“Quentin Tarantino’s official Top 11 of 2011

1. Midnight In Paris
2. Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes
3. Moneyball
4. The Skin I Live In
5. X-Men: First Class
6. Young Adult
7. Attack The Block
8. Red State
9. Warrior
10. The Artist / Our Idiot Brother (tie)
11. The Three Musketeers

Others considered in no particular order

50/50
Beginners
Hugo
The Iron Lady
Carnage
Green Hornet
Green Lantern
Captain America
The Descendants
My Week With Marilyn
Fast Five
The Tree Of Life
The Hangover Part II
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
The Beaver
Contagion
The Sitter
War Horse

Nice Try Award

Drive
Hanna
Drive Angry
Real Steel

Best Director

Pedro Almodovar
Bennett Miller
Woody Allen
Jason Reitman
Michel Hazanavicius

Best Original Screenplay

Midnight In Paris
Young Adult
Red State
Attack The Block
Our Idiot Brother
Beginners

Best Adapted Screenplay

Moneyball
The Skin I live In
Carnage
Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes
Hugo
X-Men: First Class

Worst Films

Sucker Punch
Potiche (Trophy Wife)
Miral
Insidious
Rampart
Straw Dogs
Paranormal Activity 3
Meek’s Cutoff”

Wait, The Three Musketeers!? Does this mean I actually have to go watch that movie now?? Cool that he repped for Green Lantern, since I thought that movie was better than most people said it was. Anyway, I’m sure most writers will just say Tarantino was jealous of Drive or something like that, and why go against the tide? Quentin Tarantino was jealous of Drive. Or something like that. (The Playlist)

Making a list of year-end flops is a mixed bag. For the most part, I take pride in the hubris of Hollywood going unrewarded, punishing studios for taking the “bigger is better” approach. But without fail, there always sneaks in one or two films that deserve better. I only feel that way about one such film on this list, and hopefully its take is buoyed by international markets. While it wasn’t my cup of tea, it was a “good” film.

But enough sadness. Let’s watch these giants fall.

Mars Needs Moms

Mars doesn’t, in fact, need moms. This film was the latest misstep for Robert Zemeckis, who is known for, after achieving success with films like Forrest Gump and Back to the Future, squandering lots of goodwill by forcing motion capture films like The Polar Express and A Christmas Carol down moviegoers’ throats. He decided that maybe he hadn’t been forceful ENOUGH with the mo-cap, so he brought to us Mars Needs Moms, a film that raked in $21 million on a budget of $150 million. The film was completely ignored by audiences. Critics, given that they couldn’t ignore it, gave it almost universally low marks.

Let this be the final word: Zemeckis’ motion capture films look creepy and no one wants to see them.

Conan the Barbarian

Sometimes stupid action movies are too stupid. This debacle scored only $29 million against $90, and was forgotten about as quickly as it was introduced. Star Jason Momoa had garnered acclaim for his role in HBO’s Game of Thrones, but when it came time for him to speak and carry a film, he just wasn’t up to task. Critical acclaim was non-existent, but fans and audiences seemed to be a little more forgiving, probably because the type of people who pay to see Conan have different standards than those who pony up for Gosford Park and the like.

Motion capture strips an actor of their identity and allows them to invent a character completely from scratch. Serkis knows this and has spent a good part of his career honing these abilities. He’s at least deserving of recognition for his accomplishments. These other guys, not so much.

Tom Hanks – The Polar Express

Tom Hanks finally shed his nice guy image with his performance in Robert Zemeckis‘s The Polar Express. Once regarded as the nicest man in Hollywood, the multiple Academy Award winner is now known as a dead-eyed, clammy-skinned abductor of children. Look at the stern, cold reserve in those eyes. You don’t want that climbing into your son’s room in the middle of the night.

Sam Worthington – Avatar

Though Avatar was a huge leap forward for 3D and motion capture technology, it was criticized for its weak plot and acting. A lot of the hate was directed at the film’s lead, Sam Worthington. I feel that this was unfair. He played a pretty convincing paraplegic turned giant cat person and he hardly even slipped back into an Australian accent. Still, the movie wasn’t exactly Ishtar.

Campbell is in early discussions to direct a big-screen reboot of the 1980′s Lee Majors action series. The story centers on a stunt guy who is also a bounty hunter who hangs out with a nerd and a hot chick. GO PICTURE! The project has been in development since 2003 but now has Thor and X-Men: First Class writers Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz on scripting duties. Oh good. At least the script will be implausible and ridiculous. (Deadline)

First, there was The Green Lantern. Reynold’s third foray into the comic book movie genre and his biggest role to date. Unlike Thor, which was released a few weeks before, Lantern was not a runaway hit. Poor reviews and bad marketing sealed this film’s fate and it didn’t not earn back its $200 million budget. Then there was The Change-Up. Which also suffered from lame marketing that didn’t highlight the film’s strengths. Reynolds co-starred with Jason Bateman in the gross-out comedy about people getting pooped on. Which is exactly what happened to The Change-Up at the box office, earning only $34 million dollars in three weeks of release like some kind of jerk.

So what’s next for Reynolds after back-to-back summer bombs? The SJ Detectives did a little digging to find out what Reynolds has been up to over the last four days since the summer movie season ended.

Sadly, Reynolds is taking the news pretty hard and has sank into a deep depression. He’ taken to sleeping in the coffin used to film Buried and has grown a beard — a style he has only worn in darker films like The Amityville Horror and Blade: Trinity. He’s also been spotted hanging around the campus where Van Wilder was filmed, attempting to ingratiate himself to the incoming freshmen with the promise of showing them the way to a laid-back, college existence. Perhaps not surprisingly, Kal Penn has also been seen hanging around. At last report, Campus Public Safety had placed a boot on his golf cart.

People Magazine reports that he’s been seen stopping by Sandra Bullock‘s house unexpectedly. Though gossips are speculating a romance between the now single former co-stars, this is clearly a case of one friend supporting and counseling another. Reynolds has had it rough recently and Bullock knows all too well what it feels like to be publicly embarrassed. Lest we forget what Bullock suffered? That’s right. I refer of course to the double whallup of Speed 2: Cruise Control and Hope Floats.

What Reynolds needs to remember is that it’s not his fault. He’s an actor. He did his part by reading the lines and being polite to Kathie Lee and Hoda. Despite the public reaction, word of mouth is that he was very funny in The Change-Up and his head did a wonderful job as the Lantern. What he needs now is a more lighthearted romantic comedy to ease him back into the audience’s good graces.  Then he can move back into action movies. Then a tense hospital/legal drama. This method has worked for Matthew McConaughey for years. And if he can achieve a hit without calling upon Kate Hudson, he truly is a master.

Until that time, he’ll have to be content with being in the physical prime of his life, driving his awesome motorcycle around, getting occasional modeling work, and dating insanely hot women. It will be tough. But he’ll pull through.

The film opens with an explanation of the guardians and will power constructs. There’s still no other way to explain this crazy mythology than flat out exposition. A little more is explained as Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) trains on Oa so he’s ready to fight the Parallax, a creature using fear as its power source.

New ‘Green Lantern’ Trailer Lays It All Out For You

The will power constructs are intricate and clever. That’s really the victory of creative screenwriting, to say “instead of just green energy blasts, what temporary devices could we use to have this guy beat that guy?” Even constructs as simple as swords are meaningful as an homage to the classical duel.

A thrilling air sequence spells out Hal’s personality. His rogue tactics are cool in a training exercise, since it’s hypothetical. Wouldn’t be so cool if real lives were at risk. It spells out all the conflicts between fearless Hal and by the books Carol Ferris (Blake Lively), but it’s a fun Bruckheimer style Top Gun sequence.

It’s simple fun. That’s okay, but we do like our superheroes to have a little metaphor. Jordan ultimately gets to the value of admitting fear, but it really stays on the surface of the whole will vs. fear debate. Maybe in the sequel. It’s more fun than Thor, because the constructs are just more fun to watch than big dudes hitting each other.

8 photosBlake Lively

I was worried that Green Lantern would be inaccessible since it’s all in space with aliens. If anything, the movie spends too much time on earth. There’s not much epic space battle at all. The rescues and battles on earth are fine but the “character” scenes sort of force contrived human moments in there. They want to have fun with the powers and be romantic, but it feels like screenplay template.

Maybe the biggest component that’s missing is that earth really has no say in this. Hal decides whether or not to join the guardians and the guardians debate sacrificing earth to Parallax, but earth never speaks up. Earth doesn’t even know what’s going on? They see a few disasters but that’s just a reaction shot while other forces control the plot of the film. Hal doesn’t even get to experience the superhero phenomenon, since nobody he rescues really comments on it.

So Green Lantern doesn’t make me a comic book fan, but as a “superhero saves the world” movie, it’s fun. Sinestro (Mark Strong) brings it, lending gravitas to the formula. Hector (Peter Sarsgaard) is the typical mad scientist with new power, but Sarsgaard makes him really weird and uncomfortable to watch. The film is a mixed bag, but the joyful spectacle wins out.

A word from Blake: “Wanting to be an actor and wanting to be famous are different.”

4 photosNew ‘Green Lantern’ Posters: Alien Freaks Striking Poses

Beyond that, we’ve got the cast in various action poses, lots of green lightning, and a killer ‘stache on Peter Sarsgaard. Set aside an hour or two and browse these pics.

6 photosCandace Bailey

At first, I wasn’t so hot on the Green Lantern, but the recent trailers and this clip have me getting kinda amped for it. Yes, it does look a bit like The Mask, but this clip could be far sillier than it is. All in all, it looks like a fun summer spectacle. Starring Duncan, Blake Lively, Mark Strong, Peter Sarsgaard, and Ryan Reynolds‘ head, Green Lantern opens in theaters June 17th. (Superhero Hype)

Anyway, the trailer is pretty cool, definitely an improvement over the last one. I’m actually pretty excited about Green Lantern now. Who knew?

Here are the new posters for Green Lantern, which show the Green Lantern Corps in action-tastic stances. It looks like Chicken Fish, aka Tomar-Re (Geoffrey Rush) is gonna lob some green power right at ya, catapult style. You’ve also got Sinestro (Mark Strong) scowling mightily, probably because he had a bad day at the fantasy tanning salon. Kilowog’s (Michael Clarke Duncan) strategy is to distract you with his face while he punches you in yours. Hal Jordan is rolling his eyes while powering up, as if to say,”I am way too powerful to be posing for this poster.”

If you haven’t seen the new TV spot, you can check that out here. Or just wait until these aliens strike poses in your local theater on June 17, 2011. (Facebook)

“There is no problem on ‘Green Lantern’. We try to add things to make the movie better until the 11th hour. That doesn’t mean we’re risking the movie up to the 11th hour.”

This would seem to slightly contradict reports of mass dissatisfaction with the first Green Lantern trailer. But fans seem to have responded much better to subsequently released footage, so maybe this will be $9 million well-spent. (Variety)

Looks like Warner Bros has hit a wall. They want to keep releasing preview stills for their upcoming Green Lantern, but they don’t want to spoil too much. So now they’re releasing high quality version of images we saw in the trailer. That’s fine by me – I can’t get enough of Chicken Fish McGee, even in marketing reruns.

In frame one, Hal Jordan is imagi-ring-ing a machine gun slash acceptable nightlight. In the second photo, Ryan Reynolds admits to Tomar-Re (Geoffrey Rush) that he’s reluctant about joining the puffy chest club. Finally, in still three, it’s Green Lantern Corps party and the green gang’s all here, but Reynolds has a long face. Maybe he just got text-dumped by his girlfriend cause he’s spending so much time on planet Oa now. She never sees him anymore.

Green Lantern lands in theaters June 17th, 2011 – hopefully with more than just the footage from the WonderCon trailer. (Cinema Blend)

The deep voiced actor is in talks to voice Kilowog in the Warner Bros take on DC Comics‘ Green Lantern. He would join Ryan Reynolds in just one of his many, many superhero roles, and Geoffrey Rush as Tomar-Re, aka Fishy McBirdo.

Kilowog is like an intergalactic drill sergeant for newbie green lanterns, who looks like a pig that was placed in the microwave as a prank. Between him and Tomar-Re, I think I understand how the Green Lantern Corps work: they frighten intergalactic criminals with their intense ugliness. Still, Duncan is a terrific actor with a smooth voice, so at least Kilowog will have that going for him.

Currently in post-production, Green Lantern is looking to land in theaters June 17, 2011. (Hollywood Reporter)

Aaaand I’m sick of doing GLDES jokes. Anyway, these photos are pretty standard superhero material, but I guess they look pretty cool. I would have preferred some pictures of him actually using the ring, but I’m also glad they appear to be keeping some of that stuff a surprise. (The Latino Review)

“That’s a whole other conversation. That’s a whole business model and nothing to do with me at all. No one has ever approached me about doing a ‘Justice League’ movie. We’ll see if they do it in the long run.”

This is consistent with Zack Snyder‘s saying his Superman is also a separate entity from the upcoming Justice League movie. I think this is a bad decision though – isn’t the fun of any Justice League project seeing your favorite super-heroes together in one team? By populating a 2013 Justice League movie with no-name faceless actors, you’re neutralizing one of the biggest appeals of the movie. But what do I know? I thought League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was an OK movie.

http://www.screenjunkies.com/?p=205117

I always thought Green Lantern would be a tough one to do as a film, because you’re not just talking about a guy getting superpowers. You’re talking about aliens in space and mental constructs. The footage screened at WonderCon answered my question and won me over to making this comic book a reality.

It opens with characters in space with Albin Sur running around a spaceship talking to a crackly hologram of Sinestro. Their musclely heads look a little like Hellraiser but they’re supposed to look like that. No one’s in pain. Albin bounces around the shi fighting the Parallax monster, and that’s all the special effecty CGI you imagine. Albin is fast and moves to his escape pod quickly, but that’s not the extraordinary part.

Albin lands and gives Hal the ring. Ryan Reynolds gets to make a joke about Albin’s purple blood before his corps solidifies. He also gets to make a joke improvising the oath Albin told him to say to the lantern. The magic happens when the lantern intuitively teaches Hal the correct oath. Hal speaks it correctly, nobly and flies through space with a protective coating of green shield.

As soon as he arrives on Oa, he’s suited up. The green suit looks totally real, and Hal can’t help but strut. Tomar-Re even scolds Hal for showboating, as if he’s used to it from the new guards. Hal calls Tomar-Re a talking fish but it quickly answers the questions about his translation utility.

Once we’re on Oa, you believe that Hal Jordan from our earth is walking around with aliens dealing with real issues. That’s in a few minutes of clips, so a 20 minute first act ought to really segue nicely. The backgrounds and crowd shots still look like CGI and green screen. I mean, we’ve seen fishy guys and hordes of followers in the distance, but the tone is “we all believe this sincerely.”

The only Hal Jordan construct they showed was the ethereal green gattling machine gun from the sizzle reel. That’s the money shot for June 17.

Tomar-Re is a scientist who regularly teams up with Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern as part of the Green Lantern Corps. You can see him in the pic above, looking scientifically concerned. Hopefully he’s working diligently in the lab to come up with a catch phrase, like “badda-blam” or “that’s ab-ab-ab-absurd.” Maybe he already has one, but I never read Green Lantern comics and my limited internet research has revealed nothing but hilarious cosplay photos.

Green Lantern is directed by Casino Royale‘s Martin Campbell. (Deadline)

“We are on a learning curve in getting 3-D materials and marketing materials on the same schedule.”

“Part of the reason the response to the first trailer was lukewarm was that the big-scale sequences weren’t ready to show, and we suffered for it. We can’t afford to do that again.”

So, while a team of nerds work to make the Lantern’s action live up to expectations, Warners are also figuring out what else they can do to help the film. And what do you do when you’ve got a superhero movie in need? You make the call. That’s right. Latino Review reports that Michael Clarke Duncan is in talks to loan his baritone voice to the character of Kilowog, Hal Jordan’s trainer in the Green Lantern Corp, because running distortion on Dennis Haysbert just proved not awesome enough.

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES – You may be quick to criticize these pictures (or the existence of the film entirely) as looking exactly like the other films in the series. Then you’d look like a damned fool. They’re clearly wearing more blue in this film and Johnny Depp‘s hair is on loan from “American Idol” runner-up Crystal Bowersox.

TH GREEN LANTERN – In this very exciting picture, Green Lantern and Hector Hammond are chilling together at some kind of premiere. You can see the Lantern is about to conjure a light ball or something else cosmic between his palms. It’s weird to see Peter Sarsgaard playing the ugly guy. I guess Jackie Earle Haley was booked.

THE MUPPETS – Jason Segal and Amy Adams cut a rug. They will later wrap the rug fragments around Segal’s forearm and hot glue eyeballs to it.

Warner Bros is moving ahead with plans for a second Green Lantern film by hiring Michael Goldenberg to handle scripting duties (as indicated by the hastily-Photoshopped typewriter above). Goldenberg has previously written Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix and Contact, as well as a rewrite on the first Green Lantern film. This move shows a lot of faith from the studio that the franchise will be a big hit. So prepare yourselves for the onslaught of marketing materials, because everywhere you look next summer you’ll see little kids wearing novelty rings, eating green Whoppers, and suffering from skull gigantism caused by exposure to space radiation. (Variety)

_{Sounds like Blake’s starring in softcore porn.}

Warner Bros. dropped these new teaser character posters for Green Lantern. They’re not unlike Power Rangers in the sense that if you put them together they form one gigantic poster that can do battle with other gigantic posters. Personally though, I think the Blake Lively poster alone should bring all other marketing materials to its knees.

Check out the posters after the jump…

(/Film)