Jim Henson Double Feature

Back in January 2015, I did a big retrospective on the eight theatrically-released films from one of the most famous franchises in pop-culture history, the Muppets. The Muppets, of course, were the creation of Jim Henson, who first conceived the characters along with his wife Jane Nebel in 1955 as part of their show Sam and Friends. In the years since, these characters have gone onto become some of the most beloved icons of both the big and small screen. However, this isn’t the only major franchise that Jim Henson was known for, as he and his titular company, the Jim Henson Company, were also responsible for hit shows like Fraggle Rock, Dinosaurs, and Bear in the Big Blue House just to name a few. And, of course, Henson was also famous for playing a major part in the development of one of the most iconic kids shows of all-time, Sesame Street. But today on Rhode Island Movie Corner, in anticipation of his company’s upcoming film The Happytime Murders that will be hitting theaters this August, we’ll be focusing on the feature films that Henson himself directed. And because we’ve already looked at his feature-length directorial debut, 1981’s The Great Muppet Caper, we’ll instead be looking at the two other feature films that he directed, which happen to have one major thing in common. While neither film was a major critical/commercial success upon their initial releases, both have gone onto become some of the biggest cult classics from the 80’s to the point where ‘follow-ups’ to both are currently in development. Thus, it’s time to ‘remind you all of the babe (“What babe?”) the babe with the power (“What power?”) the power of voodoo (“Who do?”) you do (“Do what?”) remind me of the babe!’… ahem, sorry… as we look at the two films that Jim Henson directed in the 80’s that weren’t about his most iconic creation, the Muppets.

THE DARK CRYSTAL (1982)

One year after he made his official feature-length directorial debut with The Great Muppet Caper, Jim Henson teamed up with fellow Muppet performer Frank Oz to co-direct The Dark Crystal. In this dark fantasy (no pun intended), two young elf creatures known as ‘Gelflings’ named Jen and Kira embark on a journey to restore a powerful crystal that had split 1000 years ago and led to the creation of two species, the wise Mystics and the terrifying vulture-like creatures known as Skeksis. And I do mean it when I refer to this film as a ‘dark fantasy’ because it is very much an example of an 80’s PG-rated film that far exceeded the boundaries of what one would normally see from a film that’s targeted towards younger audiences. Whether it’s through a scene where one of the Skeksis crumbles into dust or another where a young creature known as a Podling has his life essence sucked out of him, it’s easy to see how this film left quite a psychological impact on kids back in the 80’s. And while I personally don’t have any major nostalgic connections to this film, that doesn’t mean that I don’t appreciate the visual mastery that is on display here. While some of the film’s blue-screen effects have aged a bit, the puppetry and animatronic work to create its wide array of creatures is superb, which is then paired perfectly with the film’s excellent visual designs that come courtesy of illustrator Brian Froud. Really, the only thing holding this film back is that while its visuals are impressive, the writing is a little more problematic. Some scenes feel a little unfocused and drag on a bit while character development is rather light. Still, for what its worth, The Dark Crystal is an engaging and imaginative fantasy adventure, and I am interested in seeing how this universe will be explored further courtesy of an upcoming prequel series on Netflix directed by Louis Leterrier.

Rating: 3.5/5

LABYRINTH (1986)

Just like the 3-D short film Captain EO that was produced for Disney parks, Labyrinth was a huge collaboration between three titans from the world of pop culture. Not only was the film directed by Jim Henson, but it was also executive-produced by George Lucas and starred ‘Ziggy Stardust’ himself, David Bowie, in the role of the main antagonist, Jareth the Goblin King. Plus, it served as another collaboration between Henson and illustrator Brian Froud, who once again worked as the film’s main conceptual designer. Sadly, upon its initial release, the film was not a big hit with critics and it bombed at the box-office. This proved to be an extremely demoralizing moment for Henson and it was ultimately the last feature film that he ever directed before his death in 1990. However, just like Dark Crystal, Labyrinth has gone on to amass a sizable cult following; in fact, Labyrinth’s fandom is arguably even bigger than Dark Crystal’s. It got a manga sequel in 2006, Return to Labyrinth, and an official film sequel is currently in the works that is set to be helmed by Evil Dead reboot director Fede Alvarez. But as for the original Labyrinth, while I once again don’t have as big of a personal nostalgic connection to this film compared to those who grew up in the 80’s, I do appreciate it just as much as I do Dark Crystal when it comes to its visuals. Sure, this film also has a few visual effects that haven’t aged well (e.g. the sequence involving the ‘Fireys’ that even Henson wasn’t fully satisfied with), but the puppetry and animatronic work from Henson’s crew is still top-notch all around. And whereas Dark Crystal truly lived up to the first half of its name as an extremely ‘dark’ fantasy, Labyrinth sports a much lighter tone by comparison that’s very much in the vein of classic films like The Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland. This ultimately produces a lot of Muppet-esque humor that is handled effectively enough to keep the film’s proceedings from becoming ‘too goofy’.

But, of course, the biggest highlight of the film is David Bowie in the lead role of Jareth the Goblin King. Simply put, the same great stage presence and charisma that made the late performer the icon that he still is today is on full display here, as he perfectly embodies the role of the film’s seductive villain. He also wrote much of the music for this film, which paves the way for some enjoyable musical numbers highlighted by the iconic ‘Magic Dance’ (which I alluded to in the intro to this post). Jennifer Connelly is solid as well in one of her earliest film roles as the film’s main protagonist Sarah, a young girl who embarks on a journey within Jareth’s labyrinth when he kidnaps her baby brother Toby. Admittedly, Connelly is a tad bit wooden in the film’s early moments, though this quickly fades once Sarah enters the labyrinth. She’s joined along the way by an entertaining collection of side characters, including a lovable beast named Ludo and a grumpy dwarf named Hoggle. All of this makes up for the film’s only real shortcoming in that, like Dark Crystal, it does suffer from the occasional narrative lull. That and the film’s ending is, without spoiling anything for those who haven’t seen it before, rather anti-climactic. At the same time, though, the film also does a great job of handling its coming-of-age plot in what is a rare instance of a female-led fantasy story. Thus, while both films are enjoyable in their own unique ways, Labyrinth does sport a tighter narrative compared to Dark Crystal with the added benefit of a great lead performance from David Bowie. And even though this is the first time that I’ve ever watched the film in full, it’s easy to see why this delightfully weird fantasy adventure has spawned the following that it has. Jim Henson may not have lived to see this happen but, per his son Brian, he was at least aware of it before he passed away.     

Rating: 4/5

And that concludes this little ‘retrospective’ on the work of one of the film industry’s most beloved visionaries, Jim Henson. Thanks for following along and be sure to sound off in the comments below with your own personal memories of these 80’s cult classics. 

The Muppets (1979-2014): Film Series Retrospective

So because there’s usually not a lot noteworthy films coming out this month, I decided to do a little film series retrospective for this blog instead; the subject of this retrospective, you ask? Why none other than everyone’s favorite group of performing puppets originally created by Jim Henson, The Muppets (YAAAYYYYY!!!!). Really, what more can be said about the Muppets? In my opinion, this is one of the best family-friendly franchises period and the fact that it’s been around since the 50’s shows just how grand and long-lasting of an appeal it has. Now I’ll admit that I’ve never watched ‘The Muppet Show’ as I wasn’t even born yet when it first aired on TV. Though I do remember watching one of the franchise’s spin-off series, ‘Muppet Babies’, when I was very, very young (like two or three). I’ll admit that before doing this, I’ve only seen each of the pre-2011 movies once or twice when I was younger. Really when I was a kid my familiarity with the franchise mostly stemmed from both the 3-D show ‘Muppet Vision 3-D’ at Disney parks and this old PS1 game ‘Muppet RaceMania’ that I remember being one of the very first video games that I’ve ever played. But today, I’ll be looking at all 8 of the theatrical Muppets films (I’m not counting any direct-to-video or made-for-TV specials here) that have been released since 1979. It’s been quite a few years since I’ve seen most of these movies (not counting the two most recent Muppets films) so I’m interested to see what I think about them now. So without further ado, let’s take a look at the theatrical Muppet films.

THE MUPPET MOVIE (1979)

For their first official movie, which was made between the third and fourth seasons of ‘The Muppet Show’, The Muppets went with something along the lines of a ‘biopic’ and it is presented as such in the style of a ‘movie-within-a-movie’ as it opens with the Muppets preparing to watch it. ‘The Muppet Movie’ revolves around Kermit and his initial journey to Hollywood in the hopes of becoming famous and, more importantly, making millions of people happy. Along the way, he comes across a bunch of characters who not only end up becoming some of his closest friends but also join him on his trip to Hollywood, including comedian Fozzie Bear, the Great Gonzo, and the woman who ended up becoming the love of Kermit’s life, Miss Piggy. ‘The Muppet Movie’ is a road trip movie and a very pleasant one at that. Really, what else do I need to say about it? It’s a road trip movie with the Muppets. It’s a pleasantly light-hearted film from beginning to end that is full of zany self-referential humor, a whole bunch of cameos from the likes of Dom DeLuise, Steve Martin, Richard Pryor, and even Orson Welles, and many memorable musical numbers from the iconic ‘Rainbow Connection’ to the incredibly catchy and upbeat ‘Movin’ Right Along’. It’s just a very well-made film with excellent puppetry by Jim Henson and his team and strong writing that is full of both humor and charm. Bottom line; this is easily one of the best films of the entire franchise and one that the whole family can enjoy.

Rating: 5/5!

THE GREAT MUPPET CAPER (1981)

Here’s an interesting fact; ‘The Great Muppet Caper’ is the only Muppet film to ever be directed by the series’ creator, Jim Henson, who would later go on to direct cult classic films like ‘Labyrinth’ and ‘The Dark Crystal’. As for ‘The Great Muppet Caper’, it elects for a much zanier mystery-themed plotline compared to the more relaxed road trip story of the first film as Kermit and friends head to London to investigate into the crime of a bunch of thieves stealing the precious jewels of prominent fashion designer Lady Holiday (Diana Rigg). This movie also has far more self-referential humor than ‘The Muppet Movie’, with multiple ‘breaking the fourth wall’ jokes. This includes the opening credits sequence where Kermit, Fozzie, and Gonzo watch the opening credits while on a hot air balloon to certain lines of dialogue, from one character admitting that she’s mainly relaying exposition to Miss Piggy noting that one of the main characters had their voice dubbed for a musical number. This is by far one of the funniest entries in the entire film franchise, if not the funniest. True the plot may be a little over-complicated at times but then again it does make sense considering that this is a sequel, where every single aspect of the film is grander than the first film. And of course, the film itself still maintains the lighthearted mood and the right amount of charm that one would no doubt expect from this franchise. This may be the only ‘Muppets’ film that Jim Henson ever directed, but in the end it’s another one of the series’ best.

Rating: 4.5/5

THE MUPPETS TAKE MANHATTAN (1984)

This time, franchise regular Frank Oz (who was the puppeteer for multiple Muppet characters, most notably Miss Piggy and Fozzie, and of course many of you will recognize as the puppeteer and voice of Yoda in the ‘Star Wars’ films) was behind the camera for this film, the third in the series, ‘The Muppets Take Manhattan’, in which Kermit and the gang head to New York to try and get their musical on Broadway. Unlike the previous two films, this entry doesn’t break the fourth wall at any point so there isn’t any instance in the film where the Muppets reference the fact that they’re in a movie… and unfortunately I think that’s one of the reasons why this film isn’t really as good as the last two films. Now for the record, I’m not saying that this is a bad movie. It’s a Muppet movie; it still has the charm and zaniness that you can expect from the franchise as well as all of your favorite characters and a bunch of solid musical numbers. There’s the excellent opening number ‘Together Again’, the undeniably cute ‘I’m Gonna Always Love You’ (which was notably the very first appearance of the Muppet Babies), and the actually fairly depressing ‘Saying Goodbye’ (seriously, I dare you not to get a little emotional over this song; it’s easily the saddest Muppet song ever). But I think that there are a few problems with this movie, namely in its writing.

Like I said, this one doesn’t break the fourth wall like the last two films so it instead goes for a much more traditional narrative and as such, I feel that the movie kind of loses quite a bit of the edge that the previous two films had and at times the film can be just a little bit predictable. The film admittedly also kind of drags at some points, and a key plot point near the end where Kermit is stricken with amnesia after getting hit by a car feels a little tacked on for the purpose of padding out the story. Now again let me be clear, I don’t ‘hate’ this movie, far from it in fact. I especially say this being aware that a lot of people are no doubt nostalgic towards this movie most likely because they were kids around the time this film came out. So if you like this movie more than I do, the more power to you. I just feel that this one is kind of a step down in terms of quality from the last two films. It’s still a pretty solid film on many accounts. It’s just that the writing isn’t really as up to snuff as the first two films, namely because the film doesn’t utilize the series’ trademark self-referential humor as it instead opts for a far more standard and in some cases rather predictable narrative. Again, I don’t think ‘The Muppets Take Manhattan’ is a bad film and it’s one that I’m certain both kids and adults will love. It’s just that this one kind of has a much more ‘kid-friendly’ vibe compared to the last two films which were equally appealing to both kids and adults.

Rating: 3.5/5

THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL (1992)

Because I already talked about this movie a few weeks ago in my ‘Top 10 Christmas Movies’ post, I won’t go into too much detail again here seeing how I already did back in that post. Needless to say, ‘The Muppet Christmas Carol’ is an excellent adaptation of the classic story ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens. Even with the addition of the Muppets, who obviously bring a more light-hearted feel to this sometimes fairly dark story, the film still captures the spirit, atmosphere, and emotions of the story incredibly well. The Muppets are perfectly cast in the famous roles of the story, including Kermit in the role Bob Cratchit and having Gonzo and Rizzo be the narrators, with Gonzo being Dickens himself. Michael Caine is also fantastic in the role of Scrooge, perfectly capturing both the initial viciousness of the character and his eventual redemption as a human being. My only real complaint about the film isn’t due to anything in the film itself, but instead the decision to cut a key song, ‘When Love is Gone’, sung by Belle in the scene where she leaves Scrooge’s life for good. The studio wanted it cut because they felt it would be ‘too sad’ but hey if ‘Muppets Take Manhattan’ can have that damn ‘Saying Goodbye’ song then I think kids can handle this one. Also, the song is really good and unfortunately because it was cut, it then results in a jarring edit as the shots before and after the song is supposed to play don’t match up very well. Still, ‘The Muppet Christmas Carol’ is a very charming take on this iconic story that has already been adapted to film numerous times. It may not be the most absolutely perfect take on the story, but really I do not mind that at all.

Rating: 5/5

MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND (1996)

For the second film in a row, ‘Muppet Treasure Island’ also took inspiration from a classic novel; in this case, ‘Treasure Island’ by Robert Louis Stevenson. And I must say… this is easily the most underrated out of all of the Muppets films as I find that this one isn’t necessarily as liked as much as some of the other films. I mean, sure, I can’t really say it’s the absolute best in the series in terms of its writing, as the Muppets do sort of get pushed aside in favor of the human characters at times and this is definitely one of those cases of a 90’s film that has many pop cultural references to the point where you’ll either love them or hate them. Still, this film really benefits from its strong atmosphere and just an overall sense of fun and adventure that comes from the fact that it’s a pirate adventure. Plus, it’s still the Muppets so you’re still going to get their trademark charm and humor no matter what the scenario. And of course, you’ve got what is arguably the best element of the entire film; Tim Curry, in the role of Long John Silver. Whereas Michael Caine as Scrooge was more serious in execution given the story, Curry is obviously much more over the top and zany and here it just works perfectly, with Curry stealing the spotlight whenever he’s on screen. Bottom line, I’m not saying that ‘Muppet Treasure Island’ is the absolute best film in the series but I think it’s better than what some put it out to be. It’s just a fun lighthearted and very entertaining take on the classic novel ‘Treasure Island’ and as such I feel that it deserves a little more attention than what it has gotten.

Rating: 4/5

MUPPETS FROM SPACE (1999)

The last major Muppets film before the 2011 reboot, ‘Muppets From Space’ is generally considered by many to be the weakest of all of the Muppets films… and I’m not going to lie, I do agree with that notion. But with that said, I don’t think it’s necessarily ‘as bad’ as some say it is. Quite frankly, I don’t think that any of these Muppets films, even some of the weaker ones, are technically ‘bad’ as they’re all fun to watch even if some aren’t really as good as others. Ultimately in the case of ‘From Space’, it’s similar to ‘Muppets Take Manhattan’ in that it doesn’t do much in terms of satire (and from what I hear, that’s actually what a lot of people thought this movie was going to be) and that it takes things a bit too seriously in terms of its plot. It’s also the only Muppets film to not be a musical and it mainly focuses on Gonzo instead of Kermit, as this film revolves around Gonzo, who for years was referred to as a ‘whatever’, finally learning that he’s from outer space. I know a lot of Muppet fans weren’t too happy about this plot due to the fact that the whole point of Gonzo’s character was the fact that no one knew exactly what he was but I’m not really that bothered by it because A.) Gonzo’s one of my favorite Muppets and B.) I actually think it’s an interesting concept… but it would’ve benefitted much better from having the satirical writing that the Muppets were known for and as I said before, this film doesn’t really have that. Now, it’s not all bad, as the film does have some funny moments from time to time and again, it’s the Muppets so you know you’re in for a fun little film. But overall, this is a Muppets film that’s primarily for kids. Adults are less than likely to find much here for them, unlike some of the previous movies. Even so, I can’t really hate this movie that much even if it is easily the weakest Muppets film to date.

Rating: 3/5 (just keep in mind that this is mostly from a kid’s perspective)

THE MUPPETS (2011)

After more than a decade away from film following the less than stellar reaction towards ‘Muppets from Space’, The Muppets finally returned to the big screen in 2011’s aptly titled ‘The Muppets’, which was co-written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller. This film centers on the Muppet-like character Walter, who along with his brother Gary (Segel) has been a big fan of the Muppets ever since they were young. One day, the two of them, along with Gary’s girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams), travel to Los Angeles for Gary and Mary’s tenth anniversary while Walter gets a chance to tour Muppet Studios. But, when they get there, they discover that the studio has been out of business for quite some time and that it is about to be sold to a rich oil industrialist named Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) who plans to have it demolished. Not wanting it to be destroyed, the trio set out to reunite all of the Muppets so that they can put on a big telethon at their old theater in order to raise enough money to buy back the whole property from Richman. However, they find that it’s going to be very hard to do that given the fact that the Muppets haven’t worked together in quite some time and they also have to deal with the fact that they’re not as popular as they once were.

Now despite the fact that this film received rave reviews from critics when it was first released, I find that a lot of audiences weren’t actually as big on it as the critics were. From what I can tell, the big reason for this was because many felt that the Muppets were being downplayed in their own film while the new Muppet Walter and the two human leads Gary and Mary were focused on more. Maybe this is true, maybe it isn’t, but there’s a different reason why I think this is one of the best Muppets movies period. It’s because this film wears its heart on its sleeve. It’s clear that this film was intended to be a love letter from Segel and Stoller to the franchise and it really shows focusing on their legacy and charm while also managing to make this franchise relevant again after so many years. Even if they arguably do get more attention than the Muppets, I think Segel and Adams both do a good job and Chris Cooper is an absolute scene-stealer in the role of Tex Richman, from his repeated saying of ‘Maniacal Laugh’ whenever his character is supposed to, of course, laugh manically to his completely out of nowhere rap number. The direction from James Bobin, in his feature length directorial debut, is solid and the musical numbers are excellent, especially the one that won an Oscar, ‘Man or Muppet’. Bottom line, ‘The Muppets’ is a welcome return for one of the best family franchises of all time with the heart and charm that have defined this franchise from the very beginning.

Rating: 5/5!

MUPPETS MOST WANTED (2014)

For my original review of ‘Muppets Most Wanted’, click the link provided here:

http://rimoviecorner.blogspot.com/2014/03/muppets-most-wanted-2014-review.html

Doug Walker (AKA The Nostalgia Critic) made a very good point about these last two Muppets films in that they have a lot in common with the first two Muppets films in regards to how they’re executed. Whereas ‘The Muppets’ and ‘The Muppet Movie’ were primarily focused on their heartwarming storylines, ‘Muppets Most Wanted’ and ‘The Great Muppet Caper’ place more emphasis on the humor. And because ‘Muppets Most Wanted’ is more focused on the humor than the first film, I’m finding that many do prefer ‘Most Wanted’ over ‘The Muppets’. However, I’m the other way around. Now for the record, I’m not saying that ‘Muppets Most Wanted’ is a bad film, far from it in fact. It’s yet another charming entry in this series and it has the right amount of zany humor and cameos galore that you would expect from a Muppets movie. However, I feel that this film kind of lacks a bit of the heart that the first film had. I’m not saying it isn’t there in this movie but not really as much as the first film, which of course was mainly due to the fact that it was an open love letter to the franchise.

I guess you can say my favorite Muppet films are the ones that have a lot of heart and I feel that for the most part, ‘Most Wanted’ just goes through the basic beats of your typical sequel. It’s not that there’s really anything wrong with that, per se, but I would’ve liked if this film had a little more heart to it in terms of its story. Still, the direction from James Bobin is solid once again as are the musical numbers. It’s also clear that the human members of the cast are clearly having a lot of fun in their respective roles, including Tina Fey as the main guard of the prison that Kermit winds up in when he’s mistaken for the infamous criminal Constantine (who’s a really fun villain), Ricky Gervais as Constantine’s accomplice (who’s frequently remind of that fact (“my name first, then spacebar, spacebar, spacebar… your name”)), and Ty Burrell, who is probably the biggest standout of the three leads thanks to his camaraderie with Sam the Eagle (especially in the scene where they’re comparing their badges). All in all, ‘Muppets Most Wanted’ is a genuinely good movie that the whole family can enjoy. But as for me, I would’ve liked it to be on par with the first movie in terms of its heart. I know that some like these movies to be really funny and I’m guessing that because this focuses more on the Muppets than the last film did that’s probably why many prefer this one over that one but in the end I still prefer ‘The Muppets’, though ‘Most Wanted’ is still a very fun entry in this series.

Rating: 4/5

And to close this post off, here’s how I rank all of these films.

8. Muppets From Space

7. Muppets Take Manhattan

6. Muppet Treasure Island

5. Muppets Most Wanted

4. The Great Muppet Caper

3. The Muppet Christmas Carol

2. The Muppet Movie

1. The Muppets

Top 10 Films of 2011

2011 was my first full year as a film critic. However, as a whole, the year was rather lackluster as far as movies go. That’s not to say there weren’t any good movies that came out that year, as you’re about to see. It’s just that the first really good movie I remember seeing that year was in May. It took five months for the film industry to get going as far as the best films of the year were concerned and most of the films that dominated my ‘Worst of’ list of that year came from the first few months of the year. I can also remember that was the year where it had the most sequels ever (28, to be exact) and the year where new remakes were pretty much announced every month. Talk about overkill… I wouldn’t call it the worst year ever for movies, but it’s also not one of the best. As such, this year I only have two honorable mentions.

Fast Five

I’ve gone on record saying that for the longest time, I was never really a big fan of the ‘Fast and Furious’ franchise but now, since Justin Lin took over the franchise starting with ‘Tokyo Drift’, I’ve now sort of become a fan. I think 2009’s ‘Fast and Furious’ was really good because it was the first to bring back the cast of the first film under Lin’s direction, but then comes ‘Fast Five’. It’s a film that basically takes the main premise of these movies, street car racing, and switches it out for a heist story. In the case of this film, it works out pretty darn well. Also, this film benefits from the cast’s terrific camaraderie. It’s hard to believe that a franchise would release its best entry to date five films in, but ‘Fast Five’ does just that. This film made me excited for ‘Fast and Furious 6’, a film that dare I say was even better than ‘Fast Five’.

(And yes, on a side note, R.I.P. star Paul Walker, who sadly passed away just a few weeks ago as a result of a car crash. To be honest, I know that they’re currently working on ‘Fast and Furious 7’, but I think they should just cancel the project now out of respect for Walker. I mean, I really don’t know how they could possibly continue the movie now because it wasn’t even finished at the time of his death.)

The Muppets

You can pretty much refer to this as the film that revitalized ‘The Muppets’ film franchise. For a new generation, it’s a great introduction to the franchise and for those longtime fans or those who have grown up with The Muppets like me; this is a much welcome return for these iconic characters. The marketing for the film was really clever, spoofing all of the big films that were coming out at the time and as for the film itself, it’s a nice heartfelt tribute to the franchise. You can clearly see that writers Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller really care about the property as proved in their writing. It has a bunch of memorable songs (including the Oscar-winning ‘Man or Muppet?’), an entertaining bad guy played by Chris Cooper (“Maniacal Laugh… Maniacal Laugh…”), and overall it does the franchise justice. I am interested to see what they are going to do with the next film, ‘Muppets Most Wanted’, which comes out next March.

Starting things off at Number 10 is a dramedy that manages to blend the two genres together while also doing a great job at handling a difficult subject.

10. 50/50

This film is based off the real-life experience that writer Will Reiser had in 2005 when he was diagnosed with spinal cancer. The subject of cancer is obviously a difficult one to work with but when watching this movie, you really get a sense that everyone involved is taking the subject seriously and that’s part of what makes this movie work. Another thing that makes it work so well is the camaraderie between main stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen. Together, they produce the comedy of the movie and it works very well. You root for Levitt’s character Adam all the way and sympathize with him when he’s at his lowest of lows. Rogen’s character Kyle may not always seem like he’s helping Adam cope with his cancer (at first, he suggests that he should use it to pick up women) but by the end you see that he really does care a lot. If this movie wasn’t as serious about the topic of cancer as it was, then I don’t think it would have worked out as well.

Number 9 makes this the second year in a row where a film by David Fincher made it in my Top 10. This one doesn’t take the Number 1 spot like ‘The Social Network’ did in 2010 but in the end it’s another fine effort from the director.

9. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (The American version)

At the time I am writing this, I just recently watched the original Swedish adaptation of the story directed by Niels Arden Oplev and starring Noomi Rapace and Michael Nyqvist. While I do think the original is a very good movie, I think Fincher’s version is the superior adaptation and no, I do not want this to look like I’m biased either because I’m American or I saw the American version first. I think the newer version is better for one main reason; its execution in regards to tone. I have not read the original novel, but it’s clear that this is a very dark story that is full of murder, rape, and revenge. The Swedish film certainly had that, but with this film, Fincher takes it one step further. As a director, he has been known for creating some unpleasant environments in his films (like in ‘Se7en’ or even ‘Alien 3’) and that is evident in this film. It’s brutal and unrelenting, and yet that’s part of what makes it so compelling. What’s even more compelling is the performance from Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander. Noomi Rapace did an excellent job in the original, but like with this version’s emphasis of its atmosphere and tone, Mara takes the role one step further in her portrayal of this incredibly fascinating character that you just can’t get a beat on. Daniel Craig does an equally terrific job as Mikael Blomkvist and in the end the new version of ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ manages to outshine its Swedish counterpart mainly because it took the bigger risk.

Remember how I said that the films of 2011 didn’t really get great until May of that year? Well, at Number 8 is the first great film I remember seeing that year.

8. Thor

Since I’ve talked about this one recently, I won’t go into too much detail. Bottom line; Marvel was playing a risk with this one, but Kenneth Branagh’s direction and Chris Hemsworth’s performance are both excellent so in the end, it worked out in Marvel’s favor.

From one superhero film to another, Number 7 is probably my personal favorite film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

7. Captain America: The First Avenger

Again, I won’t go into this much either because I already did. Chris Evans is fantastic as Steve Rogers/Captain America, it has a great ensemble cast, and an ending that was actually quite emotional.

It’s the fourth film in a series helmed by a director mainly known for animated films; for the record, some of the best animated films ever and as such, he ends up making the best entry in this franchise to date.

6. Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

The first two films in the ‘Mission Impossible’ franchise were unfortunately plagued by one major problem; for a series that put emphasis on the idea of teamwork, these first two films were just ‘the Tom Cruise show’, meaning that his teammates weren’t given as enough character development as they should have. Thankfully, J.J. Abrams’ ‘Mission Impossible 3’ was the first entry in the series that really gave more for the other members of the team to do. Then we have ‘Ghost Protocol’, the first true entry in the series to have a great team. Cruise is still the star, but Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, and Simon Pegg’s characters are each given proper character development. As for the film itself, Brad Bird’s experience in animation transitions well to live-action; this film has some of the best action scenes in recent memory (this film’s also a must-see in IMAX for that reason). The only complaint; rather weak villains because there are multiple in this film but yet each of them only have generally minor roles in the film. Despite that, this is easily the best film in the ‘Mission Impossible’ franchise. Hopefully the next film, despite not being directed by Brad Bird, will continue the idea that there’s no ‘I’ in team.

Marvel had a really good year in 2011, with three excellent entries in the superhero genre. At Number 5, here’s the best Marvel film of the year and arguably one of their best to date.

5. X-Men: First Class

Once again, I’ll keep this short. I’m not really a big ‘X-Men’ fan, but this is my personal favorite. It has great direction from Matthew Vaughn, a cool Bond-like atmosphere, great acting, a great villain; overall, this is a great rebound for the franchise after ‘The Last Stand’ and ‘Origins: Wolverine’.

Biopic films can either be hit or miss, and it usually depends on the performance of its lead actor/actress. With the case of this film, we have one of the best performances ever from a female lead in a film centered on the most famous woman in the world.

4. My Week with Marilyn

The main reason why this film succeeds is that while it’s focused on Marilyn Monroe, the most famous woman in the world even years after her death, it doesn’t try to glorify her. Instead, we get to see a softer and more vulnerable side to the actress that we never really see. The story about Monroe’s experiences while working on the Laurence Oliver film ‘The Prince and the Showgirl’, where she befriended the third assistant director Colin Clark (played here by Eddie Redmayne) is somewhat debatable over whether or not it’s really true, but it’s a sweet and touching tale that’s pretty much a real-life fantasy. But in the end, this film belongs to Michelle Williams, who is outstanding in the role of Monroe. In all serious, she should have won the Oscar for Best Actress that year (if not her, Rooney Mara, but as a whole, I think Williams has the edge as far as performances go); a major snub by the Academy.

It’s always nice to see an original story in today’s Hollywood, which is full of remakes, reboots, and adaptations of numerous franchises. In the case of this film, we have a loving homage to both the 1970’s and the films of one of the most famous directors in all of Hollywood. It’s a film that slowly becoming one of my personal favorites in the sci-fi genre.

3. Super 8

With ‘Super 8’, director J.J. Abrams pays loving homage to the films of Steven Spielberg; this film has many callbacks to classic Spielberg films, although the Jaws homage (where you don’t see the monster until the end of the film)… was sort of unnecessary. But that’s part of the beauty of this film; when I first saw it, I honestly forgot I was watching an Abrams film. This movie feels so much like a Spielberg film and yet that’s not even a problem. I may not have grown up in the 70’s, but for anyone who did, this movie is pure nostalgia at its finest. Another one of the highlights of the film are the performances, particularly from the kid actors, most of whom were making their big-screen debuts with this film. Lead Joel Courtney in particular shines as Joe Lamb. He’s a very sympathetic and engaging lead character and I hope Courtney gets more work in the future because this is one of the best performances from a child actor that I have ever seen. Like I said, ‘Super 8’ has become one of my personal favorites and it’s both one of my all-time favorite original films and sci-fi films. Kudos to J.J. Abrams for making this excellent film.

Number 2 holds the honor of being the most underrated film of 2011; a film that serves as the modern-day parallel to a classic sports film that’s just as emotionally-gripping.

2. Warrior

In a sense, ‘Warrior’ is the modern-day version of ‘Rocky’ but it manages something that you wouldn’t expect. For a film that is focused around two characters who end up fighting each other at the end of the film, you end up liking both of them in the end (neither is played out to be the bad guy), although at first Joel Edgerton’s character was more likable while Tom Hardy’s character initially comes off as a jerk. The writing is excellent, with a gripping tale of a family that has been torn apart and I guarantee that this is a movie that will have guys shedding man-tears. It’s phenomenally acted from all involved, including Hardy, Edgerton, and Nick Nolte (who earned himself a well-deserved Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor). So why did this film underperform at the box office? Well, I’m guessing that’s either because MMA is not really the most popular sport out there or, at the time this came out, it didn’t really have a notable cast (sure, Hardy and Edgerton are big now, but that wasn’t really the case when this film came out). Still, this is one of the best films of the year and as such, this is one I highly recommend. You don’t have to be a fan of MMA to like this film.

Finally, taking the Number 1 spot on this list is the epic finale to one of the best film franchises ever, and boy did it go out with a bang (figuratively and literally)

1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2

As I said in the last list, the decision to split ‘Deathly Hallows’ into two films ultimately worked out in its favor because not only did the filmmakers have enough to work with, but they successfully ended ‘Part 1’ at the right time in order to set up what’s to come for ‘Part 2’. ‘Part 2’ ends on a high-note with the terrific final battle between Harry and his allies and Voldemort’s army at Hogwarts; the movie may be one of the shorter entries in the series but it’s entertaining from beginning to end. My only real complaint with this film is that some of the major deaths are sort of glanced over. Like I said, this is one of the shorter films so it would be nice if they gave us more time to mourn the dead. Still, this movie serves as the proper finale to the ‘Harry Potter’ series, the only series I can think of where every movie in the series, one that has gone on for eight films, is terrific.

And those are my picks for the Top 10 Best Films for both 2010 and 2011. Check back soon for my lists for the Top 10 best and worst films of 2013.