Top 50 Films of 2012: No.30 - 21

So we're halfway through this crazy year now and here are some films that were in my Top 10 at one stage but due to the quality have tumbled down into this section.

The Angel's Share 
Director: Ken Loach

Ken Loach returns to the tone he set in Looking for Eric in this amiable comedy with an edge that sees Paul Brannigan's Robbie and his fellow community service parolees attempt to steal several bottles of the world's most expensive whisky. The whole whisky heist story almost plays out like an Ealing comedy however Loach brings in a lot of depth to the film thanks to the past the Robbie character has endured including rendering a young boy disabled. Screenwriter Paul Laverty, who will feature in this list later on, mixes warmth with social commentary and the film also has a great supporting turn from John Henshaw as Robbie's whisky mentor.

The Cabin in the Woods - SPOILER ALERT!!
Director: Drew Goddard

OK so I'll try to keep this as spoiler-free as possible but you can't talk about the delightful Cabin in the Woods without talking about what made it great. While the trailer made you think that this was a simple kids in the woods slasher movie, writer Joss Whedon and director Drew Goddard's film was much more of a satire on horror movies over the years. The characters played by Bradley Whitford and Richard Jenkins were a complete antithesis of what you usually see in your teen horror films and helped the right amount of sarcasm to the film. While I think the ultimate idea split audiences for me I think it was a brave attempt at something new however I reckon it will unfortunately mean a lot more film-makers will try to copy the idea.

The Descendants 
Director: Alexander Payne

Though technically a 2011 film, this Oscar winner was one that I watched in 2012 and therefore counts towards this list as we saw George Clooney's sad-sap dad try to comfort his daughters after their mother ends up in a coma. While this was one of Alexander Payne's weaker films it still had plenty of heart thanks to the script and the performances from Clooney and the two young actresses playing his daughters. The setting of Hawaii gave the film a real sense of place and once again Payne perfectly depicts what it's like to be a middle-aged man and still not sure where you stand in the world.


The Hunger Games
Director: Gary Ross

I initially felt that Gary Ross' blockbuster would be another Twilight as both were based on sets of books aimed at young female readers however thankfully it was so much more than that. That was partly down to Jennifer Lawrence's grounded performance as Katniss Everdeen a bow-and-arrow-wielding teen who was attempting to survive The Hunger Games which was essentially a less brutal Battle Royale. The combination of the harsh subject matter with the colourful supporting performances of Stanley Tucci, Toby Jones, Elizabeth Banks and Woody Harrelson really bought this film to life and I have to say I was gripped from beginning to end. I would also go as far as to say that Jennifer Lawrence made much more of an impression on me in this film than she did in her Oscar-nominated role in Silver Linings Playbook.

The Kid with a Bike 
Directors: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne

I wasn't expecting a great deal from this little French film but it ended up being a simple tale of lost childhood and trying to find your place in the world. It concerned twelve-year old Cyril a resident and a children's home who was convinced that his father would one day come for him something that never happened. Instead Cyril found a new home with a kindly hairdresser who looked after him yet hankered for something more and unfortunately fell under the influence of a local gang leader. The film was beautifully shot by the Dardenne brothers and stuck with me due to the great lead performances of Thomas Doret and Cecile De France.

Life of Pi 
Director: Ang Lee

The award for most visually stunning film of the year must go to Ang Lee's Life of Pi or as I call it a boy, a boat and a tiger. From beginning to end the film lit up the screen with its cacophony of colour and stunning later scenes with starkly-lit marine life and an island full of meerkats. The reason why it's so low on the list is that I found it a little bit lacking in narrative depth and I felt Lee spent a little too long on the boat however the opening and closing of the film had plenty of character. All of the actors playing Pi were really compelling and overall I found this to be a great tale of survival and belief.

Marley 
Director: Kevin MacDonald

It's fair to say that Kevin MacDonald knows his stuff when it comes to documentary making and after the brilliant Touching the Void comes this tribute to Bob Marley. You can tell from the offset that this is MacDonald's labour of love to his idol and despite its lengthy run time I never once felt bored. Instead I enjoyed listening to the story of Marley and more importantly hearing all of the music that the Marley family let MacDonald have the rights to. For me the only issue with the film was that it didn't dig deep enough into Marley's more aggressive side, only hinting at it in some sections, but other than that a great music biography of one of the icons of the industry who had a story that needed telling.

The Muppets 
Director: James Bobin

It's easy to be sniffy about The Muppets but to me it was the best kids/family film of the year as it definitely appealed to both children and adults. It was clear that Jason Segal had a real love of The Muppets and wanted to do them justice with both his script and Brett Mackenzie's songs setting the right tone for the film. All of The Muppet performers were at the top of their game and a tear almost came to my eye when I heard 'The Rainbow Connection' while there was a lot of fun to be had from Chris Cooper's evil landlord. Overall this was a real reinvention for The Muppets and I just worry that their reputation will be tarnished by future sequels.

Nostalgia for the Light 
Director: Patricio Guzman

A fascinating documentary focusing on both astronomy and the atrocities committed by Pinochet's regime in Chile. Guzman's film is set mainly in the Atacama Desert where women still search for crushed up bones of their loved ones while at the same time the film looks at the similarities between the desert and the surface of Mars. I think the reason I enjoyed Nostalgia for the Light is that it shone a light on a part of history that I knew nothing about while at the same time was phenomenal to look at. While it wasn't always the easiest of watches it was still a fascinating and eye-opening documentary made by someone who clearly has a passion for telling good stories.

Young Adult 
Director: Jason Reitman

The reunion of Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody, the team behind Juno, passed a lot of people by and for me Young Adult didn't get the recognition it deserves. Cody took the criticism  that she didn't write for young people and turned her latest character, Charlie Theron's author, into a young adult novelist meaning that she didn't talk or act her age. As well as being a fantastically written work it also featured Charlize Theron's best performance as the awful Mavis who actually has a lot of pain behind those stinging insults meanwhile Patton Oswalt put an awesome supporting turn as her unlikely new ally. While Young Adult didn't have the best of endings it was still one of the year's funniest films and should've got a bit more love than it actually did.

So there's another ten. Next time we hit the Top 20.

Review No.55: The Kid with a Bike

Already in this blog I have spoken of my love of Wolverhampton's independent cinema Light House however so far this year I've only been twice. Thankfully my third visit came this week and was certainly the most arthouse film I've seen at the cinema so far - The Kid with a Bike. The film is directed by the Dardenne brothers who have won accolades for their earlier films including The Son and The Child with this film gaining similar buzz on the awards circuit. It concerns 12 year old Cyril a boy who has been put into a home by his father who is unable to look after him and after discovering that his father has moved Cyril lashes out refusing to believe that his father sold his bike. With the help of hairdresser Samantha he regains his bike and finds his dad however he later discovers that his father wants nothing to do with him so he is taken in by Samantha. Cyril is then taken under the wing of a local gang leader, known as The Dealer, who impresses him with his video games and also helps him to repair his bike. Cyril is convinced by The Dealer to rob a newsagents and attacks both the owner of the establishment and his son with a baseball bat before fleeing with the money. At the end of the film some things work out and some don't but saying anything more would be telling.

I went into this film with an open mind having been aware but not actually seeing any of the previous work from the Dardenne Brothers. The result was a very tender portrayal of a young life that hadn't been nurtured with a father who was unable to step up to his responsibilities and other authority figures at the home seen as foes rather than friends. What I like about The Kid with a Bike is that very little is explained about Cyril's backstory we know nothing of his mother and only that his father couldn't look after him once his grandmother had passed away. Samantha's background is also given little detail and we never really find out the motives of her wanting to take Cyril under her wing my guess was that she couldn't have children herself. The relationship between the two is greatly performed by Thomas Doret and Cecile De France as Cyril lets down his defence to let her in. Doret also is able to convey why The Dealer is able to win Cyril round so easily as he is the first male figure to ever complement him and treat him kindly so he is more easy to manipulate when the time comes to pull of the robbery. Alain Marcoen's cinematography catches the quiet moments from the characters and lets the actors give very physical performances throughout. Personally I felt the action dipped after Cyril discovered that his father wanted nothing to do with him and only got going again after the robbery scenes but I was definitely emotionally invested in the characters throughout as I could feel myself willing Cyril to be alright in the final scenes.

Verdict: A well-directed film about why some young people are so hard to control that did slightly dip in the middle but as it had two great performances I will award it 8/10