The Best of 2012

A much belated Happy New Year to all, but for a moment I hope you won’t mind stepping back to last year. As I count down my best movies of the year, recall that I’ve only seen a mere 30 films this year! From January’s “Haywire” to Christmas Day and “Les Miserables,” 2012 was packed full of cinematic ups and downs. For me, these are the most noteworthy.

5. Zero Dark Thirty

While not the best movie I saw all year, director Kathryn Bigelow’s dramatic thriller about the decade-long hunt for bin Laden is a powerful and enlightening piece of work.

4. The Hobbit

Haters can hate, but I fell in love with this beautiful, exciting, fun, and dramatic movie…even if no one died.

3. Les Miserables

“Les Mis” had the greatest opening scene, greatest final scene, and most emotional scene (for Hathaway’s ovation-worthy “I Dreamed a Dream”) of any movie I’ve seen all year – that’s a huge accomplishment. A movie you can get up and cheer for.

2. Lincoln

Daniel Day-Lewis, hands-down the man to beat for Best Actor, gives us a genuine portrayal as a man most people have trouble seeing as more than a statue or a story. This is about a father, a friend, a colleague…not just a President.

1. Django Unchained

Jamie Foxx puts himself out there for the benefit of the audience. Quentin Tarantino writes a brutally honest story about American slavery. Leonardo DiCaprio and Christoph Waltz prove why they’re both Academy Award nominees. And whoever put Samuel L. Jackson in his Uncle Tom-esque old man makeup deserves mad props.