2011: The Retrospect: Top 5 Best Scenes

Beware! There's a seriously red band clip concealed within!

You all have it on the mind as you stroll on out into the light of the real world. That one thing. That one scene. 2011 had tons, literally, TONS of great scenes. But THERE CAN ONLY BE FIVE HIGHLANDER!!! Wait, what? That's the wrong line. Anyway, from elaborate sequences depicting the creation of the universe, to crazy feats of absurdity, to lot's and lot's of blood! These are the five best of those. Here they are, Films From the Supermassive Black Hole's Top 5 Best Scenes of 2011!

5. Scaling the Burj Khalifa (Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol)

Christ, this scene is intense. Traditionally, the action in the Mission Impossible movies was fun, but nothing special. But then Brad Bird, and animation director, stepped in. He directs this installment in the franchise as if it were animated. Nothing is out of the questions, and the laws of physics have no say! The scene sees Ethan Hunt climbing along the side of the world's tallest building, while the rest of his team scramble to intercept a series of targets. Awesome by itself. Throw in the inclusion of a slowly approaching sandstorm, and you have action movie gold!



4. The Gods vs. The Titans (Immortals)

Tarsem Singh's eyegasm of a Greek epic really goes for broke in this finale. Theseus has done all he can to stop Hyperion from releasing the Titans. He fails, but all is not lost. Now that Titans have entered the picture, the Gods can finally join the fight. What follows is the most gleefully violent and gory scenes of the year!



3. Caesar Speaks (Rise of the Planet of the Apes)

Caesar was already a compelling character, easily the most interesting of this reboot?, remake?, of the classic franchise. As the film progressed, we were fully on his side as he gradually came to turn against humans. When he finally reveals the ability to speak, it's absolutely chilling. What follows is really great!



2. The Prince's Tale (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2)

My God, this scene is heartbreaking. The Battle of Hogwarts has come to standstill, but it is clear that Voldemort is winning. Having taken a memory from the dying Snape, Harry is finally told the extent of what he must sacrifice in order to defeat the dark lord. In addition, he finally learns Snape's true motivations. Alan Rickman is achingly good here! This scene is just beautiful!

Quality on this sucks! It's the best I could find. Sorry!



1. The Opening Getaway (Drive)

I'm gonna call out that woman from Michigan again cuz I really don't see how she could have misinterpreted the film like that. This opening scene sets the tone and the style of the film with quiet grace and steely confidence. Driver is one well put together individual, never even breaking a sweat as he effortlessly dodges cop cars, choppers, and other obstacles. SO! FRIGGIN'! SWEET!



One more day of silliness before the important stuff. Thanks for the feedback so far, folks. You are quite swell! And, as always, check back at 2011: The Retrospect for all your 2011 memories! See y'all tomorrow! Brush your teeth!

Monkeys! Damn!

This is gonna be a quickie. I was on a red eye to Florida last night and didn't sleep a wink. You don't mind.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes is awesome! So much better than it had any right to be, this is a surprisingly thought provoking and touching retooling of the long running franchise. The marketing would have you believe that the humans, headed up by James Franco, are the main players, but you'd be wrong. Here, the monkey's take center stage, and run away with the whole thing. For the first time in the entire history of the franchise, the apes are purely CGI, no stupid make up needed. And, damn is it good CGI. We've come a long way since Gollum, and it's only fitting that the same man who made us believe that that jewel obsessed gremlin could exist takes the lead here. Andy Serkis, as main ape Caesar, is great. I know the academy won't go for it, but give this man an Oscar already. His performance here is soooo much better than most things to come out of humans this year. What action there is is fun and visceral, the script is well written, and the references to the past films are well handled. It's been doing well, so you've probably already seen Rise of the Planet of the Apes, but if you haven't, get to the theatre now. It's not like there's anything else worth checking out.

IT'S MAD HOUSE!!!

Trailer Trash: Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Time to root through some trailers. What sorts of wonderful things will be alluded to today?

Rise of the Planet of the Apes?? Christ, that's a mouthful! What was wrong with simply Rise of the Apes? I think the same point would have been sent.

Anyway, ROTPOTA chronicles the beginning of the war for supremacy whose aftermath was the subject of a bunch of movies staring Charlton Heston. It sees a genetically superior ape get injected with a serum that, unbeknownst to the scientists administering the thing, rapidly increases intelligence. Soon, said ape is at the head of a merry charge, leading his brethren in an all out assault on the human race.

James Franco is the head science guy. I don't know much of what he's doing here, other than injecting apes with none too savory formulas, but the same can be said about the rest of cast as well, which includes Freida Pinto, Tom Felton, and Brian Cox. They aren't the point of the trailer.

No, the main point of the trailer is too highlight the special effects used to create the apes, courtesy of WETA Digital. Rather than go the Tim Burton reboot route and douse the actors in makeup, all the apes here are mo-capped, with everyone's go to guy in the field, Andy Serkis, taking the role of the main monkey. The special effects actually look pretty decent, and there are some really cool shots in the trailer.

We won't have long to wait until the apes rise; the movie drops on August 5th. While I'm still holding out until I see more, suffice to say, this trailer has got me intrigued. This could be one of the sleeper hits of the summer. We'll see. Where's my banana?