2010 Round Up!

Crap! I'm late posting this list. So I'm making this the first official post of 2011. I've seen a lot of films this year, compared to previous years, yet I still managed to miss the big one: The Social Network. I also haven't seen Black Swan yet, damnit!

Movies I've seen (in chronological order):
Valentine's Day, Alice In Wonderland, Kick-Ass, The Crazies, Hot Tub Time Machine, Shutter Island, Cop Out, Clash of the Titans, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, She's Out of My League, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Centurion, Toy Story 3, Vampires Suck, Tooth Fairy, The Expendables, Grown Ups, Piranha 3D, Iron Man 2, Unthinkable, Predators, Machete, A Nightmare on Elm Street, How to Train Your Dragon, Monsters, Despicable Me, Resident Evil: Afterlife, When In Rome, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, The Other Guys, Inception, The A-Team, Shrek Forever After, Red, The Reef, Skyline, Jonah Hex, The Town, Easy A, Dear John, Buried and Saw 3D.

Movies I wanted to see, but didn't get around to seeing (in alphabetical order):
127 Hours, The Back-Up Plan, Black Swan, Blue Valentine, Devil, Eat Pray Love, The Experiment, Frozen, Going the Distance, Gulliver's Travels, The Kids Are All Right, The Killer Inside Me, Killers, Knight and Day, Leap Year, Letters to Juliet, Life as We Know It, The Losers, Love & Other Drugs, Repo Men, The Romantics, Shelter, The Social Network, Somewhere and Tucker and Dale vs Evil.

My Five Favorite Films of the Year (notice how I say favorite and not best):
1) Toy Story 3
Unlike last year, I didn't have a clear favorite this year, but looking back at everything I've seen, I have the most fondness for Toy Story 3. It's not a perfect film, but I did enjoy and love it a lot.
2) Scott Pilgrim vs the World
Along with Piranha 3D, my most anticipated movie of 2010. Edgar Wright managed to deliver an energetic, fun and original film, which is quite the accomplishment these days. I'm just sad it hasn't appeared on a lot of critics' best of the year lists.
3) Piranha 3D
What I loved about this film is that it doesn't take itself seriously. It's a fun summer flick with a nice ensemble cast.
4) Kick-Ass
I'm sure this will end up as boyfriend's #1 pick of 2010. Kick-Ass was way more brutal and realistic than I expected it to be. I guess for me, this was the biggest surprise of the year.
5) Machete
It's Danny Trejo kicking ass. 'Nuff said.

My Least Favorite Movies of the Year:
1) Vampires Suck
No, I didn't pay any money to see this flick. It's awful. Why Ken Jeong and Arielle Kebbel are in this, I have no idea. Friedberg and Seltzer, please just stop.
2) The Reef
Yeah, I'll just go watch Open Water again.
3) Clash of the Titans
It just wasn't very good, was it? I'm having a hard time remembering what I disliked about it. I think the CGI bothered me.
4) Monsters
I can totally appreciate and respect what Gareth Edwards did here. I just wasn't feeling it. It didn't keep my interest.
5) A Nightmare on Elm Street
A very unnecessary remake. Visually, it was pretty good, but the rest of it was quite a mess. I had quite a problem with Katie Cassidy, a capable actress, being set up as the lead and then getting Rooney Mara instead. Plus, Robert Englund is Freddy. Period.

Ten Favorite Performances of the Year (in alphabetical order):
1) Channing Tatum (Dear John)
2) Chloe Moretz (Kick-Ass)
3) Danny Trejo (Machete)
4) Emma Stone (Easy A)
5) Jay Baruchel (while nothing stands out, he had a solid year with She's Out of My League, The Sorcerer's Apprentice and How to Train Your Dragon)
6) Jerry O'Connell (Piranha 3D)
7) Kieran Culkin (Scott Pilgrim vs the World)
8) Michael Sheen (Unthinkable)
9) Ryan Reynolds (Buried)
10) Whitney Able (Monsters)

Movies I'm Looking Forward to in 2011:
30 Minutes of Less; And Soon the Darkness; Bad Teacher; Battle: Los Angeles; The Cabin in the Woods; Captain America: The First Avenger; Ceremony; The Change-Up; Contagion; Country Strong; Crazy Stupid Love; The Darkest Hour; The Devil's Double; Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules; The Dilemma; Drive; Drive Angry 3D; Dylan Dog: Dead of Night; The Eagle; Every Day; Everything Must Go; The Factory; The Fields; Final Destination 5; Flypaper; Friends with Benefits; Friends with Kids; Fright Night; From Prada to Nada; Goon; The Green Hornet; Green Lantern; Hall Pass; The Hangover: Part Two; Hanna; The Help; Here; I Am Number Four; Jeff Who Lives at Home; The Other Woman; Red State; The Ward.

My Favorite Films of the Decade According to Flickchart

Flickchart is wonderfully addictive. But I did have to laugh when I checked out my Top 50 Favorite Films of the Decade:

50) Jeepers Creepers (not sure if it would make my top 50)
49) The Notebook (see 50)
48) The Midnight Meat Train (I think this should be higher)
47) 27 Dresses (should be slightly higher I think)
46) Sunshine (also a bit higher)
45) About a Boy (way higher!)
44) Live Free or Die Hard (seems about right)
43) She's the Man (maybe a bit higher)
42) Final Destination (higher)
41) Ghost World (higher)
40) Inglourious Basterds (higher!)
39) Knocked Up (bit higher)
38) Just Friends (higher)
37) Enchanted (higher)
36) All the Boys Love Mandy Lane (seems about right)
35) Mamma Mia! (higher)
34) 50 First Dates (lower)
33) Scary Movie (seems about right)
32) Requiem for a Dream (lower - sorry, it's too depressing)
31) Music & Lyrics (I'm not sure it would be in my top 50)
30) Transformers (lower)
29) Remember the Titans (seems right)
28) 13 Going on 30 (seems about right too)
27) Sin City (higher)
26) The Royal Tenenbaums (seems right or lower)
25) Cloverfield (higher!)
24) Identity (lower)
23) The Butterfly Effect (lower)
22) Saw (bit lower I think)
21) The Hills Have Eyes (seems right)
20) Kill Bill Vol. 2 (I would count Kill Bill as one movie and put it higher)
19) Bring It On (lower?)
18) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (lower)
17) Black Hawk Down (seems right)
16) The Invisible Circus (seems right)
15) Signs (higher?)
14) The Village (lower)
13) Dawn of the Dead (lower)
12) Chicago (bit lower)
11) Love Actually (seems right)
10) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (a bit higher)
09) Serendipity (seems right or lower)
08) Finding Nemo (seems right)
07) A Lot Like Love (lower)
06) Grindhouse (seems right)
05) Kill Bill Vol. 1 (higher)
04) Magnolia (yup)
03) Almost Famous (seems right)
02) The Family Stone (lower)
01) Elizabethtown (it's my fave movie of alltime!)

Notably absent movies I like that may or may not end up on my real favorite movies of the decade list: 28 Days Later, Crazy/Beautiful, Mean Girls, The Sweetest Thing, It's a Boy/Girl Thing, My Sassy Girl, The Mexican, Not Another Teen Movie, Poseidon, Confessions of a Shopaholic, Stardust, Pirates of the Caribbean 1, Into the Wild, Hostel, The Strangers, Across the Universe, Waiting, Mean Creek, White Oleander, Briget Jones's Diary, Ginger Snaps, Freaky Friday.

2007 Round Up!

It's the end of the year, meaning it's time to look back and make lists!

Movies I saw in the theater (in chronological order):
Music & Lyrics, Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Death Proof, Transformers, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, I Could Never Be Your Woman, Live Free or Die Hard, Planet Terror, Disturbia, Hairspray, Knocked Up, Halloween, Resident Evil: Extinction, Enchanted, and I Am Legend.

A movie ticket is 8,75 euros x 16 movies = 140 euros in total! Err.. I don't really think most of these were worth all that money.. maybe some of my money.

Five favorite movies of the year (notice how I say favorite and not best, and putting them in order is almost impossible):
1) Knocked Up
2) Planet Terror
3) Live Free or Die Hard
4) Enchanted
5) Transformers

Five least favorite movies of the year (I'm not saying these are bad per se, I just didn't really enjoy them):
1) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
2) Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
3) Hairspray
4) Halloween
5) Death Proof

Ten favorite performances of the year (in alphabetical order):
1) Amy Adams (Enchanted)
2) James Marsden (Enchanted)
3) Justin Long (Live Free or Die Hard)
4) Katherine Heigl (Knocked Up)
5) Paul Rudd (I Could Never Be Your Woman)
6) Rose McGowan (Planet Terror)
7) Saoirse Ronan (I Could Never Be Your Woman)
8) Seth Rogen (Knocked Up)
9) Shia LaBeouf (Disturbia, Transformers)
10) Will Smith (I Am Legend)

Movies I wanted to see, but didn't get around to seeing (in alphabetical order):
2 Days in Paris, Across the Universe, Atonement, The Darjeeling Limited, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Gone Baby Gone, Good Luck Chuck, Into the Wild, The Jane Austen Book Club, Juno, Lars and the Real Girl, License to Wed, Live!, The Mist, My Blueberry Nights, The Nanny Diaries, Paris, Je t'aime, P.S. I Love You, Ratatouille, Saw 4, Southland Tales, Sunshine, Superbad, Waitress, Zodiac

Top Five movies I'm looking forward to in 2008:
1) Cloverfield
2) He's Just Not That Into You
3) Fanboys
4) How to Lose Friends & Alienate People
5) Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay

It was tough compiling the list of the top 5 movies that I'm looking forward to, because besides Cloverfield, nothing is really juming out at me.

Other movies I'm looking forward to in 2008:
27 Dresses; Adventureland; The Air I Breathe; All About Steve; All the Boys Love Mandy Lane; Be Kind, Rewind; The Box; Choke; Confessions of a Shopaholic; Drillbit Taylor; Definitely, Maybe; Eagle Eye; Forgetting Sarah Marshall; Four Christmases; Funny Games; The Happening; I Know What Boys Like; Leatherheads; The Life Before her Eyes; Made of Honor; Mamma Mia!; Midnight Meat Train; The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor; My Sassy Girl; Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist; Over Her Dead Body; Passengers; The Pineapple Express; Quarantine; The Ruins; Saw V; Sex & The City, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2; The Six Wives of Henry Lefay; Sleepwalking; Speed Racer; The Strangers; Sunshine Cleaning; The Time Traveler's Wife; Tropic Thunder; What Happens in Vegas

And that pretty much concludes my round up of 2007! Overall, I think it was an pretty okay year for movies. Some were really disappointing (like PotC: At World's End) and some were really surprising (like Disturbia). As is painfully obvious, I haven't seen any of the big award contenders so I really can't judge properly about the movies this year. I hope 2008 will be a great year, but at the moment I'm not expecting too much.