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Top 15 Films of the Year – Honorable Mentions (16-20)

This Is The End

Now that the Oscars season is officially back into action, I have once again compiled a list of my favorite fifteen films from the previous year.  Over the next few weeks, I will be revealing each of the movies on my “Top 15 Films of 2013” list, but today I am announcing the five “Honorable Mention” films that were nearly worthy enough for inclusion of my year-end list.  Now, I present you with the five films that just missed cracking my Top 15 list:

No. 16 – This Is The End

This Is The End is a comedy film written and directed by Seth Rogen and long-time collaborator Evan Goldberg.  The film features a number of Rogen’s film buddies, includingThis Is The End 2 James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, and Craig Robinson, playing fictional versions of themselves as the disastrous apocalypse takes place.  The movie was based on a short film called Jay and Seth versus the Apocalypse (2007), and its feature-length adaptation was most definitely one of my favorites from 2013.  It was such a simple concept with a pretty distinctive plotline, and the performances by the actors were ridiculously humorous, keeping me entertained the entire time.  A vast amount of celebrities make hilarious cameos in the film, such as Rihanna and Channing Tatum, but my favorite was Emma Watson—but then again, I will support anything she is in!!  If you have not seen this movie yet, do society a favor and get to your nearest Redbox ASAP!!!  Okay, maybe that is extreme, but still, you will not want to miss this one.

No. 17 – August: Osage County

August: Osage County is a film directed by John Wells with a screenplay by Tracy Letts.  Letts adapted this film, a tale about an Oklahoma family reuniting after the passing of a August Osage Countyrelative, from his very own award-winning Broadway play by the same name.  My viewing of the film was a case of first impression because I had never seen the play, but I greatly enjoyed the dark, twisted storyline of the dysfunctional Weston family.  The film featured some scenes that will most definitely live in my memory for a long time, particularly the family dinner scene and the scene where Julia Roberts cusses out her sister and mother over a plate of fish.  Speaking of Roberts, she did an absolutely phenomenal job in her role as Barbara, and that performance was one of the highlights for me; furthermore, Meryl Streep, the greatest living silver screen actress, lit the film on fire with her wildly erratic behavior as Violet, the pill-popping matriarch of the Weston family.  The combination of a dark, but amusing script and some fantastic acting performances is the reason this was one of the better films of 2013.

No. 18 – Rush

Rush is a film directed by Ron Howard with a screenplay written by Peter Morgan about the infamous Formula 1 rivalry between racers James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and NikiRush Lauda (Daniel Brühl) during the 1976 racing season.  As a sports fan, I am always on board to watch a sports-related film, but rarely do I come across one that is made with such an intricate filmmaking style as Howard’s Rush.  The sound was amazing, the cinematography was wildly intense, and the acting was top-notch.  I have rapidly become a big fan of Chris Hemsworth, and in this movie, he truly spreads his wings and establishes himself as a rising dramatic talent in Hollywood as the real-life James Hunt.  But my favorite performance from the film was Daniel Brühl’s role as Niki Lauda.  If you watch any interviews with the real-life Lauda on YouTube, you will see that Brühl absolutely nailed the accent.  His portrayal of the Formula 1 driver was spot-on and award-worthy, and I was relatively disappointed that he was snubbed for a Best Supporting Actor nomination.  I bought into everything on the screen when I watched Rush, and I would highly recommend this film.

No. 19 – Mud

Mud is a coming-of-age drama written and directed by established indie-filmmaker Jeff Nichols.  The movie is about Mud (Matthew McConaughey), a criminal on the run, and hisMUD-13103-PS.JPG friendship with a couple of 14-year-old boys (Tye Sheridan and Jacob Lofland) who happen upon Mud’s hideout on a small island in the Mississippi River.  Matthew McConaughey had probably the best acting year of any performer in Hollywood, and although he is receiving widespread acclaim for his role in Dallas Buyers Club, his outstanding performance as the mysterious Mud is definitely not one to overlook.  Even with solid performances from McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, and Sam Shepard, Mud is highlighted by a breakout performance from Tye Sheridan.  Although he was just 14-years-old during production, Sheridan gave an exceptionally mature performance in his role as Ellis.  Even though Sheridan did not receive any major award nominations, his performance was the best part of Mud, and I expect great things from him in the future.

No. 20 – Prisoners

Prisoners is a thriller directed by Denis Villeneuve and written by Aaron Guzikowski about the search to find two young girls that are abducted from their neighborhood in PrisonersPennsylvania.  Guzikowski’s script is dark and menacing, and each actor makes the most of the mystifying plot.  There are some first-rate supporting performances from Terrence Howard, Jake Gyllenhaal, Maria Bello, Melissa Leo, and Paul Dano, but Hugh Jackman steals the show with an extraordinary performance as a father willing to go to all lengths to find his daughter.  Last year, I voted for Jackman as Best Actor for his role in Les Misérables, and once again this year, he gave a performance that I truly felt was worthy of acclaim.  Even though he was ultimately not nominated for any major awards, he still gave a brilliant performance, and Prisoners is a frightening film you do not want to miss.

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 1 – Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook is a film written and directed by David O. Russell.  The movie follows Pat Solitano (Bradley Cooper), a man suffering from bipolar disease, who returns home to live with his parents, Pat Sr. (Robert De Niro) and Dolores (Jacki Weaver), after spending eight months in a mental health institution.  The violent episode that landed Pat in the institution is uncovered early on, and it was the reason he lost his job, house, and wife.  Pat is destined to get his life back on track and hopes to reunite with his wife after she sees his positive improvements; however, things get complicated when Pat meets Tiffany Maxwell (Jennifer Lawrence), a woman with some serious issues of her own.  Tiffany agrees to help Pat get back together with his wife but only if he agrees to help her in a dance competition.  Pat and Tiffany form an intriguing bond, and each of their lives are forever changed.

From the moment I watched this movie in theaters, I knew immediately that it was the best movie I had seen all year.  After continuing to watch other Oscar-nominated films, it sustained its position as my personal favorite of 2012.  David O. Russell’s film features everything I could possibly want in a movie: mesmerizing drama, clever humor, intriguing love, and of course, sports.  The combination of all of these factors creates one of the year’s most enjoyable motion pictures.  Russell adapted this screenplay from Matthew Quick’s novel of the same name.

The film has received a considerable amount of acclaim, both critically and commercially.  It has already been nominated and won for a handful of major movie awards, and it will be up for eight Academy Awards at the Oscars on Sunday.  One of the most noteworthy accomplishments the film has already attained is being nominated for the “Big Five” Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay).  This feat is momentous because it is the first movie since The Remains of the Day (1993) to be nominated in all of the five major categories at the Oscars.  The film is also up for each of the four acting categories, the first movie to conquer this achievement since Reds (1981).

Speaking of those four acting performances, each of the nominated actors and actresses deliver portrayals that are quite worthy of the critical praise they have received.  Bradley Cooper gives the performance of his career, and the ways in which he fully engrosses himself into his character are nothing short of spectacular.  There is never a moment you doubt Cooper’s character’s condition because of the heart and soul he puts into making the character authentic to the story.  Jennifer Lawrence, a young actress that has already been nominated for Best Actress before (Winter’s Bone, 2010), shows us that she is destined to become one of the film industry’s most powerful actresses.  This role is much more demanding in regards to emotional complexity than her role in Winter’s Bone, and Lawrence gives everything she has to a depiction that may earn her the Oscar for Best Actress.

Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver each provide astounding supporting performances as Pat’s parents, Pat Sr. and Dolores.  Pat’s father has fallen on hard times after losing his job, and he resorts to bookmaking in order to raise enough funds to ultimately open a restaurant.  The two-time Oscar winning De Niro gives a veteran performance and provides some of the movie’s brightest scenes.  Weaver gives a remarkable performance of her own as Pat’s mother.  As the matriarch of the Solitano family, Dolores must continue being the glue that holds the family together as their personal issues threaten to tear the family unit apart, and Weaver plays the role to a tee.  Silver Linings Playbook is rated R for language, some sexual content, and nudity.

Academy Award nominations for Silver Linings Playbook:

Best Picture (Donna Gigliotti, Bruce Cohen, Jonathan Gordon, Producers)

Actor in a Leading Role (Bradley Cooper)

Actor in a Supporting Role (Robert De Niro)

Actress in a Leading Role (Jennifer Lawrence)

Actress in a Supporting Role (Jacki Weaver)

Directing (David O. Russell)

Film Editing (Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers)

Best Adapted Screenplay (David O. Russell)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

2. Moonrise Kingdom

3. Zero Dark Thirty

4. Skyfall

5. Django Unchained

6. Life of Pi

7. Amour

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 2 – Moonrise Kingdom

Moonrise Kingdom is a film directed by Wes Anderson, with a screenplay written by Anderson and Roman Coppola.  The movie is set on the fictional island of New Penzance off the coast of New England in 1965.  Two 12-year-olds, Sam Shakusky and Suzy Bishop, become pen pals and eventually fall in love.  They decide to run away together on the island to pursue their love for one another, but an epic storm is brewing up and is due to hit New Penzance very soon.  With the combination of the storm and the runaway, the quiet, serene nature of this small island quickly turns tumultuously chaotic.

Wes Anderson has made quite a name for himself in the Hollywood as the creator and originator of a very eccentric, nonconformist style of filmmaking.  Some of his most popular films include The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, and The Darjeeling Limited.  For anyone who has seen any of his previous films, Anderson’s distinct method of filmmaking is unmistakable, and in Moonrise Kingdom, he again employs this same scheme.

Anderson collaborated on this uniquely peculiar screenplay with Roman Coppola, a writer he previously worked with on the script for The Darjeeling Limited.  The two have created a brilliantly refreshing tale of young love, and the entertainingly hilarious nature of the film is brought on strongly by the wonderful piece of writing these two men have created.  Their script has resulted in an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

After I rented this movie a while back to see it for the first time, I absolutely fell in love with it—I went and purchased it on Blu-ray mere days after watching it.  It quickly became one of my favorite movies of all time, and it made me a fan of Anderson’s unusual style of filmmaking.  One of my favorite aspects of the movie was the score—acclaimed composer Alexandre Desplat creates a specific tone for the movie through his music, and it truly makes the story even more gripping.

The film features some hilariously interesting characters, played by a combination of star-studded actors and Hollywood newbies.  In my opinion, the two younger actors provide the movie’s brightest performances.  Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward portray Sam and Suzy, respectively, and together they provide for some of the funniest and most endearing scenes in the entire film.  Some great supporting performances are also contributed by some of the film industry’s most enduring performers: Bill Murray plays Suzy’s father, Frances McDormand plays Suzy’s mother, Bruce Willis plays the island’s sheriff, Edward Norton plays the local Khaki scout troop leader, Tilda Swinton plays a character known only as Social Services, Jason Schwartzman portrays Cousin Ben, Harvey Keitel plays Commander Pierce, and Bob Balaban provides the role of the narrator.  This ensemble collectively shines on the screen and makes this film the illustrious piece of art it is.

Also, one of the most recognized hallmarks of any Wes Anderson film is the presence of a cast that features many previous Anderson collaborators.  Moonrise Kingdom marks the sixth Anderson film featuring Bill Murray and fourth film featuring Jason Schwartzman.  Moonrise Kingdom is rated PG-13 for sexual content and smoking.

Academy Award nominations for Moonrise Kingdom:

Best Original Screenplay (Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

3. Zero Dark Thirty

4. Skyfall

5. Django Unchained

6. Life of Pi

7. Amour

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 3 – Zero Dark Thirty

Zero Dark Thirty is a film directed by Kathryn Bigelow, with a screenplay written by Mark Boal.  The film tells the story of Maya, a CIA operative who, for over a decade, is dedicated to a single mission—to find Osama bin Laden.  She spends every waking moment interrogating detainees and doing intense research in order to track down the world’s most wanted man.  After years of devoted work, some clues to the whereabouts of bin Laden emerge, and even though most high-ranking officials in the US government do not fully trust her about his location, Maya remains steadfast in her belief that she has finally found the infamous terrorist.

This is the second collaboration between Bigelow and Boal, the first being their Best Picture-winning film The Hurt Locker (2008).  After seeing their latest partnership at work, it is clearly evident that these two have an uncanny knack for creating spellbinding war-related movies.  Even though there are stark similarities between the two films, Zero Dark Thirty is based around true events of the manhunt for Osama bin Laden.  The movie was met with controversy due to its take on torturing detainees, but I quite enjoyed the veracity of these scenes, and without those, I feel the movie would have been significantly lacking a punch.  I truly believe this was one of the year’s most amazing films, and it will definitely be a top contender for the highest Oscar honors; with that said, it still does not quite meet the standards that The Hurt Locker originally set.

The story behind the creation of this film is fascinating.  Bigelow and Boal had originally written a screenplay about the notorious Battle of Tora Bora, and they had planned to tell the story of the long, but unsuccessful hunt for Osama bin Laden.  They were actually about to begin filming when news of bin Laden’s death broke.  Immediately, they stopped working on their original film and began to work on a brand new original screenplay about the killing of bin Laden.

Just like The Hurt Locker focused most of the movie on one particular character and his life during the war, Zero Dark Thirty concentrates on the emotional and professional growth of a single character, Maya (Jessica Chastain).  Even though there are some key supporting characters, like Dan (Jason Clarke), Patrick (Joel Edgerton), and George (Mark Strong), Maya’s character is the central figure the film uses to develop the plot.

Chastain is an actress who is rapidly gaining immense popularity due to some impressive performances in The Tree of Life (2011), The Help (2011), and Lawless (2012), and in this movie, she shows everyone why she is an Oscar-nominated actress.  She begins the movie as a shy, reluctant character, but quickly she becomes a fiery force to be reckoned with.  I was blown away by her portrayal of Maya, and this striking depiction may just earn her an Academy Award for Best Actress.  Zero Dark Thirty is rated R for strong violence, including brutal disturbing images, and language.

Academy Award nominations for Zero Dark Thirty:

Best Picture (Mark Boal, Kathryn Bigelow, and Megan Ellison, Producers)

Actress in a Leading Role (Jessica Chastain)

Film Editing (Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg)

Sound Editing (Paul N.J. Ottosson)

Best Original Screenplay (Mark Boal)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

4. Skyfall

5. Django Unchained

6. Life of Pi

7. Amour

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 4 – Skyfall

Skyfall is a film directed by Sam Mendes, with a screenplay written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and John Logan.  This is the 23rd James Bond film and the third in the Daniel Craig era, preceded by Casino Royale (2006) and Quantum of Solace (2008).  In the newest addition to the 007 series, Bond begins the film with an intense fighting scene as he is chasing a mercenary.  He ends up falling over a bridge and is presumed dead by all of MI6; however, when MI6 comes under attack by a major terrorist, Bond must reemerge from his hiding and help Britain’s intelligence agency hunt this rebel down.  As more details of the terrorist and his plot are revealed, dark secrets about M are uncovered, and 007’s loyalty to his superior is greatly tested.

In the third of Craig’s Bond movies, he and Mendes have created one of the greater films in this storied franchise’s history.  After Quantum of Solace, I began to think Craig would never make another 007 film as great as Casino Royale and would end up fading into history as another average Bond that could never measure up to the greatness of Sean Connery’s original portrayal.  That was until I saw Skyfall.  Daniel Craig clearly made a statement in this film that he is the best James Bond since Connery.  Mendes and Craig have included much more dramatic elements than previous Bond films, not to mention some dazzling special effects that make the terror and destruction in the movie feel real to the viewers.  I rank Skyfall as the second-best film in the franchise, ahead of Casino Royale (2006), From Russia with Love (1963), and Dr. No (1962), but I have put it behind Goldfinger (1964), which I still consider to be the top Bond movie of all time.

The cast that was assembled for Skyfall only adds to the sensation of the film.  Dame Judi Dench reprises her role as M, giving a stellar performance as a character she has played in each consecutive film since 1995, beginning with GoldenEye.  Another strong performance in the film is provided by Oscar-winning actor Javier Bardem.  He plays the film’s villain, Raoul Silva, and portrays the character in such a creepy, disturbing way that it makes Anton Chigurh from No Country for Old Men (2007) look like the nicest guy in the world.  The film features some other great supporting performances by Ralph Fiennes as Gareth Mallory, Ben Whishaw as Q, Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny, and Bérénice Marlohe as the newest Bond girl, Sévérine.

As this blog has proved, I am always excited for the Academy Awards, but this year, I have an extra layer of anticipation because the Academy plans to honor the 50-year anniversary of the first James Bond movie with a tribute to the legendary franchise, including Adele performing “Skyfall,” the newest film’s theme song, which is nominated for Best Original Song.  Skyfall is rated PG-13 for intense violent sequences throughout, some sexuality, language, and smoking.

Academy Award nominations for Skyfall:

Cinematography (Roger Deakins)

Best Original Score (Thomas Newman)

Best Original Song (“Skyfall,” music and lyrics by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth)

Sound Editing (Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers)

Sound Mixing (Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell, and Stuart Wilson)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

5. Django Unchained

6. Life of Pi

7. Amour

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 5 – Django Unchained

Django Unchained is a film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino.  The film is set in the South before the Civil War, and the story follows Django (Jamie Foxx), a slave who is bought by Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), a German-born bounty hunter.  Django teams up with Dr. Schultz to hunt down some of the most renowned, murderous men in the slave business.  Django’s main goal, though, is to search until he finds his wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) who was sold into slavery many years before.  When Django and Schultz finally track her down, she is in the confinement of a sadistically ruthless slave owner named Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).  The two men must put on an act in order to gain the trust of Candie, but when Candie’s house slave (Samuel L. Jackson) becomes suspicious of their intentions, all hell breaks loose.

To say the very least, I absolutely, unequivocally loved this movie.  I have always been a fan of Tarantino’s work, and his creation of Django ranks right up there with some of his best of all time, including Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, and Inglourious Basterds (my favorite film of all time).  The film takes place during one of the most controversial periods of American history—the years of slavery before the Civil War.  If you have seen the way Tarantino recreated the history of the Nazis during World War II in Inglourious Basterds, then you are in for an equally hilarious depiction of the racist slave owners of the 1800s.

His film has been met with both critical acclaim and controversy, but then again it seems most of Tarantino’s movies are met with this same mix of emotion from critics and the general public.  He has been chastised by many, including the annoyingly outspoken Spike Lee, about his usage of the “N” word during the film, but in order to accurately depict this period of history, Tarantino would have been doing everyone a disservice by avoiding the word and sugarcoating the times.  His script is violently gruesome, but honest, and like most of his films, it is downright hilarious—the scene with the white-hooded horsemen will forever go down as one of the funniest I have ever seen in a movie.

The tour de force that is Tarantino’s screenplay for Django Unchained is assisted by an ensemble of actors and actresses creating unique and illustrious portrayals of their dynamic characters on the screen.  Jamie Foxx gives one of the best performances of his career, ranking behind only his roles in Collateral and Ray, in my opinion.  Surprisingly, Foxx was not nominated for any of the major awards despite his excellent performance.  Christoph Waltz once again collaborates with Tarantino, and like in his role as Col. Hans Landa in Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, Waltz brings his incomparable and articulate diction to the role, coupled with his fascinatingly comical wit.  His performance makes him a strong frontrunner for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for which he is nominated.

Some other strong examples of exceptional acting are illustrated by Samuel L. Jackson as Stephen the house slave, Kerry Washington as Broomhilda, Don Johnson as Big Daddy, and Leonardo DiCaprio as Calvin Candie.  I was quite upset when both Jackson and DiCaprio were snubbed for Oscars because after seeing nearly every nominated film this year, their performances stood out way above the rest.  DiCaprio has turned in a very triumphant career thus far, but he has yet to receive an Academy Award, and before nominations were announced, I was sure this would be his year.  Django Unchained is rated R for strong graphic violence throughout, a vicious fight, language, and some nudity.

Academy Award nominations for Django Unchained:

Best Picture (Stacey Sher, Reginald Hudlin, and Pilar Savone, Producers)

Actor in a Supporting Role (Christoph Waltz)

Cinematography (Robert Richardson)

Sound Editing (Wylie Stateman)

Best Original Screenplay (Quentin Tarantino)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

6. Life of Pi

7. Amour

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 6 – Life of Pi

Life of Pi is a film directed by Ang Lee, with a screenplay by David Magee.  The film follows Piscine Molitor “Pi” Patel, a teenage boy whose family owns a zoo in India.  After Pi’s father decides to move the family and the animals to relocate in Canada, their ship becomes caught in a bad storm.  Pi’s family dies, and he ends up stranded on a lifeboat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with one of the Patel family’s Bengal tigers named Richard Parker.  Over the next 227 days, Pi and Richard Parker must continually fight for survival.  The movie is a magical tale of spirituality and extraordinary resilience.

A seasoned veteran in the filmmaking business, Ang Lee has created a visually appealing adventure film in Life of Pi, and it only adds to his already acclaimed directorial efforts.  Over the course of his career, Lee has shown great range as a director.  The diverse group of projects he has taken on, including Sense and Sensibility, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Brokeback Mountain, has demonstrated this range in a manner that has already earned him eight Academy Award wins.

To be honest, when I first watched the trailer for this film, it looked like the type of movie that I most definitely wanted to skip—it just looked too fantastical and too much like an over-the-top kid’s movie.  But when it was nominated for a vast number of Oscars, I finally decided to view the film.  I was instantly surprised at how much I really liked this movie.  Not only was it visually appealing with all of the high-tech special effects, it was also a well-made film with an amusingly humorous, but dramatic script.  Quickly, it became one of my favorite movies of the year.

I cannot help but appreciate the intricate detail Ang Lee uses when directing his movies, and Life of Pi will most definitely go down as one of his best of all time.  Ten nominations was previously Lee’s personal best for an Academy Awards ceremony (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000), but this year, Life of Pi is up for a remarkable eleven Oscars.  Life of Pi is rated PG for emotional thematic content throughout, and some scary action sequences and peril.

Academy Award nominations for Life of Pi:

Best Picture (Gil Netter, Ang Lee, and David Womark, Producers)

Cinematography (Claudio Miranda)

Directing (Ang Lee)

Film Editing (Tim Squyres)

Best Original Score (Mychael Danna)

Best Original Song (“Pi’s Lullaby,” music by Mychael Danna and lyrics by Bombay Jayashri)

Production Design (David Gropman and Anna Pinnock)

Sound Editing (Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton)

Sound Mixing (Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill, and Drew Kunin)

Visual Effects (Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer, and Donald R. Elliott)

Best Adapted Screenplay (David Magee)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

7. Amour

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 7 – Amour

Amour is a French-language film directed and written by Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke.  The movie follows an elderly couple, Georges (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and Anna (Emmanuelle Riva).  Both of them are retired music teachers that enjoy spending time together and listening to classical compositions.  One day, Anna suffers a stroke, and after that, nothing seems to be quite the same with her.  Their daughter, who lives abroad, comes to visit often and wants to help in any way she can, but Georges prefers to care for his wife by himself.  These two have endured a lifetime of love and compassion together, but after Anna’s incident, all factors of their relationship are drastically tested.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Michael Haneke is one of the great filmmakers of this era.  The world’s grandest film festival is the Cannes Film Festival in France, and the biggest award given out is the Palme d’Or, an award presented to the filmmaker of the best feature film at the festival.  Only seven filmmakers in the history of the competition have received this award twice, and Michael Haneke is one of those directors (The White Ribbon, 2009, and Amour, 2012).  This track record proves why Haneke is one of the greatest directors in the modern film industry.

Amour is up for many awards at this year’s Oscars, including Best Picture, becoming only the seventh foreign-language film to be nominated for this award.  A lot of people strongly dislike foreign films, but I think this characteristic makes you ignorant as a fan of film.  Some of the greatest movies ever made were not in the English language, such as The Seventh Seal (Swedish), Wings of Desire (German), Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Mandarin), Downfall (German), and Letters from Iwo Jima (Japanese).  Everyone can attain a greater level of understanding and respect for the world film industry by taking the time to watch foreign films.

In Amour, Haneke has created one of the most unique tales of true love that the film industry has ever seen, and his outstanding script and story are made to look even more dazzling due to two unbelievably powerful acting performances.  One of the most critically recognized performances is from Emmanuelle Riva as Anna.  Riva has been nominated for many awards, including Best Actress at the Oscars, and the attention her portrayal has received is very much deserved.  Her unprecedented level of skill and sentiment in this role makes her a true contender for the Oscar.

My favorite performance from the film, however, is that of Jean-Louis Trintignant as Georges, Anna’s husband.  It is easily one of the greatest portrayals from a male lead in recent memory, and the ways in which Trintignant defines love and compassion on the screen are nothing short of amazing.  Trintignant has already been nominated and won for Best Actor at numerous film awards ceremonies in Europe, but for some reason that I still cannot quite understand, he was snubbed at the Oscars.  I felt his performance was the strongest in the entire film, and that is saying a lot considering Riva clearly gave an Oscar-winning performance herself.

This film was by far one of my favorites of the year, and even though it probably won’t win for Best Picture, Haneke will most definitely be receiving his first Academy Award win for Best Foreign Language Film.  Amour is rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, including a disturbing act, and for brief language.

Academy Award nominations for Amour:

Best Picture (Margaret Menegoz, Stefan Arndt, Veit Heiduschka, and Michael Katz, Producers)

Actress in a Leading Role (Emmanuelle Riva)

Directing (Michael Haneke)

Foreign Language Film (Michael Haneke)

Best Original Screenplay (Michael Haneke)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

8. Les Misérables

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

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Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 8 – Les Misérables

Les Misérables is a film directed by Tom Hooper, with a screenplay by William Nicholson and Herbert Kretzmer.  The movie is based on the original musical by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg, which itself was based on the Les Misérables novel (1862) by Victor Hugo.  The film tells the story of Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman), an ex-convict who French policeman Javert (Russell Crowe) hunts down for decades after Valjean breaks parole and flees.  Valjean becomes the mayor of a town in France, and after he meets a factory worker named Fantine (Anne Hathaway), he agrees to raise her daughter Cosette.  While trying to evade Javert’s pursuit for many years, Valjean and Cosette endure many challenging circumstances, ultimately leading to a third-act climax set against the backdrop of the June Rebellion of France.  Hooper’s unique interpretation of the infamous musical tells a gripping story of love and redemption.

To say the least, I was blown away by the riveting compassion of Hooper’s production from the very first scene.  One of my favorite films of all time is Hooper’s The King’s Speech, and much like the Best Picture winner from 2010, the cinematography is unbelievably stylistic and continually mimics the overall theme of the movie.  I am an avid fan of musicals, and this one is right up there with some of my most favorites.  The one element that this musical includes compared with others is the constant singing.  Yes, I understand it IS a musical, but in other ones like The Phantom of the Opera (2004) or Sweeney Todd (2007), spoken word is still utilized throughout—in Les Misérables, there are at most seven or eight spoken words, while the rest of the entire script is sung.

I was more than impressed with the acting in the film.  The actors and actresses are clearly amazing singers, as they probably would not have gotten the roles without this being true, but Hooper employs an exceptionally talented group of performers with top-notch acting skills.  The two performances that have garnered the most critical acclaim are from Jackman and Hathaway—and I most definitely feel they have more than earned the praise they are receiving.  Hugh Jackman gives the performance of his career as the lead character Jean Valjean, and in each scene he is featured, he demands our attention and does so with the priceless proficiency of a veteran actor in Hollywood.  On the other hand, Hathaway features in only a short period of time during the film, but she makes the most of her chance on the screen.  Her rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” was taped in a single close-up shot, and Hathaway blows all other musical numbers in the film out of the water in just a few minutes.

The supporting cast does not miss a beat in the movie, and some of the film’s best scenes feature these actors and actresses.  Some of these highlights come courtesy of seasoned veteran Russell Crowe as Javert, Amanda Seyfried as the older Cosette, and Eddie Redmayne as Marius.  In my opinion, the best of the supporting performances, however, are by Sacha Baron Cohen as Thénardier, Helena Bonham Carter as Madame Thénardier, and the underrated Samantha Banks as the Thénardier’s daughter Éponine.  With the tremendous musical numbers, award-winning acting, and lucrative filmmaking, Les Misérables is definitely one of the best movies of 2012.  Les Misérables is rated PG-13 for suggestive and sexual material, violence, and thematic elements.

Academy Award nominations for Les Misérables:

Best Picture (Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward, and Cameron Mackintosh, Producers)

Actor in a Leading Role (Hugh Jackman)

Actress in a Supporting Role (Anne Hathaway)

Costume Design (Paco Delgado)

Makeup and Hairstyling (Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell)

Best Original Song (“Suddenly,” Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg and lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil)

Production Design (Eve Stewart and Anna Lynch-Robinson)

Sound Mixing (Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson, and Simon Hayes)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

9. Beasts of the Southern Wild

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo

Posted on by mistertowle2

Top 15 Films of the Year, No. 9 – Beasts of the Southern Wild

Beasts of the Southern Wild is a film directed by Benh Zeitlin, with a screenplay written by Zeitlin and Lucy Alibar.  The story follows 6-year-old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis), a young girl living with her father Wink (Dwight Henry) in an area of southern Louisiana below the levee known as “The Bathtub.”  A fierce storm is making its way towards the Bathtub, and the reality that Hushpuppy thought she knew is shifted upside down in an abrupt rage.  The storm leaves her house under water, and Hushpuppy must learn to survive while also taking care of her father who becomes gravely ill.  With the help of the tight-knit Bathtub citizens, coupled with her keen sense of imagination, Hushpuppy fights to conquer these catastrophes.

Beasts of the Southern Wild is by far one of the best films released this past year.  It is fantastical, creative, and enjoyable in every sense of the word.  Part of my fascination and appreciation for this movie is the fact that no one associated with this project is anyone I have ever heard of before.  Remarkably, this is Zeitlin’s very first feature film, having only created short films in his days as a filmmaker.  The screenplay he and Alibar wrote was also adapted from a one-act play (Juicy and Delicious) originally written by Alibar herself.

Aside from the little-known director and writer, some absolutely awe-inspiring acting performances are showcased in this film, and the two lead actors were complete amateurs entering the production of this movie.  In fact, Dwight Henry was simply a local business owner in New Orleans, and after developing a relationship with Zeitlin and the other members of his film crew prior to production of the movie, he was offered the role due to his own emotional experiences during Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  Before viewing the film, I had no knowledge Henry’s pure lack of acting experience, and quite frankly, he fooled us all.  The passion and power he brings to the role of Wink is done in a way that only veteran actors could do—but here stands Henry, someone who had never acted before, giving viewers an enthusiastically exquisite portrayal of a man that has fallen on hard times of epic proportions.

The most breathtaking performance in the film, however, is that of Quvenzhané Wallis.  Wallis, now nine years old, was only six when the movie was filmed.  That fact alone makes her brilliantly astonishing portrayal of Hushpuppy even more impressive.  In the film, Hushpuppy is driven by her creative imagination and her fascination with animals, and Wallis’ emotional depiction makes you think it is truly Quvenzhané on the screen in these disastrous circumstances and not Hushpuppy.  Her interpretation of this character has not gone unnoticed—she has been nominated for many significant awards, including Best Actress in a Leading Role at the Academy Awards.  After seeing this film, Wallis’ nomination is more than justified.  Beasts of the Southern Wild is rated PG-13 for thematic material including child imperilment, some disturbing images, language, and brief sensuality.

Academy Award nominations for Beasts of the Southern Wild:

Best Picture (Dan Janvey, Josh Penn, and Michael Gottwald, Producers)

Actress in a Leading Role (Quvenzhané Wallis)

Directing (Benh Zeitlin)

Best Adapted Screenplay (Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin)

Previous movies on the countdown of the Top 15 Films of the Year:

10. Looper

11. The Perks of Being a Wallflower

12. The Dark Knight Rises

13. Flight

14. The Master

15. Argo