Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)

It's coming towards the end of of 2011, and after sitting through a year that's been filled with underwhelming sequels, it appears one of the best has been saved for last. Director Brad Bird makes the leap from animated movies (Bird directed Incredibles and Ratatouille) to live-action feature films with the biggest, most eye popping, action film of the year.

Ar first glance, choosing Bird to helm this fourth Mission: Impossible film seemed a bizarre and risky choice. However, Tom Cruise knew what he was doing when he handed over the reins to one of the biggest money-making movie franchises around.  Bird's successfully figured out how to bring his energetic visual style from animated movies to an action film without making the end result seem cartoony. The fourth outing feels as fresh as the first, and has possibly, the standout action scene of 2011.

After an incursion in the Kremlin goes explosively wrong, secret spy force IMF is shut down and its agents disavowed. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his small band of allies have mere days to prevent terrorist (Michael Nyqvist) from unleashing nuclear winter on American soil.

The main attraction in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, is a dizzyingly brilliant action sequence set high above Dubai, in and around the 130th floor of the Burj Khalifa. It was inevitable, that Tom Cruise would take on the world's tallest building. Bird slows things down and lets us feel the height. Then he just lets it go, throwing in hazard after hazard, throwing his star (and producer) like a doll and generally whipping up the tension. It's up there with the very best scenes you'll have seen this year - and by the far the movie's standout.

Bird puts his animator sense of timing to good use. An opening jail break scored to Dean Martin's "Ain't that a kick in the head" is Pixar -worthy clockwork punctuated with 12A headbutts and kicks to the shins. The fourth instalment definitely is more on the comedy side. Unfortunately Ghost Protocol is far from perfect, with the its biggest weakness being the plot. I've no doubt it can be quite tricky coming up with new story lines, but the latest bad guy is as stale and bland as they come. A crazed terrorist (Michael Nyqvist) is set on starting World War 3, but it's unclear on what he hopes to achieve. Nyqvist is a great actor but his villain is no patch on Phillip Seymour Hoffman's Owen Davian from M:I3. The film also hits a bit of a low point in the final stretch, when we are introduced to Anil Kapoor's horny millionaire and a final set piece in a computerised car park.

Even with these flaws the film is still great fun to watch from start to finish. This is mainly due to an increased look on team play, with Cruise more then happy to let new recruit Jeremy Renner have a go at a few action scenes. Even Simon Pegg has one or two action scenes to shout about.

Ghost Protocol proves that Cruise's Mission Impossible is still behind the likes of Bourne and Bond. But it's a fun film and proves that Tom Cruise still has what he takes in the action department.

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Top 20 Movies of 2011

I'm not a big fan of making film lists. They inevitably seem inspire reader complaints. But I suppose that's the beauty of these lists. Anyway, below is my top 20 films of 2011. Enjoy.


20. Black Swan
Released: January 21
Talent: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassell, Darren Aronofsky (Director)

Darran Aronofsky's second film in a row about a tormented artist driven to desperate measures by their need to perform. Except the Wrestler never had Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis engaged in lesbian clinches. A career high point for Portman.






19. Shame
Released: press screening
Talent: Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, Steve McQueen (Director)

After 'Hunger', McQueen has immersed himself in a wholly different world and made a film that is similarly distinctive and exploratory and grasps you from beginning to end. One of Michael Fassbender's best performances.








18. Blue Valentine
Released:
Talent: Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams, Derek Cianfrance (Director)

Years in the planning and it showed. Total commitment from nakedly emotional stars Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams made Derek Cianfrance's time-hopping study of a relationship's rise and fall into arguably the definitive example of its genre







17. Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of The Unicorn
Released:
Talent: Jamie Bell, Daniel Craig, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Andy Serkis
Steven Spielberg (Director)

Spielberg's first animated film is a performance-capture 3D version of Tintin's initial encounter with Captain Haddock. After Unearthing a clue to the treasure of ancestor Sir Francis Haddock, they set out together to find it, with protection from a prison escapee. Daniel Craig voices villainous pirate Red Rackham. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost
voice identical detectives Thompson and Thompson. Peter Jackson's Weta Digital do the animation. And the movie's biggest strength is the incredible humanity in the animation - Tintin (Jamie Bell) is ageless, graceful, likable, while Haddock (Andy Serkis) is drunk, bumbling, wistful, and there isn't a single dead-eye in sight. This is Spielberg back to his adventuring best.





16. Thor
Released:
Talent: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins
Idris Elba, Tom Hiddleston, Kenneth Branagh (Director)

All this year's major comic book movies (Thor, Captain America, Green Lantern) had the distinct advantage of being based on comic books that were relatively unheard of by the general public. But only the first two of these managed to create heroes worth caring about, and Captain America was a little too uneven to make this list. Kenneth Branagh's Thor benefited by taking its subject extremely seriously, despite the obvious fantastical nature of a Norse deity sent to Earth to help keep mankind from harm. The Asgardians were explained away as Aliens whose technologies were so advanced that the ancient Vikings hailed them as Gods, and Thor's ability to travel between planets were reconfigured as a result of successful experiments. However, none of this would've counted for anything, if not for the great performance from Chris Hemsworth, and one of the years best villains in the shape of Tom Hiddleston's Loki. Both will return in next year's Avengers...Can't wait.





15. Source Code
Released: 1st April
Talent: Jake Gylenhaall, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga, Jeffrey Wright, Duncan Jones (Director)

Critics complained that Duncan Jones' 'Moon' made no sense whatsoever, but Source Code was superbly paced, old-fashioned Sci-Fi Thriller with one of the darkest twists of the year. When I first heard about Source Codes' Quantum Leap style plot line, it seemed as if Jones had jumped on the Hollywood gravy train. But the director's second film confirms his the most exciting new British director since Christopher Nolan, precisely because it was unlike anything else you watched in 2011.






14. Moneyball
Released: 25th November
Talent: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright Penn, Chris Pratt, Bennett Miller (Director)

Moneyball boasts the smartest dialogue of the year, as well as a thought-provoking story that celebrates the story of the underdog. Moneyball explores that central paradox - the losers win. But their entire careers have been reduced to data points - without beating us over the head with black and white solutions, and that is to its credit. This is one of the movies that can be watched again and again.






13. The King's Speech
Released: 7th January
Talent: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bohnam Carter, Guy Pearce, Derek Jacobi, Tom Hooper (Director)

A little film about a king with a public speaking problem snowballed into award-hogging glory thanks to Colin Firth's fantastic performance. Fully deserved all the awards and praise.








12. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2
Released: 15th July
Talent: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Tom Felton, Helena Bohnam Carter, David Yates (Director)

Part 8 - and the final film in the Harry Potter universe, but far from outstaying its welcome, the Potter finale proved an exhilarating send-off. Arguably the best film in the whole series and proved that Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint can indeed act.







11. Fast and Furious 5
Released: 21st April
Talent: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Tyrese, Chris Bridges, Jordana Brewster, Sung Kang, Justin Lin (Director)

Former cop Brian (Paul Walker) and Mia (Jordana Brewster) break Dom (Vin Diesel) out of custody and flee to Brazil where they must pull off one last job to gain their freedom. But a hard-nosed federal agent (Dwayne Johnson) is on their trail. Johnson actually brings a lot to the movie and helps elevate this to the best film in the series.






10. Hugo
Released: 2nd December
Talent: Asa Butterfield, Chloe G Moretz, Sir Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Emily Mortimer, Christopher Lee, Ray Winstone, Martin Scorsese (Director)

After watching to first trailer for Hugo. I went away feeling very unconvinced by it all. How wrong I was. I actively enjoyed every single moment of watching Martin Scorsese's shot at a family movie. It also restored my faith in 3D and filled my eyes with wonder.







9.Bridesmaids
Released: 24th June
Talent: Kristen Wiig, John Hamm, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Terry Crews, Melissa McCarthy, Paul Feig (Director)

Hands down the comedy of the year, one that still has you laughing out loud even after repeated viewings and weirdly, managed to increase the so called 'Girl-power' by demonstrating that women can experience intense distress just as hilariously as men can.








8. Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes
Released: 11th August
Talent: James Franco, Andy Serkis, Brian Cox, John Lithgow, Tom Felton, Freida Pinto, Rupert Wyatt (Director)

This movie proved that CGI is not, after all, the worst thing to happen to modern cinema. It was director Rupert Wyatt's debut Hollywood venture, an entertaining reboot of an old franchise that, to be honest, most people didn't want to see return. Whether Caesar the ape's engaging presence came about entirely as a result of Andy Serkis' fine work in the mo-cap studio, or was touched up by the geniuses at Weta Digital, the leader of the simian revolution was as captivating a protagonist as any in cinema this year, and all with a word barely spoken. One of the surprise hits of the summer.






7. The Help
Released: 26th October
Talent: Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Chastain, Tate Taylor (Director)

It would seem that Emma Stone doesn't know how to make a bad movie. The Help, a film about a white woman caring enough to write a book about the plight of the help (African-American maids) in 60's America, is as delicate as a rose petal, for lack of a better term. It's funny, touching and incredibly humane - so don't be afraid to turn on the waterworks.







6. Super 8
Released: 5th August
Talent: Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler, Joel Courtney, Ryan Lee, J.J Abrams (Director)

Set in 1979, this is homage to Spielberg's '70's and '80's science action films, written and directed by J.J Abrams. Super 8 tells the story of a group of small town children who are filming a home movie on their Super 8 Camera when a train derails, releasing a dangerous prescence into their neighbourhood. E.T., Close Encounters, Goonies, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, all have story threads or shots lifted from them, and while some make think it overdoes the tribute this is ultimately nostalgic for a style of film that is solely missed. It's a blast to watch.






5. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Released: 16th September
Talent: Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Benedict Cumberpatch, John Hurt, Toby Jones, Kathy Burke, Tomas Alfredson (Director)

A brilliant portrayal of British cold war spies based on the John Le Carre Novel. The film is a gloomy and ethereal espionage thriller that is the most subtle edge of your seat thriller you were likely to see this year. This film has an affinity for quiet tension and Gary Oldman's performance is bloody perfect.







4. The Fighter
Released: 2nd February
Talent: Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo, David O'Russell (Director)

For his dream project about Boston boxer Micky Ward, star/producer Mark Wahlberg surrounded himself with real life brawlers for a punch drunk cocktail of hugs, hits and coarse humour. Christian Bale and Melissa Leo give two of the best performances in 2011.










3. Warrior
Released: 23rd September
Talent: Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte, Joel Edgerton, Jennifer Morrison, Gavin O'Connor (Director)

Brothers Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton take each other on in a mixed martial arts championship. I don't think I've seen a film where I wanted both fighters to win. This failed to reach the box office takings it thoroughly deserved. But, I'm convinced this will do the business once it's released on Blu-ray. Simply outstanding.







2. Senna
Released:
Talent: Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, Frank Williams, Asif Kapadia (Director)

Fiction director Asif Kapadia brings his flair for a narrative to a zippy drive-by of F1 legend Ayrton Senna's turbulent life and tragic death, using only footage for an authentic driver's view. Senna got snubbed at next year's Oscar's for best Documentary, which is an absolute disgrace as it's one of the best documentaries you'll ever see.









1. Drive
Released: 23rd September
Talent: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan: Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks, Christina Hendricks, Oscar Issac, Ron Perlman, Nicolas Winding Refn (Director)

Nicholas Winding Refn's beguiling thriller about a stuntman and getaway driver who falls in love with another man's woman, was meant to just be nothing more than an arty gangster film. But, the Danish director has made it clear he sees Ryan Gosling's The Driver as a modern day superhero, and - with that super cool white scorpion jacket and the ability to engage in impressively orchestrated extreme violence at any given moment - it would be very hard is disagree. In a movie that that went back to the 1980's insouciantly paced work of Michael Mann, with a bit of 1970's grind house thrown in for good measure, Gosling's enigmatic creation proved the year's coolest character. Hands down the best film of 2011, and one of the coolest film you'll ever see.




There were many other great films in 2011, some fully the equal to the list above. Including;
Tree of Life, True Grit, Crazy Stupid Love, X-men First Class, Ides of March, Rango, Arrietty, Midnight in Paris, Closer to the Edge, Another Earth, Contagion, Attack The Block. Take Shelter, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Kill List

Finally, I have to comment on 2012 and what's looking like the best line-up of films released....Ever!
Dark Knight Rises, The Hobbit, The Amazing Spider-Man, Carnage, The Avengers, 007: Skyfall, Young Adult, War Horse, J.Edgar, The Iron Lady, The Descendants, The Hunger Games, Prometheus, Expendables 2, Margin Call, Haywire, The Raid, Coriolanus, The Darkest Hour, The Raven, Mirror Mirror, We Bought A Zoo, Wrath of the Titans, American Pie: The Reunion, Titanic 3D, Battleship, Men in Balck 3, Rock of Ages, GI Joe 2: Retaliation, Ice Age 4, Snow White and the Huntsman, Brave, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Safe House, Total Recall, Woman In Black, The Bourne Legacy, Dredd, Taken 2, Looper, Gangster Squad, Savages, The Sweeney, The Muppets.....to name a few ;)

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Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows (2011)

After the prior Robert Downey Jr.- Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes earned a staggering $524 million globally, you didn't have to be the world's greatest detective to know a sequel would be on the way. Turning Arthur Conan Doyle's classic literary tales of detection and deception into a high-speed film with plenty of action, speed-ramped camera techniques and and quick, quippy cleverness.  A Game of Shadows follows the same plan as the original. Only this time, bigger and better.

As a spate of Antichrist bombings rips through Europe, Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) intercepts a letter that leads him to a mysterious gypsy girl (Noomi Rapace) and the brilliant professor Moriaty (Jared Harris) Meanwhile Dr. Watson (Jude Law) is trying desperately to get married.

There is very little sense in personal growth in Holmes' latest case. Director Guy Ritchie unapologetically sticks to the same formula. The set-pieces are bigger, with a good mix of marvel and overkill: the film keeps introducing bigger and bigger guns to up the ante somewhat. What has changed however, is the villain.

Make no mistake about it; Moriaty is Sherlock's Joker: a crook as indomitable as the hero. Far from lurking in the background, Moriaty takes centre stage. Through a series of confrontations, Holmes and his nemesis play a literal and metaphorical game of chess. Jared Harris was an excellent choice as Moriaty. He creates a Moriaty of diabolic grace - as poised as his opponent is jittery.

A Game of Shadows contains a number of standout action sequences, including a four-on-one encounter between Holmes and some thugs, a chase-and-escape at Watson's bachelor party, fireworks on a train, a torturous sequence involving a meat hook, and an artillery-impeded race through a forest. There are also plenty of explosions and secondary fights, all of which gel to make this latest adventure bigger then any other told so far. Holmes does not wear his deerstalker hat nor utter the word 'elementary', but he smokes pipes upon occasion and dresses up like both an elderly lady and the upholstery of a chair.

Ritchie's signature style is in evidence, but is not as overpowering as in the first movie. He uses slow-motion shots to detail Holmes' advance mental choreography of fights. The most inventive instance of this occurs when Holmes and Moriaty square off.

Noomi Rapace is the only character that's a non-starter. It's not her fault, Noomi is a fabulous actress and I'm sure she'll have a more meaty role in Ridley Scott's Prometheus. But here, her gypsy girl is neither feisty nor particularly sympathetic, and doesn't even have a romance sub-plot. Watson is proving to be a great character for Jude Law. he's able to squeeze a touch of sensitivity to the tension of a sensible man fighting the irresistible lure of adventure. Downey Jr. has grown into the role. He seems far more relaxed; he's found his rhythm as Holmes. If you're a fan of Ritche and of the series, you'll love this movie.

A Game Of Shadows trumps Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. Its a confident sequel that does everything better.

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Puss In Boots (2011)

Shrek has been Dreamworks Animation's big, money making franchise over the last few years. Every time a new film is released, the Shrek franchise has always been a success, but, quite smartly, Dreamworks have realised they can't keep churning out the same film every couple of years, so they have now decided to turn their attention to one of its best loved characters; Puss In Boots.

Back before he crossed paths with Shrek and the rest of the gang, Puss (Antonio Banderas) was a roving outlaw and thief, haunted by his best friend Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis) seeming betrayal, Puss is looking for a way to clear his name and get back home.

The plot doesn't always run as smoothly as it should, but director Chris Miller manages to cram in lots of action in a quest that Puss undertakes before crossing paths with the big green ogre. It's another fun-packed fairytale mash-up that will make kids and adults laugh.

Puss marks his territory from the outset, somewhere south of the border where his reputation for handy swordsmanship is put to the test  by a sleek black cat who turns out to be professional femme fatale Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek).

Their great swordplay and banter is a cheeky nod to Desperado, but there is a smidgen of Sergio Leone too when it comes to the extreme close-ups and choreographed stalking, complete with an Ennio Morricone inspired soundtrack. They're both on the hunt for some magic beans, said to be in the hands of Jack and Jill (Billy Bob Thornton & Amy Sedaris).

Like Puss himself, this spin-off is swift on its paws and happily, much more lighter on the pop cultural gags. There is still a slight tendency to cram too much in, but on the whole, it works. Hayek does some decent work and it's no surprise to know there's plenty of spark between her and Banderas. It's just unfortunate that the character of Kitty isn't as memorable as some of the other characters in the franchise. However, it's nice to see Dreamworks continuing to hire some quality actors and letting their voices do the lifting. Because there is so much focus on the one character instead of the ensemble that was Shrek & co, there are a heap of jokes that are, for the most part, effective.

The movie itself is gorgeous to look at and makes good use of the extra dimension without over doing it. It's also the first film from Dreamworks to have input from Executive Producer Guillermo del toro, who had a couple of voice cameos and added his opinion to the look of the film.

Puss in Boots did well at the US box office (Originally planned as a straight to DVD release), and will not be surprised to see it continue that success in the UK. Puss is a very good family film that will have people of all ages laughing. Just don't go expecting much imagination in the storytelling department.

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Hugo (2011)

The magical nature of cinema is explored in Martin Scorsese's thoughtful family blockbuster. Largely enchanting and spellbinding throughout, Hugo's alternating and heartbreaking nature is the result of a poignant narrative, super direction from Martin and a truly superb multi-generational cast.

Paris, 1931. Young Hugo (Asa Butterfield) maintains the clocks of a great railway station while avoiding the guard (Sacha Baron Cohen) intent on sending him to an orphanage. Aided by Isabelle (Chloe Mortez), Hugo gets an Automaton left by his late father (Jude Law) working. It draws a picture which prompts the children to delve into the mystery of the unhappy shopkeeper (Sir Ben Kinglsey).

Surprisingly this is the first Scorsese film built entirely around the dominant passion in his life - cinema itself. Hugo finds Scorsese - the most heavyweight director to make a 3D movie - wholly embracing the possibilities of contemporary technology in the way Melies did in his day. The movie is assembled with an obsessive delight in a combination of magic and mechanics, which unites his young and old heroes, a stage conjurer-turned filmmaker and a lad with an inherited knack of fixing clockwork contraptions.

Scorsese frames the story within a luscious depiction of Paris, using that canvas to deploy some technical brilliance. The extended opening shot swoops through the rooftops and into the steampunk station before scurrying through the dark recesses to encounter Hugo's sorrowful image. The sequence immerses us in the environment. Similarly, fantastic use of 3D - enhances rather than detracts from the narrative.

You could argue that Asa Butterfield and Chloe Moretz  lack experience, but are never out of their depth. The former imbues streetwise Hugo with a mournful sense of innocence and wonder, while Moretz possess a disarming sweetness, bandying about words of a more sweeter nature than she did in Kick-Ass. At the movies' core is a mesmerising turn from Sir Ben Kingsley, who adds so much depth to a man who has closed the door on a painful past. In a similar role, Helen McCory also shines, while the imposing figure of Sir Christopher Lee lends dramatic weight as a bookshop owner.


Hugo's personal story features serial-like scrapes, and dream sequences in which the boy becomes a clockwork cyborg or causes a spectacular train smash. It gets round to a dramatisation of the pre-War world of cinema, which is also an endearing love story. Hugo has some sequences that will make anyone interested in film go misty-eyed as we witness the creation of  movies.

Hugo is a powerful reminder of the magic of cinema and the effect it has on so many lives. It offers excitement and enchantment in equal measure and will surely become a lasting favourite.

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