Ach! This is such an impossible topic, I can hardly think of my top 5 movies of a particular GENRE most days. So, faced with an impossible task, I'll do the cowardly thing and slyly change my 'Top Five Favorite Movies' to 'Top Five Movies I've Seen This Year'. These are films I saw for the first time in 2011, and are still fresh in my mind.
5. Midnight in Paris (2011)- Woody Allen has crafted a wonderful little film here. Owen Wilson shines as an optimistic romantic whose desire to be inspired by Paris leads him on a fantastic journey through different periods of Paris' history. Allen's reflection on his own obsession with nostalgia is both charming and funny, and definitely worth a watch.
4. Mr Nobody (2009)- Get your head around this; a 118 year old man, who at times convinced he is only 34, recounts his life stories (yes, multiple) to a reporter in the year 2092. Based on how choices affect the outcome of our lives, the film explores a wide variety of subjects with this concept, inviting us to view the three major 'paths' of this man's life, flicking between the possible outcomes at a whim. A film that demands and deserves your attention, it left me wondering about my own life - and a film that makes me think like that is a film worth your time.
3. Drive (2011) - I loved this film. Atmospheric films have always been favourites of mine (see: The Warriors) and Drive was a golden example of how minimal dialogue can not just work in a film, but enhance it too. I've always thought Ryan Gosling was an under-appreciated actor, especially after watching Blue Valentine and Half Nelson, and here he's just as good - as the gifted driver who becomes involved in a 'deal gone wrong'. Opinions have been divided on this film (I think the trailer made it look too much like 'The Fast and the Furious') but I loved it.
2. Death at a Funeral (2007) - One of the funniest films I have ever seen. Ever. This story of lunacy surrounding a funeral just tickles in all the right places. It's every kind of humour you could ask for. It's witty, it's silly, it's clever, it's dry, and I loved it to bits. I can't really describe what happens without giving away jokes, so I'll just say that this would have been my film of the year, if not for...
1. Son of Rambow (2007) - This cross-section of childhood plays like a British version of 'Stand By Me' in its subtly poignant portrayal of the unlikely friendship between an overprotected child from a religious family, and a 'terror-child' whose family are almost nowhere to be seen. It's funny, sweet, poignant and yet subtle, never throwing the emotion too high or too in-your-face. The two child protagonists are phenomenal, the characters around them bring their world to life, and their story is guaranteed to make most of you smile. For me, this is what movie-making should be. Brilliant.
). Toccata and Fugue was my other favourite cause I just love abstract/art house stuff. I just remember the musicians in the coloured lights, the composer in front of the big red circle and the light coming down near the end. Guess I need to watch it again.
