Looking back on the over 500 films I have seen in 2012, I think it has been a very good year for the moviegoer. That is, if you can afford to go. I find it outrageous that in New York City, tickets are now $13 or more. Far too many people in this economy simply cannot afford to see many movies in a theater. We are lucky in NYC to have not just the multiplexes playing the same 16 movies as anywhere in America, but also a number of art houses and museums that are much more adventurous in their program; we also have major film festivals, including Tribeca and the New York Film Festival. The good news is that new technology allows the average movie lover to not only watch on DVD but also permits home viewing via streaming on smaller screens than a movie theater. So, rather than the ubiquitous top ten list, I have prepared what I will call the REEL DEAL HOME FILM FESTIVAL listing for 2012. You can invite friends and enjoy quality movies at home where the beer is cold and the popcorn fresh.
Note: I have not listed big budget films like Lincoln, Skyfall, Life of Pi or Les Mis (FYI , each is of merit) because their big marketing budgets have saturated the public with ads etc. Instead, use these listings as recommendations to put on your Netflix queue or whatever VOD source you use to play on your home movie screen. Please rip this page out of WestView and let it be your movie guide. Space does not allow me to put notes etc. here in print. Some I have reviewed previously in Reel Deal, but my reeldeal movies that matter blog and WestView News online will have capsules and trailers. Also remember, you can Google the films for trailers etc. and most films have a website that will give you information about DVDs etc.
LET’S GO TO THE MOVIES!
BEST FILMS OF 2012 (in order)
- Amour/Michael Haneke
- The Paperboy/Lee Daniels
- Zero Dark Thirty/Kathryn Bigelow
- Silver Linings Playbook/David O. Russell
- Beasts of the Southern Wild/Benh Zeitlin
- Keep The Lights On/Ira Sachs
- On the Road/Walter Salles
- The Turin Horse/Béla Tarr
- Barbara/Christian Petzold
- Argo/Ben Affleck
Plus these films of merit:
A Late Quartet/Yaron Zilberman, Bernie/Richard Linklater, Bully/Lee Hirsch, The Dark Knight Rises/Christopher Nolan, Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present/Matthew Akers, The House I Live In/Eugene Jarecki, Liberal Arts/Josh Radnor, Nobody Walks/Ry Russo-Young
DOCUMENTARIES (in order)
- The Invisible War/Kirby Dick
- The Gatekeepers/Dror Moeh
- Detropia/Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady
- Central Park Five/Ken Burns
- Trash Dance/Andy Garrison
- Walk Away, Renée/Jonathan Caouette
- Mea Maxima Culpa : Silence in the House of God/Alex Gibney
- Gerhard Richter Painting/Corinna Belz
- Big Boys Gone Bananas!/Fredrik Gertten
- The Law in These Parts/Ra’anan AlexandrowiczL
Plus, Beware of Mr. Baker/Jay Bulger , Booker’s Place: A Mississippi Story/Raymond De Felitta, Hit So Hard/P. David Ebersole, Pink Ribbons, Inc./Léa Pool, Side by Side/Chris Kenneally, Shut Up and Play the Hits/Dylan Southern & Will Lovelace, The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye / Marie Losier, The Loving Story/Nancy Buirski, Turning /Charles Atlas, We’re Not Broke/Karin Hayes and Victoria Bruce
United in Anger: A History of ACT UP/Jim Hubbard, We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists/Brian KnappenbergeR
FOREIGN FILM (alphabetized)
- Attenberg/Athina Rachel Tsangari
- Black Butterflies/Paula van der Oest
- The Black Tulip/Sonia Nassery Cole
- The Kid with a Bike/Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
- Goodbye First Love/Mia Hansen-Løve
- Polisse/Maïwenn
- Rust & Bone/Jacques Audiard
- Teddy Bear/Mads Matthiesen
- The Other Son/Lorraine Levy
- Unforgivable/André Téchiné
INDEPENDENTS (in order)
- Compliance/Craig Zobel
- The Wise Kids/Stephen Cone
- Consuming Spirits/Chris Sullivan
- Starlet/Sean Baker
- Foreplay/Kyle Henry
- Gayby/Jonathan Lisecki
- Elliot Loves/Terracino
- Grassroots/Stephen Gyllenhaal
- The Girl/David Riker
- Four/Joshua Sanchez
For more information and my take on the films listed here, go to WestView News or my blog http://jimfourattsreeldeal.blogspot.com
(cc) Jim Fouratt
