1. Blue Valentine

Blue Valentine is unquestionably the most beautifully heartrending film I’ve watched in a long, LONG time. It has it’s fair share of excruciatingly painful to watch moments, however in equal measures it’s full of humour, warmth and charm. Both Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams give ridiculously multi layered and human performances. Beautiful and brutal in equal measures, writer-director Derek Cianfrance I salute you!

2. Black Swan

Natalie Portman has never been better and Darren Aronofsky further cements his place as one of the best directors working today with Black Swan. The movie is on all counts breathtaking. You won’t see a more hauntingly enchanting film this year. No film commanded my attention as much as this did, I was spell bounded the whole time.

3. 127 Hours

This films about as riveting and gut-wrenching as you could imagine. I haven’t seen a movie in a long time that has captured the strength, love and will of the human condition as triumphantly as 127 Hours does. James Franco and Danny Boyle are both on top form.

4. Inception

A ridiculously talented director + a great cast + an interesting and original story + amazing imagery + jaw dropping action + heartfelt emotions= win win win win win win win win win win……and more win. Christopher Nolan has truly become the modern master of balancing entertainment and substance, Inception was truly a feast for your eyes and mind.

5. Scott Pilgrim Vs The World

Without a doubt Edgar Wright created the most entertaining and original movie of the year in Scott Pilgrim VS The World. Full of eye popping visuals, a great soundtrack and quirkyness in abundence, my inner geek (we all possess it) ran wild with this film.

6. The Social network

David Fincher, you my good sir are a master of this film malarkey! Everything about this film is fantastic – the score, the performances, the dialogue, the pacing…….I could go on and on.

7. Carlos

With a running time of 5 hours and 19 minutes, a story covering roughly twenty five years of a mans life, and a vast amount of settings, epic is the word that best describes Carlos. The film is anchored by a enigmatically multi layered performance from Edgar Ramirez in the role of the notorious, convicted Venezuelan terrorist Carlos the Jackal (Ilich Ramirez Sanchez).  Wholly fascinating!

8. Winter’s Bone

Dark, haunting, and yet still somehow hopeful, Winters Bone is powerful stuff! Jennifer Lawrence in the lead role is astonishing. If you like a hefty slice of ‘whodunit’ and ‘coming-of-age’, this film is a MUST.

9. The Kings Speech

Two great performances by two great actors, Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush deserve every single bit of praise they’ve been receiving for this film. I was expecting a stiff royal drama and boy was I wrong! The Kings Speech is a masterfully crafted film filled with humanity, wit and warmth.

10. The Fighter

I’m a complete sucker for these ‘ based on a true story’ type flicks and this one didn’t disappoint. Christian Bale is ridiculously good in this film, I’d be gob smacked if he doesn’t bag an Oscar. The film felt authentic throughout, it was also a lot more compelling and humorous than I expected. Two thumbs up!

Honourable Mention

Africa United, Let Me In, Toy Story 3, The Town, Monsters, Benda Bellini, Four Lions, Kick Ass, The Tillman Story, Buried, Rabbit Hole, Mother, Somewhere, Heartless, Shutter Island, Never Let Me Go, Of Gods & Men, Get Low, Enter The Void, Fish Tank, I Am Love, Machete, The Killer Inside Me, Exit Through The Gift Shop, Another Year

*Please note I haven’t seen How to Train Your Dragon, Enter The Void and True Grit.

You can never say that Warner Bros are spreading themselves too thin with the marketing for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. Today they have released an informative featurette giving us a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the soundtrack. If that doesn’t interest you, it’s also fun to watch if you want to see the frenchest scarf EVER known to man (worn by composer Alexandre Desplat).

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I will hit cinemas November 19th, while Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II is slated for release July 15, 2011. The film stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Jim Broadbent, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Warwick Davis, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, David Thewlis, Julie Walters and is directed by David Yates.

Warner Bros. (via Heyuguys) have unveiled five new images from Todd Phillips upcoming film Due Date – a movie I had the pleasure of viewing yesterday. I’m glad to declare it was even better than I was expecting, I was in stitches the whole time. Any film that features both the most charismatic man in Hollywood (Robert Downey Jnr) and the man with one of the greatest beard’s on earth (Zach Galifianakis) automatically gets the two thumbs up of approval! Due Date is in cinemas November 5th.

Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr.) is an expectant first-time father whose wife’s due date is a mere five days away. As Peter hurries to catch a flight home from Atlanta to be at her side for the birth, his best intentions go completely awry when a chance encounter with aspiring actor Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) forces Peter to hitch a ride with Ethan–on what turns out to be a cross-country road trip that will ultimately destroy several cars, numerous friendships and Peter’s last nerve.

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

WARNING – Nostalgiagasm Alert: Last weekend at the 2010 Scream Awards, Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd and the iconic DeLorean reunited on stage to pay tribute to the 25th Anniversary of Back to the Future. It’s a great little feature, full marks to the Scream Awards – they aired a tonne of pretty awesome exclusives and reunions throughout the show. The 25th Anniversary of Back to the Future is set for release on Blu-ray October 25th.

Walt Disney Pictures have released this splendid poster for Tron: Legacy via Yahoo. The poster is extremely reminiscent of the original Tron poster, it’s got that whole 1980′s Sci Fi/Fantasy vibe to it. I’m SUPER excited for this film, the trailers have delivered big time for me.

Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the tech-savvy 27-year-old son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), looks into his father’s disappearance and finds himself pulled into the digital world of Tron where his father has been living for 25 years. Along with Kevin’s loyal confidant Quorra (Olivia Wilde), father and son embark on a life-and-death journey of escape across a visually-stunning cyber universe that has become far more advanced and exceedingly dangerous.”Tron Legacy” is directed by Joseph Kosinski and is scheduled to hit theaters on December 17th in 3D.

Bill Murray is truly a king… nay a GOD amongst men! Over the weekend Murray accepted the award for “Best Horror Movie” at the 2010 Scream Awards on behalf of Zombieland wearing his full Peter Venkman Ghostbusters uniform. With all the buzz building up for Ghostbusters 3 I’m sure Murray got a real kick out of teasing everyone! The Scream Awards also paid tribute to the 25th Anniversary of Back to the Future with Michael J. Fox, Lea Thompson, Christopher Lloyd and Elisabeth Shue reuniting on stage with the iconic DeLorean. Spike’s 2010 Scream Awards will be broadcast October 19th in the US. From this Associated Press article the awards ceremony sounds like it gets two EMPHATIC thumbs up of approval!

Sigourney Weaver emerged from a giant brain-shaped pod to accept “Heroine” honors from James Cameron. Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd got a standing ovation as they reunited with a DeLorean car to celebrate the 25th anniversary of “Back to the Future.” Jimmy Kimmel honored the cast of “Lost” with a special farewell in front of a flaming piece of fuselage.

Perhaps hinting at next year’s winners were exclusive previews of a new crop of horror and fantasy films. Wes Craven, Neve Campbell, Emma Roberts and David Arquette presented footage from “Scream 4.” The stars of “Paranormal Activity” and “The Walking Dead” also presented never-before-seen clips. Sir Anthony Hopkins introduced a look at “The Rite.” There was also a peek at the latest “Harry Potter” film.

But the most anticipated movie, according to Spike viewers, was “Green Lantern.” Stars Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively appeared together to accept the night’s final prize.

No ifs or buts about it, this film is definitely a must see. I was fortunate enough to attend a press screening a few weeks back and I have to say it’s one of the most charming, visually stunning and all around thumbs up worthy films of the year! It’s more of a sci-fi romantic drama that focuses on the human side of an alien invasion, than the sci-fi thriller the marketing has made it look like though. Monsters is hitting cinemas October 29th 2010 in the US and November 12th 2010 in the UK.

Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life forms began to appear and grow. In an effort to stem the destruction that resulted, half of Mexico was quarantined as an INFECTED ZONE. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain the massive creatures… Our story begins when a jaded US journalist (McNairy) begrudgingly agrees to find his boss’ daughter, a shaken American tourist (Able) and escort her through the infected zone to the safety of the US border.

This trailer suffers from a severe case of showingtoomuchitus, I like what I see though, it looks like charming romantic comedy. I’ve always got time for Jake Gyllenhaal, director Edward Zwick has put out some quality flicks as well in Glory, Legends of the Fall, Courage Under Fire, The Last Samurai, Blood Diamond and Defiance. Love And Other Drugs is based on Jamie Reidy’s 2005 book “Hard Sell: The Evolution of a Viagra Salesman”. The film centres on a lothario salesman (Gyllenhaal) who begins a relationship with a woman who has Parkinson’s (Hathaway) whom he meets on one of his sales calls. Their love story plays out in the political and social context of the time. Judy Greer, Jaimie Alexander, Hank Azaria, Oliver Platt, Gabriel Macht and George Segal co-star.

Hathaway portrays Maggie, an alluring free spirit who won’t let anyone – or anything – tie her down. But she meets her match in Jamie (Gyllenhaal), whose relentless and nearly infallible charm serve him well with the ladies and in the cutthroat world of pharmaceutical sales. Maggie and Jamie’s evolving relationship takes them both by surprise, as they find themselves under the influence of the ultimate drug: love.

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 1 is out on November 19, and Part 2 is out on July 15 next year. The film stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Jim Broadbent, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Warwick Davis, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, David Thewlis, Julie Walters and is directed by David Yates.

Disney have released a sleek new Tron Legacy character banner featuring Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn. I’m SUPER excited for this film, the trailers have delivered big time for me. I remember loving the original as a kid but to be honest I’ve totally forgotten what it was like, nostalgia can be a lying, cheating, deceiving b*stard sometimes. I’m gonna have to watch the original again to remind my self. Check out the previous character banners below featuring Olivia Wilde as Quorra and Garret Hedlund as Sam Flynn.

Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the tech-savvy 27-year-old son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), looks into his father’s disappearance and finds himself pulled into the digital world of Tron where his father has been living for 25 years. Along with Kevin’s loyal confidant Quorra (Olivia Wilde), father and son embark on a life-and-death journey of escape across a visually-stunning cyber universe that has become far more advanced and exceedingly dangerous.”Tron Legacy” is directed by Joseph Kosinski and is scheduled to hit theaters on December 17th in 3D.

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]