Bridesmaids ***

Director: Paul Feig

Year: 2011

Writers: Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo

Cinematographer: Robert Yeoman

Touch of Evil *****

Director: Orson Welles

Year: 1958

Novel by: Whit Masterson "Badge of Evil"

Adapted by: Orson Welles

Cinematographer: Russell Metty

Groundbreaking photography and camerawork, great actors, compelling tale of a corrupt American sheriff connected to the mexican drug cartels, brought down by an honest Mexican detective on his honeymoon with an American girl. Certainly holds relevance and intrigue to today as the border hasn't changed too much.

Drive *****

Director: Nicolas Winding Refn

Year: 2011

Book by: James Sallis

Adapted by: Hossein Amini

Cinematographer: Newton Thomas Sigel

First off, let me say... this film 100% earned the Cannes Best Director prize.

If I could interview Refn, my first question would be, in the t-bone scene by the cliff, why does driver's car not suffer a scratch? Its headlights are clearly in perfect shape?

I ask the question not to nitpick, but rather because I really believe Refn may have a reason.

I loved this movie sooo much. It's L.A., it's crime, it's noir with neon, crystal-clear photography, its Tarantino, Jodorowsky, and 80's b-movie... its "european" as one character comments about his car chase films of the 80's.

When the credits ran, the guy in front of my jumped up and said with a sigh of frustration, "well that was slow..."

No. It was tight film-making. Less dialogue, more action. Actors here are left to emote with their faces and bodies, and characters are developed by the actions they perform, rather than words explaining how they feel. Refn shows rather than tells.

He sets up the driver's badass skills in the opening scene and then builds relationships, with sexual tension so thick you could cut it with a knife, although everyone stays fully clothed and there is only one kiss in the entire movie. THATS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT! Gosling and Mulligan simmer with just smiles, and its sexier than anything I've seen on film in a long time.

It's quiet, it breathes, and the sound design is as precisely expressive as the photography. Then all of a sudden, it explodes with a gun shot, initiating a third act full of shocking violence that impacts the audience as much as the characters. Violence here actually matters. Yes its gory, but not without consequence or weight. We feel, as Driver and Irene feel, the loss and the shock of death...

I absolutely loved this film, I would be surprised if I see any other film this year that I'll like more, yes, even Tree of Life... which I can't wait to see, but I'm thinking Drive will go down as THE FILM of 2011.

Somewhere ****

Writer/Director: Sofia Coppola

Year: 2010

Cinematographer: Harris Savides

A personal, minimalist, poetic film. Not as good as Lost in Translation, but still pretty good.

Senna ****

Director: Asif Kapadia

Year: 2010

Writer: Manish Pandey

Incredible real-life drama. Director makes the correct choice to tell the dramatic narrative here, rather than show us all the incredible racing. I hope the DVD comes with the full length original broadcasts of some of these races that are briefly summarized.

The Five Obstructions ****

Directors: Jørgen Leth, Lars von Trier

Year: 2003

Lars von Trier invites his hero film maker, Jørgen Leth to remake his short film "The Perfect Human" five times, but with obstructions dictated by von Trier. Part deconstruction of cinema, part challenge for Leth, part von Trier wrapping his head around the idea that Leth is not "the perfect film maker", rather, just a normal human filmmaker. On the whole, the exercise is an echo of Leth's original short film. It's very interesting to watch, and each remake that Leth is forced to make adds new depth and context to his original idea, and then von Trier's obstruction at the end is his own self-indulgent and purposeful banalizing of Leth's original idea.

The Perfect Human ****

Original Title: Det perfekte menneske
Director: Jørgen Leth

Year: 1967

Writers: Jørgen Leth, Ole John

Cinematographer: Henning Camre, Ole John

A short film featuring a dehumanizing voice over, from the perspective of a total alien or robot, describing and pondering "the perfect human" as the human acts in a repetitive or dehumanizing manner, as if to demonstrate that even a dehumanized human is still human?

Is it meant to debunk the idea of "perfect human" as an oxymoron? To be human is to not be perfect, so the perfect human would be an imperfect human... I think this is what Leth was thinking about when he made the film.

Countdown to Zero ***

Director: Lucy Walker

Year: 2010

For such an intriguing subject, Walker manages to take her time, but its not edited down very well and seems kind of scatter brained. Its not a bad movie, just an inefficient documentary. Good for a television, but not a good film. I was disappointed because I'm so captivated by nuclear history, and I felt I didn't learn much. I don't care for man-on-the-street interviews. Their opinions are not informed necessarily and are therefore empty. I know because I do MOS interviews on a daily basis in the news industry. They are meant to capture public mood, but I personally don't think public mood matters. I would rather see an impassioned case be made by a professional, someone who knows a great deal about the current nuclear situation... from Oppenheimer, from Tony Blair, from Jimmy Carter, good grief, she had Pervez Musharraf, Robert McNamara and Mikhail Gorbachev! She should have used these people more!

But she had so many little interviews, she had to spray in one sound-bite for everyone rather than one coherent argument from a handful, or even just one of them would have rung louder.

It also stopped short of saying, "this is what you can do to make a difference..." instead just suggested... public opinion is important. deedly doo...

Weak sauce. This film fell way short of its potential given the subject matter.

The Adjustment Bureau ***

Director: George Nolfi

Year: 2011

Short story "Adjustment Team" by: Philip K. Dick

Adapted by: George Nolfi

Cinematographer: John Toll

Editor: Jay Rabinowitz

Pretty enjoyable film. Another example of the magic negro.

The Freebie ***

Director: Kate Aselton

Year: 2010

No writer's credit due to heavy improvisation?

Cinematographer: Benjamin Kasulke

Compelling lo-budget drama, but I'm not that big a fan of heavy improvisation, or of Dax Shepard's face. Plus, I find it a little unbelievable that these otherwise intelligent characters would really come to decide to try such an obviously bad idea.

Malcolm X ****

Director: Spike Lee

Year: 1992

Book by: Malcolm X, Alex Haley

Adapted by: Spike Lee, Arnold Perl

Cinematographer: Ernest R. Dickerson

Source Code ****

Director: Duncan Jones

Year: 2011

Writer: Ben Ripley

Cinematographer: Don Burgess

Super 8 ***

Writer/Director: J. J. Abrams

Year:2011

Cinematographer: Larry Fong

An alright movie, but just no where near as tight or memorable as those great Spielberg movies, Jaws, Jurassic Park, E.T. , Close Encounters of the Third Kind, etc.

Win Win ****

Director: Thomas McCarthy

Year: 2011

Writers: Thomas McCarthy, Joe Tiboni

Cinematographer: Oliver Bokelberg

Great little drama, not at all predictable, spot-on acting. I really liked this movie.

Wall Street ****

Director: Oliver Stone

Year: 1987

Writers: Stanley Weiser, Oliver Stone

Cinematographer: Robert Richardson

Cape Fear **

Director: Martin Scorsese

Year: 1991

Novel "The Executioners" by: John D. MacDonald

1962 Adaptation by: James R. Webb

Adapted by: Wesley Strick

Cinematographer: Freddie Francis

Scorsese actually made a much worse film than the original. The first one may not have been perfectly directed (music cues were too strong for example), but it moved along and created a slowly growing wave of terror that by the end had me on the edge of my seat, screaming at the screen. I think the original ranks up there with The Shining as the two most terrifying films I've ever seen. Here, Scorsese is way too heavy handed for my liking (and I thought the music was too strong in the first one... HA!) and I'm sorry but I just didn't find De Niro anywhere nearly as terrifying as the calm, cool and collected pervert that was Robert Mitchum's portrayal of Max Cady. The terror lies in fearing that a man might rape your wife or daughter... that's what riled me. In this version, the script has De Niro more of an indestructable psychopath bent on biting peoples cheeks, who's desire is to murder, and rape doesn't seem to be his primary interest.

Its interesting that Scorsese made room for Peck and Mitchum in his remake, but maybe that contributed to the way he got distracted from slowly racheting up the fear. Also, the script had some sloppiness to it I thought, with the order of dialogue and events. I don't know why Juliette Lewis has to narrate the beginning and end, and for example, when Nolte gets pissed at the parade and punches De Niro, it doesn't make as much sense, why he's so angry as it did in the first film, when Cady is leering at Bowden's daughter in her bathing suit.

Also, the script tries to build up the tension between Bowden, his wife, and their daughter... but never quite successfully. I think the film worked better when it was just Bowden protecting his wife and daughter. Lots of little things that got on my nerves in the remake, and the more I think about the original, the more I can't wait to see it again.

Oh, and the constant tracking in shots, panning from close up of a detail up to a medium shot and all that just frustrated me and took me out of the experience. I felt there wasn't much rhyme or rhythm to the editing either. Felt sloppy. A lot of the camera angle transitions felt contrived.

Cape Fear *****

Director: J. Lee Thompson

Year: 1962

Novel by: John D. MacDonald

Adapted by: James R. Webb

Cinematographer: Sam Leavitt

One of the best suspense thrillers I've ever seen. I was on the edge of my seat, and terrified. A great movie.

24 Hour Party People ***

Director: Michael Winterbottom

Year: 2002

Writer: Frank Cottrell Boyce

Cinematographer: Robby Müller

I Saw the Devil **

Director: Jee-woon Kim

Year: 2010

Writer: Hoon-jung Park

Cinematographer: Mogae Lee

The Switch **

Director: Josh Gordon, Will Speck

Year: 2010

Short Story by: Jeffrey Eugenides

Adapted by: Allan Loeb

Cinematographer: Jess Hall

Hollywood poop. I'm sorry I refuse to waste my time offering an explanation of why I didn't like this movie.