Films of the Year: 2010

We're back again with the Top 25 films released in the U.K. between 1st January and 31st December 2010. There's been a lot of choice this year so its been fairly arduous compiling the list.

25. Mary and Max

A bit of a quaint one to start off with an offbeat adult animation in the vein of Wallace and Gromit about a depressed eight year old girl living in Australia and a middle-aged New Yorker with Asburger's Syndrome. The film has a warm feel from start to finish partly due to the use of music and score and partly because Barry 'Dame Edna' Humphries is the film's narrator. Mary and Max also boasts two strong vocal turns from Philip Seymour Hoffman as Max and Toni Colette as the grown-up version of Mary. The film isn't for everyone but for me I found it incredibly funny, very warm and at times extremely moving. To be fair it is a bit predictable in places but overall I found this to be a splendid little gem of a film.

24. Four Lions

As you will see from the list, I thought this year was a great year for British films and this is the first of many in the list. I think everybody expected that the debut from Chris 'Brass Eye' Morris wasn't going to be a small romantic comedy but not many were expecting a film about suicide bombers. But rather than present the suicide bombers as a smart bunch they are all presented as rather bungling or over-the-top. That is apart from Riz Ahmed as Omar who anchored the film with a superb breakout performance portraying a family man who realises he has a greater purpose and has to try and rally his team of misfits together. The film also has some really laugh-out-loud moments and one is particularly shocking but this is a comedy that makes you think possibly more than it makes you laugh, which can only be a good thing.

23. The Maid

While not always thriling, this character study from Chile is a great little comedy-drama about family and belonging. Catalina Saaverda puts in a top notch performance as Raquel a maid who has been with the same family for 23 years and whose position feels threatened when her employers decide they want to hire an assistant for her. The film definitely has splapstick comedy elements which feature around Raquel trying to get rid of the other maids in the house but there is also a sweet story of a woman who doesn't fit in without outside society and isn't entirely happy with her lot. Sebastian Silva expertly puts the film together making every scene count and I thought Saaverda's performance was one of the best female leading turns I have seen in a while.

22. Cemetery Junction

As close friends know I've never been a big fan of Ricky Gervais' work, while I enjoy both The Office and Extras I find both, especially the former, very overrated and I also found his first work as writer/director, The Invention of Lying, very uneven indeed. Imagine my surprise then that I found his latest work, co-written and directed with Stephen Merchant, very enjoyable indeed. While the story of three lads in their early 20s growing up in a small Reading town pretty cliched it was well put together and flowed very nicely indeed. The whole thing has a nice retro feel to it and the three young actors shone throughout however it is Emily Watson as Ralph Fiennes' put upon wife who stole the show for me and I though even Gervais was pretty good in it.

21. The Disappearance of Alice Creed

I often find that the one genre that Brits never seem to do well is that of the thriller however this year with The Disappearance of Alice Creed I think they got it spot on. This film works as its incredibly well-executed and tense relying on three strong characters rather than a lot of explosions and car chases. All three actors, especially the always excellent Eddie Marsan, make the story worth following and the film's final third is edge-of-your-seat stuff. The films first 10 or so minutes are also acted in complete silence which means you get hooked straight away without having to worry about what people are saying. This is a thriller about actions rather than words, very simple and utterly rewarding if only British thrillers were always this good.

20. Catfish

2010 was the year in which we were presented with documentaries which may or may not be entirely true. There was Baksy's Exit Through The Gift Shop (which almost made the list) and Casey Affleck's doc about Joaquin Phoenix - I'm Still Here. However my favourite was Catfish, a film about a photographer who starts chatting to a family on Facebook after he is sent a painting of one of his photos by the family's 8 year old daughter. He soon finds himself in a virtual relationship with the girl's half-sister but when he, his brother and their other filmmaker friend dig a little deeper they start to realise that things aren't what they seem. Some of the elements of the story and the discoveries that are made almost seem too far-fetched to be 100% real and as this is a film about cover-ups and lies it would be ironic if the 'documentary' wasn't entirely genuine. Despite that it is still a compelling story and is very relevant in a time in which we spend more time texting and talking on Facebook than we do conducting face to face conversations.

19. The Illusionist

For those who feel that in 2010 that films aren't seen as pieces of artwork any more need look no further than Sylvian Chomet's perfectly drawn film about a down-on-his luck French magician who goes to Scotland and forms a strange relatioship with a young girl. The film relies almost soley on its visual presentation but despite containing hardly any dialogue at all this is a character study about what happens when people believe in something your not and the unexpected relationships that we form throughout our lives. Despite not being real I found the character of The Illusionist one of the most genuine of the year and the film's final scenes almost had me in tears. Although animation in the 21st century is almost dominated by computer animation, I think hand-drawn animation still has its place and feels a lot more real.

18. Scott Pilgrim Vs The World

Turning from an animation that felt very real to a live action film that didn't really have its place in reality, Edgar Wright's adaptation of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Graphic Novels had a style all of its own. The story focuses on the titular drop-out, played by Michael Cera, who finds out that in order to date the woman he loves he has to defeat her seven evil exes. Each of these battles is utterly hilarious and all have different elements to keep them a little bit fresh. The film is one stark scene after another everything is full of action and there is also a lot of laughs to be had throughout. While Michael Cera's performance anchors the film it is the support cast who provide most of the laughs namely Kieran Culkin as Pilgrim's roommate and Chris Evans as one of the exes. The film slightly slips when it has to explore the character's emotional sides but overall this was possibly the guilty pleasure movie of the year.

17. Winter's Bone

Some films rely heavily on their backdrop to create character and Winter's Bone did this throughout. The film involves 17 year old Ree Dolly desperately trying to find her father in order to keep her family's home in the Ozark Mountains. The film is part road-trip and part coming-of-age story as Ree tries to get to the bottom of the conspiracies that haunt the area's small community. I found the film utterly involving and Ree's story particularly harrowing thanks mainly to a strong script and a realistic performance from Jennifer Lawrence who is sure to be a big star following this film. An intriguing and original tale and one that still sends chills down my back when I think about it.

16. Up in The Air

Although Up in The Air is techincally a 2009 film, it didn't arrive over here till January and that's why it features in this list. Despite the film dealing with very modern topics like the recession and computers doing the jobs of men an women this is very much a story that would've fitted in during Hollywood's Golden Agea nd that's mainly due to the appearance of one George Clooney as Ryan Bingham a man who goes around the country firing people and spends most of his time flying around. Although Clooney is very good the film wouldn't be anything without its two female leads Vera Farmiga as Clooney's love interest and Anna Kendrick as the girl he is reluctantly showing the business to. After Thank You For Smoking and Juno, Jason Reitman has really established himself as a director who knows how to tell a story and Up In The Air was certainly a story worth watching.

15. Shutter Island

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio team up together for the first time since the Oscar winning The Departed. Although Shutter Island was a different piece of film-making all together, as Scorsese made a homage to the classic noir genre with a bit of a modern element thrown in. The island in question houses a mental institute where one of the patient has escaped and DiCaprio's CIA agent Teddy Daniels must get to the truth. This film was pure escapist enjoyment with a huge gazumping score and some fine classic actors like Ben Kingsley and Max Von Sydow completely hamming it up. While this might be seen as a bit of a kitsch film it was still highly enjoyable and was made with the high standard that you would expect from Scorsese.

14. The Kids Are All Right 

With Kathryn Bigelow picking up the Best Director Oscar this year it finally marked the recognition of female directors and strong female voices within cinema. This is probably best highlighted through Lisa Cholodenko's work about a lesbian couple with two children from the same sperm donor and what happens when they meet said donor. It was very refreshing to see that the film didn't wholly focus on the fact that two lesbians were raising children but instead treated them like any other family with their dysfunctions and arguments. This film also boasted fine five performances from its ensemble cast most prominently from Annette Bening as Nic, the older of the two women and certainly the more reserved of the two. There is one scene in particular in which Bening discovers something that she shouldn't which is just heartbreaking and this scene alone should win her the Best Actress Oscar that's alluded her so far in her career. This film is both funny and sensitive but never is it preachy or over-sentimental.

13. Restrepo

After the success of The Hurt Locker, this year we were presented with Restrepo which some dubbed - 'the Real Life Hurt Locker'.The documentary is highlights of the year that journalist Sebastian Junger and photographer Tim Hetherington spent in Afghanistan's Korangal Valley following the lives of the men in the 2nd Platoon for a Vanity Fair assignment. The Restrepo of the title is the outpost that the platoon were fighting to defend for the majority of the film and was named after the medic who tragically died before the film started. The film is eye-opening in its exploration of war, why the men are still in Afghanistan and most importantly their relationship with the Afghans themselves. But what really strikes you is the relationship between the men and how quickly they come become friends when they're thrown together in extreme circumstances. There's warmth, humour and unsurpringsly a lot of tragedy but this for me is one of the best stories of the year and certainly the Best Documentary film by a country mile.

12. Another Year

For his last film, Happy-Go-Lucky, Mike Leigh left his trademark bleak storytelling behind and instead produced as a light-hearted comic piece. While not as light as that, Another Year certainly has a lot of laughs but mainly explores human relationships and how we react to certain situations. Centred around four seasons of the same year it follows Jim Broadbent and Ruth Sheen's happily married couple as they encounter difficulty with their friend Mary, meet their son's new girlfriend and have to deal with a tragedy in the family but reacting to it all in their same matter-of-fact way. I found the film to be very British and highlighted a lot of the nuances that make us human. The film's best point though is Lesley Manville, who as Mary, goes through a complete turn around as Leigh brings out the real side of this seemingly cheery individual. Overall this proves once again that Mike Leigh is one of Britain's greatest living film-makers.

11. Easy A

Just missing out on the Top 10 is this High School comedy which many have compared to Mean Girls or Clueless but for me its closer in tone to Jason Reitman's Juno as it boasts both a witty script and a very smart and clever central performance. That performance comes form Emma Stone, who has previously been seen as a supporting player in films like Superbad and Zombieland, as Olive a socially-invisible girl who gets spun into a web of lies and starts lying about her sexual conquests. Like Ellen Page's Juno, Stone's Olive sees herself as a tough girl who has used sarcasm as a way of making her way through High School but under her exterior their are emotions that come out quite naturally in the film's final stages. There are plenty of things to like in this film - the story, Stone herself and a supporting cast that includes Stanley Tucci, Patricia Clarkson, Thomas Hayden Church and Malcolm McDowell. It's very hard to make a film about High School that is this good but somehow Eay A has done it.


10. Skeletons

Starting off the Top 10 now with the first of two films that see people going into other people's subconcious to discover their secrets. I'm sure you can guess what the second one is as most people flocked to see that over the summer, but not many saw Skeletons Nick Whitfield's delightful comedy about Bennett and Davis two men who are hired to explore the skeletons in peoples wardrobes which they do quite literally. The imagination behind the whole thing is astonishing and it is a pretty high-concept film but at the same time it shows that you don't have to have a massive budget to make films with these concepts. Whitfield makes sure that the film retains its Britishness so there's plenty of scenes on trains and at railways as well as Jason Isaacs' turn as 'The Colonel' the boy's boss who is as British as they come and also sleeps in a very comical fashion. Skeletons explores the themes of family, loss and belonging has lots of laughs along the way and a very heart-warming but unsentimental ending.


9. The Secret in Their Eyes

Many were shocked at this year's Oscars when an Argentian film that not many people had heard off beat favourites like Michael Haneke's The White Ribbon and a French film on this list to the Best Foreign Film prize. However Juan Jose Campanella's film does feel like it has elements of Ameircan crime movies in it, which may be explained by Campanella's work on shows like House and Law and Order. The film focuses ont he re-opening of a case that has dogged a legal counsellor for years as he consults with his lost love as he writes a book about it. As well as having a very strong script and plot, some of the films visual sequences are extremely striking and in particular one at a football game gets you right into the action. The film's ending is both shocking and fullfilling giving an original conclusion to a film that could so easily have ended in cliche. While it may not have been the best film out of the five contenders at this year's Oscars, after everybody saw the film there wasn't as many complaints about the outcome as there was at the time of the awards themselves.


8. Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll

While it's not the highest placing given to a British director, Mat Whitecross' biopic about the life of Ian Dury is the top British-set film in the list. While I am a fan of the music of Dury, I didn't really know that much about the man himself and this depicts his arkward relationship with his father, growing up tormented in a boy's home and his failure to be a good family man and husband. However Whitecross and writer Paul Viragh have refused to present a linear narrative and have instead presented the story in flashback and flash-forward having scenes interspersed with musical performances from Andy Serkis as Dury. Serkis' Dury then acts as both subject and compere and the actor himself gives a career-best performance as the troubled rocker. A great supporting cast including Naomie Harris and Son of Ramob's Bill Millner add depth to a film full of style and one that subverts the genre of the musical biopic and gives it a bit of a kick up the arse.


7. The Girl With The Dragon Tatooo

Although the adverts would have you believe that it is a 'International Phenomenon', Stieg Larsonn's Millenium Trilogy were simply three very-well written mystery novels transported to the big screen, two of which debuted on Swedish T.V. While those two films were average at best, the original The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo film was one of the best of the year as it sort of came out of nowhere and gripped me from start to finish. Most of that credit can go to Noomi Rapace who gave possibly the character of the year in the tatooed, often mono-syllabic Lisbeth Salander, a girl who finds it hard to trust people but is incredibly intelligent at the same time. While the plot itself may be a standard whodunnit it style mystery it is the characters that give the film its greatness and as well a Rapace, Michael Nyqvist must take some credit for portraying Mikel Blomkvist who sort of ties the whole thing together. As well as being the most tightly-plotted of the three films, it is also very cinematic especially the scenes involving Lisbeth's motorcycle chase in the film's final stages. Niels Arden Opley did such a good job with the film that it seems a shame that David Fincher seemed to feel the need for an American-language remake. But Rooney Mara will never do Lisbeth justice the same way as the brilliant Rapce has done.

6. A Prophet

The film that lost out to The Secret in Their Eyes as the year's best Foreign Language Feature is, for me at least, the year's best that isn't in the English language. Although I found Jacques Audaird's film baggy in places, and not quite as good as his masterpiece The Beat That My Heart Skipped, I thought it was one of the best films set in prison of all time. Tahar Rahim's central performance as a young man trapped in the middle of a war inside prison was just superb and the scenes set inside the institution felt entirely real. Audaird was able to show a frank and unflattering portrayal of prison life and give us a character we enjoyed to follow no matter waht actually happened to him. I did feel that the film possibly could've been cut down a tiny bit but the story was so good that I didn't mind the film's slower moments. Overall a triumph that did deserve the Oscar that it didn't get.

5. Toy Story 3

As previously stated this year's films have been of a very high standard that the third and final film in one of cinema's greatest trilogies only enteres the list at Number Five. As of late Pixar have been dealing with rather deep character-based films and Toy Story 3 was filled with plenty of darker moments to counterbalance the light comedy which was given an added twist with the addition of Little Miss Sunshine's Michael Ardnt to the screenwriting team. The film combined screwball elements and some clever satire with a story about growing up and saying goodbye to childhood. While I didn't cry buckets at the film's ending like others have admitted to doing I still thought that the ending was the right way to go and that Woody and Buzz et al had a fitting send-off.

4. Monsters

The first of three British directors to hit the Top 5 despite their films not being set in the U.K, Gareth Edwards' first full length cinematic feature sees him follow an Ameircna photo-jounalist entasked with making sure his boss' daughter gets back from Mexico to America safely. This is made harder by the fact that their route will see them cros an 'Infected Zone' in which a NASA space probe crashed six years earlier and where monsters are seen to attack. Edwards film is part sci-fi, part road movie with a love story thrown in and the chemistry between leads Scoot McNairy and Whitney Able feels genuine as they were boyfriend and girlfriend at the time of shooting and are now married. While some have been annoyed that the film feature hardly any actual monsters, the monsters are simply a backdrop to a story about war, greed, the media and ultimately what we care about most. Edwards' is able to create a very real, subtle and emotive piece of work which trascends genres and is a truly great watch.

3. The Social Network

If this list were based on screenplay alone than The Social Network would find itself very firmly at the top of the list. That's thanks to Aaron Sorkin who has written a very witty and insightful script about Mark Zuckerberg the founder of Facebook and the ends he went to to get to the top, but would you expect anything else from the man who bought as The West Wing? The performances from Jesse Eisenberg as Zuckerberg, Andrew Garfield and even Justin Timberlake as Napster's Sean Parker are just stunning and despite all the flashbacks and flash forwards the film runs along nicely and tells us a interesting tale about the online tool that most of us now use everyday. The Social Network is a story about jealousy, paranoia and how some of the greatest inventions of our generation can come from the oddest of places. At the same time its not particularly cinematic and that's why I have only awarded it a bronze medal here. Saying that I thought this was a well acted and a well written piece that the academy will lap up and I wouldn't be surprised if it nabbed Best Picture at next year's Oscars.

2. Kick Ass

I have to say I'm not a massive fan of comic book movies I often find them overlong and over-indulgent although there is the odd exception, Iron Man (but not the sequel), I just think they take themselves too seriously. I think that's why I enjoyed Matthew Vaughn's Kick Ass so much a film about an outsider and comic book fan who decides he wants to become a superhero himself. After tackling the fantasy world with Stardust Vaughn and co-writer Jane Goldman look at the superhero film and turn it on its head creating a vivid New York city and turning the standard superhero fights into something special indeed. Aaron Johnson followed up his John Lennon role in Nowhere Boy with the lead donning an American accent and really performing well in a cast that also included Mark Strong and Nic Cage. However it was Chloe Moretz as the 12 year old foul-mouthed Hit Girl that caught everyone's attention and unshockingly outraged The Daily Mail. But for all its bravado, colour and broad humour, Kick Ass still has a lot of heart its about growing up, its about fathers and sons and fathers and daughters and what it really means to be a hero. Kick Ass was a very striking and unforgettable piece of film-making that just happened to be based on a comic book.

1. Inception

And I'm afraid that my Number One, like so many other people's, is Inception mainly because I've been a Christopher Nolan fan ever since I saw Memento almost ten years ago. Nolan brings elements of all of his previous works together for what will probably be considered his masterpiece - the sort of methodical nature of Memento, with the twists and turns of The Prestige, the stark settings of Insomnia and the big scale epicness of his Batman films. But more than anything it proved that you can have an intelligent grown-up plot to a summer blockbuster and you can give ingenious reasons why people are being shot at and why explosions are happening. The performances were also all very good while there's too many to mention here I would single out Tom Hardy and Marion Cotillard the latter of whom did a great job portraying Leonardo DiCaprio's wife a role that was sort of half villain half tragic heroine. I think that Inception caught everybody unawares and still has everybody talking almost six months after about that ending...

And now for the duds...
Most Disappointing Films of The Year:

Alice in Wonderland -Once my favourite director and a man that could do no wrong, Tim Burton seemingly can do no right as of yet and his Alice in Wonderland was embaressing, slow and made worse by the retro-fit into 3D. Its worrying when one of the best things in your film is the voice of Barbara Windsor.

The Killer Inside Me -Although I don't always enjoy them, I find Michael Winterbottom's films interesting if nothing else. But for me The Killer Inside Me was a violent film not a film about violence, I felt the story lacked depth and that Casey Affleck do a lot better.

Robin Hood -I don't know if it was Russell Crowe's Yorshire-Australian-Irish accent or the fact that there was too much walking around but Ridley Scott's Robin Hood just didn't do it for me.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps -Why wasn't Michael Douglas in it more?


Top 5 Worst films of the Year:

5. The Bounty Hunter: Midnight Run as a romantic comedy starring Jennifer Aniston as a journalist. Where could it possibly go wrong? Aniston and Gerard Butler are not for one minute believable as a couple and to say the slapstick segments are unfunny is to do dishonour to the word itself. 

4. Grown-Ups: This film probably would've been funnier if Adam Sandler and his comedy pals had simply gone on holiday and filmed what they got up to. Instead a weak script full of the usual gross-out gags and innuendos topped off with hardly any resolution to speak of meant that this was an unfunny dud and did a disservice to Sandler's career following the brilliant Funny People. 

3. Jonah Hex: Although only 70 minutes long, Hex still felt overlong, baggy and ultimately pointless. 

2. Eat Pray Love: Julia Roberts goes around Italy, India and Thailand looking pretty, eating and not putting on any weight. Ryan Murphy is glad that people still like Glee or his career would be over after directing this tripe. 

1. Dear John: It made me want to vomit repeatedly it ruined most of Damien Rice's music for me but at least I learnt something about coins.

See you all back here in 2011.

Review: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part One (Mild Spoilers)

The biggest story about the first half of the final film of the Harry Potter franchise thusfar is the fact that it was originally going to be retro-fitted into 3D but Warner Bros. felt they didn't have the time to do the 3D job justice so we have to watch the film in glorious 2D. While watching the film I couldn't help but think if 3D would've enhanced it at all and apart from a scene involving the magic world's Axis of Evil early on, everything else was fairly subdued. Without giving anything away the primary plot of Harry Potter sees the titular bespectacled hero teaming up with bessie mates Ron and Hermoine to try and destory all the remaining Horcruxes that are giving the mega-evil Lord Voldemort all his power. This means that the trio are bunking off and not re-entering Hogwarts to complete their final year instead going on what is basically a magic-enhanced road movie through Shafestbury Avenue, The Forest of Dean and various other external venues. While on the road the main relationship between the three is explored as is the mysteries revolving around the Horcruxes and some more of Harry finding out just how essential he is to restoring the wizzarding world.

After reading a couple of reviews I was going in expecting to be utterly bored by parts of the film. However once Harry and pals had left to go on the round I was fully emerged in the world and the pitfalls along the way. My favourite scenes had to be the afformentioned ones that take place outside as the external locations add to Harry's woes thanks to the natural elements inflicting themselves on him and his friends. Although they are going through a lot of plot for me I thought story-wise the film was at its best when exploring the relationship between the three central characters as we've seen them grow up and now they are fully-fledged adults. The sixth film dealt too much with all the teeny relationship stuff however the sensitive portrayal of the Ron and Hermoine love-story is great as the friendship between Harry and Hermoine the former through a scene in which Hermoine tries to teach Ron how to play piano and the latter in which Hermoine and Harry dance together in order to cheer themselves up. There is also a nice scene in a graveyard during Christmas Eve when Harry sees his parents' gravestones for the first time. In terms of the three actors - Daniel Radcliffe seems to have matured as an actor although he does still seem to be delivering some of his lines like he was in a Shakespeare adaptation while Emma Watson has toned Hermoine down and delivers, by Harry Potter standards, a fairly subtle performance. But it is Rupert Grint, as Ron, who has grown the most, once known for pulling a face and going 'bloody 'ell Harry' he is now portraying a young man unlucky and love and jealous of his friend but learning to control these insticts.

For the fans of the big magical sequences there aren't many save one in the Ministry of Magic and the other in the Malfoy house. However the special effects have been used in other ways, there is a particularly nice sequence in which Hermoine narrates the Story of the Three Brothers which is accompanied by stark animations of the tale. The film does retain most of the humour that we've come to love from the franchise, but the laughs don't seem as forced this time and are mostly natural. One thing that I really noticed this time as well was JoAlexandre Desplat's score which, due to the tone, was a lot more haunting than it has been in previous Potter films. The obviuos flaw is that the story has been split into two parts which means that a lot of much-loved characters don't really get a chance to do anything. There's hardly any Alan Rickman, no Maggie Smith and only a little bit of Robbie Coltraine. There's also a lot of bits of 'popping up' from characters from previous films most notably Imelda Staunton's Dolores Umbridge, this is by no fault of the film as it is intergral for the story but I just felt it interrupted the pace of the film. However there are two small performances from actors new to the franchise Rhys Ifans gives a typically barmy turn as Luna's father Xenophilipous Lovegood while Peter Mullan is truly terrifying as the villainous Yaxley. The story does stop halfway but I think it is done in a way that Part One can stand on its feet as a sepearte film.

Overall this is a film that is starkly different than all the other Harry Potter films thusfar. There is no Hogwarts and not as much action as there has been previously. For me I thought that made a completely different and compelling tale but I know some will find that boring. I guess you'll just have to go and see it for yourself.

Feature: This Year's Oscar Contenders

Last year I got this all wrongI predicted Oscar joy for The Boys Are Back, Amelia and Where the Wild Things Are. This year I've done my research a little bit more and come up with a list of 15 films that I think you'll be hearing a lot of around the awards season.

Another Year 
Director: Mike Leigh 
What's it About?: A year in the life of a happily-married couple who have to deal with the less than happy lives of their friends and relatives.
What are its Oscar chances?: Oscar always loves Mike Leigh films and specifically Secrets and Lies which got a load of Oscar nods. This has been well recieved in the States and in particular the performances have been applauded.
What's it Likely to be nominated for?: Lesley Manville is the hot favourite to be one of the five ladies in this year's Best Actress race. The film itself may also make the top ten and Mike Leigh may be nominated for Best Director.
When Can I see it?: It's out on general release at the moment, your best bet is to check when your local arthouse cinema is showing it.


Black Swan
Director: Darren Aranofsky 
What's it about?: A ballerina who gets the lead in a performance of Swan Lake starts to feel like she is being upstaged by another dancer who may or may not be a figment of her imagination.
What are its Oscar chances?: Although Aranofsky does usually produce some fine work the premise seems a little off-the-wall for Oscar.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: This may be up for quite a bit thanks to rumoured top notch performances by Natalie Portman, Vincent Caselll and Barbara Hershey who could get Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress respecitvely. It is likely it will also crop up in the Top 10 Best Picture list but I doubt Aranofsky will make Best Director.
When can I see it?: Unfortunately for us in the U.K. the release date is currently listed as the 11th February but these things are subject to change.

Blue Valentine 
Director: Derk Cianfrance
What's it about?: Looking at the life of a modern day couple from their first meeting to several years down the line.
What are its Oscar chances?: This is probably this year's quirky and offbeat entry although it may be a little too quirky for Oscar to take it seriously.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: This may be an actors film most likely Ryan Gosling will crop as one of the five Best Actors while Michelle Williams may also get into the Best Actress race.
When can I see it?: There is no official U.K. release date at the moment.

The Fighter 
Director: David O Russell
What's it about?: The real life story of boxer 'Irish' Mickey Ward who rose up from an obscure competitor to a title winner with help from his brother
What are its Oscar chances?: Fairly high thanks to the twinning of a real-life tale and a triumph against adversity plot.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: Another big one I expect it will feature in the Best Picture and Director categories as well as Best Actor nod for Mark Walhberg and Best Supporting Actor for Christian Bale.
When can I see it?: Again it'll have to be a wait until February as its currently slated to be released on the 4th.

Inception 
Director: Christopher Nolan
What's it about?: Going into people's dreams, stealing information, kicks, totems and an ambigous ending. Come on we all saw this one!
What are its Oscar chances?: A couple of years ago it wouldn't have a shoe in but the changes to the Best Picture category are so blockbusters like Inception can be awarded the same recognition as arty films that no-one went to see.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: Best Picture and Best Director the latter of which Nolan may actually get. It will also be nominated for all the techincal awards as well as Best Original Score. In terms of acting awards its best chance is with Marion Cotillard getting a Supporting Actress nod.
When can I see it?: If you didn't catch it over the summer or you just want to see it again its out on DVD on the 6th December.

The Kids are Alright 
Director: Lisa Cholodenko
What's it about?: A lesbian couple with two children are introduced to the man who was their sperm donor and their lives change forever.
What are its Oscar chances?: Again another quirky choice but it has great pedigree and some Oscar favourites among its cast ensuring that it will at least feature in one of the categories.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: The smart money is on Annette Bening to walk away with the Best Actress Oscar for playing the uptight Nic and she may well be up against her on-screen partner Julianne Moore for the award. Mark Ruffalo may also be nomianted in the supporting actor category and the film will most likely feature in the Top 10 Best Picture list. Cholodenko is likely to be nominated but for the film's screenplay rather than for her direction of it.
When can I see it?: Its still on general release at some places and some smaller arthouse cinemas will be screening it soon.

The King's Speech 
Director: Tom Hooper
What's it about?: George VI's surprise rise to the throne following his brother's abdication and his relationship with a speech therapist who helped to cure him of his stutter.
What are its Oscar chances?: Very good, we have real-life story combined with a prestigiuos British backdrop and a lot of recognisable British actors.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: At the moment this is the Bookie's favourite to win Best Picture but that may well change come Oscar time. Colin Firth is also favourite to win Best Actor for his performance as George VI with Geoffrey Rush tipped for a Supporting Actor nomination and Helena Bonham Carter for Supporting Actress.
When can I see it?: It's set for release on the 7th January.

Love and Other Drugs 
Director: Edward Zwick
What's it about?: The relationship between a charming viagra salesman and a girl with a free spirit and a big secret.
What are its Oscar chances?: This is the contender which has the token 'character with an illness' in it, it did have big buzz a few months ago but other films have since overtaken it.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: If anything Best Actress for Anne Hathaway as the kooky Maggie we may also see an adapted screenplay nod.
When Can I see it?: Its out on the 27th December.

127 Hours 
Director: Danny Boyle
What's it about?: A mountain climber who gets trapped under a boulder for the amount of time alluded to in the title.
What are its Oscar chances?: Its got an Oscar winning director behind however the subject matter is a little strange and the academy might not like the more extreme moments of the plot.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: It'll probably make the Best Picture Top 10 elsewhere Danny Boyle might get a look in for Best Director and James Franco is likely to occupy one of the five Best Actor slots.
When Can I see it?: Its out on the 7th January.

Shutter Island 
Director: Martin Scorsese
What's it about?: An troubled FBI agent goes to a secluded mental instiution to investigate the disappearance of a patient.
What are its Oscar chances?: It was hoped that Scorsese's picture would be in last year's shortlist but after its release date was changed it opened earlier this year that means that it may not be as fresh in people's minds as some of the other films. Saying that it is directed by academy favourite Scorsese.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: It may sneak into Best Picture but its more likely that it will get a lone Best Director nomination and maybe Best Score.
When can I see it?: You can watch it on DVD now.

The Social Network 
Director: David Fincher
What's it about?: How Facebook came to be created and how its founder Mark Zuckerberg came to be sued by two different parties at the same time.
What are its Oscar chances?: Fairly good thanks in part to Fincher's direction and Aaron Sorkin's masterful script.
What's it likely to be nomianted for?: I would say that a screenplay win would likely be its best chance but then Fincher may win Best Director and it will probably also be in the Best Picture category. In terms of acting it may be Andrew Garfield who gets a Best Supporting Actor nomination rather than Jesse Eisenberg as Best Actor.
When can I see it?: Its currently showing in most cinemas.

Toy Story 3
Director: Lee Unkrich
What's it about?: The final installment in the popular animated franchise which sees Woody, Buzz and the gang having to seperate from Andy once and for all.
What are its Oscar chances?: Very good. Like with Inception, it will most likely find itself in the Best Picture category because of the opening of the field from five to ten, Up was in there last year and Toy Story 3 is a superior tale.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: I wouldn't be surprised if this was the shock Best Picture winner making it the first animated film ever to win the award. Elsewhere I think it may get nominated or even win Best Original Screenplay written by former Oscar winner Michael Arndt.
When can I see it?: Its out on DVD next Monday.

True Grit 
Directors: Joel and Ethan Coen
What's it about?: The Coen Brothers remake of John Ford's classic western concerning the story of a young girl who hires the toughest marshall she can find to help her do the job.
What are its Oscar chances?: The Coen brothers had success a few years ago with No Country for Old Men, this film sees them team with last years Best Actor winner Jeff Bridges so it may do well.
What's it likely to be nomianted for?: Probably Best Director, Picture and perhaps screenplay although acting wise I'm not sure if Bridges will be able to do the double although the suprise candidate might be young Hailee Steinfeld as a Supporting Actress.
When can I see it?: It's slated for a U.K. release on the 14th January.

The Way Back 
Director: Peter Weir
What's it about?: A group of soldiers who escape from a Serbian prison in the 1940s and have to find their own way home are aided by a young girl
What are its Oscar chances?: Another true story/triumph against adveristy tale this time with added war and sweeping exterior shots its bound to be there somewhere.
What's it likely to be nominated for?: Weir will no doubt add to his stack of Best Director nominations and it'll likely pop up in the Best Picture category. Ed Harris is the most likely of the actors to get a nomination most likely for Best Supporting Actor.
When can I see it?: Its out on Christmas Eve or Boxing Day depending on when your cinema opens/shuts.

Winter's Bone 
Director: Debra Granick
What's it about?: A teenage girl in the Ozark mountains needs to track down her father in order to keep the home she shares with her younger siblings.
What are its Oscar chances?: Its probably has a middling chance but there are some strong performances and some stunning camera work.
What will it be nominated for?: Most likely Jennifer Lawrence will be up for Best Actress and it'll probably get a cinematography nod also
When can I see it?: Its just finished playing at the cinemas so you'll have to wait till the 31st January to watch it on DVD.

There are many more titles that could possibly sneak into the list such as the Australian indie flick Animal Kingdom, Sofia Coppola's Somewhere, Clint Eastwood's paranormal film Hereafter, the British feel-good flick Made in Dagenham, the British feel-bad flick Never Let Me Go, the Robert Duvall-starring Get Low and the low budget Nicole Kidman film Rabbit Hole. However the 15 films above are the ones I would most stick my money on come awards time.

Review: Let Me In

There has been a lot of controversy about English language remakes of foreign films. With David Fincher's remake of Stieg Larson's Girl with The Dragon Tattoo trilogy and also Russell Crowe starring in The Next Three Days a remake of the French film Anything for Her people are starting to question why these remakes need to appear. Obviously the main reason is that some people don't want to read subtitles when they go to the cinema. I do know at least two people who I've had arguments with about watching foreign movies and you always get the 'I don't want to read, when I watch a film' answer so with that preamble we get Let Me In the remake of the Sweedish film Let The Right The One In, which incidentally was one of my favourite films of last year. The plot basically concerns bullied 12 year old Owen who lives in an apartment block in 1980s New Mexico and is incredibly isolated. Owen has no friends and spends most of his nights gazing through a microscope or sitting about on a climbing rame tackling a rubix cube. Owen then meets Abby a girl who he begins to befriend and then spend a lot of time with however Abby is in fact a vampire. Set against this we have the police investigation into the deaths of several members of the community which have in fact come because Abby's 'father' has been killing for her. After her 'father' is badly hurt, Abby has to start to fend for herself with jeapordises her relationship with Owen.

Right off the bat I would say if you haven't seen Let The Right One In, go and rent it or buy it on DVD. Saying that I wouldn't dissuade anyone going to see Let Me In either. While it isn't nearly as good as the film it has been adapted from it still has enough merit to justify it being viewed. My main concern was that Matt Reeves, who previously directed Cloverfield, would make it so in your face it would lose its subtle edge. However that hasn't happened, while there's a little bit more special effects and death than there is in the original, at the same time a lot of the film focuses on Owen's character and his hardships and why he needs Abby. That means that there is a lot resting on the shoulders of young Kodi Smitt-McPhee, previously seen as Viggo Mortensen's son in The Road, here he is extremely compelling as a young boy who always views life from the outside. Even if Reeves had completely over-stepped the mark the film would still be watchable thanks to the young actor's contribution to the film. Chole Moretz is also perfectly fine as Abby, I just think that her exposure in Kick Ass effected my view of her performance here. She is nowhere near as full on as she was in that film but while at the same time I didn't feel I quite believed that she was a 200 year old vampire. There is also excellent support from Richard Jenkins as 'the father' and Elias Koteas as 'the policeman'.

Suprisingly I also find myself laughing a couple of times mainly at the period pieces. Reeves is keen to rip on the 1980s setting so we have clips of Ronald Reagan on the T.V. and 1980s music being played throughout. However for me the best scene that rips on the period setting is where the sweet shop clerk, who has previously been seen in the film, comes to the counter wearing full Boy George regalia while Culture Club plays in the background. The spaces of the apartment block and it snow-filled outside area are also well utilised with Abby and Owen's initial meetings on the climbing frame incredibly well supported by the backdrop. The only problem with this being a remake is that I knew how it was going to end but as a film on its own it retains most of the subtetly of the original while bringing the story to a new audience. The best result is that enough people will see this film and want to watch the Swedish original which can only be a good thing.

Review: The Kids Are Alright

Quirky indie comedies about dysfunctional families are quite common these days, a lot of them pop around awards time. However, while it has been tipped for awards glory, The Kids Are Alright isn't as obvious in its quirkiness as some of those other films and instead focuses on relationships and what happens when a couple has been together for years and their children have grown up. It just happens in this case that the couple are both women Nic and Jules, played respectively by Annette Bening and Julianne Moore, despite this they seem to be a fairly normal couple. Nic and Jules each carried one of their respective children both using the same sperm donor who is sought out by their children Joni and Laser, when the former turns 18. The rest of the film sees how the family unit is rocked by Paul's arrival, the uptight Nic is wary of chilled out restraunter Paul's effect on the kids especially Joni who is about to go off to college. Jules meanwhile, who has never settled on a career, finds herself drawn to Paul as they have a lot in common and later he hires hre on a gardening project. Through his relationship with Paul, Laser is able to stand up to his idiotic friend while Joni is able to stand-up to Nic's authority. The whole thing interweaves between the various relationships as things are changed forever because of Paul's introduction into the family.

The main thing that The Kids Are Alright has going for it is its ensemble cast. Mak Ruffalo's performance is probably his best since his star making turn in You Can Count On Me. His Paul is laid back and has alternative views but when he meets Nic and Jules his life changes and he starts to experience responsibility and love for what may possibly be the first time. Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson are great as Joni and Laser, the former gives a subtle performance as a teenager embarking on a new stage of her life while the latter demonstrates the struggles of a teenage boy growing up with two mums. Julianne Moore makes Jules almost childlike, she almost comes across as spoilt and attention-seeking. This is evident in one scene where Nic and Paul finally start to bond the camera pans to Jules face to see her almost upset that she may have to share her new friend Paul with her partner. Moore always inhabits her roles fully and this is no difference however this is mainly Annette Bening's film. Every scene that she appears in she dominates as she makes Nic a hard character obsessed with rules and proper manners but at the same time always wanting to show that she is forward-thinking. But Benning also shows Nic's soft side during a scene in a bathroom in which everything changes in her relationship with Jules.

It is also admirable that the film never lingers on the fact that these are two women raising children. Instead, and quite rightly, we are told that it is perfectly normal for these two women to raise children together and apart from Paul's line 'I love lesbians' the sexuality of the characters is never raised. The film is mainly about people questioning about how they see themselves Paul likes to think of himself as unattatched and happily so, Jules likes to think herself as a free-spirit and Nic as a woman with alternative views however through their interaction with each other their perceptions change. The whole thing is expertly directed and co-written by Lisa Cholodenko who breathes real life into her character and the film is also incredibly well-shot. My only qualm is that the sub-plot involving Joni and her unrequited love for a male friend is never fully resolved. Overall though this isn't overly-quirky but at the same time is funny and heart-warming with an ending that isn't cliched or overly sentimental.

Review: Easy A

Films set in the teen world and more specifically in the American high school are ten-a-penny, however most of them are not as funny as Easy A. The film concerns Emma Stone's Olive Pendergrast, a girl whose completely ignored at her school and quite likes it that way. The film starts with Olive adressing us via a webcam talking about various lies that she's told and how they've got her into trouble. After lying about her first sexual encounter, Olive then helps out a gay friend so he won't get bullied for his sexuality and soon she is being paid by various dweeby lads to lie about variuos sexual endeavours. Her lies find her target of an extreme Christian group lead by the scarily nice Marianne. Eventually she decides that her lies are costing her her friendships and her reputation and so the film comes full circle with her revelations via webcam.

Easy A's main problem is that because of it's hyped-up sexual content it has been awarded a 15 certificate in this country and therefore its key audience won't get to see the film. Which is a shame because this is a cracker of a film and up there with the best teen films. Although it has been likened to Mean Girls and Clueless I would say it is closer in terms to Juno thanks in part both to its witty and clever script and its breakout lead performance from Emma Stone. Stone, who has had to endure some roles in truly awful movies like The Rocker and The House Bunny, plays Olive has incredibly snappy and quick but not as thick-skinned as she thought. As the film goes on and we get to the inevitable emotional content, Stone never lets Olive become soft instead she just realises she needs someone to lean on. Stone is ably supported by some fantastic older actors who never outstay their welcome or overshadow the central story. Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci, as Olive's parents, play well off each other and are incredibly warm but also have a bit of a wild side. They were so good in fact that I began to wish that they were my parents. Thomas Hayden Church is also great as Olive's literature teacher and somewhat confident while Lisa Kudrow and Malcolm McDowell are also on good form as the guidance councller and principal respectively. Amanda Bynes also makes up for starring in so many apalling teen films by giving us the holier-than-thou Marianne and reminding us what a gifted comic actress she is, it is a shame that this will be her last role as she has given up acting at the ripe old age of 24.

The film's other plus point is in its cultural references. The film's title refers to Olive embroiding a scarlet A on her chest in a similar way to that of the heroine of The Scarlet Letter did to signify she was an adulterer. The film rips on literary references and there is quite a nice Mark Twain film but Olive also references John Hughes and other 1980s teen films and wonders why her life isn't like that. There are a couple of sore points mainly the relationship between Olive and the quirky Todd which seems to be there to give Olive a happy ending and also at times it feels a tad cliched but this is a smart film with a great lead performance which will surely find a lot of fans when it comes to DVD.

Review: The Social Network

Its weird to think that a few years ago there was no Facebook, no updates, no liking, no tagging people pictures but nowadays everybody seems to be doing it. It seems inevitable then that a film about the website's creator, Mark Zuckerberg, would be released sooner or later. Adapted from the book 'The Accidental Billionaire', 'The Social Network' has good pedigree as it is directed by David Fincher and adapted by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin. The non-liner plot structure flicks between two legal battles that Zuckeberg is having one with his former best friend and Facebook co-creator Eduardo Saverin who wants his credits back on the website and the other with rowing twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss who claim that Zuckerberg stole the idea for Facebook from them. The whole creation of Facebook, which started when Zuckerberg didn't take his break-up with his girlfriend very well, is all told in flashback. Zuckerberg is never portrayed as a particularly nice character but at the same time Sorkin and Fincher and always keen to point out why he did what he did whether it be through jealousy or through influence. The influence comes via Napster creator Sean Parker who spots a good idea when he sees one but at the same time wants to get the level-headed Eduardo out of the way and concentrate on getting through to Mark. Through Sean's involvement Eduardo is screwed out of the Facebook phenomenon and wants revenge and that's where the legal issues come in.

At first I found the plot structure of The Social Network a little jarring as I wasn't quite sure who it was suing Zuckerberg and why. However, after I fully immersed myself in the movie, I found myself really rather enjoying it. Jesse Eisenberg was a great choice to play Zuckerberg as he looks very nerdy but at the same time is a strong actor who is able to sink his teeth into some of the less attractive parts of Zuckerberg's character. Although he does some truly awful things we are able to sympathise with him in a way and that's partly due to Eisenberg who makes Zuckerberg seem like a real human being. Andrew Garfield's Eduardo is the film's heart really as Eduardo is a geniunely nice guy and sticking by Mark through most of the film he reveals himself to be a true friend. Justin Timberlake also does well as Sean Parker, perhaps the film's only real villain, he combines an easy charm with some real talent when we see the darker side of Parker's psyche. Armie Hammer is also great doubling as the Winklevoss twins he is able to make each of them a little different and has the air of haughty authority down. However the real star of the film is Aaron Sorkin whose script is full of humour and character. From the opening scene in which Zuckerberg is dumped, Sorkin gives us his trademark snappy fast-paced dialogue which fans of The West Wing will be used to. One scene in particular in which the twins confront the President of Harvard about Mark's website reminded me of several scenes from the Washington-based drama.

There are a couple of very minor flaws, firstly that most of the film is set indoors and it does feel very claustrophobic from time to time. And also that this is a very male-dominated film the only real female characters are, soon-to-be-Girl-With-The-Dragon-Tatoo, Rooney Mara as Mark's ex-girlfriend and Rashida Jones as co-council during the legal scenes. These are small quibbles because in the end The Social Network is possibly the best written film of the year so far and must surely be up for some gold come Oscar time.

Review: Made in Dagenham

Seven years ago Nigel Cole made a film about a real life story starring a predominantly female cast of known British actresses, the film was called Calendar Girls and went onto be a massive hit even spawning its own West End show spin-off. Now Cole is back with another film based on a real-life story starring a predominantly female cast and that film is Made in Dagenham which concerns the year in which the women in the Ford Motors Factory in Dagenham went on strike and demanded equal pay. Like in Calendar Girls, Cole is interested on us getting to know the central female characters and at the film's heart is Sally Hawkins' Rita O'Grady, a family woman who is intially reluctant to stand-up for the women but as the film goes on she begins to find her own voice. There is also Geraldine James' Connie a more mature member of the workforce whose husband is suffering from post-traumatic stress after servingin World War 2. As the strike goes on things begin to get tougher especially for Rita as her husband also is forced out of work when the Ford motor plant shuts down. The Government and the Ford company both start to get involved, firstly Ford sends the tough Robert Tooley over to deal with the women and then trade minister Barbara Castle is ordered to sort the struggle out. Along the way there is a lot of tragedy but a lot of heartfelt moments as well as the women try to achieve what they set out to.

There is a debate to be made on whether Made in Dagenham is too broad and doesn't focuse enough on its topic. However I believe that if the subject had been adapted into a grittier picture then not as many people would've gone to see the film and that would've been a shame as there's a lot to like here. The central characters are all well drawn most notably Rita and Connie as well as Rita's husband Eddie, a man of simple pleasures who doesn't quite understand why his wife's doing what she's doing. Even the smaller characters get their moments for example Rosamund Pike's Lisa is a well educated woman who is married to the Ford plant boss and is therefore confined to the kitchen and isn't allowed to give her views on most topics. That's not to say that everybody gets a fair deal, Andrea Riseborough's Brenda only seems to exist in order to have sex with variuos menfolk and then laugh dirtly about it, and an actress of her standing deserves better. The performances are top-notch all around from Sally Hawkins as Rita down to Roger Lloyd Pack as Connie's husband special mention has to go to Richard Schiff as the long-in-the-tooth Tooley who thinks the women can be handled quite easily and steps in to show the British how its done.

Overall I think Cole has improved on Calendar Girls as there's a lot more meat in the tale of the Dagenham girls. He gets the tone between comedy and tragedy dead on here and there are a couple of moments where I generally teared up and also some bits where I couldn't stop laughing. It may be a little bit cheesy and a bit broad but Made in Dagenham is one of those films that just makes you feel-good and also is able to tell the tale of a very plucky group of women.

Review: Buried

2010 seems to be the year of films which are set in small confined spaces. Firstly we had the tank-based drama Lebanon followed by the lift-set Devil and now we have Buried focusing on Paul Conroy, a contractor in Iraq who has been Buried alive in a coffin. And it is the coffin that is the setting for the entire 90 minutes or so of the film and it is Paul who is the solitary figure on screen. The film's premise centres around Paul finding out firstly why he's in the coffin and secondly how he can get out of it. He has been left with a mobile phone, a lighter and luckily a pencil and some water. While in the coffin he is contacted several times by his captors and has to quickly try and respond to their demands in order to secure his freedom. This leads him on a wild goose chase phoning his family, friends, the FBI, the CIA, the media and the company he is working for.

Out of all the films I've seen this year, Buried is surely one of the most original. The concept of spending 90 minutes in a coffin with only Ryan Reynolds for company is the stuff of nightmares luckily the time passed pretty quickly. Reynolds is a revelation here proving that he has a life outside romantic or puerile comedy films. He portrays Paul as the every-man who is just in Iraq on a routine job and isn't quite sure why he's the one they're after. He works well in a very confined space to put across a man who after a while knows there's little help of escape and does it very well. The film also has moments of thrills most notably a scene involving a snake and the tension is upped in the film's very last moments which will leave you on the edge of your seats. The script also covers such topics as foreign relations, terrorist negoitations and corporate betrayal but never offers any real political views on any of them. Buried isn't by any means a perfect film but, if you can stomach it, its a very compelling and interesting film if not one that will ever stand up to repeat viewings.

Review: The Town

After spending several years in the wilderness, Ben Affleck's reinvention of himself is almost complete. After directing the superb Gone Baby Gone and putting in an impressive turn in last year's State of Play he takes triple duty in writing, acting and directing his Boston-based crime thriller The Town. Affleck plays Doug McCray who, along with Jermey Renner's James, is a career criminal and the film kicks off with a bank roberry. It is during that robbery that Doug meets bank teller Claire, later they begin a romance with her unware of his true identity. Doug's relationship with Claire makes him reconsider his life of crime but he is coerced into two more jobs firstly by James and then by the sinister crimelord 'The Florist'. Doug's life is further complicated by F.B.I. agent Adam Frawley who is on Doug's case right from the opening frame. As the final roberry takes place Frawley realises this is his last chance to catch Doug so he uses some underhanded tactics in order to get his man.

The Town is an enjoyable, if uneven, crime film that harks back to such classics as The French Connection. The audience is drawn in straight away thanks to the opening robbery being so gripping however the pace slows down afterwards as we explore Doug's relationships with Claire, James and James' sister who is Doug's sometimes girlfriend. However from the second robbery onwards the tension builds up as the cat and mouse story between Frawley and Doug really kicks into play and the final set piece around Fenway Park is truly spectacular. However there are some cliched and clunky moments throughout most notably the 'criminal who wants to leave the world behind' and the Shawshank Redemption-esque ending. Ben Affleck gives a competent performance from both sides of the camera because of the script he never makes Doug a one-note character and instead offers us a thorough insight into his life. Jeremy Renner is amazing as the slightly sinister James who on the surface is tough-as-nails but at the same time has very strong loyalties. Pete Posslethwaite is truly terrifying in his few scenes as The Florist while Rebecca Hall moves even closer to becoming a Hollywood leading lady. However it is Jon Hamm who gets the scenery chewing award as he truly relishes some of his more over-the-top lines as FBI Agent Frawley. The only week link is Gossip Girl's Blake Lively, as James' sister Krista, her attempt at a Boston accent makes Ray Winstone in The Departed look like a Boston native. And because she's really trying hard to 'act' its hard to understand anything that she actually says.

Despite its flaws The Town is a very good piece of film-making with all round decent performances from its impressive ensemble cast. If only the ending had been a little less clunky it may have been one of the films of the year but instead it's just a good honest film.

Review: Winter's Bone

Every year around autumn and winter time, there always seems to be at least one performance that heralds a brand new acting talent on the scene. Last year we had both Carey Mulligan in An Education and Gabourey Sidibe in Precious. This year the honour goes to Jennifer Lawrence who portrays Ree a young girl from the Ozark mountains who has to go on a journey to find her deadbeat father. Ree has basically become both mother and father to her two younger siblings since her father's disappearance she is their cook, protector and confedent. So when she finds out that their father has put the house up for colaterall for his bail and has since gone missing she sets out to uncover the secrets behind his disappearance. This leads her to battle the community head on as she runs into trouble thanks to the close-nit secrets that our being kept. Her only ally is her slightly dodgy uncle who wants to her help keep the family together.

As I already mentioned the most positive thing about the film is Lawrence's performance. After playing a young Charlize Theron in last year's underrated The Burning Plain, Winter's Bone is definitely her ticket to the big time. Lawrence gives Ree a toughness rarely scene in female characters of her age but at the same time she makes it clear that she is still a girl. At one point Ree goes to the army so she can earn money to keep the house and her siblings safe, however once she finds out she can't have the money straight away she starts to crack. The other interesting performance is from John Hawkes as uncle Teardrop the slightly unhinged protector of Ree who gives an unpredictable and completely watchable turn. However, thanks to Ree's trek, the brutal surroundings of the Ozark mountains becomes its own character every small hut and its inhabitants providing more obstacles for the young heroine. Winter's Bone isn't an easy watch and it is fairly slow but if you stick with it then you'll find a film that is both compelling and breathtaking in its scale and its performances. I think we'll be hearing Lawrence's name a lot more after the award's season.

Review: Tamara Drewe

When you think of comic book movies you immediatedly think superhero or more recently the geeky postmodernist Kick Ass or Scott Pilgrim. However your hardly ever picture the English countryside and a sexy central heroine with a penchant for small jean shorts. But that's exactly what Tamara Drewe is, adapted from Posy Simmonds' graphic novel it stars Gemma Arterton as the titular heroine a journalist who has returned to her small Dorset village. complete with a new nose. in order to sell her mother's house. While there Tamara has to deal with romantic complications with her ex Andy and also with Ben a rock drummer who she interviews and then ends up dating. Running parallel to this story is that of the local writer's retreat run by the comely Beth and her philandeirng mystery novelist husband Nicholas who also has a history with Tamara. To complicate matters further local girl Jody, who is Ben's biggest fan, sets out to sabotage Tamara's relationship with her idol and ropes in her best friend who is also Andy's niece to mess with Tamara. What follows is an utterly hilarious comedy of errors as people get the wrong end of the stick, have a lot of sex and at the end of the day there is kind of a happy ending.

I have to say I really enjoyed Tamara Drewe thanks mainly due to its comic tone. As it is adapted from a graphic novel the characters are very broadly drawn but that's part of the film's appeal. The whole film is also very clever as it weaves in literary references, thanks mainly to the writer's retreat, and in particular Thomas Hardy as one of the writers is composing a non-fiction work about Hardy. But personally I thought the whole thing had the tone of a Shakespearian comedy - the lovers forced together, the various obstacles they have to overcome and the two mischevious characters who are messing around with the other players' lives that only the audience are aware of. Gemma Arterton is perfectly fine in the lead role she asserts her sexuality when needs be and also displays a sort of melancholy about her past. As Arterton gives something for the males to look at I am also reliably informed that Luke Evans, who portrays the strapping Andy, is a 'bit of alright'. However the more compelling performances come from Tasmin Grieg and Roger Allam as Beth and Nicholas she is incredibly moving as the much cheated-on wife and he is hilarious as the philanderer. Dominic Cooper also gives a very good turn as the vain and bored rocker who has a very strange relationship wtih his dogThe two young actresses playing the girls are also brilliant giving the whole thing a lot of childish humour. Overall a funny, love story to the countryisde with some interesting performances and some nice shots of Dorset.

Review: Piranha

Certain times films come along that totally revolutionise the way we see the medium and can only be defined as ground-breaking. Thankfully Piranha, originally shown in 3D, is not one of those films instead it is a complete tounge-in-cheek homage to the original Piranha franchise and other B-movies. The flimsy plot concerns a small beach community which is invaded every year for Spring Break in particular it looks at the female sherrif and her teenage son Jake who is desperately in love with a girl-next-door type. Jake ends up becoming a photographer for a slezy girls-gone-wild type director who also manages to convince his would-be-love to come with them. As you can probably guess from the title, tragedy strikes when prehistoric piranhas start to swarm around the sea and gobble up all the horny students and low-lives. The rest of the film is full of screaming, escaping and severed penises as the sherrif must try and keep her family safe and try and defeat the piranhas.

Unlike the last B-Movie homage, Snakes on a Plane, Piranha doesn't take itself too seriously and instead focuses on the flesh and the death. This is evident from the first scene in which Richard Dreyfuss basically copies his scene from Jaws as he gobbled up early doors by the piranhas. The performances are great although Elizabeth Shue does a good turn as the sherrif forced to turn hero and Christopher Lloyd hams it up as a fish shop owner. Also present is Jerry O'Connell as the sleazy director who has the honour of having his member bitten off as well as our own Kelly Brook who spends most of the film topless or naked and utters the immortal line 'nice horn'. The only problem is that we already know that the central family will all survive and most of the superfulous characters will get gobbled up luckily that doesn't matter as this is just a fun, guilty pleasure summer flick that never outstays its welcome.

Review: Grown-Ups

Every so often films are said to have a dream line-up for example The Expendables comibation of Stallone, Willis, Schwarzenegger, Lundgren, Jet Li and others will have action fans foaming at the mouth. Simiarly fans of juvenille comedy may see the line-up of Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider, David Spade and Kevin James as their dream. However after those people actually sit down and watch Grown-Ups they may, in fact they will, change their minds. The film's set-up is that the coach of a school basketball team dies and the five key members of the team are reunited at his funeral. They are an over-worked Hollywood agent with spoilt children and a workaholic wife (Sandler), a hen-pecked house husband (Rock), a much-married over dramatic health nut (Schneider), a boastful underachiever (James) and David Spade essentially playing the character he always plays an aging womaniser. The five go to live in a beach house with their wives, children and Chris Rock's mother-in-law, a role that was tailor-made for Martin Lawrence's Big Momma character to return but sadly this didn't happen. This is so the five men can scatter the coach's ashes in the way he requested and while they are there they are all meant to be learning life lessons. However not a lot does get learnt and instead there are a lot of scenes with the five sitting around perving over teenager girls, injuring themselves or each othre and generally having a laugh. A small plot is tagged onto the film's final third in which the team they played in their original game want a rematch but that's about it.

There are a lot of things wrong with Grown-Ups but the toilet humor, non-PC Jokes and the 'physical comedy' were all a given. The main problem is that the emotional journey that we're meant to go on doesn't happen or is completely rushed. All men have problems Sandler's kids are spoilt and have lost touch with the real world, Rock's wife doesn't appreciate him, James' four year old son is being breast-fed and James is also out-of-work, Schneider needs to reconnect with his daughter and Spade is growing up without a family or anyone to truly love. Some of these issues are completely unresolved and apart from Sandler's story the others are all rushed. In addition to this, Salma Hayek, Maria Bello and Maya Rudolph are collectively wasted as 'the wives' while Steve Buscemi also pops up in a thankless cameo. There's no doubt that the five friends had fun while filming but I also think that a non-scripted film of them just going on holiday together would be much funnier than this shambles.

Review: Scott Pilgrim Vs The World

It seems that you wait for two uber-nerdy comic book adaptation movies to arrive then two come along at once. Earlier in the year, Kick-Ass wowed audiences with its fairly original style and subject matter and now we have Scott Pilgrim Vs The World a comic book adaptation which sees a normal Canadian lad having to defeat the seven evil exes of the girl of his dreams. The film sees Scott meet the mysteirous Ramona Flowers while still dating Asian schoolgirl Knives, he tries to woo Ramona which eventually happens but then he struggles to let Knives down gently. Scott soon discovers that he will have to defeat Ramona's various exes if he wants to be with them. They include an egotistic movie star, a vegan guitarist, a pair of Chinese twins and a rather agressive girl that Ramona went out with during an 'experimental stage'. Scott also has to concentrate on the band in which he plays bass who have a battle of the bands contest to think about as well as being sound. The end of the film sees Scott trying to figure out what and who he should be fighting for and re-evaluating his life.

Visually Scott Pilgrim Vs The World is an amazing film using computer game graphics as its main inspiration. Each character is introduced with their own caption featuring their age and occupation while there is a lot of cartoonish moments. The script is extremly well written and very funny indeed with some very quotable lines and hilarious segments. Although the formulaic nature of Scott Vs The Exes, should seem repetitive but instead each fight is distinctive with each ex given their own style of fight and special power. The film features a lot of stand-out support performances including Chris Evans and Brandon Routh as two of the exes, Kieran Culkin as Scott's gay roomate, Anna Kendrick as his sister and Alison Pill as the band's drummer and Scott's former flame. As Ramona, Mary Elizabeth Winstead manages to pull of the air of mystery quite well but it is 17 year old Ellen Wong who is the film's stand-out female making us really empathise with Knives and willing Scott to realise that she's a much more suitable choice. Michael Cera's performance perfectly anchors all the more zany aspects of the film and gives it the realistic edge that it needs. I did feel the film did start to flag towards the very end and when Scott started to 'learn about himself' the pace started to slow and some of the unique style left the film. But overall this was a fun, well written, well directed piece of cinema that will appeal to any dorks who have ever had to fight for that unattainable girl or guy.

Review: Salt

The only real thing I knew about Salt going into watch it was that the part was originally written for Tom Cruise who obviously chose to do Knight and Day over this. Angelina Jolie took over from Cruise in what may be the first ever case of gender swap re-casting, this is made even stranger by the fact that Ange has to cross-dress at one point which made me wonder if we would have had a Some Like it Hot moment had Cruise taken the part. Jolie has played action before in both Mr and Mrs Smith and Wanted but here Evelyn Salt is much of a more professional sort to the point of almost being cold. Salt is a CIA agent who had been kidnapped at the start of the film and only freed thanks to husband Mark. Soonafter the film's start Salt is accused of being a Russian agent who is tasked with killing the Russian President at the funeral of the U.S. Vice President. Salt denies this but is soon rushing off, dying her hair, jumping around a lot and shooting a lot of people.

Salt is an interesting film, in one way it is a lot more accomplished than a lot of this year's summer blockbusters in having a fairly simple but effective story drive along the action rather than some nonsense about ever-lasting lightbulbs or fake bank notes. In the lead Jolie tries to keep the audience guessing till the final reel it is a very measured performance which never slips into the ridiculous, apart from maybe the cross-dressing, and always engages. The two main support performances are also well done as the producers decided to cast some proper actors in Liev Schrieber and Chiewetel Ejiofor as her long-time friend and colleague and a suspiciouis agent respetively. The main problem I had with Salt is that it takes itself a little too seriously at times and thinks its a little more clever than it actually is. The two supposed plot twists were figured out by myself and my friend way before they were revealed and there were also some unexplainable moments throughout the film. Overall a fairly enjoyable actioner which is professionally executed but not as cleverly-plotted as it likes to think.

Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Day Eighty-Five: Lost Memories

Getting towards watching my 100th film on the list, its started me reflecting on why I started this journey in the first place. I think it was mainly to watch some films that I'd never got round to but it has become discovering others that I'd never been aware of but I really enjoyed after watching. The 1943 nominee Random Harvest falls into this latter category it deals with Ronald Colman's character a man who loses his memory several times throughout the film. Colman is initially in a mental instituion when the film begins as he has lost his memory after becoming shellshocked in the trenches. He escapes from the instituition after he sneaks past the guards who are celebrating the end of World War I. He is helped out by a showgirl named Paula who helps conceal his identity and eventually the two begin and romance and then marry. As Colman went by the name John Smith, Paula starts to call him Smithy and he discovers he has a talent for writing and journeys to Liverpool to see about getting a job as a writer leaving a pregnant Paula behind. While in Liverpool he is hit by a cab, although he is physically fine he loses his memory of his time with Paula and reverts back to his original identity of Charles Rainer heir to a large business dynasty. Rainer returns to his family home of Random House the day after his father's death and it turns out that he is to inherit the house. Charles hopes to return to college but ends up taking over the family business and making it succesful leading to a newspaper article calling himself the 'industrial prince of England'. Charles then gets a new secretary Margaret, Paula who is now using her real name, Margaret wants to reveal all to Charles but her friend tells her that it would just startle him so she has him declared legally dead and their marriage anulled. Charles then starts to romance Kitty, the step-daughter of one of his brothers, who has been smitten with him since she was fifteen. Charles and Kitty plan to get married however while planning the wedding Charles' memory is stirred by one of the hymns that Kitty has chosen which reminds him of his time with Paula. He then realises he is in love with someone else that he can't remember and calls off the engagement to Kitty. Later Charles stands for Parilament and succeeds thanks to Margaret's support, realising that he needs a wife he proposes to her as more of a business arrangement and she accepts. However she becomes unhappy that Charles will never remember her and decides to go on an extended holiday to South America. At the same time Charles has to go to the place he and Margaret once lived in order to deal with some unrest at a factory he owns there. While there his memory finally starts to come back to him and he returns to their old house where he finds Margaret, who is visiting the place before taking off on the cruise liner, she calls out to him as Smithy and he embraces her finally remembering their connection.

Although I'm not usually one for romantic films I thought the way that all of Random Harvest was laid out was superb. From the opening shots of the imposing gates of the Mental Institution to the grandiose splendour of Random House to the small house that 'Paula' and 'Smithy' shared every set is given the same amount of care. The two leads also make you care immensley about their characters. Although Ronald Colman has always impressed me this seems to be his best role thusfar in the list, his character changes from amnesiac patient to carefree writer to prince of industry and then to a government lord and Colman is able to show all these transitions with ease. As the film's female lead Greer Garson is also able to portray a woman who has lost the two things that are most important to her, Smithy and her child who died in infacy. There is also a fine performance by Susan Peters as the spirited and ultimately heartbroken Kitty who also grows as a character as the film progresses. The film was nominated for seven Oscars but was completely unsuccesful with Garson not even nominated for this film, however she was nominated for another performance that year, Colman and Peters did recieve nods but failed to win. Overall this was a thoroughly well made and well acted film that engaged me from beginning to end.