[Me too. It’s a function of being a shy person.]

If I hear rave reviews for a film, I’ll get the DVD. No sticky floors, no one chatting on cell phones, and I can bypass the six awful previews.

The Social Network is a treat. You haven’t heard snappy dialog like this in a long time. Some interesting statements about the modern age of the internet. What I liked was how the film seemed to be associating the concept of intellectual property with mercantile privilege of the old aristocracy, versus entrepreneurial genius and talent. Mark Zuckerberg is a flawed hero, and we love him anyways.

Inception, despite some flaws, is a thrill. An action movie with a brain, with some of the most breathtaking and original sequences in recent memory.

127 Hours is a visceral story about the human drive for survival. True story about Aron Ralston, the man who cut off his own arm after getting it caught under a boulder. Despite the moments of horror and squeamish discomfort, actor James Franco manages to inject moments of humor and lightness, its hard not to enjoy his character (disregard his cringe-worthy moments as last night’s host of the Oscars). Unfortunately, master director Danny Boyle (of such wonderful works as Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, Sunshine, Slumdog Millionaire) chooses an ADD riddled editing style with overuse of split screens, jarring sound effects, and constant cutting (not to mention the occasional amateurish camera angle). Still, the film manages to overcome its flaws. Watch it if you can stomach uncomfortable moments.

Black Swan is quite indulgent. The story is not good enough to earn the piles of melodrama that this movie oozes. There are things to be admired here; the cinematography and camerawork are near flawless, the performances are good (again, they aren’t necessarily earned though, but thats the screenwriter and director’s fault, not the actors). You can skip this one unless you fancy lots of over the top drama and/or like ballerinas.

Winter’s Bone and Exit through the Gift Shop are supposed to be worth checking out, but have not yet had the chance. Everyone was expecting Exit Through the Gift Shop to take home best documentary, but instead the very-political Inside Job won. Big surprise and upset. People are speculating that its because Banksy, filmmaker/star of ETtGS, has an unknown identity, and rumors circulated that if he won, he would accept his award on stage wearing something akin to a gorilla mask. The Academy is notorious for hating such antics, and that could have swung many voters from avoiding any risk of such a situation.