There may be a few notable omissions to this list because I haven't seen such movies as War Horse, Martha Marcy May Marlene, The Help, Drive, or Meek's Cutoff. Overall, I think it was a surprisingly strong year for movies. The top 5 or so on my list all could have been my favorite of the year, depending on my mood. Next year looks to be a strong year too, especially with the release of The Hobbit. Well, here we go:
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS - Probably the most fun I've had at a movie in a long time, and Woody Allen's best movie in years. The atmosphere and romanticism drips off the screen. A bit sappy at times, but I'd definitely recommend it to those who like romantic comedies. Probably best to see the movie without watching too many trailers (so as to not spoil certain surprises).
THE ARTIST - This film is about a silent film star and his struggles when the movie industry starts shifting towards "talkies." The Artist itself is a silent film and it's one of the best of 2011. Even better, a dog named Uggie plays a big part in the story and he is essentially a supporting actor. I had a huge smile on my face as the ending credits started rolling.
DESCENDANTS - This film takes place in Hawaii so it was especially entertaining for me. This is definitely one of George Clooney's best roles. Despite the drama involved in the story, it is never saccharine or overly wrought out. It is both funny and extremely moving.
50/50 - Of all the films this year, this is the one with the most heart. On the surface, this is a comedy about a serious topic - cancer. Yet the movie never goes overboard with the humor and has some genuinely tender moments. The script is tight and the soundtrack is one of the best of the year.
HUGO - I was drawn into the world within the film of this movie from the first frame. It's a love letter to the cinema in the form of a mystery/adventure. The cinematography is beautiful and you should definitely see the 3-D version. I felt like a kid again after seeing this movie.
MONEYBALL - This is not just another sports movie. Although baseball is the backdrop, the film is ultimately about believing in oneself and taking chances. It was both funny and heartfelt. Jonah Hill stars along with Brad Pitt. It's a side of Hill I haven't seen before.
LIKE CRAZY - The most honest portrayal of relationships I've seen in a long time. What makes the movie good is the acting by the two main leads. Perhaps a little too realistic for some, but if you buy into the angst of the characters, you will love this movie. Great soundtrack.
ANOTHER EARTH - This is a film about regret and forgiveness with a slightly sci-fi element to the story. However, at its core this movie is a straight-up drama. Probably the movie that made me think the most and the movie that I will most remember from 2011.
CRAZY STUPID LOVE - I think this is Steve Carrel's best movie so far. I laughed hard throughout the movie. It's formulaic at times but its shortcomings are far outweighed by the humor and acting. Ryan Gosling is great in this movie.
INSIDIOUS - A classic "haunted house" story, this film had genuinely scary moments. Despite the fact that it's a genre that is over-saturated, this movie was really fun to watch. Not groundbreaking by any means, but a solid addition to the horror genre.
J. EDGAR - Another great movie by Clint Eastwood. This film got mediocre reviews at best, but I disagree with the critics on this one. If you accept the slow pacing that is typical of Eastwood films, you will enjoy this movie and the acting by Leonardo DiCarprio.
X-MEN: FIRST CLASS - Probably the best of the "comic-book" movies this year. The acting was solid and the actions scenes were fun. The movie is about the origin of the X-Men but it is compelling to watch because it is also a commentary on the instability and unrest of the 1960's.
MARGIN CALL - This may be the first "financial thriller" I've seen. The director does a good job of building up the tension despite the fact that we all know that a financial crisis is about to explode. The movie is filled with first-rate actors such as Jeremy Irons, Kevin Spacey, Demi Moore, and others. The only downside is that, frankly, it's hard to feel compassion for the characters as they are essentially rich, cocky investment bankers. But a great movie overall.
SUPER 8 - Very, very close to being a truly great movie. However, this movie falters in the 3rd act and fails to fully develop the relationship between the main character and antagonist. However, very well made and fun to watch.
CONTAGION - Very efficiently made with good actors and a very tight script. What it lacks in emotional resonance, it makes up with intellectual, documentary-type storytelling. This film made me want to stop the practice of hand-shaking and take nightly baths in hand sanitizer gel.
THOR - Overall, this was an enjoyable movie but ultimately it lacked a compelling storyline. The climax was not climactic at all and lacked a sense of grand scale.
BATTLE: LOS ANGELES - I'll start with the bad news first. The bad news is that the dialogue and character development in this movie was not good...terrible, actually. The good news is that the number of non-action scenes were so few that the movie was still enjoyable. This movie felt like one long action sequence which was interrupted by a horrendous "dramatic" scene towards the end. The filmmakers should have just skipped all attempts to instill sentiment and drama, and stuck with what they did best -- wall-to-wall action with soldiers, aliens, guns, explosions, and spaceships. The action set pieces were amazing and it was worth watching for that alone. You have to take this movie for what it is -- mindless, fun action with shallow characters and little attention to plot.
HANNA - I thought this would be higher on my list, and it was a good movie, but the film could have delved deeper into the story.
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - This movie got pretty good reviews because it was a summer action movie that was not simply mindless action. I had high expectations going into the movie and was somewhat disappointed. Having said that, it's still a solid movie, but ultimately forgettable. If you're really into the Planet of the Apes series, you will love this movie. If not, this is just a good action movie.
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS 2 - Exciting and a great ending to the series, but frankly I almost fell asleep (I was really tired that day). It felt like you needed to watch Part 1 immediately prior to watching this movie to fully appreciate it.
I've been interested in photography lately. I recently purchased my first DSLR camera (Nikon D3100) and have been practicing a lot. I really know nothing about the art of photography and have been reading articles online and viewing tutorials on YouTube. The main reason I bought the DSLR is to take high-quality pictures of my dog. The new camera will enable me to take action shots and better night shots. I've been taking a photo a day of my dog for the last 5 months and plan on continuing every day. Eventually, I will splice them all together into a video and create a time-lapse type of movie to track my dog's growth. I think photography could be a hobby that I really get into.
Facebook is not fun to me anymore. The interface is cluttered, there is little original content, and there are far more convenient ways to communicate such as Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr. I think Facebook has gotten too big for its own good. The only reason I don't shut down my Facebook page is to keep in touch with far away friends and family. I suppose the enjoyment one gets from a social network directly correlates with the quality of the content posted by one's "friends." Unfortunately, most of my friends seem to be too busy to post anything of value. Of course, I am guilty of the same thing. I cannot remember the last time I wrote a carefully thought out essay or photoblog. My Facebook wall mostly consists of links to news articles. I think I only have one or two friends who are genuinely entertaining on Facebook. I think we all need to slow down and re-evaluate how and why we use social networking tools.
This movie looks overly dramatic, sappy, and over-acted, but for some reason I found it to be rather compelling. I have a feeling I'm either going really love this movie or really despise it - no middle ground. But this trailer is really effective and Ingrid Michaelson's cover of Elvis fits the trailer perfectly.
Sometimes I wonder if Facebook has resulted in a downturn in creativity -- namely MY creativity. Whereas on Xanga I used to actually put some thought into my posts, on Facebook my activity seems to be a jumble of quick links to news articles, YouTube videos, and "checking in" to places I go in the city. Also, that damned "Like" button makes it easy to seem like you're keeping in touch with someone, when all you're actually doing is social networking the lazy way.
I understand that with our busy daily lives, Facebook is the easiest way to pop into our virtual living rooms and quickly say hello to whoever happens to be there at the time. Yet I really miss the old Xanga days when I could easily spend an hour immersing myself in reading thoughtful posts by others, and typing, editing, and doing research for my own posts. This literally may be the longest non-work related chunk of text I've written in a long time (sad, I know). It's not as though I no longer have anything to say -- I could write about the recent tsunami, recent events in my life, family drama, my dog (of course), or any number of other crazy things.
I've been really active on my Tumblr site, but that place is really just a collection of articles and other items relating to dogs. I don't really write long essays there. Xanga is where I first discovered the world of social networking, and I wish that it could recapture its old glory days when we used to exchange ideas and thoughtful sentiment with each other on a daily basis through our posts.
True