Top 12 Movies of 2012

[dvdjunkie]

It's that time of the year and once again I think we need to look back at the Top movies of the year 2012. Now I caution you, these are just my opinions as to what belongs on the list, yours may be different, so I welcome any and all additions as to what you think should be in the Top Twelve of 2012.

1. Argo - Ben Affleck has finally won me over as a director and an actor, after "Gone Baby Gone" and "The Town". I used to think he was just another pretty boy in some pretty average movies. This one is at the top because of his direction and his acting.
The story is set in Iran during the 1979 hostage crisis as Affleck stages a daring rescue attempt of six American diplomats and disguise them as members of his movie crew. A very good movie, and if you haven't seen this one yet, put it at the top of your list.

2. Zero Dark Thirty - Academy Award-winning director Katherine Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) bring us the account of the search and ultimate killing of Osama Bin Laden by Seal Team Six. Regardless of how accurate this is, it is a truly remarkable film and is a must see for every person who calls himself a movie buff.

3. Marvel's The Avengers - Probably the most fun you will ever have in a movie that, under the wrong director, could have been disaster across the board. Under the direction of Joss Wheden he managed to corral all of the super egos associated with this team and give them each their own little story-within-a-story before turning them all loose to save the Earth from devastation.

4. Beasts of the Southern Wild - Among my favorite movies this year. A strangely cathartic movie experience about a girl named Hushpuppy living deep in Bayou country with her deathly-ill father fending for their well-being when a huge tsunami tears apart their Louisiana community. This film is partly fable, and partly a survival story that is dreamlike with emotional swells throughout. A very involving movie and another must see.

5. Life of Pi - Ang Lee's portrait of and magical tale about a boy and a Bengal tiger adrift on a life boat (based on the best-seller by Yann Martel).

6. Silver Linings Playbook - Director David O. Russel's emotional drama dissects another hopelessly dysfunctional family (after "The Fighter") with a captivating portrayal by Bradley Cooper at the core as a broken man dealing with bipolar and heartbreak. The film reminds us that we aren't always in control of the world we live in. If you haven't seen this one, make a point to see it as soon as possible.

7. Les Miserables - Not everything worked, but Tom Hooper's lush adaptation of the Broadway musical was rich, lush, thrilling and sometimes seeping with heartache. As the tortured mother-turned-prostitute Fantine, Anne Hathaway gives the best performance of her life. Look for this movie to nominated for a ton of Oscars.

8. The Dark Knight Rises - After setting the bar as high as he could with "The Dark Knight", Christopher Nolan reaches new heights with this, almost-three-hour-long trilogy-ending film. While not as consummate a movie as "Dark Knight", this film features some very great action scenes and gives Joseph Gordon-Levitt a chance to steal the show and give this film some heart.

9. Lincoln - Daniel Day-Lewis cements himself as one of this generations best actors with his performance of our 16th President of the United States. Steven Spielberg directs this sometimes overly-talkative story about our beloved President who strives to end the Civil War and end slavery. This film hits on all four cylinders, and delivers who could be the movie of the year.

10. Skyfall - Critics are calling this the best James Bond film since Goldfinger and I would have to agree with them. This film starts off with a bang and doesn't let up until almost 2 and a half hours later. Daniel Craig has found his niche as 007 and takes him to heights never before seen in the series. Adele's performance of the theme from "Skyfall" is very memorable and right up their with Shirley Bassey, Tina Turner and Matt Monroe with memorable theme songs.

11. The Sessions - A funny, intimate, life-affirming story about quadriplegic poet and journalist Mark O'Brien who, at age 38, seeks out a sex surrogate to help him lose his virginity. It's a thoroughly adult story, told with an unflinching, matter-of-fact way. Excellent performances all around and another on your must-see list.

12. Moonrise Kingdom Wes Anderson's wonderfully, quirky, most entertaining film yet. Lots of tears and laughter throughout this film. A definite must-see.

Honorable Mentions:

Looper
The Amazing Spiderman
The Hobbit, An Unexpected Journey
Safety Not Guaranteed
The Hunger Games

[Mooky]

Top 5:
1. Cloud Atlas
2. Life of Pi
3. The Hunger Games
4. Rise of the Guardians
5. Skyfall

Good:
1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
2. The Avengers
3. American Reunion
4. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted
5. Brave

Enjoyable / decent:
1. Snow White and the Huntsman
2. Mirror, Mirror
3. John Carter
4. Dark Shadows
5. Men in Black 3

Mediocrities:
1. The Dark Knight Rises
2. The Dictator
3. Wreck-It Ralph
4. Paranormal Activity 4

Bad:
1. The Amazing Spider-Man
2. Prometheus
3. Wrath of the Titans

Terrible:
1. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2
2. Resident Evil: Retribution
3. Piranha 3DD

[TheSequelOfDisney]

Here's my top 8:

1. Moonrise Kingdom
2. Cloud Atlas / Les Misérables
4. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
5. The Hunger Games
6. Lincoln
7. The Avengers
8. Brave

And, I still need to see Skyfall, Wreck-It Ralph, Django Unchained, Looper, Seeking A Friend for the End of the World, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Life of Pi, Argo, Pitch Perfect, Silver Linings Playbook, The Dark Knight Rises, and a lot of others.

[TheValentineBros]

My top 6 best movies.

6. The Hunger Games
5. Wreck-it Ralph
4. Ted
3. Lincoln
2. Skyfall
1. The Avengers

Now to my bottom 6.

6. A Thousand Words
5. Silent Hill 3D
4. The Oogieloves
3. Atlas Shrugged Part 2
2. Resident Evil: Retribution
1. The Devil Inside

[disneyboy20022]

1. The Avengers
2. The Dark Knight Rises
3. Wreck-It-Ralph
4. Lincoln
5. Amazing Spider-Man
6. Brave
7. The Hobbit
8. The Hunger Games
9. John Carter
10. The Lorax
11. Men in Black 3
12. Beauty & The Beast 3D

[PixarFan2006]

I only saw one movie in theaters; The Avengers. I did however watch The Hunger Games, Men in Black 3 and Brave on DVD/Blu-Ray (as well as parts of Dark Shadows) if that counts.


The Avengers (No other choice, apparently)
The Hunger Games
Brave
Men in Black 3
Dark Shadows


I know its a REALLY short list. I regret not going to more movies. The problem is I am never in the mood to go. I was really curious to see The Hobbit and Les Miserables (which I turned down going to yesterday with my family) but they were both pretty long movies. I was also interested in Lincoln, but that''s also out of the question.

[yamiiguy]

Cloud Atlas, Les Miserables, Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty etc. haven't been released here yet. So I'll just give a tentative top 5:

1. Amour

Michael Haneke rightly joined the double-Palme d'Or winner club with this study of love at its bitter end. French acting legends Jean-Louis Trintignant (And God Created Women, The Conformist, Three Colors: Red) and Emmanuelle Riva (Hiroshima mon amour) give performances that rank among the very best of the year. No doubt neither of them will win the Oscar and I hold out little hope they'll be nominated but if there were better performances this year or even this decade so far I'd like to see them.

2. Tabu

Portuguese director Miguel Gomes' latest film, named after the last by the great F.W. Murnau, is a magical, poetic two-part tale that begins in modern-day Lisbon and takes us back to colonial Africa.

3. Holy Motors

It feels like forever since the last Leos Carax film - the one-time wunderkind of French cinema has seemingly struggled to get funding after The Lovers on the Bridge failed to recoup its record breaking budget and the controversy surrounding Pola X which featured unsimulated sex. Well, he's back with one of the most enjoyable films of the year.

4. The Master

Paul Thomas Anderson's latest was certainly the most anticipated film of 2012 and it didn't disappoint. It may not quite have reached the dizzying heights of There Will Be Blood - the greatest American film of the past decade - but it didn't need to. Terrific performances all around - Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffmann and Amy Adams in particular. It may have received a lot of press for having its roots in the story of Scientology, but it's not about that - it's about control in general. Who does the title refer to? I suspect debate will be raging on about that for years to come.

5. Moonrise Kingdom

My review

[TheSequelOfDisney]

I saw Skyfall and really enjoyed it. Here's my new rankings:

1. Moonrise Kingdom
2. Cloud Atlas / Les Misérables
4. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
5. Skyfall
6. The Hunger Games
7. Lincoln
8. The Avengers
9. Brave

And, I still need to see Wreck-It Ralph, Django Unchained, Looper, Seeking A Friend for the End of the World, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Life of Pi, Argo, Pitch Perfect, Silver Linings Playbook, The Dark Knight Rises, and a lot of others.