But there were still some movies from 2010 that I hadn't seen yet. Now that I've basically seen 85% at least of the year - I feel confident enough in making this list.
#5 - Buried (directed by Rodrigo Cortes)
Buried was one of those movies that I watched in theaters on the edge of my seat the entire way through. I wasn't sure what the outcome would be, I wasn't sure if there's be a twist, I knew nothing - and I felt like I couldn't escape. More-so than Black Swan - this was just the most intense movie for me of 2010. I wanted to include a film that was intense and I was torn between this, Black Swan and Restrepo. I ultimately went with Buried because it was the movie whose intensity level surprised me the most. Ryan Reynolds also was a bit of a surprise, I like the guy, but I've not ever claimed to think he was actually an a amazing actor and here he showed a ton of potential. He's basically the entire film and for 94 minutes he keeps you completely engaged. Not for the squeamish - but Buried offers a lot of drama and thrills. Even for this jaded film-goer!
#4 - The Other Guys (directed by Adam McKay)
I'm not a huge fan of comedies. I'll be the first to admit - I prefer my dramas, my period pieces, my foreign languages and my indies - so count me as pleasantly surprised when I sat down to The Other Guys and walked away with one of the best theatrical experiences of my life. I had never laughed so hard and smiled so much. Sometimes you know a movie is great when you are constantly recommending it to people - and this has been the case for The Other Guys. I know a lot of people like Will Ferrell (never been a fan before) but I consider his performance here as one of the truly funniest screen performances I've seen since Christopher Guest in 1997's Waiting for Guffman.
#3 - Animal Kingdom (directed by David Michod)
Animal Kingdom is a film without a safety net. I can't remember the last time I watched a movie full of characters I couldn't trust at all. Nothing in this film feels cushioned or safe, it's aptly titled since you feel like you are being hunted by these criminals. You are prey to the amazing screenplay and directing by David Michod. The film should be seen spoiler-free as its last half really kicks you in the stomach as the stakes are raised to a degree in which you feel no one can pay up to. The film does take its time, it's a little slow, but I appreciated it. Filled with mostly unknown (to Americans anyway) Australian actors - there's not a weak link in the entire cast. Everyone brings their A-game to this little crime drama. Now, I know it's not the most original screenplay in the entire world (lots of mafioso cliches) but there was just something riveting about it nevertheless.
#2 - Please Give (directed by Nicole Hilofcener)
Please Give had to make it to my list because it's a movie that frustrated me like no other. I absolutely wanted to smack almost every character in this movie more than once. The reaction I had to it was like a knee-jerk reaction. I could see their selfish, self-serving, pretentious behavior and interactions with one another and it was just so isolating and cold. The humor in the film comes with a cost. It's always at the expense of someone else - someone dying, someone dead, someone with a lot of pain. It's similar in many ways to the brilliant The Social Network. This is not for a hand-to-mouth popcorn crowd and that makes it even more infuriating. The film almost seems elite (which I think is intentional.) However, for months, after seeing it - I was unable to shake it off. I wasn't able to forget these awful people. And I began to see their humanity and my own flaws within them. And that's what great movies do.
#1 - Somewhere (directed by Sofia Coppola)
I'm a huge fan of Coppola's breakout film Lost in Translation - it's actually probably one of my all-time favorite films. There's not a lot of differences here with Somewhere - but it's almost like she remade the film but added so much more emotional weight into it and somehow made a better version of an already amazing film? Weird, yes, but let me try to explain. Somewhere has this very odd melancholic over/undertone that dug into my brain as just a general reason of why I am even interested in Hollywood, actors, movies - it has an emotional resonance - as someone who grew up with Stephen Dorff when he was an It boy and then watched his career sink and fail ... I don't know what it was. That's the thing about Sofia Coppola's style, you're not sure what exactly you're loving or how she's even able to get in there and stir your emotions but I had a very strong emotional reaction to this movie and the funny thing was that I expected to but had kind of cast off interest in it after it failed to make a splash throughout the awards circuit. This may be considered a misfire at first glance (I saw it three times before it hit me) but it might just be that kind of brilliant masterpiece that people slowly start to discover over the years after the fact and really learn to appreciate and value. I can only imagine my love for this film increasing as time goes on.
Honorable Mentions:
David Fincher's The Social Network (amazing movie with amazing writing and cast.)Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan (brutal (but also beautiful looking) horror-style film-making with a rapturous performance by Portman.)
*I just feel sort of burnt out by these movies.
FIVE OF THE WORST FILMS I SAW IN 2010:
(I don't want to blurb these as no more of my time should be spent on them. They're crap, they're awful, avoid them unless you just want to see how offensively bad they are.)
01. Alice in Wonderland
02. Robin Hood
03. The Tourist
04. Love and Other Drugs
05. Catfish
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