Pierrot le Fou (Jean-Luc Godard, 1965)

This film is the Godard I know and love! Self-reflexive, amusing and just plain absurd. And by absurd, I mean it was just so weird and out of the ordinary that it was ridiculous. Pierrot le Fou about a man named Ferdinand (Jean-Paul Belmondo) who leaves his wife and children for his ex-girlfriend Marianne (Anna Karina) and then joins her on a crime spree, humorously attacking people before stealing their cars. They go to the French Riviera and we discover Marianne is wanted for murder and is being chased by Algerian gangsters. When the gangsters attack, Ferdinand and Marianne become separated. We then see them reunite and Marianne runs away with her real boyfriend (who she said was her brother) and Ferdinand shoots Marianne and her boyfriend, then paints his face blue and decides to blow himself up by tying dynamite around his head. Although he regrets his decision at the last minute, he fails to extinguish the fuse and is blown up. (We then hear their voice-overs as we see the ocean and the film ends). The whole film is somewhat light-hearted yet there is an interesting tension between seriousness which Godard explores.

The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius, 2011)

Sweet, beautiful and surprisingly touching, Academy-Award winning film The Artist has rightly enchanted audiences and critics worldwide and become a darling of the film season. Like most people, I was curious to see how a silent film would be made in 2011. Although there seems to be so much nostalgia in the cinema industry at the moment, this film pushes the boundaries and challenges the current 3D blockbuster fad by going to the extreme length of recreating this historical style of filmmaking.

2012 Academy Award winners

After shaking things up last year with an attempt to draw in a younger audience through hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco, the Academy Awards returned to the tried-and-true master of ceremony in 2012 - Billy Crystal.

Crystal's hosting was what we expected - quite safe, a little cheeky but nothing controversial or surprising. But that wasn't the only predictable element - there were also no real surprising winners this year, with all the favourites taking home the coveted Oscar trophy.

Nevertheless, it was an entertaining night that showcased some of the most significant individuals and collaborations in cinema today. Many worthy winners, some amusing speeches and a great performance by Cirque du Soleil later, the Academy Awards demonstrated why it is still the most prestigious and exciting event in the entertainment industry.

The 2012 Academy Award winners:

Best cinematography
Robert Richardson, Hugo

Best art direction
Hugo

Best costume design
The Artist

Best make up
The Iron Lady

Best foreign language film
A Separation

Best actress in a supporting role
Octavia Spencer, The Help

Best film editing
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best sound editing
Hugo

Best sound mixing
Hugo

Best documentary feature
Undefeated

Best animated film
Rango

Best visual effects
Hugo

Best actor in a supporting role
Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Best original score
Ludovic Bource, The Artist

Best song
Man or Muppet, The Muppets

Best adapted screenplay
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, and Jim Rash, The Descendants

Best original screenplay
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Best live action short
The Shore

Best documentary short
Saving Face

Best animated short
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore

Best director
Michel Hazavanicius, The Artist

Best actor in a leading role
Jean Dujardin, The Artist

Best actress in a leading role
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady

Best picture
The Artist

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (Guy Ritchie, 2011)

It’s rare for a sequel to stand up on its own, compared to the first movie in a series, but Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows does a decent job of it. Once again, Robert Downey Jr shines as the protagonist. The way he walks, the way he talks, and even his facial expressions, Downey is immersed in the character of Sherlock Holmes. I was curious to see whether Rachel McAdams would be in this film, as she didn’t appear in the trailer. In fact, her character wasn’t featured much in the film, and there wasn’t any love interest for Holmes throughout most of the film, which is interesting.

S1m0ne (Andrew Niccol, 2002)

Before I watched this film, all I knew was that it featured Al Pacino in the role of a director who creates a computer-generated actress. That short premise intrigued me − it sounded like it would be some sort of science fiction film but with Al Pacino, which would be an unusual pairing.