stillonmystring: (bright star)
[personal profile] stillonmystring
Here we are, the rest of the movies I watched this year, to go along with the ones already posted here. And also the television series/documentaries/whatever the hell else I watched. Woo! I clearly have too much time on my hands.

71. Lying ★★½ (I'm not against movies that don't have much of a real plot, in fact sometimes I rather like them, but this was just too abstract for me. It didn't seem to have any point at all. Except to show off pretty girls in pretty clothes surrounded by pretty scenery. And while I can enjoy all three of those things, they just didn't come together to create anything meaningful or memorable.)
72. Inception ★★★★★ (You know, I'm not going to call this flawless because I'm sure it wasn't but it kept me well entertained for 2.5 hours, the performances were all fantastic and it was so beautiful to look at as well. Plus, it was twisty and mind-bendy without being nearly as confusing as I thought it would be... at least when you take it at face value. When you start getting into all these complex theories about the ending and all that, that's when it gets confusing. Which is why I'd rather not worry about the "deeper meaning" too much and just be happy with what's already there.)
73. Forgetting Sarah Marshall ★★★★★ (I'm weird with comedies. I tend to crack up at the stupidest stuff, which is why I can enjoy even the lamest ones on some level, but there aren't many comedy movies that I would consider favorites or something that I actually crave to watch more than once. I could see myself watching this one multiple times. Was every joke completely awesome or original? No, but they were still consistently funny and the really good ones made me laugh more than I do at a lot of things. Plus, I fucking love Jason Segel. He could probably just stand in front of a camera making funny faces and I would still find him hilarious and adorable.)
74. Beautiful Losers ★★ (I can't remember exactly why I ever put this in my queue or why I forced myself to sit through the entire thing even though I was painfully bored ten minutes in and it never got much better. Not only was it boring but it seemed very self-congratulatory. Two stars for Margaret Kilgallen who, to me, was the most talented artist featured and I was sad to hear she passed away.)
75. Alexander the Last ★★★
76. Frontier(s) ★★★★ (Oh my God, this was so creepy and so gory and for some reason, I always end up watching these kinds of movies by myself late at night. I should really stop doing that. Anyway, this was a very well-done horror film. Even if the plot kind of ripped off Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the acting was surprisingly great (especially the lead girl) and it was very intense. I had to pause several times because I was just so grossed/creeped out. Not something I will probably ever watch again but good for what it is.)
77. Inglourious Basterds ★★★★
78. The Hours ★★★★½ (One of the best book adaptations I've seen. Of course the book was still much better but, for the most part, it stayed very true to it.)
79. How to Train Your Dragon ★★★★

80. Pan's Labyrinth ★★★★★ (A very dark but very beautiful film. I was honestly surprised at just how dark it was, especially the ending. I doubt an American film with similar subject matter would go all the way with such an ending like this did.)
81. Slumdog Millionaire ★★★★½ (I've been avoiding seeing this for a long time because, for reasons that don't really make sense, I had convinced myself I would hate it. But in the end, it won me over. It's a very good film. I thought all of the child actors were especially great.)
82. Kick-Ass ★★★★★ (I don't typically do superhero/comic book movies or gratuitous violence and this movie undeniably falls under both categories. However, I absolutely loved it. It was hilarious and clever and highly entertaining. And, basically, entirely kick-ass.)
83. Fargo ★★
84. The Science of Sleep ★★½ (I usually enjoy quirky movies but, to me, this one just seemed overly so, like it was being quirky simply because it could be. Some of the visuals were really nice and there was nothing wrong with the acting but there wasn't enough of a legitimate plot to keep me engaged.)
85. How to Train Your Dragon ★★★★
86. Rushmore ★★★
87. Sunshine ★★★★ (This is one of the most tense movies I've ever seen... the tone of the whole thing is just ridiculously uncomfortable. And I mean that in the best way possible. Though I'm still not sure how I feel about the sudden appearance of the mysterious fifth passenger at the end. I think I would have liked it more if it had actually been explained at all. As it is, it felt weird assuming it was a supernatural occurrence in a sci-fi film that was trying to come across as realistic as possible up until that point. At the same time, trying to take it as being completely human was just impossible. So that kind of bugged me.)
88. The Social Network ★★★★★ (When I first heard about this movie, I thought it was going to be incredibly lame. When I heard that Justin Timberlake was going to be in it, I thought it was going to be incredibly lame. When I saw the way overdramatic trailer for it, I still thought it was going to be incredibly lame. So you can imagine how surprised I was when it started to get such nearly unanimous praise and I still wasn't convinced it would really be that great. But it really was. Granted, it will probably bore you a bit if you aren't a fan of a. very dialogue-driven movies and b. very dry/sarcastic humor but if, like me, you are a fan of those things, you might find it unexpectedly awesome. Yes, despite even the presence of Justin Timberlake, who was actually tolerable though any talk of an Oscar nomination for him is laughable at best. Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield on the other hand, in my opinion, are possibly deserving of that honor. Andrew especially won me over though, admittedly, he didn't have to do much to achieve that because I already found him pretty damn adorable and talented. All in all, to my delighted surprise, this turned out to be one of the best movies I've seen in awhile and one I actually want to see again really badly.)
89. Superbad ★★★★ (Honestly, I would watch an entire movie dedicated to McLovin's adventures with the two policemen; that was hilarious. Also, between this and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, I think I might kind of love Bill Hader a little bit.)

90. Fast Times at Ridgemont High ★½ (I was under the impression this was supposed to be awesome but I barely got through it. To me, it seemed like a typical '80s teen comedy and that's mostly a sub-genre I find incredibly boring.)
91. The Rocky Horror Picture Show ★★★ (This was entertaining enough but I guess I expected more. As far as left-of-field musicals go, I'll take Hedwig and the Angry Inch any day. Though I suspect much of the appeal with this lies in audience participation so maybe it's just not meant for casual viewing.)
92. The Celluloid Closet ★★★ (Uh... kind of dated documentary about homosexuality in movies which I don't remember much about now. I guess it was okay. I think I probably added a few more movies to my Netflix queue because of it which is basically what I watch documentaries like this for, to get more recommendations.)
93. Cabaret ★★★★ (This was fun! And I'm not the kind of person who watches or particularly enjoys many movies that were made before the '90s. I feel really weird for saying it but I kind of have a crush on Liza Minelli in this movie. She was actually extremely adorable back in the day!)
94. Paprika ★★★¾
95. Away We Go ★★★★½
96. Phoebe in Wonderland ★★★¾ (I think Elle Fanning is more talented than her big sister. Also, the girl is fucking STUNNINGLY BEAUTIFUL. I feel super weird saying I'm jealous of a twelve year old's beauty but it's true! Girl will be unfathomably gorgeous when she's all grown up.)
97. Love in Thoughts ★★★★ (Beautiful film visually, a bit slow story-wise but I think that's kind of the point because the languid, sleepy quality of most of the film really makes the ending that much more intense. Also, August Diehl is ridiculously gorgeous, unf unf unf. And the other lead guy looks kind of like the lead singer of Cobra Starship. Not sure if want.)
98. Winter's Bone ★★★★ (I can't believe this is John Hawkes in this movie. The only other thing I've seen him in is Me and You and Everyone We Know and his character here is like the complete polar opposite of his character there. He's scary!)
99. Super Size Me ★★★★ (Damn it! One short of 100! Anyway, this was interesting.. and disgusting. Good thing I already didn't eat much fast food anymore.)

Television:

1. Dead Like Me: Season 2 ★★★½ (I really didn't like Mason killing Will Truman Eric McCormack Ray. I mean, the episodes that followed that one were probably the best of the whole season but it seemed so out-of-character to me... I know Mason's a "bad boy" and a pretty massive asshole most of the time but he wouldn't kill someone. No matter how in love with Daisy he is. Also, this season was far lighter on the comedy and far heavier on the depressing which I'm not sure I much liked. Honestly, I wouldn't have missed the reapers (except Mason) if it meant giving more time to Reggie's storyline. She's totally my favorite character.)
2. Skins: Series 1 ★★★★★ (It seems like there's a post about this show every other day on ONTD and when I found out that Netflix conveniently has the first two seasons available for streaming, I decided to see what the fuss was all about. Based on the first episode, I didn't think I was going to get hooked but, holy hell, was I ever wrong. It just kept getting better and better. I loved the juxtaposition of all these ridiculously unrealistic scenarios interspersed with subtle, emotional character development moments; that way you get the totally hilarious, over-the-top comedic side of things and the intense, heartwrenching dramatic side. And I'm willing to forgive all of the more questionable situations because the main teen actors are very good and completely sell their characters; it's especially impressive considering most of them hadn't done much work previously. My favorite characters are Jal, Cassie, Chris, and Maxxie. But really, I like all of them. I even like Tony - his dick-ish behavior is extremely entertaining. Now off to watch series two! Because I am hopelessly addicted at this point.)
3. Skins: Series 2 ★★★★ (One good thing about British television shows? Their seasons are usually so short that it's easy to breeze right through them - no way could I watch two whole seasons of an American show in a week. Anyway, this season was undoubtedly much more far-fetched and soap opera-esque than the first but I don't even care, it was still so damn gripping. BUT WHY DID THEY HAVE TO KILL OFF CHRIS, GODDAMNIT?!? He had slowly become my favorite character and, for that reason, I fucking bawled like a little baby through pretty much all of the last three episodes. I mean, his death was so realistically handled (unlike much of what happened this season) but GOD, WHY DID IT HAVE TO BE HIM?!? It was made even worse by the fact that he was on the verge of death then seemed to be getting better and then just all of a sudden he's gone. Gah. I'm not sure I've ever been so devastated by a TV show before. And I just can't get over how, even at its worst, this is so much better than pretty much any current American teen drama. Also, it makes me realize even more how prudish most Americans are - there is so much cursing and nudity and casual drug use on this show that I'm sure only about ten minutes of each episode would be allowed to air on any major TV channel here. Which is ridiculous. I'll probably get around to the third and fourth seasons at some point but I'm not as eager to watch them since all of the original cast is gone. I'm sure I'll get pulled in anyway though. Apparently, I'm a huge sucker for teen angst.)
4. Indie Sex ★★★½ (A three-part IFC documentary about the history of sex in (mostly independent) cinema. For the most part, it was pretty interesting and informative; most of the interviews were really great - they picked some very entertaining people to feature. It was a little repetitive but that's to be expected with 3+ hours of material. I love documentaries about movies because I always end up coming away with more I need to see.)
5. Arrested Development: Season 2 ★★★★★ (Actually, I watched the first 2/3 of the season last year and finally got around to finishing it just now. So I probably forgot half of what happened but I do remember I was constantly cracking up and that's the only important thing, really.)
6. Arrested Development: Season 3 ★★★★★ (I didn't love everything about this season but, let's face it, this show when it's not so great is still freaking fantastic and hilarious so it doesn't even matter.)
7. Freaks and Geeks ★★★★★ (It's a shame that all of the truly good shows always get canceled prematurely. I also watched most of this last year and just finished it up. It took me an episode or two to really get into it but I ended up loving it. So funny but also so much more than that. And I love Bill; he's the best. Also, this show is entirely responsible for me kind of crushing on Jason Segel; Nick is just so adorable.)
8. Doctor Who (2005): Series 5 ★★★★★ (Alright, not every episode was perfect. Plot-wise, there were a handful that I didn't like but Matt Smith is just so awesome that he sells them anyway. He could probably be working with the most terrible script ever written and I would still love every second of it because he's just that entertaining to watch. So, pretty much, he's the reason I became so invested in this season that, in the end, I couldn't really care less about its flaws. And I know people say that Amy's annoying/one-dimensional and Karen is a mediocre actress but I don't give a fuck, I love the both of them. And Rory too. Basically, all three characters fill me up with the warm fuzzies due to their adorableness and I can't wait for the next season to start. In the meantime, I'm trying to play catch up with the past seasons and then will probably re-watch this one to see how it holds up in comparison.)
9. Doctor Who (2005): Series 1 ★★★½ (At first, I was really disappointed by how little these episodes were living up to my expectations. Gradually, they got better but, still, in the end I probably only loved four episodes, liked two or three others and found the rest okay to terrible with unbelievably cheesy and horrible special effects. Those four episodes that I loved though - the two two-parters in the second half of the season - were really quite excellent and the finale itself especially was brilliant and perfect. It took me a few episodes to warm up to Christopher Eccleston but by the end, he had won me over and I was sad when he was gone. Rose I didn't really even like until the season finale but she's okay by me now too. Overall, though, the actors and the stories never really captured me like the latest season did, probably because that was the first season I watched so it's special to me. And I know to hardcore Doctor Who fans what I just said amounts to sacrilege but, oh well, I can't lie.)
10. Doctor Who (2005): Series 2 ★★★ (The rate at which I've plowed through these two seasons really shows everyone how little of a life I have, doesn't it? Anyway, for the most part, this season disappointed me. The really bad episodes were close to unwatchable and of the ones I liked, none of them really jumped out at me as totally amazing. Also, whoa, David Tennant likes to ham it up. His tendency to overact really took me out of the moment on several occasions and though there are times when I really like him, as of right now, he's definitely my least favorite of the three recent doctors. As far as the finale goes, it was probably one of the best episodes of the season but, man, was it depressing. I mean, SPOILERS AHOY, Jackie and Rose were basically taken to live forever in an alternate universe against their own will. When Mickey stayed behind earlier in the season, at least it was his own decision but the two of them really didn't have a say in it. Rose did for awhile but, in the end, she was taken too. I mean, I didn't really want her to die (or be sucked into the void, which is probably even worse than death) but if that was the way she wanted to go out, so be it. No one should be forcing her to do anything she doesn't want to. And, come on, how heavy-handed was that final scene? The episode really would have been more affecting without it. Yeah, it made me tear up but that's because the dialogue and performances were basically tailor-made for manipulating the viewer to cry. I don't like when shows try to tell me how I'm supposed to feel about what's going on. I should just feel it naturally. Despite all that, it's not like this season wasn't an enjoyable experience - even at its worst, Doctor Who is still quite entertaining - but it wasn't exactly a fully satisfying one.)

11. Doctor Who (2005): Series 3 ★★★½ (Loved Martha, hated the Doctor being all emo over Rose. Loved about half of the episodes but there were quite a few I completely hated. I thought the Shakespeare episode was kind of lame, the Daleks in Manhattan episodes were definitely the worst of the entire new series (despite featuring the adorable Andrew Garfield), The Lazarus Experiment/42 weren't anything special, and the Tinkerbell!Jesus!Doctor finale was a disappointment. However, Blink is hands-down my favorite episode ever, Human Nature/The Family of Blood was probably the best two-parter of them all, the two episodes leading up to the finale were excellent (Captain Jack!), and I actually really liked how bizarre and whimsical Gridlock was even though it seems to be a widely-hated episode. So overall it was a pretty great season. Damn those Daleks though. They really brought the entire thing down.)
12. Doctor Who (2005): Series 4 ★★★★½ (Donna is the most kick-ass companion ever and I think this is the only season where I can say that I felt completely invested in even the lesser episodes - which was mostly because of her. I even enjoyed the big Companion-palooza that was the finale because, despite all the gaping plot holes, it was just really nice to see everyone again. Yes, even Rose. She annoyed me at the end of her run but, I'll admit, when she first showed up at the end of Partners in Crime, I got way too excited about her return. But honestly - and I never thought I'd be saying this, even though I grew to rather like him by the end of the first series - Mickey was clearly the best part of those episodes. It turns out kicking ass in an alternate universe has made him rather awesome.)
13. Doctor Who (2005): 2009 Specials ★★★ (Well, these were a bit of a mixed bag. I absolutely hated The Next Doctor and thought it was almost unbearably boring. Planet of the Dead I liked a little bit more but not much. The Waters of Mars was actually quite awesome though I didn't like the whole "I'm the last Time Lord left so I get to play God now!" attitude the Doctor acquired near the end - but I think that was the point. And then The End of Time... the first part was really not good at all and was mostly set-up for the second. The second part was way better but wasn't really exceptional. And, Jesus, after hearing Ten mope and whine about his imminent death throughout almost every one of these specials, by the end, I was more than ready for him to go. And then Eleven, yay! I'd actually watched part two just to see his thirty seconds back in January but, considering I didn't know anything about the story then, didn't really remember much apart from Master! Time Lords! Doctor visiting people I don't know! Some strange process called regeneration! MATT SMITH! so this was almost like watching it for the first time. Now I'm going to take a bit of a break to get through Torchwood then I'll probably re-watch series five.)
14. Torchwood: Series 1 ★★★ (Hmm... well, honestly, I thought this sucked at first. The first five episodes were really not great. I was only watching it because I felt like I should up until Countrycide, which I actually enjoyed. Then it got quite a bit better. There were still some spotty episodes here and there but the second half of the series was much more enjoyable. Mostly, I like this show because of the acting. Gwen annoys the shit out of me but Eve Myles is really good and almost makes me like her. Owen has a terribly unlikable personality but he's probably my favorite character because a. he's the most interesting/developed and b. Burn Gorman is really excellent and I find him strangely attractive as well. In this series, Tosh and Ianto were kind of just there for me but I grew to love them in the second. And Jack... well, I love Jack on Doctor Who but sometimes he bothers me here. His character is written so weirdly, in one episode he'll do/say one thing and then in the next he'll go against that completely. Plus, John Barrowman's acting just grates sometimes. It's because he's acting like he's on a stage so he makes everything huge and over-dramatic. He needs to dial it down a little sometimes.)
15. Torchwood: Series 2 ★★★★½ (Infinitely better than the first series. The premiere episode was insanely awesome. Then, for the next few, it got a little less awesome but still quite good. A few episodes in, Martha visited the team and though I liked her on Doctor Who, she was really underutilized here; she didn't really do much in two of her three episodes. But that's not to say I didn't like those two episodes because they were some of my favorites. It seems a lot of people thought the Zombie!Owen storyline was too emo and depressing but I loved it. A Day in the Death even made me a little teary-eyed. I thought turning into the living dead did really interesting things for his character, despite the concept being riddled with holes. (Let's be honest, this entire show is; I don't exactly watch it for realism though so I don't mind much.) And then the last two episodes of the series. Holy crap. So good. Part of me is really upset they killed/re-killed Tosh and Owen but a bigger part of me thinks it was a brilliant idea because it made for some of the most heart-wrenching, emotional television I've ever watched. When Tosh said to Owen, "You're breaking my heart," just Naoko Mori's delivery of that line, God, it killed me and I basically bawled until the end of the episode. One of the best death scenes I've ever seen, for both of them. I'll miss them but... it was so well-done. On the happier side of the spectrum, Jack/Ianto forever! This season totally made Ianto my favorite character. Too bad I already know he's destined for a terrible fate soon. So I guess that's not much happier then, huh?)
16. Torchwood: Children of Earth ★★★★ (As I watched these seasons, I was keeping up with people's reactions on TWOP and, holy shit, most of them really take their television too seriously. There's all this moaning about "Oh, they've ruined the character of Captain Jack!" and "HOW DARE THEY KILL IANTO?!?" and, yeah, I get it, I like Jack better on Doctor Who and I miss Ianto too but, come on, it's a fucking TV show. Shit happens. It's not real life. It's not worth all your anger. Despite how dissimilar it was to the rest of the series, this five-episode arc was really well-done, barring a few glaring plotholes that stick out once you stop and think about it too much. It was very suspenseful and very addictive and very dark and quite well-acted [barring John Barrowman who, despite a few nice moments, I think generally needs to dial it down a notch or twelve] which is how I generally like my TV/movie-viewing. So I liked it. Despite the fact that the only remaining living characters are my two least favorites on the show. Now, I'm not sure how warmly I'll feel about this Americanization it's getting sometime in the near future but I'm not going to get all up in arms if I hate it. I'll just find something else to watch instead.)
17. How I Met Your Mother: Season 1 ★★★★½ (I officially fucking love this show. There were some less funny episodes, sure, but I still thought the whole season was pretty damn great. "Game Night" was probably my favorite episode. It was one that I'd actually seen before and granola Barney is still just as hilarious the second and third times around. Also, I basically squee over anything involving Marshall. I think I may have a wee crush on Jason Segel, more for the fact that he's a fucking riot than anything else. And also adorable.)
18. How I Met Your Mother: Season 2 ★★★★★ (Amazing, flawless, hilarious, etc. Okay, maybe not totally flawless but... whatever. I would still give this season five stars if the rest of it sucked as long as it contained "Swarley" - best episode EVER! Seriously. Also, Barney on The Price Is Right = awesome. Barney's gay black brother Wayne Brady = awesome. The episode about Marshall's car = awesome. "Slap Bet" = SO FUCKING AWESOME! Seriously, whole season, awesome.)

Date: 2010-01-25 01:35 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sstarss.livejournal.com
i love lars and the real girl! and dude, i'm like the opposite of you regarding wilby wonderful & marion bridge. i thought wilby wonderful was way better. i don't even remember 90% of what happened in marion bridge! also, i have to watch let the right one in, i keep meaning to do that. i have the book, i should probably read it too.

Date: 2010-01-25 01:47 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stillonmystring.livejournal.com
Honestly, I didn't really like either of them. I probably only decided I liked Marion Bridge better because I was paying more attention to that one. I was totally distracted when I was watching Wilby Wonderful.

I really want to read LTROI now! I bet the book's really good.

Date: 2010-01-30 02:33 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sstarss.livejournal.com
wow, we have to talk about bright star. i really didn't like it. especially abbie cornish. i thought she was so overwrought and contrived. :/ i keep feeling like i must have missed something because it seems like everybody loved the movie. maybe i should watch it again.

Date: 2010-01-30 05:26 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stillonmystring.livejournal.com
Well, maybe she was overwrought. But I would be overwrought too if Ben Whishaw up and died on me, LMAO. All joking aside, I dunno. I don't think it's weird of you not to like it. I'm sure you're not the only one even if it feels like it. We'll just have to agree to disagree, I guess. Can't be brain twins all the time. :P

Date: 2010-02-21 09:42 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sstarss.livejournal.com
okay,

#1: WE HAVEN'T TALKED IN SO LONG AHHHH. why are we never on MSN at the same time?!
#2: dude, i just started watching skins too! i've only watched the first 2 episodes but i really like it so far.
#3: you never sent me your story you emailed me about! >:O wanttt.
#4: uhh you're awesome.

k bye.

Date: 2010-02-22 03:27 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stillonmystring.livejournal.com
#1: We are talking now. :D
#2: OMG, it is such an addicting show. I am sorry if I have spoiled you on a majorly upsetting plot point of season 2, haha.
#3: Oh yeah... well, I wanted to finish it but then I kinda lost steam. I'll work on it some more and then send it to you in a few days, I swear. I just really want it to be mostly done first.
#4: No, you are awesome!

Date: 2010-06-11 10:12 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sstarss.livejournal.com
why is there no cuckoo's nest on your movie list? :O

also it is majorly bothering me that your tv list has a #6 and then a #5 and then a #6. aaaaaah. um yep.

<3

Date: 2010-06-13 02:20 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stillonmystring.livejournal.com
Ooh, I knew I forgot one. I waited too long to catch up and couldn't remember everything I'd watched.

Hahahaha, I have no idea how that happened. Wow. I must have been half-asleep when I did that. Thanks. :P

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Shannon

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