10. Inception
Directed and Written by Christopher Nolan
Watch the trailer
The best, smartest thriller in years, Inception was the perfect thinking man’s (or woman’s) summer popcorn movie. Great performances all around, especially Leonardo DiCaprio, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon Levitt, and Cillian Murphy–but the star of the show is director/writer Christopher Nolan. His intense dedication to the material is the foundation upon which the black holes of the film thrive in.
9. Never Let Me Go
Directed by Mark Romanek, Written by Alex Garland, Adapted from the book by Kazuo Ishiguro
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A masterful adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s surely brilliant book (I haven’t read it yet), the futuristic science fiction drama chronicles the life of three young people being raised by the government for the harvesting of their organs. This film succeeds where many others in the genre don’t because of the intense focus on their three protagonists and making a film about the humanity of people created as a sub-human class. Haunting score, beautiful cinematography, and a career-best performance from Keira Knightley.
8. Catfish/Exit Through The Gift Shop
Directed by Henry Joost & Ariel Schulman/Directed by Banksy
Watch the trailer for “Catfish”
Watch the trailer for “Exit Through The Gift Shop”
Two of the most talked about documentaries this year had lingering questions to audiences about the factuality and possible “truthiness” or outright fraud of the filmmakers. Those who try to qualify these films based on sorting out the reality of them miss the point. The two docs, one following a Facebook romance gone wrong, the latter a genius of modern art created out of thin air, are two of the most exciting films of the year. Seeing Catfish on opening weekend before the story became its relationship with truth, I was only left with one of the most suspenseful afternoons I’d had in the theatre in a long time, and honestly I don’t care what’s real: it’s great filmmaking either way. Documentary filmmaking by way of gonzo journalism may be a new loop for moviegoers but left us with two of the best movies of the year. Or maybe it’s all true. I don’t know, and I don’t really care.
7. Somewhere
Directed and Written by Sofia Coppola
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Very similar in tone and style to her previous masterpiece Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola has created a beautiful (if lesser) film about the blossoming of a father-daughter relationship years too late. While she is very familiar in themes to the aforementioned work, it fits nicely as a companion piece and a West Coast answer to the craters of loneliness and depression of being a stranger in a strange land. Incredible breakthrough performance from Elle Fanning, and Stephen Dorff masters Coppola’s unique filmmaking style with ease.
6. Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Directed by Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg
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The best documentary of the year, and the best show business documentary ever, is a sympathetic portrait of a resilient comedy icon. Unlike the brash comedienne, the filmmakers take no cheap shots, never making Rivers a caricaturization, and never resorting to pity. Beginning as Rivers stares in horror at the stark white of her booking calendar, we see a woman resorting to any gig and any opportunity to make money to desperately cling to her lifestyle, and more importantly to any love or admiration she can muster from audiences. The film’s climax at her Comedy Central Roast sent chills down my spine in a way few documentaries manage.
5. The King’s Speech
Directed by Tom Hooper, Written by David Seidler
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The King’s Speech is predictable, formulaic and at times cliche. Yet, it uses formula and even cliche so well in its favor–it is a beautifully crafted and exciting film filled with wonderful performances from the entire cast. It’s just absolute A-class filmmaking, and will surely become an instant classic of the British film canon (as well as something every high school history teacher will play the week before winter break for the entirety of secondary education.)
4. Another Year
Directed and Written by Mike Leigh
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Mike Leigh’s tender portrait of over-the-hill Brits Tom and Gerri (the understated and undeniably brilliant Jim Broadbent and Ruth Sheen), and their influx of houseguests throughout the course of the year, most notably Gerri’s co-worker, Mary (Lesley Manville in the best performance of the year) who swallows wine and desperation by the bottle full. It is rare for something so moving to rarely let the smile (brought upon by those saucy Brits) ever leave your face.
3. Rabbit Hole
Directed by John Cameron Mitchell, Written by David Lindsay-Abaire
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The film adaptation of one of my favorite plays of the last decade rarely disappoints. While director John Cameron Mitchell occasionally doesn’t trust the material enough to steer away from swelling music and a few dips into melodrama territory, the words on the page are illuminous enough to shine through a few poor choices in an otherwise flawless film. Nicole Kidman turns in her best performance since Moulin Rouge and The Hours a decade ago as a grieving mother trying to grapple with a return to normalcy months after the death of her son. Dianne Weist is indescribably wonderful, while Aaron Eckhart, Tammy Blanchard, Sandra Oh and Miles Teller all give remarkable performances in a nearly perfect cast.
2. Blue Valentine
Directed by Derek Cianfrance, Written by Derek Cianfrance, Joey Curtis & Cami Delavigne
Watch the trailer
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Blue Valentine hits you like a sucker punch to the gut, the pieces of which I’m still sorting out after yesterdays viewing. The debut feature film from director Derek Cianfrance is moody, gritty, romantic and disturbing–and uniquely different from anything I’ve ever seen in movie theatres. Ryan Gosling is a performing dynamo, layering his character Dean shot by shot, and is both attractive and repellent in perfect measure. Michelle Williams does not disappoint and matches Gosling beat-for-beat. The intensity of the film will likely lead to it being a turn-off to a lot of people, and I can foresee criticism of it being overwrought but not a moment felt false to me.
1. The Social Network
Directed by David Fincher, Written by Aaron Sorkin
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The defining movie of the millennial generation, The Social Network‘s Mark Zuckerberg is an anti-hero at the level of American Beauty‘s Lester Burnham, Cuckoo’s Nest‘s McMurphy, or dare I say it The Godfather‘s Michael Corleone. And what makes this one generation-defining is that Zuckerberg will scour you with his words but refuse to make eye contact. As someone’s whose college experience was defined in part (probably too large a part) by Facebook, and by living in a generation of unparalleled self-confidence and drive mixed with debilitated interpersonal social skills, I have yet to see an artistic expression that so accurately foreshadowed the crisis of personality that will be had when people of the millenial generation control the country. Zuckerberg, as the first of it to break through on his own as an international business tycoon, is both timely to the minute and as classic in inspiration and structure as a character in Shakespearean tragedy. Sorkin is on top of his game in writing one of the best screenplays in years, and Fincher creates a thrilling story that never dulls for its two hours. I could have gone for another hour, I’m not sure I’ve ever felt that way at the end of a movie before.
Honorable Mentions:
Waking Sleeping Beauty/Trailer
Documentary with extremely limited release chronicles the golden age of Disney animation from The Little Mermaid through The Lion King after a string a failures in the 80′s left the department dead in the water. You should Netflix it, definitely a captivating watch.
Fair Game/Trailer
I’m a sucker for a good political thriller, and this one does not disappoint. Shying away from exploiting its overt leftist tendencies, Naomi Watts and Sean Penn make the story more human than political.
Easy A/Trailer
Best teen comedy since Superbad. Its achingly clever, fast, and always fun. Emma Stone is a comedic dynamo, and definitely an upcoming talent to watch.
Burlesque/Trailer
When your aim is obviously to make the campiest, most frivolous, most instantly cult classic and midnight show mainstay as Burlesque, you have to give them due credit for succeeding so admirably. And Cher is legit incredible, I mean, f’realizes. Plus, X-Tina can belt her face off.
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World/Trailer
So clever, so fun. Loved pretty much every second of it. And Michael Cera isn’t annoying in this!
Outstanding Performances of the Year (in alphabetical order)
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Stephen Dorff, Somewhere
Michael Douglas, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Andrew Garfield, Never Let Me Go & The Social Network
Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Keira Knightley, Never Let Me Go
Mila Kunis, Black Swan
Lesley Manville, Another Year
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Dianne Wiest, Rabbit Hole
