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5) Hot Tub Time Machine dir. Steve Pink
It isn't nearly as funny as it should have been, but what ultimately struck me about Hot Tub Time Machine is how well it understands how disappointing life can be. By using a cheap gimmick to take three forty-year-olds back to their glory days, the movie explores how going back to the best days of your past will not fix the problems of the present. In fact, it can potentially make them worse. The idea is conveyed through scenes of embarrassing truth, many of which are meant to be funny, but struck a nerve for me in a different way. If I had laughed more (and don't get me wrong, I did laugh), I'd consider Hot Tub Time Machine a classic. As it stands, the movie is a splendid examination of mid-life crisis.
4) Kick-Ass dir. Matthew Vaughn
A superhero movie that has its cake and eats it too, Matthew Vaughn's latest seamlessly blends the real world with the comic book one, while at the same time finding a way to mix teen comedy and romance with outrageous violence. Like all good movies of this genre, it weighs in on the responsibilities of its heroes and tests their moral boundaries. The title challenges us to think about how we view superheroes when we are children, and the movie shows, sometimes painfully, the realization we come to once we discover that it is not as easy or as chivalrous as we might expect.
3) Shutter Island dir. Martin Scorsese
The most misunderstood movie of the year so far, and one that begs for multiple viewings, Scorsese's newest is a love letter to '50s cinema in style and in tone. It deceptively plays like a textbook mystery, but carefully peeling back the layers reveals something much deeper and profound. This isn't just about finding a missing girl; at its core, the movie is a complex and heartbreaking trip into an irreversibly damaged psyche. It would have been easy to find a satisfying resolution, a road Scorsese sidesteps with the movie's final line of dialogue. Any questions are answered at that point, and in looking back over the events of the movie, there are no cheats to be found. Shutter Island has been invading my brain since I saw it, so needless to say I can't wait to see it again.
2) Exit Through the Gift Shop dir. Banksy
As fascinating and thought provoking as any documentary I have seen in recent years, Exit Through the Gift Shop acquaints the viewer with the lives of street artists as seen through the eyes of someone fascinated with the process. For a while, we are convinced this will be the movie's core focus, until it flips the switch at the halfway point and gives us something completely different to chew on. Many have speculated if the movie is a joke, and whether it is or not, it provides a discussion worthy portrait of the nature and intentions behind art, whether it be from the artist's point of view or the spectator's. Does art always have meaning, and does the artist always intend for it to? This just rips the lid off of one the many questions this movie dares us to ponder.
1) Toy Story 3 dir. Lee Unkrich
Yet another example of why Pixar corners the market in animated features, Toy Story 3 is a work of exceptional maturity and emotional honesty. It expands on the ideas of the first two movies by bravely (and unpredictably) taking its main characters, who always knew little Andy would grow up, and forcing them to finally realize they are only immortal for a limited time. The screwball banter and visual gags are still intact, and while they don't always succeed, they pave the way for some much darker territory. This is the first entry in the series that has seen any real consequences, or to put it more accurately, impending doom. By conveying these themes through Pixar's rich visuals (something that has become one of their trademarks), the movie is able to make us care for these toys more than we could have imagined. They aren't just play things anymore, but living entities with feelings (could we suggest they have a soul?). Let's hope this is the last entry in the series. The movie ends on a perfect and graceful note that lets the audience know nothing more needs to be said.
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