What I Saw: 2011

So, since it's Oscar weekend, now's as good a time as any to publish my  ridiculously long annual "What I Saw" post. Because my opinion matters, dammit.

As I did last year, I'm combining everything I saw (whether it was on television, in a theater or on the internet) into one list. The difference between traditional cinema and television is becoming increasingly arbitrary (I watch most new theatrical releases at home), so I'm choose to simply ignore it.

No internet-only creations made it this year. None were as compelling to me as 2010's Words to really merit writing about (although Guy on a Buffalo - Episode 2 (Orphans, Cougars & What Not) comes close enough to merit a sort of honorable mention).

I've managed to see the highest number of new releases as I think I've ever managed in a calender year (29!), so that's something. Yet, there are some notable movies I didn't get to see as of this writing. For instance, I've only managed to see three of the nine films nominated for Best Picture this year (Moneyball being the best of that lot). Some of those releases I wanted to but just couldn't manage to find the time for. Those include:

The Artist
A Dangerous Method
The Debt
The Descendants
Fright Night
Hugo
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
The Muppets
Take Shelter
Shame
Warrior
Win Win

Of course, there are a number of high-profile releases I have actively avoided. Here's that list with some explanation as to why:

The Iron Lady - Meryl Streep sucks. Can we just admit it? The last performance I cared about from her was in "Adaptation" and that was 10 years ago. Everything since then has been a variation of "Hey, everyone! I'm Meryl Streep and I'm ACTING!" Pass.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Nine eleven. 9/11. 911.

Anything to do with Twilight or Harry Potter - Too easy.

The Help - The trailer tells me this is a movie about sassy black women standing up against prejudice in the Jim Crow South as told through the eyes of a pretty, young, white woman. Enlightening!

War Horse - World War I told through the eyes of a horse as filtered through Spielberg sentimentality? I can love me some Spielberg, but I'm sure this would be akin to drowning in chocolate mousse.

Atlas Shrugged - I'm officially a libertarian heretic. Never cared for (or finished) the book and the trailer looked... lacking, to be kind.

I welcome comments telling me I'm wrong in my prejudices regarding the films above. But they're going to have to be damned convincing.

Now, on to what I managed to see. First up is the group of what I considered my favorites of the past year. They're ordered from what I consider at this moment to be best to almost-best:


Certified Copy - Are they married or aren't they? Both. Are they acting or aren't they? Again, both. It's Schrodinger's cat in film form. It's an essay on the authenticity of art. It's a heartbreaking examination on relationships and the roles we play in them. It's a director in complete control of his craft, first grabbing you by the brain, then plucking a few heart strings. It's easily my favorite movie from the last year.

Drive - An absolute perfect blend of Jean Pierre Melville and 80s Michael Mann. This is the kind of movie that ratchets up the tension by having the quiet disturbed by the sound of a leather-gloved hand slowly squeezing into a fist.

Cave of Forgotten Dreams - This is the only movie I've ever seen that I'd recommend seeing in 3D. The textures of the paint on the cave walls really come through with the extra dimension. Not that seeing this in HD in mere 2D isn't bad. It also helps that while watching these ancient and amazing works of art move across the screen you get to listen to Werner Herzog give a delightfully existential narration.

Moneyball - In decades past, this would be the kind of movie that would have walked away with all sorts of accolades and awards. Big star (Brad Pitt) giving a fantastic performance in a movie about underdogs trying to beat the odds by going against conventional wisdom. And in the final scene when Billy Beane puts on his daughters CD as he drives, contemplating his future, the camera ever so slightly zooming closer to his face... damned if it didn't suddenly get dusty in my living room.

Louie - Season 2 - With no real over-arching story to tell, the strength of this show is really just how well the short vignettes Louis C.K. puts together are. In this season, we got some sage advice from Joan Rivers, Louie clearing the air with Dane Cook, a wonderfully absurd ride through the New York City subway, a sweetly self-indulgent performance of "Who Are You?" and a surprisingly touching moment involving a duckling that was stowed away to Afghanistan. It takes a deft hand to smoothly move from some of the darker stuff touched on in this series to gutter comedy, but Louis C.K. proves himself more than able.

Breaking Bad - Season 4 - Walt continues his slide into darkness while Jessie continues to fight against it. The fact that these two were separate for most of the season coupled with the fact that the writers had to deal with some serious fallout from Season 3's finale made the first half of this season quite a bit more plot heavy than usual. It all paid off, though, with a fantastic finish that set up what should be an epic closing chapter in Season 5.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - As far as the plot is concerned, I doubt highly I could tell you in any detail what happened. Told in an elliptical style, I couldn't possibly grasp all that was going on after only one viewing. Yes there's a mole. Yes, it stars Gary Oldman (who is fantastic as always). There's betrayals and other necessities for a spy story. Regardless of the details of the plot, because of atmosphere, pacing, and those glasses worn by Gary Oldman, I'd quickly watch it again before anything else on this list.

Archer - Season 2 - The writers really hit a stride this season, crafting an uproarious comedy that is a perfect blend of character-driven comedy mixed with obscure and not-so-obscure pop-culture references that made The Simpsons so great in it's heyday. The two-episode arc where Archer doesn't merely get cancer but breast cancer, and then proceeds to go on a rampage against the men who were stealing his cancer meds, all while fighting the effects of chemotherapy and over-indulgence in medical marijuana, was easily the high point.

Homeland - Season 1 - A less frenetic version of 24, as well as a bit more controversial. Setting up a story where a POW Marine is potentially a terrorist (I won't spoil whether he is or not) could bring about some serious blowback (see what I did there?) against Showtime. Staying true to it's characters helped the show keep the feeling that anything really could happen at any moment and, most importantly, kept us caring.

The Tree of Life - Terrance Malick's epic on the history of the universe as it felt to a kid growing up in 1950s Texas may have some faults (mainly Sean Penn's moments on screen that don't feel connected to anything else, and the sappy and lame final moments) but it's highs are so damn exhilarating I can forgive it when it fails. The creation of the world sequence was what got all the press leading up to the movie's release, but it's the perfect way Malick captures the memories of growing up that wins you over.

Meek's Cutoff - The moment early on when the picture slowly dissolves from one shot to another, creating an effect where it appears that there are ghost riders in the sky is as perfect a movie moment as you'll see all year. It's a quiet and tense movie about Oregon trail riders who suddenly find themselves lost, without water and possibly in hostile territory. I felt initially the ending was needlessly ambiguous, but further viewings could change that.

Melancholia - Lars von Trier explains that depression sucks so hard, only the complete annihilation of the world could be a satisfying way to end it.

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives - The basic story of the movie is pretty much spelled out for you right there in the title. But that really doesn't tell you much about the amused way in which this is all presented, even when things go so far as to recall the time a princess made love to a fish. Which of those two parties was Uncle Boonmee is thankfully never revealed.

Parks and Recreation - Season 3 - Ron Swanson is of course a bit of a hero of mine. The faux-documentary stuff kind of annoys me but thankfully Ron, Leslie and the rest of the gang are hilarious and touching enough for me to forgive any shortcomings.



Now comes the middling middle. Here reside things I considered pretty damn good to not-terrible:

South Park - Season 15 - The first half of this season was littered with episodes that never quite gelled. Funny concepts (HumancentiPad) that suffered from rushed and awkward execution. Then out of nowhere came the touching mid-season finale (You're Getting Old). I don't whether the guys had grown exhausted from running The Book of Mormon on Broadway and diving right back into their old schedule with Comedy Central, but that episode sure felt like they were exorcising some serious frustrations. Thankfully they did so in a hilarious and sad way. This somehow led to a fantastic second-half output, which includes an all-time classic episode in Broadway Bro Down. The idea alone of Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Schwartz, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Elton John hanging at a Hooters and acting like frat guys who only write Broadway musicals as a way to get chicks to give blowjobs is genius enough. The execution couldn't have been more perfect, bruh.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - Probably the coolest title sequence you'll ever see. Also, one of the coldest representations of snow I think I've ever seen. The swirling flakes, Daniel Craig shivering on his first arrival and the sound of boots crunching while walking on it made me almost shiver in my theater seat. Also, awesome use of "Orinico Flow".

Young Adult - I'll say it until people are sick of hearing it: Charlize Theron is completely underrated as an actress and this movie is Exhibit A. No makeup, no gimmicks. She just simply loses herself in the role of a reprehensible human who has no desire to grow, clinging to her sad idea of how the past was.

Hanna - A well-done addition to the "Kick Ass Ladies" vault. Saoirse Ronan capably handles the title role, and Cate Blanchett is deliciously creepy. It's also an action movie shot with a tripod, which earns huge bonus points in my book. The subway fight scene between Eric Bana and several assailants especially stands out.

Sucker Punch - A gloriously stupid addition to the "Kick Ass Ladies" vault. Take a 15-year-old video-game-playing, comic-book-reading, anime-watching male and distill his most banal thoughts on these things into a 110 minute movie.

Bridesmaids - Melissa McCarthy stole the show from Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph. And who doesn't think women in wedding dresses shitting in the middle of the street is funny?

Super - So, you know how in reality Batman would be a totally insane creep? He just kinda gets away with it because he's super rich and has the toys to do the whole vigilante thing right. Well, here's a movie about a guy who's a touch crazier than Bruce Wayne and a whole lot poorer.

X-Men: First Class - This movie really had no right to be as entertaining as it was. A prequel to a film series that couldn't have shit the bed worse than it did with X3? Well, thanks to great casting (January Jones excepted) and a cool, 60s vibe, Charles Xavier's boys and girls made being an angsty mutant fun again.

Beavis and Butthead - Season 8 - They're completely juvenile, but Mike Judge does manages to sneak in some clever satire. The best example being the time the boys think an abortion clinic is a whorehouse.

Buck - The guy who inspired The Horse Whisperer gets the documentary treatment. Part therapist, part horse trainer, he's an interesting (and nice) guy even though there's nothing exceptionally revealing here that you haven't seen elsewhere.

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil - A somewhat Edgar Wright inspired satire of recent slasher flicks where suburban kids get slaughtered by murderous rednecks. Turning the premise on its head by having the suburban, preppy kids mistake Tucker and Dale as killers, leading to events where the douchebags meet unseemly (and thankfully grisly) ends thanks to their own idiocy is kind of delightful.

Insidious - An interesting twist on the haunted house genre. Borrowing liberally from Poltergeist in the final act it falters a bit in the end, but there were enough genuine and clever scares to keep me interested.

Trollhunter - A Norwegian entry into the "found footage" genre that was much better than it ever had any right to be. Special effects that were good enough to not distract from the experience and an interesting plot hook (the Norwegian government knows about trolls but hides it from the public) made this wholly enjoyable.

Paranormal Activity 3 - I found the second one tedious, yet this one held my interest the whole way, and gave me a few good creeps. What's the difference between the two? Don't know if I could tell you. Such is the mystery of taste sometimes.

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark - Another horror movie... Those little goblin creatures were sure creepy. I dunno.

Hobo with a Shotgun - Rutger Hauer is the hobo and, yes, he has a shotgun. This is the kind of movie where a character extinguishes a bus full of kids with a flamethrower. It tries to capture that 70s grindhouse feeling and more or less succeeds.

The Walking Dead - Season 2 - It might be premature to put this on here as it was only halfway finished as 2011 wrapped up, but whatever. The show continues to live down it's potential but unfortunately not totally. If it just completely turned to shit, I could forget about it and move on. Instead, it continues to flash moments of brilliance at me, like the way they did at the end of the episode "Pretty Much Dead Already" and it keeps me hooked. Plus, it's got zombies and that's gotta count for something.

Midnight in Paris - A pretty middle of the road Woody Allen picture. I don't get all the praise it's been getting, as the characters are pretty paper thin and it completely lacks any subtlety about it's theme. Gil's conversations with Hemingway were funny enough, as was a particular exchange with Luis Bunuel ("But, why can't they leave?"). But just because your references are a little more cultured than Family Guy's doesn't mean it's high comedy.

Conan O'Brien Can't Stop - This documentary wasn't entirely enlightening as Conan O'Brien managed to remain completely aloof. I respect the man's talent and drive, but also came away thinking him a bit narcissistic for my liking.

The Hangover Part II - If you played this on one screen and the original on the other in the same room, I'm 100% positive the story beats would hit at the exact same moments.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon - I'll give Michael Bay this: I found the climax of the movie where the human characters make their way through tumbling skyscrapers to be genuinely clever and exciting. Other than that, it was robots beating the shit out of each other.


And now... the dregs....

The Rite - Anthony Hopkins earns a paycheck.

Dexter - Season 6 - I might be curious to watch Season 7 just to see how much farther this once promising show can spiral down into utter retardedness. This season had a "twist" that just about everyone saw coming for about 5 weeks, a horrible performance by Colin Hanks and a "shock" ending that was ineptly set up by the writers. Throw in some trite religious themes and you have a real train wreck on your hands.

The Killing - Season 1 - Such promise wasted. The pilot was just about the perfect blend of atmosphere and police-procedural plot. And then it turned into the show where it rained every scene of every episode, the police were incredibly stupid, and nearly impossible coincidences abounded.

American Horror Story - Season 1 - I watched only five episodes and couldn't stomach anymore. All of the characters were unlikable, there wasn't any visual style for me to find interesting and the salaciousness of it all came across as needlessly puerile. And I'm a guy who loves Body Double.

Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie - I'll give these two this much: they definitely have the courage of their convictions. There's no doubt these guys were swinging for the fences and went as far they felt the material would let them. Middle school children shitting all over Eric in some new-agey spa treatment inter-cut with Tim having some of the wettest sounding sex committed to screen? Okay, I'll admit to laughing at that. But what made their Adult Swim show so fascinating was the rapid-fire procession of absurdities that overwhelmed you to the point where your only option was to laugh. Unfortunately, pretty much none of that is on display in this movie and instead it's a 90-minute slog through almost surreality.

Red State - Kevin Smith follows up ripping off Judd Apatow with ripping off Eli Roth. It's bad enough that Smith doesn't really have any camera sense and resorts to modern horror cliche visuals and editing, but to top it all off with Smith's incessant preaching? And waste Michael Parks like this? I hope Smith follows up on his threat to retire.