CliqueClackMovies in 2012 were all about nerds, sadness, and hope
This last year was filled with arrows, bows, shooting said arrows, and skintight leather outfits. And … more!
Best Ending
Oh and Fair Warning: extremely minor spoilers await!
This is a nail biter!
Worst Place: Life of Pi. Okay, so the ending was the same as in the book, wimping out while trying to be deep. Swing and a miss.
Runner Up: Celeste and Jesse Forever. I really admired the complicated way this movie ended, verging away from the cliched romantic comedy ending. And I’m not entirely biased, just because I happened to interview the writers.
And the winner is … Seeking a Friend for the End of the World. It took some cojones to end the movie the way it did, I’ll just say that. And you know what? I liked the off-putting and unrealistic (except under crazy circumstances) romance and the intimate look at people dealing with the end of the world.
Best Comedy
A comedy is theoretically a simple thing — it’s a movie with mostly funny lines that wants to make you laugh.
This is a nail biter!
Worst Place: The Watch. You know … it sucked.
Runner Up: Ted. Hilarious movie, if a bit silly at times. I liked it.
And the winner is … 21 Jump Street. Nobody expected this movie to be so funny, or for Channing Tatum to pull off a comedic performance. But this one was funny, rewatchable, and an instant classic.
Best Action/Thriller
A thriller is a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat, wondering just what will happen next. Could be pure action, could be dramatic thrills.
This is a nail biter! I mean really, there were utterly awesome ones like Django Unchained, Skyfall, The Dark Knight Rises, and lesser known fun with Lawless, Premium Rush, Safe, and Lockout. However …
Worst Place: The Expendables 2: Expendabler. Okay, so this wasn’t awful, I guess. But forgettable and filled with lack of Jet Li.
Runner Up: The Cabin in the Woods. I think you could make the argument that this was a comedy too. But it was also a thriller, and an awesome one.
And the winner is … The Avengers. Because Joss Whedon demonstrated that even when he fails, he succeeds. As per usual.
And Finally … Best Feel-Good
Sometimes you just leave a movie feeling great. That’s the charm of the “feel-good movie.” Sometimes I look forward to this more than anything else.
This is a nail biter!
Worst Place: To Rome With Love. Woody Allen tries to infuse this movie with campy silliness and heart, but it’s ultimately flat.
Runner Up: Friends with Kids. This offbeat and independent movie written by and starring Jon Hamm’s girlfriend/partner was actually quite lovely and left you thinking that maybe it’d all work out.
And the winner is … Wreck-It Ralph. In the end, this story had a moral about acceptance, tolerance, and living life the best you can. Was it perfect? No. But it made me smile and still does.
Here’s to 2012, a year with not nearly as many bad movies as there could have been, and a whole bunch of really, really good ones.
9 Comments on “Movies in 2012 were all about nerds, sadness, and hope”
Can you expand on Whedon “failing” in the Avengers just a little?
And wrong about Premium Rush: I saw it, too
And you’re right about Premium Rush: You’re still the only one who liked it.
I was saying a few things with that comment. One, that despite the relative commercial failure of Cabin in the Woods, it garnered a lot of interest, and Joss certainly was successful otherwise with The Avengers financially.
The other is that despite the many flaws of the Avengers movie, you can’t ignore its appeal or success. It succeeded despite having problems.
I guess what I’m getting at is that I’m not familiar with the argument that there are “many flaws” in The Avengers.
Why, that’s an entirely different discussion. I still liked the movie a lot, but that doesn’t mean I think it suffers due to its forced mass appeal.
That was my original question. I’d love to read your thoughts on that, because it’s an opinion I hadn’t heard much of this year.
Hmm… too late to write a post on it, do you think?
The best thing about Justice League: Doom was the casting, really. But that’s not particularly a slide against it because it’s nearly perfect casting from the plethora of past DCA works (God bless Andrea Romano). Anytime you have Kevin Conroy as Batman I tend to be happy. The story was a little rushed, but honestly we get to see Batman bitterly put down Superman for suggesting they save the earth by moving it slightly to the side. That moment alone was worth the $10ish I spent on the DVD.
The Dark Knight Returns Part 1 wasn’t actually as good as Doom, but still you’re right, they have quite decent releases, and I’m always pleased with the voice casting (for the most part). Peter Weller was… okay.
I haven’t seen TDKR yet. I know it’s one of the better Miller stories, but still…