True Grit (2010)

In a time when sequels and remakes are so largely bemoaned and debated, why is it a recreation of the iconic John Wayne western True Grit – the only movie for which the beloved actor ever won an academy award – is so widely anticipated, and subsequently appreciated?  Because it is a Coen Brothers film, of course, populated by the pedigree of Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and James Brolin, championed by execs, critics and audiences alike.  This updated take on True Grit is a film built to succeed, and succeed it does.

The All Cinewise Top Ten of 2010

As voted by you, the movie-loving people of Cinewise, what follows is our first annual All Cinewise Top Ten, counting down from the honorable mentions to the hands down favorite film of the year that was.

Each film on this list received at least two votes. Votes were weighted based on the rankings of the Top 10 lists our critics and readers submitted (i.e. a film in the number 3 slot received more points than a film in the number 7 slot). For those of you who chose not to rank your choices, each of your picks received equal point values.

Questions? Concerns? Last minute changes? Too bad. Here we go.

2010 in Review - Part I (DubMC)

It’s officially 2011, but I still haven’t seen all I’ve wanted from 2010. There are a few tasks left unchecked, a few more holidays I’d like to take off, and a few more people I’d like to enjoy them with. And most importantly for our purposes here, a few more films I’d like to enjoy before putting the year that was into the books. I still haven’t seen 127 Hours, Rabbit Hole, Exit Through the Gift Shop, The Kids Are Alright, Blue Valentine, or The Company Men (fortunately I did manage to avoid Yogi Bear). But alas, the new year is here, and we must move on.

All in all I saw 56 movies at the theater this past year, a number that must be close to my record high. I enjoyed at least 75% of them at least 25% of the time. For some, I ducked into the theater for a second viewing if I had some time to kill (Inception, Harry Potter, Scott Pilgrim). And for only the second time in my movie going history, I walked out of a theater before the credits rolled (The Last Airbender)… and then I did it twice more (Saw 3D, The Tourist). It’s probably against some unread Critic’s Code to do such a thing. I stuck with them as long as I could, deep into the second or third acts. But when you’re seeing 56 theater releases a year, you can’t afford to waste time.

And on that note, I’ll waste no more of yours. What follows is an in depth run down of my 2010 movie going experience, with the films listed not chronologically, but preferentially, working our way down to my Top 20 films of the year. After all, you’ve gotta work your way through the mud to get to the gold…or at least that’s what I keep telling myself.

At times it seems ridiculous to rank films one above the other – invariably the list will be ripe with time-proven inaccuracies. So, I’ve grouped the weakest entries in the 2010 catalogue by theme…

Top 20 Films of 2010 (The Bru)

There was laughter, there were tears. There was blood, there were goosebumps. Minds were blown, shoulders were shrugged in indifference. Films were loved, films were loathed. There were great comebacks, some burned out, some rusted. We fell in love with a new face, had enough of someone else. We lost some great faces, welcomed new faces whose names we had to memorise ... all in all it was just like any other year.

How to celebrate the end of another cinematic year and anticipate the new one? By a retrospective list, of course.

What follows is the Top 20 Films by one half of Cinewise, The Bru. Having to adhere to the idiotic release dates on the Left Side of the Pond, some of the following films may have already been released where you are in the last couple of years. So, if we go by the imdb release dates, this will look like a celebration of the last few years. It's not - these are the films that were released to the general public in the UK within the last 12 months (barring a few that had limited festival releases prior to that). 

Some will agree, most will not. Bear this in mind: this is just an opinion piece, not the last word. This is a conversation-starter - a testament of 20 films that I thoroughly enjoyed within the last 12 months in a dark room with an alternating group of strangers. 

Enough of this, let's get right to it. Here are the Top 20 Films of 2010 according to The Bru (click on the titles to read our reviews).