So following on from yesterday's post, here's my views on the best films that I've seen this year:
Honourable mentions go to Shutter Island, Four Lions, Crazy Heart, The Heartbreaker and The Princess and the Frog which all just missed out on a place in the top 25:
25. Monsters Intelligent and engaging low-budget indie sci-fi which blends several genres effectively.
24. The Kids Are Alright Smart, funny and moving relationship drama anchored by great performances from Annette Benning and Julianne Moore.
23. How to Train your Dragon Dreamwork's best film since the original Shrek. Beautifully animated and for once with a story and script to match.
22. The Town Ben Affleck's sophomore effort as director proves he's got the talent behind the lense. Hard-hitting crime drama given depth by a sense of place and character.
21. The Last Station. Helen Mirren and James McAvoy, quality drama and the story of Tolstoy's last days. Thought-provoking too.
20. The Boys are Back Clive Owen is surprsisingly good here as the bereaved dad trying to bring his sons up by himself. Moving and surprisingly funny.
19. The Road Slow and sombre drama with Viggo Mortensen walking a post-apocalyptic journey. Slightly disappointed on initial viewing as I had high hopes for this film, but it does stay with you. A slow burner.
18. Micmacs Jean-Pierre Jeunet's latest slice of French quirkiness had mixed reviews. I loved it.
17. Rare Exports Delightfully inventive Finnish film based around a gem of an idea of an alternative take on Santa Claus.
16. The Illusionist beautifully drawn animated film with a slice of melancholy charm. A glimpse into a bygone Edinburgh.
15. A Single Man Colin Firth should have won an Oscar for this - its a better performance and a better film than Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart. Fashion designer Tom Ford takes the director's chair and whilst a bit too stylistically showy at times, still delivers a quality film.
14. Lebanon Claustrophobic Israeli war film all from the inside of a tank on the first day of the Lebanon war.
13. The Lovely Bones The critics didn't warm to this, I thought Peter Jackson produced something different and great - visually arresting and tense. Also featured a great turn from Stanley Tucci as the killer.
12. Scott Pilgrim vs the World Extremely funny and wonderfully inventive, no mean feat for a film that is essentially structured around a series of fights and wonderful cameos. Edgar Wright's American debut (following Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz) is one of the funniest films of the year.
11. A Prophet This French prison drama is not for the faint-hearted, but adds something to the genre and features an amazng debut performance by Tahar Rahim.
10. The Hedgehog You could argue that this one is a bit of a cheat, as its not had a UK release yet ( I saw it in the French film festival) but its one of the best, most subtle, funny and moving films I've seen this year, so in it goes.
9. Avatar Another slight cheat, as it came out at the end of last year, but I saw it this, so in it goes. The story's a bit weak, but James Cameron does succeed in creating a very immersive world and the big battles are probably the best since Lord of the Rings.
8. Green Zone Greengrass and Damon re-team, the results aren't quite Bourne and the subject feels a bit like yesterday's news, but its still a superior thriller with raw, visceral excitement.
7. Winter's Bone I've seen this film described as "feminist redneck noir", which is a description I can't beat. Sustained tension and a sense of threat, a real sense of place and an amazing performance in the lead by Jennifer Lawrence make this utterly gripping.
6. Kick Ass The film that may have re-invented the superhero film, rejuvenated Nicolas Cage's career and launched a new star in Chloe Moretz. Killer idea brilliantly executed.
5. Up in the Air is a difficult film to categorise - its not exactly a comedy, a drama or a romance although it has elements of all three. Its funny, intelligent, emotional, original and thought-provoking. Has a central trio of great performances, including an on-top-of-his-game Clooney in a part you can't imagine anyone else pulling off.
4. The Social Network Smart script by The west Wing's Aaron Sorkin, smart direction by David Fincher and great performances from the young cast make the story of Facebook one of the films of the year.
3. Another Year A film in which nothing very much happens and the central couple are pretty sorted, but this could well be Mike Leigh's masterpiece through acute observation and real heart. A very human film.
2. Toy Story 3 It would have been so horrendous if they had messed this up. Thankfully they didn't. A fitting end to the trilogy.
1. Inception Stunning visually, some wonderful ideas, universally strong performances. Again Christopher Nolan has made an intelligent, sophisticated thriller and turned it into a huge blockbuster success.
Well, that's my choices. Feel free to disagree. The links should take you to trailers for the films on Youtube. Let me know if they don't work.
Hope you all had a good Christmas and have a wonderful start to 2011.
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