2012 Movies: #27-1

Ref: Mulhern

Awww, it's okay, Mulhern. We appreciate your annual effort.

#27: Amour
With painfully long shots and an achingly realistic story, this matter-of-fact end-of-life examination flits near the territory of soul-crushingly depressing but manages a balance.

#26: Wreck-It Ralph
Very, very cute with a clever twist and great differentiation of the various video game worlds.

#25: The Avengers
This solid entertainment vehicle (although Loki was a bit hokey) boasted one of my favorite movie lines this year:
     Steve Rogers: Big man in a suit of armour. Take that off, what are you?
     Tony Stark: Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.

#24: Arbitrage
I was always waiting for yet another shoe to drop in this suspenseful business-life thriller.

#23: The Hunger Games
Less vicious than the novel (at least in what was shown), this was a great franchise launch.

#22: Life of Pi
Story sounded too brutal - although preview visuals were beautiful - so I didn't see it.

#21: 21 Jump Street
Fun overall, with a bit of excessive gross-out humor.

#20: The Five-Year Engagement
A humorous, realistic - hitting a bit too close to home for some - and ultimately lovely tale.

#19: The Dark Knight Rises
I don't remember much about this one, I must admit; Anne Hathaway was pretty good, as I recall.

#18: Lincoln
Very solid offering, with excellent storytelling, historical details (for example, the sound of Lincoln's pocket watch) and great acting.

#17: Les Miserables
Almost uniformly strong performances (I'm looking at you, Russell Crowe) anchor a visually intense saga.

#16: Shut Up and Play the Hits
I missed out on this one.

#15: Searching for Sugar Man
We were fortunate to stumble upon this documentary, which offered a saga unbelievable but for the fact that it's true.

#14: Bernie
Jack Black's creepy real-life character carries the film, as well he should.

#13: Your Sister's Sister
Unseen by me.

#12: The Hobbit
I missed this one and still have to track it down; in the meantime, I enjoyed its related SNL spoof.

#10: King Curling (tie)
With no expectations going in, I was thoroughly entertained by Truls Paulsen and his band of merry curling compatriots.

#10: Looper (tie)
More brutal than I expected it to be, but good nonetheless.

#9: Flight
Denzel is stellar as the pilot you love to hate.

#8: Brooklyn Castle
Didn't get to see this one.

#7: Zero Dark Thirty 
Intense, gritty and painful, this film was exceedingly well acted and gripping from beginning to end.

#6: Argo
A movie by turns touching and thrilling that holds up well on repeat viewing.

#5: Django Unchained
Come on - you didn't expect me to see this, did you?

#4: Beasts of the Southern Wild
A mystical yet realistic story set in a fantastical, untamed and, yes, wild American world.

#3: Moonrise Kingdom
While I enjoyed the Andersonian off-the-wall style and eccentric story, I must admit that I didn't actually finish watching the film.

#2: Silver Linings Playbook
I've been on the Bradley Cooper bandwagon for quite some time now, and with good reason - he and his costars are excellent in this take on the everyday beauty of the most mixed-up relationships.

#1: The Master
Yet another of Mulhern's number one films I didn't see!

Thanks for the whirlwind, M - see you in 2013!