I did pretty well these last six months and I think I’ve broken my pattern or not watching as many films in the last months as I do in the first. I did make a conscious effort to view more, as I’d planned, and being able to use catch up services and borrow DVDs is a great help.

So here we go, a short summary followed by summed up opinion. Here are the films I watched in the second half of 2014 for which it was my first time watching them.

The Accidental Husband (USA, 2008) – Not very realistic but fun all the same. Loved the use of Indian film soundtracks.

American Hustle (USA, 2013) – Great film. Admittedly I couldn’t hear all the dialogue; the film is very quiet even when you’ve the speakers on maximum, but I loved the length of it. Liking Jennifer Lawrence a great deal, too.

The Avengers (USA, 2012) – Might as well say it now; we’ve been going through the Marvel films so there are a fair few here. I liked this more than some of the solo outings; my favourite part was the very end, after the credits. The simplicity and contrast was just too much fun.

Brave (USA, 2012) – Not what I expected as ‘Brave’ made me think it’d be a bit like Mulan, but I enjoyed it all the same. Lots of laughs.

Mrs Brown’s Boys D’Movie (Ireland, 2014) – With fewer out-takes and the lack of a studio audience, it doesn’t hit the spot. A joke in which a person thinks an Asian man is Jamaican works once and shows silly ignorance, after six or seven repetitions it comes across as racist, intentional or not. And a scene which could be considered a mocking of the tendency to use white people instead of a person of the ethnicity presented (that was my reaction – I thought it’d be awesome if they’d done that and then reverted to a Asian actor from then on) again came across badly when it turned into more scenes. I later discovered it was because the Asian actor was ill so they had to change things quickly, but if so this information needed to be included in the film, breaking the fourth wall being common, after all.

Captain America: The First Avenger (USA, 2011) – One of the better ones, definitely. I loved spotting all the British actors, especially the sudden appearance by Richard Armitage.

The Decendents (USA, 2011) – Another recent George Clooney film that meandered and didn’t know what it wanted to be. A film about a family coping with death, or a film about land ownership?

Erin Brockovich (USA, 2000) – Yep, last person and all that. Loved it.

The Hunger Games (USA, 2012) – I liked that they obviously wanted to make the most of the war, but I did find it lacked the pace and information the books have.

The Incredible Hulk (USA, 2008) – How to get drunk: take a drink every time Betty says ‘Bruce’.

Nativity! (UK, 2009) – Silly, unrealistic, but a lot of fun.

Nativity! 2 (UK, 2012) – Even more silly and pointedly unrealistic but fun enough.

Puss In Boots (USA, 2011) – Works, but this is definitely a spin-off.

Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones (USA, 2002) – I loved The Phantom Menace when I first saw it but never got around to seeing this one. The boy who played Anakin in 1 was excellent, this young man, not so.

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith (USA, 2005) – Better than the last one, and the guy got better at acting.

StreetDance (UK, 2010) – A fun enough dance film in which street dance mixes with ballet.

StreetDance 2 (UK, 2012) – The Salsa/street dance is interesting, but ironically there are too many dance scenes and it’s not got the same chemistry or feel-good factor of the first.

Sydney White (USA, 2007) – I wasn’t expecting much, it looked like any other school Mean Girls movie, and it is. But it is fun, uses stereotypes unapologetically to good effect, and the way it played with the tale of Snow White was pretty different.

Tangled (USA, 2010) – Loved this. Funny, pretty adult, and the changes made worked well enough. I’m just confused as to how her hair managed to be in such good condition when she was constantly dragging it across the floor…

Thor (USA, 2011) – Wasn’t keen on the main character but overall it’s not too bad.

Tron: Legacy (USA, 2010) – I never saw the first but it turned out not to matter too much. This film is excellent.

Wedding Daze (USA, 2006) – An average film but then it never promises it’ll be more.

Winter’s Bone (USA, 2010) – I watched this for Jennifer Lawrence. Alright film, good acting.

It’s still missing variety but I plan to remedy that this year.

What films have you enjoyed recently?