Top 10 Films (I've Seen) of 2011

Making a top 10 film list is near impossible for me. Living in Montana means that a very large number of films I wish to see will never get shown in theaters here. I have three options at this point: Hope and pray the DVD release hits before January first (this never works out), watch the film through less lawful means (which I try to avoid), or just give up on making a top 10 list (which has been the case the last several years). I'm pretty much screwed no matter what, but I've decided that I like making lists far to much to completely give up on them. Instead I will resign myself to compiling a list of the best films from the past year that I've had the pleasure (or luck) of actually being able to see.

This was not the best year for the cinema. There were a lot of good films but not very many great films. Maybe it's just the ones I choose to watch or maybe this year just kinda sucked. Either way I watched a ton of really horrid movies. I mean really awful. I'm going to use mental illness as an excuse and just say I was super depressed and made some unfortunate choices. I'm not proud of some of the movies I watched (Transformers 3, Conan The Barbarian, Apollo 18) but I can't say I wasn't fully aware of what I was getting into. Let's just blame sadness and move on, shall we?

One last thing: An argument could be made for many of these films that they belong in 2010. I'm basing inclusion on several by US theatrical dates (not festival premieres), and in one case the fact that I can't find a US theatrical date at all but the DVD was released in 2011. I'm sure none of you really care that much and just want me to get on with it. I just felt the need to pointlessly justify my choices. So there.

10. Rubber

This is a movie about a tire that rolls around and kills people with psychic powers. After watching this movie I sent a text to a friend that said something like this: "I watched Rubber last night. It was either absolutely amazing, or one of the dumbest movies I've ever seen. I'm not sure." If I'm being honest, I'm still not sure. But this movie has constantly risen to thought again and again. I can't ignore that. I also find myself longing to watch it again. It's a curiosity in the extremist sense. The level of "meta" achieved in this movie is beyond words. There is a strong chance you'll hate it, but you won't be able to deny that you've never seen anything quite like it. Which is something you can't say very often.

9. The Housemaid

In the last several years South Korea has been a spawning ground for some of the roughest, most disturbing, and thought provoking films around. I was torn between this film and I Saw The Devil but ultimately picked this one based on the amazing Do-yeon Jeon. Her performance as a housemaid who begins an affair with her employer is one this year's best. The ending will leave you talking and thinking for quite some time.

8. Super 8

I doubt I need to say much about this one. I loved it. It's like old Spielberg but without all the things I hate about Spielberg. It needs noting that Elle Fanning is quickly becoming quite a force to be reckoned with. She's amazing.

7. The Innkeepers

Biggest surprise of the year. I watched this film last night and was completely blown away. This is Ti West' s follow-up to the equally amazing House of The Devil, and it proves that movie was no fluke. It's funny, touching, and legitimately frightening (which is hard to achieve with me). It's currently only available to watch on Video On Demand.

6. Melancholia

Damn you Lars von Trier, damn you. This movie is beautiful and extremely devastating. If you know Lars von Trier's work you'll know what to expect. If not... Be careful. Watch this movie then go be with someone you love, or you just might want to kill yourself.

5. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives

This movie won a certain big award last year and it was very well deserved. A strange and haunting meditation on life, death, and things beyond. Just promise me you won't try to "understand" everything. You won't and I'm not sure you're meant to. How do you explain a sex scene with a giant cat-fish spirit? Well... You don't.

4. 13 Assassins

Micheal Bay take note. This is how you direct an action film.

3. Hanna

An amazingly crafted action/thriller that doesn't sacrifice thrills for smarts. For some reason I was reminded of Leon The Professional while watching this. There really aren't that many similarities, but both provide an extremely human look at people who are trained to kill without thought or emotion. And they are both great films.

2. Midnight In Paris

I enjoy just about any Woody Allen film, but his last few have not achieved the sort of greatness he is known for. This is different. Classic Allen that holds up to some of his best work. This is pure movie magic and I have a hard time imagining anyone not finding complete joy in this film.

1. Drive

This is close to perfection. Holy crap. If you missed this in the theaters then I feel sorry for you. Nicolas Winding Refn has officially entered into my list of favorite directors. His sense of style is spot on with what I love. I really don't want to say anything more about this movie. Just trust me. When I saw this for the first time there was a gentleman sitting next to me that looked like the opposite of this movie's target audience. I was a little worried he might get agitated that this wasn't a Fast and The Furious rip-off, and that he was tricked by the preview into seeing an "art" film. Nope. He loved it. And by his vocal appreciation of what was going on on-screen, he maybe loved it more then I did. Go watch this. It's out on DVD on Janurary 31, and I will beat your children if you don't give it a chance. And if you hate it... Well... Your taste in movies must really suck.

Thats it.

I'm certain this list could change in the next few months as I catch up on the films I really wish I could have seen (The Skin I Live In, Martha Marcy May Marlene, We Need To Talk About Kevin, and many others), but I'm going to try not to think about it.

I'm going to try (again) to be a little more regular with my posts here. Possibly in a different format then before, but I'm still working that out.

Word.