Sunday, January 1, 2012

2011 Movies - Runners up!

Here's three movies that I liked a lot and you should see, but they barely missed my top 10 list.

For the second time this summer, Marvel released a movie that took place in the characters' original time setting. It worked by setting X-Men: First Class in the 60's, and it worked even better with Captain America: The First Avenger set in World War II. To really tell the story, Cap had to fight the Nazi's. It's a good story.

The skinny Steve Rogers special effect were amazing. I've had arguments with people who refuse to believe that it was actually special effects instead of a different actor.

In the movie, Captain America begins his career not as a soldier or a hero but a promoter of war bonds. That was a change from the original comic book story that actually worked, which is rare. The reason, I think, is that they were able to use this plot line to keep the character true. If they can keep his character and personality in the Avengers movie, that will be a very good thing.

Most of you probably didn't see Attack the Block. Many of you probably didn't even hear about Attack the Block. That's bad. You should see it. Not only is it fun, but I loved the look of the aliens/creatures. I'm positive that the look comes from a lack of a big budget, but that meant that they had to get creative.

While I liked the movie, I think my own enjoyment of the movie came from the lack of any public buzz. I got to feel like part of a secret club. Since I recognize that, I left it off the top 10. Still, check it out, and keep an eye out for future stuff from writer and director Joe Cornish.

POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold was on my top 10 list until a few days ago, and I'm sorry to see it go. To me, it was the funniest movie of the year.

I recently listened to an interview with Morgan Spurlock. They discussed whether that was a bad thing to have a documentary that is also a comedy. Spurlock explained that he wants people to enjoy watching it. And it isn't like he's discussing the deepest topic here. If Deliver Us From Evil were a comedy, that would be different.

Though I had some logical problems with Super Size Me, I've enjoyed Spurlock's work. This was probably my favorite. It's a good documentary for a general audience.

OK - next post: I start the Top 10 movies of 2011.

No comments: