So 2011 is over. A lot happened; I saw a lot of TV and a lot of films so in the next couple of entries I’m going to have a look back at some of my favourite bits of 2011.
Today, my top 5 favourite films of 2011.
But before we start the list proper, some honourable mentions
‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2’
I never actually wrote about this one after I’d been to see it. I wrote about my general love of the books and films but I didn’t review it (if you can call this collection of waffley film based blog entries ‘reviews’) and there is a good reason for that.
I can’t include it in the main list because I can’t look at any of the Harry Potter films objectively. I have tried, god knows I have tried, but all I see when I look at those films is the boy wizard whose story I love and have given years of my life to.
There are things wrong with this (it travels at breakneck speed which is fun in the first half but for me, doesn’t take enough time to mark the deaths of certain characters, and it’s DARK, not just thematically, I mean actually dark, which strains your eye) but I just can’t think badly of it. Radcliffe, Grint and Watson have blossomed into very good actors, it’s action packed, full of emotion (I continuously, silently cried for at LEAST the last hour) and there are a few triumphant moments where I actually had to stop myself punching the air and shouting “FUCK YEAH!” It served as a fitting end to the collection of stories I have loved so much.
Also deserving of a nod are ‘Submarine’, ‘Third Star’, ‘Rango’, ‘The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn’, ‘The King’s Speech’, ‘Attack the Block’, ‘Source Code’, ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’, ‘Bridesmaids’ and ‘Drive’, all of which very nearly made it into the top five and are well worth your time.
So now my Top 5 Films of 2011…
5 - Tangled
As if this wasn’t going to feature in my top 5?!?! I know I’ve said it before but I love Disney and I think ‘Tangled’ is a wonderful example of what they are capable of in the 21st century. I received no fewer that seven Disney classic DVDs for Christmas and I’m pleased to say this sits very comfortably alongside all of them. Aimed squarely at a younger audience (more so than 2010’s ‘Princess and the Frog’), I really really enjoyed it. Some lovely songs, a proper villain and an adorable Princess, what I love most is that it embraces new digimation technology whilst keeping the spirit of hand drawn animation. There are some fabulous set pieces (the lantern scene in particular is breath taking) and it holds you captive till the end (hopeless romantic that I am, I love a ‘happily ever after’). ‘Tangled’ is fully deserving of its place in the Disney firmament.
4 – Tinker, Tailor Soldier Spy
Knowing nothing (and I mean NOTHING) about the plot before hand I found ‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy’ an absolute revelation. It is beautiful; every single frame looks as though someone spent hours lovingly making sure everything was in the right place and the right light, cold and sharp like an icicle (or Benedict Cumberbatch’s gorgeous cheekbones). The characters are so restrained, Gary Oldman as George Smiley is the pinnacle of this and a marvellous job he does too. It’s all about buttoning it up, squashing it down and keeping that most British of stiff upper lips. I came out of the screening in a bit of a daze, my mind absolutely whirring with the complexity of it all, it’s so refreshing to see a film that doesn’t spell it all out for you. A thoroughly British spy film, I loved it.
3 - Thor
Oh Mr Hemsworth! The things you do to me! What top 5 would be complete without my favourite Norse God?!?! I LOVED ‘Thor’! We all knew it was happening (what with the traditional Marvel post-credits teaser at the end of ‘Iron Man 2’) and I’ll be the first to put my hands up and say I had the fear when I found out. It is far and away the most ‘out there’ of the core Marvel stories (Norse, Space Prince is banished to earth with his magic hammer and falls for an astrophysicist, that old Chestnut…) and I was worried they’d make a mockery of it. However, what we were given is a brilliant example of Superhero movie done to its full potential. The mental-ness of it is all part of the fun. Kenneth Branagh was clearly having the time of his life and that shines through in his direction. Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston and Anthony Hopkins are all in fine form with this almost Shakespearean tale of the ultimate dysfunctional family. It’s possibly my favourite Marvel adaptation to date.
2 - Never Let Me Go
Cast your minds back to 14th February 2011. Valentine’s Day. You may have been with your significant other, having dinner, going out, doing romantic, lovely things. Want to know where I was? I was in the
It’s sad, I’ve never suggested otherwise, but it certainly isn’t depressing or cold. There is so much emotion in this film that at times it almost hurts. Just because the characters don’t vocalise everything doesn’t mean they don’t feel and I will have serious words with anyone that suggests otheriwse.
Demonstrating that sometimes the most reined in performances can elicit the biggest responses, the heartbreaking power of ‘Never Let Me Go’ is entirely down to its cast. Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield and Keira Knightly give their best performances to date and Sally Hawkins, in an all too fleeting role as Miss Lucy, is quietly brilliant.
Based on Kazuo Ishiguro's novel, this Science Fiction, alternate reality, drama is wonderful for so many reasons. I urge you to seek it out.
1 - Senna
This has got to be my number 1 for the year. I haven’t seen anything that has stayed with me like this has. It is joy of a film. A portrayal of a passionate man, his love of his sport and his tragic demise. It is proof (if proof were needed) that documentary film making can be as engaging, action packed and as moving as any work of fiction, if not more so, irrespective of (and in some cases in spite of) its subject matter. An absolute master class in editing and ne’er a talking head to be seen, ‘Senna’ breathes life into a form of film making that the mainstream considered dead. It deserves to win a metric-fuck-tonne of awards and be hailed as the cinematic high water-mark of 2011. I fell in love with it back in June and have been raving about it ever since. Beg or borrow a copy if you haven’t seen it already, you won’t regret it.
This list is purely based on my very subjective cinematic year, there are LOADS of things that have come out in 2011 that I wanted to see but haven’t been able to, X-Men: First Class, 50/50, Red State, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Skin I Live In, Tyrannosaur, Hanna, The Ides of March, Super 8, Crazy Stupid Love, Jane Eyre, We Need to Talk about Kevin and many more. If you’ve seen these or indeed anything else I’ve neglected to mention and think it deserves a place on the list please leave a comment fighting its corner :-)
As for 2012 there’s so much stuff to look forward to, it’s a smorgasbord of celluloid nerdy-ness! The big 5 I’m looking forward to in 2012’s cinematic calendar are ‘The Muppets’ (38 DAYS TO GO!), ‘The Avengers’, ‘Prometheus’, ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ and ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ (me and my Dad welled up when we saw this trailer, no joke, actual tears).
If there’s anything you like the look of (bearing in mind if you say ‘The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2’ you and I can no longer be friends…) then drop me a comment below :-)
I should be back in a couple of days with my round up of all the best telly from 2011 (aka, which boxsets you should be buying in the January sales…).
Goodbye till next time :-)
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