1. Silver Linings
Playbook
2. Beasts of the
Southern Wild – A word you’ll see appear numerous times throughout this
list; important. Beasts is an
important film. It feels like you are watching a documentary. The acting
doesn’t feel like acting, the cinematography captures the beautiful ugliness of
bayou nature, and the music is achingly pretty. But the importance is in the story:
this is a film about what is essential in life. It is about making do without
material possessions, about sticking with family, about loving, caring for and
assisting one another, about being in touch with nature. It’s a film about
positivity in a business that often lacks such.
3. Magic Mike – I
expected to like this film by Steven Soderbergh, but I did not expect to love
it. There was so much more to this story, which was less about male-stripping itself
and more about how two young men react differently to the world of
stripping. One yearns for something new, to grow out of the stripping business
and start the next chapter of his life, and the other is in need of a change
and quickly gets sucked into the deep end of the business. As The Social Network was about Facebook as
it was about friendship, Magic Mike is
about male-stripping as it is about our struggle to mature.
4. The Perks of Being a
Wallflower
5. Jeff, Who Lives at
Home – Another one of those important films that, despite featuring a very
recognizable cast, has a documentary feel. The wonderfully talented Duplass
brothers were behind this story about a lazy do-gooder who begins his day with
the idea that something life-changing will happen to him, and its
overwhelmingly positive nature was incredibly refreshing (see: Silver Linings Playbook, Beasts of the
Southern Wild, etc.).
6. Django Unchained
7. Looper
8. Skyfall
9. Safety Not Guaranteed
– This is yet another relatively small film featured on my list that, too,
has an important message and a positive heart. It’s all about trusting your
instincts and putting faith into something that others scoff at. And what a
cast! Jake Johnson, Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass…
10. The Dark Knight Rises
Rather than making this a simple Top 20 of the year, I
trimmed it down and added an extra list of the ten best runners-up of 2012.
This is that list, in no particular order:
Argo
21 Jump Street
Moonrise Kingdom
Cabin in the Woods
Brave
Damsels in Distress
The Avengers
Lincoln
Lawless
Sleepwalk With Me
If you have any comments or questions, feel free to comment below. And if anybody wonders why we left Zero Dark Thirty out, ask us.
--
Adam: Well, the time has finally come. I’ve been working hard on these lists all year, and somehow I still don’t feel as though they’re quite right (mostly because trying to compare Wreck-It Ralph to The Dark Knight Rises to Les Miserables is difficult since they are such different films), but here they are: my two lists compiling my Top 20 Best Films of 2012 and my Top 20 Favorite Films of 2012.
Before I post them, however, I’d like to explain the
difference between “Best” and “Favorite” lists:
My “Best” list is comprised of ranked films judged by their
artistic cinematic achievements as a whole with little to no regard for my own
personal tastes. Naturally, because I made the list, my tastes were taken into
consideration, but this list is from as neutral of a critical eye as possible.
These were the films I thought excelled in writing, cinematography, directing,
editing, etc. If you look at this list and are confused as to why certain
things are ranked as they are, try to see them from a critical standpoint, and
more specifically from a critic who places much value on films that take risks
or try new things over things that have been done many times in the past. This
reasoning is why Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, and Les Miserables are not on that list, but
Wreck-It Ralph, Cloud Atlas, and Ted are.
Lincoln didn’t bring anything new to
the table, and neither did Les Mis
(besides the awesome “live singing” aspect of it). Zero Dark Thirty was just an overlong revenge tale (Kill Bill did it better). It’s not that
they weren’t great films, because they are. They just didn’t stand out to me as
anything new or original this year.
The “Favorite” list, on the other hand, is completely my own
personal taste. These were the films that made me think in a new way, struck a
chord in me personally, or that I simply enjoyed watching and will add to my personal
collection. For instance, Ted is by
no means a better film than Silver
Linings Playbook. No offense to Seth McFarlane or his massive fan base (to
which I absolutely belong), but from a critical standpoint, Silver Linings Playbook is a far better
film than Ted. So why did Ted rank above Silver Linings on this list? Because I enjoyed watching Ted more than Silver Linings, and I’m more likely to own and watch Ted again when the mood strikes me
(unless I’m on a David O. Russell kick or something). The same goes for every
film above Silver Linings on that
list; even though Silver Linings Playbook
is the best film of the year, it wasn’t the one I enjoyed watching the most.
Make sense? Awesome.
Obviously many films are on both lists as I tend to enjoy
well-made films in general, but there are some major differences in the two as
well. (I also included five runner-runner-ups to my “Favorites” list because
they were worth mentioning.)
If you would like further explanation on anything regarding
these lists (or you just want to call me a pretentious douchebag…actually,
please don’t do that), feel free to comment, message, or email me.
Okay, enough cinephilic jibber-jabber. Here are my two
lists.
ADAM’S TOP 20 BEST FILMS OF 2012:
1. Silver Linings
Playbook – A beautiful, yet real and heart-wrenching, look at where we are
now as a society, and as human beings.
2. Cloud Atlas –
An epic braid of stories, an epic message of love and human connection, and an
epic run-time. I didn’t think they could pull it off, but they did.
3. Seven Psychopaths
– This dark comedy about making movies is smarter than almost anything I saw
this year; a completely overlooked work of genius.
4. The Hobbit: An
Unexpected Journey – Peter Jackson’s Lord
of the Rings trilogy is among my favorite films of all time. This first
step out our front door was no disappointment in the slightest. Not to mention
its bold move of being filmed in 48fps.
5. Moonrise Kingdom –
Arguably Wes Anderson’s best film, though I’m still attached to The Royal Tennenbaums.
6. Brave – This
was probably the most misunderstood of all of Pixar’s efforts, and one of the
most visually breathtaking pieces of computer-generated animation ever made.
7. Safety Not
Guaranteed – This one caught me off guard. Who knew a time travel love
story could be so heartfelt when taken seriously? Well, this brilliant cast
certainly did.
8. This Is 40 –
Judd Apatow yet again masterfully captures the humor and crushing sadness
(often simultaneously) of human relationships. So naturally almost everybody
hated it.
9. The Cabin in the
Woods – A brilliant satire of the horror genre and one of the most
entertaining films of the year. I would love to teach a class on this film.
10. Wreck-It Ralph
– This little gem could have been another forgettable CGI moneymaker, but with
its adorable and pure-intentioned story, as well as its immersive digital
world, I can honestly say Wreck-It Ralph is one of the best (and one of my
favorite) films of the year. Not to mention, the “Paperman” short that preceded
it was one of the most beautiful pieces of animation I’ve ever seen in my
entire life.
-- RUNNER UPS --
11. Jeff, Who Lives At
Home – This is the definition of “pure-intentioned film.”
12. Looper – Time
travel done right.
13. Django Unchained
– The usual Tarantino fare: long, violent, and cinematography that would make
any cinephile drool.
14. Ruby Sparks –
I might be biased, but a writer whose character comes into the real world (and
done better than Stranger Than Fiction)
is a winner in my book.
15. Celeste + Jesse
Forever – A realistic look at getting over a failed relationship.
16. Sleepwalk With Me
– Mike Birbiglia is a genius. Period.
17. Frank & Robot
– An old man and a robot robbing people? And it’s a heartfelt dramedy? Count me
in.
18. Skyfall – The
best Bond film ever…from a guy who has only seen four of them.
19. Ted – Seth
McFarlane needs to make more movies. His signature vulgarity coats a story of
friendship and a smart societal statement.
20. The Grey – An
unexpected thinker with the unfeeling cold of Winter and death.
ADAM’S TOP 20 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2012:
1. The Hobbit: An
Unexpected Journey
2. Cloud Atlas
3. Brave
4. Safety Not
Guaranteed
5. Wreck-It Ralph
6. This Is 40
7. Seven Psychopaths
8. The Cabin in the
Woods
9. Moonrise Kingdom
10. Jeff, Who Lives At
Home
-- RUNNER UPS --
11. Ruby Sparks
12. Looper
13. The Dark Knight
Rises
14. Django Unchained
15. ParaNorman
16. Ted
17. Silver Linings
Playbook
18. Celeste + Jesse
Forever
19. Les Miserables
20. Skyfall
-- RUNNER-RUNNER-UPS --
The Watch
Sinister
Lawless
The Grey
21 Jump Street
Again, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to ask!
Once again, Norbit has been snubbed.
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