I think I will start my movie end-of-year list, now, and fill it in as I go along:

1. The Social Network
2. Last Train Home
3.
4. Inception
5.
6.
7.
8. The American
9. Salt
10.

11.
12. Monsters
13. Exit Through the Gift Shop
14.
15.
16. Easy A

I still have yet to watch ‘Putty Hill’, ‘Restrepo’, ‘I am Love’ and a few others—including ‘Vengeance’.

Film Reviews:

Toy Story 3: As always, the animation and characters are superb but the plot is where the film lacks a little. It feels like we’re just going through the motions—in the first two films there are more genuine moments (especially the first) but here they seem a little tried. I wish they had made the film a little more serious—like the first—it seems too obviously targeted to kids. One moment I liked was when the baby turned on the bear and pushed him in the dumpster. There was some character emotion. The rest of the film feels a bit flimsy on this level. Oh—I like when Mr. Potato Head was a taco :p. 3 Stars

Film Reviews:

Inception: I know I’m a bit late on this one. What a movie! I was actually surprised how much I appreciated this movie. I haven’t seen a film this genuinely interesting since, perhaps, the Dark Knight. Nolan produces an original and intelligent plot—twisted with great cinematography and direction. The actors and actresses produce a smart action movie and keep the movie rolling through—rather than, say, the Matrix which incessantly tries to focus on every piece of ingenuity it had to offer. A brilliant movie I will certainly be excited to own on DVD (or is that Blu-Ray now?). 4 Stars

Film Reviews:

Cat Woman: Gyurgh, Halle Berry is so bad in this film! There’s a scene where two armed guards chase her through some, very exspensive looking, pipes and they start shooting at her—hitting all the pipes, obviously. I really don’t think I can say more about this movie, without laughing. 1 Star

Album Reviews:

Eminem: Recovery:

After the abysmal ‘Relapse’ I had serious doubts whether Eminem could pull himself back to form. It may not be the smartest of his CD's but he's back with a vengeance—keeping the beats simple and hard—it has allowed him to gain his confidence back. Often, with his older work, he doesn't seem to face some of his issues head-on—here, at least, he admits them (if only for himself) and wants to change. A−

Film Reviews:

Johnny English: A complete waste of time—this movie is poor in every-which-way. 1.5 Stars

Murder on the Orient Express: I hate this Poaro—his timing is so bad! The plot is too obvious and dull. Some of the character interactions are quite nice, though, and the cast is quite impressive too (shit Poaros aside). 3 Stars

I just bought the Anime version of Metropolis on DVD from Amazon—it's going to take two days—I can't wait!

Metropolis (Anime): This is the kind of animation that just doesn't feel like an animation when you watch it. A beautifully told story—which has great character development. I always feel so upset for the robot girl I'm almost embarrassed—as it's an animation—although saying that I also cared about the girl in Spirited Away and that didn't bother me? 4 Stars

My ‘greatest horror movies of all time’ list:

1. King Kong
2. Repulsion
3. The Bride of Frankenstein
4. Alien
5. Psycho
6. Frankenstein
7. Jaws
8. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
9. Nosferatu
10. Peeping Tom

11. Rosemary's Baby
12. Exotica
13. Dracula
14. Halloween
15. The Evil Dead
16. Dawn of the Dead
17. The Shining
18. The Exorcist
19. The Blair Witch Project
20. Silence of the Lambs
21. Carrie
22. The Descent
23. Aliens
24. The Wicker Man
25. The Night of the Living Dead
26. The Devil's Rejects

I need to get ‘Don't Look Now’, ‘The Last House on the Left’ and ‘Let the Right One In’ in here—‘Devil's Rejects’ should be 27th…

Film Reviews:

Crash: The characters are so beautifully created they transcend all hatred and cliches when in the face of racism, sexism and ignorance. The way the story unfolds itself is also pretty good—subtle—playing on the emotions of each character rather than the suspense. Smart, but doesn't outreach itself ever. 4 Stars

Fargo: I don't know why it has taken me so long to see this movie. It's probably one of the best films I have ever seen—definitely one of the best of the 90's. Hilarious and tragic at the same time—the film kind of creeps up on you and then, suddenly, you're sucked in. I need to get this on DVD… 4 Stars

Film Reviews:

Starship Troopers: I, admittedly, liked this as a teen. God knows why. The intended humour behind the film is, probably, the best aspect of the film. The characters are lazy, the plot almost irrelevant (it could have easily been a pure action film) and the dialogue dumb as hell. One word I will never forget: ‘MEDIIIIC!!!’. 2 Stars

Spiderman 2: This movie is so much better than it's predecessor it's almost blinding. Finally the saga decides to follow the man behind the mask rather than creating a pure action flick. There is also less emotional overkill than the first and the film flows in a real and intelligent manor. 4 Stars

The Bourne Identity: It's filmed well for an action movie. Matt Damon plays his part well and the movie does what it needs to do. It could be a little more mature though—have a more intelligent back-story—but, as I said, it is enough. 3 Stars

The most disappointing film series series: Back to the Future

Back to the Future. 3.5 Stars

Back to the Future II. 3 Stars

Back to the Future III. 2 Stars

Film Reviews:

The Simpsons Movie: Like everyone who saw the trailer, I was a little apprehensive at first. I thought the plot would be stale and I have it ingrained in my mind that TV series rarely transcend well onto the big screen. Surprisingly, it actually turned out to be a pretty good movie—a lot of the jokes were obvious but a lot of them were fresh and funny too. The animation kept the story running smoothly and helped the show transcend to film. I thought the story was a little uninspired. But hay, it was still pretty good. 3 Stars

Salem's Lot: I always remember that scene where the kid floats up to the window and asks to come in—it is terrifying! I quite like this adaptation, though it is a little dull—there hardly seems to be any atmospheric terror during the day (some of the direction could have been better) but then isn't this a vampire movie? 2.5 Stars

Film Reviews:

Lord of the Rings: Return of the King: While I thoroughly enjoyed the first installment to the series the second and, especially, the third are a little trite. Return of the King is more action-sequence based leaving the other scenes seeming necessary only for the completion of the plot. It's almost as if they ran out of steam and are just going with the flow. It's still fun to watch though. 3.5 Stars

Kindergarten Cop: I am always surprised by this movie as it should be a lot worse then it is. The film is actually enjoyable, for the most part, due to the impressive scene arrangement. Surprisingly, Schwarzenegger is not too bad either. 3 Stars

Film Reviews:

After Hours: I first saw this movie when I was in my early teens and I was so frustrated because I forgot the name of the film. One of the most well crafted and experimental comedies I have ever seen. The film almost plays like an exaggerated twilight episode and some of the scenes are really visually exciting. It does feel a little hodge-podge though—there are a lot of ideas floating around and I don't think they knew how to tie it all together. 4 Stars

Film Reviews:

Spiderman: Enjoyable and a good cast but lacks in dynamics. The story is faithfully told, which is a plus, but seems a little unfocused at times. 2.5 Stars

Terry Pratchett's Going Postal: I really enjoy the Pratchett adaptations and I am excited each time a new one is released. This Sky funded installment to the series has a fluid tempo and the characters are beautifully cast. Nice CGI effects help to fluff out the action sequences. One of the best TV adaptations I have seen in a long time. It could be a little bit more serious though. 3.5 Stars

The Mask: The moments where Jim Carrey is the Mask are often funny, and more-than-often entertaining. Once the mask has been taken off, though, you are watching a really bad movie. 3 Stars

Gladiator: While this film has a high-end production value (although it's pretty murky looking) it lacks a little on the character side—there's too much focus on the interactions between characters and it overloads on emotional overkill (is the love story really necessary?).The acting is often poor and I feel the movie lacks any real social or political messages—which it craves. The fight scenes are impressive (probably the most worth-while parts of the movie) but the rest of the film drawls on and feels kind of pointless. Worst of all—the film panders to idiots. 2 Stars

Film Reviews:

American Movie: What can I say? Every single second is funny and it's not boring like most documentaries. 4 Stars

Film Reviews:

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure: I like the characters the two play but I dislike the story-line. Or, at least, how it pans out. A large portion of the film drags on—are all these scenes necessary? Just to hear them play air guitar is enough for me though. 3 Stars

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Everything about this film sucks. The characters are lazy, the plot menial and (above all) it has bad pacing which makes it difficult to understand. 2 Stars

Film Reviews:

The 40-Year-Old Virgin: This is the only film with Steve Carell that I actually like. I usually find his characters overly obnoxious and irritating—but I like the character he plays here (he is believable). A film which focuses more on the story-line than the one-liners (a lot like There's Something About Mary). It's still a little too immature for my tastes. 3.5 Stars

Film Reviews:

Spaceballs: I'll admit—this movie is a guilty pleasure of mine. I find a lot of it funny—but it's too slow and unoriginal. It is one of those films you can enjoy with a beer, even though it's bad—like Die Hard. 2.5 Stars

Let the Right One In: Beautifully shot, a great cast of unknowns, deep characters and a truly horrifying atmosphere make this one of the best vampire movies around. There's just something so weird about a blonde, Swedish kid (who's friends with a vampire). 3.5 Stars

Film Reviews:

Silent Hill: I watched this movie, before bed, because I wasn't tired. Anyone who watches this film will know how poor it is. Everything about it is so obviously bad. There are so many times I want to punch Radha Mitchell you could make a drinking game out of it. You know, if the actors could act as if they were real human beings it might not have been so bad. But then again, the direction lets it down too. 1.5 Stars