"Are we married yet?"- MY FAVOURITE FILMS OF 2011

         I made my incomplete Top 10 Films of 2011 about two months back because I had not seen many of the "worthy" films of the year. I still haven't seen a few, but all in all, 2011 was quite a fun year. I still think that just because of the combined brilliance of The Social Network, Black Swan and Inception, 2010 was a stronger year, but 2011 has had its high points aplenty.

Honourable mentions: The marvelous and disturbing The Skin I Live In, a lovely romcom (surprisingly) Crazy, Stupid, Love, and the very colourful Kung Fu Panda 2.

20.

My Week with Marilyn (Dir: Simon Curtis) and Jane Eyre (Dir: Cary Fukunaga)

I could not pick between these two films. Even though Marilyn was flawed, I cannot quite stop thinking about it. Michelle Williams gives another dynamic performance, and I think if the film had been better edited, it would have been quite perfect. Jane Eyre was actually pretty perfect, a beautiful adaptation of a rather dark and at times dull novel, but the film had no such problems.

19.

Carnage (Dir: Roman Polanski)
I thought it was funny and outrageous and very well-acted. But what made me really appreciate is that Polanski dared to, in this day-and-age of big blockbusters ridden with CGI, make a film about four people in a room. And just that.

18.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Dir: Tomas Alfredson)
A thinking man's, or woman's, spy movie. This is one of those films that is much more rewarding after the second viewing. That's when you can truly appreciate the little subtleties that makes this film truly masterful. Added to that a plethora of excellent British actors, all acting against type, led by the amazing Gary Oldman.

17.

Super 8 (Dir: J.J. Abrams)

The Spielberg-y kid movie of our generation. I loved the child actors, I loved the look and the feel, and I absolutely loved how brilliant a tribute this film is. I like tributes, and this is one of the best.

16.

Martha Marcy May Marlene (Dir: Sean Durkin)

Beautiful, scary, and the debut of Elizabeth Olsen, who may just be the next Michelle Williams. 

15.

Captain America: The First Avenger (Dir: Joe Johnston)

I think this is going on to become one of my most favourite superhero movies ever. Chris Evans was born to play a superhero, and he puts so much charm and earnestness into his character. Also this film cleverly dodges many of the clichés that one would expect, and gives us a fun and satisfying blockbuster. Also I love the supporting cast.

14.

Beginners (Dir: Mike Mills)

A quirky sad movie with a fantastic cast- the perennially brilliant Ewan McGregor, the adorable Christopher Plummer and the beautiful Mélanie Laurent + Cosmo the dog. It's a film about love and loss and everything in between, but nothing like I have ever seen before. Leaves you with a smile on your face, and slight pangs to the heart.

13.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (Dir: Steven Spielberg)

Just because it was my best experience at the cinemas all year. It was a helluva ride which makes me keep faith in 3D and the fact that Spielberg truly truly is a master film maker (when he's not churning out sap-fests about horses).

12.

Young Adult (Dir: Jason Reitman)

Reitman continues to provide us with characters that seem to be one-dimensional and so "been there, done that" but are much more. Mavis is a legend, and Theron gives a ballsy performance as a true bitch, but not a very happy one. 

11.

We Need to Talk About Kevin (Dir: Lynne Ramsay)

This film has some serious residual power. One cannot not think about it. It just stays and stays in your head. Like how everything stayed in Tilda Swinton's characters head. Makes you question things and shudder at them. Unnerving.

10.

The Muppets (Dir: James Bobin)

Who would've thought?! Certainly not me. Hell I have never seen anything Muppets-y in my life. I had ruled this off as something I won't get or enjoy, but man, o man! This film, is AWESOME! The feel-good movie of the year. I'm a manly muppet, people!

9.

The Artist (Dir: Michel Hazanavicius)

A most delightful film. Though not the best representative of its genre, it certainly brought it back with a bang and won hearts (and potential Oscars) all over. Also the leads, Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo, are just infectious with their charm.

8.

The Tree of Life (Dir: Terrence Malick)

Hauntingly beautiful. Though it is prettier during the universe part, I feel the better part of the film lies with the story of the boys growing up. It is as complex and magical and mysterious as life itself. 

7.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Dir: David Fincher)

Did I ever doubt this was going to be anything less than epic? No. No one can do a modern thriller like Fincher, and this isn't an exception. The look, the feel, the music, everything is spot on. Rooney Mara is a bloody brilliant Lisbeth and her chemistry with Daniel Craig is just wonderful. Love!


6.

Submarine (Dir: Richard Ayoade)
This was originally much lower in my list, but a rewatch since then made me realise how much I actually adore this film. So quirky and different and cute and funny. Young love and growing up have never been shown so splendidly ever, I think. Also that soundtrack.




(My top 5 is the same)


5.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (Dir: David Yates)
The final good bye to the boy wizard, and with that, to our childhood. It was a great ride, one we will never forget and always cherish.


4.

A Separation (Dir: Asghar Farhadi)
The film that you can never shake off, because it is so painfully real. We see circumstances like this in daily life, where people suffer because they just cannot accept that they have made a mistake and are wrong- not wrong because they are evil, but because they are human. Also flawlessly directed and acted.


3.

Hugo (Dir: Martin Scorsese)
The most beautiful tribute to cinema, from a great film maker. Yes it has its flaws, but I can overlook all that because of the way it makes me feel. Like I belong in this world, because I love my films more than anything else.


2.

Drive (Dir: Nicolas Winding Refn)

Cooler than fuck, y'all. We'll be talking about this forever. Also that kiss.

1.

Midnight in Paris (Dir: Woody Allen)

What better film to represent this year of nostalgia in films, than this loveletter to all that was in the past and was so very wonderful? Woody makes one of his career's best and most widely-loved, because it just makes one feel so incredibly happy. Also is Paris magical, or is Paris magical?

Valhalla, I am coming.

           It has been more than seven months since the release of that awe-inspiring teaser for David Fincher's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which drove me a little insane. I finally saw it this week, and my waiting has been worth it!

              The story revolves around two characters- a disgraced investigative reporter Mikael Blomkvist, and a brilliant yet disturbed computer hacker Lisbeth Salander, and their unlikely partnership that is formed to catch a killer of women. Blomkvist is employed by Henrik Vanger, a retired industrialist, to investigate a case that has ailed him for forty years- the disappearance and apparent murder of his niece Harriet. When he unearths some clues, Blomkvist takes the aide of Lisbeth, who had done the background search on him originally. Together they solve the mystery, which takes the most unexpected turns and changes their lives forever.


           The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is the based on the first book of Stieg Larsson's best selling Millennium trilogy of the same name. Contrary to the popular belief, it is an adaptation of the book and not the remake of the Swedish adaptation, which I saw immediately after the teaser was released all those months ago. As almost everyone has read the book or seen the Swedish version or both, I will not give more details. For those who haven't, well I just did you a favour and you will be deeply ingratiated to me forever. I personally feel it's an average book with a few high points and a lot of unnecessary parts. Here is where Fincher's version triumphs because it trims all those uneven edges and gives us a mind-blowing thriller, or as I like to call it- a true Fincher-thriller (Fincher Fangirls Unite!).

          As soon as those incredible opening credits start rolling, we know we are in for a bumpy, dark, violent, and magnificent ride. Set almost entirely in cold and chilly Sweden, the whole film has a very grey look that emanates the iciness of the settings across the screen to us, and just gets under our skin. That is only just the beginning because the film has some truly cringe-worthy moments, especially the infamous rape scene. What is really brilliant though is how instead of focusing on the actual violence, it chooses to show shots of the people who are causing it or to whom it is being caused. It makes it all the more disturbing and uncomfortable, and we just know how wrong it all is.

             In terms of the cast, the film is really driven by the two leads- Daniel Craig as Blomkvist and Rooney Mara as Lisbeth. Many people have not appreciated Craig as much, but I think he is such an improvement from Michael Nyqvist who played the character in the Swedish version. In the first half, when both of them haven't met yet and their characters are being set-up for us, Craig's Blomkvist is someone who is normal and rational and quite charming. He isn't necessarily James Bond (hehe), but we see how he reacts to other people- strangers and family, and even a cat, and we understand why someone like Lisbeth is able to like and trust him. I think he is the perfect yin to her distorted yang. Of course, the film's focal point is Lisbeth and Mara's eerily excellent, and as of two days ago, Oscar-nominated portrayal of her. People are rabid fans of Noomi Rapace's Lisbeth, and she is quite good and well badass-er. I think Mara's Lisbeth is quirkier, but also more dangerous. She is kind of funny; though she speaks a little, I actually laughed at some of things she said, and that bloody awesome t-shirt she is wearing when she first meets Blomkvist. She also has a sensitive side, as deeply buried as it is. But at the same time, she has this terrifying rage, which when it comes out, is so much more scarier. I mean, in spite of Mara's miraculous transformation into the tattooed, pierced, shaved and bleached Lisbeth, she still looked beautiful, but every time this side of her came out, I could only think of the phrase, "face of death". So yes, Mara's Lisbeth was more beautiful, funny and sensitive, and also way more deadlier and deranged. "Nod."

          Both of them had great chemistry together. I really liked the way we are introduced to both characters and the world of difference between them, and how they are brought together. Among the other cast members, I liked that Erika Berger had a more prime role in this adaptation and Robin Wright was just the person for her. Christopher Plummer was Henrik, and again he was very convincing in his slightly amused and aloof old man role. Stellan Skarsgård played Martin Vanger, and he was very good too. Lastly Yorick van Wageningen played Nils Bjurman, Lisbeth's twisted and sexually deviant guardian. He was really evil and disgusting. I liked how his bulging ponch was always in focus because we are supposed to find him revolting.

           Steve Zaillian adapted the book into an excellent screenplay, and as I said above, removed many of the unnecessary details. I think the film was more faithful to the essence of the book, than maybe even the book itself. The cinematography is harrowing and quite deservedly nominated for an Oscar. The incredible score by last year's winners Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, was snubbed by the Oscars but it just does wonders for the mood of this modern thriller. That Immigrant Song cover by Karen O is the cherry on the cake. As always, the editing is immaculate, which is something one expects from a Fincher film. It's all in the pacing, and that is what keeps one glued to such a film. One of my favourite scenes is when she gets robbed in the train station, and how she fights back. It's cool and then sound is muffled down and everything just happens.

         Lastly, and most importantly, comes David Fincher and his expert film-making skills. I remember how over-the-moon I was when this film was announced, because none can do a modern thriller like him. Se7en is easily one of the best thrillers from the last two decades, and Zodiac too is quite superb. But not only those, other films of his like Fight Club and The Social Network also come to mind because of his trend to portray unconventional, rebellious, disturbed and quite brilliant characters in his films. Lisbeth could have easily been his brain-child, and it only seemed natural that he will do justice to her. The film has all of his trademark elements in it- the exact investigation, the painful violence, the very dark humour (that Enya song in the end and again that aaawweeesssoommmeee t-shirt), the unforgettable sequences, even a few epic lines- "If you touch me, I'll more than alarm you." I already spoke about the look and the pacing, which are also quintessentially Fincher. Even with these, the best part of the film for me is what Fincher made Mara do. There were many shots of the back of her head, which is a clever tactic to make us, for lack of a better word, identify with her more. She is the focus, the epicenter, and it's her actions and feelings that we have to understand and we do, somewhat. Her outbursts, her lack of emotion and then the unexpected sliver of sensitivity- everything Lisbeth is expected to be and more, he captures it all. He made her a crazed genius, as maybe he is one himself. And for this, I cannot thank him enough (Fincher Fangirls Unite! x 2).

        A perfect thriller, which has been both rewarded and snubbed by the awards folks, though we don't really care, do we? I had only one problem with the film- it ended too soon, though it was quite the perfect ending. Anyhow there are two more books in the series, and I think the producers will go ahead with the adaptations. Though this film feels like perfection on its own, we want Mara as Lisbeth to fill us up with fear and awe again, we want that excellent chemistry between Mara and  Craig to continue, and we want Fincher back at what he does best. Here's hoping to see more adventures of the girl with the dragon tattoo.

Thoughts

Yaay January is upon us! This is the first Thoughts post of the new year, and my thoughts are thus:


1) First of all, I made a Facebook page for this blog. It was something made out of curiosity. The app for it is on the side of this page. Please like it if you want to :)


2) So Golden Globes is round the corner. Honestly the biggest reason I'm waiting for this is to see Ryan Gosling in a suit. But they are fun, as one expects them to be. They are doing their job, unlike the BAFTAs. That treacherous awards show- WHY IS HARRY POTTER SHORTLISTED FOR ONLY 3 CATEGORIES?! AND NOT EVEN FOR BEST PICTURE! It only just employed the majority of the British film industry for the last 10 years or so!!!!!!! So what if they gave a special contribution award last year. They should also consider it in the best picture race. If they don't consider it the best, how will they ever hope for it to get any recognition elsewhere?! I mean GO PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARDS!! I am proud of the people, yes I am! Also Daniel Radcliffe said that he would be bummed if Alan Rickman doesn't even get nominated. He's Harry Potter- Listen To Him! And I swear if they do not get the Harry Potter people to present in the Oscars this year, the AMPAS will get hate mail every week for the rest of my life. Everyone from Twilight has presented, including Taylor Lautner (I'm sorry but I just do not understand how he gets to act in movies). And Miley Cyrus. And Katherine Heigl. 


3) But on the bright side, an Indian film- Dhobi Ghat (which I haven't seen yet but really do want to see as it's an Aamir Khan production) is short-listed in the non-English film category. Obviously A Separation should win this without a glitch, but it is nice to see that an Indian film at least stood a chance at some point.


4) I was randomly watching the 79th Academy Awards today on Youtube. I really liked Ellen Degeneres as the host- I hope she comes back some day. Also, this was the year Gosling got nominated, so I was happy to see him. Plus The Devil Wears Prada brilliance.


5) Trailers: Silent House starring Elizabeth Olsen. It's a horror film set in real time. I don't think I have ever seen a real time film so this does look interesting, though I would like to see her do something a little different from the paranoia thing in the future. Friends with Kids, in which four of the cast members are from Bridesmaids, and the two that aren't are the protagonists. I'm only watching this for Chris O' Dowd and Jon Hamm (did I mention I started Mad Men this week?- He's too good-looking to be true). This trailer probably came out a while back but I have somehow ignored all news about this film- The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. I saw the Top Gear India special, and it is really hilarious to see the modern outlook of Brits towards India. I quite love the cast, especially Judy Dench, Maggie Smith and Bill Nighy, and it will be interesting. I like how other countries always look more colourful, though India really is very very orange. The last trailer is the most amazing thing ever that just released and I had almost published this post without it- Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom. Oh the happiness and quirkiness and epicness of Wes Anderson films! Cannot wait for this!! Finally, the studios have released the opening sequence of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It's magnificent; I nearly cried out of joy, love, awesomeness and anticipation. It is very Bond-esque, but in a much more darker, visceral, black way. It's probably banned in UAE, so I do not know when I will get to see it. Curses.


6) Awards talk: Continuing from above, Dragon Tattoo has been nominated for the PGA, DGA and WGA. I did not expect this. The reviews have not been that amazing, and though I'm pretty sure I will love it, I didn't think it will become such a critical darling out of nowhere. This is what I think happened- everyone just woke up from the nightmare that they have given The King's Speech all the awards over The Social Network, only to realise that they really had done so in some drunken stupour, and are now trying to make amends with Dragon Tattoo. Such madness! Also, the "award worthy" films that I have seen in the last two weeks are- first, Midnight in Paris, which was how I started 2012. As I said I was watching the Oscars, and this was when Scorsese finally won for The Departed- wouldn't it be great if Woody Allen gets recognised like this also? People forget because of his film making-speed that it has been a while for him since he has won any awards. I am harbouring hope for the Best Original Screenplay category. I saw Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, part 2. I will speak about this on a separate post, though you have gotten a preview above. Then there was Young Adult- I really loved Charlize Theron in it, and even though I haven't seen My Week with Marilyn yet, I am wishing that she bags the Best Actress Comedy in the Globes. Mavis Gary is my new role model. Patton Oswalt was adorable, but Rickman > Oswalt. Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy, for which Gary Oldman must get nominated at least. It's masterful acting that he does here- so reserved, so internalised, but so very excellent too. Added to this, I think Art Direction is fantastic, and so is Sound Mixing/Editing (I forget the difference). Carnage, which everyone forgot about but the Globes (point for Globes!). I had a lot of fun watching it. I don't think I was really that drawn to any of the performances individually except that of Christoph Waltz's, but that's mostly because his character was so delicious, but collectively it was a very enjoyable film. Lastly I saw War Horse. I did not like it- wayyy too much cheese on my plate if you know what I mean. I do not want it to get nominated for anything- more on this later on as well. Also, Jeremy Irvine is adorable and I hate the lack of info on him on the usually omniscient (or atleast that's what I think) internet . Plus, I could not stop giggling in, and after, the Tom Hiddleston scenes- he was the exact image of my gorgeous-and-earnest-soldier-man fantasy. I hope he wins the presently misogynistic Orange Rising Star award in BAFTAs.


7) Finally- since I spoke of BAFTAs so much, and the next (and last *sniff*) episode of this season of Sherlock comes out this week, and I'm still Mrs. Dent Watson Baggins Freeman, I present to you my Fake Husband Prime-

'Nuff said.

Toodles!

This is a Poster-Appreciation Life- 2011 edition

Last year, and I think everybody will agree with me, Darren Aronfsky's Black Swan had the most beautiful posters, and of it were a competition, it would've emerged as the obvious winner. 


Case in point-

Perfect.

I will now attempt to review some of the posters from 2011 (I might have forgotten a few :P)-


Despite the vigorous poster campaign from the Harry Potter group, none of the 500 million posters were actually that brilliant. 

Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris was the most enchanting film of the year, and it cleverly uses what might be my most favourite painting ever, Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night, as part of its poster.

I think Ryan Gosling films had pretty good posters, especially with all that hot pink in Drive, and one truly ingenious The Ides of March poster.

Kirsten Dunst looked absolutely beautiful in the stunning albeit extremely depressing, Melancholia. The same  goes for the poster.

I just searched for this film, and a lot of "Young Adult" book reviews came up. So witty.

Steve McQueen's follow-up to Hunger has an equally minimalistic poster, which I think truthfully captures the essence of the film, and keeps you wanting more. Also, I love the naughty French poster.

Roman Polanski's multi-starrer had an awesome colourful poster.

Another gem was the poster of Tomas Alfredson's Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy. The film is set in the Cold War times of codes and deceit, and that's exactly what we get.

Steven Spielberg brought to screen a most iconic character this year, and the posters just go to sow how even the shadow of Tintin immediately resonates with us.

The original poster to Pedro Almodóvar's The Skin I Live In was a beaut. Too bad it got changed.

The most eye-grabbing poster of this year was the teaser poster for David Fincher's The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo. *Love* Fincher's guts so much!

Martha Marcy May Marlene had some very alluring posters too, and I think is thus far closest to Black Swan status. See especially the moving one.

But finally, the most gorgeous and dazzling poster of them all, which I think single-handedly beats Black Swan and almost every other poster that I have ever seen, is the one and only *cue drum roll* The Tree of Life, from master filmmaker Terrence Malick. You just cannot look away from it.

 Absolutely amazing.

IT'S HERE! IT'S HERE!!

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo has a proper trailer now. And Oh My Dumbledore it is amazing!! Other things about it-


1) I LOVE LOVE LOVE Rooney Mara as Lisbeth. Her hair keeps changing though...
2) Daniel Craig looks faaiiinnee with that stubble.
3) There is a somewhat thick Swedish accent among the people. It was difficult to understand at first, but then it was fine.
4) The music. The bloody awesome music!! Reznor-Ross, I salute you.
5) I know this will be better than the Swedish version.
6) Christopher Plummer still has those Captain Von Trapp blueee eyes.
7) I'm excited to see what Stellan Skarsgård will do with the character of Martin.
8) I liked Erica in the books, and Robin Wright Penn is lovely.
9) I don't know why only one of those Biblical lines were said though, but who cares?!
10) David Fincher is a wonderful, wonderful man.

I think I am going to cry with excitement. Guess what just became the number one candidate of "The Social Network" film of this year?

Thoughts

My thoughts for this week:


First, personal rant- My movie-watching has been on an all-time low these past couple of months. I mean I have to go check the Recently Watched/Rewatched List from my blog to remember what all I've seen. It's insane! And I haven't read a book since when...I, quite frankly, feel illiterate nowadays. College has taken over my life; not to mention the hours I spend in front of my laptop screen, trying desperately to write something with meaning, or even coherent sentences. Like right now. I have to review Super 8, Midnight in Paris, and an old favourite- In Bruges, but I dunno when I'll get time or the sudden inspiration to be able to write them. My script-writing dreams also are fairly distant at present...I just dunno what to write!!! *sniff sniff*
Personal Rant Over.


Trailers- Like Crazy, The Sitter, In Time and Coriolanus. Like Crazy is about two young people who fall in love, but the evils of immigration come between them, and they just can't seem to let go of each other. It stars Felicity Jones, Jennifer Lawrence, and the adorable Anton Yelchin. The star-crossed, Transatlantic lovers are played by Jones and Yelchin. The Sitter has Seth Rogen acting as a babysitter to few kids. Seriously need I say more? It's insane and kind of fun. Now In Time...woah baby. Six Words- Olivia Wilde plays Justin Timberlake's mum. This might be awesome, might be shit. The king of trailers this week is ofcourse, Coriolanus, directed by my favouritest baddie in all of the world- Ralph Fiennes. It is based on a lesser known Shakespeare play. From what I can understand, the language will remain Shakespearean. Fiennes looks chilling, and amazing. I do like Gerard Butler in this too. I am a true lover of 300, and Leonidas (inspite of the overwhelming CGI) and am glad he's doing roles like this in place of Ugly Truth *shudders*.


Other promotional stuff- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo bios are out. These look dumb. Honestly. What's the point? And Daniel Craig looks like he's been mud wrestling, and has not shaved since the dawn of time. Rooney Mara looks like a skeleton, without eyebrows. And that blade necklace...really? "Oh look at me, I'm goth and into blade necklaces- could I be more cliched?" Yes I'm being mean, but it's really been bugging me since I saw it yesterday. I like her earrings though. 


On Tumblr this week- This is friggin' hilarious! I am not trying to make fun of anyone's religious beliefs by posting this. I just thought it was very funny, and only that.

Thoughts

I might actually have a regular feature with this one. So thoughts:

1) Fincher on my Mind- The first leaked and then official teaser trailers for David Fincher's adaptation of Stieg Larsson's acclaimed thriller The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo came out this week. Needless to say, I went nuts. I saw the "apparently" leaked red band one non-stop, started hyperventilating when it got removed, and am now seeing the green band (?) one in similar fashion. And can you blame me? It's fucking Fincher making a thriller! The first time I saw the first trailer, I sat down and watched the Swedish version of the film. It was good, but Fincher and Fincher alone can make it great. I am already predicting falling in love with Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig within the end of this year. So Freaking Excited!

2) This is a continuation of the previous stream of thought- Fincher is apparently directing Cleopatra with Angelina Jolie as the title character. Um... I just can't... can't imagine what it will be like, look like, anything like. I don't know how long this has been in the works, but I just read the IMDb page for the film, and another internet article about it, and my brain has fuzzed over. I had been predicting that Fincher will be making more female-oriented films and dramatic ones, though he is mostly a guy-director. Yes there was Aliens 3 and Panic Room, and Marla Singer and Daisy...but Fincher seems like a guy's-guy. I think Jolie will be fine, as a cousin of mine pointed out- she is part of the Fincher-Pitt family, but still I cannot fathom what the film will be like. I was a bit skeptical about The Social Network too originally, and see how that turned out. Here's hoping it will be just as great.

3) Hungover...again?- I saw Hangover 2 this week. It was good, but honestly the same thing as the first one with a lot more violence involved. Apparently there might be a third one...in Amsterdam. Lots of questions popped into my head after this- Will Alan get married now? Because that will be weird. What will Stu do with the Red Light District hookers of Amsterdam? What animal will they use? How seriously will Phil get injured? And most importantly..WHY, OH WHY WOULD THEY DO IT AGAIN?? Seriously no one is stupid enough to get fucked over 3 times, no matter how funny or insane! (I'll do a quick review soon, after watching X-Men probably.)

4) Sequels- Peter Jackson-directed The Hobbit, will now be divided into two parts. I'm fine with it, but it does make me think that Deathly Hallows might have started some sort of a trend now. Sad names though- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again. How does one compare something like Fellowship of the Ring to There and Back Again...it sounds like a Backstreet Boys song for crying out loud! Also a sequel that I have personally been waiting for is finally in works...or is it? Paramount has apparently set the release date of Star Trek 2 next year June...despite the fact that there is no script or director or actors. I thought Star Trek was brilliant, and as much as I want to see a sequel, I really don't want it to be crap due to limited time and rushed production.

ALSO-

Okay...personal thoughts over. How about yours?