2011 Movies

1. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Stylish, brilliantly acted, and impeccably paced without a wasted moment. David Fincher just makes one can't-miss film after another.

2. The Descendants

Clooney trades his suits for shorts and goofy Hawaiian shirts. It's sad and sometimes hard to watch, but it's often amazing to see him try to hold his family apart amid sudden chaos with his two girls in very different stages of growing up.

3. Midnight in Paris

Magical deconstruction of nostalgia; the only downside is the one-dimensional, cartoonishly evil character played by Rachel McAdams.

4. The Artist

The most clever and ambitious movie of 2011 and often very funny, but the story was a bit thin.

5. The Muppets
6. Super 8

The first 2/3 was terrific, magical, and better than anything else this year. The last 1/3 went completely off the rails, leaving one to wonder if it's better to have an unseen monster than a silly one.

7. Martha Marcy May Marlene

John Hawkes doesn't have to speak to haunt your nightmares, both here and in Winter's Bone last year.

8.Tree of Life

Like Melancholia, it's gorgeously shot, super ambitious, and mostly brilliant. The stuff with the dinosaurs and the afterlife was interesting but didn't really fit.

9. Melancholia

Harder to watch than Tree of Life, intentionally, because Kirsten Dunst's character's depression dominates much of the film.

10. Drive
11. Young Adult

Sad, funny, and a bit unpredictable. Patton Oswalt is so great. The main character was reprehensible, though.

12. Hugo

Very cool but oddly disjointed. Second half went in an odd direction and didn't fulfill the promise of the beginning.

13. The Help

Felt like it pulled its punches and few of the characters changed over the course of a LONG movie. The adaptation seemed off, too -- Skeeter's boyfriend was there and gone, then there and gone again for really no reason.

14. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Complex spy thriller was a little confusing and didn't generate much tension. Story was there, though, so I wouldn't be surprised if the book is excellent.

14. 50/50

Funny (Seth Rogen!) but predictable.

15. A Better Life
16. Bridesmaids

Amusing at times but also long stretches that fell flat (like the whole scene on the airplane).

17. Horrible Bosses

Terrific cast but often more grating than funny.

18. Moneyball
19. Certified Copy

Tried to be "Before Sunrise/Sunset," but there's no heart and the "twist" was beyond stupid.

20. Fast Five
21. Tower Heist
22. Meek's Cutoff
23. Thor

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Haven't seen a lot from 2012 yet, but at this point it would be:
1. Moonrise Kingdom
2. The Avengers
3. Prometheus
4. Haywire