Filed under Screens in Silver

Best Movies of 2011 So Far (June 2011)

It’s midway through 2011, and I’ve only managed to watch 16 movies. I missed out on Scream 4, Insidious, Saw 3D, The Adjustment Bureau, X-Men: First Class, Limitless, and Never Say Never in 3D (!), which is just unfortunate. I don’t think I’ll be able to watch 52 films this year, but I hope that I’ll surpass the 30-movie mark by the end of 2011.

In any case, here’s a list of the movies I’ve watched so far, with my Top 5 prominently taking the limelight. Sadly, unlike in 2010 where there were such gems like Inception and Shutter Island, the quality of movies has gone down considerably.

 My favorite of the bunch so far. While the first Kung Fu Panda left me cold with its incredible/unbelievable ending, Kung Fu Panda 2 provided Po with a motivation so strong and convincing that it became easy for me to accept his mad skillz at the end. Add to that an adorable baby Po, and we have a victor emerging.

This may be an exaggeration, but I can’t find any evidence that will be able to contradict it: Tangled is the best (non-Pixar) Disney movie in the last decade, and perhaps the best to come out since Mulan slashed her way through the silver screen.

Addictive, campy fun. It’s been ages since I’ve been able to watch a delicious musical, and Burlesque delivered in both deliciousness (in more ways than one ;P) and musicality. While I think Kristen Bell stuck out like a sore thumb, casting Cher and Christina Aguilera together felt organic and natural.

A movie that targets my many weaknesses: non-linear storytelling, time twisting, dimension bending. An easy B+ for me.

Didn’t feel like 127 hours in the cinema, that’s for sure. Also a good reminder for me to tell my parents that I’ll be going to Cambodia this August. Just in case I get lost in the temples or get eaten by rabid monkeys or something.

And the rest of the movies, arranged from most liked to least liked. This should be the last time Johnny Depp dons that Jack Sparrow costume of his. The cow, it has been milked.

Screens in Silver: Love in Five

For the love of a daughter

Although the story felt rushed (and therefore confusing) at the end, the movie was still able to deliver a fantastical and quirky look into the mind of Dr. Parnassus, pulling me in with questions about love and the hard choices it brings.

For the love of a friend

I love a good mystery. I grew up with Agatha Christie books, and I devoured all the Hercule Poirot detective stories. My favorite part (as I guess anyone else’s) is at the end, where everyone’s gathered in a circle and Hercule Poirot explains his thought processes (driven by the little gray cells) and reveals the murderer. I felt the same level of excitement watching Sherlock Holmes, and while there was a disjoint between how I pictured Sherlock and Watson, the movie provided much entertainment in 2 hours.

For the love of God and all things holy

Paano na kaya kung di ko to pinanood? Mas marami kaya akong nagawa sa buhay ko? Malamang na-solve ko na ang problema ng world peace.

For the love of a father

Nicholas Sparks is a one-trick pony. Recipe: add one boy and one girl, add a flimsy love story, add a death or sickness or separation, add an inanimate object and turn it into a romanticized connection (a moon, a coin collection, a telescope, a notebook), and presto! Contrived tears! Forced drama! The only good thing? Nicholas Sparks movies turn out to be much better than the books. Fine, that’s not saying much, and Nicholas Sparks is getting paid more with every movie adaptation, but that alone pushed the C- book into a B- movie.

For the love of love, and love, and love

What if I told you that I watched Valentine’s Day thrice? February 18, February 21, and February 24. That should be enough of a testimonial.