Matt here... Yes, it really does take this many writers for Obsessed With Film to function! Yet another top ten list here for you (mine is pending as once again I'm scrambling around to see as many movies as I can) this time from Owain Paciuszko - my all-rounder. My vital and trustee sidekick who helps out with features, reviews and even the occasional news piece. He also has snubbed
David Fincher's latest...
10. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
Edgar Wright threw everything he could into this in his big effort to bust blocks on the Hollywood scene with a film as fiercely excitable and original as it possibly could hope to be.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World stumbled with an episodic structure, but was no less consistently entertaining with a string of great actors stepping up to play Ramona's evil ex-boyfriends and keep the film's pulse pumping. Huge 'props' to
Brandon Routh's villainous vegan and the almighty
Jason Schwartzman bringing suitable sleaze as the ultimate evil-ex. And, of course,
Mary Elizabeth Winstead creating a character so instantly appealing that you'd gladly take the repeateded clobberings that
Michael Cera's Pilgrim receives in the hopes of winning her 8-bit heart. A box office failure, but one that will surely live on at least in the heart's of geeks and 80's nostalgics the world over.
9. The Brothers Bloom
Rian Johnson's long-delayed follow-up to 'Brick' (still haven't seen that one, shamefully) is two films sellotaped together, and whilst the second half is a decent - if predictable and convoluted caper flick - the first half is a truly, joyfully giddy and whimsical romantic adventure yarn played beautifully by
Adrien Brody,
Rachel Weisz and
Mark Ruffalo. The film practically floats along, buoyed by Johnson's magical and charming script, with the early scene between Brody's con-man and Weisz's recluse some of the silliest and sweetest in cinema this year.
8. The Hole in 3D
Joe Dante's return to cinema screens was a reminder that he stills knows his stuff as good as he did in the old Gremlins and The Burbs days, it's just a shame the world has moved on since then, well, I say moved on... my screening was blighted by over-cautious parents pulling their kids out of the cinema in an effort to protect them from the film's horror scenes. Yes, this film is a surprisngly intense spookfest, but there's a message in the film about facing your fears, that seems completely wasted if you yank your children out of the screening leaving them to think that the monster's are real and, for all intents and purposes, never got banished back to the doom from whence they came. Rant over,
The Hole is a smart, funny and scary little riot; somewhere between Jumanji and Poltergeist, with some truly spectacular set-pieces that bring forth bursts of laughter as much as they do jump-shocks.
7. Solomon Kane
A sword and sorcery romp from the author of the Conan novels starring
James Purefoy; who'd have thought this would have been as much fun as it was? Not I. Managing to linger long in my memory and my appreciation for it growing the more I suffered through tired and boring Hollywood blockbusters, Kane is a pleasingly old-fashioned affair with a good deal of mud, blood and witchcraft. Purefoy is a fine hero crossing swords with the Devil in a delightfully dumb but fun storyline that features all the decapitations and growled line delivery one would expect from this type of fantasy flick.
6. Toy Story 3
Managing to round out the story with all the laughs and tears one would hope for,
Toy Story 3 only really suffers in also treading some ground covered ably by Toy Story 2, but, nevertheless it's a crowd-pleasing and thrilling ride, which had me genuinely on the edge of my seat and fearing for the toy's lives during the rather epic and fiery conclusion! Just a shame 2011's Pixar offering is
Cars 2... er... yay...
5. I Love You Philip Morris
The year's sweetest and strangest love story, and the true tale of con man Steven Russell (
Jim Carrey) who fell for fellow prison inmate Philip (
Ewan McGregor). Carrey is superb in a performance that flip-flops from the broadest of slapstick to tender, intimate moments without ever feeling disjointed. The real star here though is the script by Bad Santa writers
Glenn Ficarra and
John Requa, here making their directorial debut, balancing the film's comedy, cons and drama with expert skill taking you on a constantly beguiling, and often hilarious, journey.
4. The Road
Heart-breakingly hopeful against relentlessly bleak circumstances from the get go,
John Hillcoat's adaptation of
Cormac McCarthy's novel is, in some ways, difficult viewing in its depiction of a world really gone to Hell after an unspecified disaster; but it has a thin slither of optimism running through it, personified by
Kodi Smit-McKee's performance as the Boy, complimented by the brilliant
Viggo Mortensen as his father, that keeps you glued to the screen. With a number of characters popping up throughout their journey lending interesting insights into both the world they inhabit and their attitudes within it, this is a truly fascinating portrait of the human spirit and a desolate and beautiful film; far superior, in my opinion, to Hillcoat's somewhat over-rated debut The Proposition.
3. The Illusionist
Sylvain Chomet's debut Belleville Rendezvous was about as perfect a piece of whimsical, humourous and eye-wateringly beautiful a piece of animation as it's possible to imagine; somewhere between Raymond Briggs and Gerald Scarfe with a wickedly Gallic dark sense of humour, all wrapped around a poignant and bonkers storyline. His follow-up
The Illusionist came from a script by legendary French film actor
Jacques Tati, but this is a far subtler, darker and sadder affair than his debut; but no less mesmerising. A bittersweet portrait of a magician who is coming to the end of his time, as rock and roll replaces his simple art on the stage, he finds himself living in Edinburgh with a young girl who believes in his magic to a humourlessly desctructive extent. Chomet's power is in the performance of his hand drawn characters, even down to the most incidental of roles, they are vividly imagined and all the more human for their exagerrations. A film at once both depressing and melancholy as it romantic and life-affirming.
2. A Single Man
Colin Firth's performance absolutely blew me away in this stunning debut by fashion designer
Tom Ford, a compellingly directed portrait of loneliness and sadness on the day Firth's titular man plans to end his life. It's a gloriously stylish adaptation that, thanks primarily to Firth, never loses its emotional grip on the viewer and he is handed scene upon scene to dazzle in a way I never thought he was capable of as an actor. He was absolutely robbed of an Oscar for a towering and heart-breaking achievement, and whilst this is very much a film that centres upon Firth, every other little thread of this patchwork is exquisite; of particular note being Ford's lighting choices helping cement the isolation or liberation with subtly and style.
1. Four Lions
Chris Morris' film debut was always high in my anticipation, he has consistently proven himself to be one of the strongest and funniest voices in British comedy, and whilst the film's intention was never to cause Daily Mail hate-campaigns, it was challenging in a different and unexpected way when the viewer finds themself struggling with their sympathies in relation to the titular, bungling terrorists. Morris' key strength in delivering this film is in creating characters you laugh at and care for, but there is something peculiarly misguided about our desires for them to 'see right' and not go through with their actions and plenty of room for debate after the credits have rolled. But, beyond that, the film is extremely funny, filled with memorable set-pieces and endlessly quotable lines of dialogue, making this film a certain for continued cult classic status and a future reputation as one of the finest British comedies in film history. P.S.
Inception was a load of guff.