Next I tackle the unfortunate films of 2010. This is my list of:
9 Movies I Wish I Had Skipped in 2010
9. Never Let Me Go
I was expecting a lot from the talent involved in this film, and the actors do in fact do a fantastic job. Yet that somehow wasn’t enough to save this unsatisfying and empty movie. I failed to really feel much of anything after the movie was over because it never gave a sense of purpose or focus until the last 40 seconds. Overall, I was impressed on some levels but left the theater feeling as though the film never gave me much to reflect on. Verdict: Ineffective
8. Monsters
Hailed as this year’s District 9 and praised for it’s low low budget (under $500,000), Monster made a little name for itself. The hype spread and slowly people started to pay attention. The problem is that Monsters is not a very good movie. The effects are ok for most of the film, but the end of the film has an awful scene of CGI, where they really needed a good one. Not to mention it beats you in the skull with the whole ‘border control is bad’ idea. Verdict: Over-Hyped
7. Skyline
I didn’t really expect Skyline to be a work of art, just a solid action flick. The effects are fantastic and, well that’s pretty much it. Skyline is so so bad. It’s actually kind of so bad it’s good, but …yeah it actually would make a great movie drinking game. Hmmmm…
Verdict: Jury’s still out?
6. Alice in Wonderland
Tim Burton’s version of Alice in Wonderland is anything but visionary. It’s boring and uneventful. None of the characters are any more interesting than they’ve been in the past Wonderland films and the large Mad Hatter presence seems to be based solely on the idea that Burton wanted to include Johnny Depp as much as possible. Verdict: Lame
5. Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day was another film I didn’t really anticipate liking very much. It’s disappointing to think that these ensemble cast comedies are able to pull in so many stars. The movie feels like an MTV music video, assuming that the audience’s attention span can not exceed 4 seconds. It didn’t have a long enough running time to give any character a meaningful storyline. Verdict: Hot Mess
4. Clash of the Titans
A computer generated spectacle that wasn’t really worth spectating at all. I just remember feeling really unenthusiastic with everything happening on screen and all the jumps from one battle to another. They dropped the ball on the concept of giving a classic film an update. The film is a waste of it’s actors and my time. Verdict: Eye Sore
3. Repo Men
Repo Men has so many problems. The otherwise talented two leads wind up in this abysmal movie with awful direction. Although the movie had a really interesting premise that could have been taken in so many fascinating directions, it manages to become a really silly action movie with no substance. The characters are poorly written, the action is bush league and the gore is ineffective. Verdict: Shitty, Waste of a good idea
2. Daybreakers
Much like Repo Men, Daybreakers squanders all of its creative ideas and turns into nothing but a series of mindless action sequences. Hawke does well with what he’s given but it can’t help out this movie in the end. I think it’s pretty bad when there is a difficult problem to solve in a film and in the end I can think of a more original and creative solution than the writers were able to think up. Daybreakers marked the first disappointment of 2010. Verdict: Waste of a good idea, Disappointing
1. Dinner For Schmucks
I can’t definitively say that this is the worst movie I watched in 2010 but it is for sure a movie I should have skipped. The promise of Steve Carrell and Paul Rudd made me feel better about the less than tempting trailers. My thoughts on why I disliked Schmucks so much are hard to put into words. I did laugh occasionally throughout the film but more often I found myself feeling bad. The movie should have been an ode to Carrell’s character when instead it made fun of him EVERY chance it got. Even I couldn’t take it anymore. Verdict: Misfire, Off-putting