It goes up to... thirteen?

My list of the best 13 films of 2012 in 2012. I write "of 2012 in 2012" because I feel that some of these titles might disappear and others shoot up the list in the coming months and years. I predict a good future for "Lincoln" "Silver Linings Playbook" and of course "Moonrise Kingdom" but this is all speculative (I will have to re-watch all of these several times) so, for now, I keep the list as it is.

1  Moonrise Kingdom- No doubt in my mind, this is the best film of the year, and  nothing else came close.  Yes, it is a film. It was shot in super 16mm. The grainy, yellowish look fits beautifully with the fictional 1960s New Penzance Island. Wes Anderson has always been great at showing grownups who act as kids, which he still manages to do here most noticeable in Edward Norton's Scout Master Ward, but this time Anderson's focus is on two actual kids, acting as grownups, and their romantic escapades. Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman are hilarious and brutally honest as Suzy and Sam playing two kids who are madly in love, and don't care what anyone thinks of it. The soundtrack is also perfect, as usual for a Wes Anderson film. 

2 Dark Knight Rises- what is one more voice in the endless debate? I loved it, just like I loved Inception, The Dark Knight, The Prestige, Batman Begins, Memento, and Following. The only disappointing element of this film was that Alfred leaves midway through it and is not seen until the end. 

3 Skyfall- basically the same movie as Dark Knight Rises? Hero spends the first hour of the movie recovering from major injuries. The film is the third installment of a new series trying to reboot an old series. The list goes on and on. They even gave James Bond the abandoned mansion of his parents and a butler! 

4 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey- it was everything I hoped it would be. I cannot stress enough how much Andy Serkis deserves an oscar specially for playing Gollum/Smeagol. I understand that some people found the first half a little too slow, but I cannot get enough of the Shire and the backstory of Tolkien's rich mythology. .

5. Silver Linings Playbook- a return of the screwball comedy, which presents us an even battle between  two smart, wickedly funny members of the opposite sexes. A romantic comedy instant classic. The montage with Bob Dylan's "Girl from the North Country" was probably my favorite scene of any movie this year, but I could say that about any well placed Bob Dylan song in any film. 

6 Brave + La Luna- Both films are a part of this list. "La Luna" is an amazing coming of age tale of a little boy going into the family business, which happens to be cleaning the moon. The sights of the moon and the tiny stars that give it light are wonderful. I also love the fact that there is no real dialogue, but the film is still able to communicate its plot and themes effectively through purely visual methods. As for Brave, Scotland is a magnificent setting for the Pixar team to show off. Its simple, "brother bear ripoff" story does not detract from its charm. It actually portrays accurately the way young girls interact with their mothers without dehumanizing either one. That is in no way simple. I also love all Scottish accents, as well as Merida's three little brothers who were hilarious (especially as tiny bears) without any dialogue! 

7 Lincoln- Steven Spielberg does not glorify Lincoln. He was a politician. He knew that if he passed the thirteenth amendment, he would crush the South's economy. The film focuses on that fact and does not try to portray Lincoln as an abolitionist who passed the amendment for any moral obligation. It was simply the smart thing to do. Daniel Day Lewis also refuses to make Lincoln into the hero he is seen as today. Lincoln loses patience and yells at his wife, ignores his oldest son, and goes behind the back of his trusted friend and Secretary of State. He is old, and weak, always hunched over with a warm drink in his hand and a warm coat or blanket over his shoulder. All of this is came as a brilliant shock. I should have trusted Spielberg had the courage to show Lincoln as what he was, human. 

8. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia... 

9 Cloud Atlas- I feel that I should have left this film with more questions. But despite my disagreements over certain philosophies the film clearly endorses, I still consider this a great film. It manages to tell 6 compelling stories in under three hours, jumping back and forth through space and time all without ever confusing me. The segments seem build up in action, then quiet down together. The relationship between stories is hard to grasp, but Omer Mozaffar explained it best: 

So, is there are a relationship between the scenes? The answer is of course yes, and of course no. We automatically get a sense of progression when we jump from scene to scene. But, we can, however, detect a series of waves, where a cluster of scenes do connect with each other structurally and thematically. Liberations take place simultaneously. Exposures to truth take place simultaneously. Transformations take place simultaneously. Love is lost and found simultaneously. On the flipside, perhaps there is no relationship between the scenes: it might be that I am sharing the themes as I have constructed them in my mind. I will not know, until I see the film again.

The film also has the best editing, score, and special effects of any film I have seen this year as well as six or seven amazing performances by Tom Hanks. It is marvelous storytelling, impeccable filmmaking.

10 The Grey- Liam Neeson was awesome. The wolves were scary. I jumped of fright several times. I was expecting those things. What I was not expecting was a thoughtful meditation on suicide, human nature, the indifference of nature, and the existence of God.  The film focuses as much on the conversations of men who are about to be eaten by wolves as… the actual eating of the men by the wolves. It also featured the scariest plane crash of any movie ever, including "Flight."

11 Looper- logically brilliant! those are two of the last words I thought I would use to describe a time traveling movie, but its finally here. The conclusion of the film is incredible, and flawless in tying up all loose ends. Joseph Gordon Levitt is not afraid to be an unlikable, selfish drug-addict-murderer, but we end up rooting for him anyway. The violent, crime infested  future portrayed in the film is too close to reality to take in comfortably. This film makes you ask some tough questions. where is the world heading? Do I really want communist China to be the best place to travel to in the future? What is wrong with Joseph Gordon Levitt's face?

 12. Side By Side- a documentary that has every right to be in the top of any list. Keanu Reeves conducts many interviews with famous directors and cinematographers to ask them, the experts, about the differences between the old photochemical film process, and the new fully digitized world of movies. There are diehard film fanatics, like Christopher Nolan, and forward thinking proponents of digital, most notably David Fincher. Still, the most eloquent, and thoughtful of all interviewed was Martin Scorsese. He knows more about film, digital, and movies overall than anyone else. He is the one of the few who has made movies both digitally and photochemically, and he is the only one who seems perfectly ok with both mediums, pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of each. A true master. 

13. Argo- I knew the story coming in. 6 Americans hid in the Canadian ambassador's house in Iran during the revolution in 1979. The CIA produced a fake movie, pretended they were part of the crew, and got them out safely. I was not expecting to have sweaty palms, literally sitting at the edge of my seat during the final moments when it looks like they just might not make it past the final checkpoint. The 1970s, "All the President's Men" look is fanastic. John Goodman and Alan Arkin provide comedy gold as the real Hollywood producers of the fake movie. Ben Afleck is becoming one of my favorite directors. I urge you to watch "The Town," which is my favorite film of his.

Honorary Mention- Liberal Arts, The Avengers, The Intouchables, Friends With Kids, Smashed, Flight, Premium Rush, The Secret World of Arriety. 

I have not yet seen Amour, Zero Dark Thirty, Holy Motors, Django Unchained, or Les Miserables. From what I've read about them, they all seem like possible top 10 contenders. 

Little Women (1994)

Little Women is an extremely emotional film. But it never feels like a manipulative film. The movie earns its emotions, as Matt Zoller Seitz put it, "through dedication, intelligence, and love." I think the movie can be nicely explained through those three words. 

Dedication- Little Women is extremely dedicated to its source. In turn its source, Louisa May Alcott's novel of the same name, is dedicated to the lives of the March clan, a family living in Massachusetts in the late 1860s during the American Civil War. Because of the war, the father of the family, as well as many of the local men, are largely absent from the story. The film, however, shows in great detail the lives of the women they left behind. It is the film's dedication to both the pleasures and pains of the everyday life of the March women that makes it earn its emotions. "Because Little Women acknowledges suffering," writes Seitz "and how tough it is to endure without becoming embittered or cynical, it never crosses the line into outright sentimentality. It's a very emotional movie, but it isn't sappy. It's alternately tender and tough." 

The little women with their mother

The film is not afraid, for example, to show the ailments and demise of Beth, one of the young sisters. It is also not afraid to show the artistic compromises Jo (the writer, protagonist and second oldest sister) has to make in order to make a living and support her family. The film refuses to avoid some of the grim realities of these women who have "fallen on hard times." But this film also takes great pleasure in showing the marvelous theatrics of the March sisters. And, yes, it is particularly interested in their romantic endeavors. The film is dedicated to showing every detail, good or bad. 

Intelligence- the movie raises some pertinent and genuinely interesting questions such as what is the role of women in society? How can a woman follow both her unique path through life while at the same time, staying at harmony with a society of different values? One of my favorite moments of the film has the mother of the March family, played wonderfully by Susan Sarandon, writing a letter to the school of one of her daughters instructing the teacher as to why physical punishment and  humiliation are unacceptable tools for disciplining a child in a classroom. The mother offers some splendid advice to her daughters throughout the movie, here are some of my favorites: 

"Feminine weaknesses and fainting spells are the direct result of our confining young girls to the house, bent over their needlework, and restrictive corsets. "

"Oh, Jo. Jo, you have so many extraordinary gifts; how can you expect to lead an ordinary life? You're ready to go out and - and find a good use for your talent. Tho' I don't know what I shall do without my Jo. Go, and embrace your liberty. And see what wonderful things come of it. "

Trini Alvarado as Meg

"I would rather Meg marry for love and be a poor man's wife than marry for riches and lose her self-respect."

To Jo, after Amy burnt her manuscript she says  “It is a very great loss and you have every right to be  put out. But don't let the sun go down on your anger. Forgive each other, begin again tomorrow."

Finally, and most importantly, she offers that “If you feel your value lies only in being merely decorative, I fear that someday you might find yourself believing that's all you really are. Time erodes all such beauty, but what it cannot diminish is the wonderful workings of your mind."

Claire Danes as Beth

The daughters too, have some wisdom to share. Beth, as played by Claire Danes, seems like an old, wise soul confined in a young, frail body. Her warmth and kindness, which led her to bring food to a local family near starvation, also indirectly made her catch a disease which would eventually claim her life. But Danes never panics, and expertly controls her famous “cry face.” She is mostly calm and subdued.

 From her deathbed, Beth, who lived a quiet and peaceful life, counsels her sister Jo:

Beth- If God wants me with Him, there is none who will stop Him. I don't mind. I was never like the rest of you... making plans about the great things I'd do. I never saw myself as anything much. Not a great writer like you. 
Jo- Beth, I'm not a great writer. 
Beth-  But you will be. Oh, Jo, I've missed you so. Why does everyone want to go away? I love being home. But I don't like being left behind. Now I am the one going ahead. I am not afraid. I can be brave like you. 

Winona Ryder as Jo

Love- A surprisingly young Christian Bale plays Laurie, a man who falls helplessly in love with Jo. However, he slowly finds out, as I did while I watched the film, that he's hopelessly in love with all of these little women. In one scene, Laurie rescues Amy from drowning in a frozen pond. In another, he promises to care for her when unfortunate circumstances separate her from her family. In one sweet, amusing moment, he playfully tells Amy he will kiss her at least once before her death. Theirs is one of the loveliest love stories ever put on film. Kirsten Dunst, who plays the young Amy (there is another actress who plays the older Amy), is absolutely radiant. Out of an insanely talented cast, she shines brightest. The film also chronicles the dealings of the oldest sister, Meg, with a “higher” social class, as she wonders what life could be if she had money, as well as her unlikely relationship with an unattractive, penniless tutor. It is full of both love and romance.

Kirsten Dunst as young Amy

I hope that I have given you a glimpse at the magnificent  work of art that is this movie. I went into Little Women with low expectations,  thinking I would get an overtly manipulative movie. I was not prepared for such a deeply moving portrait of four fascinating little women, and their supporting cast, of course. I leave you with a word from the director. 

"I think the title [of Little Women] has been so off-putting for men over the generations. They feel this is a terribly 'girly' story. But it's actually a wonderful epic tale about family where men's roles are just as important and deeply involved in the story... It is... full of heartfelt emotion and such memorable characters whose lively appeal transcends the years." - Gillian Armstrong 

Verdict- 4/4 
Little Women (1994) PG 1h 55min. 

Random Thoughts
- the link to Matt Zoller Seitz's review http://www.dallasobserver.com/1994-12-22/film/natural-women/
- I was surprised to see Gabriel Byrne, the Irish actor, with a German accent. Although it threw me off, I think he gives a perfectly good performance.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit..." so begins J.R.R Tolkien's wonderful book, as well as Peter Jackson's glorious new movie. The film begins in the Shire, of course, around the same time as The Lord of the Rings, on the day of Bilbo Baggins' one hundred and eleventh birthday. From the opening moments, as a modified version of the familiar theme "Concerning Hobbits" began to play and the fantastic vistas of Peter Jackson's Bag End appeared on the screen,  I was absolutely absorbed. Within seconds, I was back in Middle Earth, the most amazing world ever put on film. I have heard that on 48fps (frames per second) the film looks eerily "realistic" as if the set was right in front of you, instead of the screen. However, I watched the film in 24fps, the industry standard, and in 2D. The film has a soft, almost dreamlike look. The hazy, orange, pink and blue sky took my breath away. I don’t know how exactly to describe it, but the way Middle Earth looks in this movie, the sky in particular, is mesmerizing. After The Fellowship of the Ring, this is the best looking Peter Jackson film, courtesy of cinematographer Andrew Lesnie.  My favorite shot of the film is close to the end. It comes when Bilbo, Gandalf, and the twelve dwarves look towards the Lonely Mountain as they prepare to face Smaug… But I'm getting ahead of myself. All of that will come in the second or third movie. 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is concerned with setting up all of the pieces for the films to come. We start when Bilbo Baggins is recruited by Gandalf the wizard and a horde of dwarves to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the evil dragon Smaug. The film continues as the group encounters trolls, elves, and finally, goblins. All of this gets them about halfway to the Lonely Mountain. The film also takes a detour to check in on a largely forgotten character from Tolkien’s mythology, Radagast the Brown. Radagast is portrayed as a laid back, groovy little wizard with pet birds and porcupines. Some might find him irritating; I found him endearing. Plot-wise, Radagast serves the function of warning Gandalf of the Necromancer, a wizard with the power to bring back the dead who will most likely be the villain in the upcoming films. Here, Jackson takes certain liberties with the novel thus darkening the tone to resemble that of The Lord of the Rings (both the film and book.)

I think Jackson made an absolutely brilliant choice in taking elements from the appendix of The Lord of the Rings, adding them to The Hobbit, and expanding what was originally going to be one film into three. Many people will cry, saying that The Fellowship of The Ring, which is twice the length of The Hobbit, got about the same running time as only the first film of the new series (3 hours). Peter Jackson took a different approach to both series. The Fellowship of the Ring, and its two sequels, were approximately three hours each, but Jackson felt he had to take away or condense a lot of material to make the films feasible, and it worked. Instead, with the shorter The Hobbit, he thought he could show everything, plus a little more, and still make three successful films. If the first movie is of any indication, then I am convinced that the next two will turn out magnificently as well. Peter Jackson gave me no reason to doubt him with The Lord of the Rings, and he has given me no reason to doubt him with The Hobbit. I was never  bored, but instead I was enamored of every detail Jackson chose to depict. The cleanup song of the dwarves is comedic gold and the extended "riddles in the dark" sequence is as fine as film can get. It is time for the Academy to recognize Andy Serkis as one of the best actors of his generation. If it will not create a special "collaborative performance" oscar or something along those lines, then it should at least give him an honorary statuette. 

Gollum has never been so frightening. Smeagol has never been so sad. Together, they have never been so funny. There is something about Smeagol’s big blue eyes that almost brought tears to mine. I knew all along that the creature I was watching was made entirely with computers, but still the human performer behind the computers stood out. There is a moment when an invisible Bilbo, with his ring on, has the perfect opportunity to kill poor innocent Smeagol. For a few moments, the camera lingers on Bilbo as he recalls the words of the wise Gandalf who said that true courage is not knowing when to take a life, but when to spare one. Had The Hobbit been just one film, I fear moments like this would have been cut or shortened. Such moments add depth to the characters, making the audience care more about the story. 

There is another, equally outstanding scene, when Gandalf reveals why he chose Bilbo, why he chose such a small and frightened creature for such an important mission. Ian McKellen delivers his lines quietly and powerfully. Overall, the acting is excellent. Casting Martin Freeman as Bilbo was one of the most inspired choices by Jackson.  Freeman expertly shows Bilbo's fear but also his bravery when thrust in unexpected circumstances. His performance will no doubt draw endless comparison to Elijah Wood's whiny and weak Frodo from The Lord of The Rings. I pity Elijah Wood. I think he did the best he could. What some audience members failed to understand is that it is in his characters nature to be weak so as to stand in contrast with Sam, the true hero of The Lord of the Rings. Anyway, I digress. Along with McKellen and Freeman is Richard Armitage who plays the great king of the dwarves, Thorin Oakenshield. He is ruthless, worn by constant battle and migration. Two of the strongest scenes of the film (and two of the key scenes for understanding the character) are the prologue, which shows how Thorin was driven out of his home by the dragon Smaug, and a flashback that shows how he became king of the dwarves during a war with the orcs. 

The battles in the film are breathtaking, as good as anything on The Lord of the Rings. Most impressive is the underground escape from the goblins. It felt like a lighthearted version of the escape from Moria. Instead of a menacing Balrog, the last thing Gandalf encounters before exiting the mountain is the goblin king, a fat and nasty creature who... cracks a joke before falling dead. As a whole, The Hobbit felt like a much livelier, warmer version of The Lord of the Rings. It is not as urgent, and It’s villains rarely feel as life-threatening. I mean this as a compliment. I love The Lord of the Rings; I think it is the finest film ever made. Still, there are times (although few and far between) when I think it is slightly too dark to watch. Instead, I feel that I could watch The Hobbit anytime, anywhere. This lighter tone makes the film abundantly enjoyable. Whether or not it will stand repeated viewings, however, is still to be decided. Now, I think I’ll go find out. 

Verdict- 4/4
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) PG-13 2h 49min. 
Random Thoughts
- all screenshots taken from http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/wb/thehobbit/
- best quote of the film "If Baggins loses, we eats it whole." Gollum
- I will be looking forward to the extended edition. The film earns its 3 hour running time. I wouldn't mind 30 minutes more.
- Cate Blanchett returns as Galadriel, and is incredible as usual.
- Also returning are Hugo Weaving as Elrond, Ian Holm as an older Bilbo and, unfortunately, Elijah Wood as Frodo.
- Fili, Kili, Dwalin, Balin, Oin, Gloin, Dori, Nori, Ori, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, and of course, Thorin Oakenshield. Yes, I know them by heart.
-Peter Jackson always has a cameo. He is supposedly in the first five minutes of the film, but I could not find him.

Spy Kids

Spy Kids is one of a handful of films that I can watch over and over and never once get tired. It came out in 2001, when I was only seven years old. Perhaps that explains why I'm so attached to this special film. It simply has always been there, and I have always admired it. However, I have revisited countless films from my childhood and only a few feel as alive and exciting as Spy Kids.

The film is packed with energy from the very beginning, even before the first shot. Troublemaker Studios, Rodriguez company, made Spy Kids. Part of it's logo is a little animated rascal with a mischievous smile, playing an acoustic guitar. The character will go on to play a more memorable role in Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams, but for now he serves as a simple cue of the reckless, romantic adventure the viewer is about to embark on.

The film wastes no time, going straight into an aerial shot of a seaside cliff with a single house on top. The camera races towards the house as a fast acoustic guitar plays on the soundtrack, quickly building in pace until the camera reaches the house and focuses in on a window. There, a young girl looks out to the sea as the guitar slows,  reflecting her longing. Behind her mother tells her to get ready for bed. The girl, Carmen, is uninterested, not even looking back towards her mother, dreaming. She looks sad, but without overselling it like a lesser child actor might have done. Instead, Alexa Vega, who plays Carmen, looks genuinely lost without seeming to try. 

Parenthood!

It's a strange feeling, going into a movie called Spy Kids,  with those exhilarating opening moments, only to have all expectations immediately subverted while the movie transform into a family melodrama.The genius of Robert Rodriguez is how well he uses the spy, action flick cover story to tell an extraordinarily moving tale about a the importance of an ordinary family. 

From Carmen, the film cuts directly to her little brother, Juni (Daryl Sabara), applying some medicine on his tiny hands. "ok warts," he says in an exaggerated, low pitched voice, "prepare to meet your maker." It's another wonderful introduction that shows the capability of the child actor. What really sells the moment though, is that the instant he says the phrase and puts on the medicine, his hand twitches and he represses a scream.  

I love both introductions for the way they set up the main ambitions and struggles of the characters. Carmen, sitting at the edge of her window, seeks escape from her family and ordinary life. Juni is more innocent, still within the safe boundaries of the house, but still faced with seemingly huge problems. The closeup of his warts, and quick cutting while he puts on the medicine and bandaids suggest a monumental struggle staged as a miniature action sequence, one of many since the main action scenes involve mostly kids. Throughout the course of the film, Carmen will learn the value of family, while Juni learns how to handle the pressures of everyday life. 

Carmen asks her mother to tell her "the story of the two spies." It turns out, the two spies (of the kids' favorite story) who married and retired are none other than their mom and dad. The story is a very beautiful, concise sequence that previews some silly gadgets, characters who will see later, and most importantly the lifestyle they both parents abandoned to settle down and raise a family. "in a way they exchanged one life of adventure for another" she tells them. The only problem is that neither her, her husband nor the kids believe this is true. 

Ingrid (Carla Gugino) and Gregorio (Antonio Banderas) share a peaceful, secret lunch.

Soon, the old spies are back in business leaving their children with their "uncle" Felix played by Cheech Marin in a hilarious performance. Instantly, they are attacked. "I'm not you're uncle," he reveals  to them, taking off his fake mustache, irrevocably changing his identity. He tells them their parents were international spies and have been kidnapped. After giving them the location to a safe house, Felix is captured too, and it is now up to the kids rescue them. 

"I'm not your uncle."

Some of the film's best moments come right afterward as the kids learn to use the newfound spy technology. Among them: a spherical submarine, jet packs, instant  microwave hamburgers, and as a perk, currency "from every country!" 

All of these wonderful things, they later find out, are produced by an uncle (this time real) they didn't know they had. The other great performance of the movie comes from Danny Trejo as the kids' uncle, Machete. Once they meet him, they find out he is lonely and depressed. There's also a nice moment where it becomes painfully clear that Carmen could end up becoming like her uncle if she holds on to her current views on family. It again becomes clear how important a unified family is to Rodriguez. 

The rest of the plot involves thug thumb-thumbs, a madman called Minion, a kids TV. show number 2 at the ratings, evil kid clones, and tons of fake plastic brains. I won't try to explain since part of the fun in Spy Kids is just watching as the spectacle, in both story and visual terms, unfolds before your eyes. Spy Kids is a gem, and the best film Robert Rodriguez has ever made (along with Sin City, of course… more on that coming). Enjoy!

Verdict- 4/4 

Spy Kids (2001) PG 1h 28min.