This weekend I intended to watch as many of the films Sucker Punch, Source Code and Killing Bono as possible before I left for Germany (tomorrow, 4th April) and managed to get in the first two yesterday – I’ll have to catch Killing Bono on DVD when I get back for Robert Sheehan from Misfits. I’m very proud of myself; this is the first time I’ve been to the cinema twice in one day. Sucker Punch was standard Zack Snyder, fantastic visuals, cool music and very over the top. It’s not the best film ever, it’s a bit silly, but it looks good and you probably won’t get bored if you like action as the enemies vary from robot samurai, zombie Germans in World War I, a dragon in a castle and androids on a train. Be warned it’s rather depressing. Source Code is probably more depressing as it’s slightly more realistic and I would say is a better film but far less action packed, despite the repeated blowing up of a train. It’s not too long – only about an hour and a half – and it’s got a decent amount of plot in there, a good amount of twists and complications and emotional ups and downs. Both are good action but Sucker Punch is more hard core and Source Code is more intelligent – though the science behind it often contradicts itself and even I noticed plot holes.
For this post's top 5 list I was inspired by Mark Kermode, whose film reviews I used to listen to on BBC radio 5 every Friday. I would definitely recommend this as a very entertaining way to get news on the latest releases. You can podcast it on ITunes of course. He speaks to me as a film lover who is convinced of all of his own opinions.
To hear Mark’s top 5 films of 2010 go here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/2010/12/my_top_five_films_of_the_year.html
And these are my…
Top 5 Films of 2010
1. Kick Ass
This film is just the coolest thing ever. The fight scenes are so entertaining and so well choreographed – especially the ones involving the 12 year old Hit Girl – and they have the perfect sound track accompanying them – one of my favourite sound tracks – most notably in Kick Ass’s fame-making fight scene backed by the Prodigy’s Omen, one of the best song choices ever. It’s also really funny, and has Clark Duke, Michael Cera’s far less famous co-star from Clark and Michael (watch this mini-series online, it’s brilliant), whose comedy talent definitely needs more exposure.
2. Inception
Christopher Nolan can do no wrong. I’ve seen all his feature length films, they’re ALL good and they keep improving. Inception may not be as perfect as the Dark Knight, but it’s close, with a complex plot that demands your entire attention, a flawless cast – not just Leo Dicaprio but the understated Joseph Gordon Levitt and the brilliant British actor Tom Hardy, both to be seen in the next Batman film – and fantastic special effects. It’s an intelligent blockbuster. If you like this see also Shutter Island, with its suspiciously similar plot regarding Leo’s wife.
3. The Social Network
Jesse Eisenberg was brought onto my man list by this film, he’s amazing as the socially inept Mark Zuckerberg and supported well by Andrew Garfield – another new favourite of mine, the British actor playing the new Spider-Man – and even Justin Timberlake does his part well. It’s interesting and, though a lot of talk and not much action, a dense plot that doesn’t ramble on too long. Very well directed and deserving of its Bafta.
4. Easy A
As all critics said, the best new teen rom com in ages, since Mean Girls probably. Emma Stone is brilliant in this. Before it she most notably had side parts in Superbad and Zombieland, but this is what will make you love her. It’s so funny and the supporting cast again is genius. One of my favourite lines ever is teacher Thomas Hayden Church questioning the merits of Facebook: “I don't know what your generation's fascination is with documenting your every thought...but I can assure you, they're not all diamonds. "Roman is having an OK day, and bought a Coke Zero at the gas station. Raise the roof."”
5. Four Lions
The funniest advert I have perhaps ever seen shows the scene from this where Fessel explains the different disguises he used to buy large quantities of bleach for a bomb. Though this is the best part of the film probably, the rest is also hilarious, well acted, brilliantly written – Chris Morris is a genius after all – and a very sympathetic and interesting look at suicide bombers.
6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
I had to add this film, because even though it’s not original and no one needs to be told it’s great, I love this franchise. Though The Order of the Pheonix is probably still my favourite, I believe this could be considered the best Harry Potter film if it weren’t only half of a story (book 7) and so incomplete. Picking David Yates to direct 5 and then letting him make the rest was a brilliant idea.
Worst Film of 2010: Sex and the City 2
The only film during which I have actually walked out of the cinema before it ended. It is like an extended episode of the series, there is no specific plot or beginning, middle and end, it is a series of events, in fact, duller than your average episode and somehow it is drawn out into over 2 hours of screen time.
Film updates: Goodness knows why but it appears that they are already planning a Batman reboot before the last of this trilogy has even come out. Christopher Nolan is to be producing it, as Tim Burton produced the Batman films that followed his in the early 90s. Chris’ obvious talent should reassure me, but then again the one’s Tim produced definitely didn’t seem to benefit from his skills… This article has the current information on the reboot: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/movies/news/a311761/batman-franchise-to-be-rebooted.html. My theory is that an actor like Christian Bale would not be willing to do a spin-off franchise such as the Justice League, and so a new Batman is needed. The fact that they seem set on making the Justice League film is certainly good news however. The Justice League, in my opinion, is far superior the the Avengers. I will, of course, be very excited about this reboot when it actually appears as anything superhero appeals to me.
