Goodbye, 2011!

At the onset of 2011, I set three goals for myself: (1) watch 211 films in 2011, (2) watch more pre-2000 films, and (3) blog more often. #1 was a piece of cake. When October came, I was already on my 218^th film. And so, I end the year with 253 films – 67 are local films and the rest are foreign films.

However, most of these are still post-2000 films. God knows how I tried to watch Bicycle Thieves and Rashomon, but I just can’t do it. My eyes instantly become heavy at the sight of sepia and black & white. Luckily, I was able to slip in a few Hitchcocks and Miyazakis. Hopefully, more pre-2000 films will be added to my list.

#3 is the hardest. In my four years of blogging, I have the least number of posts this year. I also stopped writing film reviews for PEP. I hope my writing mojo comes back soon.

Despite all odds, I’ll continue watching films and continue to share them in this site. Here is a rundown of the films I’ve seen in 2011.

1 White Material

2 Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work

3 Somewhere

4 Rabbit Hole

5 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

6 127 Hours

7 I Am Love

8 My Amnesia Girl

9 Never Let Me Go

10 True Grit

11 Devil

12 Exit Through the Gift Shop

13 Cairo Time

14 Applause

15 Hereafter

16 Presa

17 The King's Speech

18 Blue Valentine

19 Temple Grandin

20 Let Me In

21 Love & Other Drugs

22 Frankie & Alice

23 Handumanan

24 Hospital Boat

25 Burlesque

26 For Colored Girls

27 Accident

28 The Disappearance of Alice Creed

29 Symbol

30 Amer

31 Tangled

32 The Ghost Writer

33 Certified Copy

34 Greenberg

35 The Dreamers

36 Sugar

37 Food, Inc.

38 Mysterious Skin

39 The Departed

40 Kung Fu Panda

41 The Illusionist

42 My Neighbor Totoro

43 Ghost in the Shell

44 Perfect Blue

45 Fantastic Mr. Fox

46 The Adjustment Bureau

47 I'm Here

48 Senior Year

49 Country Strong

50 Kaboom

51 The Princess and the Frog

52 The Triplets of Belleville

53 Princess Mononoke

54 Grave of the Fireflies

55 Ratatouille

56 Mary and Max

57 The Secret of Kells

58 Rango

59 Monsters, Inc.

60 The Rescuers

61 The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

62 Howl's Moving Castle

63 The Last Exorcism

64 Shaun of the Dead

65 I Saw the Devil

66 A Single Man

67 Brick

68 The Sleeping Beauty

69 Latter Days

70 Sucker Punch

71 Pinoy Sunday

72 We Are What We Are

73 High Tension

74 Whip It

75 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

76 Deadline

77 Triangle (AKA Ghost Ship)

78 Heartbeats

79 Hedwig & the Angry Inch

80 Pulp Fiction

81 Once

82 Sunshine

83 The Crush

84 Plastic Bag

85 Bedevilled

86 The Troll Hunter

87 4 3 2 1

88 Volver

89 Rubber

90 Cloverfield

91 Smiley Face

92 Keka

93 Selda

94 Everyone Says I Love You

95 Circuit

96 Rain Town

97 Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

98 Let the Love Begin

99 The Loved Ones

100 Tropic Thunder

101 Magnifico

102 Millions

103 Psycho

104 The Roommate

105 Strapped

106 All Good Things

107 Ang Ninanais

108 Dark City

109 Bully

110 Vertigo

111 Cube

112 Thor

113 What's Eating Gilbert Grape?

114 Who's That Girl?

115 The Hours

116 Tucker & Dale vs. Evil

117 The Thing

118 Martyrs

119 Grease

120 Funny Games US

121 Leaving Las Vegas

122 Trick 'R Treat

123 Dazed and Confused

124 Pisay

125 The Class

126 Kinse

127 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

128 The Prestige

129 Julia's Eyes

130 Paalam Aking Bulalakaw

131 Hobo With A Shotgun

132 Elephant

133 Billy Elliot

134 Confessions

135 Kasambuhay, Habambuhay

136 Super 8

137 X-Men: First Class

138 The Lost Thing

139 Paul

140 The Tunnel

141 Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

142 The Tree of Life

143 Hanna

144 Source Code

145 Kooky

146 Quarantine 2: The Terminal

147 An American Crime

148 Summer Days with Coo

149 Insidious

150 The Murderer (The Yellow Sea)

151 17 Again

152 Memories of Murder

153 Love in a Puff

154 Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part 2

155 Bahay Bata

156 Isda

157 Cuchera

158 Paglipad ng Anghel

159 Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa

160 Hanapbuhay

161 Oliver's Apartment

162 Immanuel

163 Debut

164 Hazard

165 Un Diutay Mundo

166 Samarito

167 Walang Katapusang Kwarto

168 Every Other Time

169 Nino Bonito

170 Liberacion

171 Ang Babae sa Septic Tank

172 Nino

173 Amok

174 Bisperas

175 Ligo Na U. Lapit Na Me

176 Patikul

177 Busong

178 Gayuma

179 Zombadings

180 Freakonomics

181 Rise of the Planet of the Apes

182 Winnie the Pooh

183 The Broken Hearts Club

184 Shallow Grave

185 Leap Year

186 The Way Back

187 The Beaver

188 Submarine

189 Mother's Day

190 Prom

191 Another Year

192 Crazy, Stupid, Love.

193 Super

194 I Am Number Four

195 The Last Circus

196 Win Win

197 The Myth of the American Sleepover

198 School of Rock

199 Hesher

200 I Spit On Your Grave

201 Temptation Island

202 The Woman

203 The Greatest Movie Ever Sold

204 Bleak Night

205 Attack the Block

206 Contagion

207 Bad Teacher

208 Attenberg

209 Rakenrol

210 Bridesmaids

211 Crossbow

212 Melancholia

213 Drive

214 Everything Must Go

215 The Secret In Their Eyes

216 Bad Day To Go Fishing

217 No Other Woman

218 Buenas Noches, Espana

219 Horrible Bosses

220 The Adventures of Pureza

221 Midnight in Paris

222 In Time

223 Monte Carlo

224 Retreat

225 The Kid With A Bike

226 The Silent House

227 The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence)

228 Another Earth

229 Quattro Hongkong 2

230 Pina

231 Toomelah

232 Ka Oryang

233 My Paranormal Romance

234 Six Degrees of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay

235 Big Boy

236 Boundary

237 Friends With Benefits

238 Life In A Day

239 The Help

240 50/50

241 Like Crazy

242 Anatomiya ng Korupsiyon

243 Incendies

244 The Road

245 Fright Night

246 Margin Call

247 Immortals

248 We Need to Talk About Kevin

249 The Skin I Live In

250 Shake, Rattle, & Roll 13

251 Moneyball

252 Sky High

253 Bellflower

Film Logs: December

243. Incendies

Rating: 2/5

244. The Road

Rating: 3/5

245. Fright Night

Rating: 3/5

246. Margin Call

Rating: 3.5/5

247. Immortals

Rating: 2/5

248. We Need To Talk About Kevin

Rating: 5/5

249. The Skin I Live In

Rating: 3/5

250. Shake, Rattle, & Roll 13

Rating: 3.5/5

251. Moneyball

Rating: 4/5

252. Sky High

Rating: 3.5/5

253. Bellflower

Rating: 3.5/5

Now Showing: The Road

Two weeks ago, every single cinema in the metro was showing Breaking Dawn. It's good to finally have choices.

Yam Laranas returns with a brand new horror. The trailer looks promising and I really hope that it will be as good as Sigaw. We haven't been getting good horrors from the mainstream lately. Here's hoping that it won't be another Patient X.

Curious to See: The Road

Director: Yam Laranas

Starring: Rhian Ramos, TJ Trinidad, Marvin Agustin, Carmina Villaroel

I'm not really a fan of Tintin. But with Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson attached to this project, you can't blame me for being curious. Early word is that Tintin is an adventurous romp perfect for family viewing. Four words: motion capture in 3D.

Curious to See: The Adventures of Tintin

Director: Steven Spielberg

Featuring the voices of: Jamie Bell, Daniel Craig, Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost

Film Logs: November

218. Buenas Noches, Espana

Rating: 1/5

Psychedelic, trippy, nauseating, deafening, and unwatchable. Proof that some experiments may be harmful to you.

219. Horrible Bosses

Rating: 3.5/5

Solid premise. It's every employee's ultimate fantasy. It's great how the film captured the mania and fun of it all.

220. The Adventures of Pureza

Rating: 1/5

Is it destined to be a cult classic? Or is it just plain bad?

221. Midnight in Paris

Rating: 4/5

This charming Woody Allen feature is an ode to the arts and to the City of Lights.

222. In Time

Rating: 2/5

It started out with an interesting concept, but the writers failed to create a thrilling story out of it.

223. Monte Carlo

Rating: 1/5

Ths is too bland and too sanitized to appeal to anyone above the age of 12.

224. Retreat

Rating: 3.5/5

More of a character study than an apocalyptic film. Great performances from Thandie Newton, Jamie Bell, and Cillian Murphy.

225. The Kid With A Bike

Rating: 4/5

A masterclass in drama. My first Dardennes and it didn't disappoint. Poignant, yet unsentimental.

226. The Silent House

Rating: 2/5

This Uruguayan single-shot horror film is all style and no substance. I can forgive the occasional lull, but the stupefying twist is just too much.

227. The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence)

Rating: 2/5

I have high tolerance for gore and grotesqueries, so I really don't have any problem with violence and all that shit (pun intended). The Human Centipede II is sloppily made with little accompanying narrative. I can get more satisfaction watching a snuff film than this mess.

228. Another Earth

Rating: 4/5

This low-key indie sci-fi boasts of a perfect mix of pathos and mystery. The discovery of Earth Two serves as the backdrop for a painful love story. This is Mike Cahill's follow-up to his heartwarming debut King of California. Cahill's confident direction and Brit Marling's mesmerizing lead performance will take you to sci-fi wonderland.

229. Quattro Hong Kong 2

Rating: 1/5

I could think of better ways to utilize the talents of Brillante Mendoza, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Stanley Kwan, and Ho Yuhang.

230. Pina (3D)

Rating: 4/5

This is how you pay tribute in style. Easily the best dance film and best 3D film of the year.

231. Toomelah

Rating: 2/5

If you want an aboriginal drama, watch Samson & Delilah instead.

232. Ka Oryang

Rating: 3/5

It's well intentioned, beautifully shot, but somewhat empty. So what separates it from Joel Lamangan's over-the-top political dramas? I really don't know.

233. My Paranormal Romance

Rating: 4/5

This Cebuano romcom took me by surprise. It is random, over-the-top, but utterly charming.

234. Six Degress of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay

Rating: 4.5/5

Lilia Cuntapay, the most popular extra in Philippine showbiz, finally gets her first lead role. Genius concept. It's amazing how the director seamlessly interspersed reality and fiction. Lilia Cuntapay is comedy gold. But the film also managed to pull some heart strings as well. Another proof that Cinema One Originals produce kick-ass movies. MUST-SEE!

235. Big Boy

Rating: 1/5

If barrio kids in the 40s/50s were already making home videos, it will look like this. Through the use of Super 8 cameras, director Shireen Seno gives us a whiff of nostalgia. She captured the brittle and unreliable nature of memories. But the style easily wears off, what started out as a novel experiment becomes an arduous experience. When the film ended, we were all in awe... dumbfounded... either we were hypnotized or we were collectively contemplating on asking for a refund.

236. Boundary

Rating: 4/5

Great script. Direction can be tighter. Ominous musical score. And once again, Ronnie Lazaro shines.

237. Friends With Benefits

Rating: 3.5/5

Better than your average romcom but still not at par with Crazy, Stupid, Love which gets my vote for romcom of the year.

238. Life In A Day

Rating: 3.5/5

The filmmakers were able to cull interesting snippets. But collectively, it missed the impact it was aiming for. I hate the ending monologue!

239. The Help

Rating: 3.5/5

Palatable to general audiences, but lacks the extra oomph to make it compelling. Great turns from the ensemble cast especially Jessica Chastain, Octavia Spencer, and Viola Davis.

240. 50/50

Rating: 4/5

I was in the mood to cry and JGL made me cry. I was in the mood to laugh and Seth Rogen made me laugh. His annoying character isn't too annoying this time. Noteworthy to mention Anjelica Huston and Anna Kendrick as well.

241. Like Crazy

Rating: 4/5

This year's Blue Valentine. Like Crazy captures the determination and fickleness of love.

242. Anatomiya ng Korupsiyon

Rating: 2/5

I really don't get the love for Maricar Reyes. She was better in her Star Cinema romcoms. In this movie, she's too stiff. Or maybe it is the entire film that is stiff.

Shaking It Out with Florence

Along with Adele's 21, Florence + the Machine's Ceremonials is easily the best album released this year.

Film Logs: July-October

148. Summer Days With Coo

Rating: 3/5

149. Insidious

Rating: 3.5/5

150. The Murderer (The Yellow Sea)

Rating: 1/5

151. 17 Again

Rating: 3/5

152. Memories of Murder

Rating: 3.5/5

153. Love in a Puff

Rating: 4/5

154. Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Rating: 4/5

155. Bahay Bata

Rating: 4/5

156. Isda

Rating: 4.5/5

157. Cuchera

Rating: 3/5

158. Paglipad ng Anghel

Rating: 1/5

159. Ang Sayaw ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa

Rating: 4.5/5

160. Hanapbuhay

Rating: 4/5

161. Oliver's Apartment

Rating: 1/5

162. Immanuel

Rating: 4/5

163. Debut

Rating: 1/5

164. Hazard

Rating: 3/5

165. Un Diutay Mundo

Rating: 1/5

166. Samarito

Rating: 1/5

167. Walang Katapusang Kwarto

Rating: 4/5

168. Every Other Time

Rating: 1/5

169. Nino Bonito

Rating: 3/5

170. Liberacion

Rating: 1/5

171. Ang Babae sa Septic Tank

Rating: 3/5

172. Nino

Rating: 4/5

173. Amok

Rating: 4/5

174. Bisperas

Rating: 2/5

175. Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me

Rating: 3/5

176. Patikul

Rating: 2/5

177. Busong

Rating: 4.5/5

178. Gayuma

Rating: 3/5

179. Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington

Rating: 4.5/5

180. Freakonomics

Rating: 2/5

181. Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Rating: 3/5

182. Winnie the Pooh

Rating: 4/5

183. The Broken Hearts Club

Rating: 3.5/5

184. Shallow Grave

Rating: 3.5/5

185. Leap Year

Rating: 2/5

186. The Way Back

Rating: 2/5

187. The Beaver

Rating: 4/5

188. Submarine

Rating: 3.5/5

189. Mother's Day

Rating: 2/5

190. Prom

Rating: 1/5

191. Another Year

Rating: 4/5

192. Crazy, Stupid, Love.

Rating: 4/5

193. Super

Rating: 2/5

194. I Am Number Four

Rating: 2/5

195. The Last Circus

Rating: 2/5

196. Win Win

Rating: 3.5/5

197. The Myth of the American Sleepover

Rating: 2/5

198. School of Rock

Rating: 3/5

199. Hesher

Rating: 3/5

200. I Spit On Your Grave

Rating: 2/5

201. Temptation Island

Rating: 1/5

202. The Woman

Rating: 3.5/5

203. The Greatest Movie Ever Sold

Rating: 3.5/5

204. Bleak Night

Rating: 2/5

205. Attack the Block

Rating: 4/5

206. Contagion

Rating: 4/5

207. Bad Teacher

Rating: 3/5

208. Attenberg

Rating: 2/5

209. Rakenrol

Rating: 2/5

210. Bridesmaids

Rating: 4/5

211. Crossbow

Rating: 2/5

212. Melancholia

Rating: 4/5

213. Drive

Rating: 4/5

214. Everything Must Go

Rating: 3.5/5

215. The Secret in their Eyes

Rating: 4.5/5

216. Bad Day To Go Fishing

Rating: 2/5

217. No Other Woman

Rating: 3/5