The Month that was- February

February was good! Much to the parents' scorn, I am fruitfully using my college dropout-status to watch loads and loads of films. Averaged at about 2 films a day.


Firsts:

1) Leon the Professional- Quite amazing. All the three main leads, Jean Reno, Natalie Portman and Gary Oldman were fantastic, but yes Portman's performance gave me the chills.

2) Day for Night- Francois Truffaut's much celebrated movie about making a movie. I really loved it, and Truffaut, the actor is almost as lovely as Truffaut, the film maker.

3) Withnail and I- I had been meaning to see it for a while now. I love 'I' and Withnail. I wish I was remotely as awesome as them.

4) Blowup- This film is quite something else, isn't it? Though I must say, I am still very enamoured by the 60s.

5) The Thin Man- I must learn how to imitate Myrna Loy's squint. The original Nick and Norah, and so much loveliness.

6) Repulsion- Oh so very creepy. I was properly freaked out by the idea of staying home alone the next day.

7) The Double Life of Veronique- I cannot believe I kept postponing this. So very beautiful and haunting and memorable. I do like it best among all the Krzysztof Kieslowski films that I have seen.

8) Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close- It pains me to think this got the Oscar nomination over the likes of Drive. Anyhow, I liked Max Von Sydow a lot, and found Thomas Horn beyond irritating.

9) Chronicle- I absolutely loved it. It was a lot of fun and a nice concept to make the the found-footage films interesting. The superhero film to beat this year (not counting The Dark Knight Rises duh).

10) Peeping Tom- Very interesting concept. I couldn't help but compare this to Red Dragon because I felt that Karlheinz Böhm's character was a lot like Ralph Fiennes's.

11) The Bourne Identity- The Bourne Legacy's trailet came out, and I realised how I had not watched this series. I will watch the other two later on, perhaps in March.

12) A Dangerous Method- It was well-made, though I couldn't help but feel disinterested at times. It's for the psychology nerds.

13) Puss in Boots- It was funny and such an improvement after Shrek Forever After. Though that doesn't mean they should make another one. Enough is enough.

14) Sabrina- Oh how wonderful is Billy Wilder?! I mean hats off to Michel Hazanavicius for thanking him thrice in the Oscars. Also no one can ever be Audrey Hepburn.

15) Winnie the Pooh- It was sweet, and simple.

16) Grand Illusion- A very brilliant anti-war French film from the 30s. The Germans and the French had it banned because of the anti-war feelings it promoted. Makes one think about the power of films.

17) The Room- I have been trying to find words to describe it ever since I saw it. No luck yet. I was in pain throughout, but I was also laughing hysterically. Go figure.

18) 2 Days in Paris- I think Julie Delpy is so lovely. It was funny and sweet, and a tad bit irritating.

19) Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason- Funny and enjoyable, though never reaches the greatness of the first. I am dying for the third part to release- must see more of Colin Firth and Hugh Grant fighting!

20) M.A.S.H.- Nothing like what I expected. Not that I remember what I expected, now having seen it. A little sexist, but loads of fun. Also my first Robert Altman film.

21) Brazil- I love dystopian films. This Terry Gilliam gem is no different. I still find the thought of a young Jonathan Pryce funny.

22) Time Bandits- It was going fine and I liked the idea and the humour and everything. Then that ending happened, which made me so glad I didn't see this film as a child. I would've been scarred for life.

23) The Big Sleep- My first Bogie and Bacall film, and I just love their chemistry. For a second I thought that the film was dragging, but in the end it is quite a grand piece of film noir.

24) Good Bye Lenin!- Saw it on account of a friend who was seeing it in her History lecture. Loved it. A simple story that signifies so much. Also Daniel Brühl is adorable.

25) The French Connection- I really have to get cracking on my 70s films. This was among the firsts in my list. It is fantastic, and that car chase really is one for the books.

26) Serpico- I had bought a magazine because its VCD came free with it. I really liked it, and Al Pacino is, as always, brilliant.

27) The Woman in Black- Good old fashioned creepy stuff. I did almost get a heart attack at one point. So proud of Daniel Radcliffe, though he should have just used his wand in the beginning and saved the day.

28) Take Shelter- Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain make this work. Even though I liked the story, I found the film a bit too long and slow.

29) My Week with Marilyn- I really liked it. I felt that if the editing was better, I would have even considered it one of my potential favourites. I got really annoyed at it many times. Also Eddie Redmayne is soooo my Man of the Month.

30) The Muppets- SO MUCH AWESOMENESSSSS!! I cannot believe I loved it so much. But it made me ever so happy.

31) Friends with Benefits- It was a good enough romcom. Really obvious, though it had some hilarious moments. Mila Kunis is really beautiful.

32) Kung Fu Panda 2- I wish I would have seen this and them made my favourite villains list. Shen with his feathers was quite something else, and ofcourse he was voiced by Gary Oldman too. Very beautifully animated, and arguably better than the first.

33) Sherlock Homes: A Game of Shadows- It was fun enough, with a lot of slo-mo, but all I could think of was Sherlock. And that ending just sent pangs to my heart :'(.

34) The Prince and the Showgirl- After watching Marilyn, I had to watch this. It was quite good and Monroe was lovely, even though I was a bit disgusted by the fact that her character wears the same gown for two days in the film. Even though Marilyn is only one person's account and probably not that accurate, they did manage to make a decent film despite all the difficulties.

35) Good Night, and Good Luck- I had seen parts of this film when it was on the telly, but never completely all together. It is a fine film and the look and performances were great. I just have to see Michael Clayton  Confessions of a Dangerous Mind now, to finish off the Cloonmeister's directorial stuff.

36) The Wicker Man- The old one of course. Did anyone else think it was sort of trippy? I didn't really find it horrific, since it is considered "the Citizen Kane of horror films" and all. It does raise some interesting questions and the ending is definitely epic.

37) Deconstructing Harry- I have to finish watching all of Woody Allen's films. They keep surprising me. For instance, I don't think I've ever heard Woody swear in a movie before, AND this film had nudity! Wtf?! But I enjoyed it immensely, and once again I found myself wallowing in self-pity because I could never be even 1/1000th the genius he is :'(

38) Paul- It was a nice little film with loads of sci-fi references. I really dig the idea of Simon Pegg and Kristen Wiig together, though of course he is Nick Frost's completely.

39) Days of Heaven- It was beautiful and engaging and breath-taking. Then it had that random ending. I felt that the last five minutes or so were completely unnecessary. But then again, this is probably going to grow on me.

40) The Fugitive- This is literally on the TV all the time. I have seen many parts of it. And I have seen the Indian remake a few times. I really liked it, but I felt that a little more background on Harrison Ford's character would have helped the film make a bit more sense. It just takes for granted that Ford is anyways a genius and just becomes a detective overnight. I still enjoyed it immensely, and both Ford and Tommy lee Jones were great.

Rewatched:

1) Hot Fuzz- When o when will Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright reunite?! The summative awesomeness needs to be shared again.

2) Heathers- "What is your damage, Heather?" This film is genius. Mean Girls + Fight Club = Heathers. 

3) Trainspotting- My favourite Danny Boyle film by a mile. When will the world understand the brilliance of Ewan McGregor?

4) The Dreamers- I am so addicted to this film. And to its leads. Beautiful Paris in the 60s... totally would go there if I find those stairs at midnight.

5) Mary Poppins- I think this film is so flawed at times, but it makes me immensely happy. Also Julie Andrews really is practically perfect in every way.

6) My Fair Lady- Rex Harrison as Henry Higgins has to be one of my most favourite performances of all time. No one can ever play Higgins like him, though I have always imagined Hugh Laurie to play the role if in case of a remake. Still cannot find anyone like Audrey Hepburn though (maybe Kate Winslet when she was younger, ouie?).

7) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy- Sooo much more rewarding the second time. This time, when you already know who the culprit is, you get to enjoy and marvel at how subtle and exact this film is.

8) Black Swan- I had to watch it after that awe-inducing post by Cinematic Corner. It is still mindblowing.

9) Drive- Joys of joys, this film.

10) Casablanca- It was part of my Valentine's Day marathon, because I am a sap like that. Love this film to death.
11) Bridget Jones's Diary- Saw this after my favourite romcoms post, because I just had to! Bridget Jones gives me hope.

12) Inglourious Basterds- Had to watch this for more Daniel Brühl. I still wish Zoller and Shosanna had gotten together :( Again, 'cuz I'm a sap like that. He tried so hard!

13) Snatch- It was coming on TV. So it was a bit censored, but still loads of fun. I love Mickey.

14) Midnight in Paris- I have to stop watching this. This time 'round, I found Hemingway incredibly attractive.

15) A Single Man- It had been too long. Tom Ford should really make another film already. Everyone is so beautiful in this. And I forget to breathe during the Jon Kortajarena scene.

16) Beginners- Happy sad film. I love everyone in this. Plummer!

17) Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist- I saw this after the Oscars, when I was roaming about the house like a zombie due to the sleep-deprivation. I think, after all the Harry Potter films, this is my comfort movie.

18) Inception- A friend mentioned it, and then I got this really strong urge to watch it. My favourite ending of all time.

19) Blade Runner- Because I love Harrison Ford so. Is it me or does this film have some serious film noir elements? I hope they don't remake it.

Shorts:

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore- It was beautifully animated and a lovely film about the magic of books and imagination. Very deserving of its Oscar.

TV Shows:

Both the seasons of Spaced- I would talk about how this ended too early and stuff, but then look at what followed! I love Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg (and Nick Frost) too much though. And I think I'm quite a bit like Daisy Steiner (minus those chokers). And and, I'm so glad I saw Star Wars before this. So many jokes would have gone over my head, like this one.

Final tally-

Firsts- 62            Rewatched- 28           Shorts- 2

Total- 92

This month will be hard to top. Anyways, byee.