Reviews by Matt

On Sunday it will be one week until the Oscars. I was super lucky this year and was able to see all 10 of the best picture contenders. Going into Oscar Sunday I will be watching the Oscars better educated on the major contenders than ever. I have been trying to figure out how to rank the Oscar hopefuls, yet stick with my Top 10 list for 2010. Instead of putting all the movies I missed in 2010 into an updated list, I figured it would be easier to rank the 10 nominees in a completely new list. I should mention that this list is not indicative of my predictions because what I wish and what the Academy chooses rarely intersects.

10) I put this at the No. 10 spot because I was not as impressed with it as everyone else seems to be. When I left the theater I was left wishing that it was something more. Even now, 6 months later I cannot figure out what it was. I am hoping that a second viewing will help me make more sense of it, but I still feel like this movie should have had something more to it than what it provided.


9) This will win best picture, despite the fact that “How To Train Your Dragon” was a much better movie. If you have not see that one yet, do so. It is stunning. Anyway, “Toy Story 3” is a great way to wind up one of the best movie trilogies ever. The way the movie ended was a perfect way to wrap up the story of Woody, Buzz and the gang. If you did not cry at that last scene, check your pulse.


8) This is another one I did not feel as I should have when I left the theater. I should have been blown away, but I was not. I really liked the movie, but I did not love it. I passed up an opportunity to see it again earlier this week because I was just luke-warm about it. With the exception of “The Kids Are Alright” I would race to see anyone of them again, but for me “True Grit” did its job and I am set until it comes out on DVD. The performance, while strong, are were not enough to get me into the theater for a second time.

7) This movie lives and dies on the performance of its lead, Jennifer Lawrence. This is her first big role and she was rightfully nominated for an Oscar, though she is a long shot to win. It is not an uplifting movie by any stretch. It is bleak and depressing and a lot of bad things happen. Lawrence’s Ree goes through a lot to make sure her family is taken care of and that they can keep living in the home her father built. I have a feeling this movie will get shut out on Oscar night, and while it is a sad thing to think of, it deserves the recognition.

6) Great performances, but not great movie. That is the 6-word memoir I would use for this movie. Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams and Melissa Leto are awesome in the movie, but the movie would not be as good without them. It is these three strong performances that is getting the movie noticed and they are worth the price of admission.



5) Here is where is gets tough. I love all the movies in the top five. On any given day, these five could go anywhere. Today “Inception” lands at No.5. There is so much I love about this movie. The story and its complexities are top among them. The movie is not that hard to follow if you pay attention to the color palette of each dream level. The performances are strong, but the story is stronger—it is the anti-“Fighter.” Vary rarely does a movie truly blow my mind and this one has with every viewing—and that is tough to do.

4)A movie about the founding of Facebook should not be this good, but “The Social Network” is. It the most well rounded movie I saw this year—great writing, great directing and great acting. So why is it No. 4? Simply because I enjoyed the movies at No. 1-3 more. There is nothing wrong with it per-se, I am just not chomping at the bit to re-watch it. I would do so willingly, but I am not going out of my way to get a second viewing in.


3) So, my No.1 movie of the 2010 actually should have been my No.3 had I seen all 10 before I did my list. I know this may sound like a broken record but, without the performance and the directing, this movie would have sucked. James Franco, who is pulling double duty as Oscar host and Oscar nominee, is stunning as Aaron Ralston. The movie is about him and him alone. There is no one else to help carry the load of the emotions and power of this movie. Franco will not win, though he is my sentimental pick, but his performance is one that would win if the competition were not so tough.

Let me rephrase-This is where is gets tough. I can easily go either way with what one I put at No. 1.

2) I think that this will win best picture. There is just something about “Black Swan” that makes it No. 1. “The Kings Speech” is an awesome movie with stellar performances. The sign of a truly good movie is what happens on that second viewing. I was glued to the screen just as much as I was on the first. I was worried that seeing this again, I would be bored, but Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth are fantastic and riveting to watch on screen. If I had to pick one movie to recommend before next week’s big ceremony, this would be it.

1) No movie effected me more than this one. Sometimes as I sit through the credits, I get antsy because I think of all the other things I have to do that day or what work I need to finish for school. After the final shot of “Black Swan,” my mind was still on the movie. It still is from time to time. If someone said, “Let’s go see ‘Black Swan’” I would be there in a heartbeat. This might be one of those movies I buy on the day it comes out. I love this movie and I love all that it did to me while I watched it. I have never been so glad to be so unnerved and confused while watching a movie. It may not be or everyone and that’s what I love about it.