Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Top Movies of 2010

My posts about the year's best music might be after the new year starts, due to some computer problems I'm currently having. One of my resolutions, though, is to be a bit better about posting in a timely manner, as well as posting more about library-related topics (which is what this blog was originally meant to be).

For now though, I present the Library Punk's list of the 10 best movies from 2010 that I saw. Sadly, there were a few that I wanted to see that I'm sure would have made the list (such as It's Kind Of A Funny Story), so this list can only contain the movies I actually saw. Not all were in theaters, and that might have effected their actual position on the list, but here are my top 10 movies of 2010:

#10 - The Other Guys 
The last movie on the list that I saw, so to be completely honest it might not have made it if it had more time to sink in. I saw it a little over a week ago, and I thought it was hysterical. A well-written, well-performed, original and unique take on the buddy-cop format. And I especially loved the financial crimes piece during the end credits (set perfectly to Rage Against The Machine's cover of Bob Dylan's "Maggie's Farm).

#9 - The Crazies
If memory serves me correctly, this is the first movie on the list that I saw. Saw it in theaters and loved it so much that I bought it the day it came out and watched it again twice. I've watched it at least two more times since then (though once it was shut off early due to my friends wanting to watch something else). I watched part of the Romero original and to be honest, I didn't care for it. But this version is great. A twist on the basic premise of viral zombies in which the infected stay alive and crave violence.

#8 - A Nightmare on Elm Street
I had mixed feelings walking into this one. On the one hand, I had watched the abomination that was the Friday The 13th remake and had extreme doubts. On the other hand, I loved Jackie Earl Haley's take on Rorschach in Watchmen and was more that willing to see him take on Freddy Kruger. The second hand was rewarded as I greatly enjoyed this in theaters, and it held up on a second viewing on DVD. It's more realistic than the original, mainly in the form of Freddy's burned face make-up and the portrayal of the effects of sleep deprivation.

#7 - Machete
I confess, I was among the people who saw the fake trailer during Grindhouse and immediately demanded a full movie. Something about Danny Trejo (who I always enjoy seeing in a movie) as an ex-federale with his mind set on revenge just seemed right. I also respect how Robert Rodriguez can bounce between kids movies like Spy Kids and movies like this and his half of Grindhouse. This movie is also one of VERY few times I thought the whole "trying to be 'so bad it's good'" thing has actually worked out.

#6 - Despicable Me
Adorable. That is the word I use first and foremost in describing this one. My friends have gotten sick of hearing it. But the movie is adorable. I thought the movie looked interesting and possibly good when I started seeing commercials, but I was hooked the first time I saw the clip where the little girl screams "It's so fluffy!" while shaking a stuffed unicorn. Her preceding line, "It's so fluffy I'm gonna die!" is my ringtone. My friends have gotten sick of that, too.

#5 - Kick-Ass
A unique take on the self-made superhero. Kick-Ass is like if Batman didn't know how to fight, didn't have money, was a teenager and a little bit of a coward (as much a coward as someone can be if they're still willing to fight crime). Violent, vulgar and full of laughs, this one also had one of my favorite shoot-out scenes ever (when Hit Girl has the night vision goggles before the raid on the apartment).

#4 - Scott Pilgrim Versus The World
I'm a Michael Cera fan. I've loved him in every movie I've seen him in (Youth In Revolt just barely missed making this list). So to see him in a movie adapted from a comic book and modeled after video games was pretty sweet. Music is my favorite thing in the world, and Scott Pilgrim had plenty of that, including two battles based entirely on the performance of music. Great movie.

#3 - Inception
Based on all the hype, I'm almost ashamed that I don't have this higher up on the list. It seems like the kind of movie with subtlety that takes more than one viewing to properly grasp, so maybe after I've seen it a few more times it'll take a higher position. I love the online debate about the ending (if you haven't seen it and don't know what I'm talking about, don't go looking for it because it might spoil the movie for you).

#2 - The Book Of Eli
Gary Oldman and Tom Waits are a great combination in a movie. And use "post-apocalyptic" to describe anything and you've got my attention. Then there's the dual viewpoint of faith as a means of hope for those who need it and as a tool of oppression. Bleak and miserable throughout most of its runtime with appropriate moments of brightness. Great acting, especially from Oldman, who I consider to be one of the best actors currently working.

#1 - The Social Network
You really shouldn't use it as a secondary source when talking about Facebook, but this look at the social media empire's origins is great. Some amazing music courtesy of Nine Inch Nails mastermind Trent Reznor and his longtime collaborator Atticus Ross. Some great acting, especially Jesse Eisenberg's nerdy, awkward and at time vicious portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg. The film has seen many comparisons to Orson Welles's own film portrayal of a media mogul and to be honest, it deserves them. The Social Network may very well be the closest my generation gets to it's own Citizen Kane.

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