A Letter to Momo (2011) - ★★★★½

Director: Hiroyuki Okiura
Writer: Hiroyuki Okiura

A Letter to Momo is one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen. Anyone who has lost someone close to them should see this film. “We’re not alone.” I adore this story, and everything it represents. Its message shows that there's more to this world than meets the eye... and it couldn't have been delivered in a more unique and visually beautiful way. It has the spiritual and sentimental elements of Studio Ghibli films, but the style and realism of Satoshi Kon's works. Hiroyuki Okiura apparently spent seven years producing and making this film, which we can see in each meticulous, wonderful scene. I was mostly intrigued at the start, entertained through the middle, and quietly emotional at the end. This film really takes you on a journey through the usage of real and supernatural relationships.

No.6 (2011) - ★★★★★

No. 6 is the most mature, beautiful shounen-ai anime I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot of them. Its animation and storyline is unmatched by any other anime of its kind (or Yaoi anime for that matter). On top of that, the characters are beautifully developed and easy to fall in love with. I was absolutely hooked after the first episode, and ended up watching every other episode in a row (that's about 4 and a half hours worth of episodes). I guess I just loved everything about No. 6. The theme songs that played in the opening and ending credits, the hilarity, the romance, the music... it just thrilled me. You'd be hard-pressed to find another yaoi/shounen-ai anime that's of a better quality than this. I think it's the best anime of its kind, the cream of the crop. Put it this way. As I was nearing the end of the series, I started to feel anxiety because I'd never see a new episode again. Now that's what I call a powerful show!

Longhorns (2011) - ★½

Director: David Lewis
Writer: David Lewis
Stars: Jacob Newton, Derek Villaneuva, Dylan Vox, Kevin Held, Stephen Matzke, Bonnie Marion, Katrina Sherwood

I'm becoming quite the LGBTI film-buff. My aim is to watch as many films in the genre as possible, and I heard good things about Longhorns. It's not a good movie, but it's kinda cute. It's clearly low-budget and amateur, and the story isn't anything special either. I guess what makes it interesting is the performances by Jacob Newton and Derek Villaneuva. The sunshiny, cutesy, Southern charm of Newton managed to make me enjoy the film, which is only 75 minutes long. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who likes good cinema and a high level of decency. There are a total of 5 full frontal naked men in this movie. No, it's not a porno. It's not even soft-core. It's just a 'bad' movie that emits happiness.

Hugo (2011) - ★★★★

Director: Martin Scorsese
Writers: John Logan (Screenplay), Brian Selznick (Book)
Stars: Asa Butterfield, Ben Kingsley, Chloe Grace Moretz, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helen McCrory, Christopher Lee, Emily Mortimer, Ray Winstone, Richard Griffiths, Frances de la Tour, Jude Law

Martin Scorsese is one of the greatest directors of all time, and Hugo happens to be one of his most ambitious films. He usually deals with gangsters and crime, but Hugo is his little homage to the very first films, from 'Arrival of a Train' by the Lumiere Brothers, to 'A Trip to the Moon' by George Méliès. It's one of the most visually beautiful films I've ever seen, and it also evokes the magic out of life's little adventures, whether they be from reading a book or watching a movie. It runs a little too long and the pace is too slow for my liking, but Hugo is captivating enough to be called one of the best movies of 2011.

Jack and Jill (2011) - ★★

Director: Dennis Dugan
Writers: Steve Koran, Adam Sandler (Screenplay), Ben Zook (Story)
Stars: Adam Sandler, Al Pacino, Katie Holmes, David Spade, Nick Swardson, Tim Meadows, Eugenio Derbez

I can't help but smile at the thought of everyone being miserable while watching this movie. For some reason, I wasn't miserable. In fact, I laughed quite a few times! Jack and Jill is pretty despicable, relying on cheap humour, fart jokes, racial jokes, and bucket loads of product placement. The thing is, I'm not above this sort of humour if it's done right. There were so many jokes that fell flat, but there were quite a few of them that made me roar with laughter. I'm probably losing all credibility as a reviewer right now, but if I'm being honest, I enjoyed this movie.

Weekend (2011) - ★★★★★

Director: Andrew Haigh
Writer: Andrew Haigh
Stars: Tom Cullen, Chris New, Jonathan Race

I found Weekend to be flawless. It's just so beautiful, filled with passion and realism. Everything about it just really spoke to me, from the little insecurities of the characters to the heartfelt things they said to each other. I was amazed at how much this relationship seemed real. By the end, I just wanted more. Part of me wished it was an epic that spanned for another 2 hours... that's how much I enjoyed it. There's just something magical about Weekend that captivated me from start to finish.

Bully (2011) - ★★½

Director: Lee Hirsch
Writers: Lee Hirsch, Cynthia Lowen

Bully is an average documentary that tackles a subject that is very dear to my heart. That is bullying in high-schools. I say it's average because it doesn't fully explore the kinds of bullying that goes on (there's not one mention of cyber-bullying I believe). It's pretty heartbreaking to see, but I don't think it's close to scraping the implications that bullying can have on a child. They cover suicides and self-harming, but it just doesn't quite get through to us the way it should. We don't get the facts or figures of bullying, but rather the stories of a few children and parents that have been through it. It just doesn't do justice to such an important subject.

50/50 (2011) - ★★★★

Director: Jonathan Levine
Writer: Will Reiser
Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Angelica Huston, Bryce Dallas Howard, Philip Baker Hall

I was surprised at how much this movie got to me. 50/50 handles the subject of cancer in a very different way to every other film, which is with light-humour and sincerity. The performances are all flawless, with brilliant and believable chemistry between the people and their relationships. Instead of letting cancer dominate the story, it's the people that highlight what is happening on the screen. Disease becomes secondary to feeling, making this an emotional and terrific film.

We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) - ★★★★

Director: Lynne Ramsay
Writers: Lynne Ramsay, Rory Kinnear (Screenplay), Lionel Shriver (Novel)
Stars: Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller, John C. Reilly, Jasper Newell, Ashley Gerasimovich

We Need To Talk About Kevin is the depressing, frustrating, and realistic portrayal of a mother whose son is a sociopath. I found the story to be very interesting, mainly because I have known people like Kevin growing up. This is a movie everyone should see before they race into having kids. I love the way it shows that you can't always blame the parents for the way their kids turn out. In the end, I was not only sad, but in awe of this movie. The whole way through I was either furious or depressed, which is an accomplishment in itself because most films these days can't even make me sad.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011) - ★★★½

Director: Stephen Daldry
Writers: Eric Roth (Screenplay), Jonathan Safran Foer (Novel)
Stars: Thomas Horn, Max Von Sydow, Sandra Bullock, Tom Hanks, Viola Davis, Jeffrey Wright, Zoe Caldwell

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close didn't manage to pull at my heartstrings. What it did do however was make me extremely intrigued in the story of an autistic boy on a mission. Everything with Thomas Horn and Max Von Sydow was absolute gold. The chemistry these two had was beyond words. I found myself absolutely enthralled in the adventure of Oscar (Thomas Horn). It seemed like the film was split into two different sections. One was the awesome tale of an autistic kid trying to keep the memory of his father alive, and the other is the sadness of the 9/11 terrorist attack. While the story of this kid's struggle is amazing, the film falls flat whenever they focus on 9/11.

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 Kid with a Bike (2011) - ★★★★½

Director: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Writers: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Stars: Thomas Doret, Cécile De France, Egon Di Mateo, Jérémie Renier

The Kid with a Bike has a raw and honest approach at telling the story of a kid who was abandoned by his father. Much of the dialogue was true to me, because as a young child I had been in similar situations as Cyril, the main character. It's extremely interesting and always leaves you hanging on what the kid might do next. If they had of developed the characters a little better, this would have been a perfect movie. 

Game of Thrones: Season 1 (2011) - ★★★★★

Director: Timothy Van Patten, Brian Kirk, David Minahan, Alan Taylor
Writers: David Benioff (Creator), D.B Weiss (Creator), George R.R. Martin (Novel)
Stars: Sean Bean, Mark Addy, Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke, Michelle Fairley, Maisie Williams, Kit Harrington, Sophie Turner, Alfie Allen, Iain Glen, Jack Gleeson, Aiden Gillen, Richard Madden, Isaac Hempstead Wright, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Rory McCann, Conleth Hill, John Bradley, Donald Sumpter

I haven't reviewed any TV shows for a long time, so I've decided to talk about one of my all time favourites, Game of Thrones! The reason I've added practically every actor in the cast to this review is because all of them are brilliant and memorable in their own way. From the main character to the smallest of peasants, this show is just breathtaking. It's like Lord of the Rings meets Harry Potter, set in medieval times. My father doesn't like TV Shows or movies, but when he saw Game of Thrones he said "This is the greatest show of all time." I agree, it's definitely up there with the best.

I Don't Know How She Does It (2011) - ★

Director: Douglas McGrath
Writers: Allison Pearson (Novel), Aline Brosh McKenna (Screenplay)
Stars: Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear, Olivia Munn, Kelsey Grammar, Seth Meyers, Christina Hendricks

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of this movie: "Why the hell was it made?" It's such a stupid premise for a movie. Sure, the novel may be interesting, but this story spreads paper thin across the 89 minute running time. What an embarrassment for the actors involved. I feel bad that Greg Kinnear and Pierce Brosnan have resorted to accepting scripts that are basically the ramblings of a bored housewife. Above all, this movie is just terrible. Nothing could save it from being a complete and utter disaster.

The Iron Lady (2011) – ★★★½

Director: Phyllida Lloyd
Writers: Abi Morgan (screenplay)
Stars: Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Alexandra Roach, Harry Lloyd

After reading a number of bad reviews about The Iron Lady, I expected it to be absolute hogwash apart from the performance of Meryl Streep. I think the criticisms were unfounded. It is a very good movie that shows a side of ‘The Iron Lady’ that I’ve never seen before. It does dwell on her Alzheimer’s a bit too much, and at times I wished that more politics were shown. However, as a result of seeing a large sum of her personal life, I felt much more connected to Margaret Thatcher as a person, rather than a politician. In this way, the film connected to me and kept me intrigued every step of the way.

Sekaiichi Hatsukoi (2011) – ★★★★★

Director: Chiaki Kon

Written and Illustrated by: Shungiku Nakamura

Voices: Takashi Kondo, Katsuyuki Konishi, Yuuichi Nakamura, Hiroshi Kamiya

This is a fantastic show. If you love romance, then look no further than Sekaiichi Hatsukoi. I did not read the manga series, but I stumbled upon the show while looking for a new TV series to watch. From the very start, I was hooked.

Intouchables (2011) - ★

Director: Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano

Writers: Olivier Nakache, Eric Toledano

Stars: Francois Cluzet, Omar Sy

What do you get when you mix a done-to-death storyline, cheesy dialogue, irritating characters, and no originality? You get Intouchables. I hate this movie. I can't remember the last time I felt so mad while watching a film. I don't know what is more annoying, the fact that I had to sit through this colossal waste of time, or the fact that it is one of the highest rated films on the IMDB.

A Separation (2011) - ★★★★★

Director: Asghar Farhadi
Writers: Asghar Farhadi
Stars: Payman Maadi, Leila Hatami, Sareh Bayat, Shahab Hosseini, Sarina Farhadi

This film is intense, mentally and emotionally. At first it almost begs you to pick a side by showing each characters personalities so effectively. By the end of the film, you're left debating whether there was a right or wrong side. It's one of the most thought provoking and brilliant modern films I've seen, and surely deserved to win the Oscar for Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards.

Drive (2011) - ★★★★

Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Writers: Hossein Amini (Screenplay), James Sallis (Novel)
Stars: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brookes, Bryan Cranston, Christina Hendricks, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac

This is hands down one of the best films of the year. It's been a while since I've seen a new movie as good as this one. It has a great story, great acting, it sucks you in and leaves you more than satisfied. I can't praise Drive enough for igniting hope for the future of the American Film Industry.

The film follows a mysterious Driver (Ryan Gosling) who works as a garage mechanic, a Hollywood stuntman and a getaway driver. He falls for his neighbor, Irene (Mulligan),who is mother to a child and whose husband (Oscar Isaac) is in prison. Meanwhile, his garage mechanic boss, Shannon (Byran Cranston), is trying to set up a race team using gangland money, which implicates the Driver as he is to be the team's main driver. Things get complicated for him when he meets Irene's husband, who involves him in a one million dollar heist, which two gang members intend on getting back using any means necessary.

I think the best thing about Drive is that it's very subtle when it comes to interactions between the characters. One thing I hate about movies these days is that when two people are falling in love, they don't shut up. They feel compelled to spill their guts out about their past and their feelings. This film shows love in its simplest form, through facial expressions (which I'm partial to).

Gosling was fantastic, as was Mulligan. I liked their relationship and I rooted for them to run off together. It's rare to become invested in a romance these days with terrible B-rate Rom-Coms taking over the cinema, but this film brings back the interest. I think it's because it wasn't trying to shove 'love' down our throats, it was just a small part of the story.

Albert Brookes was fantastic as one of the leaders of the gang. He was funny and cruel. Everytime he was on screen, it was pure entertainment. Same goes for Bryan Cranston. He has certainly come a long way from playing the father from Malcolm in the Middle. There was plenty of blood and death in this film, but it wasn't there as a gorefest, but to suck the audience further into the story.

Drive had a brilliant 80's feel about it, which was so refreshing and nostaligic to see. It had a lot to do with the beautiful music and neon city setting. The great thing about this film is that it isn't a particular genre, it's everything. It's action, it's thriller and it's romance. All are important, all are executed masterfully and all are entertaining! I can't praise this film enough. It's one of the best films of 2011.

Sanctum (2011) - ★

Director: Alister Grierson
Writers: John Garvin, Andrew Wight
Stars: Richard Roxburgh, Rhys Wakefield, Ioan Gruffadd, Alice Parkinson, Dan Wyllie

This movie sucks. It's so full of stereotypes that you forget that this is a film about survival. To tell you the truth, I bought the DVD under a misapprehension, thinking it was a horror movie that I'd heard many good things about. When I found out that this was a film about survival that stars Rhys Wakefield, I was really excited to find out whether it would be good. From the moment I started watching the film, I knew I'd regret wasting my money on this terrible film.

The story is as follows. A team of underwater cave divers go on an extremely dangerous expedition to the largest and least accessible cave system on Earth. When a freak storm forces them deep into the caverns, they must fight raging water, rough terrain and increasing panic as they search for an unknown excape route to the sea. All of the characters are one dimensional, stereotypical and have uninteresting stories and personalities, which is why I won't explain what they have to do with the film.

I will start off by saying that although there was some bad CGI in parts, the cinematography in general was beautiful and haunting. However, I never quite felt like I was watching people in a cave. It felt like I was watching actors playing people in a cave, which sucked me write out of the movie. Ioan Gruffadd played a loudmouth American that is spearheading the expedition, and although I love him as an actor, he was terrible at putting on the accent. It was so over the top and out of place that it further put me off the film.

The cast was predominantly Australian, which I thought would be a good change to the usual thriller movies. It wasn't. It was just as Hollywood and predictable as most thrillers, providing nothing unique other than the setting.

All of the characters were annoying and unrealistic, which made me feel nothing for them when they died. I couldn't feel the panic coming from them, or connect to their personal stories (which were also really bad). The worst thing about Sanctum is the dialogue. There were so many stereotypes in this movie that even Sacha Baron Cohen's films Bruno and Borat couldn't beat them.

With laughable dialogue such as "You'll fizz up like a dropped beer can," you won't find many movies that would beat Sanctum when it comes to cliche' lines and bad acting. This movie is to be avoided at all cost.