Moneyball (2011) - ★★★★½

Director: Bennett Miller
Writers: Michael Lewis (Book), Stan Chervin (Story), Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin (Screenplay)
Stars: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman

I never liked baseball. I'm from Australia, where the sport isn't very popular. I know little about the game rules or history, so I had no idea what this movie had in store. You know what Moneyball did, it made me interested in baseball. In all my life there have been only two other movies that had me curious about the sport. They were: The Sandlot Kids and Bad News Bears. Moneyball trumps them all; it's thrilling, intelligent and very well made. The story itself was extremely interesting by showing us the unfairness of the sport and how mathematics can be a valuable tool. Look, if a movie can make you interested in a sport you never payed attention to, then it's done a great job.

The Master (2012) – ★★★★½

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Writer: Paul Thomas Anderson

Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams

Jaoquin Phoenix gives one of the greatest performances in cinematic history in Paul Thomas Anderson’s captivating new film, The Master. It explores the deep dark recesses of a troubled man with an alcohol problem. What’s more, it explores the starting of the religion/cult Scientology. We see the founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, in a way we’ve never seen before. The whole movie is just absolutely fascinating, and is certainly one I could watch again.