THE YEAR OF WATCHING CALMLY AND SITTING NICELY, NOT IN 24 FRAMES PER SECONDS

Just like every year, I feel compelled to write my favorite movies of [insert year here] and although it is already February but  think it is necessary for me to put this here. I haven't seen War Horse or Extremely Loud but Incredibly Close [both are Best Picture nominated in this year's Oscar], but I think I don't have to watch it right now besides the trailers are not interesting in my opinion. However if you wanted to know what I like in 2010, just click here.

I watch many movies but only several reviews I wrote. Finding the mood is quite difficult but heck, I manage this far. Those who didn't make the cut but I think is very good is Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which in my opinion a good film.

However what is 'the best/favorite' list without me mentioning the crappiest film I have ever seen? That honor fall upon Jack and Jill, the worst movie from Adam Sandler that makes you want to punch his face. Low brow at it's best.

So, honoring my own tradition, I shall put the links on my own reviews here and here are my favorite movies of 2011, not in chronological order.

You might wonder why am I not writing the movie title as it is, but using 'the one'. Well, I wanted people to click on the link [a safe one, leads into the reviews not some suspicious links] and before that, guess the title. I hope it is fun, because I think it is boring since 'the one' is something I borrow from Friends TV series.

The one with Michael Shannon

The one with Turkish version of Zodiac

That baseball movie with Brad Pitt

The one with naughty kid

The one with Fincher fingerprint

The one that doesn't speak much

The one with chocolate pie

The one with serious spies

The cheerful cancer comedy

The one that can be titled; Virus, Actually

The one with a sick twist

The one with the kid with a bike

That Iranian Drama

The one with the grass is greener on the other side

That home kid movie with high production value

That melancholic tone

The one with brothers on the ring

The one with Ryan Gosling in it

The one with deep thinking

TAKE SHELTER

Directed by: Jeff Nichols
Run Time: 121 minutes

It has been a while since the last time I got scared by movies. In recent years most horrors failed to frighten me, Paranormal Activity is sucks and the rest is passable. The last time I went scared is when I watch The Others from Nicole Kidman at TV. Well, it is more than just a while I guess.

Now comes a scary thriller that doesn't rely on ghosts or scary score but on the dread and confusion of the main character. Curtis LaForche (Michael Shannon) has apocalyptic dreams, like seeing storms and rain of yellow liquid, but he keeps them from his wife Samantha (Jessica Chastain) and their hearing impaired daughter Hannah (Tova Stewart).

La Forche is a construction worker and his dreams are disturbing him. Not only that, his daughter  need an operation. However La Forche 'believe' his dreams and try to built a storm shelter, by borrowing the money from the bank. He also borrow tools from his work that makes him got fired. Angry and facing the problems that the health benefit for his family will run out before his daughter got operated, La Forche is torn apart. He knows that his mother has once diagnosed with schizophrenia and perhaps he has one too. But is it mental illness or there is really an apocalypse looming in the horizon? La Forche is confused, the wife is scared and the whole community think that he just lost his mind. His behavior is distancing himself from his family and sometimes, himself. But what makes the story interesting is that  La Forche himself somehow admit the possibility of him having mental illness.

The idea that keeps the viewers doubting whether it is real premonition or just some mental illness has been played good here, especially by the amazing performance by Michael Shannon. This thriller unfolds slowly but sure and some scenes are just plain frightening. Jessica Chastain also shines here, and I think 2011 is Chastain's year (with The Help, The Debt and The Tree of Life, showcasing her acting ability), and also Ryan Gosling's year.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA

Original Title: Bir Zamanlar Anadolu'da

Directed by: Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Running time: 157 minutes

There is something hidden underneath the beautiful Anatolian steppe, a dead body being searched by a prosecutor, cops, the doctor and the accused. Together they roam the steppe and as they found the body they sent it to nearby town to be autopsied.

But it is more than CSI; Turkish style or the panoramic Anatolian steppe or hidden body, it is about hidden feelings, repressed emotion, guilt, justice, fear, existentialism, small town mindset and limits of knowledge. Those themes doesn't need sophisticated dialogue since everything in this film is understandable. But the viewers must be patient in absorbing this film since the pacing is quite slow at the first half, but it gets better by the end. The characters developed as the film goes by and we can be aware of their layers of emotion but not fully understood what lies beneath it, just like real life itself since sometimes we just don't understand people around us.

What comes as points to ponder for me as when the prosecutor dictating crime scene report at the crime scene and they laughed a bit at the joke that the prosecutor looks like Clark Gable or how the other doctor by the small town complaining about the lack of high tech autopsy tools as if he has no feeling or sympathy at all to the victim. Well, he is not wrong by bringing that up since it is important to have the right tool for his work but it just feel unsympathetic at all.

In other field, the cinematography is great without forcing itself to be too glossy. The cars moving ahead in pitch black darkness accompanied with the silence of the night is beautiful to watch. This is my first Nuri Bilge Ceylan movie I watched and I am looking forward for his other works like Uzak and Three Monkeys. I have to say, this film really does deserve to share the same prize with The Kid with a Bike at last year's Cannes.

SUPER SHOW 3 - 3D

Directed by: Kim Min-Soo, Kim Hyeok-Il
Running Time: 80 min

I never watched any concert movie at all, not even a 3D one. At first I am skeptical since I have already seen Super Show 3 on video and what could 3D offer in a concert movie? Well, apart from the wallet choking admission price, after seeing this one I can say that 3D enhance your movie concert experience. Besides I have to taste what a 3D concert movie is all about. Not only that, this one is a limited release in Indonesia, for five days only and only at Blitzmegaplex.

It makes you feel as if you are sitting in a tribune, seeing the stage in front of you and all the concert gimmicks like laser beams, fireworks and lighting are as maximal as possible. Not only that the atmosphere inside the cinema is also like in the concert with some of the viewers bringing light stick and sing along.

For those who didn't know what Super Junior is, you can Google it. All I can say that they are Korean boy band. Their songs are mostly pop (and sometimes synthpop), R n B and with a little bit of rap with mathematically precise dance that makes you feel as if you are looking at better version of Step Up 3D.

Opened with Sorry Sorry from their third album (and quoting from wikipedia: ...was a critically and commercially successful hit in Asia, becoming 2009's best-selling Korean-language album in South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, China, and the Philippines), the 3D makes the stage seems alive. The rest of the songs need no explanation, they are just songs and performances with zero behind the scene scenes. That's too bad since if there is some behind the scene scenes then it can be an advantage.

But the editing between the songs are too tight and doesn't seem to flow smoothly. Not only that, it feels too short and it ended too soon. However the presence of Indonesian subtitle really helps not to mention the song lyrics that can make the viewers sing along, if they wanted to. Overall it is not a disappointment since the 3D illusion is awesome, it is just too short.

THE DESCENDANTS

Directed by: Alexander Payne
Run Time: 115 min


It's all about family in this drama from Alexander Payne. Accompanied by a nice soundtrack that shows the viewers the variety of Hawaiian music this is where George Clooney shows his talent and proves that he is a versatile actor. Matt King (George Clooney) is a successful lawyer. His wife is suffering from a coma and he comes to terms to something very difficult to stomach; that his wife is actually cheating on him.

The news was broke by her 17-year old daughter; Alexandre (Shailene Woodley) who at first is nothing more than a rebellious teen but later transformed into a mature sister for Scottie (Amara Miller) and a good daughter for King. King himself is an emotionally distant father and this tragedy put him back together with his family not to mention that his cousins is nagging him on a piece of paradise their big family had, to be sold to any developer, thus makes them filthy rich. King, unable to side the news that his wife is cheating on him then go into a journey trying to find the man his wife is falling.

But this one is not just about family coming to terms with reality and unsaid feelings but about protecting family tradition and heritage, something we sometimes forgot in the modern age of materialistic pursuits. Here we see more than just template family drama, the main character transforms from ignorant to care and it is done smoothly without overly melodramatic.

There is no twist whatsoever since Payne is making the viewers enjoying the ride (literally and metaphorically) while treating us with amazing Hawaiian scenery that makes you want to go there.

MONEYBALL

Directed by: Bennett Miller
Run Time: 133 min
 

I don't understand baseball and how people play it. I have seen it on TV and I think it is boring. However it does not turn me down as I know the fact that this one is about baseball since this one is an Oscar nominated film with Brad Pitt on it. But this one is a tough sell for international audience, unless if it is about football.

Unlike many sports drama that relies heavily on dramatic cliche and last minute scoring (well it does happen here but very subtle) this one relies on meetings, dialogues and phone calls. What makes it interesting is how 'flat' but deep this film is. Flat in a sense that there's nothing much going on that can be called as dramatic, not even a romance just like in Jerry Maguire but 'deep' in a sense that Brad Pitt acted his character, Billy Beane, in a good way we can see his layers as a GM and as a father.

Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), former would-be superstar of baseball, he is now the general manager of Oakland Athletic team.  As a GM he faces a huge problem; replacing three of their star players with shoe string budget. Billy then hires Yale-educated economist behind the desk guy, Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) who 'created' a certain mathematical formula in how to assemble a 'cheap' but skillful team. To take matter simply, what Beane tries to do is to built a team as strong as FC Barcelona with the budget of Aston Villa by exploiting undervalued athletes instead of trying to buy a star one.

Billy believed in this so called new approach and try to implement it, to the disdain of many who thinks that baseball cannot be determined by numbers, especially coach Art Howe (Philip Seymour Hoffman). He put everything at stake, even his job as a GM. Will he pull it? Especially it is him against the world.

It is the mixture of instinct, personal approach and statistic, Beane proved that by swimming against the current, sometimes it is worth the fight. Sometimes.

PEARL JAM TWENTY

Directed by: Cameron Crowe
Run Time: 109 min
 

I am a fan of Pearl Jam since I was a teenager. Eddie Vedder's voice is amazing and I have listen to almost all of their songs. However I will not let my love for Pearl Jam to tarnish my review since this is a documentary about Pearl Jam not about the music, which I really like.

I have to admit, if I listen to music and I like it I just listen to it and doesn't even bother to know where the band comes from or even what the vocalist or the singer looks like. Heck, I just knew Drake's face few months ago yet I have listen to his songs for such a long time.

For me this one is enlightening, since I get to know Eddie Vedder's face for the first time [insert your sigh here]. Didn't mean to be rude but I listen to Pearl Jam not watch their faces one by one and try to memorize it in case I stumble into one of them in the mall. Besides there is near zero chance I will stumble upon them here in Indonesia. This means I am just an average fan, not some hardcore fan. However their songs are amazing to me.

So it begins in linear, the beginning of grunge rock movement in Seattle in the early 90s. A lot of stock footage was shown and very nice, it has the look of 90's MTV. As we all know, the 90s were ruled by Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

I do listen to Nirvana and know the face of Kurt Cobain though, in case you wonder. It is interesting to watch the ups and downs the inner work of Pearl Jam as they grow from zero to hero. Through various interviews (so that's their faces, I mumble to myself) the viewers will get to know tidbits, conflicts, dreams and opinions of people and themselves about their career.

I kinda wished that there will be several full footage of their performance and a little bit disappointed that most of it were just cuts and shorts. I am looking forward for the concert video though. This documentary reveals nothing new at all, it feels like any MTV documentary made in the 90s, and that's another disappointment from me.

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

Directed by: Lynne Ramsay
Run Time: 112 min

I thought that devilish child from The Omen is evil, but this one is also evil, without any supernatural stuff around it. This is a depressing but good drama about a mother, Eva (Tilda Swinton) who raised a hell-child named Kevin. We track Kevin's lifetime since birth until his adolescent age (adult Kevin by Ezra Miller).

Since he was a child, we can see that he's a sociopath who shows no regrets in doing mistakes. This got worsened by the emotionally detached Eva. The husband, Franklin (John C. Reilly) seems like a husband who doesn't want to know more about his son. After Kevin goes for a killing-spree, it is Eva who has to face the blame and guilt of raising Kevin.

It ain't easy being a mother, especially if you have to raise Kevin and this film successfully point that out. It is also not easy to lay the blame on the mother since it seems Kevin has seeds of destruction since he was a child. The family is emotionally dysfunctional and that fuels Kevin's disdain to society plus enhancing his sociopath behavior.

Swinton is amazing as Eva and it shows her spread as an actress while John C.Reilly manages to free himself from his normal comedic roles while Ezra Miller is haunting as Kevin.

The violence are implied and not seen directly but we can sense that there is something dark and depressing about Kevin and his family. Seeing this is an eye opener for parents would be that it ain't easy raising a child.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Directed by: David Fincher
Run time: 158 min

Did you grind your teeth in anger as you heard the news that David Fincher is about to make the English language adaptation of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo? I grind my teeth as I read the news. Does Americans lazy enough to read the subtitles of the Swedish version so they need to make the English language version? Besides, I hate Hollywood remakes of successful non Hollywood movies, except for Let Me In, the remake of Let the Right One In.

However this is Fincher who made Se7en and Zodiac, not Bay, so I still have some faith. Lowering my expectation as low as possible this one manages to surprise me. The Fincher version is better than the Swedish one. Thanks to bigger budget and better score from Trent Reznor which will remind you of The Social Network.

Opened with a brief prologue and weird opening credits that remind you of James Bond movies (Daniel Craig is even the leading actor here) with the cover of Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song, Fincher take us into the feel bad ride of the year.

Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) is scorned, he lost a case against a millionnaire. Blomkvist is called by Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer), a wealthy man, to investigate the disappearance of his niece, Harriet, almost 40 years ago. He assumes that Harriet has been murdered. Telling to Blomkvist that he will work under the guise of writing a biography for him, Blomkvist must stay at the private island of Vanger family to investigate further.

Then Blomkvist get some help from Lisbeth Salander (Ronney Mara), a gothic punk girl with haunting look who can hack into the internet. In fact she manages to hack into Blomkvsit computer previously. Together they are the dynamic duo, dwelving into the dark and shocking secrets of the Vanger family.

As expected, it is a harsh, gritty, murky and rough. Not suitable even for teenagers. The pacing and the acting is good however what comes as my disappointment is how they all speak English in Sweden with 'forced' Swedish accent. It is not necessary and feel awkward. How would you feel if Michael Mann's Heat made in Germany in German language but with 'forced'E nglish accent?

You don't have to read the book or the Swedish version to understand this one, since this time Fincher proves that not all remakes (or re adaptation in this case) have to be bad.

THE ARTIST

Directed by: Michel Hazanavicius
Run Time: 100 min

In the age of 3D movies and heavy special effect, a silent film titled The Artist steal the attention. Made as a homage and love letter to cinema (just like Martin Scorsese's Hugo which I haven't seen up to now), this film even incorporate technical aspect of the silent period like shooting at 22 frames per second, 1:33 aspect ratio and the campy acting. Not in wide screen, 3D even not in IMAX? This must be insane. But insane is the word, together with 'underdog' and we all know how Hollywood loves underdog movies in this award season. Silent is golden this time.

Opens in 1927 the protagonist is George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), attending the premiere of his own movie. He's famous and rich, having a mansion and legions of fans. During the premiere he accidentally kissed a nobody named Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo). The kiss was immortalized in a movie newspaper. Seeing that as a capital, Miller start using that newspaper edition to  get inside the movie business.

The film tracks the ascent of Miller into the show business and George's popularity (and financial) decline due to the new technology that allowed movies to have sound. George seem reluctant to adapt to the new technology, in fact he insisted of making his own silent movie from his own pocket in the time of the peak of Miller's popularity with her talking movie.

It is a feel good and heartwarming movie for everyone to watch and the music background is amazing. However if you try to put this film with other 'real' silent movie, the story is just fine, not great but just fine. But in time where cinema has done more than just talking, this is some sort of breathe of fresh air for movie goers. That is if you are not lazy enough to read subtitles. You don't have to be an avid silent film fan to understand this film since the story is universal and easy to understand.