Joshua Ligairi » 1.12.13 »
I didn't make a list of my favorite films from last year, and I almost skipped this year as well, because I have been so busy at work that I didn't see as many as I'd have liked. But, I had to create a Top 10 for Movie Podcast Weekly's end of year show, so most of the work was done at that point and I decided to just go ahead with what I've seen. And I'm glad I did because this was actually a terrific year for film in my opinion. As usual, I don't like to break my choices down numerically, so you'll find them categorized in my own way below. If you prefer a more traditional list, check out Movie Podcast Weekly 13 where I list my Top 10 of 2012 along with the MPW hosts and special guest Dave Becker, from DVDInfatuation.com (aka Dr. Shock!!!). Just FYI, I have been able to see a few more films since then and my list morphed a bit before this posting.
Excellent (2012) These were my favorite films of the year.
Amour . Anna Karinina . Big Boys Gone Bananas . Bully . A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan . The Imposter . The Master . Moonrise Kingdom . Django Unchained . Lawless . On the Ice . Once Upon a Time in Anatolia . Take This Waltz . Sinister . Take Shelter . Zero Dark Thirty
Very Good (2012) These films were also extremely enjoyable.
Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry . The Ambassador . Argo . Bernie . The Central Park Five . Chasing Ice . China Heavyweight . Contagion . Detropia . Exporting Raymond . Frankenweenie . Get the Gringo . The Girl . The Grey . Indie Game: The Movie . The Invisible War . Jeff Who Lives at Home . Jiro Dreams of Sushi . Lincoln . Magic Mike . Martha Marcy May Marlene . Promised Land . Prometheus . Queen of Versailles . The Raid: Redemption . Robot and Frank . Safe House . Samsara . Sleepwalk with Me . Tchoupitoulas . This is 40 . This is Not a Film . To Rome with Love . West of Memphis
Above Average (2012) These were solid movies that are better than most of the crap out there.
The American Scream . Beasts of the Southern Wild . Bones Brigade: An Autobiography . Damsels in Distress, Dark Knight Rises, The Do-Deca-Pentathlon . End of Watch . Fat Kid Rules the World . For the Greater Glory . GLOW . Haywire . How to Survive a Plague . The Inkeepers . Killer Joe . Only the Young . Paranorman . Rust And Bone . Searching For Sugarman . Silent House . Sound of My Voice . Your Sister's Sister
Didn't See It (2012) I will not be held accountable for these omissions.
Arbitage . Avengers . Best Exotic Marigold Hotel . Bourne Legacy . Brave . Chronicle . Cloud Atlas . Dredd . Expendables 2 . Flight . The Hobbit . The Impossible . Keep the Lights On . Killing Them Softly . Les Miserables . Life of Pi . Middle of Nowhere . Not Fade Away . Perks of Being a Wallflower . Ruby Sparks . Salmon Fishing in the Yemen . The Sessions . Seven Psychopaths . Silver Linings Playbook . Skyfall . Taken 2 . Total Recall
Biggest Disappointments (2012) I didn't like these nearly as much as I wanted to.
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter . The Amazing Spiderman . Cabin In the Woods . Hitchcock . Hyde Park on Hudson . John Carter . Looper . Safety Not Guaranteed . V/H/S . The Watch
Most Overrated (2012) I didn't like these as much as you did.
21 Jump Street . 2016: Obama's America . Holy Motors . Hunger Games . The Loneliest Planet . Ted
Most Anticipated (2013) The films I'm already looking forward to this year.
12 Years a Slave . The ABCs of Death, The Act of Killing . Ain't Them Bodies Saints . Anchorman 2 . Austenland . A Band Called Death . Before Midnight . Berberian Sound Studio . Black Fish . Black Rock . The Bling Ring . Blue Jasmine . Byzantium . Computer Chess . Dark Skies . Delivery Man . Frances Ha . Fruitvale Station . Gangster Squad . Gasland 2 . Ginger and Rosa . Gravity . The Great Gatsby . A Hijacking . Hell Baby . The Iceman . I'm So Excited . In a World . The Incredible Burt Wonderstone . Kiss of the Damned . Leviathan . The Lone Ranger . Lone Survivor . Much Ado About Nothing . Mud . No Place On Earth . Now You See Me . Oblivion . Only God Forgives . The Place Beyond the Pines . The Kings of Summer . Kon Tiki . The Lords of Salem . No . Prince Avalanche . Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer . Room 237 . The Sapphires . The Secret Life of Walter Mitty . Sightseers . Spring Breakers . Stoker . Stories We Tell . Sun Don't Shine . This is the End . to the Wonder . Touchy Feely . Trance . Upstream Color . V/H/S/2 . The Way, Way Back . We Steal Secrets . The Wolf of Wall Street . The World's End . World War Z
