My Film Highlights Of 2012...

I was just going through my ticket stubs and reflecting on the films I enjoyed at the cinema last year. So here is a list of my film highlights from 2012 (in no particular order).

1) 'Moonrise Kingdom' - some of the films I enjoyed the most last year gave me the 'warm and fuzzies' and 'Moonrise Kingdom' certainly hit that spot.

2) 'The Muppets' - yes I probably enjoyed it because the Muppets were a part of  my childhood but it was still a fun film and 'Man or Muppet' is a great number.

3) 'Money Ball' - who would have thought that a film about baseball and maths would be such a great watch? Well with a Sorkin polished script it was a fascinating film.

4) 'The Hunger Games' - last year was definitely the year of Jennifer Lawrence with good reason. I really enjoyed 'The Hunger Games' even more than I was expecting to, so am looking forward to 'Catching Fire' towards the end of 2013.

5) 'Avengers Assemble' or 'The Avengers' - given that it was a film stuffed full of Hollywood egos (none bigger than Robert Downey Jr's by all accounts) this film worked surprisingly well under the guidance of Joss Whedon. It was a popcorn flick but great fun and well deserved its box office bonanza.

6) 'Damsels In Distress' - being a Whit Stillman fan I was really looking forward to this film and for me it was a quirky delight that again gave me the 'warm and fuzzies'. Although I still can't dance the Sambola!

7) 'Take This Waltz' - a moving, quirky, funny and interesting film that should have got more attention. Plus it has probably the best use ever in a film of The Buggles 'Video Killed The Radio Star'.

And great use of a cover of 'Closing Time' by Feist.

8) 'Beasts Of The Southern Wild' - again a great film to give you the 'warm and fuzzies' with an amazing performance from Quvenzhané Wallis as Hushpuppy.

9) 'Silver Linings Playbook' - Jennifer Lawrence ended the year with another great performance and well deserved Oscar buzz. Another film that had me smiling as I left the cinema.

10) 'Pitch Perfect' - great fun, great singing and Rebel Wilson's improvised dialogue is awesome.

Honourable mentions should go to George Clooney in 'The Descendents', 'We Bought A Zoo', 'Jeff Who Lives At Home', 'Your Sister's Sister' and the bonkers 'Iron Sky'.

This was played on the radio this morning. It's a sweet song and gave me a warm glow thinking back to the first time I saw 'Sleepless In Seattle'.

Some Thoughts On 'Damsels In Distress'

I have to start this post with an admission: I'm a fan of the works of Whit Stillman. I loved 'Barcelona' when it was released and eagerly lapped up 'The Last Days Of Disco', so when I first heard the news that Mr Stillman was releasing his first new film in 13 going on 14 years I was excited and now having seen it was not disappointed.

Whit Stillman's films have a unique style, in structure and dialogue, amusing given that this time round the film concludes with a character aspiring to be normal. One watches his films and either accepts them and gets swept along (my take) or gets annoyed. I don't believe there is a middle ground.

'Damsels In Distress' is about a group of girls led by Violet (Greta Gerwig), who take transfer student Lily (Analeigh Tipton) under their wing and then takes us through the lives of these people over the following academic year, as they try to prevent student suicides through dance and try to change the attitudes of the male-dominated college where they study amongst other stories. 

I found the film a delight: it's quirky, funny, interesting and different. I particularly enjoyed discussions on how to pronounce 'jif' as in "Back in a ..." and the fact if someone has been to a place they are 'from' there. I left the cinema with a smile on my face and even a day later when I think back to scenes from it the smile returns. What more could you ask of a film?

Now all I want is for the Sambola dance craze to take-off!

See a trailer for the film below.