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In Our Opinion

BEST OF 2011 CHOICES FROM FIR’S WRITERS

By • Dec 24th, 2011 • Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

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BEST FILMS OF 2011 by Mark Gross

Although I look down on 10 best lists, I can’t break the habit of making them up in my head. So, since I was asked, here is a list of six films that opened in New York the past year that I particularly liked.

1. THE MYSTERIES OF LISBON by Raul Ruiz.
272 min. Music Box Films

Raul Ruiz’ last theatrical feature is an epic like no other. Visually stunning, and utterly mysterious, the film continually circles upon itself as in a wayward dream., only to reveal that we are the dreamers while the characters onscreen are deliriously conscious of their every single move.

2. UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES by Apichatpong Weerasethakul.
114 min. Strand Releasing.

A film that finally provides the missing link between the musical family of MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS and the family-based horror of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s sublimely beautiful and wryly humorous film is not so much a celluloid-induced reverie as a meditation on immortality and the joy of every passing moment.

3. DETECTIVE DEE AND THE MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME by Tsui Hark
119 min. Indomina Releasing.

Set in the 7th Century during the reign of China’s only female Empress, Tsui Hark’s new film is an astounding leap back to glorious cinematic form for the director of PEKING OPERA BLUES & ZU. In the opinion of this reviewer, DETECTIVE DEE is the best Hong Kong action film in twenty years: simultaneously populist and experimental, mixing the greatest action choreography of Sammo Hung’s career with dazzling Sci-fi visuals.

4. THE TREE OF LIFE by Terrence Malick
139 min. Fox Searchlight

A perfect film, in spite of it’s many imperfections, Malick’s almost Herman Melville like exploration of the darker reaches of childhood and family relations in tandem with an explication of Grace as a celebration of actress Jessica Chastain’s form not to mention light itself, is my favorite film of the year, and one that rewards repeat viewing.

5. 13 ASSASSINS by Takashi Miike
126 min. Magnet Releasing

One of the biggest surprises of 2011 is this traditional samurai film by bad-boy director Miike. With its restrained color palate of dark brown and grey (evocative of many a TohoScope Black & White period film of the early 60’s) and character based drama focusing on social justice, 13 ASSASSINS is an instant classic, especially in its original 142 minute form.

6. HUGO by Martin Scorsese
126 min. Paramount

Although a little overly leisurely in its opening scenes, Scorsese’s new film is not only a love letter to Paris and silent movies, but also the best possible news as to the cinematic health of this talented auteur as well as the best 3D film ever made along with Hitchcock’s DIAL M FOR MURDER.

BEST DVDS OF 2011:

1. HISTORIE(S) DU CINEMA by Jean-Luc Godard (Olive Films)

2. THE GREEN HORNET STRIKES AGAIN by Ford Bebe & John Rawlins (VCI Entertainment)

3. THE PHANTOM CARRIAGE by Victor Sjostrom (Criterion)

4. THE COMPLETE JEAN VIGO by Jean Vigo (Criterion)

5. TRAVELS WITH MY AUNT by George Cukor (Warner Archive)

6. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS by Cecil B. DeMille (Paramount)

7. BAMBI by David Hand (Disney)

8. THREE COLORS by Krzysztof Kieslowski (Criterion)

9. QUEEN OF BLOOD by Curtis Harrington (MGM Limited Edition Collection)

10. CAT O’ NINE TAILS by Dario Argento (Blue Underground)

11. THE BIG COUNTRY by William Wyler (MGM)

Continue to Glenn Andreiev’s Picks…

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