It's film awards season (here's an ongoing scorecard), which also makes it a good time to reflect on your personal favorites from the past year. I wish Netflix would let me sort the films I've rated by the date I rated them, which would allow me to provide an easy answer to "seen anything good lately?" Even this very handy script does not allow that. But I have some issues with Netflix, and this post is not about them but about Quentin Tarantino, who recently shared his own personal top 10 movies from 2011:
- 1. Midnight In Paris
- 2. Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes
- 3. Moneyball
- 4. The Skin I Live In
- 5. X-Men: First Class
- 6. Young Adult
- 7. Attack The Block
- 8. Red State
- 9. Warrior
- 10. The Artist / Our Idiot Brother (tie)
- 11. The Three Musketeers
Okay, so it was a top twelve, really. I haven't yet seen all of these, but I would definitely have Contagion, Margin Call, Martha Marcy May Marlene, and Beginners in my own personal top 10. What about you?
Link: The Quentin Tarantino Archives
[via FilmmakerIQ]
[Tarantino photo by Siebbi]
.jpg){kind=link}
Your Comment
59 Comments
Very interesting picks...
Koo, so glad to hear someone else saw/liked Beginners. I was straight up smitten - I'd also throw Drive into the mix.
January 17, 2012 at 1:47PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
@Alex. I totally agree -- I thought Beginners was pretty amazing. I'd add Submarine into the mix as well.
January 17, 2012 at 7:22PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
QT just went up that much more in my eyes for putting Midnight in Paris as #1- what a perfect movie. His picks definitely seem more action-orientated (as one would expect). Glad to see that Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy wasn't on there. After all of the positive reviews, I went to see it yesterday with high expectations and can say without doubt (and having seen Delta Farce) that it is the worst movie I've ever seen. Boring, confusing, little clarification (never knew most people's name), and overall just terrible. I couldn't give a plot summary if asked to- I had no idea what the hell was going on. Costumes were cool, though...
January 17, 2012 at 1:50PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
He never seemed the type to get a kick out of a movie like The Tree of Life or Melancholia, but I know I did. Particularly the creation of the universe sequence inTree and the opening slow motion sequence to Melancholia. Definitely my most memorable movie moments of 2011.
January 17, 2012 at 1:55PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
I agree with adding Margin Call, I also think The Debt deserves to be up there
January 17, 2012 at 1:56PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
There are still several I've yet to see (The Artist, Shame, Another Earth, Margin Call) but of what I have seen, here are my top 10 (since you asked). The first five are in order, after that they're not.
1) Hugo
2) Midnight in Paris
3) Beginners
4) 50/50
5) Super 8
6) X-Men: First Class
7) Rango
8) Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
9) Bridesmaids
10) Attack The Block
I'm sure I forgot something.
January 17, 2012 at 2:07PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
I'm agreeing on 'Midnight in Paris', but i think 'Drive', 'Melancholia' are missing ;) Oh and 'Our Idiot Brother', should be replaced with '50/50'...
January 17, 2012 at 2:09PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Hmm, damn, I hate when I haven't seen these films. My smaller list would be:
Tree of Life
Moneyball
Hugo
Margin Call
The Descendants
13 Assassins
Biutiful (2010 but it takes a while to come to nc)
Meek's Cutoff
Jane Eyre
The Interrupters
Special Mention
Least favorite movie: Melancholia
January 17, 2012 at 2:14PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Seriously, what did you like about Meek's Cutoff?
January 18, 2012 at 8:39AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
What not to like? Great performance by Michelle Williams but I think what really struck me is the reality of the situation. So often westerns overlook the day to day struggle of being a pioneer woman. I love the scene where the Native American and the Westerners have trouble communicating. It was so well written. It felt so real. And I think it captures the spirit of the early pioneers: blind faith.
January 20, 2012 at 12:04PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
I didn't think midnight in paris was that good. I would say my favorites were Source Code and Hugo. 50/50 was also good.
January 17, 2012 at 2:18PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
In my opinion, no list is complete without Drive, Tree of Life, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I'd also include Bill Cunningham: New York, Bridesmaids, and If a Tree Falls. That's just six and there were plenty of others I enjoyed, but hey, "curation, baby!"
January 17, 2012 at 2:38PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Kill List. Drive.
January 17, 2012 at 2:44PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
No "Drive"? Suspect!
January 17, 2012 at 2:45PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
1. TAKE SHELTER
2. MELANCHOLIA
3. Midnight in Paris
4. Harry Potter 2
January 17, 2012 at 2:48PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Haven't seen everything on his list yet, but we were pleasantly surprised by Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Biggest missing show would be Deathly Hallows 2 which was brilliant from beginning to end - every performance was award worthy and the direction, photography and fx were beyond great.
January 17, 2012 at 2:53PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Crumbs - this list makes me realise that I've hardly seen any recent releases. I'm not sure I can even make a '10', let alone a top 10. In my defense, I've been catching up on a lot of older, vintage stuff. Like stuff from 2009...
Did see Jane Eyre though, and thought that was pretty darn good. Re-reading the book at the moment, and the scriptwriter (think it's Moira Buffini) did quite a job with it. Also saw a bit of Attack The Block but didn't think much to it at all - Hated the characters and thought it was a bit naff and charmless. Nice to see so many people loving a Woody Allen film again though - I've not seen Midnight In Paris, but have enjoyed quite a lot of his recent output (including the stuff the critics have hated...)
January 17, 2012 at 3:11PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
WHERE THE FUCK IS DRIVE
TARANTINO HAS BAD TASTE
January 17, 2012 at 3:18PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
He mentions Drive in the extended list (link above)... but not included in his top 10.
January 17, 2012 at 4:41PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
DrIve was marginal...at best. It's really not that good of a movie.
January 17, 2012 at 3:25PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
tree of life
Midnight in paris
beginners
hugo
best ive seen this year
January 17, 2012 at 3:42PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Quentin is by far one of the best directors out there, but his taste in movies is a bit questionable.
I have not seen all of those movies, but from the ones I have seen, my list would definitely differ.
(In Order)
Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Shame
Midnight in Paris
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Hugo
Drive
A Dangerous Method
The Help
Like Crazy
Hanna
To me personally, I believe X-men first class and Rise of the Planet of the Apes were very good film, for what they were. Summer blockbusters. Much more well done than Green lantern, Green Hornet, or Captain America. But they were still just big budget commercial films that didn't quite have the dynamic of the films on my list. I am sure people will disagree, but that is just my opinion. And if I had to select a least favorite movie, it would certainly be Young Adult. I think it was well made technically, but the content was boring, the themes were shallow, and it wasn't entertaining. I couldn't connect with it in any way.
January 17, 2012 at 3:56PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
I would definitely nominate Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy for best cinematography... gorgeous film (literally -- Fuji stock, Panavision cam/lens).
January 17, 2012 at 4:49PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
No drive? bad list:) and melancholia!
January 17, 2012 at 4:41PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Beginners - Freaking Hipster Crap...the only good thing about it was the performance from Christopher Plummer who actually bought some life to the movie when he was on screen. Outside of that it was just Ewan McGregor (who I normally like) moping around. I don't know, I just thought that was Hipster Garbage personally.
My list
1.) We Need to Talk About Kevin
2.) Super - Controversial pick but this is the movie that Kick-Ass should have been in my opinion
3.) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - Gets better with every re-watch
4.) Drive
5.) 13 Assassins - Very surprised to see this wasn't on Tarantino's list since he is apparently a huge fan of Miike...best thing that Miike has done in quite some time
6.) In a Better World
7/) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 - My "Blockbuster" pick of the year
8.) Submarine - I liked it, I like Dry Humor and this hit the mark for me
9.) Hanna - I'm surprised to see the backlash on this...I really enjoyed the hell out of it and have enjoyed it thoroughly with subsequent re-watches
10.) 50/50
January 17, 2012 at 5:52PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
I'd have to go with:
1. Warrior
2. Drive
3. 50/50
4. Midnight in Paris
5. War Horse
6. Source Code
7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
8. The Descendants
9. Rise of the Planet of the Apes
10. Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol
My worst being, in no particular order:
Cowboys and Alines
Transformers Dark of the Moon
Green Lantern
The Human Centipede II: Full Sequence
January 17, 2012 at 6:05PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
1.Drive
2.Shame
3.Hugo
4.Jane Eyre
5.A Dangerous Method
6.We Bought A Zoo
7.In The Land of Blood & Honey
8.50/50
9.Sucker Punch
10.Dragon Tattoo
This was a really slow year. After the amazing 2010 I was heavily disappointed in the movies this year.
January 17, 2012 at 6:51PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Am I the only one who didn't care for Midnight in Paris? It felt too much like a first draft to me. Didn't really care for how many old artists/writers were conveniently crammed in. And Owen Wilson's character was really the only one who changed at all throughout the story. I didn't hate it, just thought the script was mediocre script, at best. It seemed a bit contrived--almost as much as Crash.
And Take Shelter was awesome.
January 17, 2012 at 8:29PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Over a good list. I would have had A Tree of Life on there ( not Academy Award Winning) but beautiful in its presentation.
January 17, 2012 at 8:45PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
1.melancholia 2.attack the bloack 3. The Devils Double. 4. Martha Marcy May Marlene 5. Hesher. 6. Tree of Life
7. The Future 8. Girl with Dragon tat 9. Descendents. 10. bellflower
January 17, 2012 at 8:53PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Ah yes, forgot The Future.
January 17, 2012 at 9:49PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Here is mine:
1 « The tree of life » by Terrence Malick
2 « Black Swan » by Darren Aronofsky
3 « La guerre est déclarée » by Valérie Donzelli
4 « Une séparation » by Asghar Farhadi
5 « Tomboy » by Céline Sciamma
6 « Pater » by Alain Cavalier
7 « Essentiel Killing » by Jerzy Skolimowski
8 « Somewhere » by Sofia Coppola
9 »The murderer » by Hong-jin Na
10 « Wasteland » de Lucy Walker and « Woment are heroes » de JR
It was an amazing year! I need to see Hugo Cabret and Shame now, the second one has a chance on my top.
January 17, 2012 at 11:47PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
(My top is about films released in France in 2011)
January 17, 2012 at 11:47PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Here is one that would be in my top 10, Drive by Nicolas Winding Refn. To me that film is what I would want to be creating if I had a budget to do so. Everything just melded together so well. It was a one in a kind film for 2011 in my opinion.
January 18, 2012 at 12:05AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Drive and forget about everything else unbelievable movie plus the soundtrack was so on point. Be real how many of you became Ryan Gosling fans after that movie...yup me too LOL well to be fair I thought he was dope in Half Nelson too.
January 19, 2012 at 9:11AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Great visuals, no story arc what so ever, dimensionless characters. Good movie, left a lot to be desired.
January 19, 2012 at 4:27PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Said so little I thought he might be slightly retarded.
January 24, 2012 at 11:15PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Whoops, Gosling I mean.
January 24, 2012 at 11:16PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Shame
Tree Of Life
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo/ Drive
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Contagion
Young Adult
Rubber (USA didn't get a theatrical release until 2011)
Martha Marcy May Marlene
A Dangerous Method
Anonymous
Stake Land
January 18, 2012 at 1:24AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
where is DRIVE in all this lists? :-)
January 18, 2012 at 8:10AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
"where is DRIVE in all this lists?"
Probably because Michael Mann was doing the same thing but better 20 years ago
January 18, 2012 at 8:17AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
When you said:
"Probably because Michael Mann was doing the same thing but better 20 years ago"
Which film you really referred to?
January 24, 2012 at 12:52PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
It would be nice to see Hobo with a Shotgun on some lists. It really stood out to me anyways.
January 18, 2012 at 8:51AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
ouch, this post made my head hurt.
it was called a top 10, but then it was actually a top 11, and then the blogger said it was in fact a top 12..
January 18, 2012 at 11:29AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
"The blogger" said it was a top 12 because there are 12 films on the list. Why does your head hurt?
January 20, 2012 at 8:35PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Martha Marcy May Marlene FOR SURE!! Movie is pure brilliance!
January 18, 2012 at 12:11PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Midnight in Paris and The sking I live in are my favourite from that list.
January 18, 2012 at 3:56PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Another Earth
Drive
Rubber
Blue Valentine
Melancholia
Animal Kingdom
Crazy.stupid.love
Tyrannosaur
Midnight in paris
My Idiot Brother
January 19, 2012 at 2:58AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
lmao same
Drive was definitely a DOP's movie, lighting was creative, shots were great and CCing was beautifully done and fit the moods
January 19, 2012 at 12:09PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
These are ones I watched in 2011.
Blue Valentine
Of Gods and Men
A Dangerous Method
The Yellow Sea
Hugo
Elite Squad 2
Harakiri
Beautiful Lies
X men/Planet of the Apes
The Artist
Just saw "A separation" last night. It's amazing, but it'll have to go on next year's list.
January 19, 2012 at 12:10PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Drive: Worst movie of 2011
January 19, 2012 at 12:11PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Tree of Life and Blue Valentine for sureeeeee
January 19, 2012 at 12:29PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
OMG...
In France we HATE "midnight in paris"....
But we do love "a separation"
January 19, 2012 at 12:51PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Ask yourself...how many people in the general public have even seen 10 movies...let alone 12...this year...???
January 19, 2012 at 2:01PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
er, people who like movies?
now, if the question were "how many people have paid to see movies this year?".... :-}
January 19, 2012 at 2:50PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
Melancholia
Film Socialisme (made me think)
NEDS
How to Re-Establish a Vodka Empire
Wasteland
the Artist
All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace (Adam Curtis)
Surviving Life (Jan Svankmajer)
January 19, 2012 at 3:45PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
I am so glad that drive is not on his list. Such a bore,slow,dull,visually pretentious movie that was.
January 19, 2012 at 10:55PM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
1. Le Quattro Volte
1. Le Quattro Volte
1. Le Quattro Volte
2. Le Quattro Volte
3. Le Quattro Volte
4. Le Quattro Volte
5. Le Quattro Volte
6. Le Quattro Volte
7. Le Quattro Volte
8. Le Quattro Volte
9. Le Quattro Volte
10. Tree Of Life
Honorable mention to Kill List, Senna & Source Code
January 20, 2012 at 4:26AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM
There's only eight on my list that I can think of, but it's the first four that really stood out as future classics:
1. Tree of Life (Terence Malick)
2. Melancholia (Lars Von Trier)
3. Poetry (Lee Chang-dong)
4. The Skin I Live In (Pedro Almodovar)
5. Midnight In Paris (Woody Allen)
6. L'Artiste (Michel Hazanavicius)
7. Bill Cunnigham New York (Richard Press)
8. El Bulli: Cooking In Progress (Gereon Wetzel)
January 22, 2012 at 7:26AM, Edited September 4, 7:54AM