The Film Source 2011 Movie Awards

Here in the first month of 2012, Hollywood is in the midst of its "awards season," the two month period every year when countless organizations, guilds, and critics' groups announce their best of the year awards in numerous film production categories. There is certainly a great amount of prestige in being nominated for, and winning, these awards, but in my many years of following movies I've come to realize that despite all their prestige, these awards--from the People's Choice Awards to the Academy Awards--are really just one group of people's opinions on the best films and performances of the year. So, in the spirit of awards season--the first one since I started this blog--I've decided to post my own personal film awards for 2011 in a handful of categories. These categories are similar to many of the ones recognized by the Academy and the various trade and acting guilds in Hollywood, though I've combined some in the interest of simplicity. I'll also have some honorable mentions in most categories to go along with each winner. I'll begin with animated films, move on to the technical categories, and then on to screenwriting, acting, and direction. So without further ado, here is one amateur critic's opinion of the very best Hollywood had to offer in 2011.

BEST ANIMATED FILM OF THE YEAR:

"RANGO"

 

Animation is a field that has been dominated by Pixar for years now. But this year, director Gore Verbinski (the original "Pirates of the Caribbean" trilogy) has crafted an animated western that holds its own among the better animated films out there. It doesn't reach the level of Pixar's best films ("Wall-E" and the "Toy Story" trilogy in my opinion), but this story of a chameleon lost in the desert who must defend the town of Dirt from a greedy land baron is entertaining, action-packed, and utterly hilarious. It also may be the most visually impressive animated film...ever. Legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins was a visual consultant on the film, and blu-ray.com has hailed it as one of the finest Blu-rays ever produced, thanks largely to its spectacular image and sound quality. This is simply an excellent film all around.

(A warning to parents who haven't seen it: this film isn't for the very young as there is some risque humor as well as some violence and scary scenes that push the boundaries of the PG rating. As a matter of fact, the film's "extended edition," which is available on the Blu-ray, would almost certainly have earned a PG-13).

Honorable Mention

None. "Rango" absolutely dominated this category this year.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS:

"HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2"

 

"Rise of the Planet of the Apes" seems to be the Oscar frontrunner for visual effects, but while that film did have spectacular motion capture CGI, I found some of the environmental CGI to be lacking. "Harry Potter," on the other hand, simply has spectacular visual effects all around. It's impressive to see the progression of the effects work across the eight films, as the early effects in "Sorcerer's Stone" and "Chamber of Secrets" were pretty poor, but as the franchise became more and more mainstream and the budgets grew, so did the quality of the effects. And in this final chapter, which is really just the third act climax of a four-and-a-half hour epic, the final battle for control of the wizarding world looks utterly spectacular.

Honorable Mention (in alphebetical order)

• "Hugo"
• "Rise of the Planet of the Apes"
• "The Tree of Life"

BEST SOUND:

"EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE"

There may have been films with more impressive sound design from a purely technical standpoint this year. But "Extremely Loud" is unmatched in the way it uses sound to influence the development of its protagonist. Whether the blare of sirens, the rush of a passing subway train, the gentle jingle of a tambourine, or a blared cacophony of noise, we hear the world of post-9/11 New York just as Oskar does, and through this begin to understand a bit more of his eccentric personality.

Honorable Mention

• "Drive"
• "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
• "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
• "Hugo"
• "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
• "The Tree of Life" 

BEST EDITING:

"THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO"

While I thought the story in David Fincher's adaptation of "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" wasn't particularly compelling, there is no denying the filmmaking prowess on display from an acting and technical standpoint. And while editing is so essential to storytelling, that's not where this film suffers. The blending of Lisbeth's and Blomkvist's storylines in the first act, as well as in the moments leading up to the film's climax, is simply excellent and, particularly in the latter instance, really helps build the tension in this extremely atmospheric film.

Honorable Mention

• "Drive"
• "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
• "Martha Marcy May Marlene"
• "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
• "The Tree of Life"
• "War Horse"

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:

"THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO"

Another technical recognition for this film as "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" is simply beautiful to look at. No matter the location--whether the snowy environs of northern Sweden at Christmastime, the warm glow of Martin Vanger's seemingly inviting house, the bleak dinginess of Lisbeth's apartment, or the pulsing neon of a vibrant club in Stockholm--Fincher and cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth have once again crafted a film with an absolutely pristine appearance.

Honorable Mention

• "The Descendants"
• "Drive"
• "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
• "Martha Marcy May Marlene"
• "Shame"
• "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
• "The Tree of Life"
• "War Horse"

BEST COSTUME AND PRODUCTION DESIGN:

"HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2"

And another technical award for the "Harry Potter" franchise. Unlike the effects, which have improved with each film, these films have always had spectacular production design and costumes. But this one may have been the most impressive as we see Hogwarts transformed into a war zone--even to the point that we see blood smeared across the floor from the dragging of dead bodies. Production designer Stuart Craig and costume designer Jany Temime have worked on all eight of these films and this one (which is really concurrent with Part 1 as they were shot as one film) may be their best work yet.

Honorable Mention

• "Anonymous"
• "The Artist"
• "The Descendants"
• "The Help"
• "Hugo"
• "Midnight in Paris"
• "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
• "War Horse"

BEST MUSIC:

"THE ARTIST"

The Academy only recognizes original scores and songs in their music categories, and their rules are somewhat vague. I've elected to combine the two categories and simply recognize all music within a film, whether instrumental or vocal, original or previously recorded. But even with those rules, there is simply no film this year that used music as effectively as the excellent black-and-white silent film "The Artist." The score plays over virtually the entirety of the 100 minute film and, as with all silent films is absolutely essential in influencing the mood of every scene. Ludovic Bource's work here is simply excellent, and while there were plenty of other films with excellent music this year, none of them could match "The Artist."

Honorable Mention

• "The Descendants"
• "Drive"
• "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
• "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
• "The Ides of March"
• "The Muppets"
• "War Horse"

BEST SCREENPLAY:

"MIDNIGHT IN PARIS"

This was one of the toughest categories for me to choose a winner in. But Woody Allen's story of a struggling screenwriter who is magically transported back to Paris in the 1920s is simply wonderful. It may not have as many memorable lines of dialogue as some other films this year, or have the difficulty of a nearly silent protagonist, or have the unique nature of a silent screenplay, but "Midnight in Paris" absolutely has one of the best stories of any film released this year.

Honorable Mention

• "The Artist"
• "The Descendants"
• "Drive"
• "50 / 50"
• "Young Adult"

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:

SHAILENE WOODLEY IN "THE DESCENDANTS" 

None of the acting categories seem to be overly competitive this year, and while this category in particular could be filled by probably half-a-dozen performances from "The Help," for me, no one was more impressive this year than Shailene Woodley. Starring in her first film, Woodley plays Alex, the daughter of George Clooney's Matt King, a young woman with a troubled wild streak who is forced to catch up on growing up when her mother falls into a coma. Woodley absolutely owns this role with a performance that displays huge emotional range. Torn between rage and sorrow early in the film, Alex matures noticeably during the course of the film, but even as she engages in biting conversations with her father and others, that pain and sorrow is always there, and those emotions come back to the forefront during the film's alternately hilarious and heartwrenching climax. This is simply a fantastic performance from an up and coming young actress, and as with other young discoveries in recent years, I'm very excited to see where Woodley goes from here.

Honorable Mention

• Berenice Bejo in "The Artist"
• Bryce Dallas Howard in "The Help"
• Octavia Spencer in "The Help"
• Carey Mulligan in "Shame"

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE:

ALBERT BROOKS IN "DRIVE"

This was Albert Brooks's first film performance in eight years, and as shady businessman Bernie Rose, he absolutely owns the role. Bernie is a genuinely likeable guy at first, though clearly he's not someone to be messed with. Though his true colors can be guessed at, it's not until late in the film in two shockingly brutal scenes--one in a diner, the other in a garage--that the nature of his character is revealed. And through it all, Brooks is absolutely excellent, making Bernie one of the rare likeable villains in cinema.

Honorable Mention

• Viggo Mortensen in "A Dangerous Method"
• Max von Sydow in "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"
• John Hawkes in "Martha Marcy May Marlene"
• Kenneth Branagh in "My Week With Marilyn"
• Jonah Hill in "Moneyball"
• Tom Hardy in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
• Patton Oswalt in "Young Adult"

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE:

VIOLA DAVIS IN "THE HELP"

This was another tough choice, and it wasn't until seeing "The Help" a second time that I made my decision. While the film shows its flaws more on a repeat viewing, the strength of Davis's performance just grows. As Aibileen, a black Mississippi housemaid in 1963, Davis is simply flawless. While Octavia Spencer's Minnie is the source of much of the film's humor, Aibileen is the driving force of much of the drama, and Davis simply captures this character perfectly. There are countless scenes I could cite, but the one that really struck me on a second viewing was the final confrontation between Aibileen and Hilly (Bryce Dallas Howard), the despicable queen bee of Jackson's young housewives. Davis's delivery in this scene is absolutely perfect (I can imagine full theatre auditoriums cheering at this point), but her closing monologue about forgiving your enemies shortly after this scene is perhaps just as powerful. This is simply a stellar performance from an actress who has been steadily rising in the ranks over the last five years or so, and hopefully this well be the performance that earns Davis her first Academy Award.

Honorable Mention

• Rooney Mara in "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
• Elizabeth Olsen in "Martha Marcy May Marlene"
• Michelle Williams in "My Week With Marilyn"
• Charlize Theron in "Young Adult"

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE:

MICHAEL FASSBENDER IN "SHAME"

  

Michael Fassbender's performance in "Shame" as Brandon Sullivan, a thirtysomething New Yorker who suffers from a desperate sex addiction, was, for me, the year's most electrifying performance. He captures every nuance of Brandon's character, whether his cool confidence in picking up a woman in a bar, his eyeing of a woman on a subway that is the first clue that there's something off about this guy, his increasing desperation as he descends deeper and deeper into depravity, or his complete emotional collapse when he begins to realize how debilitating his addiction has become and what it has cost him. Fassbender completely gives himself over to this character, and while this is a difficult film to watch, Fassbender is utterly captivating in the role.

Honorable Mention

• Rhys Ifans in "Anonymous"
• Jean Dujardin in "The Artist"
• George Clooney in "The Descendants"
• Gary Oldman in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"

BEST DIRECTION:

NICOLAS WINDING REFN FOR "DRIVE"

 

This art house noir about a Hollywood stunt driver who gets involved with some very shady people is one of the year's absolute best films, and while there are many moving parts contributing to the whole, probably the greatest factor is Refn's direction. The cinematic execution is simply excellent on every level, whether in the quiet character moments, the visceral action, or the shockingly brutal violence. I honestly don't have much more to say about this film that I said in my review, or in my top ten article, but suffice to say that "Drive" is simply a spectacular film and I will be eagerly looking forward to whatever Refn does next.

Honorable Mention

• Alexander Payne for "The Descendants"
• Woody Allen for "Midnight in Paris"
• Steve McQueen for "Shame"
• Tomas Alfredson for "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"

BEST MOTION PICTURE OF THE YEAR:

"THE DESCENDANTS"

 

With my Top Ten Films of 2011 article now completed, I can now add "The Descendants" here. I'll refer you to my list for an evaluation of why that film is at the top, but I will say that it is, without a doubt in my mind, the best film of 2011.