"I am not formed by things that are of myself alone."- FAVOURITE SCENES OF 2013

        They're finally here! My "best of 2013" lists are go! I begin with my favourite scenes/sequences of the movies that released in 2013. Last year I divided this list into a normal Best Scenes list and a Best Action Scenes list but this time, it's back to being one list. 

P.S.- There are a lot of endings that have made their way into this list so SPOILERS of course!

P.P.S.-I am going to say right from the start that 2013 was a fantastic year for movies and all my lists are actually very long and I am only highlighting a part of them, so please don't think that I don't appreciate the things that haven't made it into my lists.

Honourable mentions: The dance scene in The Heat, the Gos gets his ass kicked in Only God Forgives, "Let It Go" in Frozen.

10.

 Westray dies in The Counselor

One the whole, I found The Counselor to be dull and forgettable, except for one fantastically shot and freakishly creepy death scene towards the end. This mode of killing was described earlier in the movie and seeing it executed is both brutal and thrilling. Brad Pitt does excellent dying man acting too. Best death scene of the year :)

9.

Ryan gets detached in Gravity

This scene stood out the most for me on my first viewing of Gravity and it *almost* distracted me from the enjoying the rest of the movie because I was that floored by it. In one single take, the kind that the duo of Emmanuel Lubezki and Alfonso Cuaron have become famous for, we see Sandra Bullock's Ryan Stone spiraling into space and how the camera moves closer and closer to her until we start seeing from her perspective and then it moves back out again. It's absolutely gobsmacking, visually, thematically and emotionally. Bravo.

8.

Barrel of monkeys in Iron Man 3

Some time at the beginning of 2013, Iron Man 3 was my favourite movie of the year and this scene had contributed a lot to that (admittedly I had seen about 5 movies at that point). As fun as Jaegars and Kaijus fighting each other was, this is THE action sequence of the year in terms of pure action, thrill, innovation and just delight. We actually fear for those people's lives and it is amazing to see Iron Man save them in such a way, along with that hilarious twist at the end of it.

7.

The ending of Captain Phillips

Captain Phillips is a very tense movie that keeps you enthralled throughout, barely letting you catch a breather and it is the same way for the characters in it, especially Tom Hanks' Captain Phillips. We see all the hardships that he goes through, protecting his ship from the Somali pirates and then being kidnapped by them, and how he still remains stable and calm. We almost wonder at his resilience to these incredible events, but then, right at the end, he lets go. And its shattering. I dare you to watch that scene without crying.

6.

Going to The World's End in The World's End

Gary King and his two musketeers come face-to-face with the Network at the last bar of their epic bar crawl and the one-liners that are unleashed have to be seen/heard to be believed.

It is the ultimate scene about defiance. Beatiful.

"Go back to Legoland, you cunts!"

5.

Frances' speech in Frances Ha

I was tempted to put the awesome dance-y run across New York streets set to David Bowie's "Modern Love" here, but I was left with my mouth hanging open and my heart completely gone when Greta Gerwig's Frances explains to some people at a dinner party what she wants in life. 

"It's that thing when you're with someone and you love them and they know it, and they love you and you know it, but it’s a party! And you're both talking to other people and you're laughing and shining and you look across the room and catch each other's eyes. But not because you’re possessive or it's precisely sexual but because that is your person in this life. And it's funny and sad but only because this life will end. And it's this secret world that exists right there in public unnoticed that no one knows about. It’s sort of like how they say that other dimensions exist all around us, but we don't have the ability to perceive them. That’s what I want out of a relationship or just life, I guess."

When movies manage to explain something that you know to be true but have never articulated, it's just the best thing ever. I cried.

4.

The ending of This is the End

I am not going to write about it in case someone who has not watched the movie is reading this post. All I am going to say is that I was ASTONISHED, SHOCKED, SURPRISED, FUCKING MINDBLOWN at it. Never expected it in a million years and god, it was heavenly ;-) 

3.

The piano duet in Stoker

Holy moly, I have never been aroused more in a scene that doesn't involve Ryan Gosling, ever. It's sinister and sexy. The chemistry between Mia Wasikowska and Matthew Goode is fantastic. The fact that nothing happens makes it even more eroticised. Musical notes and sexual tension heightening together to reach a crescendo, oh my!

2.

Lemmons in The Wolf of Wall Street

I am taking into account the full sequence from the Country Club to Jordan saving Donnie's life because I can. Everything, from the way Leonardo DiCaprio distorts his face when the lemmons trip starts, to the way he crawls, to the never ending steps in the Country Club, to the opening of the car door, to him screaming nonsense on the phone, to him fighting Jonah Hill's equally tripped out Donnie, to Donnie stuffing his face with salami because why not, to the juxtaposition of Popeye eating his spinach and Jordan snorting his coke- it is all part of the funniest sequence of the whole year. It's crazy and unbelievable and rip-roaringly hilarious and man, Leo is officially the modern master of physical comedy. I can't imagine the state of the set on the days this whole sequence was shot.

1.

"Everytime" in Spring Breakers

Even a doped out Leonardo DiCaprio opening his Lamborghini with his legs cannot trump this scene in terms of what-the-fuck-ness. As funny as this scene is, what with James Franco's Alien showing his sensitive side by playing and singing "Everytime" by Britney Spears, "one of the greatest singers of all time, an angel if there ever was on this earth," on his white grand piano while the sun sets to inspire a trio of girls in leopard-print monokinis and pink ski masks to go rob spring breakers followed by the actual, rather violent robbing, it simultaneously subverts and pays an ode to pop culture, which is what I love about it the most. Think 20-30 years ago, such a scene would have been set to classical music and it would have been big men carrying out these armed robberies. But the world is changing and pop culture is changing and the American dream is changing and the scene captures all that, amidst some of the most beautiful cinematography of the year. It is monumental.

This is a Poster-Appreciation Life- 2013 edition

Who doesn't love a good poster? 2013 movies had some pretty remarkable poster though I am really starting to feel that official posters aren't half as fun or creative as the teaser ones. You'll see.

First, let's start with the boring stuff-

At least August: Osage County's one sheet is somewhat funny but there really isn't any imagination put in either of these posters. Just stills from the movie. Even the fonts are dull.

In contrast, these three just hit the nail on their USPs without getting boring. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues is about Ron Burgundy and the mustache *is* kind of a big deal when it comes to him.

In case of the one sheet of The Kings of Summer, though the tagline is larger than the name of the film, it shows that this film is about a bunch of boys having fun in the nature and it really captures that spirit, which was what made the film so enjoyable.

And All is Lost is simply put 'Robert Redford stranded on a boat' and again, the poster is really showing that.

Somebody at Marvel got stingy-

I actually liked the Iron Man 3 poster when it came out but COME ON! More imagination, please?

Character posters galore-

Every film nowadays has a character poster set. While I do think it was necessary for something like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, part 2 as it was the end of a major franchise that had so many people in it, I think in most other cases, they're just kind of bleh.

The Great Gatsby character posters, for those literary nerds who *really* wanted a Myrtle Wilson poster. I won't be too mean about it though because the poster with Isla Fisher's Myrtle is my favourite among these.

And American Hustle of course. LOOK! SPARKLE, HAIR AND CLEAVAGE! TA DAAAA!!! Again, I happen to love the ones with the ladies and I actually feel that this film probably only needed character posters and not a normal movie one.

Posters I really like because of their colour-

This too uses an image from the movie itself but the shades make it romantic and wistful. 

Xavier Dolan is some insane prodigy when it comes to colour. The film was gorgeous and so is this poster. 

It's the most elusive one sheet of the year, but it's just so captivating! Something about the blue-grayness of the eyes against that shirt and the background. And of course, Joaquin Phoenix's face is magical.

I could have never guessed what the movie was about if I had just seen this poster, but it's alluring. And I like that it has colour. And Frances is dancing :)

There were a number of posters for Blue is the Warmest Colour but this one is my favourite. Mostly because of the blue, on both the background and in Lea Seydoux's hair. It's straightforward and eye-catching.

And the (almost) monochrome beauties-

I just really like the simplicity and the starkness of these two.

A thousand silhouettes...

Though both these films ended up being meh, I like how the posters capture the iconographies of their respective franchises. Superman's speed, his cape, and the way both of them sort of merge make a rather striking one sheet for our man of steel. And while the movie kind of wasted Benedict Cumberbatch's Khan (spoilers?), this Star Trek Into Darkness poster emphasizes on his destructiveness well and of course there is the cool Starfleet sign amidst all that.

Tease away: Why weren't these the official posters again?

A lot of people complain about the shallowness of the character of The Bling Ring but Sofia Coppola had warned us from the beginning. You don't even need to see their faces. Their designer shades tell all.

This poster is hilarious. Yes, it kinda sorta encapsulates the father-son theme of the movie, but I almost wish the movie was about biker Ryan Gosling taking care of a baby. That would've been fun.

My favourite thing about The Wolverine was how comparatively small scale it was and how that helped focus most of the story on Hugh Jackman's legendary mutant. I like the simplistic yet powerful approach on this teaser poster too.

Disney-fied-

Much like the Man of Steel and Star Trek Into Darkness posters above, both these posters evoke the spirit of Disney, though in very different ways. I think the Saving Mr. Banks one sheet is adorable. Some of my most favourite moments in the movie was whenever it referenced Mary Poppins and this poster shows that. And the Escape from Tomorrow one is plain cool. I want it on my wall even though I have little-to-no interest in watching the movie.

Disappointing movies with great posters-

By far the most disappointing movie of last year, and I *do* blame the posters partly for my raised expectations.

(PS. this isn't the last mention of Only God Forgives in this list)

This is such a crazy one sheet but it's awesome too. Unfortunately, the film only got the first part right.

Coming to my absolute favourites of the year...

Again, the teaser posters rule. The actual Catching Fire posters, character or otherwise, are very generic and blah, but these two teaser posters are stunning. I love the colours in the first and the details in the second. Shame the studios don't run with the more artistic one sheets.

Spring Breakers had a plethora of posters. My favourite is yet to come but these two beauties came close too. I like how different both these posters are in a way, from the font to the feel, and how both apply to the movie. Spring Breakers is a movie that defies definition, hence giving so many options for various kinds of posters.

And now, my top 3-

I still love this poster, no matter what my feelings towards the movie are. It's got the Gos; it's bloody, weird and straight up unforgettable. The movie is *kind of* like that but in a bad way. Ah well.

AND TIE FOR #1!

I can't choose between these two. I absolutely adore both of them. The Spring Breakers one is cheeky, colourful and totally amazeballs in its girly violent spirit, much like the movie. And just the intricacies and attention to detail in the Stoker poster are astounding. I love the thought put into both of them. Brilliant!

And that's it. What did you think? Which 2013 poster was your favourite?

"You know, it's moments like these when I realize how much of a superhero I am."

         Just as Iron Man had a lot riding on its back being the first film in the Avengers Phase 1, Iron Man 3 also comes with sky-high expectations as it starts the cycle of Avengers Phase 2. Added to that, it is following-up to what I believe is the best "superhero" superhero film ever, The Avengers, and the slight disappointment that was Iron Man 2. The odds were pretty well-matched as to whether it would fail or pass. Thankfully, with the help of a slightly mature but not overly-serious cough*The Dark Knight Rises*cough storyline, a very interesting villain, spectacular effects, a super hot Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert Downey Jr.'s Robert Downey Jr.-ness, what we have is a solid superhero movie that is a great start to this year's summer blockbuster season proper.

           The film starts after the events of The Avengers, when Tony Stark had had a near-death experience while fighting the aliens in New York which has left him shaken, so much so that even the mention of "aliens" or "New York" gives him panic attacks. His fiery lady-love Pepper Potts is concerned as this is taking a toll on their relationship. Plus there is a new baddie in town called the Mandarin who likes sending out really well-edited video clips of his terrorist attacks as "lessons" to the American president, amd may or may not have something to do with a very jaded Aldrich Killian. When the safety of his friends and Pepper is put in harm's way, Tony has to take "good old-fashioned revenge" with the help of his best friend Colonel James "Iron Patriot/War Machine" Rhodes, and his occasionally unreliable iron suits.

          That's so much for the basic plot. The Iron Man movies for me have always been about Robert Downey Jr.'s plain awesome portrayal of Tony Stark. I tend to side with the supervillains in most cases, but not here. Casting Downey Jr. as Stark has been one of the most inspired casting choices in perhaps ever, and that is not only because of the cockiness and the one-liner spewing splendour that he possesses, but also because he is a fantastic actor who can act with just his face in most of his "big" scenes. Before going for this film, I saw the first two Iron Man movies and realised this. I mean yes, the iron suit is cool as hell, but we wouldn't be half as crazy about Iron Man were he not played by Downey Jr. His Tony can be both a narcissistic jerk and an emotional, caring man, sometimes at the same time. Just watch all of his scenes with the precocious kid, Harley, in this film and you will agree with me. Also he gets to do a lot without the iron suit in it and we see how he is a hero through and through. He IS Iron Man.

         I have always loved Gwyneth Paltrow's performance as Pepper Potts. She is someone who is an equal to Tony, and can both reprimand him and care for him. Iron Man 3 sees her doing so better than ever. She was just incredible in this movie. I am not going to talk about what she does or what happens with her, but trust me, she is as kick-ass here as Natasha Romanoff was in The Avengers. Totally fangirling.

            The rest of the impressive cast includes Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Ty Simpkins and of course Sir Ben Kingsley. As I said, I just rewatched the Iron Man series and while I still have a soft spot for Terrence Howard's portrayal of Rhodes, Cheadle does a more than decent job with the character. He gets to do a lot of stunts in this film and his chemistry with Downey Jr. is excellent. I think for spoilers sake, I will not go into much detail about Pearce's and Kingsley's characters, Killian and the Mandarin respectively, except that they are both very effective antagonists to our man of iron (see what I did there?). Kingsley particularly shines after his big twist is revealed. I felt that Hall was quite wasted in this film, which is a shame because she is a very engaging actress. My favourite supporting cast member however turned out to be a child actor, Simpkins, who plays Harley. He ends up being a total match for the wit and sarcasm of Tony Stark himself and completely holds his own in all of their scenes together.

           Among the returning cast members, we have Jon Favreau as Happy who very good as comic relief, especially with all the Downton Abbey-loving and Paul Bettany who voices Jarvis and I feel is a very integral member of the movies as he tends to be as much a part of the Iron Man suit as Tony. This is the first time we don't see much of S.H.I.E.L.D. though there is a tiny morsel of something related in the post-credits scene.

          The story was written by the director Shane Black and Drew Pearce. As I said in the opening paragraph, it would not have been easy for them to write something that follows The Avengers but they did quite a good job, especially when it came to integrating the events of The Avengers and making Tony a much more human figure as a result. He is, after all, a man with as many problems as the rest of us, though he deals with them differently since he is a genius, playboy, philanthropist, millionaire. The scenes when he has to fight back as himself, without the iron suit, were very well-written and just added layers to the character of Tony. I also liked how they represented evil in the form of Mandarin. The dialogue of course was as snappy as they come, and if this indeed is the last solo Iron Man movie as the closing events of the film seem to suggest, they have written a perfectly satisfying and enjoyable end to the trilogy.

           Black has done a remarkable job of directing this film. The cinema crowd that I saw the film with broke out in applause a number of times while watching the film and rightly so. It was quite a tight movie that kept us rapt and entertained throughout. Effects-wise, the "barrel of monkeys" scene and the entire last act was very impressive and even awe-inducing at times. Those of us who are Iron Man fiends will have a field day seeing ALL of the iron suits that the film, well, shows off.

           Many people are calling this the best film of the trilogy. I still believe that the first one was the most perfect film of the three and remains as one of the best action movies I have ever seen. Iron Man 3 does falter in parts, with its slightly incoherent plot regarding Extremis and a rather rushed ending, but it is still leaps and bounds ahead of Iron Man 2 (which personally I don't find *that* terrible).

          A true summer blockbuster with a superhero for the ages, do check out Iron Man 3 as soon as you can. I personally can't wait to see Iron Man back in The Avengers 2 now.

Thoughts

1) 100 FOLLOWERS! YESSSS!


Thank you everyone who follows this blog. I really never expected this to happen. So happy. All of you guys rock!

2) Sam Mendes will not direct Bond 24. A part of me wants to boo this decision after his brilliant work in Skyfall, and a part of me is glad because in case he didn't deliver, it might have marred that very work. I can't really think of a director right now, but I do hope the producers decide to walk down a similar path and find a director who can continue exploiting the more dramatic and deeper side of James Bond.

3) The Harry Potter stars have got it going on! Daniel Radcliffe, aka my favourite person in the world, is in talks to star as Igor in the sci-fi retelling of Frankenstein that has been penned down by Chronicle's Max Landis. I think this sounds like all kinds of bizarre awesomeness, what with the Frankenstein character reportedly being "pathologically dirty and dressed in old clowns clothing." I am really looking forward to it and DanRad's work in it. Also speaking of re-imaginings, Emma Watson might star as the eponymous heroine in the live action version of Cinderella with Cate Blanchett as the Evil Stepmother and Kenneth Branagh at the helm as director. I think she will be a lovely Cinderella.

4) Anchorman 2 is one of my most anticipated films of this year and after news of Kristen Wiig and James Marsden joining the comic cast, the ultimate hero-actor, Harrison Ford, too will be seen in the film. It is becoming damn near impossible to wait for this film. It is going to be gold.

5) Posters- Iron Man 3 has a ton of posters out. I do like the Pepper Potts poster and (I'm guessing) the final poster but I absolutely lurve the Tony Stark character poster. I would actually like to own it. It's badass.  Also speaking of excellent posters, the latest Spring Breakers poster is super girly and violent and I adore it. The new Hangover 3 poster trying to mimic the final Harry Potter posters is just hilarious. Coming to TV shows (WHICH ARE GOING TO FINALLY START IN MARCH! WOO HOO!), Doctor Who has a new poster out with the Doctor, Clara and a whole lot of upcoming villains whose images are hidden in the shards of glass. Also Game of Thrones has character posters out and they are awesome. Even fucking Joffrey gets one, though I am pretty sure it's for people to throw things at.

6) Links- Mette is turning 18 soon. She's far too cool for someone so young and is celebrating this fact on her blog with a series of The Upcoming Adult lists. They are fantastic. Speaking of, Ryan at The Matinee has written nearly 2000 posts! 1999 to be exact with the 2000th one coming out later today. I'll probably be 70 by the time I reach that many posts, so a huge congratulations and also a pat on the back to him. Also, do check out Anna's musings on the ultimate cinephile question- "Why movies? Why not books, music, art? What elevates film above all else?" Excellent read and something I really understand and agree with.

7) Trailers- Frances Ha, which looks hilarious and weird and something I would seriously enjoy. I have been waiting for it since TIFF last year. Spring Breakers that is looks like a truly strange, alluring, crazy film and I am actually looking forward to it. The latest Iron Man 3 trailer is the best one yet, and I am finally fully pumped for this film. I was scared that this film will take too serious a tone, but I can see the glimpses of humour and one-liners in it, so I am a happy bunny now. In TV land, the new Hannibal show looks pretty intense and I think it will be great. Finally, the Game of Thrones, Season 3 extended trailer has made me hungry for this show again. It looks epic and god I love Tyrion and the dragons!

8) Finally, I am going to leave you with David Bowie's latest music video, starring his androgynous alien soulmate, Tilda Swinton. As I read somewhere, and agree whole-heartedly, Bowie probably started making new music again so that Swinton could star in his videos.

She HAS to star as Bowie in his biopic, yes?

Bye!

Thoughts

It is the strange feeling writing a post on a tab but my brother has hijacked well, his own laptop. And now I am reduced to this silly piece of technology. Ah, c'est la vie.

1. So apparently Johnny Depp dropped out of Wes Anderson's next, The Grand Budapest Hotel and has been replaced by Ralph Fiennes. If you remember, I was overjoyed when the news had first come out of his casting because I had been praying for him to get a non-absurd money-accumulating role, but nooooo! He really knows how to test my loyalty. I was actually depressed when I found out that he had dropped out. But it seems that all hope is not lost and cinematographer Wally Pfister wants him as lead in his directorial debut Transcendence. Please please please let this be good. I miss the time when Johnny Depp's career did not make me cry. Pfister also wants Christian Bale as co-lead so we may be looking at a Public Enemies cast reunion. Big Yes!!

2. Oh by the way, I hope everyone is safe from Hurricane Sandy. I would comment on calling a scary hurricane Sandy, but as learnt from sitting in a quiz once, hurricanes are usually given the names of women or um, pets (?) in this case because people hope that they will be as calm and nondestructive as the things they usually name. So yes, I hope Hurricane Sandy ends up being as harmless as it sounds. And that was all for the general knowledge segment of this post. Moving right along.

3. Loads of links- This post was supposed to come ages ago, back when the awesome Cinematic Paradox run by Stevee Taylor aka my blogging soulsister turned 3! She also updated her top 100 movies out of which I have seen 93. How many have you seen? Andy Buckle of The Film Emporium got to interview friggin' Paul Thomas Anderson! So cool! Since Halloween is tomorrow, a couple of Halloween-themed links- Sati's 7 Days of Halloween and Alex's Top 10 Horror Films. I posted my own Top 10 last year. I am still happy with my list, but I would put Suspiria somewhere in there if I had made it this year.

4. Hey did you guys notice that I have tweaked the blog's design a bit! How do you like it? Also I changed my about page a bit, if you're interested in that sort of thing... you know like getting to know people etc.

5) Two superhero teaser posters- Iron Man 3 which shows the various versions of the Iron suit and Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark in their midst. It is intriguing enough, especially if you love the awesome Iron suit as I do. The Wolverine does have a pretty rad poster but after the utter disappointment of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, I am still not too buzzed about it.

6) Trailer- Iron Man 3 has a cool and sort of dark trailer out. Something has happened that is making Tony Stark reflect back on his life. Also his suits might have gone nuts and there's a new baddie in the form of Mandarin, played by Sir Ben Kingsley. I do like it a lot and am already dying to watch it, as Iron Man is my favourite superhero, but the lack of zingy one-liners in the trailer is slightly worrying. Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters has another ridiculous trailer out. This film is going to be such shit. Also why is Hansel American and Gretel British???? 

7) Living with a cinephile must be very affecting. My twelve year old brother has made his top 25 films list, which both of us would like to share with you- (25) The Hangover, (24) The Social Network, (23) The Silence of the Lambs, (22) Star Trek, (21) Scott Pilgrim vs The World, (20) Kill Bill Vol. 2, (19) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, (18) Ghostbusters, (17) Inglourious Basterds, (16) How to Train Your Dragon, (15) Shaun of the Dead, (14) Wall-E, (13) Transformers, (12) Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, (11) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, (10) Hot Fuzz, (9) Kill Bill Vol. 1, (8) Spider-man, (7) The Toy Story trilogy, (6) Up, (5) The Dark Knight Rises, (4) Ratatouille, (3) Iron Man, (2) The Dark Knight, (1) The Avengers.

8) Finally, Halloween is tomorrow and as usual I am in a place which doesn't really celebrate it and I am left to wishing that I was somewhere that does. Given the chance, I would dress as one of my many role models, Wednesday Addams-

"What are you, darling? Where’s your costume?"

Still, my best friend might be going as her, so yaay(?)!

Happy Halloween everyone! Stay safe. Byee.