Video Monde Staff Picks

What an awesome flick. A quick rundown of the superhero mythos in films before this movie; guy/girl gets powers, chooses to become good/evil, has a clash with the fate of the world at stake. What Chronicle imagines is that the assholes you were friends with in High School got powers, used those powers to prank people and fly and rock the school talent show to get laid. But then when those powers grow too strong and shit goes haywire, people start getting hurt. Josh Trank, the director of Chronicle is super talented. I think he’s like 26 which is aggravating and inspiring. The performances are super solid, the action is well choreographed and the found footage aspect of the film works really well. So solid, look forward to more from this kid. See it, in a loud theatre, with your asshole buddies from High School.

This film would have made my top ten of 2011 if I had seen it earlier. The pacing is glacially slow, so avoid it if you don’t like emotionally cold, cold-war era films. If it’s your cup of tea, this may be the best one ever. Gary Oldman is great, as are Mark Strong, Colin Firth, John Hurt and Benedict Cumberbatch (whose name is so awesomely bad it’s great.) Toby Jones is a little bit hammy, but I can forgive it because the rest of the acting is so powerful, especially the increasingly great Tom Hardy. The cinematography and directing are spectacular and the final music montage that closes the movie is Godfather worthy in it’s parallel storytelling. See this film if you’re a dude and a cinephile.

In browsing Netflix instant, I realized they are starting to build a great library. If you’re in for a movie night but lost amongst streaming episodes of Jersey Shore, Here are some flicks that will deliver, most of the crime thriller/drama genre.

Constant Gardener- Ralph Fiennes searches for his wife’s (Rachel Weisz) killer and uncovers a political tangled web in Africa. From the director of the tremendous ‘City of God.’

21 Grams- Intersecting story lines of Sean Penn, Naomi Watts and Benicio Del Toro suffering with loss and grief, redemption and revenge. A masterpiece of non-linear storytelling.

Brick- A neo-noir set in the world of high school. Low budget and scrappy, the film that made me notice Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Gomorrah- A modern mob saga in Naples, Italy. A foreign film, but the best, least glossy gangster film made since the ’90s.

Sin Nombre- Also a foreign film, but a really dope movie about a disgraced MS13 gang member fleeing Mexico to the US and inadvertently helping a young girl cross the border for a new life.

Winter’s Bone- If you missed this Oscar contender last year, see it now. It’s like Breaking Bad in the Ozarks with soon to be huge movie star Jennifer Lawrence searching for her missing father. John Hawkes steals the film.

Trainspotting- One of the first films that made me want to direct. Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours) Lille the directing on the film that made him and Ewan McGregor a name. If you’ve never seen it, do it now.

Bad Liuetenant- The Nic Cage/Werner Herzog version. This movie takes all of Cage’s batshit craziness and turns it into a cop movie in post-Katrina New Orleans. I promise you won’t forget it.

Half Nelson- A scrappy movie that wears it’s heart on it’s sleeve and the birth of Ryan Gosling as the actor’s movie star of this generation. Great indie soundtrack and it’s about a crack-addict schoolteacher. Good times.

Jesus’ Son- Billy Crudup plays a heroin addict coming to terms with his life in the darkly comic and unexpected flick. Jack Black, Dennis Leary and Samantha Morton all equally awesome.

Intacto- Another foreign film, but a tight little thriller. Max Von Sydow plays a man who gambles with people’s luck and it involves Russian Roulette and plane crashes and other assorted scary shit. Lots of fun.

So next time your 500 channels of horseshit don’t turn up a good film night, check in to Netflix and watch the future by checking a past flick you missed. And thank me later.

These are in no particular order. It was a strange year for films, despite Hanna and a few summer films, most of my top ten list are films I saw in the last month. Hollywood needs to start releasing films for smart adults throughout the year so my top ten list isn’t so complicated. These are in no particular order, and I’ve coupled some that would make a killer double feature (also to underhandedly include more than 10 films.)

Hugo: Martin Scorsese has created an absolute masterpiece with this film. He also gave me the best and only reason to want to own a 3DTV. To make a movie at once timeless and completely modern while crafting a gorgeous love letter to the birth of cinema, takes an absolute master. My favorite time at the theater in 2011.

Drive and Shame: Drive is the best filmmaker movie of the year. Violent, pretty to look at and totally cool for the sake of being cool with a killer soundtrack. It’s as if Tarantino made a 1980’s Michael Mann film now. Ryan Gosling also continues to be my favorite young male actor of ever and Carey Mulligan is spectacular. The film is however totally and gratuitously violent. On the other hand, Shame is totally and gratuitously sex-filled. It is emotionally violent, stylishly directed and not for the faint of heart. Michael Fassbender is my favorite older male actor working now and Carey Mulligan is again stunning. A double feature for sickos!

Tree of Life: I can’t recommend this film for everyone. I saw it after my father passed away and the emotional journey of it was beyond powerful. It’s an art-house film, directed by Terence Malick and 90 percent of the dialogue is the inner thoughts of the characters. Pitt continues to get better as he gets older and the cinematography is jaw-dropping. Avoid if you don’t like art films, jump in if you’ve been curious. 

Warrior: The most surprising film of the year. I am admittedly not a huge MMA fan, but I’ve been very interested in what Joel Edgerton and Tom Hardy are up to as well as director Gavin O’Connor who nailed it with Miracle and Pride and Glory. What he gave us is a sports film from the heart the likes that haven’t been seen since Rocky. As much touchy feely emotionality as raw physicality. While maybe slightly unrealistic, the acting and directing will draw you in and if you’re not crying into your Monster energy drink by the finale, you don’t have a heart, bro.

My Week With Marilyn and The Artist: Both films about making films, about a different era of Hollywood and the not always glamorous happenings behind the scenes. The Artist was such a surprise because I was certain I wouldn’t be drawn in by a black and white silent film, but it suckered me good. Joyful, funny, sad and totally heartfelt, just know you’re watching a silent black and white film before you commit. My Week With Marilyn on the other hand is a great film for anyone. Accessible, well-told story about the most notorious starlet of all time. I have no doubt that Michelle Williams deserves the oscar for her multi-layered, vulnerable, sexy and damaged portrayal of Marilyn Monroe. Harvey Weinstein nailed it with these two.

The Muppets: Joy Bomb. Jason Segel and Nick Stoller wrote a script that pays homage to what makes The Muppets great while bringing them solidly into the future. James Bobin, who directed Flight of the Conchords brings his quirky musical numbers to the table and Amy Adams and Jason Segel are adorable as shit. You will be singing “Life’s a happy song,” for the next year. Also, oscar winner Chris Cooper raps. See it.

MI:4 and Rise of the Planet of the Apes: Both films are surprising in their smartness, sense of fun, and embracing their popcorn roots without underestimating the audience. Apes could have been a total CGI schlockfest, but Andy Serkis as CGI chimp Caesar brings a heart to the monkey rebellion. And boy do those monkeys fuck some shit up. MI:4 marks The Incredibles director Brad Bird’s live-action debut and it is awesome. Not only does it feel bigger than the first 3 MI’s as well as the last two bond films, the whole MI team is as involved as Tom Cruise and so the audience feels more involved. Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg and Paula Patton are dope. The action set-pieces are bananas and the Dubai scene is worth seeing in IMAX if you like feeling seasick. Pure smart fun, the type of movies Hollywood should be making that believe the audience has a brain while entertaining their pants off.

Hanna and Girl With The Dragon Tattoo: Both movies are about disturbed girls who are badasses. Hanna is a teenage assassin raised by her rogue secret agent father and Lisbeth Salander is a tattooed hacker who tried to kill her father. Both films are elevated to a ridiculous level by their score, Hanna by the Chemical Brothers and GWTDT by Trent Reznor. Both are moody, excellently directed and acted. Hanna stays on the edge of fun by carrying a twisted fairytale motif while GWTDT is just plain twisted. Close your eyes for the five minute rape scene in Dragon Tattoo. Rooney Mara will be nominated for best actress but probably won’t win. Also, as a remake of the Swedish film, even though David Fincher murdered the directing job, it didn’t feel new enough to blow my mind. If you haven’t seen the Swedish version, see the shit out of this.

Midnight In Paris: Woody Allen’s best film in years, and the best comedy I saw all year. Owen Wilson makes a perfect Woody surrogate and all the characters are quirky and amazing. Ernest Hemingway’s lines will make you roll. The setting is beautiful, the score is great and the characters are classic. A great, enjoyable film for anyone.

Harry Potter: The final chapter of this series is the best by a mile. Not only is it wrapped up incredibly (Snape’s character arc will break your heart) but it is amazingly crafted, gorgeously shot and directed, phenomenally acted and totally epic. I loved seeing this in the theater and can’t wait to revisit in years to come.

Runners-Up:

Moneyball: An excellent Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill, understated directing, but felt forgettable by the time it was over. Will be on many other best of lists, but fell just short of my own.

The Descendants: A great performance by Clooney, an awesome debut by Shailene Woodley and understated directing. I didn’t fall in love with it as much as I would have expected, and felt the side story of the family plot of land was an unimportant distraction.

Martha Marcy May Marlene: Hypnotic, well directed and bravely acted by the leads, but Sarah Paulson’s nagging sister character pulled me out too often to make the top.

50/50: Love Joseph Gordon Levitt, love the brevity in the cancer subject matter, but could’ve used less Seth Rogen. Even as a fan of his, he felt like he was in a different movie.

X-Men: Despite some great moments, spectacular acting by Fassbender and McAvoy and great directing by Matthew Vaughn, there was also some terrible cheesiness and January Jones is awful.

Like Crazy: Until the final three minutes, this was one of my favorite films of the year. An indecisive rather than open-ended ending keeps it from making the list.

Young Adult: Great script, sharp directing, excellent performances yet totally forgettable. An oddity.

The Help: This film was pretty moving. Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain and Bryce Dallas Howard are pitch perfect, but Emma Stone is just kind of there. This will do very well during awards season.

Take Shelter: A riveting oscar-worthy performance by Michael Shannon and absolute psychological terror-filled tension, just missed the top ten.

Captain America: While I loved this Rocketeer-esque take on the superhero film, the second viewing did not hold up as I’d hoped. 

War Horse: The last hour is Spielberg at his finest and worth it almost for that, but the beginning is so disjointed, convoluted and poorly told that it felt like a huge mistake. Makes me yearn for classic Spielberg.

Fast Five: This movie was just too damn fun. Crap? Yes. But well-made and easy to root for crap with a showdown between Vin Diesel and The Rock. They also drag a bank vault behind a car and smash everything. 2011’s Bad Boys 2.

There it is, my year at the movies. Almost everything else I saw this year was an awful piece of shit. Never has there been a bigger disparity in the films I loved and loathed. We’re in an era where it’s hard to make a poorly executed film, but it’s easy to make a forgettable one. I’m eager to be part of the next generation and change some things. Cheers.

My god I wanted to love this. I am an unabashed Spielberg lover, and him going back to war territory in an emotional animal flick seemed like the perfect for success. Well, it’s a mixed bag. The film is never sure if it’s telling the story of the horse or the boy who trained him. The first 45 minutes follows a ridiculous plot line about the boy breaking the horse in to plow. The horse is then sold into war and gets passed between owners as it has adventures in the battlefield. Some of the scenes are stunning and the cinematography is bananas. The scenes that are amazing, especially toward the last hour are really amazing, but the awkward storyline makes for an ultimately forgettable film. Almost worth it for a scene near the end where a German and English soldier work together in no-mans-land to free the horse from some barbed wire.

A really fun, overlooked family film. The marketing was way off on this visually delightful, heartwarming and totally excellent tale. Bring your kids, or see it solo but if you miss it in the theatre be sure to check it out on video.

I don’t know where else to begin except to say skip it. It makes the actors look bad, the storytelling is convoluted and the old age makeup is awful. Eastwood really shit the bed on this one, and if he wasn’t such a legend, this shameless grab for Oscar glory would be getting eviscerated.

Michelle Williams wins the Oscar. Hands down, no competition so far this year. Her performance is subtle, brimming with pain, seductive, sweet and playful all at once. She absolutely channels Marilyn without being a caricature. Also a wonderful film about making movies and every other technical aspect and talent is pitch perfect. It is unmissable for her performance however.

Joyful, gleeful, nostalgiac, so so good. It reveres The Muppets without dating them, brings them into modern times while still keeping everything great about them. James Bobin, who also directs Flight of the Conchords makes the musical sequences shine. The film is pure love, and if you don’t tear up a bit during Jason Segel’s ‘believe in yourself’ speech, you have no soul.

Michael Fassbender has an abnormally large penis. Ok, now that’s out of the way.

This film is gonna stick with me. Superb directing, cinematography, editing and score. The least sexy film with the most sex I’ve ever seen. I could not take my eyes off the screen for Michael Fassbender and Carrie Mulligan. Rarely am I so electrified by actors. There’s a fight scene with the two shot in profile on the couch that is one long take, and your eyes don’t leave the screen for like 5 minutes. Holy shit. After ‘Hunger’ and this, Steve McQueen is the real fucking deal as a director. The film itself is rather simple. A slice of life about a sex addict in Manhattan and his sister. That’s it, but I was mesmerized, amazed and completely caught off guard by how much this film grabbed me and didn’t let go. There’s a scene of sex near the end that I couldn’t look away from, but not in a good way. It’s graphic, NC-17 and I expect Fassbender and Mulligan to be heavily represented at this year’s award ceremonies, especially the Oscars. Easily in my top 5 of the year.

And Fassbender should be nominated for biggest penis.