John Michael Decker's Top Ten Films of 2012

It's time for my annual list of favorite movies from the past twelve months. I remind you all that I’m not a professional film critic – just a cinephile with some free time. I am a big geek and I expect that this article may be hyperbolic at times, but I’ve tried my best to keep a lid on it. As with anything, my opinions are subjective. Feel free to agree with me. Or disagree. Or name a movie that you think should have been on my list.

Exclusions

I have not seen Les Miserables, The Silver Linings Playbook, Moonrise Kingdom, Cloud Atlas, or The Life of Pi – all movies I’ve heard great things about – so if any of them were your favorites this year, then I'm sorry that they didn’t make my list.

Honorable Mentions

Before I get to the official list, I'd like to mention a few films that didn't quite make the cut this year. These flicks are fun and worth seeing, but there were at least ten other films I liked better.

Solomon Kane was technically released in Europe in 2009, but it only became available to American audiences this year. Solomon Kane is a pulp character created by Robert E. Howard (best known as the author of the Conan the Cimmerian adventures). To be honest, I prefer Howard’s Kane stories to his Conan tales. This movie is a pretty good origin story for Solomon Kane, the dour Puritan killing machine whose adventures take place in the Elizabethan era.

Dredd is the second movie adaptation of the popular British comic book series, Judge Dredd, which originally appeared in the magazine 2000 AD. The first was a lame Sylvester Stallone vehicle that came out in 1995; most fans of the comic book would be happy to forget that one. The 2012 version is a loyal adaptation of the source material starring Karl Urban as the stone-faced protagonist who upholds the law in the totalitarian Mega City One.

The Amazing Spider-Man is a decent origin story of the popular Marvel comic book character directed by the talented Marc Webb. My major problem with this film is that Sam Raimi already made a fantastic Spidey origin movie in 2002, and as far as I’m concerned, it didn’t need to be rebooted. That being said, if I remove the Raimi movie from the equation and just look at this film for what it is, I have to admit that I enjoyed it a lot. Andrew Garfield is a great Peter Parker/Spider-Man and Rhys Ifans is excellent as Dr. Curt Connors, who is transformed into the tragic villain, the Lizard. I also enjoyed Emma Stone as Peter’s love interest Gwen Stacy. Now with this second telling of the origin out of the way, I hope I can look forward to some great web-swinging sequels that cover material not already done better by Sam Raimi.

21 Jump Street is a film adaptation of a television show that ran on the Fox network from 1987-1991. Both the television show and the movie are about youthful-looking undercover cops who pose as teenagers to thwart crime in high schools. The film stars Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum as undercover protagonists Schmidt and Jenko. I didn’t like the television show, and I am generally not a big fan of Hill or Tatum as actors, so there was no reason on Earth that I should have enjoyed this at all, and yet… I did! I don’t know what kind of cosmic confluence of events occurred to make this as entertaining as it was, but this is a really fun comedy with solid performances and a script that is just self-aware enough to be funny and not annoying.

Argo is the latest film by Ben Affleck, who has turned out to be a pretty solid director. It takes place during the Iran hostage crisis of 1979, when several Americans hid at the Canadian ambassador’s home in Iran. The CIA plan to rescue them entailed creating a fake science fiction movie, and going to Iran posing as a Canadian film crew. I love these lesser-known historical events that happened during my lifetime.

The Grey is advertised as an action film featuring Liam Neeson fighting wolves, but that’s not really what it is. It is a deep meditation on death, and more specifically the way men choose to die. There is a definite Jack London man-versus-nature vibe here that I enjoyed, and although it's not for everyone, I found this material compelling.

Django Unchained is not Quentin Tarantino’s strongest movie, but that being said, I feel even his weaker efforts are head-and-shoulders above most of the stuff I see at movie theaters. This one is a mash-up of spaghetti westerns and 70s-era blaxploitation films, starring Jamie Foxx as a slave-turned-gunfighter seeking revenge against the men who took his wife. Though wildly entertaining through most of the film, I found the tonal changes from comedy to brutality a little jarring at times.

Top 10 Films of 2012

Here are my spoiler-free reviews of the best movies of the past year:

#10: Wreck-It-Ralph

I love stories where the protagonist has to subvert the expectations that others place on him and choose to be something more. Wreck-It-Ralph certainly falls into this category. It's a Disney animated film about a video game villain who wants to prove to his peers that he is more than just a dumb wrecking machine. It's funny, exciting, and at times poignant, with terrific voice acting and Disney’s usual fabulous animation.

Interestingly enough, Wreck-It-Ralph is not a film that was produced by Disney’s all-digital Pixar animation branch, even though it seems like anthropomorphized video game characters would be something that is in Pixar’s wheelhouse. The Pixar movie that came out in 2012 was Brave, about a Scottish princess. Princess films are usually the kind of thing that Disney animation churns out. It tickles me that Disney and Pixar seem to have swapped their usual subject matter.

#9: Safety Not Guaranteed

This is a cool indie flick about three magazine employees who are assigned to investigate a man who has placed a classified ad seeking a companion to time-travel with. Aubrey Plaza plays Darius, the most cynical of the three reporters; and Mark Duplass plays Kenneth, who is either the genius who figured out time travel, or a dangerous lunatic. Darius and Kenneth are two outsider personalities who start to develop a very real connection, and the viewer is left question the validity of Kenneth’s claims right up until the end of the film.

In many ways this reminds me of the 2011 independent film Another Earth (#6 on last year's Top Ten list), in that the science fiction element is just a backdrop for a very compelling human story. Unlike Another Earth, this is a much lighter story with more humor and a lot less angst. I’m not always a fan of romantic comedies, but Safety Not Guaranteed has so much heart that I was won over.

#8: Jack Reacher

This Tom Cruise vehicle is an adaptation of the Lee Child novel, One Shot. I’ve been told that Tom Cruise’s Jack Reacher is physically nothing like the character described in Child’s novel, but having never read the book, I have to judge the movie on its own merits. As a film, this is one well-written, action-packed thrill ride, and Tom Cruise is fantastic as the protagonist.

Like Caine in Kung Fu, Jack Reacher is a character whose modus operandi is pretty much to wander the earth and get into adventures. He lives off-grid and uses his training as both a soldier and an investigator to uphold what is right, caring very little for the letter of the law. Not only does this movie have some fantastic action set pieces but there is an interesting mystery at its core that kept me involved right up to the end. Cruise’s dialogue is especially sharp, and I love some of the verbal interplay in the film that proves that not only is Jack Reacher the toughest guy in the room, he's also the smartest.

Jack Reacher is directed by Christopher McQuarrie, who also directed a film I really enjoyed called The Way of the Gun back in 2000. He is rumored to be directing the next Mission Impossible movie; this is good news because he and Cruise seem to have a rapport.

#7: The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games is also based on a book, the first in a bestselling trilogy written by Suzanne Collins. It deals with a dystopian future where a tyrannical government forces the poorest of its districts to sacrifice a boy and a girl once a year to compete in televised gladiatorial sports. Only one player will emerge alive, winning food and supplies for his or her respective district. Jennifer Lawrence is wonderful as Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist who learns that in order to win, not only must she count on her considerable survival and hunting skills, but she must also become a media darling.

This is a great adaptation of the book. It's powerful, well-cast, and well-directed; and includes some pretty heavy themes like the power of the media, class struggles, and sacrifice for a higher good. Although I missed Katniss’ internal monologue from the book, Jennifer Lawrence is a strong enough actress to show the emotional impact the story requires.

#6: Chronicle

Chronicle may be the best “found footage” movie ever made (or at least, it’s the best one I’ve ever seen). The story is told largely from the point of view of Andrew, played by Dane DeHaan, a troubled high school student who buys a camera to document his abusive home life. While attending a party, Andrew, his cousin Matt, and school jock Steve discover a mysterious underground cavern that grants them all telekinesis. At first the three boys revel in their newfound abilities and do a lot of the crazy stuff you might imagine high school kids would do if they could move things with their minds. But it’s not long before their bond of friendship is tested when the darker aspect of their power emerges.

I love this street-level approach to the superhero origin story. Director Josh Trank does a fantastic job of balancing both the action and the personal story, and this film contains one of the best superhero battle scenes I’ve ever seen. The screenplay by Max Landis, son of famous director John Landis, has a lot of heart and gives this film a Shakespearean level of tragedy.

#5: Lincoln

Lincoln deals with the 16^th president of the United States and his efforts to pass the 13^th constitutional amendment in 1865, which would officially abolish slavery. This may seem like a dull subject, but in the hands of the great director Steven Spielberg, this movie is anything but.

The greatest strength of this film is the quality of the performances, among the best of which are David Strathairn as Secretary of State William Seward, Tommy Lee Jones as Congressman Thaddeus Stevens, and Sally Field as First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln. All of these performances are outstanding, but they pale in comparison to Daniel Day-Lewis’ portrayal of Abraham Lincoln, which can only be described as transcendent.

Watching this film I was able to think, “Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones are doing amazing work in this movie.” I was able to think that about most of the actors. Not Daniel Day-Lewis. Every moment he was on screen, I was watching President Lincoln. It was as if Mr. Day-Lewis was channeling the dead president. In a career of amazing performances, this may be his best – and that is saying something.

#4: Cabin in the Woods

This horror comedy produced by Joss Whedon, directed by Drew Goddard, and co-written by both men takes familiar scary movie tropes and turns them on their ear. Did you ever wonder why horny teenagers go to remote locations in horror movies and then behave in the most stupid, illogical, and cliched ways possible? Well this movie explains why, and does it with the kind of Joss Whedon sharp wit we’ve seen on his television shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

I really can’t say much more about the plot without going into spoiler territory, but suffice to say, this is essential viewing for fans of '80s horror films. Hell, this is essential viewing for people who hate horror movies for all the reasons I’ve mentioned above. This is a truly fantastic time at the movies.

I also have to say that the last twenty minutes of this film are the most fun I’ve had at the movies since… Well, since the last twenty minutes of my number one film this year.

#3: The Dark Knight Rises

With The Dark Knight Rises, director Christopher Nolan’s epic Batman trilogy comes to a satisfying conclusion. It neatly ties up the hero's journey started by Bruce Wayne, played by Welsh actor Christian Bale, in 2005's Batman Begins and continued in 2008's The Dark Knight. While I don’t think The Dark Knight Rises is as strong a movie as The Dark Knight (largely due to Heath Ledger's iconic, show-stealing portrayal of The Joker), I do think that this is one of the strongest trilogy finales in cinematic history.

This movie begins eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, with Bruce Wayne having retired his costumed alter ego to live as a recluse. But it’s not long before the Machiavellian schemes of the villain Bane, played excellently by Tom Hardy, contrive to pull Bruce out of retirement and threaten to destroy everything he holds dear, not the least of which is his beloved Gotham City. The appearance of Selina Kyle, a wildcard and cat burglar played by the sexy Ann Hathaway, further complicates matters for Bruce.

Everything I’ve mentioned about the plot pretty much takes place in the first ten minutes of the film, and I’m afraid if I say much more I’ll get into spoilers. I will say that The Dark Knight Rises is an action-packed, psychologically dense, dark, character-driven tour-de-force, and I loved every frame of it.

#2: Skyfall

Skyfall is now my favorite James Bond film, and as a huge James Bond geek, I do not say that lightly. I have seen every James Bond movie and read all of the original Ian Fleming novels. Skyfall captures everything I love about this franchise. The action, the villains, the women, the cars, and the death traps are all here and are all outstanding. We get to see the return of a few characters who have always been a big part of the James Bond mythos but who have been absent from the last several films. But the best thing about Skyfall is Bond himself, portrayed effortlessly by Daniel Craig as a very physically and emotionally damaged man. When Craig plays Bond, we see that his debonair exterior is just a thin veneer masking a brutish thug who will do whatever it takes to accomplish his missions. We also get a fantastic peek into James Bond's past that gives us some clues as to why he became the man he is.

Skyfall is directed by Sam Mendes, who usually does character-driven films like American Beauty and Revolutionary Road. His deft touch for interpersonal drama benefits the movie, but he does not skimp on the action. Judi Dench has never been better as M, Bond’s hard-nosed boss; and Javier Bardem is deliciously creepy as Silva, the main villain of the story.

And now, my favorite movie of 2011...

#1: Marvel’s The Avengers

If anyone had any doubt that Marvel’s The Avengers was going to be my favorite movie this year, then they don’t know me very well. As both a movie and comic book fan, I came into this with very high expectations. The kind of expectations that are often dashed when a project gets too ambitious for its own good. The buildup to this film was epic, and it seemed as though it would be impossible to live up to the hype. Marvel Studios hinted that the Avengers movie was on its way at the very end of Iron Man in 2008, then continued to drop tantalizing breadcrumbs throughout The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), and Captain America: the First Avenger (2011), all the while building up a cohesive Marvel Movie Universe complete with characters who crossed over from film to film.

The very idea of a flick featuring Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, the Hulk, the Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Agent Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. – all characters capable of carrying their own films – seemed like it would collapse under its own weight. How could you make a film with all these huge personalities in it, load it with the kind of action that modern comic book fans would demand, and give each character their moment to shine without the story over-focusing on one hero? Who could take on the responsibility of pleasing both rabid fans and the studio that invested massive amounts of time and cash into this project?

Enter geek legend Joss Whedon. Third-generation television writer, producer of cult hits like Firefly and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and comic book writer of, amongst other things, Astonishing X-Men and Fray. He also had a hand in a little movie called Cabin in the Woods (#4 on this list). As director and co-writer of Marvel’s The Avengers, Joss Whedon managed to craft a film that balances character drama, explosive action, and even comedy and pathos, and leaves its audience drooling for more. I saw this in the theatre four times; once in IMAX 3D, once in RealD 3D, and twice in regular 2D, and after each viewing I left the theatre with a silly grin on my face, loving life and ready to fight an alien invasion.

Whether or not you’ve seen the films leading up to Marvel’s The Avengers, this is a truly amazing time at the movies, well worth paying full price and buying a tub of artery-clogging popcorn. It gets my highest recommendation.

Summary

I’ve had a lot on my plate, and putting together my annual Top Ten list this year was a difficult birth. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of my good friend Jem Matzan who once again edited this article for me, as well as offering words of encouragement when I thought writer's block was going to beat me. I may even pull out that short story I’ve had hidden in the bowels of my computer for years. Thanks, Jem!

I hope this list was an enjoyable read, even if you totally disagree with my taste in entertainment, and I hope to see you all at the movies.

John Michael Decker is an actor who loves movies, comic books, and wearing hats.