13 February 2013
1. Django Unchained
Throwback director Quentin Tarantino’s latest historical-fiction epic was not only the best film of 2012, but also one of the most important films of the decade. Despite the accusations of racial insensitivity and exploitation of slavery, Django Unchained brought the issue of racism, which is still prevalent today, to the forefront and reminded Americans of what really happened here not even 200 years ago. And it managed to do so with all the Tarantinean dialogue and bloody violence we would expect, making for one of the best moviegoing experiences of the year.
2. Argo
After a couple of critical successes, actor-turned-director Ben Affleck hit the ace-in-the-hole with his Iranian-hostage thriller Argo. What makes Argo so undeniably good is the near-perfect execution by its superb cast and its concise direction. There is not a single weak performance from any of Argo‘s extensive supporting cast, nor are there any superfluous “filler” points within the two-hour runtime. Every frame has a purpose. Every plot point has an apparent significance. But most importantly, it’s a blast to watch the suspenseful recount unfold on the screen.
3. The Avengers
Five films in the making, Marvel’s The Avengers changed the superhero movie genre for the better, meshing together four distinct characters from their respective franchises into a two-and-a-half-hour epic. Director Joss Whedon delivered beyond all expectations with a witty, fast-paced script and laid the foundation for much larger, much more elaborate mythos. Not only was The Avengers one of the most satisfying films of 2012, but it also affirms the notion that “darker” doesn’t necessarily mean “better” (ahem The Dark Knight Rises ahem).
4. Silver Linings Playbook
What David O. Russell’s The Fighter did for the boxing movie, Silver Linings Playbook did for the romantic comedy. Russell once again proved that a film can adhere to a conventional formula and still evoke originality and freshness. Presented through the not-so-funny lens of mental illness, Silver Linings is a laugh-out-loud dramedy that invites the viewer to reflect on his or her own “mental illness,” for there is not a single character in the film who doesn’t have his or her own pathological slight. On top of that, Russell delivers one of the best directorial jobs of his career.
5. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Premiered at the 2012 Sundance film festival, first-time director Benh Zeitlin’s mystical Beasts of the Southern Wild wowed audiences with its imaginative story of a little girl named Hushpuppy, her spiritual connection with nature and her relationship with her hot-tempered father. What makes Beasts such a spectacle is the sheer originality of it. Never before has a world like “The Bathub” been depicted on film. Zeitlin’s ability to actualize his vision in this film is truly impressive and makes him one to watch in the coming years as a potential top-tier director.
6. Lincoln
Accomplished Hollywood director Steven Spielberg returned this year to deliver Lincoln, a film depicting the final stages of President Abraham Lincoln’s life and fight to abolish slavery in the United States. Spielberg successfully illustrates this in a masterful adaptation of a pivotal period in American history by bringing Lincoln’s struggles to the big screen. Lincoln is a highly mature and fascinating representation of a tense Civil War-era America.
7. Zero Dark Thirty
Coming off her brilliant film The Hurt Locker, Academy Award-winning director Kathryn Bigelow returns to the frontlines of the War on Terror with Zero Dark Thirty, a journalistic retelling of the painstaking hunt for Osama Bin Laden. Bigelow’s insightful film offers a non-politicized account and turns actress Jessica Chastain into the new “it girl” with the performance of a lifetime as the scrupulous Maya.
8. The Master
The Master is an odd film that just happens to be one of the year’s best. Paul Thomas Anderson’s enigmatic allegory of literal and ideological intoxication is a surreal experience. In fact, to call this film a “movie” would be a misnomer. The Master is more a screenshot of life than it is a structured, plot-driven film. Anderson filmed The Master in beautiful 65 mm, making the already larger-than-life personalities all the more impressionable.
9. The Raid: Redemption
The Raid first surfaced at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival, where it began to garner buzz of astronomical proportions. Fortunately, when The Raid (renamed The Raid: Redemption) was finally released in the States, it managed to top its unrealistically high buzz. Directed by Welshman Gareth Evans, The Raid: Redemption gave audiences a refreshing and just-plain-awesome action movie that we haven’t seen in a very long time.
10. Chronicle
One of the big surprises of 2012, Chronicle’s disturbingly prophetic tale of three teenagers’ struggle with telekinetic powers was one of the most satisfying “superhero” films in years. Up-and-coming star Dane DeHaan’s performance as the estranged Andrew Detmer enhances the film’s eerie depiction of what happens when a psychologically damaged individual finds his or herself with indefinite power. Even more unsettling, Chronicle managed to predate such tragedies as the Aurora theater massacre and the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting, making it a kind of cautionary tale.