Okay, so I won't be able to do one of those fancy lists that has every awardsy movie in there. Why? Two reasons: 1) Most of them don't come out here until next year. 2) I don't often go to the cinemas because they are so far away and there are probably age restrictions on them meaning I can't watch them until they come out on DVD. It will be so much easier next year when I have my restricted drivers license so I can drive myself everywhere and when I am 16 so I'll be able to legally watch most of these movies.
Anyway, I haven't seen such films as
Black Swan, The King's Speech, The Fighter, 127 Hours, The Kid's are All Right...the list goes on. But what I have seen you will find on here. I'll give you the best of each genre, some overrated films, some underrated films and some really bad films. Beware...I haven't seen a lot.
BEST DRAMA
Yeah, I'm a huge fan of
The Social Network. I don't mind if it sweeps up every award at the Oscars. I was so interested in the story of Facebook before I had even heard of this movie, so seeing it all come to life was just amazing for me. The way Aaron Sorkin wrote it--as what could have possibly been a highly intelligent thriller--made the movie what it was. Hearing Jesse Eisenberg drone out his words in complete monotone was music to my ears. On that topic, Eisenberg has really grown into a proper actor with this role. Who would have thought that awkward lanky nerd would be an Oscar nominee (well I'm guessing he will be)? And where did Andrew Garfield come from? Thank God he's arrived on the scene. Justin Timberlake quashes all those thoughts on how a musician can't act. Complete with superb direction from David Fincher and an amazing score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross,
The Social Network is the movie event of the year.
BEST ACTION
Does this need an introduction? Ever since I first laid eyes on
Inception back on July 22nd, I fell head over heels for it. And since getting it on DVD and watching it eight times, I think it's fair for me to say that
Inception was my favourite film of the year. I still love it, even though most critics have forgotten about it. Truth is,
Inception will probably live on a lot longer than the likes of
The Social Network because it is so creative and original, and
that ending sticks in your mind long after you have watched it. Christopher Nolan has topped his efforts on
The Dark Knight (even though that remains as my favourite film of all time), and now we just have to wait and see if he can top those two with
The Dark Knight Rises in 2012. Should be all in a days work for the guy.
BEST COMEDY
While
Kick-Ass is probably recognized as an action film, I thought it was simply the funniest thing I had seen all year. I am totally obsessed with this movie. It's so gloriously violent, crazily colourful and all out entertaining that I couldn't help but fall in love with it. That probably all comes down to a nerdy Aaron Johnson, a fellow nerdy Christopher Mintz-Plasse, a sweet but outrageous Nicolas Cage, a wickedly evil Mark Strong, and, well, a fantastically talented Chloe Moretz. With all the foul-mouthery and raunchiness of a general R-rated comedy, plus all the violence one could hope for,
Kick-Ass was 2010's major win.
BEST HORROR
I don't generally watch a lot of horrors, though mostly every one I have watched this year has been crap (see further down the list). However, one--which is probably more along the lines of sci-fi--which stood out for me was
Splice. Despite the fact that it was so stuffed up, I really enjoyed it, and thought it was a stunning piece of modern cinema with great performances from Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley. Edgar Wright, the director of
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, put this on
his list of underrated movies of 2010, and said this:
"This film was awarded a Cinemascore of F on the basis of two audience losing sex scenes that caused audible ‘What the fuck’ cries when I saw it in the cinema. I applauded them. This is a great twisted little piece of science fiction that deserved to be lauded for its smarts and guts." I couldn't agree more. While it does cause a few jaw dropping moments,
Splice is still damn good.
BEST THRILLER
By now every one has probably forgotten about Martin Scorsese's delayed thriller
Shutter Island, but it still deserves it's place on here. While it wasn't as good as I expected it to be, it was definitely edge-of-your-seat stuff, with a thrilling conclusion that was nothing but utter mindfuck. Featuring another superb and underrated performance from Leonardo DiCaprio, along with fine showings from man-of-the-moment Mark Ruffalo, Michelle Williams and Ben Kingsley,
Shutter Island was a powerhouse of fun and pulpy horror blended in with a twisty thriller, and I applaud Scorsese for his achievements.
BEST ANIMATED
I don't think I have ever cried so much in a movie as I did at the end of
Toy Story 3. It was a bittersweet farewell to those lovely toys I grew up with, and a pleasant reminder that Pixar will always make the best animated films. No other animated movie could come close to the greatness of this one, because no other animated movie could possibly capture the poignant moments or heart warming scenes that this one parades so well. Are we ready to say goodbye to Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang? Hmmmm...I don't know.
WORST FILM
Yay! A remake of
A Nightmare on Elm Street! Because we soooooooooo needed one of them! Jeez, this movie was a mess. From it's unbelievable gore to it's generally laughable script and everything in between, it was awful. I feel sorry for Jackie Earle Haley, who may have put his all in, but he ain't no Freddy Kruger. And poor Rooney Mara. On her way to becoming a well respected actress in
The Social Network and on to being Lisbeth Salander: version 2.0, she had to star in this crap. I don't hate it, it just could have been a hell of a lot better.
OTHER BAD FILMS FROM 2010:
The Last Song, Open House, Prince of Persia: the Sands of Time, The Bounty Hunter, Tooth Fairy, Legion, Killers, Eclipse, The Karate Kid, Clash of the Titans, Sex and the City 2, Dear John, Green Zone.
MOST OVERRATED FILM
I feel liked I should have loved
I Am Love, considering European films which focus more on style are somewhat of a specialty for me. But I just couldn't. I found it generally boring (I hate using the word 'boring' to describe a film, but it really was). Yes, the aesthetic appeal of it was amazing, but it certainly wasn't as stunning or as triumphant as many made it out to be. I think this was because the film was lacking in story and felt genuinely unstructured, leading up to a ludicrous ending which only just won my attention. Tilda Swinton was undeniably gorgeous in this movie, and spoke Italian like she had been speaking it all her life, but even her dedication couldn't save this movie from the melodramatic soap it really was.
MOST UNDERRATED FILM
Last week I gave
Cemetery Junction another look, and I fell in love with it. It's actually gut-bustingly funny, but moreso the movie is entirely true. The characters all represent that part of becoming an adult, which makes it so great. Add in appearances from Ricky Gervais (co-writer and director), Matthew Goode and a fierce Ralph Fiennes, and this movie has got it made.
Cemetery Junction made me so happy, but also so sad that not many people have seen this British delight. Either way, it's bloody good and deserves some more audience.
BEST OVERALL FILM
This beast of nature deserves my highest honour as best film of 2010. Well done,
Inception, you may not win Best Picture at the Oscars, but that doesn't stop you from being the actual best picture of the year. Now, Nolan, I expect to see you at the top of this list again in 2012!
HONOURABLE MENTIONS...OTHER GREAT MOVIES OF THE YEAR
What were your top movies this year? Drop a comment...I'd love some recommendations for when we finally get some more movies!
