Most Enjoyed / Fave Films of 2012

Hey Moxie Moxie Readers, Listeners and Watchers!

Long time no post, eh?

It's the time of year that I usually am furiously listing, categorizing and re-iterating the films I've seen, the ones I've loved or made a huge impression on me plus reminisce of fave festivals experiences, surprizes and disappointments. In other words, it's the time of year where I think about My Year in Film. But this year was very different for me. For the first time ever I took a break from the site and that was not intended to last very long, but it rolled into my current indeterminate hiatus (for health reasons) which feels like it's lasted forever, and in such I've missed months out of year year when it comes to film. It makes me very sad that I haven't been around here and also haven't been able to attend festivals in the last half of the year, it's not only challenging and it also feels really *weird* not to be here.

That being said, I couldn't let the year go by without sharing my faves / most enjoyed films of the year. And in true Movie Moxie fashion I've kept up my totally not-on-purpose tradition of changing how I do the list (See best/most enjoyed list of 2011, Perfect list of 2010, Faves Films of 2009, Faves Films of 2008, Faves Films of 2007 and Faves Films of 2006). Sigh. I love consistency, but this process keeps changing it and I just have to go with it.

I don't know what's in store for the for the site, but I'm sharing my film journeys right now over on my YouTube channel and I do have some fun things planned for the new year. Please swing on by and say Hi or keep in touch over at Facebook as that's where I can be found most these days.

I hope 2012 was good to you, and that you saw many awesome films and had many wonderful film experiences.

Take care,
Shannon

Shannon the Movie Moxie's Faves/Best/Most Enjoyed Films of 2012

Click through for review (if I reviewed it!)

Special Mention to Awesome 2012 Releases Seen Prior to 2012:


Honourable Mentions for 2012 Releases:


Faves/Best/Most Enjoyed Films of 2012 (chronological viewing order):







Left: Safety Not Guaranteed

If you are trying to find me these days, subscribe to my YouTube channel, keep in touch over at Facebook or check out my personal blog.  Have a Happy New Year Everyone!

The Man with the Golden Gun - Bondathon Film 9

Time to check in on our ninth film of the Bondathon: The Man with the Golden Gun

Mentioned in this vlog:

• The Man with the Golden Gun stars Roger Moore as James Bond and is directed by Guy Hamilton
• See the original Bondathon post with schedule and film listing, and my introductory vlog about the Bondathon.
• See my vlogs for previous films in the Bondathon with Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Diamonds are Forever and Live or Let Die
• You can also hear my Bondathon reviews as a part of the Movie Moxie Podcast

Up Next for the Bondathon: The Spy Who Loved Me *

* I am going to take a hiatus for a week but will be back in 2 weeks for more.

Toronto After Dark Summer Screenng 2012: Juan of the Dead and The Pact

Taking a look at the first night of the Toronto After Dark Summer Screening with Cuban zombie films Juan of the Dead and haunted house flick The Pact.

• I mention the Canadian zombie-comedy film Fido
• I mention the book Down a Dark Hall, in particular the font that the title is in on the book cover.
• I mention Starship Troopers, has it really been 15 years since then? Really?
• I share that my You Tube Channel went like just a few weeks ago, feel free to check out more vlogs there.
• If you are into the supernatural and paranormal, feel free to check out Hexed: Sisterhood of the Supernatural a paranormal TV podcast I co-host with my sister Suzie and we chat all about fiction and non-fiction paranormal shows.
  

See more about the screenings here, see more information at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival website or Buy Tickets to the Summer Screenings Here.

Live and Let Die ~ Bondathon Film 8

Time to check in on our eight film of the Bondathon: Live or Let Die

Mentioned in this vlog:

• Live or Let Die stars Roger Moore as James Bond and is directed by Guy Hamilton
• See the original Bondathon post with schedule and film listing, and my introductory vlog about the Bondathon.
• I am starting to notice a theme of the plots of the Bond films being rather forgettable.
• I also notice that the stylings of the films are continuing to be one of my favourite things about films (except the high waisted pants!).
• I mention Yaphet Kotto who is in Live and Let Die as well as Alien & Homicide: Life on the Street.
• I talk a lot about the use of The Tarot in the film, in particular the fact that they switched decks at one point. The decks they use in the film are both The Tarot of the Witches (this is the correct name) as well as The Rider-Waite deck.
• Decks in the Film: The Tarot of the Witches and The Rider-Waite Deck (traditional)
• Decks I Show in the Review: The Yeagar Tarot of Meditation, Arcus Arcanum Tarot Deck and Morgan-Greer Tarot Deck (very traditional); plus a mystery deck! If you recognize it, please share the name!
• See my vlogs for previous films in the Bondathon with Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Diamonds are Forever
• You can also hear my Bondathon reviews as a part of the Movie Moxie Podcast

Up Next for the Bondathon: The Man with the Golden Gun

Live or Let Die Images:


Images of the Tarot Decks show in my video:

DVD Releases June 26, 2012

Time to take a look at a selection of DVD releases for Tuesday June 26, 2012!



Images: Mirror Mirror & The Artist (Courtesy of Alliance Films); Gone Little Mosque on the Prairie (Courtesy of eOne Films)

• Father's Day this amazing and button pushing film from Astron-6 and Troma is out on a 4 Disc Set (BluRay, 2xDVD and CD) and it's guaranteed to freak you out. I saw it at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival in 2011 and I named it the best cult film of the festival with the icky-ist imagery and it certainly had one of the best Q&A's (see here). It's not for the faint of heart but for true cult fans. See my original vlog review of Father's Day here.
• Mirror Mirror Tarsem Singh's turn on the Snow White tale with Lily Collins as Snow White and Julia Roberts as the evil queen. Beautifully styled and very fantasy oriented, this one is a film I really wanted to check out.
• The Artist Winner of 5 Oscars this year The Artist won the hearts of many with it's old school silent film charm. Stars Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo and John Goodman.
• 21 Jump Street reboot of the 80's TV show about cops going over in high school, this revisioning with Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill looks like it takes the comedy and runs with it and is certainly on my to see list.
• Gone I was quite impressed with this thriller starring Amanda Seyfried as a survivor who is not taken that seriously, it's very interesting to see the different take and response her character gets from people and should be on any to see list for folks interested in gender dynamics.
• Wrath of the Titans Sequel to the 2010 Clash of the Titans reboot which yet again stars Sam Worthington as the hero Perseus. Also out this week is a Titans 2-Pack with both Wrath of the Titans and Clash of the Titans on BluRay (Amazon.ca only).
• Oranges & Sunshine stars Emily Watson as a social worker that takes on the task of reunited estranged families not only with the children separated from their families but also lead to believe they parents are no longer alive. Based on a true story, this one even the trailer can bring me to tears.
• Once Upon a Time in Anatolia co-winner for the 2011 Cannes Grand Prix this Turkish film has take the festival circuit by storm as well as having quite an impressive limited release run.
• TV on DVD this week including the Canadian drama Little Mosque on the Prairie: Season 5 Trailblazing (Amazon.ca only) and Damages The Complete Fourth Season which stars Glenn Close, Rose Byrne, John Goodman and Dylan Baker.
• Christopher Nolan Director's Collection (BluRay) impressive collection of Nolan's work including Memento, Insomnia, Inception, Batman Begins & The Dark Knight; and just in time for folks looking to rev up their Nolan watching pre-The Dark Knight Rises this July.
• A Thousand Words comedy starring Eddie Murphy as a man who literally is on a countdown to only saying a maximum of 1,000 more words.
• Plus: Book to Film Club November reading selection Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks is being released in paperback. See more about the 2012 Movie Moxie Book Club here and sign up for updates here.
  

Titles on Amazon.ca(Canada):


Titles on Amazon.com (US):

Prometheus Vlog Review

The Countdown to Prometheus is complete with the viewing and reviewing of Prometheus, and of course it is a 100% spoiler-free review.

Thanks to everyone for their patience in waiting for the review, I hope you enjoy it.

Things mention in the vlog:

• I saw Prometheus in Ultra AVX and in 3D and I saw it with my sisters Jamie and Suzie.
• See my vlog revisiting Alien here, Aliens here, Alien 3 here, Alien Resurrection here and bonus episode reviewing/revisiting Predator and AVP (Alien vs Predator) here.
• I mention "The Problem with Prequels" which is the fact that you know where the story is going.
• I mention ensemble casts that really work in film such as Aliens, King Arthur (2004), and The Magnificent Seven
  
• The Aliens Quadrilogy and series is very much part of my family history, especially with my siblings Jamie, Suzie & Jason, click through to see their sites and awesome adventures!
• You can also hear my Prometheus Countdown reviews as a part of the Movie Moxie Podcast.
• And a HUGE thank you to everyone who has been kind enough to not spoil Prometheus - thank you. thank you. thank you :)

See more vlogs of film reviews, marathons and festival coverage over at my new You Tube Channel.

Diamonds are Forever ~ Bondathon Film 7

We are back with the 7th Bond film where Sean Connery returns as Bond for Diamond Are Forever and they quickly reinstate his Bondness after the one and only film by George Lazenby with last weeks look at One Her Majesty's Secret Service. This time we are heading into the cold harshness of the 70's and Shannon quickly finds out what it was that stopped her first attempted at the Bondathon, and also commits to soldiering through and continuing on with the adventure this time around.

I do apologize that this is up a day later than planned, but the massive heat wave here in Toronto is making it a big challenging to do...anything...

Mentioned in this vlog:

• Diamonds are Forever stars Sean Connery as James Bond and is directed by Guy Hamilton.
• See the original Bondathon post with schedule and film listing, and my introductory vlog about the Bondathon.
• See my vlogs for previous films in the Bondathon with Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice and On Her Majesty's Secret Service
  
• You can also hear my Bondathon reviews as a part of the Movie Moxie Podcast
• I mention The Biggest Loser and indicated I may implement a 'yellow line' or 'red line' for the Bond films to separate the ones I like from the ones I actively dislike
  
• This is a film that I would put below the red line as I did actively dislike it for the gender stuff and harshness, plus I am seeing the trend that I don't usually like the US set films with 'odd villains' and gangsters.
• I mention the extreme heat wave here in Toronto at the moment. It's really hot. Stay safe out there!
  

Up Next for the Bondathon: Live or Let Die

Cosmopolis Vlog Review

Film review of Movie Moxie 2012 Book to Film Club selection of Cosmopolis, directed and adapted by David Cronenberg and starring Robert Pattinson, Kevin Durand, Samantha Morten, Juliette Binoche, Sarah Gadon and Paul Giamatti.

I mention:

• The 2012 Movie Moxie Book to Film Club.
• My book review of Cosmopolis
• The Book to Film club is currently reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.
• Plus see the Cosmopolis film site for worldwide release dates

Up next week: Prometheus

See more vlogs of film reviews, marathons and festival coverage over at my new You Tube Channel.

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Predator and AVP ~ Countdown to Prometheus Bonus Episode

The anticipation builds for Prometheus, and as I didn't get to see it opening weekend I looked back on two semi-related films to the series with Predator and AVP aka Alien vs Predator.

Things I notice on this re-watch and mention in the vlog:

• I mention that I really like the fact that Predator has an ensemble cast, and I think that ensemble cast films lend themselves to enjoyable repeat viewings
• I mention the Ontario Film Rating Board
• I watched AVP with the alternate beginning
• I mention Predator 2 and Predators (from 2010)
  
• A big thank you to my sister Jamie for lending my AVP!
  
• You can also hear my Prometheus Countdown reviews as a part of the Movie Moxie Podcast
• See my vlog revisiting Alien here, Aliens here, Alien 3 here and Alien Resurrection here.
  
• The Aliens Quadrilogy is very much part of my family history, especially with my siblings Jamie, Suzie & Jason, click through to see their sites and awesome adventures!
• And a HUGE thank you to everyone who has been kind enough to not spoil Prometheus - thank you. thank you. thank you :)
  

Prometheus hit theatres this week June 8, 2012 in North America; I am hoping to see it very, very soon and really hoping to avoid spoilers.