Awards season has started so I thought I'd make a post about my personal favourite films from the past year (keeping in mind I haven't seen nearly enough of them and am going by US release dates).
#5. Never Let Me Go (Mark Romanek).
I must admit that the only reason I saw this film was because it stars Andrew Garfield but it absolutely blew me away. The film is narrated by Carey Mulligan as Kathy H. and tells the story of Kathy, Tommy and Ruth (Keira Knightley) who were cloned to provide donor organs. It's a love story but the heartbreaking circumstances make it so unique and ten times more appealing than any other love story I've ever seen.
#4. Easy A (Will Gluck).
This film has already won Best Comedy at the Broadcast Critics Award and it's easy to see why. Emma Stone (although I'm obviously being bias) is a wonderful lead role and is fast becoming one of the greatest comic actors of our generation. It was interesting to see a modern take on The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne without actually basing it on the novel. The countless references to John Hughes was just an added bonus.
#3. Inception (Christopher Nolan).
I can't even to begin to explain how wonderful this film is. The cast was perfect, as was the captivating storyline. Admittedly this film is not for everyone. It takes a lot of concentration and patience but if you're willing to give it that you won't regret it. I saw it at the cinema three times and bought the DVD before it's official release because once I saw it, I instantly wanted to watch it again straight away. The ending was superb. Everyone takes away something different, however, if enough attention is paid it all makes absolute sense.
#2. The Social Network (David Fincher).
I went into this film not expecting much. I knew it would be interesting but I had no idea it would be so funny/heartbreaking/wonderful. I came out of it with a new-found respect for everyone involved in facebook as well as everyone who worked on this film. The direction and score and performances were amazing, I honestly can't fault this film. Every award it has won/been nominated for has been well deserved. It was hard not making this my number one film of the year.
BUT MY NUMBER ONE FAVOURITE FILM OF THE YEAR IS...
#1. Shutter Island (Martin Scorsese).
Let's be honest: Leonardo DiCaprio can do no wrong. This instantly became one of my favourite films of all time and although it was released in February I knew straight away it would be my favourite of the year. Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley and Michelle Williams were all wonderful supporting actors and the storyling/script was just flawless. Everything about this film captivated me from the get go. Set on an island housing a prison/hospital for the crimanally insane, I was extremely interested to see the behaviour of the people on this island. It was so interesting to see not only the patients but the doctors/guards/police and how they interacted. Although the ending is quite easy to guess, it's still a thrill to see the story unfold.
Honourable mentions: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Toy Story 3, Remember Me, Saw: The Final Chapter, Black Swan.
What were your favourite films of the year? What did you think of these films?
#5. Never Let Me Go (Mark Romanek).I must admit that the only reason I saw this film was because it stars Andrew Garfield but it absolutely blew me away. The film is narrated by Carey Mulligan as Kathy H. and tells the story of Kathy, Tommy and Ruth (Keira Knightley) who were cloned to provide donor organs. It's a love story but the heartbreaking circumstances make it so unique and ten times more appealing than any other love story I've ever seen.
#4. Easy A (Will Gluck).This film has already won Best Comedy at the Broadcast Critics Award and it's easy to see why. Emma Stone (although I'm obviously being bias) is a wonderful lead role and is fast becoming one of the greatest comic actors of our generation. It was interesting to see a modern take on The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne without actually basing it on the novel. The countless references to John Hughes was just an added bonus.
#3. Inception (Christopher Nolan).I can't even to begin to explain how wonderful this film is. The cast was perfect, as was the captivating storyline. Admittedly this film is not for everyone. It takes a lot of concentration and patience but if you're willing to give it that you won't regret it. I saw it at the cinema three times and bought the DVD before it's official release because once I saw it, I instantly wanted to watch it again straight away. The ending was superb. Everyone takes away something different, however, if enough attention is paid it all makes absolute sense.
#2. The Social Network (David Fincher).I went into this film not expecting much. I knew it would be interesting but I had no idea it would be so funny/heartbreaking/wonderful. I came out of it with a new-found respect for everyone involved in facebook as well as everyone who worked on this film. The direction and score and performances were amazing, I honestly can't fault this film. Every award it has won/been nominated for has been well deserved. It was hard not making this my number one film of the year.
BUT MY NUMBER ONE FAVOURITE FILM OF THE YEAR IS...
#1. Shutter Island (Martin Scorsese).Let's be honest: Leonardo DiCaprio can do no wrong. This instantly became one of my favourite films of all time and although it was released in February I knew straight away it would be my favourite of the year. Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley and Michelle Williams were all wonderful supporting actors and the storyling/script was just flawless. Everything about this film captivated me from the get go. Set on an island housing a prison/hospital for the crimanally insane, I was extremely interested to see the behaviour of the people on this island. It was so interesting to see not only the patients but the doctors/guards/police and how they interacted. Although the ending is quite easy to guess, it's still a thrill to see the story unfold.
Honourable mentions: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Toy Story 3, Remember Me, Saw: The Final Chapter, Black Swan.
What were your favourite films of the year? What did you think of these films?
This was a great idea! I have seen Inception and... No, that's it. Well, I did see HP7 and Toy Story 3, but those aren't on the true list. It's a pretty great compilation of movies! If you like these movies so much I should definitely try to watch them. I like the way you review movies, too. ^^
ReplyDeleteMy favorite movies... Er, I guess Inception! It was really good and absolutely dumbfounding. Whoever came up with such a complex plot is incredible. o: Otherwise, I can't really think of any movies that really grabbed my attention. I saw HP7 yesterday; it was pretty good too!
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Thank you! You should get toads. They are so easy to care for and make for great photography subjects. ;D
Wow! You certainly have a house full. My mom has a rule that we are only allowed to have one pet at a time. D: The only reasons I got toads is because when my dad lived in my city I got them and kept them at his house but then he moved to another state so I got to bring them to my mom's house. (: Eighteen pets would be awesome.
Black Swan and Toy Story 3 and Shutter Island ftw
ReplyDeleteI LOVE INCEPTION! That is definitely my number one. And Shutter Island being number two. I just preferred Inception, both very clever films but Shutter Island freaked me out a bit ha plus I like to think I was quite clever for following the madness of the Inception plot ;) my boyfriend didnt get it - and therefore didn't like it, so you're right you do need some serious patience to watch it! Mr DiCaprio is one good actor.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, I loved inception. It is something completley new and rivetting
ReplyDeleteI have been DYING to see Shutter Island for SO LONG I better get around to it soon.
ReplyDeleteI agree with a lot of this. I will admit Easy A was great, but shhh ;) haha