I'm not dogging Dublin - it's just how it is. We see movies that opened in New York several months ago (in some cases, over a year) - so 2011 was the Year of the Download for me. There should be more foreign films on this list, alas, it is difficult to get working subtitles on downloads.
So instead of a proper top 10 - here are nine* films that I saw last year. The good ones. Some excellent.
(U.S.) It was the starkness of this film that got me. Bare dialogue. The viewer knows next to nothing about the protagonist. Except that he can drive. That this is his life. That he is a good person. That he fancies his next door neighbor, the cute semi-single mother with an actual story. That when there is a threat against the good people in his life (Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston in their usual stellar performances) horrific spikes of violence pop on the screen.
Gorilla-sized guns used expertly, fast cars on L.A. highways driven expertly, beautiful, still shots of innocent, romantic scenes. Albert Brooks, not playing the bumbling good-guy. He uses forks and knives not to eat, but to kill. Pulsating, rhythmic music and no sound at all. You can't help but not breathe through most of it.
THE GUARD
(Ireland) Let me first say, that I love Brendan Gleeson. He can dress up the dowdiest of films. Luckily, he only added to this already wonderful movie. Writer/director John McDonagh shares the same hilarity/tragedy bend as his brother, Martin McDonagh (In Bruges) and it shows up brilliantly on the screen.
Aside from being absolutely hilarious and absolutely tragic, it’s also an interesting observation on Irish/American relations. The exchange between Gleeson and Don Cheadle (who plays a FBI agent come to the west of Ireland to solve a drugs case) says much of both cultures. Gleeson’s unintentional/somehow innocent racist comments suggest a culture ignorant of race relations. True enough – Ireland (especially non-Dublin) is all white people! And that’s Irish white – so…translucent. Cheadle’s incessant reminder to Gleeson that maybe he shouldn’t be telling him all this stuff suggests a culture of cautiousness, of over-awareness (at least in the 'privileged' classes, such as Cheadle’s character describes himself a part of).
One of the funniest moments in the film is when the gardai (Irish police) are doing their debrief and introducing Cheadle’s character. Gleeson, in the usual Irish fashion, swears like no tomorrow and his boss screams at him: “not in front of THE AMERICAN.”
P.S. A cop in Ireland is called a “garda”, not a guard.
MELANCHOLIA
(U.S.) Scary. Probably the scariest non-horror I’ve seen in some time. The realization of the end of the world. A meandering path through mental illness and shots of a beautiful, giant planet, overtaking Earth. Duo sunrises, duo sunsets. And a wedding.
The slow, subtle death march to the end reminds of battles with cancer in the modern age. Still horrific, except there is a genuine optimism on how technology and modern science will save the cancer patient. Things start to look better, remission, hair grows back and then, from out of nowhere, it all returns, it’s spread, it’s grown bigger, it’s terrifyingly unwieldy. The modern age, with all its sciencey promise, fails. And in the end (of this film), we are all desperately afraid.
A Separation
(Iran) A story so small and specific, it is thoroughly universal. The viewer feels like an intimate voyeur – able to view every single small detail, all the cracks and unspoken conversations.
There is a laid back quality to the movie – it feels as if you are watching a real family’s life unfold (and unravel) in real time, all the while sensing a strong undercurrent of something big about to happen. And then you realize big things are already happening: a separation, a custody battle, dealing with a parent with Alzheimers, a conviction of murder, debilitating depression and unemployment. Nothing is overdone or overstated and still this film manages a surprising intensity throughout it all.
Super 8
(U.S.) The most commercial of my picks, definitely the biggest budget. An almost all-kid cast. How is this on my list?
It was entertaining – in an earnest, sincere way (i.e. there weren’t random cuts to gyrating teenagers or efforts to establish older characters as ‘hip’. Granted, it’s set in the 70s, but still) It has one of those magical coming-of-age qualities, reminding me of watching films like Jumanji and Jurassic Park growing up – where you want to watch it over and over again and aren’t severely disappointed when re-watching as an adult.
And of course, the effects are amazing.
Take Shelter
(U.S.) Quiet, haunting. Parallels to Melancholia in its attention to the gravity of mental illness and foreshadowing of the end of the world. Nightmares of a super storm and a scare of schizophrenia plague the protagonist, expertly portrayed by Michael Shannon.
Even in the midst of terrifying murmurations and visions of weightless furniture and trios of tornadoes, Shannon’s character attempts to hide it all away from friends, co-workers and especially from his wife (played by the new and wonderful Jessica Chastain) and deaf daughter – all the while building a military-grade shelter in his backyard.
(U.K.) Very British. And surprisingly funny. A buddy/road trip film starring the ever-narcissistic Steve Coogan and the underdog Welsh comic, Rob Brydon. Think Sideways, except in documentary-style, Northern England instead of California and even less of a plot.
Dueling impersonations, drawn out to cringe-worthy lengths and still, somehow, surprisingly FUNNY. Their best: Michael Caine, Al Pacino, Anthony Hopkins. Their worst: Woody Allen and Dustin Hoffman. They can’t get the New York Jew down!
The Yellow Sea
(South Korea) I’m so happy to include a Korean film in this list. From the same director of The Chaser, comes this bloody, heart-wrenching story of one man’s desperate journey from China to South Korea to settle a gang leader’s debt and his private mission to find his estranged (somewhat dishonored) wife.
The protagonist, unassuming and dejected though he is, fights tooth and nail (and dismembered thumb!) to survive in this sepia-colored, jaundiced world. At one point he actually uses a large meat bone to clobber his enemies, often fighting off twenty or more men at a time. The viewer wants him to live, to surpass all highly ridiculous odds, knowing he has less than nothing to live for. This film boasts seemingly impossible chase sequences and still manages to unload an emotional heft, leaving the viewer weepy and exhilarated.
We Need To Talk About Kevin
(U.K.) Themes of red, shame and crippling horror throughout - I know I cannot properly describe this film, so I will say little.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
P.S. Here are 6 documentaries that I saw in 2011, but don't want to write about because it would take too long. They are all, in their own very different ways, quite good:
Bobby Fischer Against the World
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
The Interrupters
Knuckle
Project Nim
Tabloid
* I watched way more television than I did movies in 2011 and consequently, couldn't eek out a 10th film to put on the list. Seems t.v. is more and more the writer's medium - so I was very consistently entertained (read: obsessed and taken over by) the quality of tv series I watched this last year.
So instead of a proper top 10 - here are nine* films that I saw last year. The good ones. Some excellent.
DRIVE
(U.S.) It was the starkness of this film that got me. Bare dialogue. The viewer knows next to nothing about the protagonist. Except that he can drive. That this is his life. That he is a good person. That he fancies his next door neighbor, the cute semi-single mother with an actual story. That when there is a threat against the good people in his life (Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston in their usual stellar performances) horrific spikes of violence pop on the screen.
Gorilla-sized guns used expertly, fast cars on L.A. highways driven expertly, beautiful, still shots of innocent, romantic scenes. Albert Brooks, not playing the bumbling good-guy. He uses forks and knives not to eat, but to kill. Pulsating, rhythmic music and no sound at all. You can't help but not breathe through most of it.
THE GUARD
(Ireland) Let me first say, that I love Brendan Gleeson. He can dress up the dowdiest of films. Luckily, he only added to this already wonderful movie. Writer/director John McDonagh shares the same hilarity/tragedy bend as his brother, Martin McDonagh (In Bruges) and it shows up brilliantly on the screen.
Aside from being absolutely hilarious and absolutely tragic, it’s also an interesting observation on Irish/American relations. The exchange between Gleeson and Don Cheadle (who plays a FBI agent come to the west of Ireland to solve a drugs case) says much of both cultures. Gleeson’s unintentional/somehow innocent racist comments suggest a culture ignorant of race relations. True enough – Ireland (especially non-Dublin) is all white people! And that’s Irish white – so…translucent. Cheadle’s incessant reminder to Gleeson that maybe he shouldn’t be telling him all this stuff suggests a culture of cautiousness, of over-awareness (at least in the 'privileged' classes, such as Cheadle’s character describes himself a part of).
One of the funniest moments in the film is when the gardai (Irish police) are doing their debrief and introducing Cheadle’s character. Gleeson, in the usual Irish fashion, swears like no tomorrow and his boss screams at him: “not in front of THE AMERICAN.”
P.S. A cop in Ireland is called a “garda”, not a guard.
MELANCHOLIA
(U.S.) Scary. Probably the scariest non-horror I’ve seen in some time. The realization of the end of the world. A meandering path through mental illness and shots of a beautiful, giant planet, overtaking Earth. Duo sunrises, duo sunsets. And a wedding.
The slow, subtle death march to the end reminds of battles with cancer in the modern age. Still horrific, except there is a genuine optimism on how technology and modern science will save the cancer patient. Things start to look better, remission, hair grows back and then, from out of nowhere, it all returns, it’s spread, it’s grown bigger, it’s terrifyingly unwieldy. The modern age, with all its sciencey promise, fails. And in the end (of this film), we are all desperately afraid.
A Separation
(Iran) A story so small and specific, it is thoroughly universal. The viewer feels like an intimate voyeur – able to view every single small detail, all the cracks and unspoken conversations.
There is a laid back quality to the movie – it feels as if you are watching a real family’s life unfold (and unravel) in real time, all the while sensing a strong undercurrent of something big about to happen. And then you realize big things are already happening: a separation, a custody battle, dealing with a parent with Alzheimers, a conviction of murder, debilitating depression and unemployment. Nothing is overdone or overstated and still this film manages a surprising intensity throughout it all.
Super 8
(U.S.) The most commercial of my picks, definitely the biggest budget. An almost all-kid cast. How is this on my list?
It was entertaining – in an earnest, sincere way (i.e. there weren’t random cuts to gyrating teenagers or efforts to establish older characters as ‘hip’. Granted, it’s set in the 70s, but still) It has one of those magical coming-of-age qualities, reminding me of watching films like Jumanji and Jurassic Park growing up – where you want to watch it over and over again and aren’t severely disappointed when re-watching as an adult.
And of course, the effects are amazing.
Take Shelter
(U.S.) Quiet, haunting. Parallels to Melancholia in its attention to the gravity of mental illness and foreshadowing of the end of the world. Nightmares of a super storm and a scare of schizophrenia plague the protagonist, expertly portrayed by Michael Shannon.
Even in the midst of terrifying murmurations and visions of weightless furniture and trios of tornadoes, Shannon’s character attempts to hide it all away from friends, co-workers and especially from his wife (played by the new and wonderful Jessica Chastain) and deaf daughter – all the while building a military-grade shelter in his backyard.
The Trip
(U.K.) Very British. And surprisingly funny. A buddy/road trip film starring the ever-narcissistic Steve Coogan and the underdog Welsh comic, Rob Brydon. Think Sideways, except in documentary-style, Northern England instead of California and even less of a plot.
Dueling impersonations, drawn out to cringe-worthy lengths and still, somehow, surprisingly FUNNY. Their best: Michael Caine, Al Pacino, Anthony Hopkins. Their worst: Woody Allen and Dustin Hoffman. They can’t get the New York Jew down!
The Yellow Sea
(South Korea) I’m so happy to include a Korean film in this list. From the same director of The Chaser, comes this bloody, heart-wrenching story of one man’s desperate journey from China to South Korea to settle a gang leader’s debt and his private mission to find his estranged (somewhat dishonored) wife.
The protagonist, unassuming and dejected though he is, fights tooth and nail (and dismembered thumb!) to survive in this sepia-colored, jaundiced world. At one point he actually uses a large meat bone to clobber his enemies, often fighting off twenty or more men at a time. The viewer wants him to live, to surpass all highly ridiculous odds, knowing he has less than nothing to live for. This film boasts seemingly impossible chase sequences and still manages to unload an emotional heft, leaving the viewer weepy and exhilarated.
We Need To Talk About Kevin
(U.K.) Themes of red, shame and crippling horror throughout - I know I cannot properly describe this film, so I will say little.
Except
that it is brilliant and terrifying and leaves the viewer desperate to watch
sugary drivel immediately after leaving the theatre. Also, Tilda Swinton is excellent.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
P.S. Here are 6 documentaries that I saw in 2011, but don't want to write about because it would take too long. They are all, in their own very different ways, quite good:
Bobby Fischer Against the World
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
The Interrupters
Knuckle
Project Nim
Tabloid
* I watched way more television than I did movies in 2011 and consequently, couldn't eek out a 10th film to put on the list. Seems t.v. is more and more the writer's medium - so I was very consistently entertained (read: obsessed and taken over by) the quality of tv series I watched this last year.
Interesting and good selection of movies, they all had their unique interface with the audience.
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