Movies Released in 2011 That I've Seen
Movies from 2011 that I've seen, ranked from best to worst.
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- DirectorRupert WyattStarsJames FrancoAndy SerkisFreida PintoA substance designed to help the brain repair itself gives advanced intelligence to a chimpanzee who leads an ape uprising.A surprisingly good entry in the Apes series, easily the best since the first one.
- DirectorGareth EvansStarsIko UwaisAnanda GeorgeRay SahetapyA S.W.A.T. team becomes trapped in a tenement run by a ruthless mobster and his army of killers and thugs.An extremely intense action film - light on plot, but ridiculously heavy on the ass kicking. The fight choreography is very well done and the film just has so many awesome moments that you're guaranteed to cheer out loud sooner or later. Again, the plot could have been improved, but I'm not gonna complain about the incredible action scenes on display here.
- DirectorTatsuyuki NagaiStarsSaori HayamiYumi IrinoAi KayanoA group of friends were separated when one of them died in an accident. Later on she comes back as a ghost trying to get into heaven but to do that her friends must grant her a wish.Anohana is a really well-written and cleverly-told story which really tugs at your heartstrings throughout its runtime. On occasion, it gets just maybe a little too manipulative and melodramatic, but regardless, it's a really tragic and uplifting story of friendship, love and learning to let go of the past. Definitely worth checking out.
- DirectorLynne RamsayStarsTilda SwintonJohn C. ReillyEzra MillerKevin's mother struggles to love her strange child despite the increasingly dangerous things he says and does as he grows up. But Kevin is just getting started, and his final act will be beyond anything anyone imagined.A very good, but chilling, movie about the raising of an eventual mass-murderer from his mother's perspective. It takes about half an hour to get properly situated, but once you do it's very gripping. Not sure why everyone hated on Eva though, she's as much as a victim as anyone...
- DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsRyan GoslingCarey MulliganBryan CranstonA mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.A very slick, stylish thriller with some great actors and cars on display.
- DirectorGeorge NolfiStarsMatt DamonEmily BluntLisa ThoresonThe affair between a politician and a contemporary dancer is affected by mysterious forces keeping the lovers apart.Despite the strange premise and bad ending, The Adjustment Bureau is a great thriller carried by Matt Damon and Emily Blunt's chemisty and some great plot twists.
- DirectorJodie FosterStarsMel GibsonJodie FosterAnton YelchinA troubled husband and executive adopts a beaver hand-puppet as his sole means of communication.I expected this film to be a charming story about a man who turns his life around, but I did not count on it to be so dark and serious. Say what you will about Mel Gibson's personal life, the man knows how to act (shocking, I know).
- DirectorJ.J. AbramsStarsElle FanningAJ MichalkaKyle ChandlerDuring the summer of 1979, a group of friends witness a train crash and investigate subsequent unexplained events in their small town.A solid summer popcorn movie. Lots of fun, although it doesn't break any new ground.
- DirectorJason EisenerStarsRutger HauerPasha EbrahimiRobb WellsA homeless vigilante blows away crooked cops, pedophile Santas, and other scumbags with his trusty pump-action shotgun.Ridiculously violent and crude fun, I laughed my ass off. Not for the faint of heart, but if you can stomach it then you'll have a *ahem* blast!
- DirectorNeil BurgerStarsBradley CooperAnna FrielAbbie CornishA mysterious pill that enables the user to access 100% of his brain's abilities transforms a struggling writer into a financial wizard, but it also puts him in a new world with many dangers.Limitless succeeds mainly due to Bradley Cooper's committed performance and its strong pacing. The story itself is hit or miss, but it remains compelling enough that it sustains your interest throughout.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsDaniel CraigRooney MaraChristopher PlummerJournalist Mikael Blomkvist is aided in his search for a woman who has been missing for 40 years by young computer hacker Lisbeth Salander.First of all, I read the book before diving into this movie. The story was certainly engrossing, but it had enough irritating flaws that make me wonder just how it managed to become an international success. This adaptation does a fairly good job of adapting the story to film, making very few alterations to the plot in the process. However, it's certainly another case of things being lost in the book-to-film translation - the story's strongest asset, Lisbeth, is simply not as engaging on screen as she is in the book. This is almost entirely a matter of the medium, since on film we can't really have Lisbeth's inner monologues, so she's far more sociable. I also felt that the pacing was far too fast at times when they would have been better left giving breathing room. I love David Fincher, but this film very rarely feels like it's his (outside of maybe the cinematography in the rape scenes, which are as disturbing as you'd expect). All in all, it's a fairly good film, but I'd recommend the book over this any day.
- DirectorBrad BirdStarsTom CruiseJeremy RennerSimon PeggThe IMF is shut down when it's implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin, causing Ethan Hunt and his new team to go rogue to clear their organization's name.Another solid entry in the long-running espionage series.
- DirectorGore VerbinskiStarsJohnny DeppIsla FisherTimothy OlyphantRango is an ordinary chameleon who accidentally winds up in the town of Dirt, a lawless outpost in the Wild West in desperate need of a new sheriff.A fun, relatively straightforward western with some very cool animation.
- DirectorEli CraigStarsTyler LabineAlan TudykKatrina BowdenAffable hillbillies Tucker and Dale are on vacation at their dilapidated mountain cabin when they are mistaken for murderers by a group of preppy college students.A funny send-up on the slasher genre, although the 3rd act isn't nearly as good as the first two. Because of this, it doesn't quite reach the lofty heights of Shaun of the Dead, although it comes pretty close to matching Zombieland.
(Technically this was released in 2010, but it's been getting limited releases here and there through out 2010 and 2011 when I saw it, so I included it) - DirectorJustin LinStarsVin DieselPaul WalkerDwayne JohnsonDominic Toretto and his crew of street racers plan a massive heist to buy their freedom while in the sights of a powerful Brazilian drug lord and a dangerous federal agent.Previous F&F movies were all rather uneven (at best), but Fast Five is a hell of a lot of fun. The action scenes are incredible and the banter between the characters is actually entertaining enough on its own (for the first time in the series since the first film).
- DirectorTerrence MalickStarsBrad PittSean PennJessica ChastainThe story of a family in Waco, Texas in 1956. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence and struggles with his parents' conflicting teachings.This is a very hard movie to place on a simple list and scale on a 1-10. The movie itself is jumbled, incoherent and rather boring for long stretches, although the main body of the film itself is good in a traditional sense. The film seems to be more directed towards producing thoughts and feelings about such heavy topics as time, spirituality and family. It is an extremely interesting movie, but I can't imagine ever watching it again, or recommending it to anyone for that matter - it's just too unorthodox.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsJamie BellAndy SerkisDaniel CraigIntrepid reporter Tintin and Captain Haddock set off on a treasure hunt for a sunken ship commanded by Haddock's ancestor.Great adaptation of the comic book series!
- DirectorSteven QualeStarsNicholas D'AgostoEmma BellArlen EscarpetaDeath returns to claim the lucky survivors of a deadly bridge collapse in this fifth frightening installment in the series.Against all odds, this movie actually manages to *not suck*. In fact it's rather enjoyable, and not just for the gore. Easily the best Final Destination since the first, although the ending is rather lame.
- DirectorDavid YatesStarsDaniel RadcliffeEmma WatsonRupert GrintHarry, Ron, and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord as the final battle rages on at Hogwarts.A suitably epic end to the series, although it feels a bit too briskly paced at times.
- DirectorKenneth BranaghStarsChris HemsworthAnthony HopkinsNatalie PortmanThe powerful but arrogant god Thor is cast out of Asgard to live amongst humans in Midgard (Earth), where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.Despite the lameness of Thor as a superhero, this movie is really fun and makes the character actually interesting. The Earth segments are kinda meh, but Thor is great more often than not.
- DirectorMichael DowseStarsSeann William ScottJay BaruchelAlison PillLabeled an outcast by his brainy family, a bouncer overcomes long odds to lead a team of under performing misfits to semi-pro hockey glory, beating the crap out of everything that stands in his way.A very violent, but very funny sports movie with the always entertaining Sean William Scott. I wouldn't have minded if it had a slightly slower pace (as it is, it's about a notch below Scott Pilgrim), but all in all it's hard to imagine it being much better than it turned out to be.
- DirectorGuy RitchieStarsRobert Downey Jr.Jude LawJared HarrisDetective Sherlock Holmes is on the trail of criminal mastermind Professor Moriarty, who is carrying out a string of random crimes across Europe.A rather good sequel, but one which is weaker than the original due to a somewhat messy screenplay at times. Robert Downey Jr.'s portrayal of Sherlock Holmes is also walking the razor's edge of becoming as much of an excessively-quirky caricature as Captain Jack Sparrow did in the latter-Pirates movies.
- DirectorSeth GordonStarsJason BatemanCharlie DayJason SudeikisThree friends conspire to murder their awful bosses when they realize they are standing in the way of their happiness.A good comedy that really succeeds because of the playful chemistry of the 3 lead actors.
- DirectorDuncan JonesStarsJake GyllenhaalMichelle MonaghanVera FarmigaA soldier wakes up in someone else's body and discovers he's part of an experimental government program to find the bomber of a commuter train within 8 minutes.I think this movie was rather overrated, but regardless it was a decent movie. Not sure how much sense it really made though (and this is a movie that is attempting to be smart so yes, that does matter).
- DirectorJoe JohnstonStarsChris EvansHugo WeavingSamuel L. JacksonSteve Rogers, a rejected military soldier, transforms into Captain America after taking a dose of a "Super-Soldier serum". But being Captain America comes at a price as he attempts to take down a warmonger and a terrorist organization.A fun superhero flick, but it feels half-baked. I'm glad to see that the Captain wasn't as lame as his comic counterpart can be, and the film doesn't devolve into propaganda.
- DirectorGreg MottolaStarsSimon PeggNick FrostSeth RogenTwo English comic book geeks traveling across the U.S. encounter an alien outside Area 51.Much better than expected, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are great as usual, but the absence of Edgar Wright is felt deeply.
- DirectorMatthijs van Heijningen Jr.StarsMary Elizabeth WinsteadJoel EdgertonUlrich ThomsenAt an Antarctica research site, the discovery of an alien craft leads to a confrontation between graduate student Kate Lloyd and scientist Dr. Sander Halvorson.While this movie isn't necessarily bad, it's just nowhere near as good as Carpenter's version.
- DirectorPeter HaasMothman Country is the personal odyssey of filmmaker Peter Haas to Point Pleasant, West Virginia, a city infamous among paranormal fanatics for its legend of 'The Mothman.' Inspired by John Keel's The Mothman Prophecies, Haas goes monster hunting, only to collide with the reality of the locals of a town still reeling from the collapse of its industrial economy in the late 1970s. Interviews become uncomfortably personal and revealing, and the symbiotic relationship between residents and the Mothman legend becomes a story of survival for Point Pleasant, and of simple human nature for the director.A very basic, web-based documentary about the Mothman. It's somewhat interesting, but is not much more than a personal story and doesn't really offer any conclusion or insight. Certainly not bad, but nothing spectacular.
- DirectorJonathan LiebesmanStarsAaron EckhartMichelle RodriguezBridget MoynahanA squad of U.S. Marines becomes the last line of defense against a global invasion.Mindless entertainment. I can think of worse ways to waste a couple hours, but I would never buy this.
- DirectorCameron CroweStarsMatt DamonScarlett JohanssonThomas Haden ChurchSet in Southern California, a father moves his young family to the countryside to renovate and re-open a struggling zoo.A pretty standard family film, although I found the shifts between drama and comedy really jarring, infrequent and poorly done. The film would really have been better off ditching any attempt at comedy (including the really odd dialogue in those scenes).
- DirectorMarcus NispelStarsJason MomoaRon PerlmanRose McGowanA vengeful barbarian warrior sets off to get his revenge on the evil warlord who attacked his village and murdered his father when he was a boy.There are scripts which feel half-baked, and then there are scripts which feel like they were being written while the movie was actively filming. The narrative is severely lacking in this Conan reboot, with characters flitting in and out of the plot as needed, non-sensical actions and some really bad editing. That said, Momoa is a convincing Conan, Stephen Lang is great as the hammy villain Khalar Zym, and Rose McGowan is real creepy as the sorceress Marique. The only real poor performance is from Rachel Nichols' love interest, Tamara, but regardless the cast and the at times fun and inventive action sequences at least allow Conan to be an enjoyably dumb affair.
- DirectorJoe NimzikiStarsLandon LiboironLindsey ShawIvana MilicevicA teenage outcast discovers he is a werewolf, and must battle a pack of the brutal creatures when they threaten him and his new girlfriend.The Howling series has produced some of the greatest abominations to ever to be committed to celluloid, so as bad as this movie is, it's still miles better than the majority of the movies in the series. Still, it's way too heavy on teen angst and was in need of a bigger budget to really do it justice.
- DirectorZack SnyderStarsEmily BrowningVanessa HudgensAbbie CornishA young girl institutionalized by her abusive stepfather retreats to an alternative reality as a coping strategy and envisions a plan to help her escape.Even moreso than other Snyder movies, Sucker Punch is style waaaaaaaaaaay over substance. In fact, it really doesn't make that much sense, but the fantasy sequences are pretty cool admittedly. I actually didn't mind the movie too much until the ending, which was an incredibly stupid conclusion for many reasons. Not much else I can say about this that hasn't already been droned on about elsewhere.
- DirectorMartin CampbellStarsRyan ReynoldsBlake LivelyPeter SarsgaardReckless test pilot Hal Jordan is granted an alien ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers that inducts him into an intergalactic police force, the Green Lantern Corps.I expected this to be crap, and it turned out to be just... meh. Not particularly exciting, lots of really silly design choices, doesn't really feel cohesive... I guess, most damningly, I just don't care about Green Lantern, and this movie didn't change that whatsoever.
- DirectorJaume Collet-SerraStarsLiam NeesonDiane KrugerJanuary JonesWhen a man awakens from a coma only to discover that someone has taken on his identity, he teams up with a young woman to prove who he is.This movie was disappointingly bad. It shouldn't have been marketed as a spiritual successor to Taken, because expectations were part of the reason it was so disappointing. Do not attempt to apply logic to it, because it doesn't work.
- DirectorRob MarshallStarsJohnny DeppPenélope CruzIan McShaneJack Sparrow and Barbossa embark on a quest to find the elusive fountain of youth, only to discover that Blackbeard and his daughter are after it too.As far as I'm concerned, this is by far the worst movie in the series. It just feels soulless, like nothing of consequence happened (and really, nothing did). At least At World's End felt epic (if bloated), this just feels obligatory.
- DirectorMike DisaStarsChristopher JudgeRicardo ChaviraGwendoline YeoFour survivors aboard the spaceship USG O'Bannon, the first responder ship sent to rescue the members of the USG Ishimura, try to recall the horrific events that wiped out their crew.Poor animation aside, this was actually pretty good up until the necromorphs showed up - then it was an even *beep* version of Dead Space Downfall (which was bad in itself). I've played all the Dead Space games, read all the comics and novels and seen both of the movies now, and this is a very disturbing pattern between them - the necromorph attacks are boring (aside from the games). I'm worried that they're going to have to shake up the games to keep things fresh now...
- DirectorAndrew NiccolStarsJustin TimberlakeAmanda SeyfriedCillian MurphyIn a future where people stop aging at 25, but are engineered to live only one more year, having the means to buy your way out of the situation is a shot at immortal youth. Will Salas is accused of murder and on the run with a hostage.The movie is very good looking and has an interesting premise... but it's just so damn blunt. Everyone hammers the whole "time allegory" thing throughout the whole movie, enough so that it feels like the dialogue boils down to "TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME!!!" For that matter, the dialogue and acting are all pretty crappy... definitely worth skipping.
- DirectorMichael BayStarsShia LaBeoufRosie Huntington-WhiteleyTyrese GibsonThe Autobots learn of a Cybertronian spacecraft hidden on the moon, and race against the Decepticons to reach it and to learn its secrets.Aside from the special effects and relentless action scenes in the last half, there is literally nothing else with recommending in this movie. If you're a fan already though, there's nothing that's going to convince you otherwise.
- DirectorMichel GondryStarsSeth RogenJay ChouChristoph WaltzFollowing the death of his father, Britt Reid, heir to his father's large company, teams up with his late dad's assistant Kato to become a masked crime fighting team.Has a couple cool bits, but ultimately this is just a really pointless, overly-silly superhero film.
- DirectorMark WatersStarsJim CarreyCarla GuginoAngela LansburyThe life of a businessman begins to change after he inherits six penguins, and as he transforms his apartment into a winter wonderland, his professional side starts to unravel.Bleh. I'll admit that this has its moments, but overall its just way too fast paced. It feels like the editors expect everyone who's watching it to have ADD (which may or may not be untrue).
- DirectorScott StewartStarsPaul BettanyCam GigandetMaggie QA warrior priest disobeys church law to track down a pact of vampires who have kidnapped his niece.Derivative, badly edited, poorly acted, etc. I only saw this because my friends wanted to go to it and out-voted me.
- DirectorDavid R. EllisStarsSara PaxtonDustin MilliganChris CarmackA weekend at a lake house in the Louisiana Gulf turns into a nightmare for seven vacationers as they are subjected to shark attacks.Watched this on a whim (a "I wanna watch a *beep* horror movie" whim). The first 20 minutes or so are actually better than expected, but from then on out it's just plain stupidity... They didn't even learn from one of Jaws 4's biggest ridicules - roaring sharks.
- DirectorScott SpiegelStarsKip PardueBrian HallisayJohn HensleyFour men attending a bachelor party in Las Vegas fall prey to the Elite Hunting Club, who are hosting a gruesome game show of torture.The first two Hostel films are surprisingly good and have very clever ideas at their core which help them to be more than just "torture porn". Hostel: Part III feels like a cheap, safe, studio-mandated continuation but I'll admit that it does still manage to have some potential by supplementing the previous films' rich, amoral villains with a gambling entertainment angle. Unfortunately, the execution really fails any potential there may have been, making Hostel: Part III a dull affair.
- DirectorUwe BollStarsDolph LundgrenLochlyn MunroNatassia MaltheAn ex-Special Forces soldier gets thrown back to medieval times to fulfill an ancient prophecy and ends up finding redemption for his own battlefield experiences.This Uwe Boll sequel isn't good by any stretch of the imagination, but it at least is a watchable affair, even enjoyable at times. It's still marred by shoddy direction, a low budget and bad acting, but at least it's a step towards mediocrity, which is an improvement for Boll.
- DirectorOliver ParkerStarsRowan AtkinsonRosamund PikeDominic WestJohnny English goes up against international assassins hunting down Chinese Premier Xiang Ping.I'll be honest, I only really watched the last half hour of this, but I'm pretty certain I didn't miss anything. Honestly, the movie sets up potential jokes really well, but then we realize that this was completely unintentional on the filmmakers' part. And then when we get actual intentional jokes, they're always drawn out, juvenile and often just plain unfunny. Simply put, this is just a bad comedy, even worse than the mediocre original Johnny English.
- DirectorPaul JohanssonStarsTaylor SchillingGrant BowlerMatthew MarsdenRailroad executive Dagny Taggart and steel mogul Henry Rearden form an alliance to fight the increasingly authoritarian government of the United States.It's pretty easy to throw a "Barloq Shrugged" at this film, because holy crap is it ever boring and shoddily-made. Even if you ignore the disgustingly amoral people we're supposed to be rooting for and all the strawmen required to make the filmmakers' point seem plausible, the film is just unengaging and dull.
- DirectorBill CondonStarsKristen StewartRobert PattinsonTaylor LautnerThe Quileutes close in on expecting parents Edward and Bella, whose unborn child poses a threat to the Wolf Pack and the towns people of Forks.Ugh, quite possibly the worst entry yet. Although the birthing scene is horrifically hilarious for the tonal shift. I don't understand how even Twi-hards could enjoy this one. I know it's totally cliche to hate on Twilight... but honestly, the series deserves it. This movie blows beyond belief.