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My Favorite Movies of 2012

Picture is a spoiler Alert

Can’t say I saw every movie produced in 2012, but I saw quite a few (Thanks, for discount theaters). I’m sure that some that I didn’t see will score high with the “experts” and many will win awards. But, a man can only rate what he has seen, so here is my top ten (ranked by enjoyability – a very SUBjective ranking)…..

10. Trouble With The Curve. Clint Eastwood was awesome, Amy Adams was adorable and I’m a sucker for a baseball movie.

9. Ruby Sparks. An excellent quirky movie written by Zoe Kazan (she played the youngest daughter in It’s Complicated) and starring with her real life boyfriend Paul Dano. It was just fun.

8. Dark Knight Rises. After the Aurora shootings, it took me seven months to see this finale to the three Christian Bale Batman movies. Not the best of the three, but a good Batman flick gets points just for being a good Batman flick. And Anne Hathaway as Catwoman…… meow!

7. Seeking A Friend for the End of the World. This, for romantic old me, was one of the feel good movies of the year. Steve Carell being Steve Carell, a cute twist to the “end of the world” movie, with some Father issues thrown in for good measure.
 Also excellent, as always, Martin Sheen.

6. Safety Not Guaranteed. This was just a flat out fun movie. Kind of quirky, which I like, and some very good writing. Left it feeling like it should have lasted longer. If you haven’t seen this movie or heard about it, rent it. You won’t regret it.

5. Hunger Games. I never read the books (still haven’t), but thoroughly enjoyed the story as well as the action. LOVED Jennifer Lawrence (she’ll turn up again in my rankings, very soon, in fact), Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks and Stanley Tucci. A great production.

4. Silver Linings Playbook. Jennifer strikes again! She was awesome as the goofy and (here’s that word again) quirky, Tiffany. Bradley Cooper did a great job playing the “mildly” disturbed Pat, and Robert De Nero and Jacki Weaver were fantastic as Pat’s parents. This was another one I didn’t want to end.

3. Argo. Ben Affleck was outstanding in this semi-documentary of a lesser known part of the Iran hostage crisis. Even knowing how it would end didn’t take away from the suspense. The directing (Affleck) was great and John Goodman and Alan Arkin gave needed comic relief.

2. Skyfall. Just saw Skyfall for the second time and enjoyed it as much as the first. Daniel Craig has BECOME James Bond. The action was crisp and fast without being gratuitous. The women were Bond-gorgeous and while the death of M (sorry, spoiler alert after the fact) was depressing, they adequately set us up for more Bond. Just hope they don’t lose Craig.

1. Lincoln. I was spellbound during most of this movie, despite my peripheral observation up of my wife’s boredom . Granted, I am an ex-US History teacher, but Daniel Day Lewis made me believe I was watching Abe Lincoln in action (well, he wasn’t actually IN that much action). Nicely documenting the final months of the 16th President’s life, the photography was incredible and the acting superb. Standout performances by Tommy Lee Jones and David Strathairn (and yes, even Sally Field, the Flying Nun).

So there you have it. As I said, I might have missed a few in my top ten that are not coming to mind and there were many movies that will be granted acclaim during the awards weeks that I just didn’t see, most notably Les Miserables (sorry, never been a big fan and the movie is likely to make me MORE Miserables), Django Unchained, Beasts of the Southern Wild, The Sessions, and Life of Pi.

2013 looks to be a full year – full of extra added sequels to the sequel to the sequel, like Scary Movie 5, Fast and Furious 6, Ironman 3, more Tyler Perry, another Hangover, one more chance to Die Hard like an old man, a whole new Superman series and even, yes, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs Part 2.

But hidden in the remakes are some that might be interesting: The Counselor with Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem, Michael Fassbender; The Lone Ranger with Johnny Depp; A Martin Scorsese film on the life of Frank Sinatra; The Incredible Burt Wonderstone with Steve Carell, Jim Carrey, Olivia Wilde and James Gandolfini and what will be my personal favorite, Cleopatra with Angelina Jolie.

So, pass the popcorn and please do not text or talk or laugh or cry during the movie. It’s rude.