And What Didn't Make the 2012 List

When I write my Top Ten lists, I also write a companion piece every year to discuss some of the other major films that got big buzz from the critics and awards folks, in order to give some context to my own choices and provide a sense of where and how my opinions diverged. I wish more critics would do this, as I find this type of analysis piece helpful when working out how I feel about my choices. Anyway, I will not be discussing films that appeared among my honorable mentions, such as "Beasts of the Southern Wild" and "Life of Pi," or films that I couldn't find anyone really getting behind, like "The Hobbit" and "Promised Land."

I want to emphasize right up front that I thought 2012 was a very good year for film, and I had plenty of other contenders in the mix that I'm sorry I couldn't find a spot for, including "Your Sister's Sister," "Safety Not Guaranteed," "The Deep Blue Sea," "Take This Waltz," "Sister," "The Sessions," "Smashed," "Killing Me Softly," and "Searching for Sugar Man." With the exception of "Sugar Man," these films didn't get any attention during awards season. The Oscars had some very strong contenders this year, including some completely unexpected left field picks I was very grateful for, but I still can't help thinking that they could have done a little better.

Let's start with "Argo," which was a well made caper film, but hampered by a couple of egregious examples of taking artistic license and Ben Affleck's decision to cast himself as the lead. It deserves praise for its evenhanded approach to the material and its ability to build up some terrific tension, but it didn't entertain or move or provoke me nearly as much as some of the other nominees. "Les Misérables" got many things right, but I found the direction sorely lacking. "Django Unchained" was a fun ride, but felt like such a typical Quentin Tarantino picture, and not in a good way. Still, I'm a little confounded at why Leo and Sam Jackson's performances got overlooked.

"Silver Linings Playbook" was a good romantic comedy, but I think the sorry state of the romantic comedy genre made this seem better than it actually was. "Amour" is the kind of film I like to see getting more attention from the American mainstream, but this particular end-of-life tale from Michael Haneke was just too cold for me to embrace wholeheartedly. "Flight" may have had one of Denzel Washington's better recent performances, but it was a mess of a film. It's nice to have Robert Zemeckis working in live action again, but he's clearly out of practice. I liked "Moonrise Kingdom" more than most of Wes Anderson's recent output, but I didn't like it enough to seriously consider putting on the list.

Big blockbusters got a lot of support from various corners this year, particularly "Skyfall," the latest James Bond movie. While I agree that this was the best Bond I've seen in a while, I found it more impressive for its parts than its whole, for the inner workings as opposed to its intended effect. "The Avengers" was a similar case. Joss Whedon made about the best version of this movie possible, and I enjoyed it, but it didn't offer me anything new beyond the expanded scope of the action spectacle. Finally, there was "The Dark Knight Rises," which I had a lot of trouble with. Lots of good ideas and concepts, but not so good execution.

I find my taste in foreign films is often wildly inconsistent with the tastes of the major critics, which is fine. I didn't connect with "Oslo, August 31st," the Norwegian drama about a recovering drug addict. "Tabu" was a mystifying experience. I've read several synopses and reviews that told me what I was supposed to be seeing, but I still can't reconcile any of it with what I actually saw. "Kon-Tiki" was a bore, and made me wish I was watching the documentary that was filmed about the voyage instead of the dramatization. Then there was the romance "Rust and Bone," which had its moments but was really contrived as hell.

Finally, I want to highlight a couple of very uneven films that had some great moments. "Cloud Atlas" was an impossible project that it's a miracle even exists. There are parts of it that I adore, but there are other parts of it that literally make me cringe just to think about. Whatever else you want to say about it, "Cloud Atlas" is certainly one of the most interesting and ambitious films of 2012, for good or bad. I also have a lot of admiration for the tidal wave sequences in "The Impossible," many of the performances in "Lawless," and the utterly gorgeous production design of "Anna Karenina."

And now I'm done with 2012. Onwards to 2013.
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