My 10 favourite films of 2011

#10 - This film captivated me from the get-go...The film stars a great cast and due to their diversified personalities as actors, brought different emotions. Jonah Hill was better at giving comedic elements, whereas Philip Seymour Hoffman is more serious and Brad Pitt manages to juggle brillantly between Serious and Comedic in one of the best performances of the year. That's a movie not to be missed, especially if you like baseball and even if you don't, you should watch it.

#9 - As a James Franco fan (I like pretty much everything he is in, even Your Highness), I couldn't Not see this film. Overall, walked in expecting a typical summer blockbuster film, and walked out amazed. Not only did this film serve as an excellent prologue, but was surprisingly captivating all along. Boosted with amazing visual effects (the company did work on Avatar after all), this film actually had a strong message to portray and worked out great as a blockbuster. Had one of the best endings of 2011 as well...That climax on the Golden Gate Bridge was breathtaking and amazing!

#8 - I watched this film being a fan of the cast. Joseph Gordon Levitt being easily one of the best young(er) actors out there at the moment, loving Seth Rogen's humor and movie choices (some work out better than others, but in the end I like them all pretty much), and having major crushes on Anna Kendrick and Bryce Dallas Howard. 50/50 works due to the amazing chemistry between the lead actors. Anjelica Huston is extraordinarily heart breaking and Seth Rogen is perfectly timed in his comedic role. The final result is a truly heartfelt wave of laughs and tears.

#7 - As a Canadian teen (16 years old), I am not really interested in American politics, so as for how much of this film is extremely true to reality does not concern me. However, what does concern me is how gripped to the edge of my seat I was watching this political thriller unfold. Boasted by gripping performances (Ryan Gosling and George Clooney are amazing!), I had the feeling anything could've happened anytime. Truly a great film!

#6 - Loved this movie. Slow paced, sure, but then again, there are so many things to get ahold of in this film. I for one, actually enjoyed this version more than the Swedish version. Rooney Mara (who truly deserves the Oscar for the role) was amazing, while the score by Reznor and Ross and the overall sound development should earn a few nominations and awards at the Oscars. For yet another year, David Fincher has not dissapointed me!

#5 - I had initially not planned on seeing this movie (having unfortunately seen the Hangover part 2 instead), until some friends told me that I should definitely see it. I did not regret it. Not only did the film feature gripping action, it also had a great script marked with remarkably deep characters. On the interpretation aspect, Micheal Fassbender is incredibly intense as Erik, soon to be Magneto. The best for him, however, is yet to come...

#4 - This film actually left some sort of lump in my throat, some sort of depressed feeling when the ending arrived. A harsh film, maybe, but a necessary one? Most definitely. Micheal Fassbender is remarkable in one of the year's best performances in a movie where all the actors are great. Seeing as how depressing this movie is, I probably would not want to see it again, at least not this soon, but it truly is a (rather intense) gem that deserves viewing, at least once. to the people complaining on score plagiarism, I did not mind it. I thought the music on the other hand, worked perfectly hand-in-hand with whatever scene was playing.

#3 - (I was the only one under 40 in the auditorium) Now this is really a charming little movie. The silent movie aspect is surprisingly faithful to the silent movies of the 1920's and the 1930's. While the comedic aspect was charming, supported beautifully by Ludovic Bource's music, the dramatic aspect really steals the show. In what I believe to be the year's best performance, Jean Dujardin juggles perfectly between dramatic and comedic performances, in one of the most demanding roles in recent years : A role where every emotion and expression must be shown without dialogue.

#2 - To see a movie such as Warrior so high in my list, on top of movies such as Fincher's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Shame, and The Artist might surprise and dissapoint some, but Warrior was truly an emotional experience for me. Seeing the two protagonists played nicely by Joel Edgerton and Tom Hardy (and a beautiful supporting performance by Nick Nolte, who will unfortunately probably be forgotten around Oscar season) actually made you feel a respect for both of them, and the final fight was truly one of the most emotional moments I lived through in 2011. A movie about family, redemption, respect, and most of all, love. Bought it on DVD and still watch it regularly, never getting sick of it.

#1 - Drive is my favourite film this year. This year was a great year for Ryan Gosling, definitely one of my favourite actors now, and his role as the driver is simply mesmerising. The score by Cliff Martinez is incredible, while the song selection is actually a great fit for a retro feeling. Violent, ruthless, backed up with a fearless Albert Brooks, and quite frankly, a near absence of dialogue (helps the film to not stumble in cheesy territory with clichéd and cheesy dialogue), Drive is the perfect film. Incredibly stylish, it might not be for everybody, however.