My most anticipated films of 2011!

1. Pedro Almodovar's The Skin I Live In

It's a bad title (reads better in Spanish: La Piel que Habito) but Almodovar has been on a winning streak for the last decade starting with Habla Con Ella. A string of films: Bad Education, Volver and Broken Embraces have cemented his technical proficiency. Of these films, Bad Education remains my personal favorite with its particularly dark humour, kinkiness and treatment of a deeply taboo subject. The film resembles something of a personal fetish and a prayer; the tone is one of a hidden secret which the director is seeking to set free amidst a puzzle of plot devices. Unforgettable. Volver was a perfect film; perhaps a little too perfect. Broken Embraces was a stylistic tour de force that lacked something of the edge of the best Almodovar. The subject matter of The Skin I Live In (a plastic surgeon who keeps his wife prisoner) seems like the perfect antidote.

2. Terrance Malick's The Tree of Life

I enjoyed Malick's The New World immensely and found it to be rather perfect and sublime. The Thin Red Line I am less sure about. However, this film, judging from the trailer alone and the rumours, cannot be missed.

3. Lar Von Trier's Melancholia

Another bad title! Anyhow, forget the Cannes comments about Nazism (obviously another attempt by Von Trier to build buzz for his film by surrounding it with controversy). This looks to be the perfect subject matter for an incredibly straight-forward director. The film is about the impending end of the world, set at a lush estate where a wedding is to take place. The symbolism may be heavy-handed (anyone remember Antichrist, Dogville?) but the images of montages which Von Trier has pieced together for this film are enough to pique one's interest. Kirsten Dunst is, in my view, an under-rated actress as well (Marie Antoinette was made perfect by her) and it will be interesting to see what happens of her here.

4. Lynne Ramsey's We Need To Talk About Kevin

Tilda Swinton.

5. David Yates' Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Am genuinely curious as to how this will end. Part 1 was quite beautiful and perfect in its own way.