2011 league table

[legios]

1) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy - Amongst all the Spy Action Movies we have an espionage film. Measured and absolutely controlled and conveying a real sense of a world where you never know quite what is true and what the real nature of peoples motives are. An absolutely first class cast and a controlled directorial style that feels very assured. Absolutely riveting stuff.
2) X-Men: First Class
3) True Grit
4) Captain America
5) Thor
6) Thirteen Assassins
7) Troll Hunter - wit, invention and an irreverent outlook on its own country. Well and truly lived up to am arresting trailer. A big hit with the audience for this afternoons screening as well. Much more obvious reaction than I have seen for a long time.
8) Battle: Los Angeles
7) Cowboys vs Aliens
9) Source Code
10) Conan -
11) Rise of the Planet of the Apes
12) Green Lantern
13+) (by default) Tekken

[The Doctor]

1) The King's Speech.
2) X-Men: First Class
3) True Grit.
4) Captain America: The First Avenger.
5) Thor.
6) The Smurfs.
7) 13 Assassins.
8) The Troll Hunter.
9) Limitless.
10) Battle Los Angeles.
11) Source Code.
12) The Conspirator.
13) The Adjustment Bureau.
14) Conan the Barbarian (2011).
15) Attack the Block.
16) The Eagle.
17) Apollo 18.
18) Unknown.
19) Fast Five.
20) The Way.
21) Sucker Punch.
22) Super 8.
23) Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
24) Cowboys & Aliens.
25) Green Lantern.
26) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy: Deeply boring, lacking in any sense of tension whatsoever emboldened in a lead character who appears practically dead most of the time. However, there was some nice sound recording of someone buttering a slice of toast.
OMEGA) Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

-Ralph

[The Doctor]

Gah! It was so shit! I'm still angry!

-Ralph

[Grand Moff Muffin]

Oh dear.

Martin

[jameso]

Couldn't get on much with Tinker Tailor myself. Not my worst film of the year or anything, though. The thing that got me was, and I may have missed stuff, but:

SPOILER: Click to show

The reveal of who the mole was was the character in the film with the least development, the least motivation and the least character insight. So it was, oh, it was him all along. Ho hum.

[Fortmax2020]

1 - The King's Speech
2 - X-Men: First Class
3 - Captain America
4 - Thor
5 - Limitless
6 - Source Code
7 - Cowboys and Aliens
8 - The Way
9 - The Hangover II
10 - Tangled
11 - Jane Eyre
12 - Apollo 18
13 - Conan
14 - True Grit
15 - Paul
16 - Bad Teacher
17 - Transformers: Dark of the Moon
18 - Hanna
19 - Planet of the Apes
20 - Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy - What a dreadfully boring, linear, plodding and unengaging film. Someone please reassure me the book is better!
21 - Attack the Block

[Grand Moff Muffin]

Maybe two films were released under the same name. It's the only explanation I can think of.

Martin

[legios]

Actually I am not entirely surprised. I did think that it might end up being a little bit of a Marmite film in honesty.

Karl

[The Doctor]

It was one of the most dreadful films I have ever seen in the cinema!

In other news I felt like a cinema visit was required this evening to take my mind off things. I fancied Drive but decided a violent movie was perhaps not the best thing to go see due to recent events. So I plumped for the Jurassic Park re-release. Alas, it was mobbed and I was stuck beside two annoying bastards who would not shut up during the entire duration of the film and who even escalated at one point on noticing my continual annoyance. So what was meant to be a couple of hours of escapism turned into an exercise in me becoming steadily angry. Wankers.

-Rallph

[jonathan85]

I'm with Karl on this one - I thought Tinker, Tailor... was utterly superb. Thought there was a great sense of melancholy, even pointlessness hanging over the characters, and I thought Oldman was terrific, as the man who gave *nothing* away. Brilliant. :-)

Jonathan

[The Doctor]

1)The Three Muskateers (2011). Enormous fun. Nonsense panto done with gusto.
2) The King's Speech.
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit.
5) Captain America: The First Avenger.
6) Thor.
7) The Smurfs.
8) 13 Assassins.
9) The Troll Hunter.
10) Limitless.
11) Battle Los Angeles.
12) Source Code.
13) The Conspirator.
14) The Adjustment Bureau.
15) Conan the Barbarian (2011).
16) Attack the Block.
17) The Eagle.
18) Apollo 18.
19) Unknown.
20) Fast Five.
21) The Way.
22) Sucker Punch.
23) Super 8.
24) Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
25) Cowboys & Aliens.
26) Green Lantern.
THE WORST FILM I HAVE EVER SEEN) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

HONOURABLE MENTION:Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
ALSO SEEN: Jurassic Park (re-release).

-Ralph

[Grand Moff Muffin]

Oct 14, 2011 22:40:49 GMT The Doctor said:

1)The Three Muskateers (2011). Enormous fun. Nonsense panto done with gusto.

That description fits in my mind the Charlie Sheen/Kiefer Sutherland 1993 version, with Oliver Platt as a highly amusing Porthos and Tim Curry overacting his socks off as Cardinal Richelieu, which is very silly indeed and which always entertains me when it comes on TV.

I may give this new one a try at some point during the week and see how it compares.

Martin

[The Doctor]

It is very very daft. Don't expect anything too close to the source material!

-Ralph

[Fortmax2020]

1 - The King's Speech
2 - The Three Musketeers - Absolutely daft, absolutely cannot be taken seriously, but it knows it and uses it as a strength. Immense fun.
3 - X-Men: First Class
4 - Captain America
5 - Thor
6 - Limitless
7 - Source Code
8 - Johnny English Reborn - An improvement on the original and some silly British fun.
9 - Cowboys and Aliens
10 - The Lion King - An enjoyable bit of nostalgia.
11 - The Way
12 - The Hangover II
13 - Tangled
14 - Jane Eyre
15 - Apollo 18
16 - Conan
17 - True Grit
18 - Paul
19 - Bad Teacher
20 - Transformers: Dark of the Moon
21 - Hanna
22 - Planet of the Apes
23 - Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
24 - Attack the Block

[Grand Moff Muffin]

1. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (overflowing with atmospheric sets and good acting)
2. X-Men: First Class (pay attention, George Lucas - this is how you do prequels)
3. Limitless (may buy on DVD when it's reduced in price)
4. The King's Speech (perfect and tear-inducing)
5. The Three Musketeers (wonderful silly fun)
6. Cowboys and Aliens (does what it says in the title)
7. Thor (enjoyable tongue-in-cheek spectacle)
8. Unknown (great set-up, somewhat unoriginal resolution)
9. Captain America (much more entertaining than the trailer suggests - mind you, the costume looks rather silly)
10. Transformers: Dark of the Moon (pow! choom! kabooom!)
11. Source Code (not bad - preferred Denzel Washington in Deja Vu a few years back)
12. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (unnecessary and unoriginal but still decent fun)
13. Black Swan (unpleasant/disturbing and yet praiseworthy)
14. The Green Hornet 3D (enjoyable but forgettable silliness)

The Three Musketeers is great, and apart from the more outlandish action sequences and the totally random

SPOILER: Click to show

airships of doom

it did actually follow the plot and character line-up of the novel pretty faithfully - as did the 1993 version.

The only bits I didn't like were the portrayal of the king - and Planchet.

SPOILER: Click to show

It amused me how the good guys won by realising (a little late) that you don't sink an enemy airship by blowing a hole in the bottom, but by blowing holes in the balloon at the top.

Orlando Bloom makes a good villain! He seemed to be having more fun with this role than he did with Legolas or Will Turner.

Martin

[The Doctor]

Yep. I am not usually a fan of Bloom but thought he camped it up magnificently here.

-Ralph

[Fortmax2020]

Seconded! I wasn't sure it was him for half the film it was so surprising.

[legios]

1) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
2) The Three Musketeers - ludicrous nonsense of the first order, completely unapologetic about what it is. Hilariously entertaining stuff.
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit
5) Captain America
6) Thor
7) Thirteen Assassins
8) Troll Hunter
9) Battle: Los Angeles
10) Cowboys vs Aliens
11) Source Code
12) Conan
13) Rise of the Planet of the Apes
14) Green Lantern
15+) (by default) Tekken

The Three Musketeers was vastly more entertaining than I expected - the opening set-piece showed that they were very clear about the tone they were going for and prepared to be up-front so that you were either onboard or not from the very beginning. (They had me fully onboard from Aramis as Renassaince Batman - once I had recovered from smothering my laughter). Much closer to the original than I expected in many ways as well - I thought from the trailer that they had thrown the original plot overboard but was pleasantly surprised. I was pleasantly surprised by the fight choreography too - yes it was ludicrous some of the time, but it was a good ludicrous and looked good on-screen.

Orlando Bloom does steal the film, as quite frankly the most entertaining Duke of Buckingham I think I have seen on screen.

It is fun, daft and has full conciousness of its own nature.

SPOILER: Click to show

Also, Air Ships was a brilliantly ludicrous idea.

. It was pretty much the sort of silliness that I was after this afternoon. A fine job there Musketeers.

Karl

[The Doctor]

1)The Three Muskateers (2011).
2) The King's Speech.
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit.
5) Captain America: The First Avenger.
6) Thor.
7) The Smurfs.
8) Real Steel: how to do a fun kids robot movie without vulgar fart/piss/sex gags ie everything the Transformers live action films aren't.
9) 13 Assassins.
10) The Troll Hunter.
11) Limitless.
12) Battle Los Angeles.
13) Source Code.
14) The Conspirator.
15) The Adjustment Bureau.
16) The Ides of March: solid 'politics makes people do bad things' flick. Good performances all round.
17) Conan the Barbarian (2011).
18) Attack the Block.
19) Contagion: watchable if by the numbers 'we are all going to die flick'. Larry 'Even Horizon' Fishbourne's moustache is amazing though.[/b]
20) The Eagle.
21) Apollo 18.
22) Unknown.
23) Fast Five.
24) The Way.
25) Sucker Punch.
26) Super 8.
27) Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
28) Cowboys & Aliens.
29) Green Lantern.
THE WORST FILM I HAVE EVER SEEN) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

HONOURABLE MENTION:Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
ALSO SEEN: Jurassic Park (re-release).

-Ralph

[legios]

1) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
2) The Three Musketeers
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit
5) Captain America
6) Thor
7) Thirteen Assassins
8) Troll Hunter
9) Real Steel - the best feel-good robot-movie of the year. Heck, the best movie with robots of the year.

10) Battle: Los Angeles
11) Cowboys vs Aliens
12) Source Code
13) Conan
14) Rise of the Planet of the Apes
15) Green Lantern
16+) (by default) Tekken

Real Steel was one of the surprises of the year for me. I wasn't expecting much from the trailer, some boxing robots as a leavening on the usual Hollywood thing about how important a boys relationship with his father is which is usually a sure-fire way to detach me from a movie. Seriously, normally that sort of material is almost a guarantee of my emotionally disconnecting from a film. But in this case not only is the film is clearly aware that Hugh Jackman's character has been a deadbeat dad to his son, but Jackman's performance sells the idea not only that his character knows it too but that he is painfully aware that he is a bit rubbish as a dad candidate - which actually endears the character to me and makes the whole relationship with his son work really well on screen. It is also a better fight movie than I was expecting - sure it is following in the formula to a sufficient degree that you can see most of its beats a little before it throws them, but the films technique is good enough that it makes it a pleasure to watch it go through its paces. Also, robots with personality despite not having any dialogue but without having to go all-out-stupid-goofy to do it.

Karl

[The Doctor]

1)The Three Muskateers (2011).
2) The King's Speech.
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit.
5) Captain America: The First Avenger.
6) Thor.
7) The Smurfs.
8) Real Steel.
9) 13 Assassins.
10) The Troll Hunter.
11) Limitless.
12) Battle Los Angeles.
13) Source Code.
14) Footloose (2011). Surprisingly decent remake, retaining the marvelous rage dance sequence and a good young cast with a script with more charm and wit than I had expected. Plus, the lead lass is utter, utter filth!
15) The Conspirator.
16) The Adjustment Bureau.
17) The Ides of March.
18) Conan the Barbarian (2011).
19) Attack the Block.
20) Contagion.
21) The Eagle.
22) Apollo 18.
23) Unknown.
24) Fast Five.
25) The Way.
26) Sucker Punch.
27) Super 8.
28) Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
29) Cowboys & Aliens.
30) Green Lantern.
31) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

HONOURABLE MENTION:Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
ALSO SEEN: Jurassic Park (re-release).

-Ralph

[The Doctor]

1)The Three Muskateers (2011).
2) The King's Speech.
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit.
5) Captain America: The First Avenger.
6) Thor.
7) The Smurfs.
8) Real Steel.
9) 13 Assassins.
10) The Troll Hunter.
11) Limitless.
12) Battle Los Angeles.
13) Source Code.
14) Footloose (2011).
15) The Conspirator.
16) The Adjustment Bureau.
17) The Ides of March.
18) Conan the Barbarian (2011).
19) Attack the Block.
20) Contagion.
21) The Eagle.
22) Apollo 18.
23) Unknown.
24) Fast Five.
25) The Way.
26) Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
27) The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicron. This should have been a winner. The script features plenty of incident and wisely realises Tintin himself is a bit bland and it is his adventures that make us want to follow him rather than any intrinsic features of his personality. Captain Haddock gets all the best material. It features a fabulous opening title sequence: cel shaded CG which captures the look of the original graphic albums perfectly yet with a fresh and modern look. I could have happily watched a whole film in that style.
Then the film itself starts. It's rendered in a motion capture style where actors are filmed then CG style animation is overlaid (I think). However, it falls between two stools. It neither works as animation in its own right nor as a substitute for live action. Indeed, it's so photorealistic I couldn't see the point in doing it that way and it also has the cumulative effect of making events feel more and more fake as it goes on and I found myself becoming increasingly distanced from the story and ultimately supremely bored. Also, John Williams has unusually turned in a vague and meandering score.
Shame.
While watching it though it occurred to me that when George Lucas eventually decides on more theatrical Star Wars films they be will done in exactly this style. Mark my words.
27) Sucker Punch.
28) Super 8.
29) Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
30) Cowboys & Aliens.
31) Green Lantern.
32) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

ALSO SEEN: Jurassic Park (re-release).

-Ralph

[Grand Moff Muffin]

I saw Beowulf when that was in the cinema (that was also motion-capture CGI) and had a similar reaction to yours to Tintin, Ralph.

Just as I would like CG animation to be reserved for spaceships and dinosaurs in live-action movies, I think CG motion-capture should be reserved for characters like Gollum in live-action movies.

If it ain't going for photorealistic, I want it to be hand-drawn or made out of plasticine.

Martin

[The Doctor]

I hadn't seen a full film done in that style before. It's impressive for about 5 minutes then begins to annoy.

-Ralph

[The Doctor]

Amusingly, however, there is a reference to the infamous 'Tintin in the Congo'.

SPOILER: Click to show

On a departure board in the title sequence we see the many destinations of Tintin in the graphic albums. One of which is the Congo. I chuckled and sighed similtaneously.

-Ralph

[blueshift]

I agree, I loathe that style. It is like they have brought back rotoscoping! D:

[The Doctor]

I actually like rotoscoping. It has a live action movement feel but still looks like hand drawn animation and can achieve unique effects that both can't do.

Whereas this newer technique looks so much like live action I cannot fathom the point of it at all. Really, there aren't even any character designs in Tintin that could not have been achieved in live action with make-up, prosphetics and lighting.

-Ralph

[The Doctor]

1)The Three Muskateers (2011).
2) The King's Speech.
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit.
5) Captain America: The First Avenger.
6) Thor.
7) The Smurfs.
8) Real Steel.
9) 13 Assassins.
10) The Troll Hunter.
11) Limitless.
12) Battle Los Angeles.
13) Source Code.
14) Footloose (2011).
15) The Conspirator.
16) The Adjustment Bureau.
17) The Ides of March.
18) Conan the Barbarian (2011).
19) Attack the Block.
20) Contagion.
21) The Eagle.
22) Apollo 18.
23) Unknown.
24) Fast Five.
25) The Way.
26) In Time. Falls between two stools, being neither an interesting fable nor an exciting thriller. Disappointing. Sometimes you can have a good director, a good initial premise and a decent cast but it just doesn't work. Oh well!
27) Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
28) The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn.
29) Sucker Punch.
30) Super 8.
31) Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
32) Cowboys & Aliens.
33) Green Lantern.
34) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

ALSO WATCHED: Jurassic Park (re-release).

-Ralph

[legios]

) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
2) The Three Musketeers
3) X-Men: First Class
4) True Grit
5) Captain America
6) Thor
7) Thirteen Assassins
8) Troll Hunter
9) Real Steel
10) Ides of March - Decent low key political thriller, a good cast in an interesting look at the clash between idealism, ambition and expediency in US politics. Doesn't quite sell its last scene quite well enough ending-wise but still an absorbing piece of drama.
11) Battle: Los Angeles
12) Cowboys vs Aliens
13) Source Code
14) Conan
15) Rise of the Planet of the Apes
16) Green Lantern
17+) (by default) Tekken

[duffism1981]

1: X-Men: First Class - Bloody fantastic. Enough said.
2: Transformers: DOTM
3: Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension