Top Films of 2012

Over the past year I haven’t caught as many movies as I would have liked but there were still some gems amongst the ones I did get round to.

Instead of a traditional top ten list I’ll use this end of year post to point out some of the highlights of the past 12 months.

These are in no particular order and weren’t necessarily released in 2012.

Avengers Assemble – The first film to feature Marvel heroes Captain America, The Hulk, Iron Man and Thor turned out even better than anyone dared to hope. Bring on the sequel!

The Grey – Liam Neeson leads a group of plane crash survivors through the wilderness but they encounter a pack of hungry wolves. Manages to be exciting and thought-provoking with great turns from Neeson and Frank Grillo.

The Angels Share – A Scottish comedy drama about a group of offenders attempting to steal a very rare and valuable whisky. After a bleak start this becomes a hilarious tale of misadventure.

Stay Cool – A successful author returns to his own high school to give a speech to students. Marketed as a romantic comedy this funny and often poignant film is much more than it appears to be as the thirtysomething finds himself back in situations he first experienced as a teenager.

Dredd – Karl Urban delivers a true representation of the comic book judge / jury / executioner as Dredd must take on a feared drug dealer while training a rookie Judge. Mega-violent and fast paced this will please fans of hardcore action films.

End Of Watch – Two cops find themselves with a price on their heads in this top notch action thriller.

American Pie: Reunion – Jim, Stifler and the gang are as funny as ever in this cast get-together that must spawn further films. Far better than expected.

Rise Of The Guardians – A brilliantly animated film that breathes life into the legends of Santa, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, The Sandman and the unlikely hero Jack Frost as they take on the evil Pitch Black.

You can use the search facility to find my full reviews of all of the above.

Ric Recommends: Rise of the Guardians

Check out the trailer for the fantastic Rise Of The Guardians and see my full review below.

Film: Rise Of The Guardians

When The Boogeyman (aka Pitch Black) threatens to turn the dreams of children into nightmares it’s up to The Guardians to stop him.

The Guardians are a sword-wielding tattooed Santa Claus, a six-foot Easter Bunny, a silent Sandman and a spirited Tooth Fairy but for this task they need an addition to their group. Enter the mischievous Jack Frost.

Surprisingly the main character here is Jack Frost (Chris Pine), a troubled figure who has no idea of his purpose and no memory of the life he had before being selected by the Moon to become the folklore he now is. Pitch Black sees that Jack has more in common with him than the others and attempts to recruit him in his quest to dominate the minds of children.

Will Jack turn to the dark side or find his purpose and become a hero?

This is without doubt the best animated film I have seen since Toy Story. It looks absolutely beautiful and the characters are fantastic. It also contains the right amount of menace to keep the adults entertained without scaring off the youngsters.

Rise Of The Guardians is a wonderful, magical film that presents much-loved characters in a cool new way. 

An absolute must-see for the festive season.

Ric’s Rating: Essential  

Film: Kill List

After a slow start this 2011 tale of two hitmen really kicks off and there is more going on than meets the eye.

Jay (Neil Maskell) is troubled by past events and the current “kill list” that him and Gal (Michael Smiley) are working on only makes his mental state all the more fragile.

As the duo encounter and eliminate some despicable individuals it leads them to encounter a strange cult who may have been watching them for some time.

This could have been fantastic, Maskell and Smiley are brilliant as the violent assassins who also display their human side.

Unfortunately it all descends into a Wicker Man rip-off which was totally unnecessary spoiling what has gone before.

Writer / Director Ben Wheatley has a film in UK cinemas at the moment (Sightseers) which looks interesting. 

Lets hope he doesn’t go down a similar road.

Ric’s Rating: Dodgy.   

Film: Code Name: Geronimo

This is the story of the operation leading to the capture and killing of Osama Bin Laden.

Told from the point of view of the soldiers involved it boasts a cool cast including TV stalwarts Robert Knepper (Prison Break, Heroes), Anson Mount (Hell On Wheels) and William Fichtner (Prison Break, Invasion).

The story moves along quickly enough and covers the political side of things too but the video game view often used when the soldiers are training or on assignment is quickly headache inducing.

The films strength is the use of the soldier’s family lives to present a more rounded picture of the people involved. This helps elevate the whole thing from standard direct to DVD fare to something which justifies its limited UK cinema release.

Code Name: Geronimo is available on DVD & Blu-ray in the UK from 24^th December 2012.

Ric’s Rating: Good.   

Short Story: Replica by Trevor Schmidt

Trevor Schmidt, author of the cool sci-fi thriller Memory Leak, returns to the genre with this short story which follows a team of futuristic soldiers in their pursuit of a notorious terrorist.

The year is 2054 and Sgt Logan Martel and his team are closing in on their man. The team must use all of the advanced technology available to them, including robotic birds, to survive the onslaught of machine-gun fire coming from insurgents.

This quick easy read is a cautionary tale regarding the development of future technology and is ideal lunch-break or commute reading that will appeal to fans of the Terminator movies.

Click on the Trevor Schmidt tab below for my review of Memory Leak.

Ric’s Rating: Good.      

Book: Nikki's Secret by William Malmborg

The latest offering from William Malmborg (Jimmy, Text Message) tells the tale of Kimberly, a young woman who is subjected to a sustained campaign of harassment by the mysterious Nikki.

Help may be at hand in the form of Kimberly’s new neighbour, the reclusive and idiosyncratic Bill. Bill is a writer who has recently found some success but his past money-making ventures may have some part to play in the increasingly worrying situation which Kimberly finds herself in.

This story takes the reader on a journey into the mind of a delusional and sexually misguided individual who attempts to exact revenge on those believed responsible for their own depressing situation.

Nikki’s Secret isn’t up there with the brilliant Jimmy (see review elsewhere here) but it’s another entertaining read from a very promising author. The little pieces of black humour are perfectly placed amongst the tension and one particularly gory scene is lightened hugely by the skin-crawlingly funny description of the impractical nature of disposing of a body.

For more information visit www.williammalmborg.com and you can click on the tab below for my reviews of the author’s other books.

Ric’s Rating: Good.  

Film: Nativity 2: Danger In The Manger

With Martin Freeman away being Bilbo Baggins it’s up to new teacher David Tennant (Fright Night) to take over the unruly schoolchildren of St Bernadette’s and lead them to Wales, where they will compete in the TV competition A Song For Christmas.

Marc Wootton returns as the zany Mr Poppy, as does the majority of the original cast, including most of the children. Tennant, while adequate in his dual roles, is never as likable as Freeman was and his dysfunctional family storyline fails to engage.

This is ok for kids but lacks the charm of the original making it a rather mundane affair.

Nativity 2: Danger In The Manger is in UK cinemas now.

Ric’s Rating: Dodgy           

Film: End Of Watch

This hand-held camera style thriller follows the misadventures of two brash young L.A. cops as they go about their daily routines.

Although some nasty and dangerous situations arise the pair handle it all with good humour until they unwittingly cross a powerful drug cartel and find themselves worth a lot of money to anyone willing to eliminate them.

At last Jake Gyllenhaal appears in a film as good as Donnie Darko, I really had convinced myself that he’d never recreate that moment and his career had already peaked. On this evidence he has plenty more to offer. Gyllenhaal is brilliant as marine-turned-cop Brian Taylor who films his daily activities for his own personal project but secretly longs for a meaningful relationship. Taylor’s partner is happily married Mike Zavala (Michael Pena), a soon-to-be Father who is still willing to take risks in the line of duty.

The film immediately absorbs the viewer. Taylor and Zavala are a cool pairing and they happily make fun of the other cops while facing calls that include “missing” babies, a dangerous house fire and a huge violent man who challenges them to take off their badges.

With some shocking moments and tense, brutal action this is undoubtedly the best cop drama since Training Day.

End Of Watch is in UK cinemas now.

Ric’s Rating: Essential

Film: Nativity

With a sequel to this 2009 Christmas film due soon I decided to take my daughter to a special screening  at our local cinema, and I’m very glad I did.

Schoolteacher Paul Maddens (Martin Freeman) hates Christmas. This is because his girlfriend (Ashley Jensen) left him on Christmas Day some years ago.

Much to his dismay Maddens is chosen to direct the annual school Nativity and soon finds himself running into an old rival and making promises he will struggle to keep.

Freeman (soon to be seen as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit) is great as the downtrodden teacher and all the kids involved are utterly charming. Marc Wootton also turns in a fine performance as the fun-loving classroom assistant Mr Poppy.

Can Maddens and Poppy beat their local rivals to a 5 star review and will the elusive Hollywood producer turn up to see the performance?

Nativity is a heart-warming and funny film that’s great fun at Christmastime.

Make it a must-see this festive season.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended  

Book: Buried Prey by John Sandford

The discovery of the bodies of two young girls at a construction site takes top cop Lucas Davenport back to his very first homicide case.

We travel back to the mid-eighties and join a much younger Lucas and rookie Detective Sloane (another recurring character from the Prey series) as they attempt to get to the bottom of the abduction of the Jones sisters.

When a suspect emerges Lucas can’t help thinking that something just isn’t right and despite force veterans being satisfied he continues his attempts to track down another elusive person of interest.

In this gripping police procedural the author shows how a flashback story should be done. A large chunk of the action takes place in the eighties but Sandford doesn’t dwell there too long and returns the tale to the present day at exactly the right point in the story.

The Prey series always takes the reader right into the heart of the investigation as leads are pursued and suspects eliminated and in this, the 21^st novel, there are even a few surprises as well as a shocking farewell to a well liked character.

Forget Cross and Reacher, for the best long-running series you have to check out Lucas Davenport in John Sandford’s brilliant Prey novels.

Click the John Sandford tab for more reviews.

Ric’s Rating: Essential.     

TV Show: Last Resort

An American nuclear submarine receives an order to bomb Pakistan but when the Captain (Andre Braugher, Homicide: Life On The Street) and crew question the order they are met with a hostile response from their own government.

Finding themselves faced with inevitable destruction they decide to fight back and threaten to unleash the warheads contained on the sub…directly at Washington DC.

I didn’t expect too much from this drama, partly due to the 8pm UK tv timeslot, but the opening episode was filled with tension from beginning to end.

Braugher and the rest of the cast which includes Scott Speedman, Robert Patrick and Bruce Davison, turn in terrific performances and the plot will appeal to fans of conspiracy thrillers like Homeland and 24.

Hard to see how this will span an entire series but the brilliant start means I’m keen to find out.

Last Resort is currently being shown on Sky1 in the UK.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended.