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Tom’s Top 10 Movies of 2010

This is going to be very difficult. 2010 has been one fucking hell of a year for movies. In this day and age, the typical blockbuster no longer exists. Film makers are becoming more and more daring with their movies. Every movie that has made it into my final list can be deemed “experimental” in one way or another. So here we go, the top 10 movies (in order) of 2010 (in my opinion of course)

 

10. Precious

Precious isn’t by any means a ground breaking movie, nor does it have amazing directing or cinematography. What it does have, however, is the single greatest performance of any actor in 2010 by Mo’Nique. Playing the villainous mother with heaps of believability and emotion, it is her who gives the film it’s huge dramatic heft in the final scene. She won an Oscar for her performance and it is without a shadow of a doubt one of the most deserved Oscars of the past 10 years. Just check out this video and if there isn’t at least ONE tear in your eye, you are seriously cold hearted:

 

9. Machete

When Robert Rodriguez made the faux trailer Machete to accompany his and Quentin Tarantino’s double feature Grindhouse, the internet went crazy. The Mexican/Exploitation (dubbed “Mexploitation”) trailer told the story of a Mexican day-labourer who goes by the alias “Machete” (played by cult favourite Danny Trejo), who is hired to assassinate a facist US Senator. However, the very same people who hired him also double cross him and leave him for dead, which kick starts Machete’s quest for bloody revenge. The trailer caused do much buzz that Rodriguez felt obliged to turn it into a full feature. He then revealed that majority of the script/story had already been developed by himself and Trejo years ago, and so placed the film into quick production. What we have now is everything from the trailer with a full story (which includes Machete also out for revenge for the murder of his wife), and some extra big name actors (Robert DeNiro, Jessica Alba, Lindsay Lohan, Steven Seagal and Michelle Rodriguez) thrown into the mix. It’s a bloody, brutally entertaining roller coaster ride, with an kickass central performance from Trejo. Throw in Rodriguez favourite actors Cheech Marin, Jeff Fahey and Tom Savini and this is the Exploitation movie of the year. Check out this trailer:

 

8. House of the Devil

As anybody who knows me knows…I’m a sucker for old school horror. So when I saw the trailer for House of the Devil i was hooked instantly. Little known director Ti West enters the (albeit low budget) mainstream with a throw back to 1970s/80s horror films. The story is classic John Carpenter-style slasher: young college student takes a babysitting job in a spooky mansion…and the rest would be spoiling it. Everything here is perfect: the film is actually set in the 80s and the characters are very stereotypical of the time (clothing/hair/music sense etc). But the best is how the film is shot. Let it be said that if you have a low attention span, House of the Devil is not for you. It is the classic, slow burning style of film making. Literally nothing happens for at least the first 45 minutes. It slow burns to build up to uncontrollable amounts of tension. And to top it all off, the American (region one) Limited Edition version of the DVD also came with a copy of the film on VHS!! Check out the trailer (also one of my favorite trailers of 2010) Genius:

 

7. Four Lions

Easily the funniest British film in a long while. But also one of the most controversial. This is the kind of film that spells the difference between the American and British film industry. What I mean by that is that there is no way the MPAA would have passed this film for release. Telling the story of a group of hopeless British muslims who have blindly turned to extremism and terrorism, after a botched mission in Pakistan they return to England and decide the only way forward is to devise a terrorist plot of their own. Yes, you read all that right. Lots of people have different opinions on this film. It is my opinion that the film has been made as a sort of piss take of our human nature. It pokes fun at people like the BNP by saying “Okay, so you think every muslim is a terrorist? Well, if the average 20-something muslim WAS a terrorist, this is the kind of terrorist they’d be”. But despite all that it really is fucking hysterical and one of the most quotable movies of the year. This clip is evidence of the brilliantly funny dialogue:

 

6. Shutter Island

Shutter Island is one weird film. First of all, it’s Martin Scorsese’s first foray into horror. Second, it’s one of those films that kind of struggles with it’s own identity. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it has stopped it appearing higher in my list. It’s almost as if the film can’t decide what genre it wants to belong to. In essence I suppose the movie is a mystery thriller, but there are hefty moments of horror, gore, action and even comedy. But it is brilliant. Scorsese’s direction is impecable as always and I can’t wait to see what he does with his next horror film if he does indeed return to the genre. Like wise Leonardo DiCaprio is outstanding as always. But the trump card for this movie is in it’s final act, the ending. Oh dear god, that ending. Check out this trailer:

 

5. Toy Story 3

Any animated movie that features TOYS that can make a grown man CRY deserves to be in anybody’s top 10 list. Threequels usually suffer a very grim fate and turn into shit films. Case in point: Jurassic Park 3, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Superman III, X-Men III to name but a few. Thankfully Toy Story 3 doesn’t fall under the same curse. It’s fantastic for both kids and adults a like, although adults will enjoy the more dramatic scenes a little more. Yeah, that’s right. Dramatic. And by dramatic I mean fucking dramatic. This film will make you cry and it will make you completely relive your childhood. Check out the trailer:

 

4. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Quite simply, the ultimate “geek” movie. The video game references are astounding, the dialogue is the kind of thing you say to your mates on a Thursday night, the fight scenes are mind boggling, it’s just seriously cool. Edgar Wright returns from the phenomenal success of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz with his first American movie. Scott Pilgrim is the average young, twenty-something hipster: he’s in a band, he’s dating a high schooler, he has the “perfect” life. That is, until Ramona Flowers comes into his life. Scott falls in love with this skater chick instantly. However, Ramona has baggage – namely a league of evil ex-boyfriends who will stop at nothing to make sure Ramona never dates anyone else. And so in order for Scott to date Ramona, he must first defeat her evil exes. Before the film’s release Edgar Wright described the film as a sort of musical. But instead of characters randomly breaking out into song, they randomly break out into massive, full choreographed martial arts fights. Check out this brilliant clip:

 

3. Kick-Ass

Mark Millar’s epic graphic novel turned into a full movie by Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman. It’s one hell of a triumph and a massive genre bender. Awesome action/fight scenes, hilarious comedy and genuine emotion blend together in one of the best comic book movies of the past 10 years. I hated Stardust, but here Jane Goldman shows that she really can write a damn fine script. The film isn’t for anybody though, it’s incredibly controversial and definitely for adults only. Make no mistake, this film contains some vulgar stuff: an 11-year old girl who is a kung fu master and uses words like “cunt” and “fuck” a lot, various mafia hitmen, copious amounts of blood and extreme violence including decapitation. If you think that just because this movie contains an 11 year old girl that it is for kids, then think again because that same 11 year old girl is the one who delivers the most obscene language and decapitations. Check out this clip:

 

2. The Social Network

It was really difficult of me to pick between this and Kick Ass, but ultimately I thought “Given the chance, which one would I watch right now?” – and the answer to that will always be Social Network. In 10 years time if somebody were to make a film best on Facebook creator Mark Zuckerburg, it wouldn’t be even half as good as this one. The time to make a “Facebook movie” was right now, when Facebook is pretty much at the height of its popularity. This is simply a brilliantly made film. Also it’s a David Fincher movie through and through, you can always tell when you’re watching a Fincher movie because everything is green, but also the tone is always the same. His movies are very bleak but still sustain a huge amount of entertainment. One of the best things about the movie though is in its performances. Jesse Eisenberg is brilliant as Zuckerburg, he’s incredibly annoying and pretentiout but you can’t help but root for him at the same time. He’s an absolute joy to watch. The most surprising performance though is definitely from Justin Timberlake as Napster founder Sean Parker. He comes across as the closest thing the movie has to a villain and he does it brilliantly. At heart it’s a courtroom drama, but one that we all can relate to. Facebook is a part of all our lives and it’s awesome to watch its creation unfold on screen. Check out this clip:

 

1. Inception

In my eyes, no other film could possibly be number one. Inception is a true triumph. Christopher Nolan has proven himself again and again as being the new powerhouse of Hollywood. The script for Inception took around 10 years to develop and it really does show. This is another genre bender, fusing an array of different cinematic styles into one epic movie. It’s a blockbusting action movie with a difference; a thinking man’s action movie. It contains a fully enthralling plot coupled with mind melting special effects and action set pieces. Once again, DiCaprio shows he is very capable in an action role. In fact, each member of the cast is completely integral to the story. The way the characters work together to achieve their goal is the meat of the film. Unfortunately it’s also one of those films that meets with unfair criticism. Like Avatar before it, Inception is hated by people simply down to its massive hype, success and critical praise. Quite simply put, fuck ’em all, because this is the best film of the year. Check out this stunning fight scene:

 

Other films worth honorable mention:

Buried

The Town

Monsters

Ponyo

The Last Exorcism

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

The Road

Let Me In

Black Dynamite

Predators

Frozen

Splice

Piranha 3D

The Expendables

Due Date

Paranormal Activity