the boiled potatoes your assuredly decaying gums. "The Turin Horse" is a triumph in true Béla Tarr fashion, in that while one may wish to pause and rest between each segment, in the end not a frame is to be missed. I'd place it just above "Damnation" amongst the (continue...)