My Top Five Movies of 2011: A Year-Long Project (Update)
For 2011, I'm keeping an ongoing list of my top five movies, continuously updated with each new movie that I see. There are very few rules to this. Movies are only eligible if I've seen them. And only movies with 2011 release dates are considered. For example, I saw The King's Speech in 2011, but it had a 2010 release date. Not eligible for this project.
1. Thor. Not only is this my top movie of 2011 so far, it's also the best Marvel movie since the first Iron Man (Marvel movie ... that means The Dark Knight is not part of this conversation). Just as Iron Man brought something fresh to the superhero movie table, so does Thor. We've now seen plenty of guys with superpowers and high-tech suits. This film gives us the mythical side of the superhero coin. Remember how cool it was the first time you saw Iron Man take out a terrorist camp then finish the job with that shoulder missile? Yeah, you should get that same feeling when you see Thor wielding his hammer. Very, very cool movie.
I'm not going to give spoilers here, but there are two things I have to point out: One, ending the credits with "Thor will return in The Avengers" completely locks in the Marvel cinematic universe. Two, if you haven't caught on that there's going to be a scene after the credits in these movies by now, here's your warning. After Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2 all had post-credit scenes, I'm still shocked to see people walk out right at the beginning of the credits.
As I've said before, The Avengers is such a massive, ambitious movie project, it's going to be exciting to see it come together. Thor is definitely another great step toward that goal.
2. Source Code. In no way do I like this movie less. I just like Thor more.
3. The Conspirator. This movie, on the other hand, hasn't held onto its glow since I saw it. There's a good chance that come next round of rankings it could switch spots with The Adjustment Bureau.
4. The Adjustment Bureau. As noted in No. 3, The Adjustment Bureau could gain some ground in the next go-around. The plot wasn't anything super original, but I really liked the cast. Especially Terence Stamp once I realized it was him in the movie, not Frankl Langella.
5. Limitless. Fun film, but its time on the Top Five is coming to an end.
Didn't make the cut: Sucker Punch, No Strings Attached, Green Hornet.
Previous rankings
April 16
April 2
1. Thor. Not only is this my top movie of 2011 so far, it's also the best Marvel movie since the first Iron Man (Marvel movie ... that means The Dark Knight is not part of this conversation). Just as Iron Man brought something fresh to the superhero movie table, so does Thor. We've now seen plenty of guys with superpowers and high-tech suits. This film gives us the mythical side of the superhero coin. Remember how cool it was the first time you saw Iron Man take out a terrorist camp then finish the job with that shoulder missile? Yeah, you should get that same feeling when you see Thor wielding his hammer. Very, very cool movie.
I'm not going to give spoilers here, but there are two things I have to point out: One, ending the credits with "Thor will return in The Avengers" completely locks in the Marvel cinematic universe. Two, if you haven't caught on that there's going to be a scene after the credits in these movies by now, here's your warning. After Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2 all had post-credit scenes, I'm still shocked to see people walk out right at the beginning of the credits.
As I've said before, The Avengers is such a massive, ambitious movie project, it's going to be exciting to see it come together. Thor is definitely another great step toward that goal.
2. Source Code. In no way do I like this movie less. I just like Thor more.
3. The Conspirator. This movie, on the other hand, hasn't held onto its glow since I saw it. There's a good chance that come next round of rankings it could switch spots with The Adjustment Bureau.
4. The Adjustment Bureau. As noted in No. 3, The Adjustment Bureau could gain some ground in the next go-around. The plot wasn't anything super original, but I really liked the cast. Especially Terence Stamp once I realized it was him in the movie, not Frankl Langella.
5. Limitless. Fun film, but its time on the Top Five is coming to an end.
Didn't make the cut: Sucker Punch, No Strings Attached, Green Hornet.
Previous rankings
April 16
April 2
My Top Five Movies of 2011: A Year-Long Project (Update)
Reviewed by Bill Kuchman
on
5/07/2011
Rating:
Reviewed by Bill Kuchman
on
5/07/2011
Rating:
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