Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Movies Roundup 2011

Once again it's the list making time of the year, and just like in 2009 and 2010 I have made meticulous notes of the movies (that released during the year/I watched in theatres during the year) of 2011 and am keen on sharing the information overload with you. However, unlike in the previous years where I provided a synopsis of my top 5 Hindi & English movies I have decided to take the tedious way of sharing my 140 character review of all 22 movies I watched this year. Okay. Lazy way. These are my tweet-reviews of the movies soon after watching them and documented here for posterity. For the rest of stats lovers in you, as usual we will do the number summary like in the previous years. 


Year        # Seen    H:E       Top Rating   Avg Rating

2007         32          22:10       9.0                  5.78
2008         30          23:7         8.5                  6.35
2009         24          18:6         9.0                  6.85
2010         25          16:9         8.5                  6.62
2011         22          16:6         8.5                  6.77

Before we go into the entire list of movies and their scores, here are the Top 5 of the year for me, in rank order.

Rank 1

Rank 2

Rank 3

Rank 4

Rank 5




And the complete details follow.

The Tourist- Swift, thrilling, somewhat predictable. Beautiful locales and absolutely stunning lead pair. 0.5 extra for Jolie & Depp. 6.5/10


Dhobi Ghat - Vibrant, fresh and visually appealing. True to it's style leaves the story open at the end. Captivating 95 minutes. 8/10.


No One Killed JessicaCinematically left a lot to be desired, but made up for it with the spirit & positivity. Vidya - A+, Rani - B-. 7/10


Yeh Saali Zindagi - a dark, crime comedy that teases you with equal doses of scares and laughs all through. Superb performances by all. 8/10.


7 Khoon Maaf - beautifully picturised dark comedy, haunting & thrilling almost throughout. Could have been 20 minutes shorter. 7/10.


Rio (3D) - Typical witty, funny & entertaining Hollywood animation movie keeping you engaged for 2 hours. 3D adds to the fun. 7/10.


Shor In The City - What a movie! For the 1st time you will not only use Tusshar Kapoor & 'good movie' together but also 'very'. 8/10.


Source Code - Reminds you a lot of Inception and a bit of Vantage Point. Typicall sci-fi thriller, edge-of-seat etc. Recommended. 7/10.


I Am - a stunningly sensitive depiction of four heavy subjects without getting preachy or overtly dramatic. Brilliant portrayals. 8.5/10


Chalo Dilli - a genuinely humorous story with endearing performances by Lara & Vinay Pathak. Resembles Bheja Fry in places. Worth it. 7.5/10


Hangover 2 - perhaps the best example of reproducing something that worked in the past, with minimal tampering. My guilty pleasure. 6/10.


Kung Fu Panda 2 - Delightful story about Po & and his bumbling antics, endearing characters, holds your attention. Good, expected. 6.5/10

Delhi Belly - Crass, toilet humour ridden and wannabe. Still had me in splits in parts. Bold. Tries too hard. Usual senseless climax. 6/10.

Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows (Part 2) - And with that my childhood is officially over. 8.5/10 [Rating is emotionally inflated]

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara - Fresh & engaging. Beautifully shot. Reminiscent of DCH & Rock On in tone and content. Strong performances. 7.5/10

That Girl In Yellow Boots - Gritty and gripping throughout with an ending that can leave many repulsed. Brilliant performance by Kalki. 7/10

Bodyguard - Will take immense efforts to come up with a worse movie. Glad that we sneaked into the next screen w/out paying for it. 2/10

Ra.One - A visual extravaganza. Shoddy start. Outstanding visual effects, at par with the best. Wafer thin plot. Unpretentious. 6.5/10.

Rockstar - Imtiaz Ali leaves no stone unturned in dishing out a mega disappointment. Contrived & hackneyed. With plastic for a heroine. 5/10.

The Dirty Picture - Predictable and over-the-top in most parts. Points to Vidya for her earnest efforts, Emraan a joke. Disappointed. 5/10.

Royal Bengal Rohoshyo - a pleasant surprise from Sandip Ray after the previous Feluda disappointments. Relived those childhood moments. 7/10

Don 2 - Very (Slick. Classy. Gripping. Pacy) SRK is charm, wit, elegance & stardom personified, and that could be unabashed fanspeak! 8/10.