Movies Features

The 2011 Ten List for Films, Some Thoughts

By Brandon Wilson Jan 2, 2012, 2:12 GMT

But the year held its own. While mainstream Hollywood continued its decline (the numbers for 2011’s box office are the worst in about 15 years), indie filmmakers and many working outside the system did interesting work.

This year was quite the drama queen, wasn’t it? The cinema had its work cut out for it trying to match the events of 2011, from the shooting of a U.S. Congresswoman to the toppling of regimes and the largest populist movement in America since the 1960’s.

But the year held its own. While mainstream Hollywood continued its decline (the numbers for 2011’s box office are the worst in about 15 years), indie filmmakers and many working outside the system did interesting work.

As I write this, in the final hours of the year, it should be clear that this is a list in flux. Some films will rise, some will sink. I put one film on the list that was made for television. I did not put any films on the list that were released in previous years. And even though episodic television routinely bests anything in the multiplex (namely 'Louie,' 'Boardwalk Empire,' 'Breaking Bad,' 'Game of Thrones,' 'Enlightened'), I decided not to include individual episodes on this list.

1. Mildred Pierce – USA – Todd Haynes

For the second year in a row my favorite film is a miniseries by an auteur. HBO gave Todd Haynes his biggest canvas yet to create this new film based on James M. Cain’s novel; a film that is of its era and incredibly relevant to today, a moment when Americans are finally coming to grips with the invisible cage of class and the hollow victories many find once they’ve achieved “success”. An intimate epic, an American tragedy, and a triumph of design, this film is what New Hollywood hoped film would look like in the 21st century.

2. We Need To Talk About Kevin – USA/UK – Lynne Ramsay

Strange that my two favorite films of the year are tragedies about women who give birth to monsters. I suspect the director poured her own angst after almost quitting filmmaking (after Peter Jackson’s crass hijacking of her project The Lovely Bones) into this adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s chilling novel. In this era of DIY austerity filmmaking, Ramsay’s bravura directing may intimidate some. But I was dazzled and engrossed. We’ve seen “Bad Seed” stories before, but rather than just tell a horror story, this film also raises unsettling questions about motherhood and guilt. And like all great works, it leaves us to answer the question on our own.

3. The Tree of Life – USA – Terrence Malick

This is not Malick’s most accomplished work. It goes on too long. Not all of it works. Yet the riches on display make up for the shortcomings. Other films may have told their story better, but who else is working with a truly unique style the way Malick is?

4. This Is Not A Film – Iran – Jafar Panahi (with Mojtaba Mirtahmasb)

Iranian cinema came roaring back to life in 2011. Nothing summed up the struggle between the State and the filmmakers like this film, made by a director currently banned from his craft and facing jail time for his seditious creativity. The sight of Panahi, reduced to acting out a film in his living room because the government refuses to let him make it says more about how far Iran has pushed its directors who refuse to tow the party line than silence or exile ever could.

5. A Separation – Iran – Asghar Farhadi

This film features one of the year’s best screenplays and performances. This deceptively simple story of a marriage at an impasse encapsulates the frustrations many are feeling in Khamenei & Ahmadinejad’s Iran. The story raises moral questions that will haunt you for most of 2012.

6. Beats, Rhymes, and Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest ¬– USA – Michael Rapaport

This labor of love is the first great work about Hip Hop entering middle age. You may not share my connection to A Tribe Called Quest (which no doubt had a lot to do with the film’s impact), but the rather familiar narrative of youth, success, and strained friendship will speak to audience members who have never heard of ATCQ and give them a clear picture of why they matter. It also stands as a monument to a time when Hip Hop allowed for idiosyncratic playfulness; before looking hard and bling conquered the day.

7. House of Tolerance – France – Bertrand Bonello

Also known by its cheesier American title House of Pleasures (French title: L’Apollinide: Souvenirs de la maison close), this film divided audiences at Cannes & Toronto with its copious nudity, bursts of graphic violence and anachronistic music. I admired Bonello’s bold vision, even when it faltered. The sumptuous belle epoque interiors and cinematography match the pulchritude of the hapless women who work at the titular establishment. Bonello isn’t trying to shock and titillate without purpose. 
 
8. Drive – USA – Nicolas Winding Refn

When this director proudly calls himself a fetishist, he is owning the fact that the pleasure he gets from certain imagery and tropes guides his film more than any intellectual conceits. This makes his first American film more of a fable than most. Unlike the fairy tales we typically throw Oscars at, this one finds romance that is fleeting. Perhaps we believe in this film’s brand of romance because it doesn’t overcome all.

9. Certified Copy – France – Abbas Kiarostami

It’s shot in Italy, with French money and a French lead actress, with a British leading man. But the director is Iranian exile Abbas Kiarostami. Many filmmakers and films have chosen to go abroad rather than deal with the pain of making a film in Iran (see above). Kiarostami’s film retains the deceptive simplicity so common amongst films from Iran even if the film has nothing to do with his embattled homeland. To say much about the film would be to spoil it, but if you enjoyed Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, and Last Year At Marienbad, this is a film for you.

10. Midnight in Paris – USA/Spain – Woody Allen

It felt great loving a Woody Allen film again. One of this year’s surprise hits, the film recalled Allen’s short fiction and recalled 'Purple Rose of Cairo.' I loved the opening credits, a clear reworking of his legendary opening credits sequence for 'Manhattan.'

Does this unseat 'Crimes and Misdemeanors' from its place as the master’s last masterpiece? No. But there was something incredibly satisfying about it, and bittersweet. We are approaching the moment where gags that require a grasp of Ernest Hemingway’s writing style will disappear from American cinema. And it won’t come back.

Honorable Mentions: Hugo, Kinyarwanda, Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, A Dangerous Method, Young Adult, Shame, Circumstance

Never saw it: Beginners, Martha Marcy May Marlene, Margaret, The Future, Margin Call, Senna

Guest commentator Brandon Wilson tweets, teaches, blogs and lives in Los Angeles.