Letterboxd — Your life in film

Joss Whedon brings his ear for hilarious dialogue and his eye for character and action to The Avengers, a film that will have (inner) children grinning from ear to ear.

My full review: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2012/04/20/review-avengers-assemble-2012/

Though flawed, The Dark Knight Rises is an epic and intense conclusion to Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, with fine performances and true emotional resonance.

My full review: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2012/07/18/review-the-dark-knight-rises-2012/

Ryan Gosling channels Steve McQueen in an eerily still performance, as Nicolas Winding Refn puts the peddle to the metal in a character-driven piece of pulp, with shocking bursts of violence and an atmosphere borne of lesser '80s action flicks.

Inception combines a complex-but-fascinating plot with stunning effects (both practical and CGI), good performances and visionary direction to create a sci-fi gem with visual flair to spare and surprising emotional heft.

Full review here: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2011/08/05/373/

A plot bloated to excess and the unnecessary novelty of 48 frames per second combine to rob The Hobbit of the majesty of the Lord of the Rings.

Full review here: ramp.ie/index.php/Movie-detail/movie-review-hobbit-unexpected-journey-2/

Its visuals and effects are gobsmacking, but Prometheus' convoluted story, lacklustre dialogue and thin characters let it down.

My full review: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2012/06/01/review-prometheus/

Often sweet, never sour, Moonrise Kingdom will trigger smiles and laughter with Anderson's trademark idiosyncratic dialogue, distinctive colour scheme and fine performances, particularly from its two young leads.

A more detailed review is here: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2012/05/26/review-moonrise-kingdom-2012/

The Cabin In The Woods is a giddily subversive take on modern horror tropes, with laughs and scares aplenty building to a climax that is both ridiculous and sublime.

My full review: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2012/04/09/review-the-cabin-in-the-woods-2011/

A hypnotic wonder, Life of Pi captures the themes and essence of Yann Martel's novel with the help of excellent performances, confident direction from Ang Lee and near-faultless special effects.

Full review here: ramp.ie/index.php/Movie-detail/movie-review-life-pi/

The Hunger Games is a thrilling, well-paced and well-acted teen flick, and a far more challenging and intelligent adaptation of similar teen novel franchises.

My full review here: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2012/03/20/review-the-hunger-games-2012/

The Social Network is a morality tale, an engaging drama and a stylish capturing of the millenial zeitgeist all rolled into one. Modern filmmaking of the highest order.

My review: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2011/08/05/345/

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is appropriately gritty but, with an excessive runtime and juggling a lot of narrative detail, it can't help but feel like a TV detective serial with a higher budget. Still, Rooney Mara is astounding and Fincher makes it all look cold to the touch.

My longer review is here: cynicalfilm.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/review-the-girl-with-the-dragon-tattoo-2011/