I have never felt more fear for a character than I did for Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in THE HUNGER GAMES.  By the moment she was about to enter the games, I felt petrified for her.  Director Gary Ross allows ample, ample time to build up to the games themselves and being totally unfamiliar with the story, I had no idea when that calm before the storm was going to end and all hell would break loose.  Likewise, once in hell I did not know how the story would play out and was constantly surprised.  THE HUNGER GAMES is riveting and must be seen in a theater, preferably an IMAX theater.

I think 2012 could be a singular year for movies now already with THE GREY and THE HUNGER GAMES.

I am sure reading the HUNGER books must be a great experience and I probably ruined that by seeing the movie first, but it did allow me to have one of my best ever in theater experiences.  I do not see movies in theaters much anymore, but HUNGER has made me realize I really need to.  Then again, not every movie is a masterpiece like HUNGER is.

Again, I knew very little of the story, having only barely heard the words “hunger” and “games” in a title before.  That pairing fascinated me though.  What definition of hunger do they mean?  What is the game?  I am not even sure I knew it was to be a game to the death before seeing the movie.

From the first frame my survival instinct was at 100% and defiance coursed through my body.  Watching HUNGER was a visceral experience for me.  I am glad I sat in a row with an aisle before it with no one in any of the seats beside me because I moved in my chair often, body tensed.

It is difficult to write about the movie itself rather than my experience watching it.  I was totally drawn into the world created on screen.  Only pieces of it are revealed, just enough to give the viewer an impression without force feeding the morals.

I have never seen a greater contrast of decadence with death before on screen.  Again, this was done with just the right touch.  Rich look upon the poor as they kill themselves for the rich’s entertainment.  One does not need to be heavy handed to rile the audience when that is the central theme of the story you are telling.

There was an uprising, and the punishment for it by the government was severe.  The land was divided into twelve districts, each increasingly more destitute.  Katniss comes from the last, the 12th.  The rough country there taught her hunting skills though.  Every year a boy and girl between the ages of 12 and 18 are taken as “tribute” to play in the Hunger Games, where they kill each other until only one is left.  Like life on the outside, the game too is titled in favor of the more well off districts.

I do not know how none of them were more defiant, refusing to play along to the pageantry before the start of the game.  I would not give interviews, or if I did they would involve so much cursing and cursing of the people watching I doubt I would get more than a few seconds on screen.

The relationship between the characters grows throughout the movie.  As things approach the deadly time, no emotion goes unexpressed.

THE HUNGER GAMES is a very powerful movie, it is a movie that you experience physically, it is a movie that I will not forget.

–the one thing driving me crazy through the movie though was trying to remember the Japanese movie’s name from a few years ago with a very similar storyline of teens forced to fight to the death, then of course as I was steps from my car after the movie, boom, the title came to me, BATTLE ROYALE.

UPDATE March 25, 2012

I saw a 10:20pm showing on Friday night, which ended around 1am Saturday.  After I got home and wrote and published my review here, I finally got to bed about 2am.  I proceeded to dream about the movie the whole night, even being in the games and in the cave with Katniss.  I have spent the entire weekend thinking of the movie and listening to the soundtrack, especially “Safe and Sound” by Taylor Swift, the song that plays over the end credits of the movie.  Haunting.  I have ordered The Hunger Games paperback and cannot wait to start reading it Thursday night and fill in all the details the movie could not include.

If THE HUNGER GAMES had come out in 2011 I would have put it right at the top of my Ten Best list for the year, by a good distance.

Just in time before the Oscar winners are announced later tonight, I have finished watching enough movies so that I am able to pick my Ten Best movies of 2011.  I have seen nine of the ten best pictures nominees, and the one I did not see was by choice because I do not believe it to be even worth seeing.  Three of my Ten Best Movies of 2011 are nominated for Best Picture.

I have seen all five of the movies with a Best Actor nomination, but only one of the Best Actress.  I have seen two of the five Best Foreign Language Film nominees and all ten of the movies nominated for Best Writing Adapted and Original.  Finally, I have seen all five movies nominated for Best Director.

In the calendar year of 2011, I watched 115 movies total (released in any year), by far the most movies I have ever watched in a single year.

My Ten Best Movies of 2011

1. MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

This was the movie that most surprised, most captivated, most transported me, basically made me feel like I watching and experiencing a movie the most this year.  I was mesmerized by its magic.  The story of an American in Paris wishing to live in another time in the past meeting famous real life artists from that time is an ingenious story line.  For nostalgic people especially, MIDNIGHT IN PARIS will be enchanting.  It is the movie I have thought of the most after seeing it in 2011.  I am not a Woody Allen fan at all and cannot stand 99% of his movies, so please do not let that stop you from seeing this great film.

2. A SEPARATION

Thank you to Roger Ebert and his Ten Best list for bringing this Iranian movie to my attention.  A SEPARATION is the favorite for Best Foreign Language Film, but it should be in the overall Best Picture category as well.  Not knowing the culture and what daily life is like in Iran, I was spellbound to see this extremely intimate and powerful look into the life of one average Iranian family as the parents argue about whether to move out of Iran or not.  The wife wants to go, but the husband wants to stay and take care of his sick father.  She moves out, so a housekeeper is hired to help.  The intricate story full of ethically and morally and culturally charged issues is the densest and most satisfying of any drama I have ever seen.

3. THE ARTIST 

This movie had a lot of Oscar hype already by the time I was able to see it, but I did not have the highest of expectations because I did not know how to feel about a silent film.  Within minutes I was totally charmed and delighted and moved by THE ARTIST and in particular Jean Dujardin’s performance as the lead character as the biggest film star of the silent era, suddenly threatened by the emergence of the talkies.  It truly seems like Dujardin was born to play a silent actor, I cannot imagine a more perfect face for it.  That can be said for many things about THE ARTIST.  It is a movie that truly feels handmade, as every actor cast, in every role seems so spot on.  Every scene crafted, not a single movement or displayed word of dialogue wasted.  I was completely charmed by THE ARTIST.  Any of the above three movies could replace the other.  They stood out from all the rest this year.

4. TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY

Billed as a very difficult movie to follow, TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY is a proper adult’s movie.  The viewer does have to think to follow the story, and not let up concentration for one minute.  The title alone held such mystery for me.  The way its meaning is revealed in the course of the movie is extremely satisfying.  This is the very rare for modern times analog thriller that should be savored while watching.

5. ANOTHER EARTH

The weirdest movie by far on my Ten Best list, ANOTHER EARTH blends tragic drama with a thread of fantasy sci-fi.  A deadly car accident is caused by a very smart high school senior, Rhoda, who was about to go to MIT, but instead spends the next four years in prison.  When she gets out, it is discovered a heavenly body is approaching the Earth.  She starts the most unusual relationship possible.  As the other planet gets closer to Earth, it is realized that it is in fact, another Earth.  The ending is great.

6. A BETTER LIFE

Thank you again Roger Ebert for including A BETTER LIFE on your list, otherwise I may have never seen it.  The story seems like it could be a by the numbers Oscar bait movie with a hard working Mexican father (Carlos) wanting to give his high school aged son a better life and keep him out of gangs.  In fact, the movie earns its Oscar nomination because of how real the characters are, how real the story is, and how a father can really teach his son life lessons without over the top music cues telling the viewer how to feel.  Many movies I saw in 2011 had no likable characters, however, it is impossible not to root for Carlos.

7. WAR HORSE

This movie was not at all the large battle scene with horse charging in to save the day movie I expected it to be.  It was a very intimate movie, and the horse, Joey, was the main character.  The performance by the horse was amazing.  His spirit and determination were inspiring to me and I find myself thinking “war horse!” in moments I need to summon more strength.  The movie is really about the effect Joey has on the lives of all that are near him during World War I.  WAR HORSE is a crowd pleasing movie with lots of real emotion.

 8. SUPER 8

If you believe, like I do, that the 1980s were the best decade for a kid to grow up in, then SUPER 8 will provide one more trip back into that childhood time.  Nostalgia plays a big role in the appeal of Super 8, but the train wreck scene in the beginning starts off an adventure for any time.  The real dialogue used by the kids in the film I found to be very funny, especially hearing them punctuate cut downs on each other with adult cuss words.  Coming of age romance, the huge adventures you can have right in your own neighborhood and an alien invasion make SUPER 8 a nostalgic and modern film.

9. RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

Another outstanding “animal” performance is in RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES.  Chimp Caesar as played by Andy Serkis in a motion capture suit covered in CGI effects was one of the best performances of the year.  Being a strong animal rights person against animal experimentation, this movie had me fired up and ready for action myself!  The relationship between Caesar and the scientist who takes him in is developed very carefully.  In fact, Caesar’s character arc is as big as they get.  In the end I was emotional and cheering.  APES had the most touching death scene of the year.

10. HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2

This was a fitting end to the greatest genre phenomenon since Star Wars.  The books are the real cultural treasure, and as a whole is the greatest genre series of all time to me (including Star Wars), so the movies have always been the lesser, or rather, secondary experience, but getting to see at long last Harry stand alone against Voldemort was epically crafted in this movie.

I was jus thinking earlier today, or was it yesterday, that I have not seen a 2011 movie yet of any impact. Impact along the lines of INCEPTION last year or THE DARK KNIGHT or even THE ILLUSIONIST. Then tonight I watched MIDNIGHT IN PARIS and 2011 is saved, I have seen at least one masterpiece movie that I will remember for a long time this year. If you have ever been to Paris, as I have, it will make you think you need to go back, soon. If you have never been, and you saw this movie, you are probably already on a plane there. I could not have watched a more appropriate movie for my own current situation right now. Thank you Woody Allen.

I am not a fan of Woody Allen’s more famous works. ANNIE HALL was the only movie I have ever watched that I literally stopped watching ten minutes in. I could not stand another second of whatever gimmick that was. However, I really liked MATCH POINT and now I love MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, so it seems I am becoming a fan of Allen’s late career work.

It was obvious to me from the very first scene of Owen Wilson (Gil) with his fiancee that they totally should not be together. Wilson plays a Hollywood screenwriter who is sick of being a hack and wants to write a novel. His fiancee does not support him in this endeavor at all. That’s when I knew, from personal experience, that he should not be with her. Anyone who does not support your dreams should be discarded with haste.

The fiancee runs into a pompous friend and his wife and prefers to listen to him be a know-it-all rather than do what Gil longs to do, walk the Paris streets at night, preferably in the rain. Finally he frees himself from those fools and has his own time in Paris. Lost and tipsy, he is sitting on some steps when people from inside an old car beckon for him to join them. I did not know the premise of the movie so I did not catch on right away that Gil slipped into 1920s paris, the time of Picasso, Hemingway and Fitzgerald. You know this because Gil meets them. He also meets a muse for all of them and is himself enthralled.

The rest of the movie is just cinema magic that is an utter joy to watch. I cannot imagine a more fantastical imagination of Paris. Shall I move there?

RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES [2011] is a great movie, and the best theater experience since last year’s INCEPTION.  APES is a powerful story from opening frame, to closing.  It is a very cerebral movie and a positive use of CGI to visually tell a story that would otherwise not be possible.  The movie reinforces two of my strongest beliefs:  animals should not be experimented on; animals should not be in cages.
APES was much better than the trailers made it out to look.  If not for the buzz surrounding the movie after its release, I might have missed out on experiencing it with an audience on the big screen.  Thankfully, I did not.

I am a big fan of origin stories, and thus the first film of movie franchises are the ones I usually like best.  Even though, maybe only the first third or first half shows the origin of the main character (hero).  The entire running time of APES shows Caesar’s origin story.  I enjoyed every single second of it.

The fact that Caesar could not speak was a huge benefit to the character.  The director had to focus on showing his thoughts and emotions visually.  CGI used in combination with Andy Serkis’ motion capture action yielded a fully formed character in Caesar, displaying more emotional range, more command of the screen, than 90% of human characters in all the rest of the movies made this year.  I would have no problem at all seeing Caesar/Serkis nominated for a best actor Oscar.

Watching Caesar think and work through his emotions made for riveting, intellectual movie watching.  Caesar first only yearns to be back with the only family he knows, but then is taken over by the more powerful drive for Freedom.  I could not root for a character more than I did for Caesar.

APES is refreshingly intelligent, exciting, dramatic science fiction.  How it setup the mechanics for the eventual reality seen in the original PLANET OF THE APES is extremely clever and makes me anxious to see what comes next in this franchise.