Top 5 Films of the Year So Far, and 5 I’m Looking Forward to Seeing

Tonight on the series finale of Spectrum, the campus radio show for which I’ve been a movies correspondent this semester, I revealed my top 5 films 0f the year so far, as well as 5 films coming out this month (or in limited release now) which I’m dying to see.  I thought I’d share my lists with you readers.

I have to say I’ve been a little disappointed with this year’s releases.  There haven’t been a lot of titles that have drawn me to the theaters, and there surprisingly aren’t that many highly anticipated films coming out in the next month.  I definitely don’t think 2011 will be as great a year for film as 2010 was, but nevertheless I’ve seen some great films, and I look forward to seeing more before the year ends. 

Top 5 Films of 2011

5. Super 8: This summer’s blockbuster from J.J. Abrams was a nostalgic throwback to films like Stand by Me and The Goonies, and its star kids, like Joel Courtney and Elle Fanning, stole the show.  Despite some clichéd sci-fi plots and some sappy moments, this film celebrates the innocence and adventure of childhood and lovingly depicts the power of creative pursuits with friends.  Its fond portrayal of amateur moviemaking shows the love Abrams and producer Steven Spielberg have for their craft.

4. Beginners:  Mike Mills’ romantic dramedy has a lot of heart and charm.  It tells the story of a man named Oliver whose father reveals that not only is he gay, but he’s dying of cancer.  Ewan McGregor plays Oliver, Christopher Plummer is his father, and Melanie Laurent is the woman he meets and falls in love with after his father’s death.  The film is quiet and passes by like a whisper, but it leaves an impression.  It has a playful script, and one of the most memorable characters in the film is Arthur, the jack Russell who communicates with Oliver through thoughts which appear as subtitles on the screen.  It’s a sweet and heartfelt movie.

3. Restless: Gus Van Sant’s quirky romance stayed with me when I was compiling my list.  I thought it was a sweet film that, while perhaps trying to fit too many eccentric plotlines into one love story, displayed an optimistic, innocent outlook on youth today.  Its leads were endearing.  As a crybaby, I personally didn’t mind the sap.

2. Crazy, Stupid, Love:  Sometimes a great cast comes together with a heartfelt and funny script and magic is made.  I think Crazy, Stupid, Love is an excellent example of this.  A sweet script from Dan Fogelman, who’s interestingly best known for writing animated films like Cars and Tangled, is brought to life by comic darlings like Steve Carell and Emma Stone, as well a few actors best known for dramas, like Julianne Moore and Ryan Gosling.  I think the entire cast shines in this biting, truthful take on love and relationships.  Even supporting actress Analeigh Tipton, who some might know from America’s Next Top Model, is impressive.  My only complaint is that there wasn’t enough Emma Stone.  I think she’s a great comedic actress with a lot of promise, and I wish she’d been showcased more.  Be on the lookout for my review of this film in the coming days.

1. The Future: I reviewed this film in October, and I don’t think it’s gotten enough recognition.  I think it’s the most creative, thought-provoking film I’ve seen this year.  Miranda July has proven herself to be a great writer, director, and actress, and her film’s magical plot is appealing and original.  Hamish Linklater’s performance was the highlight of the film for me.  He kept it grounded in reality and I really felt for his character.  I wish the film had gotten some recognition in the recently announced Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations, but regardless of whether it receives awards, it’s a great film that I’d encourage everyone to see it.

Top 5 Most Anticipated Films of 2011

5. Tomboy:   This is a French film about a 10-year-old girl who moves to a new neighborhood and is mistaken for a boy.  She then masquerades as the opposite sex among her new friends.  It looks like a heartfelt film with a great performance from its young female lead.

4. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy:  This film stars Gary Oldman as a veteran spy during the Cold War.  Based on the trailer, this looks like a sleek, haunting film.  It has a great cast, including Tom Hardy, John Hurt, and Colin Firth.  I’m not a huge fan of spy thrillers, but sometimes one comes along that I really want to see, especially if it’s a period piece.  I definitely think this will be a good one.

3. Young Adult: I was unsure about this film when I first saw the trailer a couple of months ago, but now I’m hopeful that it’ll be a great reunion between Juno’s Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman.  Charlize Theron is a divorced writer who returns to her home town to try to win back her married ex-boyfriend.  I’m hoping the trailers are misleading.  Let’s see if the film has the razor-sharp wit Cody is known for.

2. Carnage: Roman Polanski directed this dark comedy based on the play God of Carnage, about two married couples meeting to discuss a schoolyard fight between their sons.  The cast is great.  The couples are played by Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz, Jodie Foster and John C. Reilly.  The film looks hilarious and dark, and I always love seeing Kate Winslet with an American accent.

1. The Artist:  One of the most anticipated and well-respected films of the year is silent and black and white.  And I can’t wait to see it.  It’s a nostalgic story of a Hollywood silent film star in 1927 before the popularity of talkies pushed silent  cinema off the map, who falls in love with a beautiful dancer.  Based on the trailer, it’s full of dance numbers and references to classic Hollywood traditions, including some from the 1930s screwball comedy, such as another adorable jack Russell, harkening back to the dog Skippy, who appeared in films like The Awful Truth, The Thin Man, and Bringing Up Baby.  It looks like an inventive, beautiful film, and I predict it’ll get a lot of attention when the Oscar nominations are announced next month.

Anticipation 2011

It’s time to start thinking about the most exciting time of year for movies — the holiday season.  November and December are prime release time for great films, because it’s so close to Oscar season.  Can you believe that time is already upon us?  This year has flown by.

I’ve been doing a little research, and I’ve found four films I’m really excited to see in the coming months.  Here they are, in order of their release dates:

My Week with Marilyn (November 4)

Michelle Williams is the icon herself, Marilyn Monroe, in this examination of Monroe’s life during the production of The Prince and the Showgirl with Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh — how appropriate!), as witnessed by Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne).  When I first heard Williams was playing Monroe, I wasn’t sure how it would work out, but once I watched the trailer I was more convinced that she was an excellent choice.  Love the poster, too.  And Judi Dench is in it!  How could you go wrong?

 

   

A Dangerous Method (November 23)

This film stars Michael Fassbender as Carl Jung and Viggo Mortensen as Sigmund Freud.  Keira Knightley is Jung’s patient, who soon becomes more than a patient.  It’s directed by David Cronenberg, known for horror films (I just watched The Brood for my class — holy cow!), so it’ll be interesting to see how he handles an historical topic like this.  It’ll also be interesting for me considering all the psychoanalyic articles I’ve been reading lately for my Film Theory class.  Dense stuff, I tell you.

The Artist (November 23)

This looks absolutely charming and brilliant.  The film’s directed by Michel Hazanavicius.  It’s in black and white — always a treat these days — and it’s silent.  Yep.  Silent.  It tells the story of a 1927 romance between a movie star and a dancer.  The style of the film looks really spot-on and nostalgic.  And how refreshing to see a filmmaker paying tribute to cinema’s past instead of attaching a 3D gimmick to make extra cash.  This looks very promising.  It already won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival for Jean Dujardin.  Watch the beautiful trailer here.  P.S. The screwball comedy fan in me can’t help but love the film’s Asta (Skippy) lookalike.

Carnage (December 16)

This film looks delightfully dark.  It follows two couples (played by Jodie Foster and John C. Reilly, and Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz) who try to politely discuss a conflict between their sons.  The tension mounts, with what look like uncomfortably hilarious consequences.  The film’s directed by Roman Polanski and based on the play God of Carnage by Yazmina Reza.  I personally think it looks hilarious, and I can’t resist Kate Winslet with an American accent.

Anticipation (2010)

Somewhere (Sofia Coppola)

Even though the year is more than half over, the best is yet to come in terms of movies.  The best movies of the year almost always premiere around the holiday season so they can be fresh for awards consideration.  And I’m excited to learn more about a few films set to be released in the second half of 2010.  Here’s a little info on each of them.

Inception (July 16):  There’s been so much buzz about this film, and I’m honestly very eager to see it.  The plot details provided in the trailer are pretty vague, but that’s part of what makes me (and a lot of other people) really excited.  I can’t resist a film starring Leonardo DiCaprio, who is always so spot-on.  And Christopher Nolan has a great reputation (although I’m more of a fan of Memento than The Dark Knight).  Plus, it appears to be (gasp) an original idea!

Never Let Me Go (Limited September 15):  Based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel, this film tells the story of three youths (Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield) who spend their childhoods together at an unusual boarding school in a dystopian Britain in which human beings are cloned.  The cast seems promising (Mulligan was brilliant in An Education, Knightley has a great track record, and Garfield is a fresh face who was just cast as the new Spider-Man), and the story seems to provide opportunity for a really fascinating film.

The Social Network(October1): David Fincher’s latest film examines the founding of Facebook.  Who knows which way this film will go, but in a world so obsessed with social networking sites, it should be interesting.

Nowhere Boy (October 8): This film examines the life of a young 1950s John Lennon.  The subject matter is instantly interesting, and based on the trailer, it appears to be an unexpected, offbeat look at a legend.

Somewhere (December 24): This will be Sofia Coppola’s first film since Marie Antoinette (which I believe was underrated).  It tells the story of a hard-living actor who is paid a visit by his young daughter (Elle Fanning) and starts to rethink his life.  I’m excited to see what Coppola has up her sleeve.

I’m eager to learn which of these films are a success and which (if any) are flops.  It’s always fascinating to discover which films actually deserve the hype.  I hope this list gives you some ideas of what’s to come moviewise for the significant second half of the year.