Josh hasn't told you this yet, but each one of us is taking a day to recap the past year in various forms of entertainment. So we here at PTA are going to talk books, music, apps, and, in my case, movies. We hope you enjoy it. We hope that you agree and post millions of comments! But sadly you won't. Because we get a ton of hits and no comments, and it hurts our self esteem. (Could this be our New Year's Resolution? Maybe we should spend a little less time with our families this year and a little more time writing awesome comments to PTA? Why not? Auld Lang Syne.)
Well. What a year in movies it wasn't! Nothing blew me away, and usually something blows me away. Bear in mind I haven't seen Les Mis, Django Unchained, or Zero Dark Thirty and I bet they will all blow me away and I will regret being so dismissive in this post. But up until now? Kinda dumb year, Hollywood.
But if I were to narrow it down to my favorites, I would offer the following poem:
Anna Karenina was beautiful
The Hobbit was dutiful
Lincoln was historical
The Master: metaphorical
Moonrise Kingdom: cute and sweet
Argo: an exciting feat
21 Jump Street was dirty and funny
Life of Pi's visuals were pretty dang stunning
But if it came to guilty pleasures, was there anything greater than The Avengers and Skyfall?? I saw them both twice. Twice, you say? How decadent!
I could also make a special poem about the movies I didn't like, but that seems hateful and I'm full of love. But I'm giving you the stink eye, Hunger Games, Battleship, and Cloud Atlas!
How did my fellow PTA members feel? Let's ask!
This is from JOSH:
BEST: Perks of Being a Wallflower - This may seem like an odd choice for best movie of the year. It was pretty small, I don’t think it made a lot of money and I doubt it is being considered for any awards, but I loved it. It seemed to get that feeling of being an outsider in high school (and weren’t we all) and what it feels like to finally find your people. Logan Lerman is pretty fantastic as Charlie, the main character, and plays nicely off Ezra Miller, who plays Patrick, his gay best friend.
Guilty Pleasure: Pitch Perfect - any movie with a character named Fat Amy is bound to be on the guilty pleasure list. This movie is silly and unbelievable, but funny and heart warming and has some killer music (even if you are not a fan of a capella groups.)
How about this from KEN:
Best: I haven’t seen it yet, but my guess is Les Miserables. This story of redemption has resonated with me from the first time somebody told it to me, when I was a teenager. It’s probably cliché at this point, but I’ve always found the music powerful and get emotional at the end when they sing the final “Will you join in our crusade? Who will be strong and stand with me? Out beyond the barricade, is there a world you long to see?” To love another person is to see the face of God, indeed. I think it looks brilliantly cast. What’s that, you say? I have to pick something I’ve seen? Then I’ll go with Lincoln.
Guilty Pleasure: The Bourne Legacy. I say this is guilty because before I saw it, I consciously objected to the Bourne movies going forward without Matt Damon. But I told myself this would just be a spy movie and I could distance myself emotionally from it being a “Bourne Movie,” and it worked and ended up enjoying it quite a bit.
Here's a few thoughts from PATRICK:
Best: Brave
So admittedly I have not seen a lot of movies this year...I have a new born and a two year old. So I saw Brave...the thing I loved was a surprise of it being a Mother Daughter movie. You think your are going to get arrows and bears, but really it's a story about one Daughter and one Mother who love each other and can't see why the other one can't see it their way...with arrows and bears.
Guilty Pleasure: Dark Shadows
I know, but what was I gonna do?! Tim Burton? Johnny Depp? Michelle Pfeiff?! I had to see it. And I feel guilty for how much I liked it. I'm sure it was mostly because it was like watching old friends do something they thought was real funny and so I thought it was funny...but that they thought it was, not that it really was. I love those guys, I can't wait to hang out with them again in...Lone Ranger?? (Not Burton) Movies I can't wait to see...when my kids have moved out: Les Miserables, The Hobbit, Moonrise Kingdom.
And finally, BRETT weighs in:
Best - Argo. I didn't see a more well-crafted, acted, directed movie this year than Argo. You know what's going to happen yet you're gripping the armrest seeing how they'll get there. I hope it wins tons of awards. Runners up: Avengers, because there wasn't a more fun movie all year and Looper, because of the mind blowing.
Guilty pleasure: Cabin in the Woods. This is a guilty pleasure in the sense that I feel guilty I love well-made horror movies so much. It balances the funny with the scary so well. And, it's Joss Whedon. It's so good that it may ruin you for other horror movies forever. Runner up: Ted, because I laughed a lot and I shouldn't have.
What about you, reader? What were your favorite movies this year? Let us know in the comments! (Oh, who am I kidding)
