2011 - A Year in Film?

Every year an obligatory round-up must be made of the films to be remembered. Despite an altogether lackluster 2011, there are still a few films that I saw (and still have yet to see) that stood out above the rest. Or maybe at least to the side of the rest? Starting with #1...

1. Attack the Block - This one took forever to finally come stateside so it was hard not to have anticipation and excitement surrounding it. By no means is this a perfect movie, but it is absolutely fun, entertaining, original, intense, funny, charming, well-made, beautiful to look at, and pays homage to all the right cult movies and film makers from the past while keeping things fresh and contemporary. It delivered everything I wanted from it and then some, which is all you can hope for when watching a movie.

2. Drive - Sometimes all you need is pure stylistic nirvana, which Drive delivers in waves. An LA cityscape flooded with neon glow and brilliant rays of sunlight is brimming with over-the-top characters that play out like a modern film noir. Gosling steals the show in a symbolic role that will haunt him (and us) forever. This movie drips and hums with a synergy of masculinity and fragility that really creates something truly unique.

3. Martha Marcy May Marlene - Who would have thought an Olsen sister would have acting talent? Elizabeth Olsen (who absolutely shows potential in paving a Michelle Williams-like career) knocks this one out of the park. Throw John Hawkes in as a creepy cultish leader of a commune, give me interesting cinematography and an edge-of-your seat ending, and you get MMMM. It's no coincidence what that spells.

4. Hævnen (In A Better World) - Winning the Oscar for best Foreign Film last year, Hævnen came to the states this spring, and was actually pretty awesome. Quite stunningly well-made, it had me constantly on edge and really tested out some ideas with vengeance, manhood, and compassion, that worked quite well.

5. Shame - The cinephilic Criterion collector in me has to acknowledge Shame, which is compelling, but doesn't tread into lame, well-worn territory when dealing with a sex-addicted and somewhat prickish main character. Fassbender delivers the goods (while showing us his) and his second teaming up with Steve McQueen proves that they are both here to stay.

6. Tucker and Dale vs. Evil - a low-budget, "Hey, let's get our friends together and make a movie" kind of feel, that brilliantly approaches the other side of a slasher movie gone wrong. There are a few rough patches, but in the end, you cannot hold much against this funny romp that really hits the mark it set out for.

7. Tree of Life - Terrence Malick is one of those director's I've always felt pressured to love despite having made so few films. I was instantly intrigued by Tree of Life, and watching the film really did feel like a full experience. After seeing it, I said "I can never watch that again", really because re-watching it would only detract from my original appreciation of it. I'm standing by that statement, so I'll probably never watch it again, which also makes it difficult to rank.

8. Moneyball - Why not? This feels like a Tin Cup or Field of Dreams classic that I would typically pass on. It's a biopic/based on a true story. It's about the Oakland A's. It's got Jonah Hill. And yet, I enjoyed it. Pitt flipping tables is a huge selling point for me as well.

Other good ones: Buck, PJ20, Super, MI:4, Contagion, Green Hornet (I know...I know)

Living in a world where I am at the mercy of the theaters around me, I have unfortunately not seen all of the films I wanted to this year. The four that show great promise of being really good...?

1. We Need To Talk About Kevin - Lynne Ramsey has been one of my favorite directors for a while, with a Malick-like career that is sparse but incredibly strong. I've been wanting to talk about We Need To Talk About Kevin for so long, and it finally comes to the Pickford in a few weeks. I expect it to be amazing.

2. Oslo, August 31st - Another director who I have been wanting more from, Joachim Trier. His last film Reprise was stylistic and fresh, up for an Oscar, and a hidden gem I stumbled upon from a few years back. He seems to have a lot of the same players and subject matter here as in Reprise, so I hope it remains an original and interesting story.

3. Take Shelter - This was in town for a week, the one week I was absolutely busy, so I missed it. I've heard good things, and I am all about psychosis and apocalyptic threats. This one comes out on DVD in a few weeks.

4. Psycho Gunslinger - Who made this, Terry Gilliam? I kid, I kid. It keeps getting pushed back, but once this finally reaches completion in 2012, it should be well worth the wait.

I must also mention some of the worst of 2011, as well as those that really let me down.

1. Hobo With A Shotgun - Just about everything I dread about amateur film making in one movie. Muddled storytelling, crappy dialogue, over-blown everything. I like me the Hauer, but ugh, this one was appalling.

2. Colombiana - Just a complete mess. Casting a 100% Māori actor to play a Latin American is a little weird. Historical inaccuracies pertaining to Xena: Warrior Princess. Ridiculousness abound. Yucky.

3. Paul - A huge letdown that proves that you can't get laughs with two out of three stooges. Where were you when we needed you Edgar Wright? Where were you when we needed you Simon Pegg and Nick Frost?

4. Super 8 - Firstly, I am not saying this was a bad movie; it was fun and entertaining at times. I will re-watch this one to be certain, but I have to say I had no emotional attachment to anything going on in this movie, which surprised and jilted me. There are basic elements of the story that should have had me bawling in my seat, but for some reason I never got to that point. Maybe it was all the hype that it failed to measure up to, but it left me cold and dissatisfied where I fully expected to feel warm and satiated. Hell hath no fury like a fanboy scorned.

There it is. It's not everything I want it to be, but it's pretty representative of the 2011 year in film. As we enter the brave unknown of 2012, I hope to find myself with a more definitive attitude towards what was not just good, but great. Please oh please...let them at least be greater than this year's yield.