Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)

This could be my favourite of the 9 films nominated for 2012 best picture. The visuals, the grittiness, the supreme performance of the little girl lead, the presence of the fantastical, the music... it's all so good. A fractured family living in The Bathtube - an anarchic society outside New Orleans who live on little islands unprotected by a levee - face flooding and the little girl gets to experience survival in a community of poverty, but also very alone. Just a gorgeous film - watch it if you haven't already.

Midnight in Paris (2011)

Oh, this is a great film, if only to fantasize of living in a great city full of culture and croissants. Woody Allen continues to work his way around Europe (London, Barcelona before this and Rome after - I hope he makes it to many more), this time transporting his title character, another writer, to early 1920s Paris to mix with Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Baker, Dali, Stein, Porter, etc. Will he cast caution to the wind to live among some of history's greatest misfits or will be bow to economic and social pressures and stay with his boring wife?

Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)

Woody Allen's treatise on how the wicked go unpunished while the good live difficult lives - also a question as to the existence of God. The film is a masterpiece mainly due to its ability to pose (and attempt to answer) very difficult existential questions while at the same time making you laugh until your abdomen hurts.

A powerful and wealthy doctor tries to cover up his affair through murder while at the same time a geeky documentary film maker tries to flirt with other women hoping for an affair. The two of them suffer different consequences.

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The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

David Fincher couldn't resist making his own film adaptation of the wildly successful mystery novels (I've heard they read exactly like the movies...) even though the original (released just 2 years previous) was very well made and popular.

This version is no tamer than the Swedish version. It is brutally graphic in its telling of the investigation into serial/ritual murders, Lisbeth's abuse, and the original mystery of the missing girl. The acting and style are stellar with an unrelenting pace.

I still can't figure out why they had to make another almost identical version, but it was well done none the less.

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Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Wes Anderson's latest fable is set in the 1960s on a fictional island off the coast of Massachusetts. The hero is a foster boy at a summer camp for boys who has fallen in love and has planned an elaborate escape for him and his melancholic girl. The police (Bruce Willis), campers (Edward Norton, parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand), and social services (Tilda Swinton - who they always call Social Services) chase them down.

There is tons of humour, vulnerability and style. One of Anderson's best.

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Un prophète (2009)

One of the greatest films I have ever seen.

The opening scene is a young offender being transferred to an adult prison - no family, we don't really know where he comes from at all. Shortly, he is seconded into the service of the organized crime ring where he climbs the ranks.

A Prophet is powerful and raw with simple though energizing dialogue.

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Shichinin no samurai (1954)

Japanese master director Akira Kurosawa presents Seven Samurai, a 3.5 hour epic film set in 19th century rural Japan.

A peasant village is at the mercy of marauding seasonal thieves, so they hire people of great moral fibre (at least that is their intention) and military prowess to come and protect them.

I really enjoyed this film over 2 nights. The characters were colourful, flawed and unpredictable. The setting was thoroughly original and it was interesting just seeing agrarian Japan.

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Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy (2011)

No movies adapted from John Le Carré novels come to mind when I recall bad film experiences. The complexity of the characters, the extreme circumstances, and the very personal look at the decisions and consequences they face make a film like Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy well worth a look.

Oh, and the grand performances must be mentioned.

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Deep Water (2006)

Deep Water is such a compassionate account of a cornered man who disgraces himself. This documentary follows a competitor in a solo yacht circumnavigation of the globe back in 1968. It is a gripping story told with passion and balance. Highly recommended.

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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

In anticipation of the film which I got advance tickets for about 3 weeks before the opening night, I reread The Hobbit. This is the first time I reread it since the first time back in 1987. I thoroughly enjoyed the book though I wish Tolkien had been encouraged to write an adult version of events following the publication of The Lord of the Rings. I was deeply moved by Bilbo's goodness.

To the film now. I was worried about the high frame rate (48 frames per second is twice as many as traditional film) and there was some trepidation in regards to 3D - would it be gimmicky? I fretted without reason - neither was a hindrance, in fact the film was so crisp, engaging, warm, and real feeling that I was immediately sucked in. As an aside, if you don't like 3D or high frame rate, then see it in 2D at 24 fps.

The jovial nature of the children's tale was maintained with plenty of slapstick and one-liners. I laughed out loud on numerous occasions. The character flaws were front and centre in every scene except when they became heroic - then it was a little over the top. It would be unkind to highlight any single character, hero or villain, as they were all magnificent.

Another worry I had was the caricaturization of the 13 dwarves with their wild hair, tattoos, beards and bling. The looks suite the characters and I was very pleased with their onscreen personas.

I plan on seeing the film in theatre at least 2 more times. It's candy.

[I'm 64 films behind in my reviews, so I thought I'd offer my 2 cents on this ahead of when I would reach it in April]

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Hugo (2011)

When evaluating a film, I do my best to consider the intent of the filmmaker and their intended audience. I wouldn't hold the characters of this film to the same kind of standards I would in The Thin Red Line for instance. I believe the intent of Martin Scorsese was to tell Hugo's story of loss, imagination, and salvation in children's terms, much as how the book did so. So, the people in the story are more austere or more fat or more tender than they would be in a typical drama. It's also a classic happy ending which is rare these days among the film elite.

Hugo is a beautiful film with outrageous camerawork and flamboyant characters. These drew me into the title character's tragic circumstances and into the era of discovery that was Paris in the 1930s. The despair throughout the film made the ending all the sweeter.

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The Christians (1977)

 One of my recent interests has been church history. A long standing passion of mine is Christian theology, which is illuminated by church history. Documentarian Bamber Gascoigne produced this 13-part made-for-TV series on the history of Christians. Stylistically, it is marked by the era in which it is made (the 1970s), but the era also impacts the approach that Gascoigne takes in presenting the Christians. In recent decades we have seen the emergence of a rather vocal Christian right in the United States, a steep decline in the practice of Christianity in Europe, and the renewed popularity of atheism and interest in other world religions. This has led to Christianity being looked down upon by the popular culture (I just heard a man singing on the radio about how Christianity makes no sense to him, so he's picking hell - yes, it is ironic). When Gascoigne makes this 11 hour documentary, Christianity is still has a strong western presence and it is treated with respect.

The series begins in first century Jerusalem and follows the gradual geographic, cultural, political, and theological iterations over the next 20 centuries. Mr. Gascoigne narrates throughout and does a remarkable job presenting each major change in Christian culture by highlighting both the remnant architectural and artistic features from each era and the denominational representations from those changes (ie. the Amish are portrayed when speaking about Anabaptist history or Guatemalan Catholics are portrayed to show the colonial missions in Central and South America).

Because of its length, the series ensures that adequate depth is allocated since the breadth of the story is so great.

I highly rate this intricate telling of Christians' story. I would gladly watch the series several more times.

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Never Let Me Go (2010)

This terribly moving film begins at the edge of sanity where children are raised in an idyllic setting and then harvested for their organs once they reach adulthood. The organ donors live out their purpose without questioning why or without really believing that they have any other purpose. Aside from the heavy sentimental reaction I got from watching their young lives get snuffed out, I was pushed to consider the idea of free will as it was presented in the film - and I always appreciate that opportunity!

As I often do, I really appreciated the gentleness in the film and the easy pace as it massaged the fate of the characters into our minds.

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Dare mo shiranai (2004)

Nobody Knows is loosely based on true events of four children who are abandoned by their mother in Japan. The siblings are cared for by the oldest as they manage to elude discovery by the outside world. This is a very sad story, making the plight of abandoned children around the world more accessible as it is set against a first world backdrop.

Children need to be loved.

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Inside Job (2010)

This is the detailed account of how the wealthy financial sector is robbing the world. The details are calmly presented in a clear, well connected way to draw us to a very dismal conclusion. In fact the film is absolutely infuriating. It covers a lot of the same ground that Michael Moore covers in Capitalism: A Love Story, but it is perceived as much less polemic.

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Doctor Zhivago (1965)

This is the first time watching Doctor Zhivago and what surprised me (and pleased me) the most was the genuinely flawed nature of the characters. While I despised some characters, they held my sympathy and while I loved other characters, I hated some of their decisions. Its tragedy and epic portrayal of the Russian revolution bring the film to an even greater height. It won't be the last time I watch it!

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The Iron Lady (2011)

This film didn't try to accomplish too much by critiquing British Prime Minister Thatcher's policies, laying out her legacy and analyzing the woman herself. Instead it succeeds by focusing on the latter almost exclusively and through the frailty and vulnerability of an old Margaret Thatcher who is battling dementia and recalling her life as one of the most powerful women of the 20th Century and certainly one of the most steadfast British PMs.

Watching the film, you would forget you are watching Meryl Streep as she so boldly portrays such a cultural icon. The Iron Lady doesn't tiptoe around some of Thatcher's controversial decisions either, they just let her tell it as it is. As one who was not a great fan of many of Thatcher's policies, I did gain a appreciation for the love of country and for her sacrifice in public service.

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Festen (1998)

The Celebration is a cross between Monsoon Wedding and Gosford Park with some Noah Baumbach and Lars Von Trier thrown in. The setting is a Danish country mansion where family and friends have gathered to celebrate the 60th birthday of Helge - a successful restauranteur and freemason. We learn quickly of the family's disfunction and several sparks have already flown by the time the real fuse is lit at supper.

Perhaps the most remarkable touch of the film makers is their ability to infuse such brilliant humour in such a dark film. Humour and resilient humanity.

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J. Edgar (2011)

I saw this movie because Clint Eastwood directed and Leonardo DiCaprio starred, not so much because I have a fascination with J. Edgar Hoover. Apparently, critics have disliked the movie for all that it left out of this iconic and powerful figure of the 20th century. My hunch was that the film makers didn't want to overshadow the story of the man with details of the FBI - I was right.

J. Edgar traces a couple strands of the first and long lasting FBI director's life. His relationships with his mother and two very close secretaries combined with his determination to both keep the FBI funded and in his complete control. There are plenty of references to some of the defining events in his career (Lindberg kidnapping, Dr. King, and the communist pogroms), but the focus of the film is his obsessions, indiscretions and desire for defining his own legacy.

An intricate and detailed film with a steady pace and tremendous acting.

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Win Win (2011)

Win Win is a superb film with plenty of flawed (but very entertaining) characters. The collision of two families each with a unique struggle who then lean into the other is a picture of communion and love.

Paul Giamatti plays another semi-neurotic character, but more subtle and relatable in the role of a small town lawyer. His counterpart Kyle, a loner and gifted teen, is played by a newcomer - a real live wrestling prodigy. The five main supporting actors add great humanity and comedy to this beautiful story.

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