For Your Consideration: Inception

Assessing the year's best films, according to my refined tastes and, as usual, in no particular order (except this one). These are the top 10 movies I would select on my ballot for a Best Picture Oscar nomination.

Inception (PG-13)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page
Director: Christopher Nolan


This is a guaranteed best picture nominee. There was much speculation heading into the summer whether this movie could deliver and indeed it does in spades. It's got a great cast, an intriguing and mind-bending plot that requires repeat viewings and one of the best directors working in the business. But make no mistake, behind the dreams and sci-fi drama, at heart this is just a good old heist movie. Cobb (DiCaprio) assembles his team to steal an idea, or rather, implant an idea, into the mind of another man - a monumental task called inception. What most people get tied up in is that awesome fight scene in the hallway. While all that's good and pretty spectacular, there's a great story and great characters at the heart of this movie. Cobb's continual guilt over the death of his wife haunts him quite literally throughout the movie. In the words of Nicholas Angel, he "doesn't know how to switch off." Without that tragic love story, the heist probably would go off without a hitch, but there's his crazy bitch of a wife, ruining things for him like sending their target into a seemingly never ending dream limbo. Bitches be crazy. Among the standouts from the movie is Joseph Gordon-Levitt being a true badass in the movie and Thomas Hardy, the next up-and-coming movie star, who steals pretty much every scene he's in nowadays. And while I adore Michael Caine and his many impersonators, I'm kind of sick of seeing him show up in every Nolan movie. Seriously, the dude is the father of "can't-hide-my-French-accent-in-this-movie-Marion Cotillard?" You might as well have hired Rihanna as the suicidal nutter. So, aside from that obvious flaw, the movie, is umm, flawless. Yeah, that's about right, I'm pretty sure that I came up with that idea.

For Your Consideration: The Town

Assessing the year's best films, according to my refined tastes and, as usual, in no particular order (except this one). These are the top 10 movies I would select on my ballot for a Best Picture Oscar nomination.

The Town (R)
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jeremy Renner, Jon Hamm
Director: Ben Affleck


The Town came out of nowhere for me. I had not even heard about it until I saw the trailer maybe about a month before it came out. This was the surprise of the year, no doubt. It's an intense flick. The actual heist scenes are filmed to perfection. Even though (Spoiler Alert!) when you know the last robbery is just plain suicidal, you can't help but sit at the edge of your seat and watch it all play out. That's great filmmaking and Ben Affleck is going to have a long directorial career long after his acting career slows down. I have long been a non-fan of Boston-based movies, but this one is an exception. There's just too many things to love about this movie - the direction, the cast (RIP Pete Postlethwaite) and the score. Everything comes together so well - the cast is amazing. I did not realize Jon Hamm could be such an arrogant asshole. And Jeremy Renner gives another great performance - he's very close to landing an Oscar. The rest of the cast is great (except Blake Lively, although I think that's more due to her role than her acting) and it's an addicting movie. Once you finish the movie you want to delve back in and spend more time with this flawed and tragic cast. I love how the roles are reversed - you're cheering on the bad guys in this movie and booing at the FBI agents. And the ending is sublime - there's no other way it could have ended without making it a lesser movie. And as intense and serious as the film is, it's just fun to watch. The action and robberies are clever and thrilling - especially the car chase scene with the minivan. Spectacular! Plus all those good looking people aren't too hard on the eyes, either. Although I will admit the sex scene between Affleck and Lively made me vomit in my mouth a little bit. Other than that? Perfection!

For You Consideration: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

Assessing the year's best films, according to my refined tastes and, as usual, in no particular order (except this one). These are the top 10 movies I would select on my ballot for a Best Picture Oscar nomination.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (R)
Starring: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin
Director: Edgar Wright

Writing about this movie reminded a lot about Watchmen. Not the plot, but its performance at the box office. Needless to say, neither film did not do so well according to expectations. But I think both Scott Pilgrim and Watchmen will eventually become cult classics and quintessential graphic novel movie adaptations. They're both near-perfect in fulfilling the requests of those hard to please fanboys. The pure uniqueness and relentless visuals of the movie alone make this a standout among the year. Not to mention it's just pure fun. Michael Cera seems to keep being typecast as the too-shy teenager, but I love him, so that didn't really matter to me. But for those detractors, he's really not the best part of the movie. It's Edgar Wright's direction and the surrounding cast that elevate what could have been just a ho-hum story about teenage romance (remember Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist? Didn't think so.) to a homage of overindulgence, ADD, video games and those lovable freaks and geeks. The film hums along at a breakneck pace, as Scott has to battle all seven of his new found love's evil exes. The plot sounds ridiculous, but once you accept the absurdity of it all, it's hard not to smile the whole way through. Plus the movie is quite hilarious! Chris Evans and Brandon Routh both have amazing cameos that deliver the funny. And! (There's so many things to love about this movie!) The music is perfect and the songs made specifically for Pilgrim's band, Sex Bob-omb, deliver that hard, crunchy punk that I think was lost back in the late 80s. I will freely admit this movie isn't for everyone (anyone over the age of 50 may well be put off by the barrage of noise and visual effects and the constant references to video games and comics), but it has a lot of heart - it proudly hangs its freak flag high.

For Your Consideration: 127 Hours

Assessing the year's best films, according to my refined tastes and, as usual, in no particular order (except this one).

127 Hours (R)
Starring: James Franco
Director: Danny Boyle


Much like Moon from last year - a film that was in my top 10 - this is a one man show. Having an entire movie dependent on a single actor and location is one of the biggest challenges a director can face. But Danny Boyle, one of my favorite directors, is well-suited for this demanding task. The biggest question people ask me is what happens during the movie? Does it all take place during his entrapment? Yes, it does. But it's not boring. In fact, Boyle does an excellent job of creating drama and tension. You know he has to cut off his arm, but what is the journey like to get to that moment? What does a man have to endure before he reaches his breaking point? These questions are answered and it's all beautifully shot. There's a sense of claustrophobia and wide-open loneliness at the same time - it's an amazing work of art. Of course, the movie practically hinges on a great performance and Franco is flawless in his execution as Aron Ralston - probably his most challenging role as an actor (right next to Franco from General Hospital!). And yes, they do show him sawing off his arm. It's gruesome and bold, but also very triumphant. There's a moment at the end when he finally literally breaks free from the rock that forever changed his life and he's stumbling out into the desert searching for civilization that Sigur Rós' Festival starts to amp up and we see him getting rescued. It's one of the most beautiful and emotional moments I've seen in a movie this year and it makes you want to stand up and cheer (the song kicks in at 4:30):

Review: No Strings Attached

No Strings Attached (R)
Starring: Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutcher
Director: Ivan Reitman

I am one for one on my most anticipated list. Not only is this a great romantic comedy, it's really just a fun and funny movie. I knew it was going to be much different from the normal romantic comedies when one of the first lines of the movie is "Can I finger you?" In all honesty, I really wasn't expecting that much sex in the movie. But there was a lot. I am not complaining - it's all tastefully (well, for the most part) done and seeing two very good looking people do it was just as entertaining as the comedy itself. In fact, the sex scenes in the movie were done shockingly good - they had the right blend of intimacy and sexiness, but nothing too invading or embarrassing to watch. It was pretty perfect. Not too shabby for a director who's last film was the atrocious My Super Ex-Girlfriend. I'm sure some people will toss this aside as nothing special, but I think this movie is going to start the new year off right. Much like Going the Distance, the movie is R-rated and is definitely targeted at the thirty-something crowd. Which I don't mind - I'm kind of in that category and the jokes were great and of course, like any good romantic comedy, it had a lot of heart and charm. Kutcher is pretty good - he's pretty much playing the straight guy to Natalie Portman's depressing, non-committal sex fiend. They work well together and I will freely admit it was steamy at times (it might have just been the theater. Speaking of which, some biznotches tried to sneak into the screening after it had sold out! There was a huge confrontation right beside where the Magster was sitting and it was awkward. They finally were told to leave and thankfully no punches were thrown!). If you liked Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Going the Distance and/or She's Out of My League, you'll definitely love this movie. The movie comes out January 21 and I'll gladly pony up some money to see this one again!

Rating: See It!

For Your Consideration: Black Swan

Assessing the year's best films, according to my refined tastes and, as usual, in no particular order (except this one).

Despite my lament over this year's lack of firepower at the theater, there were some great films that came out this year. These are my picks if I had to put in a ballot for the Oscars.

Black Swan (R)
Starring: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel
Director: Darren Aronofsky

I've been really excited about this movie and I got a chance to see it before it's nationwide release. I was completely blown away. What an amazing movie, it's near-perfect in execution. From the direction, to the acting and everything in between, Aronofsky has crafted his best film to date. Here is Natalie Portman's best performance to date, too. I think what I liked most about this movie is the layers of meaning you can uncover. It makes for a perfect repeat-viewing experience. The movie's themes involve psychological issues like sexual awakening, obsession and just going plain bat-shit crazy (a highly professorial term, I know). It's part thriller and part tragedy all rolled up in a nice package. The movie's metaphorical story within a story about the play Swan Lake, seamlessly glides along with the story arch of Portman's character. The movie ends on such a perfect note (and almost eerily similar to Aronofsky's previous film The Wrestler), it's hard not to stand up and applaud and immediately go back to the ticket booth to purchase a ticket for the next show. It's a movie that will elicit head-nods from everyone when you say it's good, something that transcends it's own genre and audience to become a classic.

The Most Anticipated Movies of 2011: Excitement!

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Here's my top 5! It's been really fun writing all these previews as brief as they were. Looking back, there may not be 50 great movies coming out next year, but I'm still looking forward to all of these movies!

The Most Anticipated Movies of 2011: Booya Top 10!

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There's only 10 (really 11) spots left so I won't bore you with my musings. On to the countdown!

The Most Anticipated Movies of 2011: New franchises!

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We're nearing the top 10 and these next five movies are all based on existing books/comic books, none of which have ever been adapted to the screen. Exciting new franchises are what 2011 is all about! All five have potential to make big money at the box office and if that happens, there's going to be sequels to four of those movies. Which is great, because who can't get enough of the same stuff? I really don't mind sequels and in fact, sometimes the sequels are better than the original. The Dark Knight, The Empire Strikes Back, Aliens, Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, Terminator 2. There's at least ten more that I can think of, but you get the idea. All of these movies took the original and either reworked the setting and plot or just made the same movie again, only more perfectly. So if any of these movies enjoy box office success, here's to hoping they end up in that same list and not like the Matrix Reloaded.

The Most Anticipated Movies of 2011: Keeping things in perspective.

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I know this sounds ridiculous coming from the guy who's writing about upcoming movies and how excited I am, but I always have to keep my expectations in check. Sure, I'm excited for these movies, but when expectations are so high, it's easy to be let down by a movie that's really good. People expect big things out of blockbuster movies - especially those that are sequels. Take for example, Iron Man 2. The movie was quite good, but I think a lot of people, myself included, got caught up in how great it was going to be. The expectations were near impossible to live up to. I'm trying to keep that mindset in perspective as I count down, because you'll start to notice that a lot of movies that people are drooling over, I don't have that high on my list. It's more a reality of keeping my expectations somewhat low so that I don't feel disappointed when I go check out these movies. Okay, seriously, that was long and obnoxious - here's the next five!