MY TOP 12 OF 2012!

 It's that time of year again, where we reflect on the movies that meant the most to us. This was a special year in film, in that I rarely saw a bad one... and I see loads of them. This year was so strong it reminded me of the summer of 89 in which we had Batman, Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade, Star Trek, Lethal Weapon 2 and a film named The Abyss by a fella named James Cameron. That was a very geek-tastic summer. 2012 was the equal, maybe even surpassing it. It was tough choosing my 12 favorite films this year. Many great films had to be left off the list.

These are the 12 films which moved me in 2012. Why 12? The answer will always be the same. There are 12 months in a year, thus I choose one great film you can watch per month for a total of 12 awesome slices of entertainment. Here. We. Go.

12) THE AVENGERS

Joss Whedon managed to do what no one thought was possible: Take several characters who were introduced in other films and bring them together to form a cohesive whole. He made history. The impossible became possible. He made a flat one-note character like HULK shine. Of course, the always extraordinary Mark Ruffalo helped. Could the plot have been less generic? Yes. But the final battle when everyone came together was a candy store for your eyes. I had a huge smile on my face as The Avengers stomped on Loki and his alien horde. Very much looking forward to Thanos in the forthcoming sequel. Now that's an adversary worthy of earth's mightiest heroes.

 

11) SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK

 Mental illness is a serious subject. It's not to be trifled with or ridiculed. SILVER LININGS is about two depressed people who come together and ultimately help each other become the best version of themselves. Bradley Cooper gives a career best performance as a hot-headed Italian. He's an infuriating powder keg of emotion. He's sweet, he's smart, he's scary. He's all this, sometimes in the same breath. The moment when he revealed that he lived most of his life not knowing he had manic depression and had to deal with it without the proper tools is heart-breaking. Great stuff. As for Jennifer Lawrence, she's a luminescent acting prodigy who has many years of Oscar parties to attend. She's wildly inappropriate, controlling and sexy as hell. Deniro hasn't been this good since... I can't remember. He's an OCD gambler who loves his son almost as much as he loves football. Watching these damaged souls bump into each other is David O. Russell's specialty. This could've easily devolved into smaltz but damn if I wasn't rooting for Bradley and Jennifer too win the dance competition and live happily ever after. A good-hearted movie that warmed mine.

10) PROMETHEUS

 From the opening frames of a white giant (the Engineer) walking across a jagged mountain cliff and dissolving himself into the churning ocean below I knew I would love this film... despite the many plot holes that riddled Prometheus. This was one of the most visually stunning movies I saw in IMAX 3D. Sir Ridley Scott gets a free pass because his movies continue to influence and innovate. His grand ambition dwarfed the inclusion of idiotic scientists who sometimes made really stupid decisions. But damn, if I wasn't entranced by the whole film. It was breathtaking. I dare you to name a more visceral, frightening sequence on film this year than the self-abortion. Worth the price of admission alone. Scott wields light and imagery like a ninja and I can't wait for his next foray into the future. As long as Sir Ridley keeps working at this level, filmmaking will benefit.

9) THE HOBBIT

 
You owe it to yourself to see this film in IMAX HFR (High Frame Rate) aka 48fps (frames per second) aka the clearest most detailed movie I've ever seen. This is the future of epic film making. Were some of the movements jerky? Yup. Did it take me about 30 minutes to adjust to the unparalleled clarity? You betcha. Watching THE HOBBIT in HFR was initially jarring. Especially the opening scenes that were lit with rust and yellow tones. They almost looked like porn or soap quality. But once we went into the blue tones the film kicked in and it looked magnificent. This was the most visually stunning film I saw on the big screen. The detail on the Gollum and the Pale Orc was next level stuff. It was great to see Gandalf on the big screen again. Freeman was a great, sympathetic Bilbo. It was a non-stop action, adventure story that plastered a huge smile on my face.

8) SAVAGES

Oliver Stone continues to make slick, sexy, daring movies like nobody else's business. Critics maligned this movie for it's have-your-cake-and-eat-to-ending but it's pure Oliver Stone toying with his audience, as he's been so deftly doing for the past 25 years. This movie was more vibrant and alive than most films made by directors half his age. Taylor Kitch is great in it. He's stoic thunder. Lively pops off the screen, a siren that can entrance not one but two alpha males. Benicio brings the big sleaze and it leaves a nasty stain on the big screen. He's awesomely creepy as a brutal hitman. Travolta and Hayek clearly relish playing in the sleaze sandbox, as well. Both are great and up for the task. This is a lurid, pulpy film that was too much for critics too handle. But it hit me just right, with it's easy California lifestyle mixed with buckets of blood. One of the best surprises of the year.

7) END OF WATCH

I'm a huge TRAINING DAY fan and when David Ayer decided to delve deeper into that world my interest was stoked. Everyone is saying that END OF WATCH is a buddy cop film. I agree, on the surface it is. But what this film is truly about is the changing of the guard on the mean streets of Los Angeles from African American gangs to the ruthless Mexican Cartels. Gone are the days of Boys in The Hoods and Menace II Society. Mexican Gangs rule the streets of Los Angeles and they operate on a completely different level. It's a new regime that has no compunctions about filling a house with severed heads and torsos. It's dark, grisly stuff and End of Watch doesn't shy away from it. Gyllenhall gives a career best performance. Pena is solid as usual. This is the pitch black, dark-hearted movie of the year. More so because it brings you into the intimate lives of the two cops who you grow to love and then sets the animals in the streets who pretend to humans upon them. Riveting. Powerful. See it. 

6) DJANGO UNCHAINED

I have a great fondness for Quentin Tarantino. He's one of the few filmmakers who has yet to make a mediocre film. Django stayed with me for days after seeing it. Not because of the clever banter, or great reversals and solid screenplay. It imprinted on me because it brings images of slavery, which I had only read about in high-school to life in a brutal, ugly manner. I can't believe slavery happened less than a 150 years ago. This is an important film that blasts open old wounds and then goes about getting it's own brand of restitution. Seeing Django wipe out an entire slave plantation was as thrilling as seeing a group of Inglorious Basterds shred Hitler with bullets. This movie was a long time coming. What can I say about Christophe Waltz. He's a master class actor. His delivery of words in his mellifluous accent is poetry. Pure and simple. Foxx sears a lifetime of pain into our hearts with his every glance. And Samuel L. Jackson is the worst black motherf-cker in the history of film. A betraying, Uncle Tom, step-and-fetcher that is more concerned with keeping his place on the plantation by his master's side than helping his own race. Jackson is amazing and deserves Oscar recognition. As does Leo Dicaprio and his dirty, stained teeth. Watching Leo play against type, dirty himself up and play a devilish scoundrel is one of the many joys of seeing this very smart, confident and thrilling piece of high-grade entertainment. 

5) ZERO DARK THIRTY

The greatest detective story of our time. This film is about work, vision and perseverance. Hard work isn't glamorous. The results are glamorous. But real hard work. Keeping at something when the world laughs at you. Ridicules you. That's hard. It's shitty and lonely. Maya (the girl who nailed Bin Laden and I LOVE that a girl nailed this monster. Consider the irony for a moment if you will) stayed on Bin Laden's trail for 10 years. 10 YEARS! While everyone around her said she was crazy. This is what separates greatness from mediocrity. She never let go. The scene when they ask her what is the probability that Bin Laden is hidden in the compound, she looks at Leon Panetta (awesome Gandolfini) in the face and tells him 100%. No uncertainty in her eyes. Just steel. Jessica Chastain will win the Oscar for that moment alone. The attack on Bin Laden's compound is filmed in such a matter-of-fact way. It's not bombastic. Seal Team 6 go in there and casually put bullets in bad guys in such an understated manner that it seems like another day at the office for them. Even if that day involves accidentally crashing a chopper and killing public enemy number 1. This movie defies expectations at every turn. It's smart. It doesn't pander. It doesn't manipulate. It presents brutal torture as an ugly fact. It doesn't try to make up your mind... that's your job. The best procedural film ever made. If I was a betting man, this will win the Best Film of the Year come Oscar Night. Zero Dark Hurry-up and go see it.

4) CHRONICLE

Chronicle caught me off guard. I'm a superhero nerd. Always have been. Always will be. Watching these young punks acquire abilities I would dream of as a kid was one of the most thrilling movie going experiences of the year. CHRONICLE asks the central question: "What would you do if you suddenly became Superman?" The answer in our iERA scares the living shit out of me. We live in a world of profit margins, fiscal cliffs and lone lunatics with a propensity for violence. I very much doubt that people who suddenly developed superpowers would go the way of heroism. They would become what Dane DeHaan became in CHRONICLE. A twisted, gnarled, angry God that needed to be stopped at all costs. Dehaan gives an extraordinary performance. This is a star-maker role. Look for him in the near future to explode. This is the first film to actually do something interesting with the found-footage scenario. We get views from multiple cameras and it genuinely works in the film. I loved every minute of this film and hope that a worthy sequel is in the works.

3) LOOPER

 What would you say to your younger self if you could go back in time? What advice would you give yourself? This is the central question of Rian Johnson's masterful time travel film LOOPER. Bruce Willis is so vibrant and badass in this film. Such a great nuanced performance. Jo Gordon-Levitt has the best year in his life with this film and The Dark Knight Rises. He's great beneath all the latex. It's a film that will surprise you at every turn. I'm gonna be vague with this one because many people haven't seen it yet. The film becomes especially surprising as we arrive at a quiet farm in the 3rd Act. The movie morph's into a treatise on fate and destiny. The kid in the film gives the best kid performance since Henry Thomas in E.T. Amazing stuff. The ending broke my heart but really, there was no other way for LOOPER to end. A great film and one of my very favorite of the year. A must see.

2) THE GREY

Once more into the fray. Live and Die on this day. The Grey was almost my number one movie of the year. It was beaten by another tortured soul who we will talk about in the next paragraph. Joe Carnahan's masterwork THE GREY gut-punched me so hard when I saw it on the big screen. This felt like a very personal film for Liam Neeson. It felt like every moment Neeson reflected upon his past cut right through him leaving a bloody streak on his heart. Liam Neeson MUST receive an Oscar nomination for his performance. The moment he defies God in the forest, admonishing the Lord "To Prove it!" --shook me to my core. I'm pretty sure you know after seeing the movie which side Neeson falls on when it comes to God. This film makes you re-examine your core beliefs and makes you appreciate those you love. I loved THE GREY. One of the films which resonated deeply with me this year. THE GREY is a profound and moving cinematic experience.

1) THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

Was there ever any doubt THE DARK KNIGHT RISES would be my top film of 2012? Christopher Nolan is the Stanley Kubrick of popular entertainment. A master at the top of his game, with a meticulous visual language, who laces his films with powerful subtext. TDKR is about many things but first and foremost it's the BRUCE WAYNE story. In fact, the final film of the Dark Knight trilogy could've easily been called BRUCE WAYNE BEGINS. I can give you many detailed reasons why I loved this film. I could talk and write about it all day long. But I won't. Those who know me, know why I love this character so much. Nolan was brilliant in that he amplified the story of the damaged orphan and surrounded him with 4 other fractured orphans: Selina, Talia, John Blake and Bane. In the end, each of these tortured souls worked their way through the pain of abandonment in their own specific ways. Seeing the most adjusted orphan, Robin John Blake rising on that platform in the Batcave still gives me chills. Batman telling Jim Gordon that "a hero can be anyone, even someone who puts a coat on a kid and tells him the world hasn't ended"-- still brings tears to my eyes. Seeing Bruce Wayne get his happily ever after is the greatest surprise of the year in cinema. The final 20 minutes of TDKR are the finest moments in any film this year. Everyone expected Bruce to die. The spector of death hung heavy throughout the film. Watching Bruce be happy for the first time in his life gave me hope that even the darkest lives can be redeemed. This is a great message for our times. A message we need. A message we deserve.
 

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

CLOUD ATLAS: The Wachowski's are brave. They wore their hearts on their sleeves and were lambasted by the cold-hearts which permeate our world. This is the most ambitious film of the year. It's emotional and beautiful and demands multiple viewings to appreciate.

THE IMPOSSIBLE: Critics gave this film static because it focused on a white affluent family instead of the residents of Thailand who perished. But it WAS about a white family! Watts and Ewan give great performances and I have to say this film brought tears to my eyes many times. As a parent there's nothing scarier than losing your kids in the storm of the century.

GOON: One of the best hockey movies ever made. Sean William Scott finally sheds Stifler's skin and shows us he has a soul. Goon was a great surprise and has a high rewatchability value.

JACK REACHER: Tom Cruise in badass mode. What's not to like? Great time at the movies, can't wait to see Reacher again on the big screen.

KLOWN: This film from Norway makes The Hangover look like a sleepover. Hilarious, inappropriate, and the best comedy of the year.

ARGO: Ben Affleck is incapable of making a bad film. I've loved every one of his films. Argo is tense, riveting and well-directed. One of the best of the year.

Happy New Year!

Your Friend,

D.

THOUGHTS ON THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

 I saw THE DARK KNIGHT RISES a week before the tragedy in Aurora. I saw the film with untainted, innocent geek eyes and hope in my heart. I saw it in the best possible circumstances on the WB lot... the place where they actually produced the film. I wish every Bat-fan could've seen the final Bat-Film in the Nolan trilogy under such great circumstances. I won't talk about the tragedy and I won't rehash the plot of the film. Plenty of other sites have taken care of this. I want to talk about segments, moments & images that affected me. Thus, heavy SPOILERS from here on out for the uninitiated...

 THE DARK KNIGHT RISES is simply the best superhero film ever made. In terms of pure emotion it topples THE DARK KNIGHT and BATMAN BEGINS (which were both amazing in their own respect). Christopher Nolan has crafted the perfect Superhero trilogy... and maybe the best trilogy of all time. The three themes that Nolan laced throughout the trilogy are: Legacy, Myth-making, and Death. The pallor of death hangs over this film like an albatross pressing down on your back. You really get the impression that you're watching the last Batman film the world will ever see and that anyone can die at any time... just like real life.

 In Batman Begins, Bruce wants to create a symbol that will inspire the citizens of Gotham to be better. To be heroic in the face of crime and inequality. It seems like a hopeless quest. But in the end, when Batman sacrifices himself by flying the Fusion bomb into the sea while Gotham watches it explode in an atomic mushroom cloud... well this very act serves as a catalyst of inspiration for not only Gotham but the World. The final moment right before the atomic explosion we get a close-up shot of Batman's face in the cockpit of the Batwing. He's at peace. You see, Bruce Wayne was dead since Batman Begins. He's been courting death ever since he slipped on the cowl. In the Dark Knight Rises, Alfred pleads with Bruce to let go of his demons and choose life. Alfred tells Bruce of a recurring dream he has in which he goes to a Cafe in Florence and orders a Fernet Branca and sitting at another table he sees Bruce Wayne with a Wife and Family.

A moment later, Alfred tells Bruce the truth about Rachel in an attempt to shake Bruce into consciousness. Instead, Bruce tells Alfred that he's fired. This scene broke my heart into pieces. Bruce is alone in this film. And Bale gives the finest Bruce Wayne performance of his life.

 Let's talk about Bane. His voice, his body, his costume, everything about him is hypnotic. He is brute force & death incarnate. A nightmare creation. The scene where Batman is duped by Catwoman into a deathtrap beneath the sewers to face Bane is astonishing in it's cruelty. I felt so sorry for Batman, as every punch, every move was telegraphed by Bane. Batman tried his parlor tricks: The EMP that knocks out the lights, flashbangs, but Bane was born in darkness, which made him unstoppable. The manner in which Bane pulverizes Batman is heart-wrenching. The smashing of Batman's face/mask by Bane's relentless punches made me wince and reminded me of Gaspar Noe's IRREVERSIBLE in which a man's face is viciously caved in by a fire extinguisher. Seeing Batman so soundly beaten gave me a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach.  And the shot of Bane breaking Batman's back will be seared into my mind forever.

 The look on Catwoman's face, as she watches Batman get dismantled by Bane was pure Selina. Caught in the middle and always looking out for herself, Catwoman is caught off guard by her own emotions, as she feels something strange: Remorse. This would be the first step in her journey towards redemption. Hathaway was a huge surprise as Selina Kyle. She looked great in the suit but nobody could've predicted what a nuanced performance she would give. She went from Damsel in distress to kickass warrior in the blink of an eye. The best Catwoman ever committed to the big screen.

 Bane's plan: Many people are confused by Bane's motivation. It's really quite simple. Whereas Joker wanted to watch the world burn, for Bane-- it's personal. He wants to break Batman's body and soul. Batman's legacy is to inspire people. To create a symbol that will outlive him. It's not enough for Bane to break Batman's body, Bane also wants to destroy Batman's legacy. Bane wants Batman to watch from his prison cell, as Gotham's citizens cower in fear instead of rise. Once Gotham is reduced to ashes, Bane will have broken Batman's spirit... which I believe to be the primary goal of Bane and Talia's plan. Both Talia Al Ghul (Miranda Tate) and Bane want to destroy the symbol of Batman. They want to tarnish the myth and destroy Batman's legacy.

The prison pit in the "old part of the world" is basically Nolan's version of the Lazarus pit. Bruce is imprisoned in the pit by Bane after his vicious beating. Bruce must watch from a distance, as his city is destroyed. The open ceiling in the inescapable pit is meant to provide him with false hope, just as Gotham's citizens are given false hope that Bane won't detonate the Fusion Bomb. Bruce, who had a deathwish since Batman Begins finally "finds his fear" in the pit. Only when Bruce fears death again and appreciates life does he find the strength to RISE out of the prison and return to save Gotham.

As for the critics who wondered how Bruce returned to Gotham after escaping the prison... You have to assume that the smartest man in the world has bank accounts and secret hideouts all over the world. I don't think the Dark Knight Detective would have much trouble sneaking back into a quarantined Gotham.

Let's talk about the the Glorious Ending of THE DARK KNIGHT RISES. Batman does indeed return to a war-torn Gotham that has been cut off from the rest of the world. Bane rules with an iron fist. People hide in their homes. The police force is crippled and trapped in the sewers beneath Gotham.

With the help of Catwoman, Jim Gordon and young Officer John Blake Batman inspires the Gotham Police force to rise against Bane's thugs on the steps of city hall. Batman defeats Bane only to be betrayed by Talia who stabs him with the slow knife that cuts deepest.

This leads to one of my favorite moments in the film. A wounded Batman takes control of the Atomic Bomb. He kisses Selina and gets into his Batwing that is now carrying the bomb which is counting down. Before he takes off, Gordon asks Batman who he is. Gotham will never know who the hero who saved Gotham is?! Batman answers the following:
 

 We flashback and see a young Gordon put his coat around the shoulders of a crying 8 yr old Bruce Wayne. This moment still gives me shivers, as Gordon realizes Batman is Bruce Wayne. Jim, Catwoman and John Blake watch, as Batman flies off into the distance and the bomb detonates. Batman is dead. At this point I was trying real hard not to cry and failing miserably.

Then one of the best montages in cinematic history begins. We watch as a statue of Batman is unveiled. A tribute to Gotham's Dark Knight who sacrificed his life for the citizens of Gotham. We cut to Jim Gordon, Lucius Fox, John Blake and Alfred in front of the grave of Bruce Wayne, which is beside the graves of his parents. Gordon reads a passage from a Tale Of Two Cities. Alfred breaks down lamenting: "I failed you." It was Alfred's responsibility to watch over Bruce and now he's dead. This scene destroyed me.

Then we cut to John Blake at the reading of Bruce Wayne's will. Blake inherits a gym bag. When he goes to retrieve it, the person at Waynecorp needs his full ID... which reads: ROBIN JOHN BLAKE! I nearly stood up and cheered. After years of swearing we would see no Robin in his films, Christopher Nolan pulled a Prestige on us. He fooled us. I lost my mind at this point. The definitive Batman trilogy needed a Robin. Robin has been a part of the Batman universe since 1940. Nolan nailed it. Looking back on the film you realize that you're watching Robin in action. The way he springs into action to save an injured Gordon who is about to be assassinated at the hospital. The way he selflessly tries to save the orphaned children. His disdain for guns after shooting two thugs. We were watching Robin without knowing it the whole time! Utterly brilliant. 

 We then cut to Alfred. On Vacation in Florence. He sits at a cafe and sees a familiar face a few tables away-- a smiling Bruce Wayne with Selina Kyle. Bruce is alive! Bruce gets his happily ever after. After all those years of torment Bruce Wayne gets the ending he deserved. He gave so much to Gotham and to see him smile and happy warmed my heart. Beautiful moment. As for those wondering how Alfred tracked Bruce down? Pay close attention because Selina is wearing Bruce's mom's pearls. The same pearls that have a tracking device in them.

We then cut to Jim Gordon on the GCPD rooftop. The Bat-Signal is repaired and Gordon smiles, realizing Batman is still alive. And then my favorite moment. The moment that still gives me goosebumps. Robin with the help of a GPS system he found in the gym bag, swings into the batcave via the waterfall. He lights a flare just like Bruce Wayne did all those years ago in Batman Begins.

 A swarm of bats swirls around Robin... echoing Bruce's experience in Batman Begins. And then...

The floor beneath Robin begins to RISE. The Rising platform revealing the Batcave and the Bat-uniform. We realize that THE DARK KNIGHT RISES is not a franchise ender but a franchise starter.

 As the platform rises, the screen goes black and the title appears: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

Absolutely magnificent ending.

A few thoughts on the biggest surprise of the film: The Inclusion of Robin. What I loved is that Robin John Blake is an amalgamation of the 3 Robin's in the comic book universe. He's a good cop, as was Richard Grayson at one point in comicbook history. He's constantly referred to as a hot-head, as was the doomed Jason Todd... and he was able to deduce Batman's secret identity just like Tim Drake did. John Blake was the perfect Robin. I like to think that if they were to continue the Nolan-verse, that Robin would eventually become KNIGHTWING and he would look like the picture below.

But in the manner in which the trilogy is structured it's crystal clear that Robin will eventually become Batman.  Bruce can live the rest of his life secure in the knowledge that Gotham has a silent guardian, a watchful protector, a Dark Knight. In many ways, The Dark Knight Rises could easily have been titled BRUCE WAYNE BEGINS. As Bruce finally lives a normal life & for the first time, Christopher Nolan gives us a happy, optimistic ending.

Finally, at the end of the trilogy Bruce Wayne accomplished his mission. In Batman Begins, Bruce Wayne told Alfred he wanted to create a symbol that would inspire people toward heroism and goodness. The moment Robin John Blake steps into the batcave and the platform rises, Bruce Wayne's mission is accomplished. The final moments of the THE DARK KNIGHT RISES cements Bruce Wayne's legacy, as THE LEGEND OF THE DARK KNIGHT will live forever.

Your Friend,

D.

"DIE" ON DVD & REDBOX MARCH 27th, 2012!

A cool, creepy movie directed by Dominic James and written by Moi is being released on (March 27th-2012) on DVD and RED BOX. Hope you go out and give it a chance. It will surprise you.

The Unrated Edition contains footage not seen in the theatrical cut and makes the film a more satisfying experience. I hope you enjoy it.

When asked what it's about, my response is:

--I characterize it as a "Locked Room Mystery with Global Consequences."

PS Big things coming from the same team very soon.

Your Friend,

D.

THE BEST CELLULOID IMAGE OF 2011

Every year I choose one celluloid image that burned itself into my mind. This past year (2011) the image comes from a film called TAKE SHELTER starring the awesome Michael Shannon. TAKE SHELTER is a paranoid thriller in which the main character is the only person who keeps seeing visions of the coming apocalypse. But is it all in his mind or is he actually a prophet? The above image, which takes place at the beginning of the film, is literally clouds in the shape of a person's mind -- "blowing up" -- like an atomic bomb. It could be interpreted as a visual representation of a man losing his mind. The image embodies the fears and anxieties that plague us when we go to sleep at night. The film is filled with the anxiety of joblessness, lack of medicare in the US and pollution. I don't want to spoil the film. The ending is extremely controversial and open to multiple interpretations. Watch it and let me know what you think of the ending.

Your Friend,

D.

MY TOP 12 FILMS OF 2011!

My Top 12 Favorite Films of the Year. Why have I chosen 12 films? The answer is simple: There are 12 months in a year. Thus, one great film for each month. The list is diverse; from Oscar Contenders to absolute nerd bait. But they are my choices and I stand by them. If they were chosen, it's because they lingered with me for a few days, or made me feel something. These are the films that resonated most for me--

12) THE DESCENDANTS

A film that shouldn't work on paper. It's set in a Hawaii but deals with a patient who is in such a severe coma, the main character struggles throughout the film about whether or not to pull the plug. George Clooney gives another effortless performance of a man who was so busy working that he never gave himself the time to be a father to his two young girls. When his wife has a freak accident, he must rise to the occasion and be a real father to his children. To complicate matters he finds out that his comatose wife has cheated on him. Basically this man who hid from life in the beautiful tranquility of Hawaii must now confront life (through the possible death of his wife) head on. It's a quiet, languorous film that is also surprisingly funny. Clooney has a great moment toward the end of the film when he could be a complete asshole to a very unkind character. But instead of blowing up and letting the person have it, he swallows the insults and keeps his dignity. In that moment, George Clooney the actor shines like we've never seen him before. He's a lock for a Best Actor nomination come Academy Award season. Side note: I saw the film a few months after going to Hawaii for the first time and this film perfectly captures the vibe of one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to in my life.

11) MISSION IMPOSSIBLE : GHOST PROTOCOL

Some say the Cruiser is back, I say fuck that, he never left. I'm a huge fan of Cruise. Always have been and always will be. I love this ever evolving series of action films. Every film has its own style. Its own rhythm. Cruise nails every damn stunt in the film. He oozes charisma, charm and swagger all at once. It has a straight forward plot that is propulsive and never lets up. The Dubai scaling the tallest building in the world sequence is a breathtaking moment that must be seen on IMAX to be believed and appreciated. This is the pure definition of a popcorn movie. The audience was gasping at the building sequence. And the sandstorm chase was epic. One of the best times I had at the movies this year. Brad Bird, in his live action debut, delivered big time. Give this man the next Batman reboot, stat!

10) SHAME

Director Steve McQueen knows how to make you squirm while watching what should be erotic. He makes sex icky and disturbing. Michael Fassbender (who will either be the next Bond or the next Batman) gives the best Male Performance of the year as a sex addict. This is the Requiem For A Dream of sex films. Unable to perform with girls he actually likes, he turns to hookers and whores. This only distances him from any real human connections. The only person Fassbender is close to, is his sister played by the damaged Carey Mulligan (who is in two of my favorite films this year). They seem to share a strange and complicated relationship with a hint of incest. Mulligan has a scene where she sings Sinatra's classic New York, New York at a bar. Watch Fassbender's face in the scene and tell me you're not seeing the birth of the next biggest movie star on the planet. A difficult film to watch that doesn't give us any easy answers. Fassbender and Mulligan are so damaged that at one point she tells him: "We're not bad people. We just come from a bad place." A sad, moving and daring film.

9) INSIDIOUS

The Writer/Director of SAW makes his best film. Insidious is hands down the scariest film I've seen in the past five years. If you were to take Poltergeist, Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist and put them in a blender you would get INSIDIOUS. The fact that it was shot for 1.5 million dollars and made 150 million at the box office is astounding. I love that it relies on old fashioned in-camera tricks for the most part. It's creepy and unsettling with top notch performances by Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne. See this with your loved one with all the lights closed. The less you know about the film the better. It may be the best haunted house film ever made.

8) THE TREE OF LIFE

Notorious recluse Terrence Malick delivers a powerful, moving picture and gives Brad Pitt his best role ever. Pitt is a successful man whose dreams of being a musician died long ago. He tries to teach his boys to be tough, smart and ambitious but his limited parental skill set does more harm than good. But he's not a bad man. This film will make you understand your parents better. There were no how-to manuals for child-rearing in the 50's. Parents did their best and relied on instincts, which often resulted in destructive decisions. Sean Penn plays the adult child of Pitt and the end result of such parenting. The film is about evolution, maturity and trying to reach a state of grace. Malick even shows us the evolution of humans in a beautiful sequence that takes us through the big bang and all the way to the dinosaurs. Scenes that linger in my mind... a velociraptor stumbles upon an injured baby dinosaur. Instead of eating it alive, the raptor shows mercy. In that moment, Malick shows us that creatures that appear to be monsters also have undercurrents of compassion and kindness. I can't say I understood the whole film but it did move me. A transporting and meditative film.

7) HANNA

Who would think that the director of Atonement had such awesome action chops? Hanna may be the second best action film of the year. Joe Wright takes a mundane concept -- a father teaches his daughter how to be the ultimate assassin, to basically adapt or die -- and infuses it with a fairy tale sensibility. Cate Blanchett is the Big Bad Wolf and Saiorse Ronan is little Red Riding Hood and the world around them is an evil forest. The score by the Chemical Brothers is awesome (whenever I hear Hanna's action theme I scream -- "Run little Piggy, run!" -- much to the annoyance of my Wife). And Eric Bana has the best hand-to-hand one-take fight I've seen since Oldboy. Hanna is constantly on the run throughout the film and she meets up with a sweet family who has a daughter that instantly takes a shining to Hanna. There is a hint of lesbianism between the two young girls but Wright keeps it classy. Hanna is a rarity: A great soulful action film.

6) LIMITLESS

This is the film that showed me Bradley Cooper is a movie star. After watching Limitless, I joked that this was the best film about cocaine ever made. Of course, the substance he uses in the film isn't yeyo but damn if it isn't a metaphor for it. Cooper plays a disheveled writer, whose career and life is in the shitter. A chance meeting with his ex-wife's brother-in-law provides him the opportunity to try a new superdrug that is purported to make you access your entire brain instead of the commonly-held belief that we only use 10%. And just like that he gets his life back; he writes his novel in a few days, he gets the girl of his dreams back, he's able to see patterns in the stock exchange but it all comes at a deadly price. It's a Faustian tale with a surprising ending. The fact, that it almost felt like a superhero origin story also put this film in my top 12 list. I'd also like to see a sequel. A film that surprised me at every turn. Limitless lived up to its name.

5) XMEN : FIRST CLASS

This is Marvel's Batman Begins. A complete reboot that improves and surpasses the original Xmen series. Taking the film into the swinging 60's during the Cuban Missile crises was a genius move. Matthew Vaughn has yet to make a film that I didn't like. He knows action and always gives us compelling characters that we love and root for. Case in point: Michael Fassbender (what a year he had with this and Shame). McFassy (as I like to call him) is basically James Bond with superpowers for the first hour of the film. In fact, I would watch a 2 hour Magneto the Nazi Hunter film anytime. Macavoy is great as a randy Professor X and the ending is heartbreaking. I wish they held back and kept Magneto and Charles friends for at least one more film. This might be the best XMEN film ever made.

4) HUGO

Firstly, you must see this film in 3D. Truly the best usage of 3D since AVATAR. Scorsese uses all the new cinematic tricks of the future to look back at cinema's past. A beautiful, painterly film that has a strong beating heart. Ben Kingsley's character is a heartbreaker and will surely garner him an Oscar Nomination for Best Supporting Actor. More than anything this film made me appreciate the filmmakers of the past whose innovations made a film like Hugo possible. This is a love letter to movies and the dreams they inspire in all of us.

3) THE HELP

I saw The Help a few days ago. I had zero expectations. Man, did this film take me by surprise! I can't remember the last time I was this moved by a film. I felt rage every ten minutes at the indignities the maids had to undergo. I wanted to reach into screen, through time itself and shake some sense into those southern Valley of the Dolls robots. The little girl in the film broke my heart. Viola Davis is a lock for an Oscar. In fact, I would be surprised if she doesn't win. Her words to the little white girl she took care of is something that I will in turn tell me daughter on a daily basis: "You are smart, you are kind, you are important." The Help made me tear up more than I'm willing to admit. If I was a betting man, The Help is this years Crash. It is the sleeping giant that might just take the big award come Oscar night.

2) RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

A film in which the main character is an ape who doesn't speak for almost the entire running time. This is basically a silent film. Apes is the biggest surprise of the year for me and was almost my number one film. This film should not have worked. The humans are secondary characters. Like the title, it's the Apes who rule the film. Andy Serkis deserves a nomination for his breakthrough role as Ceaser. John Lithgow as the father afflicted by Alzheimer's was fantastic. This film has so many special moments; when Franco abandons Ceaser at the Sanctuary, it's heartbreaking... Ceaser running through the red wood forests of San Francisco... Ceaser asking his master if he is a pet... Ceaser speaking for the first time, screaming "NO!" All wowza moments in a wowza film. I can't wait for the sequel. Ceaser is kind to humans but a war will erupt between the kind apes and the warrior apes... and I will be there opening day!

1) DRIVE

Motherfucking DRIVE. The only film I saw 3 times in a theatre this year. A film in which Ryan Gosling barely has 25 lines of dialogue but owns the screen like Steve Mcqueen used to in the 70's. A film that made me feel cooler than I actually am. A film that made me drive faster. A film that will put hair on your chest, even if you're a girl. A masterpiece on par with Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. Forget THOR, Green Lantern or Captain America, DRIVE was the best superhero film of the year. The Driver sacrificed himself for a girl he knew he could never have. That's some noble shit. Nicholas Windig Refn is the next Christopher Nolan. A guy who understands genre and can give us memorable iconic characters. And the jacket... the iconic silver jacket with the gold scorpion on the back, that keeps getting bloodier and bloodier as the Driver gets into deeper and deeper chaos. The elevator sequence is my favorite of the year. It is the entire movie encapsulated in one scene: Tremendous beauty one moment and terrible graphic violence the next. The look on Carey Mulligan's face at the end of the elevator scene is heartbreaking. The Driver just saved her life but she will never see him the same way again. Not after that burst of insane violence. Bryan Cranston is tremendous as the constant screw-up and Albert Brooks will win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. The way Brooks plays his character as a guy with a shady past who's trying to get out of the shade but has to revert to his old self to save his skin is sad... We feel sympathy for Brooks despite the fact he's a homicidal maniac. And the soundtrack by Cliff Martinez with the help of Kavinsky and others is pure heaven for an 80's boy. It's also in constant rotation in my car. If I were voting for the Best Film of the Year, DRIVE would get my vote. See. It. Now. You'll thank me later.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

HARRY POTTER & THE DEATHLY HALLOWS part 2: A classy ending to a classy franchise. This series could've been drivel but it wasn't. The kids grew up and it was sad to see them go.

TINTIN: Another great usage of 3D. The Bagghar one-take chase sequence is pure cinema and one of the best action scenes of the year.

HANGOVER 2: Don't care if it was a carbon copy of the original. I laughed my ass off and will follow these guys anywhere.

TROLL HUNTER: A great foreign film with convincing effects. Completely unexpected. A hell of a ride.

THOR: Surprisingly good with a great performance by Chris Hemsworth as the titular character.

FLOWERS OF WAR: Christian Bale is great in a film that told the story of 12 prostitutes in China during WWII who gave their lives to save a dozen children.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO: Fincher has never made a bad film & he's not about to start now. Tattoo is the definitive version of the best-selling novel. Mara is captivating as a female Goth-Batman & the score by Trent Reznor is unsettling.

MONEYBALL: Frankly, the best film about baseball ever made. It's not about winning the big game. It's about putting together a great team using your brains and not your gut. Love how the jock (Brad Pitt) joins forces with the geek (Jonah Hill) to create a team that is made up of an island of misfit toys. Great script that rewards the value of intelligence.

DIE: A little film I wrote that deals with fate, chance and chaos.

Next year will be huge... a little film called THE DARK KNIGHT RISES is coming out. I wonder where it will sit on my top 12 list?

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

Your Friend,

D.

BATMAN & ME

Meeting Christian Bale aka Bruce Wayne aka The Godamn Batman was thrilling.

People are often confused by my Bat-obsession. They ask: What is it about Batman? It all comes down to formative childhood experiences. My earliest childhood memory is meeting Adam West and Burt Ward in full costume at an auto show when I was 3 years old. I remember everything about the encounter: The soft silky gloves Batman (West) wore when he shook my hand and the fact that Robin (Ward) wasn't wearing his gloves (I found this peculiar and somewhat upsetting). They were signing glossy photos of themselves. I was there with my Dad and his two younger brothers, my uncles. When it was my turn to meet the caped crusaders, Batman asked for my name. I told him Domenic. He quickly scrolled his signature and gave it back to me. My Dad and his uncle's laughed. At the time I didn't know why. A few years later when I learned to read, I realized he wrote From Batman to his friend DEREK. The Dark Knight Detective messed up my name. At least Robin got it right. I still have those glossy black and white signed photos. They are stored at my parents home. Next time I go down to Montreal I will bring them back to Los Angeles and show them to you. It's funny but all my early memories involve Batman in some way. I remember eating in front of the TV and seeing this vampire (how I knew what a vampire was, was entirely my mom's fault. She was a big horror film fan). He was a vampire but he was helping people and stopping crime. I soon realized he wasn't a vampire. He was a man. Just a regular guy who trained himself to perfection. Who studied hard. Who made himself into the pinnacle of physical and intellectual perfection. I was hooked. Yes, there was Superman and Spiderman but no one could hold a candle to Batman. Whatever Batman lacked in superpowers, he more than made up for it in resourcefulness and intelligence. I believe until this day that with enough prep time Batman could beat anyone. Prep time Batman could even beat Jesus.

So here we are all these years later and in the span of a week I get the privilege of meeting not only what I consider to be the best Batman but also the definitive Commissioner Gordon. Meeting Christian Bale and Gary Oldman, two actors who I've admired for years, was an awesome experience. Both were gracious, classy and elegant. I don't get star-struck easily but with Bale I was virtually speechless. I hope I didn't embarrass myself. That was a bucket list moment and perfect symmetry. I met the First Batman (at least for me) as a toddler and the best Batman (at least for me) as an adult.

Gary Oldman. Pure Class.

If meeting Batman and Gordon wasn't enough. A week later. Tonight, in fact, I saw the Prologue for THE DARK KNIGHT RISES. I don't think there's a more anticipated film in my lifetime. This is the last Batman Film for Bale and director Christopher Nolan. And they plan on going out with an epic. The prologue was jaw-dropping in every conceivable way. Bane is going to give little boys nightmares.

SPOILERS after the epic poster.

You were warned. Read no further if you don't want to know how THE DARK KNIGHT RISES begins...

It opens on the Harvey Dent memorial/funeral. Gordon speaking at a podium says: " Harvey Dent inspired me. Maybe someone else will inspire all of us. I believed in Harvey Dent."

We cut to a wheat field, as the camera fly's over it. We are inside an SUV with three hooded prisoners in the back. The prisoners are delivered to a waiting CIA military plane. The CIA are supposed to pick up one man -- Dr. Leonid Pavel. But instead have 3 extra prisoners who are said to be the accomplices of the masked Terrorist known as BANE. The CIA were not expecting the other prisoners but are excited to have Bane's associates. They are all loaded on the plane. In the plane, the hooded men are on the floor on their knees. The point man for the CIA opens the plane hatch and threatens to throw one of the hooded prisoners out of the plane unless he gives him info on Bane.

CIA guy yells:"Why does he wear the mask?!?" Nothing. No response. The CIA Agent pretends to shoot one of the hooded men. One of the burly hooded guys on his knees says: "He's probably wondering why would you shoot a man before throwing him out of a plane?" His voice sounds almost electric... mechanical.

CIA GUY: "At least you can talk? Who are you?"

BANE: "Who we are is not important. What matters is the plan. No one cared who I was until I put on the mask.""

They remove the hood and it's BANE! The CIA guy asks Bane "what would happen if I took off your mask?" Bane answers: "It would be extremely painful... for you."

CIA GUY says: "So what's the next step of your master plan?"

BANE: "Crash the plane... with no survivors."

The plane begins to shake and is overtaken by a much larger plane from above. The tribal music we heard in the original online trailer intensifies: De-shay! Bashara! (it's Bane's theme and it is very cult-like, more on this later).

Four swat-clad men fast-rope from the large plane to the military plane. They machine gun the windows blowing them out and killing some of the CIA agents inside. They attach ropes to the military plane. The large plane is now basically pulling the smaller military plane whose wings begin to bend, break and shatter. No more wings, the military plane hangs vertically like a huge cigar in the sky beneath the large plane. The four swat-clad men attach explosives to the top of the military plane and blow the tail off... creating an entrance.

Inside the plane, BANE breaks out of his restraints and is hurled around the bouncing plane. He's here for Doctor Pavel. He needs to know how much the doctor told the CIA about Bane's terrorist group. The 4 swat guys fast-rope into the dangling military plane. They carry a body bag. They unzip the body bag and attach an IV to the doctor's arm. A blood transfusion takes place (I have no idea why, I'm sure it will be explained later in the film). All the CIA agents are dead. The evil Swat guys are fast-roping out of the plane. One of the hooded men (Bane's accomplice) asks Bane if he is to be rescued. The tribal music stops. Eerie silence.

BANE tells him: "They expect one of us in the wreckage, brother."

Bane's follower looks at him with a believer's eyes. (It's here that I realized that Bane is a cult leader with devoted followers. Creepy.) The follower, his eyes blazing with devotion, a small smile on his face, says: "Have we started the fire?"

Bane attaches the doctor to himself, looks at his follower and says: "The Fire Rises." BOOM! The tribal music starts up again. More intense than ever.

The doctor attached to Bane is screaming with panic. Bane tells him: "Now's not the time for fear doctor. That comes later."

Bane presses a button and the entire military plane with passengers some alive, some dead -- slips out from beneath him. Bane with the doctor strapped to him, is being hauled by ropes through the air by the larger plane, as what's left of the military plane plummets downward to the ground... and my jaw was on the floor. It was a stunning scene that looked real. I didn't feel the CGI. Bane's voice was metallic and creepy. Not always clear but I'm sure they will clean that up in post. My first thought after watching the prologue was: James Bond just shit his pants. This was the best Bond opening in history.

There was a sizzle reel after the prologue that included a great shot of Catwoman in costume. A shot of Selina Kyle in an orange jail prisoner outfit. Bane fighting Batman at City Hall in the snow. Bane detonating a bomb. The Batwing chasing a camo-tumbler. Batman in an underground parking lot aiming his plasma rifle and the capper: Bane holding a shattered Batman cowl in what appears to be the Batcave. EPIC.

They gave us this collector's T-shirt at the screening. There was a BANE themed one with the word END on it. Didn't manage to get one of those.

Working in the film industry I've seen and done some pretty amazing things. I get to meet some awesome people. This past week has been a pretty amazing one and things are about to get even better... as we begin scouting on my next film in Spain...

More on that in another post.

Your Friend,

D.

HALLOWEEN ON SANTA MONICA 2011!

The Wife and I decided to recreate the art from BATMAN: ARKHAM CITY. I gotta say my Wife is the coolest for being so sport. This is one of my fave pics of us ever. We had a great time.

Every year we go to the Halloween Parade on Santa Monica and this is the reason why: Look at the great detail work on Joker's face. So many great costumes. So many great people.

This pic is a staple for us. We've been taking a Batman kissing Catwoman pic for years now on Halloween. We'll continue doing it until we are in our 80's.

Get ready to spring into battle.

This is our last year as BATMAN & CATWOMAN. Next year we will change it up... but what or who will we be? Stay tuned Bat-Fans.

Your Friend,

D.