The 2011 Pfangirl Pfilm Awards

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Well, I'm back at my day job from today so blogging should return to its more regular schedule as I get back into my normal routine.

As a heads up, a new South African-centric film website has just opened... and I'm involved. So check out The Movies.co.za. Obviously I'm going to keep this blog going, but from here on I'll be linking to any of my work - reviews, feature articles, opinion pieces etc. - that appears on the new site.

Anyway, it's a new year, and along with looking ahead, it's also a chance to reflect on the year that's just past. As per usual, it's time for a Year in Review. If my calculations are correct, I watched 57 movies in 2011. The following are my hits, misses and special category mentions - bearing in mind:

A) I obviously haven't watched everything given I have to pay for my cinema visits and don't have access to free press screenings. So there are plenty of high profile releases - particularly those currently receiving Awards Season love (e.g. Moneyball, Midnight in Paris, The Help, The Tree of Life) - that I haven't been able to squeeze in. The same goes for the widely acknowledged Biggest Turkeys of the year (Abduction, Jack and Jill, Big Mommas, Zookeeper etc.) because, well, I won't subject my mind and my wallet to that.

B) Differences between North American and South African release dates means some 2010 movies only opened locally in 2011. For the purpose of this list, I'm counting them as 2011 releases.

So, with that out the way, let's jump in straight away shall we? Please note that the following Top 5 lists are in no particular order, and each link typically takes you to my original review of that film.

Best / Most Enjoyable Film of the Year:
Arthur Christmas (3D)


Drive


The Fighter


Jane Eyre


The Town


Worst / Most Disappointing Film of the Year:

Conan the Barbarian 2011 (3D)


Green Lantern


Jonah Hex


Rubber


Splice


Best Superhero / Comic Adaptation of the Year:
X-Men: First Class


Best Animated Film:
Arthur Christmas (3D)


Best Comedy of the Year:
Bridesmaids


Guilty Pleasure of the Year: Tie between...




Most Over-hyped Film of the Year: Tie between...
Source Code



The "Unbelievably Better than Expected" Award for 2011:
Rise of the Planet of the Apes


Best Action Scene (Live action):
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol


Best Action Scene (Animated):
The Adventures of Tintin (3D)


Best Villain of the Year:
Lord Shen (voiced by Gary Oldman) in Kung Fu Panda 2 (3D)


Star of the Year:
Michael Fassbender, for his attention-grabbing work in Jane Eyre, X-Men: First Class, Shame and A Dangerous Method (Latter 2 still to release in South Africa).



All the other movies of 2011 reviewed on this blog:

127 Hours
Attack the Block
Batman: Year One
Black Death
Black Swan
Captain America: The First Avenger
Contagion
Cowboys & Aliens
The Eagle
Easy A
Friends with Benefits
The Green Hornet (3D)
Green Lantern: Emerald Knights
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
I Am Number Four
Immortals (3D)
The Inside Job
In Time
The King’s Speech
Michael
Morning Glory
No Strings Attached
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Play
Puss in Boots (3D)
Rango
Rio (3D)
Scream 4
Secretariat
Sucker Punch
Super 8
Tangled (3D)
Thor (3D)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (3D)
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1
Warrior
Whatever Happened to Robert Mugabe?

Comments

Unknown said…
the only really good movie you missed (that I can remember) is Attack the Block. Phwoarz!

Dig your review(s) :)
11:22 AM
Gavin said…
I hated Priest.. such a nice idea but so badly executed :(
12:10 PM
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