"Calm down, crazy."- MY FAVOURITE EVERYTHING ELSE OF 2012

         I kind of went on a list-making frenzy when I started with my end-of-year lists. These are the ones I won't be making separate posts for because of time constraint, but they are awesome nonetheless. Also, my favourite performances and films will be up soon.

• Silva, Skyfall- A Bond film is only as good as its villain, and my god, I loved both of them.
• Bane, The Dark Knight Rises- Not easy following Heath Ledger's footsteps, but Tom Hardy did a great, powerful job.
• People, The Cabin in the Woods/ Paranorman/ The Hunt- People suck.
• Joe, Looper- Love the concept of your older self being the baddie. Bruce Willis was super cool.
• The Amazing Spider-Man- For being a shit, unnecessary film and wasting Emma Stone.
• Old Age, Amour- We are all going to die.
• Hugo Weaving characters, Cloud Atlas- Weaving is one of my favourite villain-playing actors and here, he goes from being an oppressive nurse to an assassin to the devil himself.
• Joe, Killer Joe- Oh Matthew McConaughey, you creepy, creepy man. Never set foot in KFC.
• Stephen, Django Unchained- I found him so much more villainous than his master Candie. A total bastard.

Biggest Villain of 2012- Loki, The Avengers

As I had written in my review, it isn't easy for a relative newcomer like Tom Hiddleston to hold his own against so many big actors playing such super persons, but he does it with a lot of snarkiness and aplomb. 

• Hushpuppy. Beasts of the Southern Wild- Brave, wild, amazing.
• Hulk, The Avengers- Mark Ruffalo and Joss Whedon have made me a fan of the big, green, rage monster. Smash all the aliens! And Thor! And Loki!
• Patrick, The Perks of Being a Wallfower- Oh god, I want a best friend like him!
• Selina Kyle, The Dark Knight Rises- Best part of the film by a batmile.
• Fat Amy, Pitch Perfect- Aca-awesome.
• James Bond, Skyfall- A human Bond is just that much cooler.
• Richard Parker, Life of Pi- Magnificent.
• Princess Merida, Brave- Pixar has given us a great first heroine.
• Tiffany, Silver Linings Playbook/ Weird Girl, Frankenweenie- Because they're both weird and awesome and are going to become my role models (hey, this is my list!).

Best Character of 2012- Marty, The Cabin in the Woods

A prophet and a badass? He is going to become a cult god. Great work by Fran Kranz.

• Cloud Atlas- Just look at all the actors and ALL the characters they portray.
• Django Unchained- Tarantino might just have outdid himself with this cast.
• Skyfall- Craig, Dench, Fiennes, Bardem, Whishaw. Stellar.
• Silver Linings Playbook- There is a reason why this is the first film in 31 years to get nominations in all four acting categories. Love the other supporting actors too, most notably, Anupam Kher.
• The Dark Knight Rises- I don't care about Batman half as much as I do about Alfred, Gordon and Fox. And in this we get Selina and Blake too. Plus, love it when Cillian Murphy shows up.

Best Ensemble of 2012- The Avengers

• Everything Suzy Bishop, Moonrise Kingdom- Another memorable Wes Anderson female character with a penchant for individualistic fashion.
• The surgery machine, Prometheus- When I was sick last year, I kept wishing for this machine so that I could get cured in jiffy. Mighty useful it would be.
• Joe's gun, Looper- Uber awesome.
• Shawarma, The Avengers- I, for one, am very happy that Shawarmas are getting the respect and love they deserve.
• Kirsten Dunst's bitchface, Bachelorette- To master that would be a dream.
• The Aston Martin, Skyfall- Try and tell me that your heart didn't skip a beat when this first appeared in the movie.
• The time machine, Safety Not Guaranteed- Because I need one. Woodstock is waiting for me!
• Bong cup, The Cabin in the Woods- Do I need to explain myself?
• The Bat, The Dark Knight Rises- Do I need to explain myself again?

Coolest Object of 2012- Princess Merida's Hair, Brave

I made this list so that I can have Merida's wondrous, fiery tresses topping a list. I can build an altar to them.

Favourite Quotes of 2012-

(in descending order)

"And in that moment, I swear we were infinite." - MY FAVOURITE SHOTS OF 2012

12 shots for '12.

"I have an army." - MY FAVOURITE FIGHT SCENES OF 2012

       It's that time of the (next) year again- list making time!! Last year I made a special list of villains because they stood out to me. This year, while I was listing down my favourite scenes, I noticed that a list-worthy number of them are fight scenes and so here we are. I do love a great cinematic fight. For the record, my favourite cinematic fight of all time is probably Mark Darcy versus Daniel Cleaver in Bridget Jones's Diary.

Note: Needless to say really, but this is a very spoiler-filled post.

Honourable mentions- Merida and Elinor vs Mor'Du in Brave, People vs Zombies in Paranorman, Abraham Lincoln vs horse-throwing vampire in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

10.

Elizabeth Shaw vs Alien Baby in Prometheus

I admit that I watched this scene with my face half-covered, but god it was memorable. Fighting an enemy that is literally growing inside you and having a goddamn cesarean to get rid of that- kudos to Noomi Rapace's Elizabeth.

9.

Django versus Candie's minions in Django Unchained

This is the shooting scene right after two major characters have been killed and Django has to defend himself and protect Broomhilda. This film is full of shooting, but here it is both outrageous and scary and cool and the blood just explodes out of people. It bloody fun (yes, pun very much intended).

8.

Gollum versus Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

A battle of wits and riddles, this was probably my favourite bit in the book. And while the horrid 48 FPS technology managed to make many scenes unbearable to watch, it works here as Gollum becomes even more realistic. And Martin Freeman as always is amazing. I was really pleased with how it turned out.

7.

Cid versus Jesse in  Looper

Well, it isn't exactly a fight scene as much as it is really cool scene with someone actually getting disintegrated in slow mo. Poor Jesse did not know what he was getting into, and good lord Pierce Gagnon is terrifying and awesome. Total jaw-dropping scene.

6.

People versus Monsters in The Cabin in the Woods

Speaking of, how cool was this scene when it happened? This scene sort of unites the two threads of the story in one beautiful and unbelievable blood bath, quite literally. And man, that homicidal unicorn.

5.

The two brothers versus Mad Dog in The Raid: Redemption

Another film with a lot of really cool action scenes to choose from but it all culminates to this final battle between the deadliest of the foes and the two brothers teaming up against him. Keeps one completely rapt.

4.

Batman versus Bane in The Dark Knight Rises

Bane is shown as someone with absolute brute power and we can actually feel that everytime he lands a blow on Batman (YES, ON BATMAN PEOPLE!). It is very scary but also extremely believable seeing the badass caped crusader actually having his back broken by this beast of a man.

3.

Mallory Kane versus Paul in Haywire

Is it me or does this scene remind one of the elevator scene in Drive? Like that scene, this too is a mixture of sexiness and violence, with mood lighting. The fight between Gina Carano and Fassy feels almost like a choreographed dance with one very sensuously brutal end.

2.

Hulk versus Loki in The Avengers

I am right to assume that everyone has watched this film and loved this part and I'm not spoiling it with this gif, yes? Just look at it. It's hilarious. AND it's even better in the film. Genius.

1.

James Bond versus Patrice in Skyfall

If I had not made this list, this would be my favourite scene of the year. I have watched this movie thrice now and every time I can't stop myself from gaping when this sequence takes place. The neon lighting, the shadows, the firing of the gun, the fact that you do not know who is who until the very last moment- oh god it is beautiful. Roger Deakins deserves all the Oscars for this scene alone and action scenes have never looked more gorgeous.

More lists coming up shortly. What did you think of this one?

HELLO OSCAR NOMS!

      The Academy for Motion Pictures and Arts are going to announce the nominees for the 85th Academy Awards soon. There are still a number of "Oscar" films that I still haven't watched yet like Silver Linings Playbook, Les Miserables, The Sessions, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and The Master, among others. So basically the following are my wishlist/predictions for the Big 5 and Supporting categories.

Best Film: Once again we do not know how many there will be. My gut says it will be less than last time (9 nominees).

Mine- 1) Cloud Atlas

2) Django Unchained

3) Argo

4) Beasts of the Southern Wild

5) Holy Motors

6) Skyfall

7) Moonrise Kingdom

8) The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Special wish that has no chance- The Avengers. Eat slugs, Avatar!

Theirs- From my list, I reckon only Argo will make it in for certain. Django Unchained, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Cloud Atlas, Moonrise Kingdom are maybes and Holy Motors, Skyfall and The Perks of Being a Wallflower will take a lot of effort and genuine love on the part of the Academy voters. Lincoln is probably the only definite nominee there is, which is a shame because I fell asleep in it. Zero Dark Thirty is a frontrunner too, though I was not all *that* impressed. I haven't seen other possibilities like Les Miserables and Silver Linings Playbook. Life of Pi is another strong contender. Amour seemed like a frontrunner some months back but I guess it will only prevail in the Best Foreign Film category.

Winner- I really don't know right now, and I kind of like it.

Best Director: The year of the returning winners and new hope.

Mine- 1) Wachowski Siblings & Tom Tykwer, Cloud Atlas

2) Ben Affleck, Argo

3) Wes Anderson, Moonrise Kingom

4) Ang Lee, Life of Pi

5) Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained/ Michael Haneke, Amour

Special wish that has no chance- For the fanboys out there, Joss Whedon, The Avengers and Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight Rises

Theirs- Past winners such as Steven Spielberg for Lincoln, Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty and Tom Hooper Les Miserables are almost locks. From my list, I think Affleck and Lee might be locked. Michael Haneke's nomination for Amour is long-awaited, so it would be nice. 

Winner- I would choose either the Cloud Atlas team or Affleck. I think one of the past winners might get the big prize though, with a possible blindside from Affleck.

Best Actress: Old and new and everything in between. Haven't seen enough from this category.

Mine- 1) Quvenzhané Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild

2) Rachel Weisz, The Deep Blue Sea

3) Marion Cotillard, Rust and Bone

4) Emmanuelle Riva, Amour

5) Jennifer Lawrence, The Hunger Games

Special wish that has no chance- Princess Merida, Brave (no, I do not accept the fact that she isn't real).

Theirs- Lawrence is getting nominated for her role in Silver Linings Playbook, for sure. The other decided nominee and frontrunner is Jessica Chastain for Zero Dark Thirty, who I liked but did not like enough. My favourite Wallis has very little chance unfortunately, and Weisz's powerful performance is also doubtful to make it through. Naomi Watts might get in for The Impossible. Helen Mirren and Judy Dench are possibilities too, for their work in Hitchcock and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel respectively. Keira Knightley is standing on shaky grounds for her role in Anna Karenina.

Winner- Wallis has blown me away and I doubt I will see a better female performance this year. For the Oscars, it is a fight between Chastain and Lawrence, with Riva being a dark horse.

Best Actor: I'm on the same boat with this as I am with the Best Actress category. Depressing.

Mine- 1) Denis Lavant, Holy Motors

2) Denzel Washington, Flight

3) Jean-Louis Trintignant, Amour

4) Mads Mikkelsen, The Hunt

5) Jack Black (I know, right?!), Bernie

Special wish that has no chance- Logan Lerman, The Perks of Being a Wallflower/ Daniel Craig, Skyfall

Theirs- Daniel Day-Lewis is our god etc. I liked him in and as Lincoln, but meh (please do not come to my house with pitchforks, please!). Only Denzel will make it through for my list, sadly. Even though I have not watched the film, I am really dying for Hugh Jackman to be nominated for Les Miserables. Other possibilities are John Hawkes for The Sessions, Bradley Cooper (I knowww, right?!) for Silver Linings Playbook, Richard Gere (eep!) for Armitage and Joaquin Phoenix for The Master, if he hasn't antagonised all the voters yet.

Winner- Lavant's performance is mindblowing, and too out there for Oscars. DDL's fandom knows no bounds, so yeah, he's probably going to pick up Oscar #3.

Best Supporting Actress: Uhhhhhhhhhh.

Mine- 1) Rosemary DeWitt, Your Sister's Sister

2) Anne Hathaway, The Dark Knight Rises

3) Rebel Wilson, Pitch Perfect

4) Judy Dench, Skyfall

5) Jennifer Ehle, Zero Dark Thirty

Special wish that will never happen- The three women of Bachelorette.

Theirs- Let's just say, none of mine. Hathaway will be nominated for Les Miserables. Sally Field for all that in Lincoln, Helen Hunt for The Sessions and my favourite unseen performance by Nicole Kidman in The Paperboy. Maggie Smith for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Amy Adams for The Master are big possibilities.

Winner- This award is Hathaway's to lose. I am already impressed with her, so I guess she is my pick too.

Best Supporting Actor: Once again, my favourite category.

Mine- 1) Leonardo DiCaprio, Django Unchained

2) Ezra Miller, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

3) Matthew McConaughey, Magic Mike

4) Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln
5) Michael Fassbender, Prometheus/ Dwight Henry, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Special wish that will never happen- Alan Arkin doesn't get nominated for Argo, because I do not understand this much love.

Theirs- Arkin. Ugh. Robert De Niro is apparently back in full form in Silver Linings Playbook, so good for him. Philip Seymour Hoffman is another film geek god, so he will probably be nominated for The Master. Leo might get ousted by or be competing against co-stars Christoph Waltz and Samuel L. Jackson. In the most unexpected turn of events, people are really rooting for Javier Bardem in Skyfall (love it).

Winner- It's time for Leo. Please! He bled his own blood for the role! And he plays a happy person (somewhat)! Called Calvin J. Candie! When will the stars align to give us something like this again?!

Best Original Screenplay: Interesting year.

Mine- 1) Wes Anderson, Moonrise Kingdom

2) Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

3) Zoe Kazan, Ruby Sparks

4) Rian Johnson, Looper

5) Michael Haneke, Amour

Theirs- They love Zero Dark Thirty loads. I think everyone in my list except Ruby Sparks can make it through. Also The Master is a good bet.

Winner- It's between some of my favourite filmmakers this year- Tarantino, PTA, Wes Anderson

Best Adapted Screenplay: Can comic books prevail?

Mine- 1) Steven Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

2) Joss Whedon, The Avengers

3) Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer and Andy Wachowski, Cloud Atlas

4) Chris Terrio, Argo

5) Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Theirs- Silver Linings Playbook and Lincoln are sure bets. Adaptations of super famous books like Les Miserables, Life of Pi and Anna Karenina are possibilities too.

Winner- Chbosky wrote the script based on his own bestselling novel. He's already a winner in my eyes. Silver Linings Playbook and Argo are frontrunners for the Oscars.

These winners are preliminary. We'll see if and how my decisions change.

My Top 10 Films of 2012, Somewhat

     Here it is, my annual incomplete list of favourite films belonging to that year. And what a wonderful tradition it is. Incomplete because I still have a number of 2012 films to watch before I make my final set of lists, that should come out in late January-early February, that is if the film gods are kind enough.

10.

Magic Mike

I had the stupidest grin on my face while watching this film. It is just so much fun! It's like a sports movie without the sports, and male stripping in its place. And it embraces my ideology of "Objectify All Men". Plus what a year Matthew McConaughey has had. In a just world, he will get an Oscar nomination for this role.

9.

Holy Motors

The film that has baffled me beyond belief. And I loved that! I usually hate films which I can't make the head or tail of, but this crazy, wonderful whatever, has some of the most brilliant scenes I have ever seen on film. And god, Denis Lavant is a genius!

8.

Your Sister's Sister

This film is like a lesson in good story-telling and acting. You don't need fancy sets or big budgets. This film is so sweet and funny and warm, and shows the importance of friendship and family. Lovely.

7.

Moonrise Kingdom

Oh to live in a place and a time like Moonrise Kingdom! Wes Anderson-land has never been dreamier and so full of wonder.

6.

Argo

Even though I haven't seen many films of the year, I doubt I will see one as well-made as Argo was. Ben Affleck has totally won me over with this tale of espionage and film-fantasy.

5.

Perks of Being a Wallflower

Because it is so relateable, despite not having a life at all like the characters in it. It's funny and poignant, and Ezra Miller and Logan Lerman are just beautiful. Great soundtrack too.

4.

Skyfall

I have not seen a prettier action movie in my life. Roger Deakins's work, along with a totally unexpected turn from Sam Mendes gives us what might be one of the greatest Bond movies of all time. And I love Daniel Craig, Judy Dench and Javier Bardem so much!

3.

Ruby Sparks

Going to quote a friend after she saw it on my suggestion- "Ruby Sparks is one of the most lovely films I've seen in sooooo long. I've not had this overwhelming feeling of satisfaction and depression at the same time, since I saw Amelie. Love is an understatement."

2.

Cloud Atlas

The most entertaining film I have seen all year. There's something for everyone- comedy, adventure, sci-fi, thriller, and of course romance. I will have to watch it again to make more sense of it, but all the stories and the people and the lives are interlinked so excellently. And love the cast with Ben Whishaw, Jim Broadbent and Hugo Weaving taking top spots.

1.

The Avengers

Seriously, it is so fucking awesome! The best "superhero" superhero film ever. It's funny and smart and the action is fantastic. And then there is the ensemble cast of superheroes, something I would have never thought possible until I saw this. Joss Whedon is the man and HULK SMASH!!!!!!!!

There you have it.

HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR!

This is a Poster-Appreciation Life- 2012 edition

I did a post like this last year and thought that it's about time to take a look at this year's posters.

Let's start with one of the biggest films of the year- The Dark Knight Rises. These posters carry the right amount of mystery and well, coolness to attract people.

However, my favourite TDKR poster is the one featuring my favourite part of the film.

Some posters are better than the movie itself. A great example would be this beauty from Snow White and the Huntsman.

Also this one, if we are to believe the reviews so far. Shame because it is so wonderfully witty and morbid.

Some films are ridiculous and have fun with it. I like this poster so much more than Lincoln's.

Now I still have my problems with JGL looking insane in Looper. Doesn't change the fact that it was one superbly awesome movie and that it showed a very interesting concept of time-travel. I think the poster captures that.

I don't know about you but I am not all that fussed about character posters. However, my favourite poster for On the Road is the one featuring Kirsten Dunst as Camille. Doesn't really showcase the film or anything, but gosh Kiki looks absolutely radiant in it!

One of the most unexpected gems of this year (at least for me) was The Cabin in the Woods. I appreciate this poster so much more now-

Django Unchained is my most anticipated film of the year, and its final poster is kind of badass.

Beasts of the Southern Wild and Holy Motors are two films I have seen this year so far that have left me confounded, mostly because I have nothing to compare them with. And both of their posters are just exuberant in their own weird ways.

The Master is supposed to be a very enigmatic film. I love the enigma in this poster.

Though I am not as pumped for it as others, this poster for Zero Dark Thirty is quite enticing.

Okay I don't know what it is about it, but I LOVE this Skyfall poster.

Also Skyfall does have The Best Fan-Made Poster EVER!

"What makes you think this is my first time?"

(PS. If you didn't get that, please go watch the movie now or go jump in an icy lake).

Now for my favourites:

Killing them Softly has had one brilliant poster after another. I really love all three of these.

Life of Pi is arguably the most gorgeous looking film of this year. It has some lovely posters.

My favourite poster though, just how it is with TDKR, is the one featuring my favourite part of the film.

Richard Parker is so stunning.

Finally, my favourite poster of the year goes to-

Come on! This poster is HILARIOUS!!

Okay fine, my favourite poster is this gorgeousity from Moonrise Kingdom. I have been in love with it ever since I first laid eyes on it. It is just so magical... like the cover of one of Suzy Bishop's books.

Moonrise Kingdom also has given rise to some of the best poster artwork I have seen all year.

Hope you liked this! What are your favourites?