10 Favourite Leonardo DiCaprio Performances

Today is Leonardo DiCaprio's 38th birthday. Even though he is a bit too "give me an Oscar" these days, he is still my favourite actor. I've seen most of his films, especially since I started my infatuation with him in 2009. Even though I wasn't around during Leo Mania (well, I was, but I was like two so that doesn't count), Leo has been plastered over my schoolbooks and walls and everywhere I could fit a piece of him. So I suppose that it is time for me to share a little love for my favourite performances of his, which I've whittled down to ten. Which was actually harder than I thought it would be. Here they are, ranked. And there's not Titanic.

The Basketball Diaries is a film I saw long ago, right in the throes of my obsession, and one which I haven't really thought about since I saw it. It stars a 20 year old Leo (and Mark Wahlberg, back in his Marky Mark days) as poet Jim Carroll, in his early years as a drug addicted teen. The film isn't all that fantastic - nor is it very memorable - but young Leo totally commands the screen as he stands on the precipice of becoming the next big teen thing. Which is why I adore him: he was quite a talented teen sensation.

Even though Inception is probably my favourite film of Leo's, I admit that this isn't really an actors film. There are a few scene-stealers, namingly Cillian Murphy's blue eyes and the teasing between Eames and Arthur, but Leo commands the screen from start to finish. It isn't his best "dead wife" performance, but it is damn good. Plus, his appearance in this spawned quite a few memes (where would life be without the Strutting Leo?!) and everyone started realising how unlucky he was when he wasn't one of the thousand Inception cast members called back for The Dark Knight Rises. Don't worry Leo, I still love you.

I remember when I first saw Blood Diamond - I was so shocked by how brutal it was. Time has passed since then and I've seen a lot more brutality on screen, but I still remember Leo's performance, which was also his last Oscar-nominated turn. As a person from NZ who already stakes a claim on having the worst accent in the world, I didn't know how authentic Leo's African accent was, but he tried. And he tries a lot during this movie, too. That's not to say that he doesn't succeed, because he's pretty badass in this.

You know how everyone my age goes on about people having "swag"? The ultimate swag-meister was Frank Abagnale, a guy who managed to pull off a whole lot of cons. Leo plays Abagnale in Steven Spielberg's Catch Me If You Can, bringing swag to a whole new level. He's having just as much fun as Abagnale did before he got, well, caught. One of the funniest things about this movie, however, stems from that whole "Bad Luck Leo" thing - he stars in a movie called Catch Me If You Can. Gets caught.

No, J. Edgar wasn't a good movie. Not even close. I saw the trailer and thought that this would be Leo's Oscar time. Then the reviews came in. Then I realised that Gary Oldman wouldn't get a nomination if Leo did (that was also when I thought Michael Fassbender would get nominated...good times). Then I started realising what a shameless Oscar campaign J. Edgar was. Then I started mocking the trailer at work. Then I saw the film. Leo should've got an Oscar nomination, but only if Michael Fassbender was in there too. Leo's work was actually pretty good, and definitely showed how serious this guy can get. Maybe he gets a little too serious, though...

Martin Scorsese's The Departed is a damn fantastic movie, featuring damn fantastic performances from one of the best ensembles we've had recently. It is hard to say who is the stand out (but I do have a soft spot for Mark Wahlberg in this movie), but Leo's performance as the on-edge Billy Costigan is wonderful. He's just got so much angst inside of him. And then there's that ending...

Leo's latest collaboration with Martin Scorsese, Shutter Island, was met with a pretty lukewarm reception, but I've seen love for his psychological horror grow. And I admit, I was one of those people who gave it a lukewarm reception in the beginning, but I absolutely adore it now. Leo's performance in this ended up getting overshadowed by the box office prowess of his other 2010 "dead wife" movie Inception and the fact that it was released so early in the year, but it deserved to be in contention in the 2010/2011 Oscar season. He plays Teddy Daniels beautifully, playing out all of the confusion that we feel as an audience.

Leo's performance in Revolutionary Road needs only to be summed up by one moment: the look he has at the end *SPOILER* when April dies. *SPOILER ENDS* Seriously, that devastated me more than anything I've ever seen in my life. While Kate Winslet seems to have got all the acclaim for her performance in this film, but Leo is just as good - if not better. It is a subtle performance, which ends up exploding at the end. It is actually quite frightening to watch, and it was definitely not the Titanic follow-up that people were hoping for.

I have loved The Aviator ever since I first saw it. Howard Hughes was a fascinating man, and this slick biopic was just as fascinating. What was even more fascinating was Leo's performance, which is so precise, slick and all encompassing. Leo totally immersed himself in the role, to the point that I could no longer see any trace of Leo in him. It was such a shame that he didn't get any more than that Golden Globe. But hey, in Leo terms, that's better than nothing.

My favourite performance of Leo's is one of his first ones. I've talked about it so much before, but his work in What's Eating Gilbert Grape is just amazing. Every positive adjective in the world wouldn't be enough to describe how great it is. He deserved that Oscar. Even if Ralph Fiennes also deserved it. That's like, the hardest match-up ever...then again, I see why they chose Tommy Lee Jones, because then they didn't need to choose between either of them.

Happy Birthday, Leo! Maybe an Oscar will be coming your way if you're extra amazing in Django Unchained? What are your favourite Leo performances?

Just coz that makes me LOL. Leo don't have time for your shit.

My Movie Biography: 2011 and How I Came to Love Jessica Chastain

(2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010) 2011. The bestest year ever. Well, in my life so far, but it is not like I have that many years to compare it to. It is kinda hard to write about a year so close to this one, but lemme tell ya, tomorrow is going to be even harder. Anyway, hope you're enjoying the series, and mark your calendars for Sunday. Big things are going to be happening!

• I went down to Wellington for a week with my best bud. It was fun. We went to the cinemas like, four times. I usually never go to the cinemas more than three times on my holidays (I know it is really bad, but hey, I'm in a big city, so how can I refuse that?) We went and saw Tron: Legacy (which we didn't really like), The Social Network (because somehow it was still in cinemas), Morning Glory and Unstoppable. It was so fun!
• One of the worst experiences I've ever had was watching Eat Pray Love when it was excruciatingly hot. That movie is by no means short. And it just does not stop. Ever. Okay it does, but it literally felt like I'd missed Christmas by the time it ended. 
• I get very nostalgic over that summer because I spent the entire thing to the tunes of The Social Network's soundtrack. Sometimes I just listen to 'Painted Sun in Abstract' and it takes me back to those happy times. And then I look outside and it has just started hailing for the fifth time (we are supposed to be in spring).
• That awards season was crazy. It was the first year I really got into it, even managing to watch all of the Best Picture nominees before the show. My love for certain movies changed so much during this awards season. First of all, I kinda resented The Social Network for being more popular than Inception. But what did I really expect? I thought that The Social Network was just gonna sail through and win everything. Then The King's Speech won the PGA. Everyone was now like "The King's Speech for Best Picture!" So I promptly realised that Inception wasn't going to win anything, I went and saw The King's Speech and thought it was pretty average, and then I became team The Social Network. From there on I became the biggest raging The Social Network fan on the planet. Every time I heard The King's Speech mentioned, I would fake gagging reflexes. I knew it was well over when The King's Speech won the SAG, but I refused to let go of the hope that The Social Network might take that award home. My friends and I gathered around the TV and watched The King's Speech win Best Picture. I may have cried.
  Those Oscars tore apart my life, man. Which I realise is pretty silly considering everyone in the blogging world hates the Oscars (seriously, they're still my favourite part of the year). Now I can tolerate The King's Speech, even though I still feel those twangs of pain whenever I hear it mentioned. As I said last night, I still can't decide between Inception and The Social Network being my favourite film of 2010. Ah, to look at things with a clear head...

My Movie Biography: 2010 - The Year of Christopher Nolan

(2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) 2010 was such a messed up year. I'm not sure why, but I'm pretty sure I changed my personality about 5000 times, and everyone else changed 5000 times, too. After that year, I kinda swore not to let much bother me, and just take everything a little less seriously. It seems to be working out so far. Anyway, 2010 as it was in movies:

• I went on my first actual plane ride! I went down to Christchurch, which as you know, was left devastated by two earthquakes which occurred late in 2010 and early in 2011. It was my absolute favourite place in New Zealand, mainly because of this DVD store they had there called "Alice in Videoland". Seriously, that place was magical. There were like, all of these themed room for the DVDs. Like, the horror/sci-fi room was all dark and scary. They had so many classic DVDs. The whole place was seriously like another world...kinda like how I imagine heaven. Plus, I'm pretty sure they had every DVD known to man. Yes, there's a huge difference between that DVD store and our DVD store. Unfortunately, it was damaged during the earthquake, but earlier this year it relocated and opened with an arthouse cinema. I'm definitely going down there as soon as I can afford it.
• I saw Avatar. I'm sure that was supposed to be one of those life-changing things, but it really wasn't. I'm no Avatar hater, but I'm pretty sure I was more excited over this special Avatar cup I got at the cinemas. Sadly, that cup has disappeared. 
• Say what you want about The Hurt Locker, but Kathryn Bigelow winning that Oscar for Best Director actually changed my life. Up until that moment, I had always wanted to be an actress. But when Kathryn Bigelow won that award, I realised how few female directors there were. And I thought, "why do something everyone else is doing? Let's be a director!" I still hold on to that stupid dream now, but don't expect me to be the next Bigelow.
• I did happen to win an Oscar that year. Okay, not a real one. I was a part of our school production and I won an "Oscar" for being the best performer in our group. Is this foreshadowing? 

A Christoper Nolan Retrospective/Appreciation Post

I make no secret that Christopher Nolan is my favourite director ever. Call me unworthy of a cinephile card, miseducated or just a fangirl, but before you unfairly throw those labels out, here my story of just why it is that I love the guy.

On July 30th, 2008, my friend and I went to see The Dark Knight. We were both super excited to see it, even though I hadn't even seen Batman Begins (and I didn't for another two years). I could tell you everything about that day until the very last detail. Mainly because it was an awesome day that ended with an awesome film. I hadn't had expectations for it, so I came out completely shocked by this new breed of superhero film. And when that title hit at the end...that's my favourite thing I've ever experienced in cinemas. I was obsessed with that film from the time I saw it, even bringing it along to school for everyone to watch. I was even more interested in the way it swept across the film nation, bringing everyone together in the harmony of Heath Ledger's masterful performance. Little did I know that at age 12, I'd inadvertently been introduced to the man that would change my cinematic life forever - none other than Christopher Nolan.

I became obsessed with the guy in 2010 when I was anticipating Inception like it was the air I needed to breathe. The funny thing was, at the very start of that obsession I had only seen The Dark Knight, which I backed up with The Prestige. Before I saw Inception, I saw every film of his apart from Insomnia, which I got for my birthday. However, the period in which Inception took over my life has to be one of my favourite periods of time in these near 17 years I've been alive. As you'll probably know, I saw the film three times in cinemas, and 14 other times on DVD. Those three times were magical, but I wish I could go back and see it for a first time again. Just the sheer brilliance of it, how shaken I was after it (I couldn't even eat my Burger King), and how my friend and I tried to sort out the plot on the whiteboard in maths the following day. Plus, I count the time I went to see it with most of my friends as my favourite birthday ever (well, it was two days after).

10 Favourite Cillian Murphy Performances...

Today is the wonderful Cillian Murphy's 36th birthday. Back in the dark ages of this blog, I had a HUGE obsession with the man. Like, I'm talking more than Ralph Fiennes obsessed. During that obsession, I managed to see pretty much everything he's been in, apart from maybe 3 or 4 films (which are impossible to find in NZ). He's a pretty brilliant actor, who has shown more diversity than the average Joe in the movie. As shown in my 10 favourite performances from the most underrated actor of our time:

10. Neil in Watching the Detectives

I guess you could say that Watching the Detectives is Cillian's only real foray into an out-and-out comedy. Unfortunately, this rom-com starring Lucy Liu isn't overly great - mainly because it is so insane. But Cillian still manages to be completely awesome as the lovesick puppy Neil, with his performance venturing into such over-the-top outlandishness that only he could possibly pull off. Plus, he plays my dream guy (he owns a video store, he knows lots about movies...what's not to like?) Hopefully he can get a better comedy soon, because I'd like to see the funny side of Cilly again.

The Short Life of an Oscar Hit

When Steven Spielberg got up to present Best Picture at last year's Oscars, he said this: "In a moment, one of these ten movies will join a list that includes On the Waterfront, Midnight Cowboy, The Godfather and The Deer Hunter. The other nine will join a list that includes The Grapes of Wrath, Citizen Kane, The Graduate and Raging Bull!" Among the films that joined the latter list were Inception, The Social Network, and Black Swan. The film that joined the former list was The King's Speech. Anyone remember that film? Does anyone still talk about it today in a conversation about something other than why it shouldn't have won? Has it left a mark on cinematic history? Does it deserve to be in a list that includes The Godfather? If you'd have asked the latter two questions this time last year, lots of people would have said yes. Now, reflecting on last year's Oscar season, most people would have given the award to anything but The King's Speech.

Here's the thing with awards season: everyone gets quite obsessed with a set of movies, and they're all that matters for a long time. The producers and advertising team manipulate you into thinking these are the best movies ever by drowning their TV spots in "WINNER OF..." "★★★★★!" "UP FOR X OSCARS!" They'll play the most epic orchestral music they can find, show you plenty of tears and hugs and sentiment. The posters won't be advertising the movie...they'll be advertising all the awards it has and the awards it is hoping to get. I am one of those people who does get easily manipulated by awards season advertising...I admit, I was taken in by the TV spots of The King's Speech with Colin Firth announcing "because I have a voice!", going as far to Facebook the quote and say that it was a magical movie. I loved seeing the triumphant looking advertisements for The Fighter and probably got more inspiration from them than I did from the actual movie. 127 Hours had me crying at the very mention of it's name amongst all of the Oscar buzz - not because it was bad, but it was exactly the type of human hardship movie that Oscar likes so much and that was manipulative. I spent around two months of last year talking non-stop about these movies. Now, they'd be lucky to get into the conversation.

It isn't because they're bad movies, because, in fact, I liked all of the ten nominees, and held at least five of them in particular high esteem, but there isn't really any burning need for me to keep talking about them now. Basically, my relationship with these movies ended long ago. With the exception of Winter's Bone (I do own it - I actually own all of the nominees - but just haven't got around to watching it again), I've seen each of last year's nominees at least twice. I watched them when they first came out, and then again when they came out on DVD. After their DVD release though, I haven't watched most of them again. In fact, the only ones that I've watched since then are Inception, Black Swan and The Social Network, three films which I loved to death and had their fair share of Oscar success, but didn't get the big prize. These are three films which I feel have lived out past the awards season and people still talk about them a bit today - and why is that? Inception for the multiple questions surrounding the plot and the big debate over the end, Black Swan for it's stirring look at how someone can transform and Darren Aronofsky's freaking awesome direction, and The Social Network for being one of the best modern movies ever, taking a look at the phenomenon that is Facebook. But what is The King's Speech? It tells a nice enough story about a King with a stutter who eventually overcame his fear, featuring splendid performances from Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter and Geoffrey Rush. Problem is, while I don't have much of a problem with the odd period biopic, they don't challenge cinema in any way. They're doing what has been done for ages, and yet they still get accolades. But once those accolades are over, people are unlikely to remember them, because they were too safe.

Let's take 2011, for example. With the Oscar nominations just around the corner, there'll be a lot of deserving movies that will be missing out. As I said in my review of The Descendants, it is a film that will be popular during awards season but people will forget about it just like that. I imagine that would be the same case for films like Moneyball or War Horse. However, Hollywood is showing a bit of a change - they're not so keen to support period biopics like The Iron Lady, J. Edgar or My Week with Marilyn unless it is for the performances at the front. There are a few odd films making their way into Oscar contention, like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (even though Fincher and Co. are trying everything they can to stop it from happening), shockingly an R-rated comedy, Bridesmaids, is making some waves and silent film The Artist is the front-runner to win Best Picture. I have to wonder whether this film might become another The King's Speech, even though it is silent and in black and white which provides a bit of difference, but other than that, is it really that special? Who knows?

2011 has been an odd year in cinema, which is most likely what it will be remembered for - and it would be nice if the Oscar nominations could reflect that as they become the first segment of cinematic history that people will look at in the future. Yet, I can't see the Academy showering love upon Terrence Malick's beautiful, polarizing The Tree of Life. Or what about Steve McQueen's NC-17 look at sex addiction in Shame? Or maybe the 'film event of a generation', the wonderful Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2? The wonderful Nikhat mentioned that 2011 was a nostalgia-filled year, with films like Midnight in Paris, Drive, Super 8 and Hugo...these are films that should stand the test of time because they realise times from the past and teach us modern people about them and what we can learn from them. I know it is impossible to accurately predict the future, but the Oscars shouldn't keep rewarding the best movies of the past two months and start thinking about the movies that will factor in as some of the best movies of all time.

I've always wondered how something like An American in Paris won Best Picture over A Streetcar Named Desire. Or Chariots of Fire over Raiders of the Lost Ark. Or Forrest Gump (a good movie) over the better The Shawshank Redemption and Pulp Fiction. Slumdog Millionaire over an un-nominated The Dark Knight. The King's Speech over The Social Network. And definitely Crash over Brokeback Mountain. I wonder which one of those films is remembered the most now.

The Oscars are an interesting thing - they get easily obsessed with one film, whether it be through the manipulative marketing or by the actual film. Then we all wonder how they could be so blind as to not nominate some great films. Of course, the Oscars aren't everything, but to relatively young newcomers to film-loving such as myself, they are the first records of what was good in year X that I'd go to. So I wonder what 2011 films will make it through the Oscars and into a long, prosperous life?

What do you think? Do you think Oscar hits are destined for a long life of being loved by the masses or do they end their lives quickly? Discuss.

16 Days of Birthday, Day 15: Movies that Mean Something to Me

Well we're nearing the end. Tomorrow I will be a legal 16 year old. Today I'm just a young 15 year old.Aren't birthdays just wonderful things?
For today's topic I've chosen something which I can get really sentimental over...the movies that mean something to me.What do I mean by this? The movies which I look at and have all of the sentiment for. To put it in simple terms these movies feel like pets to me. Nice fluffy ginger kittens if you want to get specific.

My first obsession with a movie.

Back in the early days of my interest in film I got a magazine which listed the top ten scariest horrors ever. I became obsessed with this page even though I never really had the balls back then to watch the movies on the list (although if I remember correctly I've probably watched at least half of them by now). One of the movies on that list that interested me the most though was Brian De Palma's 1976 classic Carrie. I was so interested by that iconic image of Sissy Spacek in a prom dress soaked in blood. So I got the movie out - this was probably in early 2007 - and watched it with my Mum. After that I was obsessed with the movie: I had to know every little detail of the movie and I read the book several times. The worst thing is that I don't even know why I was obsessed with the movie...

A movie which I have an undying love for.

Back in April 2008 I watched Gone with the Wind for the first time. At that point I didn't actually know that it was nearly 4 hours long so I was a little confused when it just stopped in the middle and then there was a little hand on the screen asking me to flip the disc over. That day I watched the whole thing thinking that I hadn't seen anything like it before. Truth is I still haven't seen anything that comes close to the sheer epicness and the masterful piece of film-making that it is. The technicolour is enchanting, the story is amazing and the acting is brilliance...it's truly one of a kind for me. It affected me so much that I made this huge booklet describing everything about the making of this movie (and no one, to this day, has ever seen it).

My favourite Christmas movie.

Some of you might like to watch a particular film on Christmas day. I usually catch The Wizard of Oz as it is always on TV that day. But the movie that I watch every year without fail is Meet Me in St. Louis. I don't really know why...it just fills me up with joy every time I watch it. My Christmas day just isn't the same without Judy Garland singing 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas', Tootie getting up to all sorts of mischief and the final scene showing the Saint Louis World's Fair. Rather than being like a fluffy ginger kitten, for me this is more like an old friend who likes to bring around honey all the time

The first movie that I ever blogged about.

This movie just so happens to be in my top ten favourite movies of all time. Back on October 21st, 2009, I started this blog by writing this review:

Today I watched a Swedish Horror movie called 'Let the Right One In' (2009). I'd heard many good things about this film, by reading reviews on imdb.com and in Empire magazine. This movie sure was great. You see, people tend to think that Twilight dominates the vampire genre, but it doesn't, not compared to this film. Sadly, I think people don't watch subtitled films because 'they're too hard to keep up with'. Well, this was the first subtitled film I'd ever watched, and I didn't find it hard at all. In fact, I completely forgot that the characters were talking in some language that sounded like gibberish. The story revolves around a young bullied boy, who meets a strange girl in the courtyard outside their block of apartments. The girl has a secret though...she's a vampire who feasts on the blood of innocent people in Stockholm. While watching this, I didn't feel that it was that freaky, but after thinking about it, it was quite a violent and sadistic film. I will remember this film forever as the best vampire film. Don't knock it until you've watched it.
10/10

If my reviewing skills haven't become any better since then, I sure do write a lot more! I love this film a lot more than I did back then, though, thanks to it's beauty and thrilling cross between horror and arthouse.

My favourite experience at the movies.

Technically, there are three favourite experiences that I've had, and they're all for the same movie. You probably already know what they are: the three times I watched Inception. It's pretty much impossible for me to choose which screening was my favourite. The first time was amazing, because well, it was my first viewing of the movie after months of anticipating it, and it turned out to top my expectations. I like the effect it had on me afterwards, too: I cried once the credits rolled and I was shaking for quite a while after leaving the cinema. The second time was cool because I got to take two more friends, and everybody started clapping at the end. The third time may have been the most fun because I got to take six friends with me for my birthday party. We had a grand old time, but the funniest thing was when the audience all got really pissed off at the end.
So I guess I should thank my friends for making those experiences awesome: Maxine (who saw it with me all three times), Kieran and Megan (who saw it with me twice), and Cassie, Tania and Georgia.

And, of course, my favourite movie...

Over the past few weeks, I've been thinking that Schindler's List might be my favourite movie, but I really can't place it over Christopher Nolan's Memento. While Memento may not be a film that I have watched that many times, nor a film which I feel like watching often, I still absolutely love it. I really do like movies that aren't in chronological order. Memento is the king of movies that aren't in chronological order. I always feel like I have this movie all figured out, but then I remember that it's going in the opposite direction to me and I have to figure it out all over again. Usually I forget small details that make this movie make sense, so it's always like watching a new movie for me. Such a rare trait that it possesses - and that's why I love it.

So what are some of your 'fluffy ginger kitten' movies?

16 Days of Birthday, Day 13: Music in the Movies

If you were to look through my iPod at the moment, you would be sad to find that I do not have any Justin Bieber. Or any of that rap crap that I am forced to listen to in ICT (i.e. a song that only has the words 'everybody in the club getting tipsy'). Or any emo screamo or whatever the hell it is called. If you were to judge me through my iPod, I think you would find that I'm not a normal teenager. Nor am I one of those hipster kids who only listen to indie music. Instead, at least 75% of my iPod is filled with songs from the movies, mainly full soundtracks.

I pretty much listen to my iPod every night, usually while I'm blogging, because I pretty much hate silence. And with all this movie music on my musical device, it all ties in, doesn't it? There are quite a few songs which I always have to listen to every time they come around on shuffle. Because everyday I'm shufflin'. And here they are:

According to iTunes, my most played song on my iPod is 528491 by Hans Zimmer off the wonderful Inception soundtrack. Now, all of you people probably love the track Time (more on that soon), but 528491 has to be my favourite. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: put this on your iPod, stick in your headphones, turn this song on full blast and close your eyes...it is more epic than the movie itself. The song has so many layers and it always reminds me of Cillian Murphy's eyes - mainly because this song is used while the camera is looking straight at him.

I'm also a huge fan of the track Time, don't worry. This song is so amazingly beautiful and it just adds more epicness to an already epic ending. To be honest, Time was probably the soundtrack to my latter half of 2010. I used to listen to it like five times a day.

The Social Network's soundtrack, composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, has quite a few songs on my most played list. The one that has been played the most is surprisingly track #14, Magnetic'. This is the one which is played during the first meeting between Sean, Mark, Eduardo and Christy Lee, even though in the movie it's given a bit more of an Asian vibe to fit with the sushi bar they're at. I don't know why I love this song so much...I think it is probably because it's so frustratingly fun, just like the character of Sean Parker.

There are so many other songs that I like from The Social Network, though. If I were to rank the songs on the album from best to worst, the list would go something like this:

1. Magnetic
2. In Motion
3. A Familiar Taste
4. Intriguing Possibilities
5. The Gentle Hum of Anxiety
6. Soft Trees Break the Fall
7. In the Hall of the Mountain King
8. Pieces Form the Whole
9. Painted Sun in Abstract
10. Penetration
11. Almost Home
12. Hand Covers Bruise
13. On We March
14. It Catches Up with You
15. Complications with an Optimistic Outcome
16. Eventually We Find Our Way
17. Hand Covers Bruise, Reprise
18. 3:14 Every Night
19. Carbon Prevails

Haven't listened to The Social Network soundtrack yet? You can do so on Youtube here. I reckon that this soundtrack is probably one of the best modern soundtracks out there...it's just so damn perfect for the movie!

The Black Swan soundtrack by Clint Mansell (inspired by the work of Tchaikovsky) is one which I bought pretty much straight after I watched the movie around Oscar time. While most of this score is basically Tchaikovsky's work, Mansell does some amazing things with it, such as playing the Swan Lake songs in a distorted manner and giving his own paranoid twist to them. Two of my particular favourites are:

Perfection - This song is probably my favourite because it is the exact music played from the time Nina kisses Thomas to the very end. And if you've seen the film, then you know the ending is pretty damn epic, but still very beautiful. In five minutes, this song seems to capture every emotion that little Nina could possibly be going through at that point. Which makes for an amazing, heart-stopping and pretty song which is the perfect end to an almost perfect film.

Opposites Attract - Okay, so this song is the one that is played during that sex scene between Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis. But it is also the song which is played in the trailer, which I heard a lot when I was at work, therefore my ears really warmed to the song. It's a pretty cool song which has this really weird strain of evil in it...very good, very good.

In Kick-Ass there were two very awesome John Murphy songs which were incidentally both in Danny Boyle movies.

The first is Kaneda's Death, Pt. 2 (Adagio in D Minor), which is from one of the most underrated movies ever, Sunshine. It can be seen in Kick-Ass when Hit-Girl is trying to save Big Daddy...what an epic moment. If any of you keep up with the trailers, then you'll probably recognise it from The Adjustment Bureau's trailer. This is one stirring song which always makes me feel like someone on the moon bouncing around. Don't judge me.

The second in In the House - In a Heartbeat, from the scene where Jim is trying to save himself and his friends. The song starts out all nice, but then it goes totally badass at the end making for the perfect track to go with any action sequence. Which is shown in Kick-Ass, too, as this song is used in a scene which nearly made me forgive Nicolas Cage for all of his past mistakes: the one where he is setting fire to the warehouse. So badass.

Another Clint Mansell song that I really like is Lux Aeterna from Requiem for a Dream. Of course, this song is pretty much a staple for any movie lover as it is now used everywhere. But who remembers it in Requiem? That traumatic piece of music backing an already traumatic scene. While I'd like to blame Darren Aronofsky for wrecking my life forever after watching that movie, I think it's all Mansell's fault. This song still terrifies me.

The Theme from Schindler's List is a particular favourite of mine, too. Well, obviously, since the movie just so happens to be one of my favourites and John Williams' score work couldn't have been more impeccable. With Itzhak Perlman playing the violin, Williams manages to put every shred of pain, sadness and the heroism from Oskar Schindler into this achingly beautiful piece of music. It always makes me feel like crying, usually because when I hear this song I always think of Oskar saying "I could have done more!"

And just for randomness, here are some songs which I like that just so happen to be in movies (but they're not from scores or anything like that):


Sweet Disposition by The Temper Trap - from (500) Days of Summer


Black Sheep by Metric - from Scott Pilgrim vs. the World


Hero by Regina Spektor - from (500) Days of Summer


Letters from the Sky by Civil Twilight - from I Am Number Four (movie sucks, the song is amazing)


I'll Try Anything Once by The Strokes - from Somewhere


Where is My Mind? by The Pixies - from Fight Club


La Boquilla (Dixone Remix) by Bomba Estereo - from Limitless


Stand Up by The Prodigy - from Kick-Ass


Little Green Bag by George Baker Selection - from Reservoir Dogs


You've Got Me Wrapped Around Your Little Finger by Beth Rowley - from An Education

What are some of your favourite pieces of music from the movies?

16 Days of Birthday, Day 8: Social Networking and Movies

I feel as if I have done way too many posts in this marathon which are just lists. So why not ramble on a bit today? After all, it's Sunday, there's a 'snow storm' headed our way, and I'm very tired. Therefore, rambling sounds good to me.

Anyone remember when I did this post back in May? It was all about the war between Avatar, the highest grossing movie of all time, and The Hurt Locker, the little war movie that 'robbed' it of the Best Picture Oscar. But that wasn't the only war I talked about in the post. There was a bit of hate going around for The Hurt Locker, which came in the form of Facebook 'like' pages. Which just goes to show that people now have a new platform to unleash their hate towards a movie on...even though it is so so wrong.

Okay, so you all know me. I'm a teenage girl, on the cusp of reaching the legal age, who spends a fair amount of her time lurking around the internet. The essential websites I can be found on most are: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr and of course, Blogger. Now these are all websites that don't deal with movies specifically, unlike IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. In those places, it's perfectly natural to unleash a bit of negativity towards a movie, because those sites are based around people's opinions towards a movie. Blog sites are made for opinions too. Most of the movie-related comments on YouTube are spammers anyway, going on about "how great the van dropping off the bridge in a layer of dream" was in Legion. Twitter is pretty good to the movie lovers. Facebook is the one social networking site I have a real problem with.

Okay, maybe I just have a problem with those damn 'like' pages. Like, seriously? Why would you even 'like' a page just to say you hate a movie? Actually, why would you even go to all that effort to make a page like that? I think it's just ridiculous.

Let's go back to the Avatar and The Hurt Locker war on Facebook. I'll start by saying this: I like The Hurt Locker a lot more than Avatar. Yes, that probably makes me one of those 'film snobs' in the Facebook like page maker's eyes. But I do have to agree that Avatar did something great with film-making, and I guess the fact that it lost Best Picture to a tiny movie that most people hadn't even heard of was pretty...er...surprising. However, I can't imagine these Facebook page makers would even really care that much about the Oscars. They only cared in this situation because they'd never heard of The Hurt Locker (and probably hadn't seen it before the Oscars) and pretty much everyone on Earth has seen Avatar. There are a lot of people who love Avatar to death, and everything else just looked inferior compared to it. So no, its not a matter of 'hating' The Hurt Locker itself. Its a matter of resenting the fact that the cat got beaten by the mouse...or something like that.

On the flipside, Tumblr is a site which tends to over-love a movie. When I first got myself an account on there, it was back in July last year, which just so happens to be when Inception was first released. You think I was obsessed with this movie? You should have seen the people on Tumblr! First came the many memes...the 'Strutting Leo' (as pictured to the right), the 'squinting Leo', the 'we need to go deeper'...the list is just endless. Some of them were really funny, I admit, but they quickly got old. The next thing was the many 'ships'. Now, if you're not up with the 'hip kids on the internet' lingo, a 'ship' is a relationship between two characters in the same movie that is endorsed by a person on the internet. In Inception, there are a lot of characters, so there were plenty of 'ships' to go around. There were the generic ones like Cobb and Mal, Arthur and Ariadne, and Yusuf and his cats. But the ship that was endorsed the most was one between Arthur and Eames. Out of this ship came many gifs, many graphics involving the two and even rather graphic artworks. You know, I've never seen anything like the Arthur and Eames ship. It spiralled out of control, and it was a little bit embarassing after a while. Ever since then, not one movie can escape these kinds of 'ships'. But nothing, absolutely nothing can beat the amount of fandom that Inception got on Tumblr (except for maybe Harry Potter).

There have been plenty of other movies to get all of this fandom. The Social Network had the famous ship between Mark and Andrew. Along with that, you could pretty much watch the entire movie in gifs on there because every line was so quotable. X-Men: First Class has had a little ship between Erik and Raven, and a huge ship between Erik and Xavier. Plus, the Tumblr universe has gone mad on Michael Fassbender, mainly comparing him to a shark because of his rather big smile (it's the 'new thing' to be one of Fassy's teeth). One of the newest ships that has just rolled around is for a movie that hasn't even been released yet: The Avengers. Which lucky superheroes get a ship? Captain America and Iron Man. Which is weird, considering Iron Man is Howard Stark's son, who like, gave Cap his powers.

So I'm going to wrap this up now since it's snowing in Dannevirke properly for the first time in eight years and I'm too excited to form coherent sentences. Social networking has it's ups for the movie industry...people have the power to easily tell people what they like and dislike about a movie without being a critic. But most of the time, social networking is a place where people can either unleash their hate in an extremely unhealthy way, or obsess over a movie in an unhealthy way. Either way, I'll just stick to my blogging.

What do you think about the relationship between social networking and movies?

16 Days of Birthday, Day 1: My Undying Love for Christopher Nolan

What's this '16 Days of Birthday' business? Well well, seeing as this time in 16 days, I'll officially be 16 whole years old (or as we all like to call it, 'legal'), I thought that I might celebrate. Because, after all, I've been waiting to be 16 since bloody ages ago. Why? When I'm 16, I'll be able to get out R16 movies. But how will I be celebrating, especially on the blog? By giving you a special post each day for the next 16 days, ending the marathon on my birthday. Each day I'll pick something new to talk about. This new topic will be something cool that I've found in my love for movies...consider this like my premature autobiography. So, who's ready for 16 days of rambling? Come on, don't all rush in at once!

Today's topic is that of my main man, Christopher Nolan. As some of you may or may not know, I quite like the man and his work. 'Obsessed' would have been a more apt term to describe my admiration for him this time last year, with the release of Inception and all. This year, I've toned down my love for him quite a bit, but I still enjoy the occasional rewatch. No, I'm not one of the obsessors who feels the need to post about every little piece of news that comes out of The Dark Knight Rises. Even I admit, apart from the recent Ane Hathaway and Tom Hardy set pics and, I suppose, the slightly disappointing trailer, I roll my eyes at just about every little detail that is surfaced on the web. It will only be when I see Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard on set, plus a better trailer that I will actually start shitting bricks over it.

Alas, I do quite enjoy the films he has made that have been released. So much so that three of his films are in my top 5 (though there has been a bit of shuffling around since I did my last list, so I wouldn't know where his films stand now), which a lot of you seemed to frown upon. I'm sorry that I'm a simple girl with simple taste, and I guess I am 'brainwashed' into liking Nolan films.

Let's take The Dark Knight, for example. I saw this in the cinemas with my friend mainly because I loved Heath Ledger dearly and this was his final completed film. It actually took me just about two years after watching this to watch Batman Begins. But even with my zero interest in Batman or anything like that, I still thoroughly enjoyed The Dark Knight. This is probably because I thought all superhero movies were meant to be as cheesy as anything, looked cheap and were pretty much brainless. The Dark Knight, however, was the complete opposite to my pre-conceived thoughts. There were times in that first screening when I was completely lost in the screen, forgetting that I was in a cinema, and even better yet, I forgot that it classified as a superhero movie.

Another thing I remember about The Dark Knight was how well-received it was as soon as it opened. I remember seeing it shoot straight up to number one on IMDb's Top 250...a move which puzzled me and still puzzles me to this day, but I'm still proud of what it achieved in such a short time. Especially seeing as it was a sequel. I think it improved so much on the first, which came down to many things: everything getting a shade darker, Maggie Gyllenhaal arriving on the scene, one of the best performances ever by Heath Ledger...it really changed things, as you've noticed a whole lot of superhero movies trying to be dark and moody, but ultimately failing to do what Christopher Nolan achieved.

One thing that never fails to piss me off, though, is how this film was forgotten over the more 'Oscar-bait' movies. Yes, there were some good movies made in 2008. But the Academy made all sorts of stuff ups everywhere. The Dark Knight was nominated for many technical awards, winning one for Sound Editing. Heath Ledger was justly given a posthumous Oscar for his amazing performance. However, the movie was missing from the Best Picture, Director and Screenplay races. Had the Best Pic race been opened up to 10 back then, TDK would have got in. But I'm sure people have already forgotten about the likes of Frost/Nixon and The Reader. TDK lives on, in it's small way, influencing other superhero movies and giving people the smart movie they need. I just need to think of the closing speech and I get goosebumps.

Oh well, there's just something about Chris Nolan and the Oscars. I was at the head of the hate crew when he got snubbed this year for his work with Inception. I was also at the head of the hate crew when his screenplay, which was pretty much the definition of 'original' didn't get picked and The King's Speech, with it's 'original' screenplay did. Anyway, those wounds have healed, and I've moved on. Especially since some great directors never won an Oscar in their lives...even though everyone knew they were the best.

I don't really know why I love Chris Nolan so much. I just find his movies something...special. Following was a marvel, considering it was made for $6000 and was still completely awesome. Memento, probably my favourite movie of all time, always feels new every time I watch it...it's like I've lost my memory, just like Leonard. That is truly Nolan's masterpiece. Insomnia, though a remake and not written by Nolan, had a very insomniac kinda feel to it. Batman Begins began the new way superhero movies were supposed to be, kick-ass while still being intelligent. The Prestige is exactly like a magic trick: once you know the outcome, everything becomes blindingly obvious (seriously, that movie is trippy). The Dark Knight...well, we've already talked about that. Inception, of course, is exactly like a dream. Finally, someone has come along and injected his original ideas into a dying Hollywood. He's playing the game that the likes of Michael Bay is playing, but he's doing it so much better.

2012, The Dark Knight Rises will be hitting cinemas. Can Nolan really cap off such an epic trilogy with style and make it be as good as the other two? Who knows. But I've got to say, I completely trust Nolan. He's a guy who doesn't think the sun shines out of his ass, who doesn't seem to think much of his immense talent, who has a profound knowledge of cinema, who knows his limits, and who is just an amazing bloke. Is that why I love him? Probably.

So, have you got any film-making idols you just think are all-out amazing? Do tell!

It's been a year since I first saw Inception...time for 52 things I love about Inception!

I find it hard to believe that this time a year ago, I was sitting in the cinemas after months of watching the trailers over and over again, having mini heart attacks every time the word 'Inception' was uttered, watching every other Christopher Nolan flick, and then spending this day shaking excitedly at school, because every minute gone was a minute closer to seeing the film. Just so you know, this was the only time I've ever been so excited over a films release, and yes, even I admit I was a bit obsessed. But do you know what the best thing was? The film topped my sky-high expectations. Which is probably why, after 365 days and nearly 15 watches, I still absolutely love this movie. It hasn't been just a 'film' for me, it's actually meant a lot to me.

So, if you don't like Inception, go to the left. This is my time to share 52 reasons why I think this movie is amazing, and I don't really want any crap comments ruining it. I get that it isn't as good as what it was a year ago...even I don't find it as amazing as I did. But, you know, I still love it to bitty bits. Okay, are we good? I hope so.

Anyway, here we go, 52 reasons why I love Inception (one for every week since my first viewing, not in any order either):

1. "You mustn't be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling."

2. All of the totems

3. ...but especially the cheeky one at the end.



4. Blasting up '528491' in my headphones at full volume, because that is freaking epic.

5. Cillian Murphy crying.

6. Arthur's wardrobe.

7. This is completely original Nolan - not adapted Nolan.

8. Oh yeah, and this is directed by Nolan. 

9. Yusuf. You should never forget Yusuf and his crazy driving skills and his cats.

10. That spinning hallway scene.

11. Cobb is the director, Arthur is the producer, Ariadne is the production designer, Eames is the actor, Saito is the studio, and Fischer is the audience.

12. Michael Caine's in it for like three minutes and he still gets top billing.

13. When Cobb finally shoots Mal.

14. The fact that 'Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien' is my alarm and it's the best alarm ever.

15. Even the posters are awesome.

16. Tom Hardy.

17. Ellen Page shooting Marion Cotillard because of the 2008 Oscars.

18. The suit porn.

19. This film required a food stylist and an assistant food stylist...(When I found this out, I actually listed all of the food in the movie. Hell, if this means you can take part in a Nolan flick, I want to be a food stylist.)

20. It won as many Oscars as The King's Speech.

21. This is the third Nolan flick that Cillian Murphy has spent a considerable amount of time hidden beneath a cloth sack.



22. The track 'Time' which is at the end of the soundtrack. Simply beautiful

23. The name Ariadne. 

24. "You're waiting for a train. A train that'll take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you. But you can't know for sure. Yet it doesn't matter. Because we'll be together."

25. When the little kids finally turn around so Cobb can see their faces.

26. Saito and his carpet.

27. Blowing up Paris. Because that's a cool way to get friends.

28. Oh, and folding over Paris. Because that's a cool way to get an architect.

29. "Un café! Un café!" - That's how you try an disguise yourself in a chase through Mombasa.

30. The awkward moment when Ariadne finds out Cobb's wife is actually dead.

31. Pete Postlethwaite. Always great.

32. "I bought the airline...it seemed neater."

33. The Eames/Arthur relationship.

34. Fischer's many 'bitch, please' looks.

35. Ooooh, freight train in the middle of the street.

36. Finding out the real story about Cobb and Mal.

37. When Eames turns into a chick. Hahaha.

38. "Paradox."

39. The world that Cobb and Mal built. I can see myself living there.

40. When the van hits the water. 

41. The looks exchanged with Cobb as he walks through the airport.

42. "I know you were disappointed, that I couldn't be you." "No no no. I was disappointed that you tried."

43. Saito's aged look.

44. The fact that it wasn't made in 3D.

45. Mal's dress in the Japanese castle scene.

46. In fact, that castle was beautiful.

47. It's a family affair: Nolan's cousin plays the flight attendant, and his son plays Mal and Cobb's son when he is 20 months.

48. The fact that I can't say 'defibrillator'...but I do like their defibrillator.

49. Arthur's good driving skills.

50. Fischer's wallet has $500 in it, and the wallet is worth more than that.

51. The way the movie starts.

52. The way the movie ends. The screen goes black, the audience gets pissed off, and then the track 'Dream is Collapsing' starts as the title comes up. And then Christopher Nolan's name comes up, and I always cry because I can never be like him.

So there are 52 reasons why I love this amazing film, which has been with me for a year. Why do you like it?