Movies that entertained me in 2011

In no particular order...

Hugo
Midnight in Paris
50/50
The Way
Beginners
Super 8
The Ides of March
Warrior
Friends with Benefits
Hanna
Win Win
Margin Call
Attack the Block
The Muppets
Being Elmo
J. Edgar
My Week With Marilyn
Thor
Bridesmaids
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

What I liked:

• Watch The Social Network to see Rooney Mara as the girl next store.  Then watch this to see the transformation from that to total bad ass.  She was fantastic in this role.
• The entire cast was top notch: Daniel Craig, Christopher Plummer, Stellan Skarsgard, Robin Wright, Joely Richardson, and Geraldine James.
• Yorick van Wageningen was great but prefer him in this film.
• Fascinating mystery shrouded in layers with twists and turns.
• The score was rocking.  Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross know what they are doing.
• Enya's "Orinoco Flow (Sail Away)"
• The opening credits are visually stunning.
• It's Lost's Charles Widmore!

DVD Day

New to DVD

Midnight in Paris - Grade A
Read full review here
Midnight in Paris [Blu-ray]

Warrior - Grade A-
Read full review here

Dolphin Tale - Grade B+
Read full review here

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn

What I liked:

• The animation was excellent; life like at times.
• The story was interesting.  The audience seemed to laugh a lot.
• Written by Steven Moffat (Coupling!), Edgar Wright, and Joe Cornish.  It is based on the comic book series by Hergé.
• I love Capt. Haddock's anchor sweater.
  

Joyful Noise

What I liked:

• Keke Palmer and Jeremy Jordan can sing!  They would be a great addition to Glee.
• The music was good.
• Queen Latifah never looked better.  Dolly on the other hand...

Mission Impossible 4 - Ghost Protocol

What I liked:

• Got to love a movie that opens with Josh Holloway.  Oh Sawyer, how I have missed you.
• Screen time was divided up pretty good so you don't get an overload on one person.
• Paula Patton looks amazing.  I want to know what her workout routine is.
• Simon Pegg brings humor to the group.
• Tom Cruise and Jeremy Renner have great chemistry together. 
• Slumdog Millionaire sighting!  It's Anil Kapoor!
• Midnight in Paris sighting! It's Léa Seydoux!
• Tom Wilkinson, Ving Rhames, and Michelle Monaghan.
• The special effects were amazing.  You should really see it at an IMAX theater if you can.
• Was that a picture of Daniel Roebuck aka Arzt from Lost during the train station scene?!

The Golden Globe Nominations 2011

Initial thougths to the Golden Globe nominations:

• No love for Melissa McCarthy?!
• Ryan Gossling for Crazy Stupid Love?
• Ides of March and 50/50 getting some love!
• A nomination for Joseph Gordon-Levitt!
• Kelsey Grammer for Boss?
• American Horror Story, Boss, Homeland, Game of Thrones and Boardwalk Empire for best Television Drama?  Network television must be mad!
• Rango was nominated for Best Animated Film?!  Someone needs to explain this to me.
• Zooey Deschanel and New Girl get nominations!
• The Wire reunion with Dominic West and Idris Elba!

SAG Award Nominations

Here's my first reaction to the SAG Nominations:

• Super excited that Armie Hammer was nominated for his supporting role in J. Edgar.
• Surprised by Nick Nolte's nomination for Warrior.
• Happy for Jessica Chastain and Melissa McCarthy's supporting role nominations.
• Very excited that Midnight in Paris recieved an Outstanding Cast nomination.
• The TV nominations for the Drama category have a lot of new faces.

Full list of nomination can be found here.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

What I liked:

• Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law have great chemistry and I enjoy watching them banter back and forth.
• Rachel McAdams!  
• I love how Guy Ritchie directs these films.  The slow motion and the quick shots make it fun to watch.
• The clues and twists in the movie make it interesting.

The Sitter

What I liked:

• It's only 81 minutes long.
• Jonah Hill was pretty funny.
• The kids are annoying in the beginning but grow on you.
• Landry Bender was pretty cute.  I would like to see her play a younger version of Emma Stone or the little sister of Emma Stone in a movie.
• If Max Records looks familiar, you probably remember him from Where the Wild Things Are.
• J.B. Smoove!
• Cheese from The Wire aka Method Man!
• Susan from Friends aka Jessica Hecht!
• I liked that Hill's character tells the kids how it is.
• Pretty great soundtrack, especially "Escape (The Pina Colada Song) by Rupert Holmes!
  

War Horse

What I liked:

• Loki!  F.Scott Fitzgerald!  Tom Hiddleston!
• Jeremy Irvine did an excellent job for his first film.
• The story was kind of interesting in that it had layers that kept on building.
• Beautiful scenery.
• The horses did a great job acting.

New Year's Eve

What I liked:

• It's not a good sign when my favorite parts happen in the credits, so if you do see this movie, stay until the end!
• The cast that is not on the poster is more interesting than the ones on the poster.  Keep your eyes open for Cary Elwes, Alyssa Milano, Common, Penny Marshall, Sarah Paulson, Carla Gugino, James Belushi, Joey McIntyre, Jack McGee, Yeardley Smith, Amare Stoudemire, Cherry Jones,  and Matthew Broderick!

DVD Day

New to DVD

The Help - Grade B+
Read full review here

Cowboys & Aliens - Grade B+
Read full review here

The Hangover 2 - Grade C+
Read full review here

The Debt - Grade B
Read full review here


Mr. Popper's Penguins - Grade B-
Read full review here

DVD Day

New to DVD

Friends with Benefits - Grade A-
Read full review here

Young Adult

What I liked:

• The characters were real.  You will recognize a piece of someone that you know in these characters.  You may even see yourself.  There is something to be said for characters that you can relate to.
• Solid acting by the cast: Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Patrick Wilson, and Elizabeth Reaser.

National Board of Review Awards

The NBR Awards are out and I am surpised by some of the winners.

• Best Animated Feature - Rango?!  Really?!
• Best Film - Hugo!  One of my favorites of the year!
• Best Original Screenplay - 50/50.  Another favorite!
• Best Supporting Actress - Shailene Woodley.  I just don't see it.
• I saw 8 out of the 10 Top Independent films and agree with their choices.
• I think Midnight in Paris is missing from their Top Films list.

For all the list of winners check out http://www.nbrmp.org/awards/

We Bought a Zoo

What I liked:

• Matt Damon was fantastic.  He was funny, cute, serious, emotional, and real.
• Colin Ford nailed the teenage angst and it doesn't hurt that he looks like a young Damon.
• Could Maggie Elizabeth Jones be any cuter?!
• Almost Famous alum, Patrick Fugit!
• Elle Fanning is fabulous in everything that she does.  
• For Curb Your Enthusiasm fans...Leon Black (J.B. Smoove)!
• Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Haden Church, John Michael Higgins, Stephanie Szostak, and Angus Macfadyen round out the rest of the cast.
• The story is based on a true events.