Hey guys, I know I have been bad lately about movies reviews, I will post up another entry on some of the films I have recently saw (some within days of each other). I know I am a little late on this part too, but seeing as how we are just entering into the fall season, my favorite of the film season, I thought I’d write up a report card of the films I have seen so far. Now, I might not include all of the movies I have seen so far, but these are the films/acting/technical work that has struck me as the best/worst of the year so far, and I have to tell you, 2011 is shaping out to be much better than 2010, though there wasn’t a whole lot of competition really. So, with that out of the way, lets get this started:
Biggest Disappointment: Cars 2
Reason: Now, I will admit, this is not the worst film I have seen this year, but being it a Pixar
film, especially after such classics as Toy Story 3 and UP, the bar was set incredibly high. Cars 2 not only didn’t meet the bar, I think it is the weakest of the Pixar filmography, but with their
past films its easier to forgive than other films I have seen.
Final Grade: C
Biggest surprise: Thor
Reason: I almost gave this to Super 8, another film I enjoyed, but that was mostly due to the fact that little was known of the film beforehand and that doesn’t always equal success (District 9 and Inception are the exceptions). However, with Thor, there was a lot that could go wrong, mainly
Marvel trying to get all origin stories out of the way before the Avengers. Needless to say, I felt this was a very strong entry, you don’t get the feeling it was rushed or that they were making this solely because there was an Avengers film coming out. All in all, it was good summer fun.
Final Grade: B+
Best Supporting Actor: Brad Pitt (Tree of Life)
Reason: Brad Pitt brings a strong presence to the film, and I don’t just say that because he was
the only one I knew beforehand. He plays the role of a father who while stern, is still in the end the kind of father who just wishes for his kids to live a life they want to live. Balancing the angelic/
caring ways that is their mother (played wonderfully by Jessica Chastain), the father
represent nature and Pitt does that with grace and, along with Chastain, deserve some awards attention for this wonderful film
Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis (The Help)
Reason: This was another close one for Jessica Chastain for Tree of Life and even Octavia Spencer for The Help, but Davis is the heart of the film (she shares it with Spencer, but Davis also acts as the voice which is why I give such leniency). I would consider her an Oscar frontrunner, my one qualm is she felt more of a lead than supporting in the film, whether or not that will translate into any trouble come awards season, we will see.
Final Grade: B+
Best Actress: Amy Ryan (Win Win)
Reason: Amy Ryan is a force to be reckoned with in this film. I love this film, I don’t think it will
win many awards, but Amy Ryan is almost as good if not as good as Paul Giammatti is in Win
Win. As a mother forced to take in a child when she learns of the kid’s background, Amy Ryan plays the character with much warmth as well as humor, its hard to not love her in this amazing film.
Best Actor: Paul Giamatti (Win Win)
Reason: This was a hard one because there were two men whom I felt were really effective this year so far in their roles. Points to Jake Gyllenhal for a role that needed some humanity, since we don’t get enough of that in Sci-fi films such as Source Cod. However, I just enjoyed Paul Giamatti’s job in this film so much more, he was so funny, so heartbreaking, such a great performance. This film will surely end up on my year end list for Todd McCarthy’s writing/directing, as well as the amazing performances of both Ryan and especially Giamatti.
Final Grade: A
Worst Film: Battle: Los Angeles
Reason: While I didn’t care for Cars 2, it was leaps and bounds better than Battle Los Angeles. I would talk about the many reasons why I didn’t like it, but honestly I can’t really remember a lot of it, and I think that’s the worst criticism I can make of a film. Aaron Eckhart gave it his best shot, but even he could save this film. I dislike it so that I am actually changing my grade, which was originally a gracious C+
Final Grade: D
Best Film: Tree of Life
Reason: While I loved Win Win and thoroughly enjoyed Source Code, there was just no beating Tree of Life. It is simply a beautiful piece of filmmaking and is one of the closest things to a masterpiece I have seen in years (Hurt Locker is the only film that comes close in recent years honestly). The music, by the legendary Alexandre Desplat, is classical and elegent, much like the film itself. The acting is superb, those three little boys as well as Pitt and Chastain were amazing. Terrence Malick deserves awards attention for his fluid direction and incredible script. The thing I loved most about the film, the part that if it doesn’t win I will give up on the Academy forever, is the Cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki. I highly doubt I will see any other film this year, or in the next for that matter, that will come close to this masterful work from a legendary director.
A+
Honorable Mention: Win Win, Source Code, X-men: First Class, Super 8
That’s it from me on the half-time report, here’s a list of films I have on my radar come fall, see you there:
1. Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (David Fincher, Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara)
2. Dangerous Method (David Cronenberg, Viggo Mortenson, Michael Fassbender)
3. Corialanus (Ralph Fiennes)
4. J. Edgar (Clint Eastwood, Leo Dicaprio)
5. My Week with Marilyn (Kenneth Brannagh, Michelle Williams)
6. The Adventures of TinTin (Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson)
7. The Descendants (Alexander Payne, George Clooney)
8. Moneyball (Brad Pitt, Aaron Sorkin)
