#10 The Secret World of Arrietty
Based on The Borrowers, this is a film by Hiromasa
Youebayashi (Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke). Although
this has a more straight-forward story, it has much of the style and pace of
his earlier films. It’s hard to find a G-rated movie of any significance and
this one does the trick.
#9 Chronicle
A found-footage film that
actually presents a new angle on the style. This is the story of Andrew, a
social outcast who suffers at home with an abusive father and a dying mother.
He and his cousin Matt, along with a popular student named Steve find a strange
object underground that gives all three of them superhuman powers. The powers surface
on a subtle level, but quickly grow as the three young men use their new
abilities more and more. At first, it is all for fun, but the corruption of
power begins to take them down a darker path.
#8 Hitchcock
If you loved the movie Psycho, you might love the story of how
it came to be. Alfred Hitchcock and his wife Alma are basking in the success of
North by Northwest, but Hitchcock’s
new project is considered too risky. This film focuses on their relationship as
husband and wife, but also as director and producer. For any movie buff, this
is an intriguing story of what happened behind the scenes of one of the most
famous movies ever made.
#7 Skyfall
Casino Royale rebooted 007 in a big way, then the effort kind of dozed off in Quantum of Solace (still a pretty good
movie, but not great). With the third Daniel Craig as James Bond film, they’re
back on track. Action, action, plus some more action. There are plenty of
inside jokes for the old-school fans and plenty of fresh new angles for the
newer fans. The title alone has an unexpected depth that suggests the series
may still be going strong.
#6 Les Miserables
Beautiful story, incredible
music, amazing performers. Finally, someone has captured the musical for the
screen and did an amazing job. Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and Amanda
Siegfried can really sing. Russell Crowe got some flack for his singing, but I
thought he did a really good job. Highlights included “I Dreamed a Dream” and
“Empty Chairs and Empty Tables.” The standard crowd will find this solid
musical awkward, but fans of this tale will be almost relieved that Hollywood pulled
this off without embarrassing anybody.
#5 The Hobbit
As the little brother of The Lord of the Rings, this story has
some big shoes to fill, but this little brother of a film turned out to be
relatively disappointing in spots and downright silly in others. It’s as if
George Lucas wandered onto the set. Some of the low points were clearly
intended to capture the giggles of younger audience members. For the rest of
us, we merely cringed. But even with these flaws, it was fun to see the story
on the big screen. Martin Freeman is excellent. I still have hope that the
other two films will grow up a little.
#4 The Hunger Games
Based on a novel that would
automatically draw big crowds, it would be tempting to present a second-rate
film—since you know that people will buy tickets either way. But this was
surprisingly well-done. One of the moments that indicated this was a film with
some sophistication was when the players were running for the cornucopia. In
the hands of most directors, this would have been drenched in music, but it was
virtually silent. This indicated the story had its own intensity and stood
alone without orchestral boosts. The acting was far more than to be expected
from a teen-flick. The producers of this movie seem to be paying attention to
the embarrassing procession of Twilight
movies—and learning from those mistakes. Hopefully, Catching Fire will hold to the same caliber.
#3 Ip Man
I found this movie by
accident. It is the true story of Yip Man who ended up being Bruce Lee’s
teacher. A quiet family man, he becomes inevitably drawn into situations where
he must fight. Virtually no one is able to defeat him. The ultimate conflict
arises from the Japanese occupation and the leader who is intent on making an
example of Ip Man. Some incredible fight sequences, but it’s a story with
heart. Prepare for multiple fist pumps.
#2 The Dark Knight Rises
The final film in the
Batman trilogy by the Nolan brothers is classy and superb. Bane is no Joker,
but he was a unique villain in his own right. The Cat Woman subplot worked as
well. But the primary reason this movie worked is that it was Batman and
Christopher Nolan knows how to make a good movie. I’m anxiously waiting to hear
what the Nolan brothers will be up to next.
#1 Avengers
It’s hard to beat a Nolan
production, but if anyone can do it, Joss Wheadon can. What could have been a
CGI fiasco was a great film that lifted the story to new heights instead of
asking the audience to stoop to cartoon level. Wheadon lovingly gave each
character solid back story and endearing moments. The action of course was
stellar. But most of all, right in the middle of all the tension, there were
classically hilarious moments. If Hollywood lets Wheadon loose with the sequel,
I wouldn’t be surprised if the second film is even better.
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