In continuing with my “Best Of” lists for 2012, the last one I am getting to is movies. I honestly think that I have undiagnosed attention deficit disorder. I love reading so much because I can put the book down and pick it up again whenever I want. I can usually get through TV shows by pausing them a few times (I’m always watching them on my computer, natch. Who has cable anymore?!)
Then there’s movies. Getting to see a movie in the theaters is a hassle in itself. My other half also has attention deficit disorder, and he doesn’t try to hide it. He outright refuses to sit still for two hours and change in an uncomfortable movie theater seat. Sometimes we buy movies or download them, but I notice that we only tend to buy or download movies that we have seen before, so watching them is fun albeit not mentally stimulating.
Nonetheless, there were a lot of great movies that came out in 2012. I’m going to give you my list, although I’m sure that it’s rather lacking. Please give me your suggestions, and I would love to watch them!
1. Argo
I forced myself to get through this recently. Although it got off to a slow start, I thoroughly enjoyed it. First off, I love Ben Affleck. I’ve loved him since all of his Kevin Smith movies, and I had a poster of him in Armegeddon on my wall all throughout high school. My boyfriend looks like Ben Affleck, and I love that about him. However, cinematically, I was a huge fan of Gone, Baby, Gone and The Town. I particularly loved the Town – it’s probably one of my all-time favorite movies and was seriously underrated in my opinion. The guy knows how to tell a story, and he knows how to wring fantastic performances from his actors. It’s quick-paced, and I like that it’s grounded in reality. It makes me excited to see what he will do next, but I sincerely hope that it is another action caper since he does tense scenes so well.
2. Safety Not Guaranteed:
I watched this with my boyfriend at 3 in the morning one night when I couldn’t sleep, and we both really enjoyed this movie. It’s got the girl that he likes from Parks & Recreation (Aubrey Plaza) and the guy that I like from New Girl (Jake Johnson). The story of a reporter doing a story on a man who believes that he has made a time machine that truly can go back in time was just magical. It was so unexpected, and funny in just the right places. Fantastic movie.
3. Chronicle:
This movie was just fantastic. A modern-day paranormal superhero movie, filmed on a budget of just about nothing. The unknown actors absolutely shined, but the story was the true star here. A great action movie, through and through.
4. The Dark Knight Rises:
Obviously, this deserves a place here. I went with my boyfriend to the movie theaters to see this one, and it was a hard decision after the movie theater massacre that occurred in Aurora, Colorado. While I liked Heath Ledger’s Joker better than Bane, it was a great movie through and through. The real star of the movie was Anne Hathaway as Catwoman. I normally don’t like her, but she was mesmerizing in this movie. The movie got off to a slow start, but it was nonstop action after the first 45 minutes. I really enjoyed it.
5. Magic Mike:
I was surprised that I liked this movie as much as I did. Channing Tatum gave a solid performance, as did Matthew McConahey. This motley crew of male strippers reminded me of my own early twenties (taking ecstasy, having sex on the beach, taking G and going to clubs, realizing that I fucked up and wanting to live a happy domestic life going forward). It was funny in just the right places, and totally relatable. And Matthew McConahey just killed it.
6. 21 Jump Street:
I saw this in the movie theaters and loved it. I’m a huge Jonah Hill fan, but the true comedic star in this movie was Channing Tatum. It was just terrific. James Franco’s brother was fantastic as well. It’s one of the few movies this year that made me laugh uncontrollably, which is always a good thing.
7. The Hunger Games:
I guess I have to put this one in here because I can’t recall anticipating a movie more. I never saw the Harry Potter movies in the theaters, except for the first one. However, I grew to love them on DVD. As for the Hunger Games, I had so much hope because I had fallen in love with the books. In the end, I’m a bit disappointed in how they translated this book to the big screen (it could have been SO MUCH MORE), but I have to say that I was enamored with it when I went to see it in the movie theaters on the first day it came out. And yes, I was wearing a Mockingjay pin.
I know that this list is severely limited. What were your favorites?
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