Friday, December 2, 2011

The To-Watch Before 2011 List

Not only is it time to be catching up on preparing for the holidays (23 and counting, eeep!), but it's time to be catching up for the end of the year (29 and counting, eeep!). Yep, it's end of the year list o'clock, guys. They're coming soon. And I LOVE end of the year lists. I'm either recommended things I didn't catch the first time around, or my picks are validated, or I get in impassioned debates over choices. I'm a big fan of all these things. And my chief topic is movies—we watch a lot of films in our household, and I'm pretty opinionated about what I like. I'm a polarized high-low kinda gal, in that I like 'em so good or so bad-so-they're-good.

But there are some movies that came out this year I didn't see the first time around, or that haven't come out yet. So it's time to get my game face on, and get down to the business of catching up. And these are at the top of my list.

1. The Skin I Live In
I've only just started watching Almodóvar's films, and I'm really digging him. Daniel saw this movie and promptly got us on a viewing bender, and now I've seen Talk to Her and Volver, both of which I really enjoyed. I really like that he seems to have fun making his films, and delivers really multi-dimensional, likeable characters. Which is why Antonio Banderas as a deranged plastic surgeon sounds pretty sweet. Not to mention how awesome the trailer is – best music choice and most bewildering trailer of the year. Filmmakers out to surprise you and not play their hand too soon? I love it. Got plans to see this one next week, and I can hardly wait.




2. Martha Marcy May Marlene
I've heard such good things about this one. Who hasn't, right? This was one of the buzziest movies around TIFF time, and it's been getting a lot of attention because of Elizabeth Olsen's performance (and celebrity siblings). Olsen plays a PTSD former cult member who's trying to piece together her life after escaping the compound, and everyone who's seen it has gushed about it. It looks like a tense, taught psychological thriller, so yeah, it's on the list.




3. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Yeah, the Fincher, Hollywood version. No, I didn't see the Swedish one, and to be perfectly honest, I'm not really fussed about trying to. A lot of people are bristling that the actress from that first adaptation (Noomi Rapace) wasn't used in this second adaptation (now played by Rooney Mara), but I'm more impressed with the transformation. I can hardly believe this is the same girl from that first bit of The Social Network:

via
BEFORE
via
AFTER
Crazy, right? Good on her, for trying to break out of pretty girl roles, and for Fincher taking a chance on her. And to anyone who is not excited about this movie, did you SEE that teaser trailer? It looks like a goddamn Kubrick film! Even if you've seen the regular trailer, watch this. Pump it up to 1080p, go full screen and play it loud. I can't even imagine how cool it would have been seeing this in theatres. I'll be there on opening night for sure.




4. Beginners
Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, a scruffy little dog, I'm sold. I'll curl up with this one on an evening when I need renewed faith in humanity, I think.




5. Final Destination 5
Everyone has their vices, and the Final Destination movies are one of mine. I love the campy horror, I love the constant one upsmanship, and I love that they started doing these in 3D. Sadly, I missed this one in theatres so no 3D for me, but I heard there's a scene with Lasik gone wrong and I just can't handle that, guys. I'm a freak about my eyes. They work poorly, but they're all I got. And getting Lasik might be something I do one day, so I can't ever see a DEATH by Lasik. If I could watch a cut with that scene removed, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Final Destination, cutting to the heart of your deepest fears!

(Note: this trailer starts off with the Lasik scene and I nearly died just watching it. How embarrassing would death by trailer be? SO embarrassing. And SO possible. Just wanted to warn you in case you have similar hangups.)




6. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Hey, it's a spy thriller with Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and Tom Hardy. No idea how grounbreaking it'll be, but the players are good, the story is promising, the trailer is decent, and at the very least, it's a better choice than Sherlock Holmes 2: Electric Boogaloo.




So what's on your to-watch list? Got any other recommendations for me?

2 comments:

  1. Beginners is funny. you'll like the dog/owner relationship. and get back to work!

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  2. Let me know what you think of Martha Marcy May Marlene.

    Mike and I saw it and were underwhelmed. I liked it but didn't love it like I thought I was going to. It's a slow burn without any kind of climax. I had a similar feeling of disappointment after I saw Blue Valentine, too, though, which was also uniformly adored by critics...so take my opinion for what it's worth.

    Elizabeth Olsen is definitely as good as everyone's been saying, though, as is John Hawkes.

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