The Best Movies Of 2011

January 5, 2012     

Last week, I recounted  the worst movie experiences I had during the calendar year of 2011. In a continuation of that thread, this week I’ll look at the opposite end of the spectrum as I recount my best movie experiences of the last twelve months. These are listed chronologically and, other than that, are in no particular order.

(1) Paul After seeing the trailers for Paul early last year, I was given the idea that the film was nothing more than a stoner comedy about the misadventures of a wisecracking alien (voiced by Seth Rogen). I had zero expectations for this film and, boy, was I ever wrong.

Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen) has his own great movie

Paul was one of the delightful surprises of last Spring. The film is actually more about the joys of friendship more than anything else as two lifelong pals, (Nick Frost, Simon Pegg, who also wrote the film), stumble upon an alien who has escaped from the infamous Area 51. The film has romance, laughs, action, sentiment, and is filled with knowing references to previous sci-fi classics.

(2) Insidious I’m not easily scared, so when a film is able to accomplish this feat, I must give it the proper respect it richly deserves. Insidious shook me up so badly that I found myself looking over my shoulder all the way home from screening the film and that’s something no horror film has done for me in quite awhile. Unlike the much touted Paranormal Activity films, which give the audience seventy minutes of setup and ten minutes of payoff, Insidious starts paying off fifteen minutes into the film and never lets up.

(3) Beginners This beautiful, quiet, and introspective film, relating the tale of a father (Christopher Plummer) and son (Ewan McGregor) both coming into their own for the first time in their lives-the father comes out of the closet, the noncommittal son makes a first time emotional commitment-was probably the best independently made film to be released this past Summer.

(4) Crazy Stupid Love Every Summer needs a good romance and there was none better in the Summer of 2011 than Crazy Stupid Love, an aptly titled look at people in various stages of romance, both beginning and ending. It is both funny and sad, often at the same time, and its ensemble cast-Steve Carrell, Emma Stone, Julianne Moore, Ryan Gosling-were certainly a joy to behold.

(5) Straw Dogs I was all prepared to be disappointed with this latest reinvention of a beloved classic, in this case Sam Peckinpah’s raw 1971 tale of  pacifist who resorts to animalistic methods when push comes to shove. Then, a funny thing happened. I started to find myself pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this update of a film that has made such an impression on me over the years. The new Straw Dogs is every bit as disturbing and though provoking as the original and just goes to show that, when placed in capable artistic hands, re imagining a much loved classic need not always be a bad experience.

Patrick Wilson and friend in Insidious

(6) Hugo Martin Scorsese’s first attempt at a family friendly project was the film he’s always seemed to be destined to make. Under the disguise of a family film, the tale of an orphaned boy who lives alone in a train station, manages to weave in such universal themes as the search for purpose in life, loneliness, the passage of time, and the joy of discovering the wonder of film. It’s one of the best films about the movies to come around in a long time.

(7) The Descendants Director/co-writer Alexander Payne disappeared for seven years after crafting four masterpieces of modern cinema. This year he returned with The Descendants, a tale of a Hawaiian land baron (George Clooney) who must prepare his children for the untimely passing of their mother after a boating accident incapacitates her. It may not be quite as good as Payne’s previous films but it’s undeniably a great film.

(8) Young Adult Writer Diablo Cody and director Jason Reitman, the creative team behind Juno, returned with this biting and satirical look at 37 year old teen lit author, Mavis Gary, who returns to her hometown with one plan in mind: reunite with her high school sweetheart, in spite of the fact that he’s married. Charlize Theron was never better in the lead role, but the real discovery here is comedic actor Patton Oswald, in his stirring turn as a formerly bullied classmate of Mavis’ whom she unexpectedly finds herself bonding with.

(9) The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo The American adaptation of the first book in Stieg Larrson’s Millennium trilogy finally hit movie screens, courtesy of director David Fincher. The book had already been adapted for the big screen in Sweden but, amazingly, the American version did what many Americanized updates fail to do-it surpassed the original in every way.

(10) The Artist A black and white silent movie that takes place in 1927, whose story is basically a reworking of that old chestnut, A Star is Born. On paper it would have looked ridiculous to me but it works and works beautifully. A true gem that deserves to be seen and the second film (following Hugo) to be released this year, celebrating the joy to be found in the world of the movies.

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