Well my friends, here we are again, 2010 has brought us some rather memorable moments in the world of cinema, some good, some bad and, as always, some downright ugly. Seeing as my ventures to review Tron: Legacy have been put on hold due to the rather unusual snowy and icy weather outside (even for this time of the year) this will be my last post of this year on the blog, and keeping up with last year's Christmas tradition, there's no better way to finish than with the customary Top 20 list of the year!
20. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (March 2nd 2010) - "Tense, explosive and perversely creepy thriller, once again showing the wonders that the Swedish film industry has to offer."
19. Dogtooth (April 17th 2010) - "Would urge everyone who yearns for boundary breaking cinema to see this as soon as possible. Absolutely masterful."
18. Buried (September 30th 2010) - "A brilliant demonstration of fiercely intense, minimalistic, and ultimately, original film-making."
17. Gainsbourg (July 24th 2010) - "A provocative and imaginative window into a world of complete self-indulgence."
16. How To Train Your Dragon (April 3rd 2010) - "Smart script, hilarious scenes and heartfelt moments combined together with beautiful animation."
15. The American (November 26th 2010) - "A slow-burning and intelligent character study which may leave audiences pondering more questions than the film cares to answer."
14. Monsters (December 7th 2010) - "A superbly acted and deeply mature love story, set against a sparse, epic and ruthless backdrop of extra-terrestrial wilderness."
13. Shutter Island (March 12th 2010) - "One of the masters of modern, and classic cinema, returns with a chilling, provocative and gritty psychological thriller."
12. Up in the Air (January 14th 2010) - "Sit back and enjoy a wonderful, hilarious, uplifting comedy with enough drama, plot-twists and heart-wrenching moments that may even cause a few members of the audience to shed a tear."
11. The Secret In Their Eyes (August 19th 2010) - "A gloriously executed crime thriller, with some genuinely classy performances and exquisite surroundings."
10. Exit Through The Gift Shop (March 21st 2010) - "A honest and extremely humorous exploration into the art world, documenting its ultimate highs and its shameful lows."
9. A Prophet (January 2nd 2010) - "Intimate in its intentions, epic in its delivery."
8. Another Year (October 31st 2010) - "Combining the triumphs of love, wisdom and companionship with the painful awareness of loneliness, despair and realisation of one's own mortality."
7. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (May 18th 2010) - "Unpredictable, intense, unsettling and even commanding the ability to raise a cheeky smile or light hearted chuckle, this is what a real Nicolas Cage performance is all about."
6. Black Dynamite (September 11th 2010) - "Leave common sense at the door and you will find a film which is surprisingly clever, outrageously funny and extremely sexy."
5. Winter's Bone (October 8th 2010) - "An emotionally numbing yet completely essential piece of American film-making."
4. The Social Network (October 15th 2010) - "Will The Social Network's portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg be one of cinema's great villains for the ages, or equally one of its most tragic?"
3. Of Gods and Men (December 4th 2010) - "A powerful and provocative drama highlighting the more positive and idealistic aspects of the Christian faith."
2. Toy Story 3 (July 19th 2010) - "I genuinely fail to see how anyone could not like this film or the films to come before it. Its closing scene will warm your heart and make you shed a tear. And if it doesn't, then at least it forever has a friend in me."
1. Inception (July 16th 2010) - "Hopefully a landmark and a wakeup call to the entire industry. Proof if you put your trust in a truly talented film-maker to attempt something entirely original, outside of countless reboots, remakes and comic book films, you can have your faith rewarded."
Bet you didn't see the top two coming eh? There were, of course, a few honourable mentions which unfortunately just didn't make the final cut, including Kick Ass, The Town, Tamara Drewe and A Serious Man. The King's Speech would have been included also, had it not been officially released in 2011.
And just like that, 2010 is over. Been a fantastic year for me, on the blog, would like to thank Richard and the lovely people at Panic Dots for giving me somewhere to bitch about films outside of this comfort zone. Ross, Laura and Jude for the immense amount of fun and randomness had on the Panic Shots podcasts (more of those in 2011!). Wee Claire for giving me work when I probably didn't deserve it. Ben Finch at The Gown for sending to see some of the films listed above. Ally Millar at Geeks.co.uk for allowing me to piss off film fans on his domain. The ever classy Sarah Hughes for putting up with me on Saturday mornings at the Queen's Film Theatre press screenings. The lovely film bloggers I've gotten to know via Twitter, including Ronan at Filmplicity, Ruth at Flixchatter and of course, not least, all the people who have taken the time to read this blog over the past year.
Thank you.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Now where's that bottle of red wine and my copy of The Muppet Christmas Carol...
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