Fall & Winter Movie Preview

I'm a regular subscriber to Entertainment Weekly and I love to receive their various Preview issues throughout the year, as I did last week. The anticipation of upcoming movies in the next four months is a lot of fun. Granted, my actual viewing decisions may change if I have a choice between an obscure critical darling and the current Hunger Games sequel but you just gotta go with the flow sometimes. In any case, here are my personal rankings...

Top Ten Picks
[10] Foxcatcher (Nov14) Trailer
Based on a real story of a wrestling coach trying to prepare an athlete to win gold at the 1988 Olympics, it becomes a grim psychological drama instead of the usual type of sports flick. It's being sold as a high-profile vehicle for Channing Tatum since he's on a roll at the box office lately but I'm also a fan of Steve Carell as a serious actor. There is plenty of award talk.

[9] Birdman (Oct17) Trailer
So much award buzz is coming out of Venice right now for this one. Michael Keaton stars as a former superhero actor a la Batman. Edward Norton joins in the fray as Keaton's character directs a Broadway play and starts to fall apart. Definitely in the running for Best Actor.

[8] The Interview (Dec25) Trailer
James Franco and Seth Rogen doing their shtick as reporters covertly tasked with assassinating the leader of North Korea. Their stoner humour has made me laugh too many times and the serious edge this time is intriguing.

[7] The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (Nov21) Teaser
My wife and sister-in-law are big fans of the books so they'll likely see this in theatres before I do. Regardless, it is one of the biggest movies in the next few months and I have seen the previous ones, so I'll put this in my calendar. I guess it's obvious that I'm not geeked out for it but I do like my blockbusters.

[6] Gone Girl (Oct3) Trailer
Ben Affleck uses some of his real-life experience in celebrity to inform his character, which is a famous actor whose wife disappears... and then the clues and tabloids seem to point back to him as the culprit. It also includes various people like Neil Patrick Harris and Tyler Perry and a few other notable faces playing against type. The fact that David Fincher directed it and it had high expectations because of the book kind of annoyed me but I have to admit that my desire to see this is gradually increasing.

[5] Big Hero 6 (Nov7) Trailer
Now here's an obscure comic movie. Based on an old X-Men tie-in, it's been revamped without the Marvel stuff and with more new-era Disney influence. I was sold based on the "robot and his boy" aspect.

[4] The Judge (Oct10) Trailer
Robert Downey Jr. gets to make his big, personal movie with his producer wife now that he's a bigger/richer star than ever before. And I love this choice about a lawyer returning home to defend his estranged father in court. I'll watch Robert Duval in anything and Billy Bob Thornton can kick ass, too. This movie opens a week after Gone Girl so I'll be very curious to see how they duke it out for the same audience, but I'll certainly be watching it.

[3] Exodus: Gods and Kings (Dec12) Trailer
It's a massive Bible spectacle from Ridley Scott starring Christian Bale but the trailer sells the brother vs. brother drama at the heart of it. I am quite surprised at how much I want to see this one. And on a personal note, my Christian beliefs have changed a fair bit over the past few years as I question that factual nature of ancient stories like this one and the supposedly God-inspired Old Testament laws. Logic doesn't negate the desire for a fantastic flick, though. ; )

[2] The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (Dec17) Teaser
I know I've said it before on this blog but I just don't agree with all of the LOTR fans that have dismissed this Hobbit series. Granted, the gold dragon was silly but this is still going to be awesome.

[1] Interstellar (Nov7) Trailer
Christopher Nolan directs this epic sci-fi, which stars Matthew McConaughey at the top of his game. The world is dying, so someone needs to go into far space and find a new home. I expect an immersive experience with plenty of heart and it may get into the award discussion based on something other than technical merits. There is no doubt that this gets my #1 spot.

Oscar Bait
Every year, I try to see the main contenders for the Oscars and I have a competition with my wife and sister to predict the winners. So even if these don't rank highly for me personally, I'll still try to find some time for the following movies as well.

Selma (Dec25) **Martin Luthor King Jr. biopic with much prestige behind it.
Inherent Vice (Dec12) **70's PI flick with Joaquin Phoenix and Josh Brolin.
Unbroken (Dec25) Trailer **Angeline Jolie directs, hero from WWII & Olympics.
Wild (Dec5) Trailer **Reese Witherspoon hikes alone and re-examines her life.

Honourable Mentions
St. Vincent (Oct24) Trailer  **Bill Murray in a Bill Murray movie. Perfect.
Whiplash (Oct10) Trailer **Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons in a movie about competitive jazz drumming.
Fury (Nov14) Trailer **I can't buy Brad Pitt in the trailer but it looks good anyway.
The Maze Runner (Sep19) Trailer **May be a fun sci-fi teenfic but we'll see...
The Zero Theorem (Sep19) Trailer **Terry Gilliam's sci-fi mindbender starring Christopher Waltz.
A Merry Friggin' Christmas (Nov7) **One of the last movies by Robin Williams.

Top Ten Movies of 2013

Finally, I have arrived upon this momentous milestone: My Tenth Annual Top Ten Movie List! I've had a hectic schedule lately so I'm getting to this about a month and a half too late. The silver lining is that it provided me with extra time to catch up on the late-year Oscar-worthy movie releases, so I feel like this year's list is much more inclusive.

This list only accounts for movies that were actually released in 2013. I saw 57 movies in total, though I still have another 60 potential movies on my Wish List.

Top Ten List

[10] The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (Link)
Despite the tepid critical response, I found this movie to be a sweet and adventurous fairy tale of sorts. Kristen Wiig lent some needed soul, I wanted to punch Adam Scott in the mouth, and classic actors like Shirley MacLaine and Sean Penn slipped in seamlessly. Kudos to Ben Stiller for directing this movie.

[9] Frozen (Link)
This was a nice crowd-pleaser and it's hard to get away from the songs these days, either at work or at home. It plays against some of the stereotypical plotlines, while still fitting snugly into the Disney world. I suspect that I will become more fond of this one as my daughter approaches the Disney phase of her life. And yep, the snowman made me laugh a number of times.

[8] The World's End (Link)
It starts out as one type of movie and it becomes a very different type of movie halfway through. It's way too easy to spoil it but the heart of it is the relationships between a group of old high school friends as they ponder their past and present a bit. And when the movie takes a gigantic detour, it somehow manages to keep focused on that core theme. It's astonishing that they managed to merge two completely different concepts like this, there's a certain kind of genius in it. I was also roaring with laughter, so this was definitely my funniest movie of the year.

[7] 12 Years a Slave (Link)
It's a true story and it certainly has a lot to say. I really admire it but it doesn't have a lot of moments that stand out in my memory, and it doesn't make me want to revisit it. I originally had this as my #3 movie but it kept dropping on my list because I felt like it was an important movie, as opposed to actually liking it. Since this Top Ten list is so clearly geared towards my particular tastes, I decided to let it slide down the list.

[6] The Wolverine (Link)
At long last: They were finally able to make a Wolverine movie that gave me the exact feeling of reading one of his various comic collections. I have a cheap black-and-white reprint of some of the classic Japan stories and this translates it to the big screen very capably. I could have done with a little less mutant weirdness going on but that's life in a Marvel universe. I can't believe Hugh Jackman is still running with this character but I'll enjoy the ride as long as it lasts.

[5] Lee Daniels' The Butler (Link)
This is the Forrest Gump of real life. The central character is at the cross roads of a number of milestones throughout US history, and it almost gleefully skips forward to catch all of the key moments. I don't know why there was so much acclaim for Oprah's role but I did enjoy the Forest Whitaker as he portrayed the central character's lifetime and personal growth. I look forward to seeing this one again sometime.

[4] Man of Steel (Link)
Hooray, they made a good Superman movie! I thought that the director, Zack Snyder, pulled off the action in spectacular fashion. The villains were great, and Amy Adams managed to win me over. The first part of the movie is set on Krypton and they realized that alien world and culture perfectly - much better than some of the weirdo interpretations of Krypton that I've seen in the comics. Most importantly, though, was the recurring theme of the two fathers. It's emotional, it meant something, it was useful to the plot, and Kevin Costner and Russell Crowe really made their scenes stand out.

[3] The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Link)
Despite it's lack of domestic box office success, I was still very excited to dive back into this realm. The barrel escape sequence was the single best (and funniest!) action scene of any movie this year. I was clapping and cheering in the theatre repeatedly, even though the crowd was more subdued. Come on, people! Enjoy the thrill of it all!

[2] Ender's Game (Link)
When I was growing up, my best friend was a big fan of Orson Scott Card's book series. I confess, I never bothered to get into it - until last year, when Marvel released a superb series of graphic novels based on the books. It was the best comic series that I read last year and I've read them repeatedly since then. So take that newly-found love of the stories and add it to the top-notch special effects of the movie and this was my top sci-fi movie of the year. Actually, I have to amend that last statement because of my #1 pick...

[1] Gravity (Link)
I guess this is my top sci-fi movie of the year, as well as being my top movie, period. I mean, it is fictional and very sciency so that makes it sci-fi, right? Sandra Bullock owner this movie and George Clooney provided some needed lightness. However, the spectacle and inventiveness must be credit to the director, Alfonso Cuarón, since he literally had to invent new movie techniques just to make this thing. It's an edge-of-your seat roller coaster with an emotional impact to match.

Honourable Mentions:
Pacific Rim, Iron Man 3, Saving Mr. Banks

Sequels Schmequels:
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Too much like the first movie, too slow, and too much setup for the next movie.)
Star Trek Into Darkness (Stupid "Not Khan" PR, and it was such a mirror of previous movies.)
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (All the charm and brains of the first movie vanished.)

Most Annoying:
Inside Llewyn Davis (Seriously, the central character is a selfish prick.)
The Wolf of Wall Street (Yeah, I'm one of the people that couldn't sit through all the filth.)

Worst Movies:
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (This made me roll my eyes numerous times.)
The Internship (Sooo many stereotypes, cliches and predictable everything.)

Top Wish List:
The Heat, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, Much Ado About Nothing

References:
Top Grossing Movies of 2013

Summer Movie Preview

I subscribe to Entertainment Weekly and I look forward to their annual Fall and Summer Preview issues. This year's summer issue has Superman on the cover as the main event, although it won't top my list. I'm going to see Iron Man 3 at the drive-in this coming weekend to officially kick off my summer movie season. With that in mind, here is my Top Ten list for this summer -with a few bonus features thrown in at the end...

Top Ten Summer Movies

[1] Iron Man 3 (May 3) Trailer

This is the first Marvel movie after The Avengers, and all of the early reviews indicate that this is the best of the Iron Man series. High praise indeed. Plus, this throws in a new version of the Mandarin and the Extremis storyline. Yep, definitely on top of the list for this comics geek. I really, really hope Robert Downey Jr. can renegotiate with Marvel Studios and continue in this role.

[2] Star Trek Into Darkness (May 17) Trailer

The previous movie hit all the right buttons and rekindled everything that I love about this universe. This one looks like it has plenty of soon-to-be-classic moments mixed with meaningful character arcs for the young heros. Toss in a (hopefully) brilliant villain and we're good to go.

[3] Man Of Steel (June 14) Trailer

I would have been perfectly happy if they continued with the previous incarnation of this series. Even though this is yet another reboot, I'm hoping that they nailed it. Most of my faith lies with the vision of the director, Zach Snyder, who previously did 300 and Watchmen. And I liked the casting of the various supporting roles, too. (And as an aside, I despise the recent version of Superman in the comics. I like both DC and Marvel but DC completely lost me with this pointless reboot.)

[4] The Wolverine (July 26) Trailer

I'm a big fan of Wolverine, especially his Japanese adventures and alt-future stories. This may finally be the version of Wolverine that we all want to see but his last solo movie had a stink that still lingers. We'll see if this one can put together the magic that is found so easily in comicdom.

[5] Pacific Rim (July 12) Trailer

Finally, a movie that can top Transformers! (Heh.) It's a giant toy/monster mash-up directed by Guillermo del Toro. His crazy genius should provide any number of mind-worm images that will never leave.

[6] Elysium (August 9) Trailer

Future sci-fi with Matt Damon and Jodie Foster in her menacing mode. Sign me up.

[7] R.I.P.D. (July 19) Trailer

First thought when I saw this trailer? Men In Black. And that's not a bad thing at all. Waddayaknow, it's also based on comic, though I haven't acquainted myself with that one yet.

[8] RED 2 (July 19) Trailer

Lookee, another comic movie! And yes, I did read this comic. I'm a fan of Bruce Willis and the last movie hit my funny bone just right. Here's hoping for more of the same in this one but kicked up a notch. Sadly, we won't get any more fun cameos with Borgnine.

[9] Fast & Furious 6 (May 24) Trailer

The Rock, Vin Diesel, even some sneakiness from Jason Statham. Sure, the series goes over the top but it's only getting stronger these days. Perfect drive-in movie, right?

[10] Much Ado About Nothing (June 7) Trailer

Joss Whedon and his merry band of players have a little fun with Shakespearean comedy. This is the one that came out of left field in my Top 10 list but I find it so intriguing that I can't let it go. It took me until Grade 12 English to really start appreciating the humour that Shakespeare injected into everything he did, and this looks like it might accentuate the very things I love most about the bard. Plus, you know, it has Nathan Fillion himself.

Honourable Mentions:

[11] The Heat (June 28)  **Will this be the best comedy of the summer?

[12] After Earth (June 7)  **Will Smith and son on an uninhabited Earth.

[13] White House Down (June 28)  **We'll compare this to Olympus Has Fallen.

[14] The Lone Ranger (July 3)  **Disney's big tent-pole picture.

[16] 300: Rise Of An Empire (August 2)  **Parallel story to the first film.

[15] Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain (July 3)  **24/7 Comedy radio made me curious.

[17] Kick-Ass 2 (August 16)  **Read the comics, quite brutal. Jim Carrey = great?

[18] 2 Guns (Aug 2)  **Denzel and Mark Wahlberg as buddy cops?

[19] The Hangover Part III (May 24)  **How about the giraffe in the trailer?

[20] The Great Gatsby (May 10)  **DiCaprio's big summer flick.

Top Cartoons:

[1] Monsters University (June 21)  **Considered this for my Top 10 list.

[2] Despicable Me 2 (July 3)

[3] Epic (May 24)

[4] Turbo (July 17)

[5] Planes (August 9)  **2nd sequel to Pixar's Cars.

End Of The World Stuff:

[1] World War Z (June 21)  **Brad Pitt's troubled production. Super fast zombies.

[2] This Is The End (June 12)  **Alt-version of Hollywood with celeb cameos.

[3] Rapturepalooza (June 7)  **My type of humour, new to me.

[4] The World's End (August 23)  **Simon Pegg's gang teams up again.

[5] Cockneys vs Zombies (August 2)  **Super slow zombies.

[6] Stranded (July 26)  **Low-budget horror sci-fi in space with Christian Slater.

[7] The Purge (May 31)  **Funky, freaky premise.

Top Ten Wish List of 2012

As I mentioned in my previous post, I didn't get the chance to see all of the end-of-year movies that I would have liked. With that in mind, I am adding a bonus feature this year: my Top Ten wish list of movies from 2012 that I still intend to see.

[1] Django Unchained (Link)

I can usually handle only one viewing of any Tarantino movie due to the graphic violence and language but I still make a point of seeing them anyway. This is a potential Top Ten pick for me.

[2] Cloud Atlas (Link)

Crazy era-skipping sci-fi with Tom Hanks and Halle Berry playing numerous roles. It should be a mind-bender and it could make it onto my Top Ten list but I doubt it will approach my appreciation for Looper.

[3] Wreck-It Ralph (Link)

Ooh yeah! Lots of nostalgic video game fun. I even have the old-school video game on our iPad and it's somewhat addictive. If you're a fan of this type of thing, then I would also recommend the book Ready Player One, which was my favourite book of the past year.

[4] The Raid: Redemption (Link)
This is supposedly the top action flick of the past year, bar none. We shall see. I could see this knocking Expendables off of my Top Ten list. I also want to see the new Dredd movie at some point.

[5] Les Misérables (Link)
I always remember my mom reading this book on a yearly basis in the original French 'cause she loves it so much. I have not read the book or seen the musical so I only know about it through general pop culture. We'll see if it impacts me as much and gets into my Top Ten list.

[6] Jack Reacher (Link)
This is the latest action series by Tom Cruise, based on a pulp book series. Despite the fact that Cruise is physically nothing like the original character in the book, the director (McQuarrie) is the reason that action fans are giving such high recommendations for this under-the-radar December release.

[7] Argo (Link)
This one is acclaimed everywhere and I almost guarantee that it will land in my Top Ten list in the end. The faux-Hollywood sci-fi film and the real-life Canadian contribution are just a bonus for me.

[8] Lincoln (Link)
This is up for various Oscars and there are supposed to be incredible performances by Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones. The title role was originally supposed to be played by Liam Neeson, which is when Sally Field was attached. Later on, Day-Lewis stepped into the role and Sally Field has at least 10 years on him in terms of age but Field kicked Spielberg's ass and insisted that she was still the best woman for the role. ;) This could land on my Top Ten list.

[9] Life Of Pi (Link)
This one's pushing the limits of 3D and it has rave reviews. I own the book so I should get around to reading it sometime. Potential Top Ten? Doubt it but we'll see.

[10] Seven Psychopaths (Link)

This one will hit my funny bone just right. And it terms of comedies this past year, the pickings were quite slim. I enjoyed the absurdity of The Campaign but I strongly assume that this movie will be my fav comedy of the year - though unlikely to make my Top Ten list.

I would also add special mentions for Zero Dark Thirty, The Master and Goon.

Top Ten Movies of 2012

This is my ninth annual Top Ten list. Since my daughter Jade came long in 2011, movie time has been a little more limited. I still make a point of hitting the theatres with Cam or with friends for the big blockbusters, or watching a movie (quietly) at home with Cam. Jade's not quite ready for pizza-and-movie nights yet. ;)

There are a number of big movies that were released around Christmas just in time for Oscar season that I haven't seen yet. So this year, I am presenting my usual Top Ten List alongside my Top Ten Wish List. I figure that a few of my Wish List items will easily make it into my main list once I've caught up on all of them.

As before, this list only accounts for movies that were officially released in 2012. I saw 34 new releases in all this year. There are exactly 99 movies on my complete wish list. (I doubt I will see all of those in my lifetime!) Here we go...

Top Ten List

[10] Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (Link)

Spielberg's Lincoln is on my Wist List but is an acceptable replacement, right? Sure, it's not a high brow movie but the mash-up concept worked surprisingly well. Not only that but I actually did learn some actual history along the way. Entertaining and educational? It's true - but really, it just squeaks onto my list 'cause I loved the silliness and ax swinging.

[9] End Of Watch (Link)

I have described this to friends as the best episode of COPS ever. Two best friends and partners and the world they face, complete with car-cam and shoulder-cam point-of-view. The core friendship defines the movie but it has some stomache-punch moments that give it plenty of weight. This one sticks in my mind pretty clearly even though I watched it months ago.

[8] Prometheus (Link)

Yes, this is clearly a prequel to the ALIEN series, regardless of advance subterfuge on that matter. The absolute best thing about the movie is the character and performance done by Michael Fassbender (of X-Man: First Class fame). It's about near-future astronauts exploring a new planet and the alien hijinks that ensue. It's a little preposterous and it leaves many questions unanswered but since there's a setup for a sequel that's fine by me.

[7] Trouble With The Curve (Link)

This may be a slight movie in some ways but it hit my sweet spot with ease. It's about high school baseball scouting mixed with Moneyball commentary, laid on top of a strong father-daughter story. And since that father-daughter combo is played by a crochety Clint Eastwood and a tough-but-damaged Amy Adams, it all comes together perfectly. I'll even buy the much-too-charismatic Justin Timberlake as the daughter's love interest since his one-liners did make me laugh a few times. And yes, I did refer to this movie as "slight" because of the mustache-twirling villain and the ending but it still resonated with me.

[6] The Expendables 2 (Link)

I loved the first flick and this one outdoes it in every way. The first time I saw it, the one-liners and call-outs to previous movies by the various big-name co-stars was downright annoying. After I re-watched it, though, the blend of standard action movie jokes and straight-up fight scenes worked much better for me. I've been more of a fan of Van Damme since he did JCVD and he was an excellent villain to root against. And while I won't spoil it, the main guest star was awesome.

[5] Skyfall (Link)

It's the first Bond movie to cross the billion dollar mark worldwide and it hits every note perfectly. Some friends said that they're not fans of the specific call-outs to past Bond movies since this is technically supposed to be a reboot of the franchise but that's one of the reasons that I loved this movie. The way I see it, this is an "alternate history" version of Bond and we can imagine Daniel Craig completing similar missions and using similar gadgets to former movies. The villain was perfectly cast (even if the hair was distracting) and the central plot was very personal in several different ways. I actually rated this as my top Bond movie ever, which is heresy in most circles but I like to be hyperbolical like that.

[4] The Dark Knight Rises (Link)

This is the conclusion to Christopher Nolan's much praised trilogy. While the second movie is head and shoulders above anything else, this was a fitting end (even if was a tad bloated). In particular, the way that it retraces themes from the first two movies was superb. I felt like Michael Caine's character was underused but his character arc across the three movies was satisfying. Likewise, I enjoyed the characters and work done by Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway (as Catwoman) and Joseph Gorden-Levitt. I disliked the stupid voice that they used for Bane though the actual character was a fantastic interpretation of the original comic character. I actually saw the early preview that was attached to the IMAX version of Mission Impossible and that was thrilling but that voice was ridiculous even then. And like everyone else, I tried to predict some of the plot twists (especially since I know the complete comic backstory) and I was still fooled - which was  both a good thing and a bad thing, since the final reveals were a little silly in the end. If this movie does indeed setup the future JLA movie, I will absolutely be on board with that.

[3] The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Link)

Man, the fanboy backlash against this movie has been unreal. The original LOTR trilogy faced tough critics from longtime fans of the original book, but this Hobbit series faces that same group plus more recent fans of the LOTR movies. And if it wasn't hard enough to live up to the standard of the original Hobbit book and the previous movies, they also decided to split this new story into three movies rather late in the process. I absolutely disagree with any and all fanboys (and fangirls) that criticize this first movie because of those types of comparisons. As a fan myself, I'm just glad that I get to enjoy three new movies in this world. I'm actually a little sad to see relatively lower box office returns for this movie, which I attribute to this type of kneejerk critical reaction that sprouted before anyone even saw the movie.

I watched this new movie in 3D with 48fps (which was another focus of complaints) and I loved both the movie itself and the new film format. The effect of watching large scenes or camera pans was so smooth and it really improved the 3D experience. I expected the movie to meander but the only part that really dragged was the beginning. Everything else was one fun scene after another. The CGI was piled on too heavily at times but core story and the handful of central characters were lots of fun. I can't wait for the next one!

[2] Looper (Link)

As I've said many time during these yearly summaries, I love me some sci-fi and Looper was about as ideal a time-travel story as I've seen. The way that the time travel headaches came together was awesome - both in terms of straight logic and in terms of the emotional pay-off. My only minor quibble would be how different the two lead actors looked. Even so, this movie has so many scenes that are indelibly seared into my memory that it was easy to put this movie so high on my list.

[1] The Avengers (Link)

Sooooooooo good! This was the ultimate movie universe (pun intended for comic geeks) and a massive gamble for Marvel Studios. In my estimation, the majority of the credit for the success of this move belongs to Joss Whedon and everything he did was writer and director. I'm a long-time comic geek the largest portion of my 3000+ comics is from Marvel and this movie was my fondest wish come true. The various crowds that I saw it with absolutely roared during all the right moments ("puny god") and this was an incredible crowd-pleaser in terms of emotional content, humour and action. Loved it!

I have a few special categories to finish off this (admittedly lengthy) blog post...

Biggest waste of time: Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (Link)

I honestly like Nicholas Cage as an actor and I was hopeful that this would improve on the first one but this sucked terribly. And the joke about the flame thrower was insidiously stupid.

Best Chick Flick: The Vow (Link)
Actually, this was my only chick flick up until these holidays. It does a really nice job of going left when I expect it to go right. It had it's share of cliches but it also avoided many obvious routes during the film and I appreciated that. I also liked the fact that it's inspired by a true story.

Most Disappointing: The Amazing Spider-Man (Link)

I liked it fine during my initial viewing but I recently re-watched it with my wife and it did not hold up well at all. Everything in this universe somehow relates to Peter Parker. The Lizard is a terribly conceived character with infantile motivational twists and I did not buy how much access Gwen Stacey had at the labs. I liked the charm of the two leads but my wife disliked that part as well. Ugh. This just keeps going down in my estimation. I doubt that Jamie Foxx will be able to save the next movie when he comes in as the villain Electro.

References:

Top GrossingMovies of 2012

My Previous Top Ten Lists:
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 & 2011

Fall Movie Preview

This week, I received the annual Fall Movie Preview edition of Entertainment Weekly magazine. There's a ton of great movies that I'm anticipating so I wanted to highlight my top picks...

Top Ten List

1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Link)
This is far and away my first choice. Peter Jackson recently announced that they will be doing 3 movies rather than 2. Some people were worried about elongating the relatively short novel into two movies, and even more people are whining about splitting it into three flicks. To them I say: Bah! Everyone hit the LOTR series out of the park so there's no reason to assume they don't know what they're doing this time around. Anyone that loves the idea of a Hobbit film should be happy that they will be spoiled with three movies - that's how I see it. Dec14

2. Skyfall (Link)
This is the latest Bond movie, and it supposedly completes the pseudo-trilogy for this particular storyline. I have fond movies of many movie nights with my family watching this series, and I really like Daniel Craig in the roles so of course I want to see this on the big screen. Nov9

3. Django Unchained (Link)
Quentin Tarantino isn't exactly my favourite director but I do have plenty of respect for the way he blends his own originality with classic genres. In this case, though, the story really piqued my interest from the beginning and they have a wide cast of actors that I look forward to seeing, especially Jamie Foxx. Dec25

These first three movies are the ones that I will insist on seeing in theatres. I hope to see the rest of my Top Ten list as well, but I can be persuaded to watch the others at home if I can't find companions.

4. Trouble With The Curve (Link)
Baseball, scouts, Client Eastwood, Justin Timberlake, Amy Adams, John Goodman... and the trailer looks fantastic. Hmm, I just changed my mind after reviewing the trailer again. This is a Must-See in the theatre, too. ;) Sep21

5. Wreck-It Ralph (Link)
This is the "Roger Rabbit" of the video game era, featuring oodles of cameos and co-stars from various old-school video games. It follows the "bad guy" in a Donkey Kong style game when he escapes his video game world and tries to become a hero. Geek references galore, should fun oodles of fun for anybody that played those old 8-bit games. Nov2

6. Looper (Link)
A straight-up sci-fi story involving time travel. The description is the hook for me: "In 2072, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent 30 years into the past, where a hired gun awaits." Bruce Willis gets sent back in time to face Joseph Gorden-Levitt and hijinks ensue. Yep, I really love my science fiction. (That reminds me: Need to expand my collection of Isaac Asimov.) Sep28

7. Les Misérables (Link)
Despite being half French, I never got into this novel. I remember my mom re-reading it in French numerous times over the years but this is the first time that I actually care about it. Looks rather epic and emotional. Dec14

8. Cloud Atlas (Link)
This is a more artsy and weird-a$$ sci-fi story. It supposedly follows the same people (like Tom Hanks and Halle Berry) as they reiterate across different eras. As I said, tres weird but I'm into it. Oct26

9. The Man With The Iron Fists (Link)
This Russell Crowe movie came out of left field for me but it looks like a cool geeky genre martial art thing. Funky! Nov2

10. Resident Evil: Retribution (Link)
My brother-in-law and I have made a point of watching all of the movies in this series and in the Underworld series. What can I say? They deliver the type of action movie that they promise so yes, I will almost certainly see this with my bro-in-law. Sep14

Beyond that preferred list, there are a number of other flicks that I would like to see at some point, either in the theatre or at home. In order of release date...

Sep14 The Master (Philip Seymour Hoffman and a fictional version of Scientology.)
Sep21 Dredd 3D (Starring Karl Urban's helmet, gotta be better than the absurdly funny Stallone version.)
Oct5 Taken 2 (Liam Neeson kickin' ass again in the most logical sequel ever.)
Oct12 Argo (Real-life thriller, and Ben Affleck continues to surprise me.)
Oct19 Killing Them Softly (Brad Pitt all gangsterly.)
Oct26 Frankenweenie (Tim Burton redoes his own short animation film from his early career.)
Oct26 The Big Wedding (Robert De Niro in another comedy but the trailer looks surprisingly funny.)
Nov9 Lincoln (Spielberg's biopic - My appetite for the real version was whetted by Vampire Slayer.)
Nov16 Breaking Dawn: Part 2 (Might as well - at least this one will have some fighting, right?)
Nov21 Life Of Pi (I own the book and haven't read it yet but the trailer looks incredible.)
Nov21 Rise Of The Guardians (Animated movie starring Santa, Jack Frost, Tooth Fairy, etc.)
Nov30 Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning (The original stars return and the trailer looks creepy-cool.)
Dec7 Hyde Park on Hudson (Bill Murray as Roosevelt, and I'm a big fan of latter-years Murray.)
Dec7 Deadfall (Eric Bana and Olivia Wilde in a little heist movie.)
Dec19 Zero Dark Thirty (Director Katherine Bigelow's fictional movie about the hunt for Bin Laden.)
Dec21 Jack Reacher (Tom Cruise kicking off  book franchise - and fans of the book already hate it.)
Dec21 Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away (Gotta love La Cirque!)

And finally, here are the recent movies and August releases that are on my to-do list...

Expendables 2 (Sooo gotta see this. And if Eastwood joins #3, so much the better!)
Hope Springs (Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carrell in a true-to-life romance.)
Total Recall (Filmed in Toronto, died at box office, but I hear the futuristic action is cool even if plot is meh.)
The Campaign (I opted to see Bourne 4 instead of this but I wonder if I made the right choice.)
ParaNorman (Stop-motion "kids flicks" that is too scary for kids.)
Robot & Frank (Highly acclaimed sci-fi heart-tugger.)
Lawless (Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Guy Pearce in an old timey gangsta movie.)

Top Ten Movies of 2011

This is my eighth annual Top Ten list. It's running rather late this year but it's just in time for Oscar season. Our daughter Jade was born in September and movie time was definitely on the lighter side as Cam and I tried to keep up with our little one...

As before, this list only accounts for movies that were officially released in 2011. I saw 39 new releases in all this year. I only considered the movies that I actually saw but there are still 56 movies on my future wish list. I'll have to balance out that number eventually. And without further ado...

[10] The Company Men (Link)
This is a little drama with a bunch of recognizable names and faces like Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper. My fave actor is probably Kevin Costner in an understated supporting role. This film has a few different perspectives about the recession and it certainly has some strong opinions to consider, even if it is rather preachy and everything gets wrapped up with a nice bow in the end.

[9] Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II (Link)
This was a big, bold ending for the series finale, and it was way better than Part I. Some of the actors whined that this wasn't nominated for Oscars and whatnot but I don't agree with 'em. The last two movies were basically a long search for 7 MacGuffins, which was convoluted and dramatically inert. The gigantic battle and the final plot twists were lots of fun, though, so it still makes my list for the year.

[8] Limitless (Link)
This is one of those movies that came in under the radar and really surprised me. I've been a fan of Bradley Cooper since his days on Alias and he had no trouble holding the movie on his own, and duking it out with Robert De Niro. The concept was oodles of fun and they stretched out the idea really well. Great pic to recommend to friends.

[7] Super 8 (Link)
Sure, sure, it's a "found camera" monster movie. However, it also boasts the talents of J.J. Abrams, which is another shout-out to Alias. That automatically sets the bar high, a goal they had no trouble achieving. It focuses on a group of kids making home movies back in the late 70's. The young actors did a superb job and it was all quite satisfying in the end.

[6] Captain America (Link)
Hooray for the modern age of comic book movies! This led a big pack of films including Thor and Green Lantern. Tommy Lee Jones shows up in this flick, too, but the star of the show is clearly Chris Evans. The fact that he played the "scrawny" version of Cap for the first half hour was impressive, both in terms of CGI and plain acting. The story was true to the comic origins and it had a most excellent foil in the form of the Red Skull. The villain was brought to life by Hugo Weaving and it was a perfect old-school Captain America movie. Makes me wish they could have more movies set during WWII instead of fast-forwarding to setup the Avengers movie.

[5] Bridesmaids (Link)
This was definitely the comedy of the year, nothing came close. Sharp writing, layered characterization, actors inhabiting their roles - no kidding it gained so much acclaim. It's a pity the Oscars keep things so serious. Granted, I can't put this any higher on my list due to the gross-out humour but I won't hold that against them. Funny is funny, right? I dare anyone to watch and not laugh out loud a bunch of times.

[4] The Help (Link)
This movie got robbed. It should have won both acting awards for Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer. (Yeah, I'm not a fan of the fact that the Academy is comprised of so many old white males.) I don't enjoy dark and depressing movies and I didn't know how far they wanted to go in this one. Fortunately, it had plenty of drama and major themes without being brutal on me emotionally. Well, it did get me choked up one time when everyone was gathered in the living room...

[3] X-Men: First Class (Link)
This was my surprise of the year. Waddayaknow, Fox can actually allow a director (Matthew Vaughn) to make a good movie once in a while! The backstory of Professor X and Magneto was the bedrock for everything, and I got a kick out of Kevin Bacon as the big baddie as well. Granted, this conflicts at times with the other X-Men movies and the comics but those are mere nuisances that I was able to overlook since everything else was so well done. High praise coming from a serious comics geek like myself.

[2] Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (Link)
The very best way to see this movie is in IMAX 3D. Wow, that was an experience and a half! Knowing that Tom Cruise was actually hanging around outside the world's tallest building made it thrilling, but peering over the edge of the skyscraper was almost too much for me too handle. Simon Pegg and Jeremy Renner were the perfect complements to Cruise, and Cruise brought his A-game this time. I also have tons of respect for the director, Brad Bird. This may have been his first live-action flick but he's a resident genius at Pixar and great film-making knows no bounds.

[1] Hugo (Link)
Well, it seems like I agreed with plenty of critics out there on this one. The primary reason that this tops my list for the year is that it really resonated with me and stayed in my brain. You know how easy it is to forget some movies? This one tied back into real-life film history (with a slight sci-fi twist) and the true stories mixed with the fantastical imagery to create something that I won't ever forget. I actually saw this with my buddy Adam and he thought it was kind of slow and lifeless. I'll agree that it takes a while to get going but once it does, it grabs a hold of your mind's eye and sears itself into your grey matter. I really enjoyed this version of Scorsese (drink!), and Sacha Baron Cohen and Ben Kingsley left a great impression as well. Highly recommended and you'll learn something, too.

Honourable Mentions:
Fast Five, Cowboys & Aliens, Ides of March, Paul

Most Disappointing
Your Highness was aiming for The Princess Bride territory but it got lost in so many lewd jokes that I have a hard time recommending it to anyone.

Worst Comic Book Movie
This award goes to The Smurfs. I have a bunch of Smurf comics in both English and French ("Les Schtroumpfs") and I grew up with the TV show. Hank Azaria was a lot of fun as Gargamel but it was kind of painful to sit through the whole thing. Just for fun, though: Does anyone know how old Papa Smurf was when the Smurfs made their first appearance in the comics? ;)

My Previous Top 10 Lists:
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008,2009 & 2010

References:
Top Grossing Movies of 2011

ViSalus Tips

Every once in a while, someone asks how to improve their results with the Body By Vi 90-Day Challenge. I've picked up a few tips over the last six months or so and I wanted to put them all together here. Special Thanks to Matthew Brit, a former personal trainer and gym manager from Toronto. He joined ViSalus in 2010 and is one of the top earners in the company, and he frequently does training across Canada.

General Tips

• Early Start Use the ViSalus Vi-Shake within 15 minutes of waking up if you are using it for breakfast. This kick-starts your metabolism for the day.
• Eat Often Eat 5-7 times per day to keep that metabolism working. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are obvious enough - don't skip breakfast! Then, have small snacks between those meals and another one after dinner. It actually slows your progress to starve yourself or skip meals because it causes your body to hoard food for later.
• Healthy Snacks For snacks, keep it small and healthy. Fruits and veggies are best, of course. Beware of granola bars and seemingly-nutritious snacks that can disguise extra colories and sugar.
• Low Sugar On that note, cut out the sugar as much as possible. Juices may contain surprising amounts, so stick with water or skim milk if you can.
• Shake Recipes There are a million recipes for the ViSalus shake mix. Everything from fruit/veggie/dessert flavours to hot and cold beverages. Mix the shake in water, orange juice, skim milk, or almond/soy milk. The only thing to be careful about is how much extra stuff you put into the shake - don't overload it with chocolate or extra ingredients, since that kind of defeats the purpose.
• Lots of Water Drink plenty of water. Constantly keep a water bottle at hand.
• Simple Exercise Naturally, exercise of any kind is useful, even a simple 15 minute walk each day. I was personally able to lose 20 pounds in my first 90 days without any exercise at all 'cause I was busy and lazy. ;)
• Measure Before In the beginning, take your measurements. Weight is the focus for most people. However, you should also be sure to measure your hips, waist (at the belly button), chest (at the biggest point), biceps and thighs. Be real, keep your body relaxed and don't suck in that belly. Since ViSalus is a Health Challenge and not just a weight loss plan, it will automatically help you build lean muscle - and that weighs more than fat. So once every 2-4 weeks, check all of those measurements and don't be disappointed if your bathroom scale isn't ideal. If you go two weeks without seeing positive changes in your weight or measurements, though, be sure to ask someone about it since that ain't right. ;)
• Take a Pic Take pictures of yourself from a few angles when you begin, and then once every 2-4 weeks after that. Pictures can say a lot more than numbers sometimes. Don't hide behind clothes but try to wear something decent in case you ever want to have your before-and-after photos.
• Your Support Finally, your support team is crucial. Any 90-day goal will be more difficult if you're solo. Family and friends can be wonderfully supportive, but don't hold back if people doubt since there are always doubters out there. Enlist friends to join your challenge - and refer 3 friends so you get your shakes for free! Talk to your ViSalus team regularly. Listen to people and read stories on Facebook about other people that have succeeded with ViSalus so that you cna be inspired, too!

90-Day Health Challenge for Nutrition & Weight Loss

• Balance Kit Use one shake per day as a great nutritional supplement. May lose up to 5 pounds and gain muscle during the first 90 day period.
• Shape Kit Use two shakes per day to lose an average of 1-2 pounds per week, which is around 20 pounds for a 90 day period. Replace your breakfast and lunch with the shakes and have a healthy dinner. For even better results, replace breakfast and dinner and have a normal lunch.
• Transformation Kit For maximum results, use this kit. Most of the crazy stories of people losing 30+ pounds in a 90 day period are from people using this kit. It is similar to the Shape Kit, replacing two meals per day with a shake. It also includes various vitamins and pills to enhance your energy, fire up your metabolism and curb your hunger.

90-Day Health Challenge for Physical Fitness & Muscle Building

• Use one shake with a good breakfast like oatmeal.
• Use one shake immediately after your work-out.
• Blake Malen, one of the founders of ViSalus, recently completed a 90-Challenge with the goal of adding 20 pounds of muscle. He describes his work-out regimen in this video.

For more info, you can visit the ViSalus Overview and watch the first few videos. Or, you can go to my site, watch videos there and then click "Join the Challenge" to get specific product info and prices. Our team would love to hear from you so that we can answer any questions and provides samples. Good luck!

ViSalus: My Story

It boils down to two simple things: Health and Money. Seemed like a pretty easy decision to me! At a later time, I'll delve into the financial side of things but for me, that was secondary to the health benefits.

Right up front, I'll admit that the goal for my first 90-Day Challenge was to lose twenty pounds. My wife and I welcomed our first child, our daughter Jade, in September. ( !!! ) Naturally, I put on some "sympathy weight" during this pregnancy. In fact, I actually put on plenty ofweight during the first three months of the pregnancy and Cam didn't gain anything at all. Oops! I usually ate what my wife ate (including those late-night fast food trips) and she had trouble with nausea in the beginning, so it was pretty easy to pick up a few pounds here or there.

Now let me back up a bit... When we first got married three years ago, I thoroughly enjoyed all of my wife's cooking. So much goodness, and she cooked all of my favourites. Giant steaks, creamy mashed potatoes, home-made pizza...yum! We always made sure we had nutritious meals with plenty of veggies but it was the portions that did me in.

After about six months, I hit my top weight ever and we decided it was time for a lifestyle change. There's no big secret to losing weight. You hear it everywhere you go: Eat healthy and exercise, right? Step One: We cut our portions in half, replaced the sugary juices with water, had fruit instead of desserts, and lessened the snacking on chips and other goodies. Step Two: We hit the gym. And by that, I mean that we hit the gym hard an average of three times per week. We usually did an hour-and-a-half session starting with cardio, then focused on strength training for different muscle groups, and finished with extended cardio. And if that wasn't enough, we also did morning or evening walks around the neighbourhood on the non-gym days.

And what do you know - it worked! We put on muscle, cut the fat, improved our overall health and our daily habits. Cam trained me from scratch at the gym since I was entirely inexperienced, while she had been hitting the gym regularly for many years. Simple things like breathing the right way during reps were difficult for me but I eventually figured those things out.

Returning to the present day... I put on my own "baby weight" but this time my wife needed to focus on growing baby. Her pregnancy symptoms prevented her from exercising so hitting the gym together wasn't an option. I really had no desire to hit the gym by myself (ugh!) but I definitely needed to do something. And along came Visalus... *cue inspiring music with stringed instruments*

I experimented with the meal-replacement shakes at first. I used it for breakfast during the weekdays but that was it. I understood that using the shake to replace one meal was just the "healthy maintenance" plan and not intended for weight loss. Eventually, I started using it for both breakfast and lunch each weekday - but again, I ignored it on weekends since I enjoy breakfast food and I always like cooking for my wife. Plus, I still had chips and whatnot for snacks when we watched movies together. I did that for one month, and actually lost five pounds in my first week (which is not uncommon).

Eventually, with support from Cam, I decided to get serious about losing weight. On July 11, I started the recommended 90-Day Challenge just as prescribed. Replace breakfast and lunch with the Vi-Shake. Have a small, healthy snack mid-morning and mid-afternoon. And finally, eat a normal dinner with sensible portions and skip the snacks entirely afterwards. *poof* The pounds started dropping off more quickly. Just as promised, I have averaged the healthy weight-loss pattern of 1-2 pounds per week.

I have to confess that I did eat fast food for lunch still when we were on the go, and there were a few all-you-can-eat Sushi and Dim Sum dinners in there. Surprisingly, that didn't stop me my weekly progress. It was nice to know that I didn't have to be so strict about eating, I just had to be sensible.

More importantly, it was easy to do. Yes, laziness was an important factor to me. As in, I like to be lazy (or "efficient" as I prefer to say). Staying at home is much more attractive to me then busting my butt and sweating buckets at the gym by myself. Throwing shake mix and orange juice into a thermos for lunch gets me out the door faster in the morning before work. And now that our baby has come along, who has time to prep a properly nutritious meal anyway?

And somewhere along the way, we also saved money on our groceries.

So how did it work for me in the end? I did my measurements again on October 10, exactly 90 days after I started. I went dropped from 218 pounds down to 198, which is the lightest I've been since I started dating Cam more than 4 years ago. I also lost 3 inches from my waistline, 2.5 inches from around my chest and 1 inch from my hips. Hey, I even had to go down a notch on my belt. Yep, it worked for me!

In my case, Visalus is delivering on it's promise. ViSalus even surpassed my expectations for the 90 Day Challenge, which actually surprised me and motivated me to tell others about it. That includes you, Dear Reader. Everyone knows that it's important to have good health so hopefully my story can help motivate you to focus on your health once again. Pick the right solution for you: Hitting the gym, walking or bike riding, changing your meal plan at home, whatever you prefer. And if you're interested in Visalus and would like some more info then please be sure to contact me to find out more!

Alphabet Rhyme

A is for Apple
B is for Bear
C is for Cat
D is for Dare

E is for Elephant
F is for Fat
G is for Good
H is for Hat

I is for Ink
J is for Jade
K is for Koala
L is for Laid

M is for Me
N is for Noodle
O is for Otter
P is for Poodle

Q is for Quiet
R is for Roast
S is for Snake
T is for Toast

U is for Umbrella
V is for Vitamin
W is for Walrus
X is for Xylophone

Y is for You
Z is for Zoo

I spontaneously created this poem for my daughter Jade during activity time this morning. You can modify the above version and use the words "Jam" and "Lamb" instead to make it work for anyone. Good luck fitting your own child's name into the poem! ;)

The Challenge

I have three easy questions for you...
1. Do you want to improve your health?
2. Do you want to improve your finances?
3. Do you want to help someone else improve their health or finances?

Do you want to improve your health?
If you answered yes, then you already have a goal in mind. If you answered no, let me ask these additional questions...

1. Do you want to eat more nutritiously?
2. Do you want to lose weight?
3. Do you want to tone your body or add muscle?
4. Do you want to run faster, have more stamina, or do better at a sport?
5. Do you want to lower your blood pressure or improve your cholesterol?

Do you want to improve your finances?
If you answered yes, then you already have a goal in mind. If you answered no, let me ask these additional questions...

1. Do you want to pay off some debt?
2. Do you want to quit worrying about bills?
3. Do you want more emergency money in case your car breaks down or your home is flooded?
4. Do you want to buy a car or a new home?
5. Do you want to have a child or plan for their post-secondary education?
6. Do you want to stay at home with your children instead of working and using daycare?
7. Do you want to retire?

Do you want to help someone else improve their health or finances?
If you answered yes, then you already have someone in mind. If you answered no, then... come on, everybody knows somebody that they can help! ;)

Looking over these three questions, and then the smaller questions, makes it pretty clear that almost everyone is in the same boat. Perfect health and plenty of money aren't blessings that God just rains down on everybody. Even if our initial answer is "I'm healthy and I'm satisfied," we usually discover a slightly different answer if we dig a little deeper. And even if we honestly do have good health and enough money, then we can certainly help someone else with a few of their own goals, right?

There's a million ways that we can help our own situations and help other people. For me, one big part of the solution is ViSalus.  I tried the 90-Day Health Challenge and I dramatically improved my health. My entire family did the same thing. The ViSalus challenge gives the average person an easy way to save money on their grocery bills. And as a promoter, it really opened my eyes to see the opportunity and freedom that comes from working with friends to achieve our goals. It doesn't get any better than that!

So consider this my Challenge to you: Do you want to join me and improve your health, improve your finances and help other people do the same?

Top Ten Movies of 2010

This is my seventh annual Top Ten list. As before, this list only accounts for movies that were officially released in 2010. I saw 70 new releases in all this year - a personal record! (I give full credit to my hot wife, who accompanied me to many of them.) I only considered the movies that I actually saw but there are still 37 movies on my future wish list...

[10] Gunless (Link)
My list begins with a modestly amusing Western. I have liked Westerns ever since my dad introduced my siblings and I to The Man With No Name, and since Westerns show up in theatres so infrequently I try to catch 'em when I can. I also like to support mainstream made-in-Canada films (as opposed to weird art-house stuff) and I rightly assumed that this film would be in a limited number of theatres for a couple of weeks at best, so I went out of my way to see this one. This film stars the quintessential Canadian actor Paul Gross as an American that gets stuck in Canada accidentally, and thus hijinks ensue. A nice, pleasant flick.

[9] Kick-Ass (Link)
I struggled a bit with putting this one into my list because I'm not a fan of excessive gore, and there's plenty of visceral violence to be had here. However, I am a major comic geek and at least one comic movie was sure to make this list. I liked this one better than Iron Man 2 (since I was disappointed with the entire action climax) and Scott Pilgrim (which geeky but piled on the weirdness). So Kick-Ass makes the grade because it aimed high and for all intents and purposes, it hit the mark.

[8] Toy Story 3 (Link)
It was fun to see familiar characters together again, and the darker tone was very welcome. I wasn't a fan of the silly misunderstandings ("Oh, Andy's throwing us away!") but the brand new world of the day care was a lot of fun to explore with old friends.

[7] True Grit (Link)
Wow, two cowboy movies made my list this year! This one has the awards-season cred of the Coen brothers teaming up with Jeff Bridges. Even though it's based on the original book, it still has to follow in the footsteps of John Wayne, and Bridges was completely up to the task. I threw this movie on while my wife was doing other things, and she got sucked into the movie by the whip-smart 14-year old character that tries to hire a gunslinger to get revenge for her father's death. There were a lot of memorable moments and iconic images, but it was the acting of the girl and the grump that earned this position.

[6] The Expendables (Link)
I absolutely love Stallone's comeback in recent years, and I was anticipating this movie ever since I first heard about it. Just straight-up action with plenty of explosions and cool weapons and a reason to use them.

[5] How To Train Your Dragon (Link)
This was a superb animated movie, by far the best in a year with many options. I saw this in IMAX 3D and it was perfect for that format - even if Cam and I were two of the few that were standing in line without children. The sheer imagination and variety of dragons lent a real sense of discovery, to go along with the main theme of the movie.

[4] The Fighter (Link)
This was a very late entry into my Top Ten list, given how late it was released this year. This film argued with my brain and kept clawing it's way up this list entirely on the strength of the superb acting, and Christian Bale completely inhabits the role that keeps coming to my mind. To be frank, I thought that Mark Wahlberg's character felt a little flat but that makes perfect sense within the content of his nutso family, too. Since it's a sports movie based on a true story with lots of Oscar buzz, let's just call it this year's version of The Blind Side and leave it at that.

[3] The Karate Kid (Link)
Presumably, this movie isn't nearly as high in esteem in everyone else's lists but I completely fell for this one. Jaden Smith nails it as a tweenie fish-out-of-water in China, and China itself plays a starring role here. However, the big draw for me was Jackie Chan. This was an ideal role for him just because of the kung fu fun but when he breaks down and cries at one pivotal part in the movie, that just sucked the air right out of me.

[2] Inception (Link)
As a sci-fi geek, the genre had to have one movie represented on this list, and what a movie it was! I love to discuss movies after leaving the theatre to analyze the plot and everyone's opinions, and this gave plenty of food for thought. It was a mind-bending trip with a lot of unique concepts and a well-orchestrated playground of rules within this make-believe world.

[1] The Social Network (Link)
Much to my own surprise, look what made #1 on my list this year! I'm not surprised that I liked this movie, I'm just surprised that I liked it so much, even more than the usual action-oriented blockbusters. Granted, I'm a web developer by trade so this was right up my alley. The bullet-spray staccato of conversation and the he-said-she-said aspects of the lawsuits were fascinating. I researched some of the claims of the movie afterwards but the facts aren't quite as interesting, so I'll prefer to stick with the movie version of events.

Worst Ending Award
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps had an annoying ending that was completely unearned. I got a big kick out of the cameo from the first movie, though.

Non-Twisty Twist Award
This award goes to Salt. The whole movie pivots on whether the protagonist is good or bad but, honestly, a lot of tension was completely missing since some of it was so obvious.

Top Movies on Wish List:
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Get Low
Babies

My Previous Top 10 Lists:
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 & 2009

References:
Film Release Dates for 2010
Top Grossing Movies of 2010

Ten Percent

Even since I was a young kid with a paper route, I was taught and I believed that tithing was a requirement. As a Christian, we were supposed to give ten percent of our gross earnings to our local church. I complied with this rule completely, from my pre-teens until I was 29 years old.

I understood that tithing was intended for general offerings only and it couldn't be designated to anything specific. The church leaders were supposed to figure out the best way to invest my money, not me. The only thing I worried about was whether I should tithe additionally on any cash gifts that I received. I usually made up for that little bit of doubt by donating an extra bit to some secondary cause at church.

At the beginning of every year, I made sure that I got a box of tithing envelopes from my church. At the end of the year I would donate my unused envelopes back to the church so that they could be placed in the back of the pews for anyone that ended them. I would also black out the registration number so that there was no confusion for the accountants. In fact, I was often the one that replenished the envelopes behind the pews when I noticed that they were missing.

Naturally, I always got a receipt from church for my charitable donations, which accounted for a fairly large tax return every year. I had a friend that believed that getting a tax return on tithing was somehow against the principle of tithing because you weren't giving your full amount. I said that this was just smart practice but if they were really worried then they could tithe on the income tax return, too. Actually, I think I started doing this after that discussion.

I was aware of the different verses about tithing, both Old and New Testament. I had heard enough sermons about the blessings of tithing and the curses of selfishly keeping our money. The main verse about tithing from Malachi was usually printed on the tithing envelopes, anyway, so it was pretty obvious.

I knew that the majority of people at church did not tithe. I saw enough church budgets at the annual meetings to know that less than 20% of the church members bothered to tithe regularly. I also knew that because the pastors told me so during a sermon here or there. However, I would never force anyone to tithe. If people said that they really couldn't afford it, I chalked that up as poor budgeting or a personal decision. No biggie, everyone has issues that they have to work through, including me, and we don't need to get all legalistic about it. Let the pastor preach, let the Holy Spirit do his thing, and people will figure it out.

Now take a breath, Jamie...
I don't believe in the requirement of tithing anymore. I don't believe in the general principle behind it. I will go even further than that and say that I believe that tithing is quite wrong. Wrong to do, and wrong to teach. And for my part in this, I am sorry.

I mean, did you see what I wrote up there? I never realized how legalistic it all was. So many little rules and exceptions. It sounds so hard to keep to keep track of it all!

I recognize that part of it was my natural tendancy to find rules and obey them. I'm a goody-two-shoes that automatically does that kind of thing. Even so, tithing has always been a part of my Christian life, and it's been a big part of the churches I attended.

It took me about a year and a half to walk away from tithing. At first, I vaguely questioned the practice. I learned a little more as time went on about the Biblical basis for the current idea of tithing, versus the way tithing was done back in the Old Testament days. My first big step as to stop tithing all of my money to my local church, and give money directly to friends that needed it. After that, I decided to save that ten percent and keep it as my personal giving fund. Then I decided to pull back from the idea of setting any kind of restriction on it and I let that set-in-stone ten percent go. Finally, I had to admit to myself that it wasn't just a nice idea - it was actually the wrong thing to do.

Emotionally, it was hard to let go and I felt quilty for doing it. I still feel a little guilty, kind of. I was walking away from church teaching, and walking away from what my parents taught me. Breaking a habit is always hard to do.

Intellectually, I had to discard the Biblical interpretation and the arguments I had heard for so long. I could have handled that but once I got rid of the idea of tithing, a lot of other ideas fell apart as well. The whole idea of how a church pays it's bills and how pastors get paid became a mess for me, since I was always told that churches survived based on tithes. Like a house of cards, pulling out that one Ace called "tithing" caused a bunch of other cards to fall down.

And so here I am, writing about my journey through the issue of tithing. I intended to write about the Biblical references that we use to support tithing, but I ended up writing a more cathartic assessment of myself instead. I will follow up this post with Part II to get into some of the specifics about tithing...