My Favorite Movies of 2012

By the time this post goes live, it will almost be midnight on December 31, 2012. It was a pretty great year for movies that I saw for the first time this year, with 26 movies receiving at least the coveted Stegmaier 4 Stars (out of 5) and 11 movies receiving ratings of at least 4.5 out of 5. Below are the best of the best.

9. Moonrise Kingdom: This movie gets to the heart of the child in all of us.

8. Argo: I rarely watch or enjoy historical dramas, but this movie was gripping from start to finish. And the hair was awesome.

7. Looper: A brilliant, original script. The only thing holding this movie back was the terrible makeup job on Joseph Gordon-Levitt to make him look more like Bruce Willis.

6. The Avengers: I will watch this movie for the second time in a few days. Sure, it has little glitches here and there, but overall it’s a sheer force of entertainment.

5. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey: Somehow this movie caught me off guard with how good it was. I don’t think I realized how much I missed Middle Earth. I can’t wait to return again.

4. Warrior: This movie came out of nowhere and blew me out of the water. I was sobbing in the final scene. Sobbing. There are cliches in the movie, but somehow they work. I would say that this is the best boxing movie ever made (technically it’s mixed martial arts, but that’s a relatively small part of the movie).

3. The Cabin in the Woods: I don’t like scary movies, but this movie made me understand and appreciate them. Don’t read a word about this movie–just rent it and watch it.

2. Silver Linings Playbook: I would have loved this movie even if Jennifer Lawerence didn’t look fantastic in yoga pants. But that special bonus drove it up to #2.

1. Rise of the Planet of the Apes: I’m a little disappointed that my top movie of 2012 was actually a hit film in 2011, but thus is life. This is an amazing movie. It resonates on every level: emotionally, intellectually, entertainingly, etc. You might have preconceptions about what this movie is, especially if you’ve seen previous “Planet of the Apes” movies, but put those aside and watch this movie. Especially if you have kids or pets.

Agree? Disagree? Thoughts?

5 thoughts on “My Favorite Movies of 2012”

  1. You have some good choices. There are still a lot of movies I want to see but haven’t (Argo, Lincoln, Looper, Skyfall, just to name a few), but I’d say some of my top picks of 2012 were (in no particular order):

    The Descendants
    Martha Marcy May Marlene
    Take Shelter
    The Avengers
    Silver Linings Playbook
    The Sessions
    Flight
    The Grey
    In Bruges (my one from your Reader’s Choice list)

    I don’t think Rise of the Planet of the Apes would have ever even dawned on me to watch–I’ll have to give it a second thought now!

    Reply
    • I’ve seen a lot of Top 10 lists include The Grey, but for some reason I can’t get excited about it. What makes it worth seeing?

      I was surprised that Rise of the Planet of the Apes was even made into a movie. I was like, who’s going to watch that? Aside from the dumb title, it’s a remarkable movie. It has a great mix of tender moments, relationships, and action.

      Reply
      • Ummm, it’s Liam Neeson. Fighting wolves. What more do you need to know?!

        I’ll allow that the first 20 minutes may not be the most thrilling, but stick with it. There were times when I shook my head at some of the things that happened, but I was still totally invested in the journey. It’s not some great piece of art or anything, but it’s a fun popcorn flick with some touching moments. I think it’s streaming on Netflix now for anyone that has that.

        Reply
  2. I will second “The Cabin in the Woods.” I’m not a huge fan of horror movies either but it was fantastic. I spoiled myself and read about it first though, which I probably shouldn’t have done. Still great though.

    Reply

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