Jim Turnbull’s Top 10 Films of 2011
5. Rango
Nostalgia may have done well this year, but so did animated reptiles. If I told you in 1992 that the next great western (exempting No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood, which don’t really count) after Unforgiven would be one about an animated thespian chameleon impersonating a notorious gunslinger, you might have spat your vanilla Coke in my face out of surprise. Or whatever it was people were drinking in ’92. But Rango is here, and guess what? It is all of the above. A quirky, original, hilarious, and finely voiced animation. It’s been a long time coming, but Pixar finally have some competition.
4. A Separation
One that may have passed you by during 2011, A Separation is not one that got many prime time TV spots, but did win the hearts and minds of critics all over the world. Deeply humanistic to its core with believable characters and real situations, A Separation places itself amongst the finest foreign films produced, a thoroughly deserves a lot more attention than it gets. The technical achievements are not to be overlooked as well, and the film utilizes a brilliant minimalistic style to portray the slices of life from a regular Iranian family. Anything short of a ‘Best Foreign Picture’ win at the Oscars would be a travesty, which his hopefully said without sounding too dramatic.
3. Senna
Ayrton Senna wasn’t just an F1 driver. He was a legend, an icon, and an absolutely unique individual. Senna is a more than worthy documentary with the pace of a heart-pounding thriller and the emotional content of any award winning drama. ‘It will make you laugh, it will make you cry’ is probably one of the most well known and overused critical descriptions of a film but Senna is a prime example of this, and is capable of stirring multiple emotions within everyone who watches it. The documentary itself is beautifully compiled with stock footage and interviews from those who were closest too him in his profession. Try and catch the Japanese cut – the extra 60 minutes are more than worth it!
2. The Artist
In a certain obscure and indirect way, The Artist can disappoint. After getting over the overwhelming feeling of joy of seeing something so amazingly emotive and artistic (which will take quite a while), you begin to realize, as well as knowing what is going to cleansweep the Oscars, that the true art of filmmaking has been lost into obscurity. The Artist is one of those films that actually does leave you speechless as you try to comprehend the sheer beauty of its cinematic spectactle. The acting is spellbinding, the soundtrack is heart-warming, and the film itself is a modern masterpiece.
1. 13 Assassins
Takashi Miike is not necessarily a household name, but if success were to be awarded on merit and talent, a copy of 13 Assassins on BluRay would be in every home. Not as wildly succesful as some of the other films on the list due to a smaller release, but an absolutely exquisite resurrection of genre that hasn’t been the same since the 1950/60s. Miike weights the film perfectly, with a brilliant slow-burn set up, before launching into the most impressive action sequence of all time. I can’t even begin to summarize how awesome it is, but there is blood, there is dismembering, and there are flaming freaking bulls. 13 Assassins also serves as a phenomenal showcase of Miike’s ability behind the camera as well. It is visual treat, and is as enjoyable to watch as it is to revel in over a glass of sake with your friends afterwards. Absolutely unmissable.
Agree or disagree? Should The Tree of Life be on here? What are your top 10 films of 2011? Leave a comment a let me know!
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36 Comments
Great list man. Your honorable mention was my #2. Glad to see you give it love.
Cheers Mitch! Warrior certainly deserves it :]
Yes!! I love this list man. Really happy to see Dragon Tattoo here (I’m seeing it tomorrow!). 13 Assassins was incredible – and I’m looking forward to revisiting it again. But the main reasons I love this list is the appearance of Senna, A Separation, Rango and Drive. As you know, Senna and A Separation were my #1 and #2, while Rango was in my Top 10 for most of the year, but ended up being squeezed out when We Need to Talk About Kevin and The Skin I Live In came along. I still love it, though. Great choices Jim!
Cheers mate
you won’t be disappointed if you liked the original! Glad to see some love for Senna and A Separation though. We Need To Talk About Kevin and The Skin I Live in are two I’m still chasing – hopefully I can get to see them soon :]
Great list, Jim. Naturally, great to see ‘The Artist’, ‘Drive’, ‘The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’ (a film not getting enough respect, I think), and ‘Rango’ on your list. I’m steeling myself for a run at ‘I Saw The Devil’. Loved ’13 Assassins’, too. If it just didn’t have that CGI misstep scene that I found jolting and poorly executed (I’m sure you know what I’m referring to), I’d have had it higher. Thanks.
Let us know what you think of I Saw the Devil Michael!
Thank you :] I can’t recommend I Saw the Devil enough. And yeah I think I know the scene you mean – but you’d be surprised how well samurai films do with me!
Nice list! I am very happy to see 13 Assassins recognized, as that was one of my favorites as well. Senna, Drive, Hugo and I Saw the Devil were also films I really enjoyed from last year.
Good choices Eric! Thanks for reading! :]
Very cool indeed. I too would have had your honourable mention in my top 10!! Thanks for sharing
Thanks Scott! I really wanted to put it in but I couldn’t bring myself to take any of the others out – think of the list as a top 11!
glad you enjoyed it though.
Nice list Jim, and nice to see ‘I Saw The Devil’ on your list, and the fact that you refer to it is a ‘thriller’ rather than a ‘horror’ (I’ve noticed it an incredibly large amount of ‘Horror Top 10′s’, but just see it as an overtly violent thriller myself). Also as a huge fan of Miike, I will have to see ’13 Assasins,’ especially since you sold me with “flaming freakin bulls.”
Thanks Jordan. I think a ‘violent thriller’ is a good description. Just because something has excessive levels of gore in it doesn’t make it a horror. Haha! You will LOVE it
Honestly I have not seen a whole bunch of the films on your list. I think I will catch Senna on Netflix. And A Separation looks awesome based on the trailer.
Interesting to see Dragon Tattoo included; I personally liked it and thought it was better than the Swedish-language version.
Both are definitely worth a watch – let us know what you think when you get around to them! And me too – I enjoyed the original Girl with the Dragon Tattoo but Fincher is one heck of a director. He really makes a difference.
Nice selections Jim, glad to see Warrior makes your honorable mention. Wow you like Rango that much huh? I think it’s fun but overall it’s not as impressive as I thought it’d be. I haven’t seen Senna yet but I have a feeling that would’ve make my top 10 too. Yay for The Artist at #2. 13 Assassins is not my cup of tea, but it did make one of my blog staff’s top 5 list.
Thanks Ruth :] and yeah I really enjoyed it. I’m quite a big animation fan though – there’s quite a lot of it in my top 250. I’m sure Senna would impress as well – do let us know what you think when you see it! 13 Assassins isn’t one for everyone but I semi-wish I was a samurai so hit the spot with me
I’m so ashamed to tell you I haven’t seen “13 Assassins” yet. It’s #5 or 6 in my Netflix queue. I’ll move it up! I promise! Clearly, as you state, it’s must see.
Also, I think you should make a short film of you trying to find replica “Drive” gloves and jacket for driving to work in the mornings. I’d watch it.
Haha! I wouldn’t have seen it too if my friend wouldn’t have told me about it – an easy one to miss! You won’t regret it though!
I’m seriously considering doing that now, Nick!
I’ll keep you posted!
Great list. Glad to see the love for Drive in there. Can’t say I can agree with your number – I found Miike’s film quite boring – but I know many (obviously yourself included) that loved the film.
Cheers Kevyn! Loved Drive – a great film. I do see where you’re coming from – I’m a big Miike/samurai film fan though so was a winning combination for me :]
That was what surprised me about 13 Assassins. I usually love Samurai films and have liked many of Miike’s films, but for some reason I just could not get behind this one. Oh well, my loss probably.
Wow, you really liked 13 Assassins! Although I thought it was a good movie, I was disappointed by the lack of emotional attachment to most of the assassins. I wasn’t particularly impressed by Rango either which felt much longer than its run time suggest.
In any case, fun list Jim!
I personally loved Rango. I didn’t have any real problems with it. And as for 13 Assassins the only major problem i had with it was a certain female character getting forgotten about at the end(Don’t want to detail to avoid a spoiler, but those who watched it should know what i’m talking about)
Indeed I did! I think thats a very fair comment though – and in retrospect it would have easily been one of my all time favourites if we had more emotional involvement. Rango wasn’t a film for everyone as well – heard a few similar criticisms. Thanks though, Castor :]
I LOVE YOUR LIST Jim!!
I have 13 Assassins for my World Cinema Series and my friend just recommended me to watch A Separation. i will note down I saw A Devil for my Korean movie.
Nice to see many world movies in your list.
Cheers Novroz!
Let us know what you think of them! In retrospect it has been a mighty fine year for world cinema! It’s refreshing to see countries like Iran and Korea doing so well! Hopefully they continue to carry on this trend :]
Nice list! A surprise to see 13 Assassins as number one, but it is a great film with a cracking final act.
Thank you :] the final act of 13 Assassins was what really impressed me. It’s a fun film :]
Interesting list. I did enjoy 13 Assassins, though it fell just short of my list. It’s definitely a slow burn like you describe, and the final sequence is remarkable. I also really enjoyed Drive and Midnight in Paris. I still need to check out a good portion of your list, including The Artist and A Separation. Nice job.
Thanks Dan :] Drive and Midnight in Paris were both excellent! Can’t recommend the top 5 enough though. Let me know what you think if you get round to them. Thanks for reading!
I was doing pretty good with the bottom 5, but the only one I’ve seen from the top 5 is The Artist. I’m looking forward to A Separation, but 13 Assassins is probably not my genre.
It felt slightly jarring to have A Separation as number 4, because it doesn’t do it any justice. I hope you enjoy it!
I Saw the Devil is yet another demented–and wonderfully so–turn from the ever-prolific Korean horror circuit. Old Boy will probably be recognized years from now as the movie that opened Western Civ’s eyes to the unfathomable imagination of Korean film making, akin to 500 Blows and French movies, or Seven Samurai and Japanese movies.
Also, The Artist was beautiful. It took awhile for my eye to adjust to the very dim, gray-ish black and white (it’s not a starkly lit movie at all), but the subtleties in the acting and camerawork are gorgeous.
Wonderfully put, Greg! Hopefully it will open the flood gates to more recognition and acclaim, but at the same time I hope Hollywood don’t think of it as ‘ore vein’ and just start mining remakes from it.
Complete agreement about The Artist as well. A real work of art! Thank for reading :]
Interesting and diverse list. There’s a few films I still need to see, particularly, your number one choice 13 Assassins.
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