The MacGuffin

In honor of The Hunger Games, Spencer and Greg discuss child deaths in film. Then they discuss the theme of “one vs. many,” and give DVD picks of the week.

In honor of Tintin, Spencer and Greg share alternative comic movies. Then they discuss the magic of murder mysteries and give DVD picks of the week.

Considering the pedigree of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo—a fiercely successful novel and well-regarded Swedish film already exist—director David Fincher would have had to try really hard to mess this movie up. Since he is not a moron, this movie is well made, interesting, and slick; beautiful people in a dark and brutal world ponder a complicated mystery and exciting things happen. I don’t really think this movie was necessary, what with there being a pretty good film made of this book already, but I can understand why it was made: Hollywood would have been leaving money on the table by not making an English language remake.

In honor of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Spencer and Greg reflect on Gary Oldman’s career. Then they tackle kid-driven movies and give DVD picks of the week.

In honor of Twilight, Spencer and Greg tackle literary series adaptations. Then they talk dysfunctional families in movies and give DVD picks.

Spencer and Rich discuss Daniel Craig in advance of Cowboys & Aliens, share terrible movie ideas in honor of The Smurfs and give their DVD picks of the week.

Here is my list of the top 10 films of 2010. Spencer and I go into more detail on the films themselves in Episode 74. This post exists as more of a cheat sheet for those of you looking to catch up on the films of last year.

Spencer and John share their top 10 films for 2010, before closing the show out with their DVD picks of the week.

Obviously, to limit the amount of good films that come out in a single year to only ten is ultimately unreasonable. To take a group of films and say, “these are the best of the year” is a pretty bold statement, because there are a ton of movies that come out. Does this list include films that have come out from all over the world? Does it include animated movies, documentaries, TV movies, or short films? How do you rank a romantic comedy from America over a hard-hitting melodrama from Europe? You can’t, and for a while I scratched my head trying to put my chosen films in an order that made some sort of sense. I guess for me, there are two reasons why a list like this exists: 1) It gives me the opportunity to put the spotlight on a film or two that may not have gotten the attention I feel it deserves, and 2) it gives you (the reader) the chance to tell me how very wrong (or right!) I am in picking these movies.

I heard from different places that 2010 was a “down” year in movies. As I look over the movies on my list, and some of the ones that just missed the cut-off, I would tend to disagree. Yes, the summer blockbuster season did have a lack of notable entries, but the beginning of the year, and particularly the end, showcased a strong number of movies, some of which we may be still be talking about well into the future. As I tried putting my list together, I had to continually push it off because of a certain big movie that I had to watch before setting my group in place. Even now, with my list complete and here before us, I’m almost certain that I’m going to run in to another movie down the line that could have easily made its way to a spot if I’d only had the opportunity to see it earlier. But that’s what so great about the movies, it is continually growing, continually changing, continually bringing something new and fresh every week. I’ll gladly take another movie year like 2010 if it gives me the same amount of quality that it has here.

But enough blabbering, let’s get to the list:

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest (2010) picks up literally where Fire leaves off.  It completes the story of one of the most interesting and endearing characters of recent film memory.  There isn’t a person that comes to mind that is like Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace).  She is smart, blocked off, methodical, and lethal when she needs to be, yet at the same time, as the trilogy unfolds and concludes here, we find ourselves surprisingly connected to her, rooting for her despite her outward appearance.  In a way, I found myself wanting the story to continue passed where this film ends; this is a character whose journey I’m willing to follow step by agonizing step.