2011 in Review: Movies
2011 is over. Here are some of the movies I enjoyed.
Moneyball is about baseball and one of my favorite things is baseball and sports movies are a guilty pleasure of mine. Moneyball tells the story of the 2002 Oakland A’s and their General Manager Billy Beane and his use of Sabermetrics. While the movie has a baseball theme, the movie really explores Beane’s attempt to have some type of success after being a failure as a baseball player.
Drive is a beautiful mess. The cast is top notch, filmed in a style that keeps you watching, and violent. Drive is violent, very violent at times, but done in such a way that it almost operatic. Ryan Gosling is brilliant in the cold calculated stunt drive and Carey Mulligan is gorgeous. Drive is so good at times, it is easily one of the best films. It does have some awkward dialog at times. Mmmmmhmmmm.
Action. Action. Action. That is pretty much what Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol has going for it. That isn’t a bad thing, the action is great, especially if you see the movie in IMAX. The sequences filmed at the Burj Khalifa (tallest building in the world) in Dubai is amazing and vertigo inducing. The entire cast is top notch including the always great Simon Pegg. Go see it in IMAX and buy some popcorn and enjoy.
Source Code came out a while ago, but still provide a great experience. Source Code plays out as a interesting present day sci-fi film by Duncan Jones (David Bowie’s son). Some parts The Matrix and Run Lola Run, it has you repeating the same sequence in attempt to solve the puzzle.
I’m a huge Conan fan, but this movie kinda change my opinion of him, for better or worse. The guy is crazy and kind of a jerk. I’m sure if you are in his inner circle, you understand his humor, but Conan is somewhat delusional and sad. Always putting himself and his staff down. A very interesting look as one of the funnier comedian of the last decade.
My only foreign film on the list, I Saw The Devil is a violent, gory, revenge film. Much like Drive, this film if gorgeously shot, each shot is brilliant, but the film is easily one of the more violent movies I have ever seen. Add the fact that the main villain is Choi Min-shik known for his role in the movie Oldboy, it makes it even more creepy. Well worth watching, but you have been warned about the content.
Super 8 was one of the more enjoyable movies I saw all year. It is a 80′s homage taking notes from classics such as E.T., Stand By Me, and The Goonies. As someone who grew up on these movies Super 8 hit all the same notes of silly kids doing crazy things under unthinkable circumstances and in the end triumphing over impossible odds.
What were some of the movies you enjoyed in 2011?
