Top Movies of The Year(So Far)

WARNING: Wall of post ahead. If you don't want to read you don't have to. But if you love movies as much as me, I'd love your input! Sorry that there are no pictures or anything to break up the flow. I'm struggling to get them to upload. Next time I'll have some!

So I know its only halfway through 2012, but I am a huge movie fan and wanted to make my first blog post here as a little year in review(so far) of what we have seen. I have grown up a huge movie buff. It seems like I am literally at the movies at least once a week. No matter what it is, comedy, drama, romance, action, horror, etc. there is nothing like a good movie. So in my first blog I am going to try and pick out my top 5 choices for best movies this year. At the end of the post I'll have a short little blurb about some honorable mentions of movies that I really enjoyed but don't think deserve a top 5 honor as well as movies we all should be looking out for.. Please keep in mind that this is all MY opinion and by no way am I professional in this category. Feel free to agree, disagree, and even ost your favorites so far but please no flaming. Well in the great words of Heath Ledger: "And here...we...go!"

5. Safe House

So when I went to the theater the day this came out I really had no idea what to expect. I only saw the trailer for the movie one time and my friends dragged me to see it. I willingly went only because it had Denzel Washington in it. Well, needless to say I was NOT disappointed. I can't remember the last time I have seen a Denzel Washington movie and left the movie theater bored or underwhelmed. The movie was fast-paced and relentless. Ryan Reynolds did a superb job in what was one of his more serious films as of late. The acting was good as expected but obviously nothing to be going crazy over. All I can say about this is it was a very fast-paced and thrilling movie that should not be missed. Check it out!

4. The Raven

Ok so this one is a little bit of a longshot for me here. The firs half of the year isn't usually jam-packed with great movies so I've kind of had to dip deep. Most people will disagree with me on this one but I thoroughly enjoyed this film for several reasons. Firs off, Cusack did a wonderful job as Poe. What I loved the most was the story. It did a great job showing the mysterious last few days of Poe's life. It ties in well with how he was seen on his final few days and it does it cleverly. It incorporates several of his most famous stories and it keeps you guessing. I did not see who the killer was and my hat is off to whoever did before the final 3rd of the movie. Like I said this typically wouldn't make it into my top 5 but its more of a...guilty pleasure.

3. The Hunger Games

I must admit, I was a little nervous before this came out. As a huge fan of the books I was expecting them to be ruined. Most book to movie adaptions are poor( i.e. Harry Potter with the exception of 2-3 of the 8 films). I must say I was pleasantly surprised. It could have been much better, but I won't go into to much detail here. Things I did love was the detail in the film. The Capitol was exactly how I envisioned it. The acting was superb across the board, especially from Lenny Kravitz as Cinna. The sets were beautiful and the film was shot wonderfully. Its truly sad that the director will not be returning for the last few films.

2. Prometheus

Alrighty, I'm gunna prepare myself. Here is were the mixed opinions will fly in. Critics mostly loved it, and so did most of the viewers. But the few people that hated the movie, hated it. And I mean HATED it. I read up a lot on opinions of this film when I got back from the film, and most people loved it or despised it. No in between. With that said, I loved it. And here is why. First off, the special effects were incredible. This is the one time 3D has EVER been wort it in my opinion. The holgram scene was unreal and so was the rest of the film. It was intense the whole way through, and like a good sci-fi horror film it has several memorable scenes in it(surgery scene, you know what I am talking about), and an ending straight from hell. A lot of people that hated it said it had to many plot holes but I don't see that. Two reasons why this is false. The first is that Ridley Scott has already said there will be a sequel, and if you didn't get that from the ending you are an idiot already. Secondly, this isn't a movie that is supposed to hand you answers on a platter. I hate that "thinking" movies have almost ceased to exist. Most people these days hate any movie if they aren't spoon fed answers. This movie raises big questions and wants you to form some of your own answers. The movie really was nothing like I was expecting. I was expecting a horror, blockbuster gore-fest, and I gladly got instead something much better.

1. The Avengers

Yes. Us video game/comic loving nerds all loved this. The film was what it attempted to be. A absolute thrill ride with some humor mixed in. If you try to take this film as anything else than a fun summer blockbuster you will be disappointed. And boy was I not. The effects were great as usual for films such as these, but what really stood out to me was the hero of this movie, Josh Whedon. He did a remarkable job directing such a huge movie. He had a lot of pressure on him to deliver and he did. The four main heroes complimented each other superbly and did a remarkable job with their acting, for a film such as this. And let me tell you, the theme for this movie when it was played at the beginning and during the final fight scene gave me straight up chills. There isn't a lot of depth to go into here. It was just one damn fine summer blockbuster, and finally gave superhero movies what they deserve. Critic success. The only two films to be more critcily acclaimed then this were Nolan's Batman films. Thank you Josh Whedon. I can't wait for more.

Honorable Mentions

Rock of Ages: So I am home for the summer and I went to see this film with my family this afternoon before work and I loved it. Guilty pleasure. I am a huge 80's rock fan, I love musicals, and Julianne Hough is a babe. It was just a plain fun film. Nothing special, but a lot of fun to experience on a big screen with the real surround sound listening to some great rock anthems.

Man On A Ledge: A very fine film. Non-stop intensity with a great ending, and just plain fun to sit through.

Snow-White and the Huntsman: I gained a little respect for Kristen Stewart with this film. While it was not anything special by any means, it is at least worth a rental on DVD in the near future and provides a great adult version of this classic children's tale.

What To Look For Soon

The Dark Knight Rises: The obvious choice. I don't even need to say much about this. The hype surrounding this film is unreal, and the trailers are mind-blowing. I can seriously see this film in Oscar contention come this time next year in categories such as Best Directing, Best Picture, Best Score, Best Art Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Supporting Actor, and maybe a few more.

The Bourne Legacy: I'm still going to have a hard time watching a Bourne movie without THE Jason Bourne. But the new trailer looked intense and Jeremy Renner is on my list of rising stars to looks out for since the Hurt Locker.

Lawless: For the sake of finishing this blog up I won't go into detail. Just look it up. Let's just say this. Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, and moonshine runners. Nuff said.

The Hobbit: Need I say anymore?

Well thanks for the read, if you made it this far. Follow me if you enjoyed my post. This is my VERY FIRST BLOG, so let me know what I can do to make it better. I will be using my blog to do a lot of movie reviews and more blogs like this such as Worst Movies of the Year, Best Movies of the Decade, etc. So if you have any ideas for something you'd like to be made, then hit me up!

WARNING: Wall of post ahead. If you don't want to read you don't have to. But if you love movies as much as me, I'd love your input! Sorry that there are no pictures or anything to break up the flow. I'm struggling to get them to upload. Next time I'll have some!

So I know its only halfway through 2012, but I am a huge movie fan and wanted to make my first blog post here as a little year in review(so far) of what we have seen. I have grown up a huge movie buff. It seems like I am literally at the movies at least once a week. No matter what it is, comedy, drama, romance, action, horror, etc. there is nothing like a good movie. So in my first blog I am going to try and pick out my top 5 choices for best movies this year. At the end of the post I'll have a short little blurb about some honorable mentions of movies that I really enjoyed but don't think deserve a top 5 honor as well as movies we all should be looking out for.. Please keep in mind that this is all MY opinion and by no way am I professional in this category. Feel free to agree, disagree, and even ost your favorites so far but please no flaming. Well in the great words of Heath Ledger: "And here...we...go!"

5. Safe House

So when I went to the theater the day this came out I really had no idea what to expect. I only saw the trailer for the movie one time and my friends dragged me to see it. I willingly went only because it had Denzel Washington in it. Well, needless to say I was NOT disappointed. I can't remember the last time I have seen a Denzel Washington movie and left the movie theater bored or underwhelmed. The movie was fast-paced and relentless. Ryan Reynolds did a superb job in what was one of his more serious films as of late. The acting was good as expected but obviously nothing to be going crazy over. All I can say about this is it was a very fast-paced and thrilling movie that should not be missed. Check it out!

4. The Raven

Ok so this one is a little bit of a longshot for me here. The firs half of the year isn't usually jam-packed with great movies so I've kind of had to dip deep. Most people will disagree with me on this one but I thoroughly enjoyed this film for several reasons. Firs off, Cusack did a wonderful job as Poe. What I loved the most was the story. It did a great job showing the mysterious last few days of Poe's life. It ties in well with how he was seen on his final few days and it does it cleverly. It incorporates several of his most famous stories and it keeps you guessing. I did not see who the killer was and my hat is off to whoever did before the final 3rd of the movie. Like I said this typically wouldn't make it into my top 5 but its more of a...guilty pleasure.

3. The Hunger Games

I must admit, I was a little nervous before this came out. As a huge fan of the books I was expecting them to be ruined. Most book to movie adaptions are poor( i.e. Harry Potter with the exception of 2-3 of the 8 films). I must say I was pleasantly surprised. It could have been much better, but I won't go into to much detail here. Things I did love was the detail in the film. The Capitol was exactly how I envisioned it. The acting was superb across the board, especially from Lenny Kravitz as Cinna. The sets were beautiful and the film was shot wonderfully. Its truly sad that the director will not be returning for the last few films.

2. Prometheus

Alrighty, I'm gunna prepare myself. Here is were the mixed opinions will fly in. Critics mostly loved it, and so did most of the viewers. But the few people that hated the movie, hated it. And I mean HATED it. I read up a lot on opinions of this film when I got back from the film, and most people loved it or despised it. No in between. With that said, I loved it. And here is why. First off, the special effects were incredible. This is the one time 3D has EVER been wort it in my opinion. The holgram scene was unreal and so was the rest of the film. It was intense the whole way through, and like a good sci-fi horror film it has several memorable scenes in it(surgery scene, you know what I am talking about), and an ending straight from hell. A lot of people that hated it said it had to many plot holes but I don't see that. Two reasons why this is false. The first is that Ridley Scott has already said there will be a sequel, and if you didn't get that from the ending you are an idiot already. Secondly, this isn't a movie that is supposed to hand you answers on a platter. I hate that "thinking" movies have almost ceased to exist. Most people these days hate any movie if they aren't spoon fed answers. This movie raises big questions and wants you to form some of your own answers. The movie really was nothing like I was expecting. I was expecting a horror, blockbuster gore-fest, and I gladly got instead something much better.

1. The Avengers

Yes. Us video game/comic loving nerds all loved this. The film was what it attempted to be. A absolute thrill ride with some humor mixed in. If you try to take this film as anything else than a fun summer blockbuster you will be disappointed. And boy was I not. The effects were great as usual for films such as these, but what really stood out to me was the hero of this movie, Josh Whedon. He did a remarkable job directing such a huge movie. He had a lot of pressure on him to deliver and he did. The four main heroes complimented each other superbly and did a remarkable job with their acting, for a film such as this. And let me tell you, the theme for this movie when it was played at the beginning and during the final fight scene gave me straight up chills. There isn't a lot of depth to go into here. It was just one damn fine summer blockbuster, and finally gave superhero movies what they deserve. Critic success. The only two films to be more critcily acclaimed then this were Nolan's Batman films. Thank you Josh Whedon. I can't wait for more.

Honorable Mentions

Rock of Ages: So I am home for the summer and I went to see this film with my family this afternoon before work and I loved it. Guilty pleasure. I am a huge 80's rock fan, I love musicals, and Julianne Hough is a babe. It was just a plain fun film. Nothing special, but a lot of fun to experience on a big screen with the real surround sound listening to some great rock anthems.

Man On A Ledge: A very fine film. Non-stop intensity with a great ending, and just plain fun to sit through.

Snow-White and the Huntsman: I gained a little respect for Kristen Stewart with this film. While it was not anything special by any means, it is at least worth a rental on DVD in the near future and provides a great adult version of this classic children's tale.

What To Look For Soon

The Dark Knight Rises: The obvious choice. I don't even need to say much about this. The hype surrounding this film is unreal, and the trailers are mind-blowing. I can seriously see this film in Oscar contention come this time next year in categories such as Best Directing, Best Picture, Best Score, Best Art Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Supporting Actor, and maybe a few more.

The Bourne Legacy: I'm still going to have a hard time watching a Bourne movie without THE Jason Bourne. But the new trailer looked intense and Jeremy Renner is on my list of rising stars to looks out for since the Hurt Locker.

Lawless: For the sake of finishing this blog up I won't go into detail. Just look it up. Let's just say this. Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, and moonshine runners. Nuff said.

The Hobbit: Need I say anymore?

Well thanks for the read, if you made it this far. Follow me if you enjoyed my post. This is my VERY FIRST BLOG, so let me know what I can do to make it better. I will be using my blog to do a lot of movie reviews and more blogs like this such as Worst Movies of the Year, Best Movies of the Decade, etc. So if you have any ideas for something you'd like to be made, then hit me up!

The Grey was one that really stood out to me. I went in thinking it was about Liam Neeson fucking up wolves in a variety of ways. Instead, I got emotional characters and a story about life and survival. Yet, I still loved every minute of it.

I'd never have guessed that you'd put Prometheus on this list. Like, ever.

EDIT: Fuckin' A, a new Bourne movie? Really? Why? And why isn't Bourne actually in it?

Have you seen Cabin in the Woods? Great movie IMO

@believer258 said:

I'd never have guessed that you'd put Prometheus on this list. Like, ever.

EDIT: Fuckin' A, a new Bourne movie? Really?

Really? Why not? In no way am I saying that Prometheus is one of the best films ever. Like I said, the first half of the year is always filled with big blockbuster movies and stuff like that. Not a lot of quality film making. But with that being said, Prometheus was very enjoyable and I can't think of many movies released so far this year that would be any better. I can easily see it 10 years from now making the AFI Top 100 Sci-Fi films list.

EDIT: I don't know why Bourne isn't actually in it. Maybe they want to give someone else a shot at taking this franchise over. The film is about other agents just like Bourne, focusing on Renner's character. Maybe cause Damon is getting too old? Who knows.

EDIT AGAIN: Oh haha I get your original post. Nvm. My name. Didn;t quite catch that. But thats not exactly where my name comes from. Good try though lol.

@OperationPrometheus said:

@believer258 said:

I'd never have guessed that you'd put Prometheus on this list. Like, ever.

EDIT: Fuckin' A, a new Bourne movie? Really?

Really? Why not? In no way am I saying that Prometheus is one of the best films ever. Like I said, the first half of the year is always filled with big blockbuster movies and stuff like that. Not a lot of quality film making. But with that being said, Prometheus was very enjoyable and I can't think of many movies released so far this year that would be any better. I can easily see it 10 years from now making the AFI Top 100 Sci-Fi films list.

EDIT: I don't know why Bourne isn't actually in it. Maybe they want to give someone else a shot at taking this franchise over. The film is about other agents just like Bourne, focusing on Renner's character. Maybe cause Damon is getting too old? Who knows.

EDIT AGAIN: Oh haha I get your original post. Nvm. My name. Didn;t quite catch that. But thats not exactly where my name comes from. Good try though lol.

Oh, so you're trying to steal some flame that you were told not to?

In the meantime, I didn't like Prome... shit, I'm not getting back into this discussion.

EDIT: One more thing: If you don't know already, you're going to hit a post block on your fifth post. They didn't give a forewarning and it was really annoying. It's in place to keep spammers out, and it doesn't lift until numero 25.

Lol ok, was my name inspired by the movie some? Yes it was. But thats not like the only reason I have this name thats what I am trying to say. Lol I also just needed a forum name if you get what I mean. And I couldn't think of a whole lot.

On-topic, why did you not like Prometheus? I can totally understand why you didn't cause a lot of people didn't but I was just curious as to your reasons.

Hey man, you neglected a couple of other good looking movies coming out this year, I mean, don't get me wrong, the ones you listed look great, and we're all SUPER excited for Dark Knight Rises, but I'm also excited for others.

Argo (I loved both The Town and Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck is really growing on me as a director and is really doing a great job at reviving his career as an actor after several flops, so I'm pretty pumped for it)

Gangster Squad (I'm a sucker for crime dramas, and a sucker for character dramas with great all star casts, with a cast that includes Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Nick Nolte, Robert Patrick, Ryan Gosling, and Emma Stone, this one is definately high on my ones to watch.)

And last but not least, Django Unchained (Ok, I'll admit it, I'm biased when it comes to Quentin Tarantino films, but come on, can you really blame me? He's an artist who's able to use both referential/cultural humor and violence in an artist and clever manner, something not too many other people can do, and his stories and dialogue he writes are alway's entertaining, not to mention he is the guy who revived Travolta's career, so the idea that Tarantino wants to make a Western but throw in a civil war twist gives me a nerd gasm, plus the idea of Leonardi DiCaprio playing an over-the-top bad guy is awesome in my book, which is why it's my number one pick for movies to see this year (other than the Dark Knight Rises offcourse).

@DisquisedJustin said:

Hey man, you neglected a couple of other good looking movies coming out this year, I mean, don't get me wrong, the ones you listed look great, and we're all SUPER excited for Dark Knight Rises, but I'm also excited for others.

Argo (I loved both The Town and Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck is really growing on me as a director and is really doing a great job at reviving his career as an actor after several flops, so I'm pretty pumped for it)

Gangster Squad (I'm a sucker for crime dramas, and a sucker for character dramas with great all star casts, with a cast that includes Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Nick Nolte, Robert Patrick, Ryan Gosling, and Emma Stone, this one is definately high on my ones to watch.)

And last but not least, Django Unchained (Ok, I'll admit it, I'm biased when it comes to Quentin Tarantino films, but come on, can you really blame me? He's an artist who's able to use both referential/cultural humor and violence in an artist and clever manner, something not too many other people can do, and his stories and dialogue he writes are alway's entertaining, not to mention he is the guy who revived Travolta's career, so the idea that Tarantino wants to make a Western but throw in a civil war twist gives me a nerd gasm, plus the idea of Leonardi DiCaprio playing an over-the-top bad guy is awesome in my book, which is why it's my number one pick for movies to see this year (other than the Dark Knight Rises offcourse).

Lol. My good man trust me I did not forget about those. The reason I didn't include them is cause as my first blog post I was trying to keep this from being long-winded seeing as a lot of people don't like reading walls of text. Trust me I am beyond pumped for Ganster Squad and Argo. I loved The Town. I could have listed a good 7-8 more films to look out for this year that have been given set release dates but I was trying to keep it short.

I haven't seen any of these movies but I can honestly say that Safe House looks like just about every other Denzel Washington movie. If your into that, cool, but if I wanted to watch the same Denzel Washington movie again I'd just watch Training Day. The Raven, I neither heard bad or good things about. The only thing I even saw or heard pre-release was listening to John Cusack be interviewed by Howard Stern. I heard that Hunger Games was just another angst filled teenage drama. Your top 2 are probably the only movies of those 5 that I will watch (on dvd). The only movie I've watched this year was "The Grey" and I liked it but the only reason I saw that was cause I had a free movie ticket from christmas.

No Cabin in the Woods... I am extremely displeased by this list. It offends me...

To be completely honest that is one of the few films I haven't seen this year. I was busy with finals around the time it came out and couldn't get out to see it. Its on my must rent list though!!!

@Intro said:

The Grey was one that really stood out to me. I went in thinking it was about Liam Neeson fucking up wolves in a variety of ways. Instead, I got emotional characters and a story about life and survival. Yet, I still loved every minute of it.

Yup, I was also really surprised by how good The Grey was. Everyone else in the theater seemed disappointed with the ending but I thought it worked well.

1. Avengers
2. The Grey (Maybe number 1, hard choice between these two.)
3. Act of Valor
4. Prometheus

Only remember seeing these movies so far but I think I saw another one... can't remember if I did or not. Loved the first three listed and liked Prometheus quite a lot. It had flaws in my opinion but I still very much enjoyed it. If I wasn't a pretty big Alien fan I'm not sure if I would have liked it as much as I did. I really wanted to go see Cabin in the Woods but never got a chance to.

@Intro said:

The Grey was one that really stood out to me. I went in thinking it was about Liam Neeson fucking up wolves in a variety of ways. Instead, I got emotional characters and a story about life and survival. Yet, I still loved every minute of it.

Such a fucking great film.

I dont even remember what happened in safe house......  I completely forgot it came out this year

@Jay444111: Gotta agree with Jay here, where the fuck is Cabin?

I haven't seen to many this year, I think only three, making Avengers and Hunger Games the best.

21 Jump Street's my favorite movie of the year so far, it was the first movie that made me laugh every other minute in a theater.

Trust me, Cabin in the Woods is on my must rent list as soon as it comes out. I just didn't have the time to go see it around the date it came out so I had to pass. Plus, I'm definately not the biggest horror film fan so it wasn't a must see for me.

Is there an other star trek movie in the works?

@SmilingPig: Yes there is. Its set to release in Summer 2013. There is no title for the movie yet but it returns with the whole cast of the first film, plus Benidict Cumberbatch as the villain. Not sure who it is. The story is supposed to focus on Spok.

Totally surprised by Prometheus--for a genre that's been unfamiliar to Scott for thirty something years, he came back pretty strong. Haven't really seen any other movies in theaters aside from Cabin in the Woods, The Avengers, and Chronicle (all of which are fairly great).