The Best Films of 2012 | People's Critic: Film Reviews - seattlepi.com

2012 was a fantastic year in film. With a year full of breakout stars, amazing?performances, and sensational endings, here were a few of my favorite films.

10. Looper

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis teamed up in this sci fi thriller set in 2014. Hitmen, called ?Loopers?, work for the mob of the future that uses time travel to eliminate targets.? What makes Looper more than just a shoot em up action film is the deeper story involving Sara (Emily Blunt) and Cid (Pierce Gagnon). Even with the family?s side story, Looper is full of action. Seeing Bruce Willis shoot guns is a flashback to his early Die Hard days. ?Eye popping visual effects paired with trippy time travel made Looper the sci-fi treat of 2012. The movie also gave us The Rain Man, one of the best nicknames for villain in movie history ? sorry Pinhead.

9. The Raid: Redemption

This Indonesian martial arts film pits one man against a gang of psychopaths when he and his team get trapped in a high-rise during a raid. The Raid: Redemption strips away the CGI and cable tricks that have infiltrated martial arts movies the past ten years ? it?s all knuckles and boots to faces for 101 minutes. Raid?s a reminder that even the simplest story can turn into an amazing film if you have badass action, a fearless hero, and insane villains. The film?s climatic 2-on-1 fight scene shows exactly why Mad Dog is the smallest guy, but the biggest threat.

8. Your Sister?s Sister

When Emily Blunt?wasn?t?starring in time travel movies, she had time to churn out a few smaller films like Salmon Fishing in the Yemen and Your Sister?s Sister. In Your Sister?s Sister, Blunt plays Iris, a young woman trying to help her friend Jack (The League?s Mark Duplass) deal with the loss of his brother. She invites him to stay at their family?s cabin where he has a brief encounter with Iris?s sister Hannah. The three spend a weekend together that will reveal Jack?s not the only one dealing with issues. Your Sister?s Sister is beautifully written and directed by Lynn Shelton ? the multi-dimensional characters make for a?humorous?story that tugs at your heart strings.

7. Chronicle

A superhero origin story + found footage = one of the year?s most unique films. Andrew (Dane DeHaan), Matt (Alex Russell), and Steven (Michael B Jordan) find a foreign object that gives them superpowers. Like Uncle Ben told Peter, ?With great power comes great responsibility? ? well, somebody should?ve told Andrew that because he?s the proverbial bull in the china shop with his new found powers. It?s hard to find good young actors, but the three stars give great performances ? Michael B Jordan reminded everyone why they fell in love with him during the television series Friday Night Lights. Chronicle seemed to come out of nowhere and is a shockingly good story, entertaining, and poses the question ?What would you do??

6. Skyfall

Bond #23 is entertaining from ?007?s motorcycle chase, to the last fight scene, Skyfall is a riveting?roller coaster?ride that hits on all things Bond, old and new. Daniel Craig suits up for his third time as 007 and delivers another great performance with help from Javier Bardem?s and his dazzling performance as super villain Silva. Skyfall has the best opening scene/title sequence of 2012. A great chase scene plus Adele belting out ?Skyfall? was the perfect start to a Bond film. After all these years, they?re still able to keep the Bond franchise fresh by adding new blood like Cloud Atlas? Ben Whishaw as Q and Naomie Harris as Eve MoneyPenny. Skyfall is action, tears, laughs, and most of all, a lot of fun.

5. Perks of Being a Wallflower

One of the year?s best films came from a novel by writer/director Stephen Chobsky. The story of Charlie?s (Logan Lerman) awkward integration into high school is a trip in the time machine for anyone who?s ever been a freshman. Perks beautifully captures teenage angst and how we navigate the early years that shape us. Perks soundtrack that includes The Smith?s ?Asleep? and David Bowie?s ?Heroes? is the perfect background music to Charlie?s story. The film also has breakout performances from Logan Lerman, Ezra Miller, and a post Harry Potter Emma Watson.

4. Argo

It would be hard to imagine, ten years ago, Ben Affleck would be one of Hollywood?s best directors. The once laughable actor turned in an Oscar worthy film with Argo. Argo is the tale of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis where a group of Americans hide in a Canadian ambassador?s home until the CIA sends in one man for an extraction. The extraction plan? Pretend to be a Canadian movie crew on a location scout for a film called ?Argo?. The story is told through tense scenes in Iran and back in the CIA office during the 11^th hour of the extraction. The brilliance of Argo is its heart pounding third act that will have you on the edge of your seat, even though history books have already told us how it ends. That?s the sign of a good drama. Ben Affleck emerged from Argo as one of this generations best directors and a true visionary.

3. Django Unchained

This spaghetti western about a freed slave hell bent on freeing his wife wouldn?t be a Tarantino film without a little bit of controversy. It also wouldn?t be a Tarantino film without its great storytelling. Django is not the historic film Lincoln is, but a highly entertaining revenge film that hits on different emotions. The uncomfortable dialogue and in your face bigotry is the perfect tone for a film like Django. The film gives us an amazing performance from Jamie Foxx and our first look at Leonardo DiCaprio as a villain ? the evil plantation owner Calvin Candie. Someone needs to sign DiCaprio up for Bond 24.

2. The Dark Knight Rises

The finale of the Nolan/Bale Batman era was a bittersweet goodbye. Seven years after Christopher Nolan breathed new life into a dying franchise, Batman gave audiences one last epic battle before he said goodbye. The Dark Knight comes out of retirement to face off against a mad man named Bane (Tom Hardy) who plans to destroy Gotham. TDKR hits on a lot of notes, but none better than the relationship between Bruce (Christian Bale) and Alfred (Michael Caine). One of the best things about the Nolan trilogy is how Bruce/Alfred relationship has a different arc in each film ? Nolan saved the best arc for his last film. Tom Hardy?s physical transformation into Bane made everyone in Hollywood take notice. ?Joseph Gordon-Levitt steals the show with the film?s best performance and adds TDKR to his 2012 resume that includes Lincoln, Looper, and Premium Rush. ?The film?s ?Holy waterfall caves Batman? ending was every comic book nerds dream.

1. The Avengers

Can a movie be highly anticipated, a box office success, and one of the best films of the year? The short answer: Yes, Avengers. From the opening frame to Thanos post credit scene, Marvel?s The Avengers is the most entertaining film of the year. Joss Whedon did the impossible blending six heroes, five movies, and sibling rivalry into movie masterpiece. Avenger?s jaw dropping action sequences alone made it the best theater experience of 2012. What really kept the film afloat are the fantastic performances from Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Robert Downey Jr.?s witty one-liners, and Mark Ruffalo?s seamless integration into the Avengers team. Now if we could petition Marvel to let Joss Whedon would work on every film.

Honorable Mentions:

The Grey

The Hunger Games

Cabin in the Woods

Wreck-It Ralph

Life of Pi

End of Watch

People Like Us

Lincoln

Source: http://blog.seattlepi.com/peoplescritic/2012/12/30/the-best-films-of-2012/

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