Friday, February 4, 2011

The Year in Review (Updated): Images from My Favorite Movies of 2010 and Three Years of Blogging



[Updated on 2/4/11: I've updated the post to include the title's to my favorite movies of 2010. Enjoy.]

As the blogosphere closes the door on showcasing films from 2010 (I won't be, though, since I still have a handful of releases I want to see), I'm left thinking about how hard it is becoming for me to see movies the year they are released. I also often wonder if I'm just wasting my time limiting myself to the year's releases when I do these year-in-review type posts when I should be showcasing all of the great films I see during the year (I like the way Ed Howard does his year-end lists). Looking at the list of films I missed, it's a wonder why I'm even trying to attempt to construct a "best of" list because I feel like I've missed way too much to even begin to make myself believe that I've seen enough for my opinion on the year to matter. However, these lists – as arbitrary as they are – are still fun to do for list-happy people like myself, and this year I figured I would switch up the format and just show images of my favorite films….this isn't a definitive list by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a good idea of the types of movies released in 2010 that I fell in love with. I decided on 14 films this year because I felt like I had 14 great movie experiences, and I didn't want to exclude any of them just because convention says we do a list of 10 or 20 or 25…

Now, I figured to kind make interesting the unveiling of the list I would compile screengrabs that wouldn't be too obvious for you to guess which movie they come from. The purpose? Let's have a little contest: Whoever gets all 16 images (the image that sits atop this post plus an extra one at the very end in addition to the 14 films I've chosen as my favorites of the year) I've placed in this post correct first will get a prize. We'll discuss the prize via email. No foolin'…a prize! It's my way of saying thanks for continuing to check this blog out after 3 years of inconsistency (both in quality and quantity of posts). I feel like this has been the best year yet, and, with my completion of Graduate School a mere two months away, I look forward to spending more time on the blog. I've loaded up the Netflix queue with tons of foreign films. It will be the year of Fellini, Pasolini, Antonioni, Bergman, and any other giant of foreign cinema I can think of on the blog…I'll also be mixing the sacred with the profane with more reviews of exploitation and Italian horror cinema. And this year – with no Grad School to worry about – I will host another Italian Horror Blogathon. So, it's going to be a fun year...I think. I look forward to more enriching conversation with you all. Thanks for reading!

Images after the jump…




Some helpful hints: Don't think by clicking on the "2010 Reviews" tab above you'll be able to guess which films appear on the list because I've had a change of heart after second and third viewings of certain films. I also stopped writing reviews for everything I have seen over the last three months, so there are a number of films that appear below that aren't accounted for in the archives. If the film is still in theaters, I most likely got the screengrab from the trailer (there are a couple of exceptions). And finally, I think the first five should be pretty easy if you know me. Have fun.

The films do not appear in any kind order. Although, 1 -5 are definitely films I would consider "the best" of 2010…but that doesn't mean I like 6 -14 any less.

To make it a little easier on you, here's what I didn't see this year: The Fighter, 127 Hours, Sweetgrass, Casino Jack, Inside Job, Animal Kingdom, The Illusionist, Fish Tank, Toy Story 3, Last Train Home, White Material, The Human Centipede (The First Sequence), Another Year, Harry Potter 7, Carlos, The King's Speech.


Simply leave a comment with what you think each number is. Some will be easier than others. Enjoy.



1.  The Social Network (Fincher)





2. Shutter Island (Scorsese)






3.  The Ghost Writer (Polanski)






4. Black Swan (Aronofsky)






5. Dogtooth (Lanthimos)






6. Let Me In (Reeves)






7. The American (Corbijn)






8. I am Love (Guadagnino)







9. Somewhere (Coppola)






10. Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (Stern, Stunberg)





11. Mother (Joon-ho)






12. Splice (Natali)






13. The Square (Edgerton)





14. Salt (Noyce)




+1 (15): Boardwalk Empire: Pilot Episode (Scorsese)

25 comments

  1. So many of these look so far familiar, but all I can figure out are the easy ones: 1) The Social Network, 3) The Ghost Writer, 5) Dogtooth, 8) I Am Love, and 12) Splice. Good ones all around!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The only one I think I can guess offhand is 9. I think it's Mother and Child?

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  3. Ok, I'll guess some, maybe I'm helping the other guy that will guess them all, but still.

    Top:
    1. The Social Network
    2. Shutter Island (?)
    3. The Ghost Writer
    4. Black Swan (?)
    5. Dogtooth
    6.
    7. The American (?)
    8. I Am Love
    9. Somewhere
    10.
    11. Let Me In (?)
    12. Splice
    13.
    14. Never Let Me Go (?)
    Low:

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jaime:

    You're on the right track, but you've got a few of them wrong.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Just an FYI:

    I have turned comment moderation on for this post.

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  6. I know: Top Image is from Joan Rivers A Piece of Work.

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  7. I'm always terrible at these, so I'll just go ahead and congratulate you on breaking the three year milestone! No mean feat. Here's to another great three years.

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  8. First of call, congrats on three years! I'll be there soon!

    Second, this is such a cool concept for a post -- contest or not.

    There's no way I know all of these, but here's my best shot ...

    1) The Social Network

    2) Shutter Island

    3) The Ghost Writer

    4) Black Swan? Gotta be, right?

    5) Dogtooth? I haven't seen it, but that's my guess.

    6) Let Me In (fo sho!)

    7) ... hmm ...

    8) I Am Love

    9) Somewhere

    10) Piece of Work (or whatever the Joan Rivers doc is called. Also, the top shot is from that, too, right?

    11) This is KILLING me. I have seen that!

    12) Splice? I blatantly ripped off Jaime for that one, because I have no clue.

    13) I just keep thinking of No Country for Old Men. Don't think I've seen this one.

    14) Never Let Me Go

    15) Absolutely no clue whatsoever.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jason:

    You're the closest so far. I knew with the picture I put up for #14 that EVERYONE would think it was Never Let Me Go...but everyone would be wrong! Diabolical, I know.

    And 13 and 15 are definitely hard to figure out. You're right on everything else, though. Kudos on being the one to get Let Me In! Oh, and thanks for the kind words!

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  10. I'm going to forego guessing as well, I play screencap games like this frequently with some buds, and I am simply atrocious at it. But I do want to wish you a happy 3 years, I know I don't post over here nearly often enough, but I always enjoy checking in, you're doing an awesome job.

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  11. Drew:

    Thanks, Drew! I appreciate it. I'm always happy to hear people are reading this blog. I know all too well how hard it is to keep up with everyone's blog AND comment. Thanks for the kind words and for checking-in!

    Everyone:

    I'm curious, how many of the films (that you've guessed so far) on my list would appear (or appeared) on your list? Just curious about the overlap. I'll post the titles to the images on Friday.

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  12. I'm at the office, doing work, my mind is wandering and no. 11 is KILLING ME!

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  13. Haha. Sorry, Jason. Okay, some hints:

    Everyone has pretty much figured out the top image and 1-5. Jason is correct in identifying Let Me In (image 6); Jaime was correct in identifying image 7 as being from The American.

    8,9, and 12 have been identified correctly.

    I will not give any clues for 11 because Jason's agony amuses me. Image 13 is from a non-American film; Image 14 is NOT from Never Let Me Go; and think of image 15 as something that isn't traditional (hence why I would just tack it on as a plus-one) because even though it didn't play in theaters, it was still one of the best things I saw all year.

    Those should help.

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  14. Kevin, I did a top 25 instead of 10 or 15 (which I posted back in December), and obviously not knowing all the answers here I can't give you an exact figure, but I think there are at least 6-7 that overlap between ours, maybe more once all the blanks are filled in!

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  15. 14 is SALT, right?

    I'll use your clue for #15 to guess BOARDWALK EMPIRE.

    I was going to say LET ME IN for #11, but that's not right. I've seen that image before but just can't place it.

    #13 also looks familiar. I'll have to go think about those two some more.

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  16. Troy has correctly identified 14 and 15. Looks like there are just two left to figure out.

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  17. Still killing me.

    It isn't from The Town is it? I'm guessing that as process of elimination as much as anything.

    Can't think of a scene that would line up with.

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  18. Nope. Not from The Town.

    Oh, and something I just thought of with image 13: some may consider it a 2008/9 film, but it wasn't released in the states until early 2010.

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  19. #13 is "The Square" I believe...Fine, fine film.

    Does that leave only #11? That is awfully familiar...

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  20. Bingo, Bob! It is indeed the Aussie neo-noir, The Square.

    One left!

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  21. "I've loaded up the Netflix queue with tons of foreign films. It will be the year of Fellini, Pasolini, Antonioni, Bergman, and any other giant of foreign cinema I can think of on the blog…I'll also be mixing the sacred with the profane with more reviews of exploitation and Italian horror cinema. And this year – with no Grad School to worry about – I will host another Italian Horror Blogathon."

    Yes.

    All I need to say to this news.

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  22. How the hell did I miss your blog's anniversary? A shamefacedly belated congratulations!

    ReplyDelete