Great Movies of the 2010s You Probably Missed

How often, on a night somewhere between Sunday and Wednesday, do you find yourself in desperate need of some detox. Whether you’re ahead on schoolwork or simply need a study break, we believe that movies are a great way to step momentarily out of reality and to become engrossed in a story.

We at LTCL wanted to give you some movie reviews of the top films of 2012, but let’s be honest: you’ve either already seen, or at least read about, the best films of 2012 because they are generally the most publicized movies out there. So, we decided to take a different approach by giving you our top 5 movies that you probably haven’t seen since 2010. We don’t want to summarize the story as much as we just want to give you our opinion of the movie all together. Here we go:

 

Jeff, Who Lives at Home

 

This film comes from the dynamic brotherly duo that are quickly becoming my favorite directors: Mark and Jay Duplass. Jeff, Who Lives at Home stars Jason Segel as Jeff, Ed Helms as his brother, Pat, and Susan Sarandon as their mother. The Duplass Bros, who also wrote the script, take a new approach to the age-old concept of everything happens for a reason, developing it deeper into everyone has a specific purpose in life. Segel and Helms are great opposite one another, Segel playing the stoner brother who still lives with their mother while Helms plays the mature brother who, despite being married, is arguably just as confused as his younger brother. What made the movie for me was the incredibly unpredictable ending that perfectly worked to tie everything together. (side note: this is available on Netflix.)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1588334/?ref_=sr_1

Safety Not Guaranteed

 

Aubrey Plaza (known for playing April Ludgate on NBC’s Parks and Recreation) stars as a journalist intern who is part of a team covering a story about a man who believes he can time travel (Mark Duplass from FX’s The League, and co-director of the previous movie on our list.) The movie essentially has three intertwined plots: the love story between Plaza and Duplass’ characters, the attempt to rekindle a flame that has died out by the head of the team, Jeff (played by Jake Johnson,) and the attempt to loosen up and have fun by the other intern, Arnau (Karan Soni.) This is the most unique love story to come out in sometime. Safety Not Guaranteed boasts a nice balance of comedy and drama without overdoing one or the other. A timeless classic in our opinion (pun intended.)

 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1862079/?ref_=sr_1 

Celeste and Jesse Forever

 

Starring and co-written by Parks and Recreation‘s Rashida Jones, her character, Celeste, is getting a divorce from husband and best friend, Jesse (played by The Lonely Island’s Andy Samberg.) This film marks the hilarious Samberg’s first role in a film where he’s tugging at emotions rather than trying for laughs (though there are some funny parts.) It’s a unique storyline in which a couple in the process of a divorce are trying to remain best friends. Life, of course, gets in the way. You will have to watch to see if destiny brings them together or if they must go their separate ways.

 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1405365/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

 

Our Idiot Brother

 

Paul Rudd headlines an all-star cast full of big names. After being released from Jail for selling weed to a cop, Ned (Rudd) tries staying, for a time, with each of his three sisters. His simple-minded and caring nature leads to funny conflicts surfacing in each of his sisters’ lives. A prime family film (to clarify, movie about a family; probably not appropriate for family movie night,) with many laughs along the way concludes (well, why would we tell you if it concludes happily or sadly?) We thoroughly enjoyed this film from start to finish.

 

 

 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1637706/?ref_=sr_1 

 

Your Sister’s Sister

 

The classic love triangle is given a modern twist in this film starring Duplass (we like the guy’s stuff, clearly) opposite the beautiful Emily Blunt. We’ll just say it involves a man, a woman, the man’s dead brother, and the woman’s lesbian sister. Yes, there is a love triangle made out of this! With the perceived climax occurring near the beginning (no pun intended; you’ll have to watch it to understand: INCENTIVE!) the story is tied together nicely with a great ending. We were thoroughly pleased with the movie overall; an interesting take on an age-old plot.

 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1742336/?ref_=sr_1