Top 10 Films of 2011

It may be a bit late for this, but I just launched this blog, and I want to include a little list here. A top 10 from last year seems in order. I'm also including my favorite 5 films from this year (thus far). I haven't seen many of 2012's releases that I want to (including Moonrise Kingdom, among others), but the listed five are good films nonetheless.

So, I present, the top 10 films of 2011:

10. Margaret - Filmed in 2006. Released in 2011. Went through Hell in terms of editing. Lonergan couldn't get an approved cut; he brought in Thelma Schoonmaker and Scorsese to edit. Eventually a 150 minute cut was released, in very limited fashion, and ultimately both versions became available on DVD. I've seen both. The 180 minute cut is a messy masterpiece. The acting is top-notch from all around, particularly Anna Paquin, who embodies just about every emotion a teenage girl can possibly go through. My favorite aspect of the film, and it may be minor, are the ADR conversations we're privileged to listen to. Random conversations between random people throughout New York. Neighbors. Passer-bys. Nobody important. It emphasizes this is a film about people, not one person. It's about a culture, not an individual. It's about lives, not a life. It's a messy, brilliantly acted, operatic masterpiece.

9. Young Adult - Charlize Theron turns in her best performance since her Oscar-winning Monster. Patton Oswalt gives his best performance to date. And Diablo Cody shows her maturation as a screenwriter. We're let into the life of an alcoholic writer who spends her days watching the Kardashians and fantasizing about a better life. Soon she returns to hometown Mercury, Minnesota to win back her ex. It's a film about living and existing in the past, and hopefully moving on.

8. The Descendants - I've already written a review for this on my blog, so I won't go into too much detail. This is Payne's most commercially accessible (and emotional) film to date, and showcases Clooney's best performance to date. While it is flawed to some degree, and lacks the perfection of Sideways or About Schmidt, it is still a brilliant, masterful film, deserving of all the awards it won and was nominated for.

7. Tyrannosaur - A bleak, dark drama about two souls who find friendship in one another, but are both seriously damaged, in their own separate ways. The film opens with Peter Mullan killing his own dog with a sledgehammer. How cheery of a film can this be? Containing an appearance by the ever-great Eddie Marsan, this is a film of glorious acting-power (Olivia Colman is an especial highlight), and a great drama, through and through. Bleak, but not to be missed.

6. Drive - The Driver drives. He has no other name. He needs no other name. We know him as the Driver, and that is enough. He lives a content lifestyle - driving a getaway car for heists by night, and existing as a stunt driver by day. He doesn't sleep. The only way he can feel anything is by driving around the streets of Los Angeles at night listening to classic 80s music. Until he meets Irene (Carey Mulligan). He develops a special (non-sexual bond) with her and her child. And then the plot gets complicated, involving Bernie Rose (Albert Brooks), and Jewish gangster Ron Perlman. The Driver represents a true, real superhero - one whose power is not invincibility, or strength, but extreme focus. He's a true Ubermensch, in total control of his world, at least until the balance is upset, and when that happens, The Driver must restore order. He has no other choice. "Ever hear the story of the scorpion and the frog?" The Driver asks Bernie Rose at one point. This is one of the most existential films in years, and the Driver reminds me much of the protagonist of Le Samourai. He hardly speaks. But when he does, you better listen.

5. Take Shelter - Curtis is a working man in northwest Ohio. He works hard, provides for his family, and lives a simple life. Until he starts getting strange visions of disaster. Storms. Tornados. Rain that looks like oil. He's concerned. And so he starts making preparations, to the despair of his wife (Jessica Chastain, in an incredible performance), such as building a storm shelter. Is he taking it too far? Are these visions predictions for the future, or simple insanity? These are the questions Curtis must answer. In possibly the films most harrowing scene, Curtis attempts to attend a simple work lunch. His friend, Dewart, confronts him, resulting in an intense and terrifying scene, and likely the best performance Michael Shannon has ever put to the screen. Along with the climax, which is simple in its details, but complex in its actualities, Shannon should have received an Oscar nomination. It has been a long time since such a simple climax on the page was made so powerful on the screen. That's great acting and directing.

4. Moneyball - This film is The Social Network of baseball. I say that not simply because Aaron Sorkin had a hand in both, but because this truly is the TSN equivalent of baseball. It is not ABOUT baseball. Just as The Social Network is not ABOUT facebook. It's about the man behind. In the case of Moneyball, it's about Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), and his partner in crime, Peter Brand (Jonah Hill, in a brilliantly understated performance, rightfully nominated for an Oscar). Billy comes upon Peter, who was at the time working for the Cleveland Indians, and is inspired by his insight and ideas about baseball (based on a fellow named Bill James). Billy quickly buys him from the Indians, and Peter is now working for the Oakland A's. The film is an artful study in dialogue, and brilliant in its acting. Possibly the best screenplay of 2011, and one of the best films, this is a strong recommend.

3. A Separation - Dialogue is the name of the game with this film. But let's not forget conflict. And conflict there is. It's morally ambiguous. To the point that I had to ask myself - what the fuck would I do? How far does a simple mistake take me, and how far do I deny that I made such a simple error? What are the repercussions of such a mistake? This film takes small pieces of human nature and builds them upon one another, until we must ask ourselves, "at one point is enough enough?" Brilliant entertainment, and no doubt will it live long in your memory afterward.

2. The Kid with a Bike - The Dardennes' brothers. Masters, who have created some of the best Belgian films in history. This is a very simple story of a 12 year old boy (Cyril) who befriends (and becomes much interested in) a woman, Samantha (Cecile de France). He eventually realizes that his father has abandoned him, and honestly wants nothing to do with him. Samantha wants the best for Cyril, and she's willing to care for him. Cyril, however, is not one to follow the rules, so he constantly escapes the confines of the house, and goes out to do whatever he pleases. He gets into some trouble with a local drug-dealer looking to take advantage of Cyril, but ultimately The Kid with a Bike concludes in a satisfactory, meaningful way. Not to mention, Thomas Doret as Cyril gives one of the best child performances of all time.

1. Shame - I cannot say enough good about this film. It mesmerized me from beginning to end. Michael Fassbender is a phenomenon, who should have won the Oscar and just about every other award. Carey Mulligan is also great as his dysfunctional sister. Brandon (Fassbender) is a man who has a problem achieving true pleasure; he masturbates constantly, has tons of porn on his work computer, and has sex with many women, including prostitutes. But does he enjoy any of it? In one of the films most brilliant shots, during a sex scene, the camera focuses not on the physical intimacy or bodily acts, but on Fassbender himself. His face, while having an orgasm, represents not pure pleasure, and not even pleasure at all. But rather, shame. Disgrace. This is the life he leads. Steve McQueen directs a brilliant, amazingly acted, cleverly shot and edited film about sexual addiction. It is the year's best film. I have seen it twice now, and intend to see it a third.


Five favorite films of 2012 so far: 5) 21 Jump Street 4) Chronicle 3) Bernie 2) The Avengers 1) Cabin in the Woods