In 2010, were docs real or just a street artist prank? Did catfish swim in fiction or was it honest and frank? Audiences friended the Facebook flick and Lisbeth Salander was one badass… I shouldn’t call her that. An Arab teen ruled the thugs and the Pat Tillman debacle got swept under the rug. Dream thieves blew our minds and a poor teen was stuck in a cold bind. A mother fought to save her son from jail and clones lived in a world that’s pale.
Sadly, 2010 was not a stellar year for films. Over the past few years, I’ve been awarding four stars at least 20 films. This year only 13 films received a four star rating. Many years I have to make tough choices on what stays on the top 25 and what falls off. This year it wasn’t too difficult. As every year there were a bunch of films that I wish I could have seen in the year. Some like LET ME IN, INSIDE JOB and CARLOS I really wish I could have seen. Here’s a list of some others.
35 SHOTS OF RUM, 45365, 9500 LIBERTY, AGORA, ALAMAR, ALL GOOD THINGS, ANIMAL KINGDOM, BIUTIFUL, BLUE VALENTINE, BLUEBEARD, BOXING GYM, BURIED, CARLOS, CASINO JACK AND THE UNITED STATES OF MONEY, CELL 211, CLIENT 9, CONVICTION, DADDY LONGLEGS, DEATH AT A FUNERAL, DOGTOOTH, ENTER THE VOID, EVERYONE ELSE, FAIR GAME, FAREWELL, THE FATHER OF MY CHILDREN, FISH TANK, FOUR LIONS, GET LOW, HOME, HOWL, I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS, IDIOTS AND ANGELS, INSIDE JOB, IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY, JACK GOES BOATING, THE KARATE KID, LAST TRAIN HOME, LEBANON, LET ME IN, LIFE ABOVE ALL, LIFE DURING WARTIME, LOOKING FOR ERIC, MADE IN DAGENHAM, MARWENCOL, MESRINE: KILLER INSTINCT, MESRINE: PUBLIC ENEMY #1, MONSTERS, MORNING GLORY, MY DOG TULIP, NOWHERE BOY, ONDINE, PUTTY HILL, RABBIT HOLE, RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE, THE RED MACHINE, SCRAPPERS, SECRET SUNSHINE, SECRETARIAT, A SMALL ACT, SOMEWHERE, STILL BILL, THE STRANGE CASE OF ANGELICA, SWEETGRASS, TAMARA DREWE, THE TEMPEST, A TOWN CALLED PANIC, TRASH HUMPERS, UNSTOPPABLE, VINCENT: A LIFE IN COLOR, VINCERE, WAITING FOR SUPERMAN, WHITE MATERIAL and WILD GRASS.
As always, I’ve amended my top 25 lists from 2007, 2008 and 2009 to include films I’ve seen in the past year. Now for the best of 2010.
1) EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP
For those not aware of the street art scene, Banksy is one of the most provocative artists. His documentary on street art is like his art -- thought-provoking, daring, political and darkly humorous. Since its debut camps have formed on whether the film from an artist no one has ever seen is truly a film about a real person who followed street artists around with a camera then turned into a hack artist himself or if that man is just another Banksy creation. I fall into the later camp. The film to me is in the spirit of Andy Kaufman's performance art. Either way the film is a brilliant look and commentary on street art and its move into the mainstream. Whether it's real or not doesn't change its power. No film made me think more this year, while entertaining me completely. But if it is all a joke, how many people is Banksy punking and are some of them fellow artists? The whole film makes one rethink what art is.
2) CATFISH
Here is another doc that created debate over whether it is real or faked. I am in the former camp. A young New York photographer develops a relationship with a woman online and it turns out to be not what he expected. Whether the NYC hipsters was really falling for the woman online or not doesn't change what the film says about our lives online. If the romance is a manipulation it doesn't change the impact of the film. It almost feels fitting if it is a fiction to start, because when the filmmakers go to meet the woman and her family in real life I'm for sure she is for real. The enigmatic title is truly fitting to this enigmatic film.
3) THE SOCIAL NETWORK
If CATFISH exposed the personal side of our digital lives, David Fincher's tale of the creation of Facebook is the historical side. In telling the story of Mark Zuckerberg, the film tells the story of our age. Nerds rule the corporate world. It's not about the money, but transforming society. Jesse Eisenberg plays Zuckerberg with ruthless arrogance. The film sees star making turns from Andrew Garfield and Armie Hammer and a career best from Justin Timberlake. What does having a 1,000 friends online mean when you're not really close to anyone in real life?
4) THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
This wasn't just a book phenomenon. Noomi Rapace put her stamp on the character of Lisbeth Salander and it will be hard for the upcoming English remake to match. This Swedish thriller does an excellent job of developing it's characters, while keeping use gripped by the murder mystery at its core. Few thrillers are driven by their characters like this one. And what great characters they are. Lisbeth is a heroine for the ages.
5) A PROPHET
Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film before its theatrical release in the States, this French gangster tale finds yet another unique and compelling way to exploit the genre. It has the epic scope of THE GODFATHER and the raw bite of GOODFELLAS. Via its story of an Arab man, whose conviction is questionable, this gripping crime tale explores Arabs second class status in French society, as well as the difficulties of prison as a place for rehabilitation.
6) THE TILLMAN STORY
This documentary on Pat Tillman, the pro football player who gave up the multi-million dollar contract to enlist in the military, details how the Bush administration and the military used him as propaganda for the war effort the moment he signed up. In telling his story, the film challenges expectations about soldiers and why people decide to serve. This atheist liberal didn't fit the military model, but that didn't stop them from fitting him into it after his death. Then they wonder why his family is so determined to uncover how he really died. It's a maddening and emotional first rate character study.
7) INCEPTION
Christopher Nolan's put the original back into original content. This thriller brings corporate thieves into the minds of competitors. The story wraps the themes of how ideas are formed in our minds around an edge of your seat suspense flick. The film creates mind bending visuals that seamlessly fit into the live-action. Big scope entertainments rarely are this smart and films this smart are rarely this accessibly entertaining.
8) WINTER'S BONE
This crime drama takes a simple premise -- a man misses bail, which threatens seizure of his family home -- and weaves a powerful human drama. Jennifer Lawrence emerges as a new talent as a teenager forced to protect her younger siblings from the harsh realities of their poverty. She is supported in raw performances from John Hawkes and Dale Dickey. Where the film succeeds so well is it contains hicks from the Ozarks without being a film about "hicks from the Ozarks."
9) MOTHER
This unique Korean crime mystery defies expectations at every turn. A mentally
challenged young man confesses to the murder of a teen girl and his mother sets out to free him. When we think we know the characters the film reveals new information that flips our understanding of them upside down. This mother's determination is motivated from more than love.
10) NEVER LET ME GO
This somber sci-fi drama takes place in an alternative history where clones are born to provide organs for needy humans. Raised in oblivion at boarding schools until they come of age, the clones know little of the outside world. The haunting tale has a lot to say about living with the knowledge that we will die. Carey Mulligan, Kiera Knightley and Andrew Garfield make for a stellar cast in this truly one of a kind genre film.
11) THE FIGHTER
With great performances from Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Melissa Leo and Amy Adams, David O. Russell creates another great boxing film whether the fighter's toughest battle is the one between his family loyalty and what is right for himself.
12) TOY STORY 3
An fitting finale to his amazing animated franchise tells a compelling escape tale while dealing with the things we have to give up when we move into adulthood.
13) MICMACS
From the maker of AMELIE, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, comes this effortlessly charming satire of the weapons industry where a man seeks comeuppance for the manufacturer of the bullet lodged in his head.
14) THE KING'S SPEECH
This entertaining drama about King George VI's fight over his stutter in order to succeed in his duties features great performances from Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush.
15) THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
This comedy that explores the modern family has the children of a lesbian couple seek out their sperm donor, featuring an Oscar-worthy performance from Annette Bening.
16) BLACK SWAN
In Darren Aronofsky's own THE RED SHOES, Natalie Portman gives one of her best performances as an insecure ballet dancer who is beginning to crack under the pressure.
17) 127 HOURS
Danny Boyle's true life survival story about Aron Ralston, who had to cut off his own arm after getting trapped in a remote cave, contains a tour de force performance from James Franco.
18) ANOTHER YEAR
Mike Leigh's latest is the opposite of HAPPY-GO-LUCKY featuring a marvelous central performance from Lesley Manville, who plays an aging single woman who only gets more depressed and desperate every year.
19) RED RIDING TRILOGY
1974
1980
1983
These epic British crime films chronicles a series of child murders and the police cover-up that lasted over a decade. Starts hauntingly and ends with power, a remarkable series that works each separately and together as a whole.
20) TRUE GRIT
Containing three great performances from Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, the Coen brothers take on this classic Western features their signature attention to language and violence mixed with dark humor.
21) CYRUS
Comedy abounds as John C. Reilly tries to date Marisa Tomei, who has an awkwardly close relationship with her adult son, played by Jonah Hill.
22) CITY ISLAND
Andy Garcia gives a great performance in this comedy about a family filled with secrets, which collide in hilarious and sometimes creepy ways.
23) THE ART OF THE STEAL
If you think your will will cover your wishes you need you see this film. Dr. Albert C. Barnes wanted only students to see his art collection, but the powers that be chipped away at his wishes to get their hands the collection, which is worth billions. An infuriating true life crime tale.
24) SHUTTER ISLAND
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Scorsese's mind-blowing psychological thriller has one of those twists that redefines everything you have seen before.
25) SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD
This endlessly inventive romantic comedy uses video game culture as a metaphor for the burden of past relationships on new ones.
Honorable Mentioned
BATMAN: UNDER THE RED HOOD
THE CHASER
CHLOE
DATE NIGHT
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID
EASY A
ENTRE NOS
FLIPPED
THE GHOST WRITER
THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE
GREENBERG
GREEN ZONE
HEREAFTER
I AM LOVE
THE ILLUSIONIST
KICK-ASS
LEAVES OF GRASS
PLEASE GIVE
RESTREPO
SALT
THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES
THE SECRET OF KELLS
SOLITARY MAN
THE SQUARE
THAT EVENING SUN
THE TOWN
VENGEANCE
Amendment
1) Exit Through the Gift Shop
2) Catfish
3) The Social Network
4) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
5) A Prophet
6-tie) Inside Job (Added on 12/29/11)
6-tie) The Tillman Story
7) Inception
8) Winter's Bone
9) Mother
10) Never Let Me Go
11) Marwencol
12) The Fighter
13) Toy Story 3
14) Micmacs
15) The King's Speech
16) The Kids Are All Right
17) Black Swan
18) 127 Hours
19) Rabbit Hole (Added on 12/29/11)
20) Another Year
21-tie) Animal Kingdom (Added on 12/29/11)
21-tie) Red Riding Trilogy
22) True Grit
23) Cyrus
24) City Island
25) The Art of the Steal
Honorable Mentioned
Agora (Added on 12/29/11)
All Good Things (Added on 12/29/11)
Batman: Under the Red Hood
Blue Valentine (Added on 12/29/11)
Buried (Added on 12/29/11)
The Chaser
Chloe
Date Night
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Dogtooth (Added on 12/29/11)
Easy A
Entre Nos
Flipped
Frozen (Added on 12/29/11)
The Ghost Writer
The Girl Who Played with Fire
Greenberg
Green Zone
Hereafter
I Am Love
I Love You Phillip Morris (Added on 12/29/11)
The Illusionist
Kick-Ass
Leaves of Grass
Lebanon (Added on 12/29/11)
Let Me In (Added on 12/29/11)
Made in Dagenham (Added on 12/29/11)
Monsters (Added on 12/29/11)
Nowhere Boy (Added on 12/29/11)
Please Give
Restrepo
Salt
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
The Secret in Their Eyes
The Secret of Kells
Shutter Island
Solitary Man
Somewhere (Added on 12/29/11)
The Square
That Evening Sun
The Town
Unstoppable (Added on 12/29/11)
Vengeance
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
