Things I Like in 2012 : Movies

It needs to be said that I probably didn't go to the cinema more than ten times the whole year, and I don't even remember which movie came out when. I can recall whether they are good or not though. It's not in order :

 
Wreck-It-Ralph

"I am bad, and that's good. I will never be good, and that's not bad."

Surprisingly, one of my favorite movies this year is a 3D animation movie made by Disney. A lot of people, myself included seemed to miss it out during its screening time due to lack of "hype". I am glad I ended up checking it out. 

It's a movie about a "bad guy" who wants to be a "good guy". It's a story about an anti-hero trying to discover himself. The movie is colourful, modern and yet at the same time will appeal to older generations (again, myself included) who grew up spending their afternoons at arcades. Vanellope Von Schweetz (voiced by Sarah Silverman) has to be one of the most adorable characters in western animation, ever. I just want to hug her. 

Dredd 

 "Judgement time"

Sounds familiar? Well, in the 90's there was a movie called Judge Dredd which has Sylvester Stallone in it. It was a shithouse. Even though both movies are based on the same comic, they are unrelated. 

Dredd is an action-packed futuristic science fiction movie with a lot of violence in it. The movie also showcases a lot of stunning visual effects used during slow-motion scenes, giving them dream-like quality. 

The main character, Judge Dredd is a bad ass throughout the entire movie, not showing one ounce of self-doubt and stay true to his idea of justice. I found it amusing how the actor that plays Judge Dredd had to be able to convey different emotions throughout the movie just using his mouth and chin (his face is covered by his helmet, leaving only his mouth and chin visible).

Prometheus

"Sometimes to create, one must destroy"

Let me get this out of the way : I have watched Alien movies, but i'm not a big fan of them or anything. I had known Prometheus was a prequel to Alien before seeing it. However, it was a pleasant surprise to see that Prometheus chose to explore its own ideas and plots instead of just serve a purpose as a set-up for Alien movies.

Prometheus takes place in its own fictional, other-wordly epic universe with breath-taking sceneries. There are plenty of actions and science fiction nerdery for everyone. Highlights of the movie for me are : The Engineers and David, the androit. The concept of Engineers in the movie is wildly fascinating and it reminds me of stories of Gods in Greek mythologies, albeit more modern and grandiose.

Kudos to brilliant acting of the actor who plays David, the android who stole the show for me. David was supposed to be a flawless perfect replica of man that it ironically starts to develop its own human-like characteristics. The character David reminds me of HAL 9000 of Kubrick's 2001 : A Space Odyssey a lot. 

The Adjustment Bureau 

"All I have are the choices I make."

Alright, so wikipedia says that this movie came out in 2011, but I don't care. I just saw it recently and it's going into my list.

The Adjustment Bureau is an action/thriller movie with romance thrown in, or maybe the other way around. It is not in any way a religious movie, but it does touch on the subject of "higher power" and human's free will. And they manage to do this in a way that everyone can relate to.

The Adjustment Bureau might raise some questions out of you regarding your concept of God and free will but it is definitely a love story that involves something bigger in the equation, thus making it complicated. If you like Stranger Than Fiction, you will love this.