Top Ten Most Anticipated Indie Movies of 2011

Here is my "Top Ten Most Anticipated Indie Movies of 2011" list. The definition of "indie movie" for this list is anything getting a limited release or distributed by an independent production company, or a film most people just plain don't know about. If you want to see the list of major releases I am looking forward to, that list is here. This is only my opinion. If you don't like my list, go do your own.

#10 Jeff Who Lives at Home - Coming off of the successful run of 2010's Cyrus, the Duplass Brothers continue their unconventional commercial emergence with Jeff Who Lives at Home. Starring Forgetting Sarah Marshall's Jason Segel, Judy Greer, and Susan Sarandon, the movie is about Jeff who discovers that the universe might be sending him signals about the nature of his destiny while on a seemingly banal errand for his disgruntled mother. This could be what makes Jay and Mark Duplass a household cinema name.
Release date: TBA 2011
Trailer: Not yet released.

#9 The Turin Horse - I have never seen a single Béla Tarr film before, but I know I need to. Many people have called him one of the best directors of all-time and a major influence on the remodernist film movement. The Hungarian film director and screenwriter has said that The Turin Horse is going to be his last film. It is about how German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche protected a horse from being whipped by wrapping his arms around it. Nietzsche fell to the ground and suffered an extreme mental collapse staying bed-ridden for eleven years until his death after that. This movie is not about Nietzsche though. It is about the horse he saved and the farmer and his daughter responsible for it.
Release date: TBA 2011
Trailer: Not yet released.

#8 Cold Weather - Cold Weather actually produced lukewarm reviews at SXSW last year, but I'm looking forward to it for a couple reasons. For one, it takes place in Portland, Oregon, one of my favorite cities in the United States. Also, the story is about a guy who becomes involved in the mystery of his ex-girlfriend's disappearance. Sounds like Brick mixed with Sherlock Holmes and Paranoid Park.
Release date: February 4, 2011
Trailer:


#7 Melancholia - Last year, director Lars von Trier brought us a movie that confused the critics. People couldn't figure out if Antichrist was a confrontational masterpiece or some kind of sick joke. Melancholia, starring Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, and Kiefer Sutherland, is a bit of a sci-fi drama about the death of the planet as a large foreign body threatens a deadly collision. Bring your anti-depression medication because von Trier says no more happy endings in his films.
Release date: TBA 2011
Trailer: Not yet released.

#6 Terri - Director Azazel Jacobs says that Terri is a story for anyone who’s ever had issues in high school. Anyone who ever felt alone, misunderstood, or miscast. Sounds like a more touchy-feely version of Napoleon Dynamite. Jacobs is premiering Terri at Sundance this year, the same place his previous film, Momma's Man received rave reviews (91% on Rotten Tomatoes). It stars newcomer Jacob Wysocki as the awkward and overweight Terri, and indie commoner John C. Reilly as vice principal Mr. Fitzgerald.
Release date: TBA 2011
Trailer: Not yet released, but there's a Sundance interview with the director:


#5 On the Road - On the Road is an adaptation of the Jack Kerouac novel of the same name starring Control's Sam Riley and Tron: Legacy's Garrett Hedlund. The film has been a long time coming. In 1957, Jack Kerouac wrote a one-page letter to Marlon Brando suggesting that he play Dean Moriarty while Kerouac would portray Sal Paradise. Francis Ford Coppola bought the rights to the film in 1979 and has been trying to get the movie made since then. He chose two-time BAFTA Award-winning director Walter Salles after seeing The Motorcycle Diaries. It has a huge cast featuring Kristen Stewart, Amy Adams, Kirsten Dunst, Viggo Mortensen, Steve Buscemi, Elisabeth Moss, and Terrence Howard.
Release date: TBA 2011
Trailer: Not yet released.

#4 Cedar Rapids - Written by one of Variety's 10 Screenwriters To Watch in 2009, Cedar Rapids is a comedy about a small town insurance salesman who heads off to the "big city" of Cedar Rapids, Iowa to try and save his company. It stars The Office and The Hangover's Ed Helms, John C. Reilly, Anne Heche, and Isiah Whitlock Jr. The screenplay appeared on 2009's Black List, a list of the top unproduced screenplays.
Release date: February 11, 2011
Trailer:


#3 Poetry (Shi) - Winner of the Best Screenplay Award (Prix du scénario) at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival, Poetry is a South Korean film written and directed by Lee Chang-dong. It tells the story of a suburban woman in her 60s who begins to grow an interest for poetry while struggling with Alzheimer's disease and her irresponsible grandson. The cinematography looks great as does Yoon Jeong-hee's acting.
Release date: January 28, 2011
Trailer:


#2 Butter - Butter is already looking like a quirky comedy. It is about a number of competitive characters who become entwined in an annual butter-carving contest. Those characters are played by a great cast including Jennifer Garner, Hugh Jackman, Olivia Wilde, Alicia Silverstone, Ashley Greene, and Modern Family's hilarious Ty Burrel. Could be this year's Little Miss Sunshine?
Release date: TBA 2011
Trailer: Not yet released, but there's a great featurette:


Here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for...





#1 Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below - It might shock some of you to know that Hayao Miyazaki is not my favorite anime director. Don't get me wrong, he's great and I love all of his films, however I favor Makoto Shinkai a little more. The main reason is his animation style. If I could have Miyazaki write a story and Shinkai animate it, I would be in anime heaven. Shinkai's films are close enough though as I think his stories are still very creative. His last movie, 5 Centimeters Per Second, which was really just a collection of three short films, is my favorite anime movie of all-time. And it's mostly because it is gorgeous. The film is almost four years old and it still looks better than most of the stuff coming out of Japan now. Children Who Chase is said to be Shinkai's longest film to date and is about a girl who embarks on a journey of adventure to meet a boy again. Shinkai has a real knack for writing about adolescence.
Release date: May 2011
Trailer:


Runners-up: Restless, The Guard, Rum Diary, Win Win, Drive, La Piel que Habito (The Skin I Live In), A Dangerous Method, The Descendants, Moneyball, We Need to Talk About Kevin, One Day, Midnight in Paris, 30 Minutes or Less, Take Me Home Tonight, Take Shelter