The Ten Best Films of 2011

Hi everyone!

Okay, so here's my list from 1 to 10 of the Ten Best Films of 2011:

1. The Artist
I kept putting off going to see this for no other reason than the thought of sitting through a black-and-white silent movie just didn't appeal to me. But I knew that I'd regret not seeing it before the Oscars. So I bit the bullet and went to see it this morning. I'm so happy I did. Not to sound trite, but "The Artist" is one of those films that just makes you fall in love with going to the movies all over again. From the opening shot to the final tap dance sequence, this movie is a valentine for all people who care about movies. The two French lead actors, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo (both of whom are big stars in France), are a joy to behold and what's incredible about their performances is that somehow watching them act without audible dialogue is a testament to their skill as actors. Mr. Dujardin, in my opinion, gives the best performance of the year for an actor in a leading role. I'll be interested to see what the Academy says in a couple weeks.

2. A Separation
This Iranian film was my number one pick until I saw "The Artist." "A Separation" is a beautifully understated film about life, family, relationships, and religion in a country that many in the West have come to consider the world's greatest threat to peace. There are so many nuances and layers to the storytelling that it begs a second viewing. You find yourself throughout the film questioning the characters' motives and in so doing may even discover surprising things about yourself and about your perceptions of truth and justice.

3. Melancholia
Lars Von Trier's Cannes Film Festival Award Winner is unlike any film you'll see this year or any year, for that matter. Deeply disturbing yet not without it's moments of black humor, "Melancholia" tells the story of a manic depressive young bride, played with wit and genuine pathos by Kirsten Dunst; her severe and overprotective sister, played by Charlotte Rampling; and her sister's intense stargazing husband, a fine Kiefer Sutherland, who fearfully await the apocalypse. The ten-minute opening montage, set to Wagner's 'Liebestod' from "Tristan und Isolde" is a tour de force of foreshadowing that nearly stops the film in its tracks before it really gets going. This is one of those films that at times you may want to switch off but at the same time you feel strangely compelled to keep watching. The pay-off is spectacular. Of any film I saw in 2011, "Melancholia" is the one that--from an emotional standpoint--stays with you long after the final credits have rolled. It'll shake you up.

4. The Flowers of War
I said a few weeks ago this was my pick for the best film of 2011. That may have been a little premature yet from a purely cinematic perspective, it's still worthy of a top place on this list. Chinese film director Zhang Yimou paints an epic canvas with both broad and finely etched brush strokes, telling the story of a down-and-out American, played by Christian Bale, who finds himself in the unlikely position of protecting a group of young Chinese convent schoolgirls and a gang of local prostitutes from the brutality of the Japanese attack on Nanjing, otherwise known as the Rape of Nanking, in 1937. The violence of war is visceral but an unmistakable humanity shines through that is both stirring and devastating. This is epic filmmaking at its finest.

5. Shame
Michael Fassbender gives a brilliant and tortured performance as a young New York sex addict whose addiction comes at the price of terrible tragedy. While this is Mr. Fassbender's film, I found myself gravitating most to Carey Mulligan as his troubled younger sister, a nightclub singer who wants nothing more than the love and approval of her brother. Visually arresting and definitely not for the faint of heart, "Shame" packs an emotional wallop you don't see coming and leaves you gasping for breath as you leave the theater. In my opinion, both Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan were robbed of Oscar nominations for their performances here.

6. Circumstance
Another Iranian film though for political reasons, unlike "A Separation," this was filmed in Beirut. At the center of this film is an unconventional love triangle between two high school girls in Tehran and the troubled religiously conservative older brother of one of them. "Circumstance" shows a different, and perhaps more overtly critical side of Iran, set in the upper class neighborhoods of Tehran amid the backdrop of a Western subculture rife with clubs, fast cars, drugs, and alcohol. Stunningly photographed with richly understated performances by each of its three young lead actors, "Circumstance" serves as a worthy book-end to "A Separation" in that it brings life and humanity to a surprisingly sophisticated society we in the West struggle to understand.

7. Midnight in Paris
Woody Allen's latest is a lovely confection of a film and an endearing tribute to Paris both past and present. Owen Wilson does a wonderful job capturing the neurotic charm of a role that, in his younger days, would have been played by Woody Allen. The film makes you long to go back in time, re-read the works of Fitzgerald and Hemingway, spend an afternoon in the Louvre admiring Picasso, and finish the night drinking absinthe with the likes of Luis Bunuel and Toulouse-Latrec. From a purely nostalgic sensibility, "Midnight in Paris" is magic.

8. Tree of Life
Reclusive director Terrence Malik's film about life, global warming, and growing up in the 1950s, among other things, is unlike any other film I saw in 2011. I hated it at first but slowly as successive images arrested my attention, I found myself unable to look away from the screen. Brad Pitt gives, in my opinion, the best performance of his career here though admittedly it's difficult to rate because this isn't a film so much about acting or linear storytelling but more about impressions and memory. It is another film that warrants a second or third viewing--which I have yet to do--because there's deep complexity here that doesn't immediately jump out at you...at least I think there's complexity. In some respects, "Tree of Life" is a cinematic riddle, a puzzle that requires careful attention, a meditation on what it means to be alive. Again, not a film for everyone but worthy of consideration.

9. Delhi Belly
Shifting from the sublime to the ridiculous, the Hindi gross-out comedy "Delhi Belly" is, as I wrote in my review here a couple weeks ago, the most obnoxious and flat-out funniest film I saw all year. A Hin-glish cross of "The Hangover" and "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels" with a little "Shaft" thrown in at the end for no apparent reason, this film had me in stitches from the very first minute and didn't let up until the very end. Young Bollywood heart-throb Imran Khan (not the Pakistani cricket player) leads an ensemble cast through 90 action-packed minutes of diamond heists, diarrhea, shoot-em-up action sequences, more diarrhea, and an end credits musical number starring great Hindi actor, producer, and Imran's uncle, Aamir Khan, that wouldn't be out of place in "Cleopatra Jones." I loved it though I think I'll think twice about ordering Tandoori Chicken.

10. W.E.
Madonna's labor of love about the romance between King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson is by no means a perfect film. The narrative is a little muddied from time to time and the filmmaking itself suffers from occasional lapses into film school self-consciousness. Yet, despite its faults, "W.E." is an achingly gorgeous and romantic film that is very deserving of a place on this list. British actress Andrea Riseborough gives a captivating performance as Mrs. Simpson. You simply cannot take your eyes off of her when she's onscreen. It's a shame that Ms. Riseborough was overlooked by the Academy because I believe hers is one of the great screen performances of 2011. The film did receive an Oscar nomination for Best Costume Design and Madonna's song "Masterpiece" that plays over the end credits won the Golden Globe for Best Song last month. Having directed and co-written the screenplay, "W.E." shows that Madonna has the talent and the potential to be a true cinema auteur. As I said in my review a couple days ago, "W.E." is my pick for the most visually beautiful film of 2011.

Ciao.

Delhi Belly: The Best Comedy of 2011

Hi everyone!

What do you get when you cross "The Hangover" with "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels" with a little disco madness in the form of the great Hindi actor Aamir Khan (who also produced the film) playing a character named "The Disco Fighter"? -- the madcap Hin-glish comedy "Delhi Belly," my pick for the funniest movie of 2011.

Never heard of it? You probably haven't unless you're one of the billion people who follow Hindi cinema, otherwise known as Bollywood. "Delhi Belly" was released last summer and grossed huge box office everywhere it seems except here in the U.S. But it is now available on Netflix in both DVD and streaming formats.

I just watched it and I have to say as ridiculous and vulgar as it is, I haven't laughed this hard in a long time.

The plot is too convoluted to really summarize but I'll try in a nutshell. Three down on their luck room-mates, Tashi (Imran Khan), Nitan (Kunaal Roy Kapur), and Arup (Vin Das) find themselves in the center of a drug and diamonds crime syndicate. A case of really bad food poisoning (hence, the Delhi Belly of the title) results in a botched drop-off involving stolen diamonds and a stool sample, a lot of shooting and chasing, a double--or was that a triple?--cross resulting in a burqa-clad getaway, and a wonderfully ludicrous end credits number to the tune of a 1970s blaxploitation pastiche called "I Hate You Like I Love You." (This is where Aamir Khan's Disco Fighter comes in.)

It definitely isn't your typical Bollywood film. Ninety-five percent of the dialogue is in English (though you may want to turn on those English subtitles for the Hindi bits) and it's running time is a brisk hour and forty-two minutes. The two musical numbers don't interrupt the flow of the story and are frankly totally tongue-in-cheek. If this had been made in the U.S. it would certainly have earned an R rating and it was criticized in India for the fact that it basically throws the Hindi film formula out the window.

I loved it.

Word of warning though: next time you order Indian take-out, you may want to rethink that Tandoori Chicken. Or, more to the point, don't order Tandoori Chicken from a street vendor in Delhi. Oh, and also...beware of living in an apartment beneath a traditional Indian dance studio. I'll say no more.

Ciao.