Best of the year…..so far
9 months down, 3 more to go. So far I’ve seen 23 films this year, and I plan to see another 20 or so films by the end of the year. One of those 20 or so films will be “The Ides of March”, which I will watch this Friday after school. Since the last three months of every year are usually filled with Oscar-worthy films, I figured that now was the best time to list my favorite (and least favorite) films and performances of the year so far. Just for the record, here are the 23 films I’ve seen:
THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU
CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER
CONTAGION
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: RODRICK RULES
THE DILEMMA
GNOMEO AND JULIET
THE GREEN HORNET
THE HANGOVER PART II
THE HELP
HORRIBLE BOSSES
I AM NUMBER FOUR
THE IDES OF MARCH
JUMPING THE BROOM
JUST GO WITH IT
LARRY CROWNE
LIMITLESS
MADEA’S BIG HAPPY FAMILY
MONEYBALL
NO STRINGS ATTACHED
RANGO
SOUL SURFER
SOURCE CODE
UNKNOWN
WIN WIN
X-MEN: FIRST CLASS
Let’s start with the worst……
WORST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: January Jones, Unknown and X-Men: First Class
I don’t watch Mad Men (I’ve heard that it’s great; I’ll get to it eventually), so I can’t honestly say that January Jones can’t act. But she’s been pretty terrible in every I’ve seen her in, from the TV show Saturday Night Live to her live-action films.
WORST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Jeffrey Wright, Source Code
It’s not Wright’s fault. It really isn’t. I blame Source Code‘s screenwriter for the fact that Wright comes off as cartoonishly evil instead of purely menacing. No actor could salvage some of the lines that Wright delivers in this film.
WORST ACTRESS: Dianna Agron, I Am Number Four
As one-half of the perfunctory romance in the center of I Am Number Four, Agron delivers a poor, one-dimensional performance. Granted, the writing in this film is so bad that no actor – let alone Agron – could save it (though Timothy Olyphant comes close), but that doesn’t detract from the fact that’s she’s still pretty bad in this. Which brings me to…
WORST ACTOR: Alex Pettyfer, I Am Number Four
Pettyfer’s bland and soulless performance is one of the many terrible things in this loathsome movie.
WORST FILMS OF THE YEAR SO FAR
5. The Green Hornet
4. Gnomeo and Juliet
3. Limitless
2. Soul Surfer
1. I Am Number Four
____________________________________________________________________________________
And now for the best of the year so far….
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Bryce Dallas Howard, The Help
As much as I enjoyed Octavia Spencer in The Help and Kate Winslet’s performance in Contagion, I think that Bryce Dallas Howard’s fantastic performance in The Help is the best female supporting performance so far this year. Sure, Spencer is great and will definitely be nominated for an Oscar. But Howard has the trickier role; her performance could’ve easily been cartoonish and one-note. But Howard nails it. Her performance, unfortunately, won’t win any awards, but let it be known – once and for all – that Howard can act.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Jude Law, Contagion
Contagion is not a good movie. But the acting is fantastic. The film’s best performance comes from Jude Law as a slimy blogger who takes advantage of a health epidemic by promoting a possible cure called forsythia. Law’s Alan is dirty, duplicitous, and paranoid. And he’s the funniest and most interesting character in the film. Law’s performance is so good that I wish that the whole movie was about his character. Maybe the film would’ve been better.
BEST ACTRESS: Viola Davis, The Help
As much as I enjoyed Loretta Devine’s divine performance in Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Big Happy Family and Emily Blunt’s magnificent performance in The Adjustment Bureau, it’s Viola Davis’ knockout performance in The Help that’s truly resonated with me this year. What can I say about Davis’ terrific performance that hasn’t already been said? Her Oscar-worthy performance is the heart and soul of The Help. The film wouldn’t nearly be as good without her.
BEST ACTOR: Brad Pitt, Moneyball
Pitt has always been a great actor, but he delivers the best performance of his career here as Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland Athletics. Beane begins drafting players using sabermetrics, a controversial method of recruiting that focuses solely on players’ on base percentage. Like I said earlier, Pitt has always been a great actor, but he’s never had a role this great before. And – pardon the baseball metaphor – he knocks it out of the park.
BEST FILMS OF THE YEAR SO FAR
5. Win Win
4. The Ides of March
3. Horrible Bosses
2. Rango
1. Moneyball
This post will be updated on a regular basis, so check back frequently.
