Moviespirit presents The Top 10 Films That Change Us 2010 (c). Congratulations to these excellent feature films that captivated audiences with characters’ personal growth and transformation.
1. The Social Network. Jesse Eisenberg is more than a misfit as he plays stilted yet very human visionary and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. His other-worldly focus on friendship and social status is like that of a wise old man. Eisenberg and co-star Andrew Garfield bring the techno-savvy pioneers and their high stakes maneuvering down to earth for the rest of us. Facebook becomes a multi-billion dollar social networking phenomenon.
2. The Kids Are All Right. The power of a good film is that it can change our hearts and open our minds. The Kids Are All Right is one of those films. In the naturalness that the actors achieve, with arch comedic timing and a point of view that’s honest but not overbearing, stereotypes melt. Here is a form of family – and it’s genuinely all right. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore create bona fidescreen history. Lisa Cholodenko directs.
3. 127 Hours. What Aron Ralston seeks (and James Franco so eloquently discovers) is beauty in the strange and mysterious, a longing for the Divine. Danny Boyle’s film is unique as it portrays extreme sports action and Ralston’s inner life. The psychological suspense of this true-life adventure is intense even when we know how the story ends.
4. The Secret in Their Eyes. Ricardo Darin as retired detective Benjamin Esposito pours his passion into a true crime novel. Juan Jose Campanella’s love story wrapped in mystery unfolds with considerable beauty and grace. Love and truth emerge in the parallel story of Benjamin’s life. (Made in 2009, The Secret in Their Eyes did not open in the U.S. until 2010 when it won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film).
5. I Am Love. Tilda Swinton’s plunge into passion and sensuality reveals Emma’s parched soul in Luca Guadagnino’s breathless, primal drama. A successful wife who fulfills her role with grace, Emma seems content yet drained. The tension between old and new is palpable within and around her. Our true passion may be right in front of us.
6. Winter’s Bone. Ree Dolly’s quest becomes her initiation. We reel in shock at what she is expected to do. Even the coldness of the hill folk’s criminal element thaws alongside Ree’s resolute stand. Jennifer Lawrence stars as a scrappy 17-year-old who shepherds her family on the brink of losing their home.
7. The King’s Speech. Colin Firth is called upon to be a leader just as he’s ready to surrender. Geoffrey Rush co-stars as King George VI’s speech coach in this true story of a remarkable friendship and triumph over disability during some of history’s darkest hours.
8. Eat Pray Love. How big the world is, and how it puts our personal struggles into perspective. Liz (Julia Roberts) meets a memorable array of characters in Italy, India and Bali as she searches for herself and the Divine. Along the way she finds gratitude for her friends and for life. Eat Pray Love is a lush travelogue of self-discovery.
9. Black Swan. Natalie Portman surrenders herself wholly as a strong yet self-destructive ballerina. Lavish and captivating, Darren Aronofsky’s film shows artistry and self-actualization. In order to achieve wholeness, the Dark must roar alongside pure intention and high ideals.
10. Greenberg. Ben Stiller reveals the human side of a prickly narcissist. Who Roger Greenberg is and who he’s being are very different. This is a mature, breakout performance for Stiller as Greenberg embraces the life he never planned on.
Honorable Mention (in alphabetical order): Conviction; Fair Game; Get Low; Hereafter; Solitary Man; The American; The Fighter.
