In my time, some have called me a Movie Buff. Some have called me a No You're Not A Movie Buff. Regardless, I love movies. They're one of my three favorite forms of media (novels and video games probably fill the other slots). I live on IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes. As such, I'm pleased to have viewed twenty-one films so far that were released in the good year 2012. Of these, I present to you my top ten. Unlike my Top 10 Books of the Year list, these are not culled from all the movies I have seen this year, but all the movies I've seen that were released in 2012. I have no idea what all the movies I watched this year are.
So, without further ado... some preliminaries.
Movies I have not seen that may have figured into my list:
Lincoln, The Master, Seven Psychopaths, Prometheus, Paranorman, Les Misérables, Cloud Atlas, Life of Pi, Killing Them Softly, Dredd, Zero Dark Thirty, Argo, Coriolanus, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Arbitrage, A Late Quartet, Silver Linings Playbook, Hitchcock,
Honorable Mentions
Ruby Sparks - A romantic comedy from the creators of Little Miss Sunshine. Why haven't more people been talking about this movie? A story about a writer whose dream-girl-protagonist comes to life that ends up asking serious questions rather than descending into whimsy and irresponsible wish fulfillment. Being someone who writes, I was alternately very sympathetic and kind of annoyed by this movie, but it's funny, and the climax is chilling in the best kind of way.
The Bourne Legacy - This is an above average action movie. This is a below average Bourne movie.
Premium Rush - Joseph Gordon-Levitt wins the prize for the most represented actor on my list. Well-deserved, too: his manic, relentless, endearing energy carries this surprisingly entertaining action film about an urban bicycle delivery service... with danger! And the Chinese mob or something. Bonus points for having a Jack White song on the soundtrack.
The Raid: Redemption - This is a tight Japanese film about a SWAT team attempting to raid a tenement infested with a mobster and his cronies. Guns and Kung Fuuuuuuu!
Conspicuously Absent
(I won't call these dishonorable mentions because I can't say as these movies were bad... I enjoyed them all to some extent. They're just mildly disappointing films that people might have expected to see in my top 10.)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - I enjoyed watching The Hobbit. It was a good fantasy movie, and I relished the return to Middle Earth. But it didn't stack up to LOTR, although I admit it isn't a fair comparison. My main issue is that, although I appreciate the sentiment behind including the extra material to stretch this saga to three lengthy movies, the narrative would have been better without the added content.
The Hunger Games - Where was the hunger? Everything this adaptation did right was balanced by something it didn't. I watched it at midnight in the front row of a movie theater and Peeta's neck resembled a tree trunk.
The Amazing Spider-Man - I'm upset at this movie. Not because it was bad, but because it was blasé. The casting was good and the effects were good, but the plot had no movement and the characters were flat. I miss the heart of the first two Spider-Man movies.
Brave - For the first time, Pixar has disappointed me (I have not seen the Cars movies). Again, not bad for an animated "children's movie"--but Pixar's films have always managed to be so much more than that. The plot of Brave was a screwball series of stereotypes that often amused me, but never made me feel invested.
Now... the list.
10. Skyfall / The Grey
Yeah, I know, one number into the list and I'm already cheating. Before you say that having a tie for my number 10 spot actually means this is a list of Top 11 Movies of the Year, let me explain that you should just be quiet about it.
I couldn't cut either of these in good conscience, and I'm equating them in my mind because they're both perfect examples of not particularly inventive films that manage to hit the sweet spot in their chosen genre. For Skyfall it's the action movie, and for The Grey it's survival horror. The tropes are all there, but within them are piles of quality storytelling.
In my estimation, Skyfall is the argument for why Bond films are still being made. The clever meta-narrative tracks Bond's struggles with his own aging body and the threatened obsolescence of his line of work. These themes thrust M center stage, allowing Dame Judi Dench to steal the show with a powerhouse performance. Speaking of powerhouse performances... Javier Bardem is downright sinister. And delightful. The action was good, but I loved Skyfall for the care put into the themes and characters--not always a focus of the franchise, though it should be.
Meanwhile, Liam Neeson quietly delivers a super underrated performance in this chilling (no pun intended, but actually, there's a lot of snow in this movie) journey of survival. The filmmaking here is really top notch. I thought I'd be bored with the premise after a while, but the characterization, suspense, and masterful camerawork grip you like a canine's mandibles.
9. The Dark Knight Rises
I know. The Dark Knight Rises is only number 9 on his list? This is Ryan Rebel's blog, isn't it? Didn't he write a big old blog post about how excited he was for this movie, a post that was so long I didn't really read it? The answer on all counts is yes. See: The Dark Knight Rises.
I know. The Dark Knight Rises is only number 9 on his list? This is Ryan Rebel's blog, isn't it? Didn't he write a big old blog post about how excited he was for this movie, a post that was so long I didn't really read it? The answer on all counts is yes. See: The Dark Knight Rises.
I've talked to people who thought this movie was nothing special, and I've talked to people who put it on (almost) the same level as its Ledger-fueled predecessor. So this is a tricky film to talk about. Let me start by saying that I loved it, but I do think at the moment of this writing that I've seen eight better movies this year. I felt satisfied with the end of the trilogy. Bane was great, Alfred was sad, the action was often impressive, and the performances were fantastic. I especially liked the ways Nolan brought the narrative full-circle back to the images and themes of Batman Begins. TDKR drops so low on my top ten, however, because it's kind of messy in a way that The Dark Knight wasn't (or at least it didn't matter if it was). Loose threads crimp out here and there, and you have to dig to get to some of the gooey thematic goodness. It's not tight like clockwork, in the way that The Prestige was tight like clockwork. And that's okay, because Nolan never fails at providing Moments that stick with you over time.
8. Sinister
This is the scariest movie I have ever seen. I love horror; I watch frightening films with some regularity. Prior to this, The Exorcist was the movie that had scared me the most, and I still handled myself pretty well while watching that. But this movie... this movie...
This is the scariest movie I have ever seen. I love horror; I watch frightening films with some regularity. Prior to this, The Exorcist was the movie that had scared me the most, and I still handled myself pretty well while watching that. But this movie... this movie...
It's also the first horror movie I've ever seen in a movie theater, which may have had something to do with it. Sinister isn't perfect. The characters are okay, and the plot isn't original by any stretch. But that doesn't matter, because when the main character is creeping through his house towards the haunting sounds of a movie projector that turned itself on in the middle of the night, your mind isn't processing anything but sheer terror. If I had to describe the strength of this movie in one word, it would be: Sound. I've never encountered a more effective use of background noise and music for scaring the bejeezus out of an audience. That, combined with the thematic intrigue of images and reproductions, make Sinister top just about any other effort I've seen from the horror genre.
7. Moonrise Kingdom
Wes Anderson's latest endeavor is one of his greatest endeavors. There's a magic about this movie that cannot be described. A fantastic cast comes together to weave a sort of fairy tale with a bite. Anderson's universe is fully realized and unflinchingly unique. I was enchanted, drawn in, and I totally lost myself in this movie, from the self-aware score to the beautiful cinematography. Also, there are children whimsically doing near-fatal violence to each other. How often can you see that?
Wes Anderson's latest endeavor is one of his greatest endeavors. There's a magic about this movie that cannot be described. A fantastic cast comes together to weave a sort of fairy tale with a bite. Anderson's universe is fully realized and unflinchingly unique. I was enchanted, drawn in, and I totally lost myself in this movie, from the self-aware score to the beautiful cinematography. Also, there are children whimsically doing near-fatal violence to each other. How often can you see that?
6. Holy Motors
I don't really know what to say about this movie, other than that I don't really know what I watched, but I do really love it. This movie is French, and it is weird, but there are diamond mines buried in this abstract narrative. I feel the need to watch it at least once or twice more before I feel capable of conversing about it.
I don't really know what to say about this movie, other than that I don't really know what I watched, but I do really love it. This movie is French, and it is weird, but there are diamond mines buried in this abstract narrative. I feel the need to watch it at least once or twice more before I feel capable of conversing about it.
5. Chronicle
A fairly low-budget superhero origin story with original characters and actors I'd never heard of, I had no pre-conceptions about this found-footage film before I watched it. Thank goodness. From the opening scene, I was gripped and taken along for the ride. This isn't a flash-boom-bang ride of special effects and action setpieces. This is a ride of intensive character development and an exploration of the underpinnings of superhero fiction, and more generally, how we create ourselves. I've never had strong feelings about found-footage one way or the other (Blair Witch Project left me underwhelmed--I probably came late to the party), until this movie at least. Chronicle uses the found-footage premise to its full advantage, exploring what it means to place a camera between yourself and those around you. The characters and events feel more personal than they could have any other way. This film brims with a sense of discovery, and discovery has always been a combination of wonder and terror.
A fairly low-budget superhero origin story with original characters and actors I'd never heard of, I had no pre-conceptions about this found-footage film before I watched it. Thank goodness. From the opening scene, I was gripped and taken along for the ride. This isn't a flash-boom-bang ride of special effects and action setpieces. This is a ride of intensive character development and an exploration of the underpinnings of superhero fiction, and more generally, how we create ourselves. I've never had strong feelings about found-footage one way or the other (Blair Witch Project left me underwhelmed--I probably came late to the party), until this movie at least. Chronicle uses the found-footage premise to its full advantage, exploring what it means to place a camera between yourself and those around you. The characters and events feel more personal than they could have any other way. This film brims with a sense of discovery, and discovery has always been a combination of wonder and terror.
4. The Avengers
If you had told me a year or two ago that The Avengers would outrank The Dark Knight Rises on my list, I probably would have been surprised. I have the utmost faith in Christopher Nolan, but I had many concerns about The Avengers. Frankly, I thought bringing these disparate universes and characters together into a single functional film would be a herculean task. Now, a year or two later, the success of The Avengers seems like it should have been obvious and inevitable. That has nothing to do with the nature of a superhero team-up, and everything to do with the guiding hand of Joss Whedon.
If you had told me a year or two ago that The Avengers would outrank The Dark Knight Rises on my list, I probably would have been surprised. I have the utmost faith in Christopher Nolan, but I had many concerns about The Avengers. Frankly, I thought bringing these disparate universes and characters together into a single functional film would be a herculean task. Now, a year or two later, the success of The Avengers seems like it should have been obvious and inevitable. That has nothing to do with the nature of a superhero team-up, and everything to do with the guiding hand of Joss Whedon.
This movie did just about everything right. Eschewing the gritty, epic tone of The Dark Knight trilogy, The Avengers got the slam dunk when it comes to fun. That being said, it wouldn't have been half as fun without the strong characterization and development of all the superheroes involved. This movie understands storytelling, and the storytelling is done right. These characters live up to their larger-than-life descriptions, but only because they're imbued with real-people-problems. There are many reasons why the entire movie theater cheered multiple times over the course of this movie when I saw it, but they can be summed up as follows: The Avengers is good storytelling.
Also, RDJ. Quips galore.
3. The Cabin in the Woods
I'm about to say something that is not a coincidence: This is the second movie in a row that was directed by Joss Whedon. The Cabin in the Woods is a horror movie (starring Thor, aka Chris Hemsworth) that was actually filmed a few years ago but got caught up in some sort of red tape that delayed it for a few years. Frankly, although not nearly as scary as Sinister, this is the most inventive horror movie I have ever seen. Cabin deals in a whole different kind of horror--a creeping dread about the human condition.
I'm about to say something that is not a coincidence: This is the second movie in a row that was directed by Joss Whedon. The Cabin in the Woods is a horror movie (starring Thor, aka Chris Hemsworth) that was actually filmed a few years ago but got caught up in some sort of red tape that delayed it for a few years. Frankly, although not nearly as scary as Sinister, this is the most inventive horror movie I have ever seen. Cabin deals in a whole different kind of horror--a creeping dread about the human condition.
The first act catches you off-guard. You think you're encountering just another typical horror movie. A bunch of college-age kids go off to an abandoned cabin in the woods for a weekend, and things go wrong. But once you get into the second act, you realize you're seeing something completely new. A meta-commentary on those very horror tropes that you were prepared to suffer (or thrill) through once again. By the third act, you're experiencing one of the most jaw-dropping, head-twisting, hilarious, and disturbing critiques of why we watch horror in the first place, and what that says about us.
2. Django Unchained
Django. The "D" is silent.
Django. The "D" is silent.
1. Looper
Looper is how you do science fiction. More importantly, Looper is how you do good storytelling, period. An intricate, stylistic, and interesting fictional universe is just the beginning. The meat of this movie is the brilliant character dynamics and developments. Even the side characters, the ones who would have been practically inconsequential in most movies, were compelling. You rarely see such well-written female characters, especially in sci-fi, and you never see such a well-written child.
This movie got everything right. Score, acting, effects, pacing, camerawork, dialogue. Perhaps most impressive was the wide range of emotions this film wrung out of me. I'm not easily moved by art, but during Looper I felt horror, dread, sadness, wonder, and awe. To top it all off, this is a badass movie about time travel with fantastic action.
I dragged a group of friends along with me to see this in a movie theater. As the credits rolled, I surveyed their reactions. One was full-out crying, one would not leave his seat even as the rest of us were filing out, and a third informed me that my mouth had been hanging open for the entirety of the third act of the film. That's probably true, despite the fact that I'm normally a closed-mouth kind of person. I typically ingest my media with tight lips.
Hope you liked the list. See these movies, tell me what you think! Or tell me your own favorites. Or don't, fine, see what I care.
(I care.)
Looper is how you do science fiction. More importantly, Looper is how you do good storytelling, period. An intricate, stylistic, and interesting fictional universe is just the beginning. The meat of this movie is the brilliant character dynamics and developments. Even the side characters, the ones who would have been practically inconsequential in most movies, were compelling. You rarely see such well-written female characters, especially in sci-fi, and you never see such a well-written child.
This movie got everything right. Score, acting, effects, pacing, camerawork, dialogue. Perhaps most impressive was the wide range of emotions this film wrung out of me. I'm not easily moved by art, but during Looper I felt horror, dread, sadness, wonder, and awe. To top it all off, this is a badass movie about time travel with fantastic action.
I dragged a group of friends along with me to see this in a movie theater. As the credits rolled, I surveyed their reactions. One was full-out crying, one would not leave his seat even as the rest of us were filing out, and a third informed me that my mouth had been hanging open for the entirety of the third act of the film. That's probably true, despite the fact that I'm normally a closed-mouth kind of person. I typically ingest my media with tight lips.
Hope you liked the list. See these movies, tell me what you think! Or tell me your own favorites. Or don't, fine, see what I care.
(I care.)
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