Top 10 of 2011

It’s late, but it took a long time to see everything on my list from last year.  After all, we’re not critics who get invited to screenings or have deadlines, so we took our sweet ass time.  2011 was an amazing year for movies, and there are quite a few that I loved but just couldn’t fit on the list.  Take a look and we encourage you to post your own top 10 in the comments.

10) Take Shelter

9) Shame

8) Midnight in Paris

7) Drive

6) HP and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2

5) Hugo

4) Melancholia

3) A Separation

2) 13 Assassins

1) The Skin I Live In

 

Almodovar’s probably one of very few who could make something so simultaneously bizarre, disturbing and thought-provoking.  I’ve loved Almodovar’s films for a long time, but with this I think he topped himself.  The Skin I Live In is a perfect mix of Almodovar with equal parts Hitchcock and Cronenberg.  It’s fantastic and my favorite film from an outstanding year.

Some new trailers

The Social Network, directed by David Fincher.  I think this looks great, much better than I thought it would, and I really love the use of “Creep” in this trailer:

This one looks like a lot of fun:

Philip Seymour Hoffman’s directorial debut.  Doesn’t look too special to me but Hoffman’s always great to watch and I’m curious to see how he fares as a director:

The new Woody Allen:

I’d say this looks like a good crime thriller (and it’s getting lots of good buzz) but Affleck’s presence is really off-putting.  He really brings it down for me:

And finally, the new Inarritu (Babel, Amores Perros) film, which I think looks amazing.  It sparked a lot of controversy at Cannes this year, and that’s always a good thing if you ask me.  Definitely give this one a look:

Top 10 Director/Actor Duos

Since Alice in Wonderland and Shutter Island were both released recently, it seemed like an appropriate time to put this list together.  Let me know what I missed in the comments section!

1) Werner Herzog & Kluas Kinski

–Fitzcarraldo and Aguirre: The Wrath of God are two of my personal all-time favorites, and their Nosferatu remake is one of my favorite horror films.  Their two other projects, Woyzeck and Cobra Verde, are also great.  Their collaborations are all the more interesting considering how animosity-filled they were.  The two claimed to completely hate one another yet were also “best friends.”  Herzog actually pointed a loaded gun at Kinski once, and even considered taking a local tribe up on their offer to murder the crazy actor.  Kinski would often go on screaming rampages on set and even fired a gun in the direction of Herzog’s tent  in the middle of the night,  shooting the finger off an extra (See Herzog’s documentary My Best Friend for more details).  But despite how incompatible they may seem, the pair managed to create 5 amazing and innovative films that makes them, in my mind, the greatest director/actor duo.

2) Martin Scorsese & Robert DeNiro

– Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, New York New York, Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, and Casino.  That list of films pretty much speaks for itself, as most of them are classics.  Taxi Driver will probably go down as the greatest film portrait of insanity, while Raging Bull will probably be remembered as one of the greatest “sports” films ever. 

3) Akira Kurosawa & Toshiro Mifune

– These two collaborated on a whopping 16 films together over a 17 year stretch.  Their most notable films are all masterpieces: Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, and the Shakespeare adaptation Throne of Blood. 

4) Alfred Hitchcock & Jimmy Stewart

– Hitchcock went back and forth between Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart.  Grant starred in a few greats like North By Northwest and Notorious, but Stewart starred in Rear Window, Rope (the original Russian Ark), and an all-time favorite: Vertigo.

5) Martin Scorsese & Leonardo DiCaprio

– They’re 4 for 4 so far.  Gangs of New York, The Aviator, and The Departed have all ended up on many best of the decade lists, and 2010’s Shutter Island was pretty damn good too.

6) Woody Allen & Diane Keaton

– Woody Allen’s had a few lasting relationships with great actresses, but his collaborations with Diane Keaton were by far the best.  They worked together on Play it Again Sam, Sleeper, Love and Death, Interiors, Radio Days, Manhattan Murder Mystery, and arguably Woody’s two best films: Annie Hall and Manhattan.

7) Wong Kar-Wai & Tony Leung

– 2046, In the Mood for Love, and Chungking Express are all incredible films.  The two also made Ashes of Time together, which was recently re-released.

8 ) Frederico Fellini & Giuletta Masina

– Fellini and his wife Giuletta Masina made some of the most charming and whimsical films together, such as La Strada, Nights of Cabiria, and Juliet of the Spirits.

9) George Roy Hill & Paul Newman

– Their 3 collaborations together are all classics: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting, and of course, Slap Shot. 

10) Tim Burton & Johnny Depp

– Though much of their recent work has been tiresome and actually pretty annoying, there’s no way to ignore their wonderful early collaborations such as Ed Wood, Edward Scissorhands, and Sleepy Hollow.

My 20 Most Anticipated Movies of 2010

20.  THE GHOST WRITER  (Roman Polanski)

-Had one of the most intriguing teaser trailers.  Plus, with all the controversy surrounding Roman Polanski it’ll be interesting to see how the public reacts to this.  It stars Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan.

19.  MACHETE  (Robert Rodriguez)

-The fake trailer from Grindhouse is being made into a feature.  Should be fun, and it’s nice to see Danny Trejo get a starring role.

18.  DUE DATE  (Todd Phillips)

-I think Zach Galifianakis is one of the funniest people alive, so I can’t wait to finally see him in the lead role for a comedy like this.  Robert Downey Jr. also stars. 

17.  DAYBREAKERS  (Spierig brothers)

-This one comes out next week.  It’s getting good reviews, I like Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe, and I thought the trailer looked great.  I think it’ll be a lot of fun.

16.  BIUTIFUL  (Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu)

-It’s by the director of Amorres Perros and Babel and stars Javier Bardem.  With those names there’s no way this turns out bad.

15.  JACK GOES BOATING  (Philip Seymour Hoffman)

-I know nothing about this except that it’s Hoffman’s directorial debut.  He’s one of my favorite actors so it’ll be interesting to see how he fares as a director. 

14.  THE AMERICAN  (Anton Corbijn)

-From the director of Control and starring George Clooney.  Sounds like a promising duo.

13.  THE RUM DIARY  (Bruce Robinson)

-The director of Withnail and I hasn’t made a film in almost 20 years, so it’s great to see him back and directing again.  This stars Johnny Depp playing a Hunter S. Thompson type journalist just like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, so I’m predicting this to be wild and fun.

12.  YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER  (Woody Allen)

-I’m always excited for a new Woody Allen film.  This one’s got another great cast including Frieda Pinto (her first role since Slumdog), Josh Brolin, Naomi Watts, Anthony Hopkins, and Antonio Banderas.

11.  MY SON, MY SON, WHAT HAVE YE DONE?  (Werner Herzog)

-Starring one of my new favorite actors (Michael Shannon) directed by one of my all time favorites, and produced by David Lynch.  Should be thoroughly creepy.

10.  LIFE DURING WARTIME  (Todd Solondz)

-From the writer/director of Happiness and Welcome to the Dollhouse, both of which I consider masterpieces. 

9.  TRUE GRIT  (The Coen Brothers)

-Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, and Jeff Bridges star in the Coen brothers’ remake of the John Wayne classic.  At this point anything the Coens make I’ll see opening weekend.  They’re just so consistently brilliant.

8.  ENTER THE VOID  (Gasper Noe)

-The director of Irreversible is back with another mindfuck.  All I need to know.

7.  TOY STORY 3  (Lee Unkrich – PIXAR)

-It’s Pixar, I’d be shocked if this didn’t turn out to be great.

6.  HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1  (David Yates)

-Man I’ll be sad when this series comes to an end.

5.  MICMACS  (Jean-Pierre Jeunet)

-A new comedy from the director of Amelie.  All his films have been wonderful (with the exception of Alien: Resurrection), so I can’t wait for this one.  One of the best working directors.

4.  BLACK SWAN  (Darren Aronofsky)

-Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis star as rival ballerinas in what’s being described as a psychological thriller.  Aronofsky’s one of the most interesting directors right now, so I always look forward to what he’s doing next. 

3.  THE TREE OF LIFE  (Terrence Malick)

-This is only Terrence Malick’s 5th film in his almost 40 year career, so it’s kind of an event whenever a new film of his is released.  Plus, apparently this one’s got dinosaurs in it.  Yeah, dinosaurs.  Can’t wait.  He’s one of the most adventurous and beautiful filmmakers, and this has been his pet project which he’s been working on since the 70’s.  It stars Sean Penn and Brad Pitt.  Not to go overboard on the hype and give the film unrealistic expectations, but this could be one of the greatest films ever.  It has unlimited potential. 

2.  SHUTTER ISLAND  (Martin Scorsese)

-It’s so exciting to see Scorsese tackle the horror/thriller genre (I don’t really count Cape Fear).  Plus, I love the Hitchcock-esque mystery feel I get from the trailer.  This one just looks amazing.

1.  INCEPTION  (Christopher Nolan)

-OMG I CAN”T WAIT TO SEE THIS.

Notably absent:  Alice in Wonderland, or “The Mad Hatter in Wonderland” judging by the trailer which puts Johnny Depp front and center and barely even features Alice.  Honestly, I wish Tim Burton would stop remaking everything, and I wish he’d stop casting Depp and then covering him in white make-up everytime.  It also looks like he went completely nuts with the CGI.  Needless to say I’m skeptical about this one.

On DVD: Whatever Works

I should say that I’m a huge Woody Allen fan and I pretty much always love his films, even when the majority of critics don’t  (Cassandra’s Dream the only exception, and I didn’t even think that was half bad).  So it’s not really a surprise that I loved Whatever Works, which was dismissed by most everybody earlier this year.  It’s not one of his best, and it’s definitely nothing new or groundbreaking (especially for Allen), but it’s got a great cast, great characters, and great Woody Allen dialogue (“Woodyspeak”). 

 Evan Rachel Wood plays a naive runaway girl from Mississippi who ends up living with Boris Yellnikoff (Larry David), a brilliant, cynical, atheist, narcissistic, and paranoid New Yorker (sound familiar?), and hilarity ensues.  The odd pairing makes for a very entertaining 90 minutes complete with musings on love, religion, and, of course, the randomness and worthlessness of existence.  Classic Woody Allen, basically.

It’s hard to believe that this is the first Larry David-Woody Allen collaboration.  They’re the perfect match, and Larry David plays the “Woody Allen character” even better than the man himself. 

RATING:  8/10