My Five Favourite Movies Released in the Theatres in 2012 - UPDATED

I ruled out movies I saw on DVDs and blu-ray simply because I can’t recall which were actually released in 2012. This list does tend to skew towards action oriented movies simply because I generally see quieter movies on DVD and blu-ray where a smaller image is less of an issue. I was going to call this thread “Seen in Theatres” but switched to “Released” to be faithful to the spirit of the thread: I saw the excellent Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in January but it was released in December 2011 (the Norwegian version is better still).

First off movies that I want to see but haven’t and that might have made this list had I seen them: Wreck It Ralph, Flight, Dredd.

List is in order of quality

1. Cabin in the Woods: Very funny horror movie that sends up the stalking monster movies in a very unique fashion. Go see this knowing as little as possible.
2. Django Unchained: Ironically, I ended up seeing this later in the day after I originally posted this blog entry, forcing a bit of a rewrite. A German bounty hunter in the US two years before the Civil War befriends a slave he frees. The two go to rescue the slave’s wife. A Quentin Tarantino movie, so lots of fun dialogue and action.
3. The Amazing Spider-Man: Was it too soon for a reboot? Not if the result is the most unexpected happy surprise of this year’s superhero movies. Spider-Man’s character flaws and sympathetic aspects are on display here.
4. Skyfall: One of the best movies in the Bond franchise, featuring a very vulnerable bond in a movie that touches upon themes such as loyalty and forgiveness and even the relevance of the Bond series.. When Bond is on top form, as Carly Simon once sang about him, “Nobody does it better”
5. The Avengers: no relation to the British show, circumstances force the heroes of many of the Marvel movies of the past few years to join together against a common foe. Fun character interplay

If you think Dragon Tattoo should count despite the release date, I’d put it at #4.

Other movies seem this year: Looper (I wanted to like this time travel movie but there were too many elements I didn’t buy), The Dark Knight Rises (I liked this Batman movie up to a point but too many plot holes make this a lesser recommendation), Lockout (action movie in space with some moments but too contrived to be said to be more than okay), Hit and Run (hit any miss reformed criminal on the run movie; the humour doesn’t always work).

Safe was originally on ths list at number 5 but then I ended up unexpectedly seeing Django Unchained on the very day I first posted this, knocking all but Cabin down one. Here’s what I wrote when it still occupied the #5 spot: “Okay, I put this on the list simply because four seemed too few and I can’t in good conscience put the other movies I saw in the theatre this year on this list. In many ways it’s your typical Jason Statham popcorn flick, but it’s fun on that level. An ex-cop has to protect a young girl who has information many factions want.”