The cream of the crop are still the sweet, funny and thoughtful comedies Beginners and Midnight in Paris, along with the riveting documentary Project Nim. All three are on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.
Buck is a wonderful documentary about a real-life horse whisperer with a compelling human story. If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread). So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller. The Trip delivers some chuckles. Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes. Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times explores journalism’s evolution in an age of new media, and I recommend it for hard news junkies.
In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best. The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough. Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.
For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.
I haven’t yet seen Tabloid, which opens this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.
My DVD picks are the surfing classics Riding Giants and Step into Liquid.
Movies coming up on TV include the prison classics Midnight Express and Cool Hand Luke on TCM, both on my list of 10 Best Prison Movies.