My Best And Worst 2010 Movies

This is probably a little late, since we're two weeks into 2011, but it doesn't really matter since there are probably still a few 2010 movies for me to see, especially if they're Oscar Best Picture nominees. So this may be updated a few times, depending on what I see and how much I love (or loathe) them. And remember, there may be some awesome (or dreadful) movies that I won't see at all unless I happen to catch them on cable or something. For now, though, let's talk about my 10 favorite movies of 2010.

A note: as of now I have one "A" movie and six "A-minus" movies, but I've bumped two of the "A-minuses" ahead of the "A." I discussed this issue here, and though I'm not changing the grades, I've decided to rank them differently. (Also, I have 10 "B-plus" movies and only 3 can make the top 10. Sorry, also-rans! Here's the entire grade list, by the way.)

The top 10 are as follows:

Quick Review: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

This is probably one of those movies that younger audiences will get, while the elders who dare to go might sit there scratching their heads. I think "Kick-Ass" had a similar problem, which is part of the reason it didn't do as well at the box office as some thought. And the same thing has happened to "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World," which is, like "Kick-Ass," based on a graphic novel series. Fortunately, as I am sometimes (but not always) more able to adapt to the ways of the youth than other cranky 48-year-olds, I rolled with it. It was like watching a cartoon, a video game, an action flick, a comedy and a romance all rolled up into one. Scott (Michael Cera) is the slacker 23-year-old bass player for the band "Sex Bob-omb" and, while he's all Michael Cera-y with that soft voice and gawky boyishness, he's also kind of a cad. An ex-girlfriend is the band's drummer, and he's currently dating a 17-year-old girl, and then starts cheating on her when he meets, and falls for, Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). Then Scott learns that Ramona has seven evil exes -- among them, movie heroes Chris "Human Torch" Evans and Brandon "Superman" Routh -- and that he must defeat them in battle in order for Ramona to keep dating him. Throughout the movie, but particularly in the fight scenes, there's a variety of graphic additions on-screen, from little pop-up notes about characters to TV-Batman "K-POW!" blasts during the fight scenes, to video game graphics and sound effects. It's funny and moves quickly, although there's a bit of a lack of logic now and then that even I can't completely overlook. And then there's the fine performance by Kieran Culkin as Wallace Wells, Scott's sarcastic (and gay) friend and roommate -- Wallace may be the funniest part of the movie. He's not the typical gay best friend by any means. He's a much more fully-formed character, and he has a love life. Which is interesting, since Wallace's and Scott's small apartment has only one bed. My grade: A-minus.

Quick Review: Kick-Ass

The trailers left me, and a lot of others, interested in "Kick-Ass," the story of an average teenager who decides to don a costume and fight crime, and meets others doing the same. I think the movie lived up to its hype, but it didn't break out to become a huge hit at the box office. I'd like to think it was the R rating (this is a very violent movie filled with foul language) that kept honest people under 17 -- "honest" as in unwilling or unable to buy a ticket for a different movie and sneak into "Kick-Ass" -- from seeing it, but I get the feeling it also didn't catch on with average moviegoers who aren't into superhero flicks unless they feature the well-known DC or Marvel Comics characters.

"Kick-Ass" is similar, yet different. Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson), the average kid who wonders why no one in real life becomes a superhero like they do in comics, then does so, has no powers. No one does, of course. When he tries to stop a crime the first time, he takes a brutal beating, but the surgeries to repair him at least left him better able to tolerate pain. His next attempt to fight crime is more successful, is recorded and put on YouTube, and a sensation is born. Then Kick-Ass meets others in costume: Hit Girl (Chloe Grace Moretz, who is amazing), who has mad fighting skills and a foul mouth while in costume, but otherwise is a sweet little girl who loves her father (Nicolas Cage, who, when he gets into costume as Big Daddy, becomes Adam West), and Red Mist ("McLovin" himself, Christopher Mintz-Plasse). As the plot thickens, Kick-Ass finds himself getting in over his head.

One subplot to discuss: a girl Dave has a crush on wants nothing to do with him, until the rumor somehow spreads after his hospitalization that he's gay. So he decides to play along so he can spend time with her. A movie critic for Entertainment Weekly found herself offended by this...

Even his best friends tease him mercilessly. (In the screenwriter’s hypocritical nod to propriety, Dave’s classmates call him a “lame duck,” rather than anything more offensive.) Indeed, the pretty girl Dave pines for, a popular cutie who otherwise wouldn’t give him the time of day, adopts him as a close friend because he’s harmlessly, tee-hee, gay! The two even share sleepover dates — which is funny because we know Dave is a horny heterosexual!

Well. What if the rumor spread that Dave was Muslim? Or Puerto Rican. Or left-handed. Or deaf. And he had to protest that he wasn’t. Is that funny, too?

It's an interesting read. Although it didn't bother me when I saw the movie, upon reflection I have to agree, and knock the grade down a bit as a result. My grade: B-plus.

Softball Sunday Means...

...I have to get to bed early enough to get a few hours' sleep before the morning. First game is at 9:50 a.m., meaning I'll have to be at the field to warm up about a half-hour earlier. So no long late-night blog post tonight! I hope to get to one tomorrow night -- I'm due to write about the comics I bought this week and the Ugly Betty finale. And hey, the Flyers are still in the playoffs. (Fortunately, with "The Amazing Race" preempted this week I'll have a little more time.) Plus, I hope to see the movie "Kick-Ass" on Monday, which will give me another post topic. I would've gone today but softball practice got in the way.

I hope everyone's having a wonderful weekend!