My Top 10 Scenes Of The Year!

2016 was quite a mixed year in film. There were many great hits but many huge flops within 2016. Before I get into my Best and Worst of the year lists, I feel it would be a good time to recognise some of the year's best scenes. This allows me to talk about some of the year's best or coolest moments despite what the rest of the film was like. We often overshadow great individual moments in a film so this list will have a look at some of the year's best individual scenes. The only rule for this is that there can only be one scene from a movie to make the list more varied. These scenes either amused me, heavily entertained me, emotionally effected me or even did all of them. So in saying that, here are my 10 favourite scenes of 2016.

10. Tanner's Last Stand - Hell Or High Water

'Hell Or High Water' was one a very morally complex film as you know you shouldn't root for Tanner and Toby, but they are just so charismatic that you can't help but do so. At the same time, you want Jeff Bridge's character Sherriff Marcus to come out on top. Tension is at its highest in this scene as you know death is awaiting Tanner but he keeps going on to allow his brother Toby to escape. An incredible scene from one of 2016's best films. 

9. Church Resistance - Anthropoid

I didn't think 'Anthropoid' was the best of films but the church scene was magnificent. The resistance seemed to have been found out by the Nazi's as the small group held them off for as long as possible. The scene is gripping and action packed as the group put up a great fight. There are powerful moments within the scene as the sacrifice's from these men is showcased in great fashion.

8. Not The Bees! - Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

The funniest scene this year came from 'The Lonely Island's' musical mockumentary 'Popstar'. The scene features Andy Samberg's character Connor4Real and his agent having a chat when they are attacked by bees. This scene is comedy genius despite not actually showing you what happens. This scene will have you in stitches and is the best comedy moment this year in film.

7. Bear Attack - The Revenant

Going back to early 2016 with one of the most impressive scenes of the year. Leonardo Di Caprio won his first Oscar for this film and seems like this may be why. With some incredible special effects, Leo is ripped apart in a gruelling battle with a vicious bear. It's incredible how they were able to make this scene happen. The scene is brutal but it is wonderful filmmaking nonetheless.

6. Car Trouble - Nocturnal Animals

One of the year's best scenes came from 'Nocturnal Animals' as this nightmarish scenario brought an abundance of tension. Aaron Taylor-Johnson completely transforms into his character Ray who is the worst of the worst in one of the performances of the year. The scene is filled with tension as you do not know what Ray and his cronies are going to do to this helpless family. It sets up the rest of the film so perfectly well as 'Nocturnal Animals' became one of my favourite movies of 2016.

5. Arkham Style - Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice

It's safe to say that I wasn't a fan of 'Batman V Superman' but I most certainly loved this scene. As a fan of Batman and the 'Arkham' game series, this scene delivered in so many ways. The action featuring Batman in this scene was astonishing and looked as if it was straight from the games. It was perfectly executed and was a real pleasure to watch. It's a shame the rest of the film wasn't up to the same standard.

 

4. Escape - Room

There is not a scene this year that has made me come as close to crying as much as this scene from 'Room' did. Building up to this, we had seen the conditions that Ma and Jack had been staying in and learned their tragic fate. As the scene plays out, we see the attempt to escape which is packed with emotion and tension as you hope that these characters get away from their captor. The final moments of the scene show  Jack waiting for his mother in a police car as the camera then turns to her running towards the car to be reunited with her child. One of the most powerful moments I have experienced in a cinema which I was fully immersed within.

3. The Strike - Eye In The Sky

'Eye In The Sky' focuses on the decision to make an airstrike onto terrorists in Nairobi, Kenya. There is an innocent little girl within the area who the team try to get out of the way. As the strike is called to happen, you do not know whether or not she will be saved. The tension is so high and you feel all kind of emotions with this one. Such a morally complex film that is rounded off incredibly well with this final scene. There were people in tears when I saw this film and I can't really blame them. Very powerful stuff.

2. Airport Battle - Captain America: Civil War

The amalgamation of Marvel's hard work over the past decade paid off oh so well in 'Captain America: Civil War'. The build up of the story and growth of tension amongst the ranks finally culminated in this scenes as Team Cap and Team Iron Man collided. There are so many great moments in this scene such as the staredown, the one on one battles, Giant Man and of course, the introduction of Spider-Man to the MCU. The action in this scene is phenomenal and I personally think that this is the best scene in comic book movie history.

1. Vader's Vengence - Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Nothing in film this year put a bigger smile on my face than the end scene of 'Rogue One'. It was only a couple of minutes long but I sat there grinning like a child the whole time as one of film's most iconic characters appeared in terrifying fashion. Everything about this was so satisfying, as this scene rounded up 'Rogue One'. I've seen this film three times now and I still get goosebumps when Vader appears on the screen. Nothing gave me a better feeling this year and I hope Episode VIII can deliver something equally as powerful next year.

So that rounds up my 10 favourite scenes of the year. Of course, there are much more that could have fit into this list as there were so many great moments so I'd like to know what your favourite moments of 2016 were. Once again, thank you for taking the time to read my blog post, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor

'Anthropoid' Review

The story behind the assassination of Nazi Officer Reynhard Heydrich is yet again getting the big screen attention. An event that is vital to the war that doesn't get as much attention makes for an interesting premise for a movie. Unfortunately, despite glimpses of greatness, they execution wasn't there in 'Anthropoid'.

In December 1941, two Czech soldiers (Jamie Dornan, Cillian Murphy) parachute into their Nazi occupied homeland. They have a mission to assassinate one of the highest ranking Nazi officers Reynhard Heydrich. With help from other members of the Czech resistance, they will attempt this attack to aid their country against Nazi oppression.

The biggest problem with 'Anthropoid' is with its drama or lack therof. There isn't anything that is emotional, that is gripping and unfortunately, nothing that interesting in the dramatic parts of the film. It falls completely short with the drama as the film doesn't really do anything in the first hour to get you really invested in the story and the characters. In fact the film starts off very brightly with the parachutists arriving into the country and almost immediately are tattled on to the Nazi's. It starts off bright and you hope that the film continues this but it fails to do anything afterwards to carry on this good start.

Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan lead a cast of dull, expressionless characters who spend most of their time sitting around speaking quietly. The characters don't get much to show off their talents as everything is so boring to the extent where it seems like the actors themselves are bored. And that reflects on the audience as well as it is hard to remain interested in this movie when very little happens leading to not a very entertaining build up. It's a shame to see talented actors being stuck with uninteresting characters who haven't really been built up which doesn't allow them to do much in their roles. 

Often with true stories like these, they have to add more plot lines into it to make it more theatrical. For 'Anthropoid', they add in a couple of love interests for Josef Gabcik (Cillian Murphy) and Jan Kubis (Jamie Dornan) and it really doesn't add anything that interesting to the film. The problem with this is that it is a lazy attempt at creating a level of romance as it never really dives into the relationships that much. It all seems to move very quickly as well without showing any time passing which makes it seem very rushed. They didn't take the time to make them feel like genuine couples and it was probably something that the film could have done without. If they weren't going to put the effort into the characters, then they simply should not have included them.

The bizarre thing with this film is that it gets a whole lot better after the events of the attempted assassination. After that, the film springs into life as the Nazi's look for those involved and it holds some impactful scenes such as interrogation scenes. Two in particular are really brutal and show the ruthless nature of the Nazi's with some moments that are genuinely hard to watch. Then there is the magnificent scene within the church where if you know your history, the Czech resistance try to hold as the Nazi's try to capture them. This action scene is phenomenal and is so far away from the start of the film in terms of quality. The last act of this film is everything the drama should have been: gripping and tense. There is so much excitement in this finale and it will most definitely have you on the edge of your seat. It's a shame the rest of the film could not support it.

Overall, 'Anthropoid' is mostly a very forgettable movie. If you wanted to learn about this event, you'd be much better watching a documentary, it would be much more entertaining. However you should check out the last half n hour or so of this movie as it does pick up. Unfortunately this is the only worthwhile part of the film in what is a dull disappointment. 

Final Verdict = 

So have you seen 'Anthropoid'? If so what did you think of it? I hope that this review was useful for if you were planning on seeing the movie. Once again, thank you for taking the time to read my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor