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Number 3 - The Avengers

Watching The Avengers was the most pure fun I had at the movies this year. Joss Whedon and company did everything just right.

For me, the only real misstep is something they legally couldn't avoid. We have an invasion by the Skrulls, but they couldn't use the Skrulls because they are owned by Fox along with the Fantastic Four movies. If those movies were even decent, I would understand a bit.So the aliens end up being rather generic. One thing that does, though, is put the focus back on the Avengers themselves.

A critique of many superhero movies, especially the  Batman movies from the 90s, is the lack of the superhero. The biggest problem with Michael Keaton's Batman is that Batman wasn't in the movie enough for it to really be a Batman movie. With a team, it's easy to feature the team members. And therefore, The Avengers are actually in most of the movie called The Avengers.

The Avengers shows us that you can make a badass, fun, energetic superhero team movie. I went to see The Avengers a second time. This time, I decided to see it in 3D to see if it added to the action at all. Of course, it didn't. 3D adds nothing but sadness to the world. This probably wasn't the best movie to test this out on, though. The action was already easy to follow as it was. Though I bet a handheld shakycam would have made it more realistic, right?

The Avengers features one of my absolute favorite scenes of the year. There's the "don't blink" scene from The Master (and the only scene you need to see). The flood after the tsunami from The Impossible is burned into my brain. Riddles in the Dark from The Hobbit was absolutely perfect. And in The Avengers, I might have even seen it a second time just for my favorite scene. It is, of course, Loki versus The Hulk.

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Number 4 - Lincoln

I think that just about everyone who has seen Lincoln will agree to, the greatness of this movie comes down to one thing: Daniel Day-Lewis.

With many movies, you can't help but see the actor instead of the role. Every Tom Cruise movie is now like this. Or perhaps you don't see the actor, but their previous roles. This was a problem with almost everyone in Les Mis, but especially every time Gladiator tried to sing.

With Lincoln, you don't see Daniel Day-Lewis. You don't see Hawkeye or Bill "the Butcher." This is Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth president of the United States.

And even better, this isn't the Disneyland Main Street version, either. This is the "Just Folks" version. You know - the real guy. Somewhere, either Steven Spielberg or Day-Lewis has a time machine. They went back and talked to Lincoln. Either that, or they read some history and the opinions of historians.

It's truly an amazing movie, but there are a few flaws (and things that will keep it from being shown in classrooms.) The first is the length; it's too long. The pace is too slow, especially for students (this is the most common feedback I got from my students, to whom I offered extra credit for seeing this). It doesn't quite nail the landing. There is a great place where it could have ended the movie, but it tacked on (spoiler for those who failed eighth grade history) and ending of his death that didn't fit the tone of the movie. I loved ending with his second inaugural, as it bookends the movie with that and the Gettysburg Address. The last reason it won't be shown is Glory. We already have a great Civil War movie to show.

I will certainly how scenes. I think just about every one of them will feature Daniel Day-Lewis showing us exactly who Abraham Lincoln really was.

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Number 5 - Argo

Ben Affleck got a lot of crap during his Bennifer days. With Gigli, Pearl Harbor, and Armageddon, he probably deserved it (note - I never saw Gigli, so I feel bad for using that as a reference. I assumed it sucked).

I prefer to think about the Kevin Smith version of Affleck, especially Chasing Amy, and as well as his role in Good Will Hunting. As a director, The Town was great. I listed it at number 6. So he's gone up one spot, something I'm sure he'll be proud to learn.

People (not people I actually talk to, but just people) are still surprised that Affleck is so successful as a director. It's that Bennifer phase that they remember.

From a history point of view, I loved Argo and learning about this. Since it was just declassified a few years back, it's probably the first that a lot of people learned about it. Argo is a good enough movie that it will likely serve as the primary source to tell the story, much like Glory tells about the 54th Massachusetts. That means inaccuracies and all for both stories will continue.

I'm looking forward to Affleck's next movie making it up to number 4.

Luyten 726-8

Number 6 - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

First things first - it's too long. I have left plenty of movies off of the list for being shorter than that this. The Onion commented on the length better than I can. And yes, I have no idea how Peter Jackson is going to break the rest of the book into two movies. Here's a writer who commented on the extra stuff better than I can.

I really like the world that Jackson created with the Lord of the Rings movies, and I fell into that pretty easily. I love the way it looks and feels, and it was good to be back. I'm looking forward to the next movie.

Why did it make the list? Really, one scene. The "Riddles in the Dark" scene with Gollum was perfect. It's the scene I remembered best from the book.

I saw this in 48FPS. I wanted to see it in 2D at 48FPS, but that wasn't an option. I will say that this 3D was probably the best I have seen.Also, it wasn't as dark as some 3D I've seen. The screen was nice and bright even with the glasses. But still, the 3D was unnecessary.It added nothing to the movie, just like every other 3D movie ever.

The 48FPS is smoother, but supposedly disorienting to some.The only time I really noticed anthing "wrong" was at the very beginning. There's a close up shot of Bilbo's hands quckly reaching into a boc. It seemed to move too quickly. Other than that, the action all looked great. Panning was smooth. Then again, I'm not a film purist who wants to see film grain. I never felt like what I was watching was "too realistic," as some have also complained about. I'm not too sure what that means. I've considered a second viewing to watch in 2D to compare, but just haven't around to it. 

If The Hobbit trilogy follows the pattern of the LOTR movies, they'll only get better.

Ross 154 (V1216 Sagittarii)

Number 7 - Robot & Frank

This is a cool little movie. Frank, played by Frank Langella, gets a caretaker robot. It's the futuristic version of the helper monkey.

Much of the movie is about the robot and Frank trying to get along with each other. It's a sort of an odd couple buddy movie. But Frank is also a retired cat burglar. It's also a heist movie. Frank is also suffering from dementia, so it's a drama.

Robot & Frank is the kind of movie that makes me really enjoy independent movies and appreciate the Cinéarts theater so close to me. And I wish many of you nearby would check it out more often. My number two movie is one that was playing there for a long time, but I don't think very many of you (if any) saw that one either.

Ross 248 (HH Andromedae)

Number 8 - The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I don't know if I've really disliked a trailer and then enjoyed a film as much since Fight Club.

After viewing the trailer for The Perks of Being a Wallflower many times, I was prepared to hate this movie. In the trailer, I really disliked two parts, both closely related.In the first, Ezra Miller is seemingly sarcastically rooting for his high school football team. In the second, he and Emma Watson are celebrating his C minus grade and declaring him to be "below average."

In addition, I was concerned with the lead actors. Logan Lerman is dull. He lacks charm. The only other movie I had seen with Ezra Miller was We Need to Talk About Kevin. He was creepy as shit in that movie, and his look makes him even creepier. And Emma Watson is, well, Hermione. 

When Perks received good reviews, I went for it. Once again, really low expectations probably helped. But the two scenes from the trailer that I hated were out of context.They didn't come across as Hollywood movie high school rebels within the movie. And then the three leads were really, really good. I don't want to say that this is a realistic display of high school. But then again, any movie that shows the reality of high school would be extremely boring and depressing.

I recently read the book. It's a really quick read, which actually makes it the right length for a movie.And the screenplay was written and directed by the book's writer, Stephen Chbosky.That probably helped, as the movie is a very faithful adaptation.

It is a great movie? No. I can list at least ten movies that I saw this year that are better. But that's not what this list is about. I liked it quite a bit.

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Number 9 - Ted

Ted is the funniest movie of the year, and I think that earns it a spot at number nine.

A talking teddy bear movie is a tough sell. Make it a comedy? Even tougher. An adult comedy? That's where the potential comes in. It couldn't have worked any other way.

There was really just one thing that go me into the theater.Seth MacFarlane. Sometimes, The Family Guy is a damn funny show. I don't watch it regularly, but when I do I'm usually entertained.

Enjoy Ted for Flash Gordon and the thunder song.

Surprisingly enough, the talking teddy bear part is explained in a way that makes is, well, believable. Not the part about the teddy bear talking, but why this story can take place.

"No matter how big a splash you make in this world whether you're Corey Feldman, Frankie Muniz, Justin Bieber or a talking teddy bear, eventually, nobody gives a shit."

And that's a lesson we can all take to heart.

Epsilon Eridani

Number 10 - Cloud Atlas

I think Cloud Atlas is probably this year's Tree of Life. It moves through a great deal of time. It has different stories that may or may not be related. It's visually interesting. It's ambitious. It might make sense, but it probably doesn't. The difference is that I hated the Tree of Life and loved Cloud Atlas.

With that, I easily acknowledge that if you hated it, you might be right.

That's such a glowing recommendation, right? This is a movie that certainly needs multiple viewings to figure it out, or possibly reading the book. I haven't started it yet, though I have it ready in my book queue.

If you do decide to check it out, go into it ready to watch several different movies. Treat each storyline as if it's on its own. Spend some cerebral moments after the movie trying to figure out how it all fits together.

2012 Movies - Ineligible

There are two movies that I saw in the theaters that didn't qualify for my top ten list based on my own arbitrary rules. Basically, I can't count a previously released movie. The reason I have this rule became even more necessary this year. Without that list, these movies would easily be number one and two.

Raiders of the Lost Ark was rereleased in IMAX for a couple weekends. Even though I've probably seen it a dozen times, I'm was still surprised at how well it holds up. There's barely a slow moment. And that rolling rock in IMAX? Sweet. And a special thank you to all involved for keeping it in 2D.

Cinemark theaters have been showing rereleases regularly. Unfortunately, they're usually on Wednesday or Thursday evening. The only one of those I made it to this year was Singin' in the Rain.

This is actually the second time I've seen it in the theater. It's a great movie to watch with a crowd, as there are some really funny lines. Watch Donald O'Connor perform Make 'Em Laugh on a TV is awesome. Watching it on the big screen? Awesomer.

I'd really love to get out to a few more of these. Saturday Night Fever is showing on February 6. The Paramount is also a great place to watch a movie, and I would love to get to at least one movie showing there.

2012 Movies - Runners Up

Consider this #15-11, and pretty much in that order.

I think that they biggest negative about Beasts of the Southern Wild is the marketing. It suffered from the same problem as Pan's Labyrinth. Both movies are grounded deep in reality but have small elements of fantasy. And it's even smaller in Beasts, with maybe three minutes of time devoted to that. But both movies were marketed as fantasy movies. Even the poster to the left makes it look almost like a Disney movie.

While I greatly prefer Pan, and the similarities pretty much stop there, both movies are good enough to overcome that misconception. While writing about movies, I write a lot about how your attitude going into the movie can make or break the movie, so it sucks when movie makers start with that going against you. It's a really good movie that didn't get enough attention, so check it out. Don't be surprised when 9-year-old Quvenzhané Wallis get nominated for the Oscar.

Django Unchained is too long.  That's my first of two criticisms of this movie. Movies are getting to be too long, but I have several in my top ten that are too long. If it's entertaining enough, I'll look past it. Django is a lot of fun. Christophe Waltz is great.  The other three movies I've seen with him, The Green Hornet, Water for Elephants, and Carnage, I was fairly unimpressed. He has just the right cadence for Quentin Tarantino's dialogue

The second criticism might be misplaced. Tarantino is presenting Django Unchained, along with Inglourious Basterds, as revisionist history. To me, that should be - what if THESE characters were around then? What would change? But he changes some timeline facts that don't seem to be results of these characters. There's a version of the KKK before there was a KKK. That I'm OK with, I think, because it's not really stated to be the KKK.

But the movie starts with the subtitle telling us that this is 1858, two years before the Civil War. That's three years before the Civil War. I get to be picky about that.I can't buy any argument you might give that states that the events of this movie will lead to the Civil War starting a year earlier, or that if it's after April, the it's technically two years plus.

But I got over that quickly enough and enjoyed the movie. It's fun. Go see it.

The best documentary of the year is Searching for Sugar Man. This is a great story about musician Rodriguez, who achieved mild success in the early 1970s. He then disappears from the scene. Bootlegs of his music reach South Africa during Apartheid and become the soundtrack for a generation. That's all I want to give away. Go watch this one, because it's a great story.

Not only that, but it has the best songs of any movie this year (with apologies to Les Mis, of course) I was singing Sugar Man for days after seeing this. I don't think I had really heard any Rodriguez songs before this. They're catchy. Here's a few samples. (Don't read any comments due to spoilers. Actually, make that a general rule in your life when visiting youtube.)

Sugar Man
I Wonder
Crucify Your Mind

If you liked The Hurt Locker, you'll like Zero Dark Thirty. I felt exactly the same was I did when I saw it. It's fantastically good, extremely well acted, and has a great script. But it just wasn't made for me, so I can't put it in my top ten.

At this point, the only people who have seen it are critics (and people who live in Los Angeles, but they don't really count. As people, I mean). I'm curious to hear from others once it's released everywhere else.

One improvement is that the shitty shaky cam from Hurt is less shaky in Zero, but some shaky cam is never as good as no shaky cam.

At over 2 1/2 hours, it's too long. But the pace picks up as the movie goes on.

Thinking about the ending of this and the ending of Searching For Sugar Man, I realized that Zero Dark Thirty is the ultimate spoiler killer. You already know then ending. Its the rest that you might not know.

 I having trouble writing about The Impossible without resorting to cliche. You'll run the full gambit of emotions. You'll laugh. You'll cry. It's an amazing story because it's true. When the tsunami hits, you'll be on the edge of your seat. You'll feel like you're in the water with them. A nail biter.

But that's all true, but it works. It's a great movie. The tsunami scene, when they are being washed away in the water, is absolutely amazing. I literally was sitting up on my seat and biting my nails. There are images and thoughts you won't forget.

Check it out when The Impossible gets a wider release.

Tomorrow (a day late, but meh) I'll start the top ten.