No, Seriously. This is the List.
Top ten lists are tricky things, especially for us day-job-holding, family-raising, spare-time film critics. I didn't see every movie that came out this year. I may discover some gems that deserve to be on this list when they hit video in the coming months. But for now, I'd like to share the ten films that most surprised and enchanted me in 2011.
Scanning the titles, you may think I'm completely nuts. Many critical darlings that everyone's supposed to love and appreciate don't show up--while a couple of remakes, art films, and indies you've probably never heard of made the cut. I don't belong to a back-slapping cadre of cineastes, nor do I subscribe to their alleged wisdom. I got more excitement and spiritual satisfaction out of watching Hugh Jackman control robots than seeing Brad Pitt play the organ.
I invite you to check out each movie and then read their full, handily linked reviews. This list works for me. Your mileage may vary.
10. Rise of the Planet of the Apes Rupert Wyatt not only delivered the summer's smartest blockbuster, he also crafted a prequel to one of the most beloved sci-fi films of all time--one that doesn't suck. Backed by a team of insanely brilliant digital effects artists, Andy Serkis plays a wholly believable, sentient primate whose relationship with a well-intentioned scientist staves off the ape-ocaplypse--for now.
9. A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas It takes a truly demented genius to make a hilariously profane holiday movie. Harold & Kumar has two: Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg revisit their stoner heroes in a Christmas movie that's as much about family, faith, and friendship as it is smoking weed out of the back of a mall Santa's car. This movie also gave us Wafflebot, for which America will be forever grateful.
8. Real Steel No one expected anything out of the "Hugh Jackman Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots movie". Like its rusted-metal hero, Atom, Shawn Levy's film shatters expectations with spectacular practical effects and a touching father/son-bonding storyline that plays like a cheddar-free Over the Top.
7. Absentia Mike Flanagan proves there's more to horror movies than zombies and masked slashers. His story of sisters struggling with a fractured relationship amidst the strange disappearance (and reappearance) of a spouse is pure Stephen King--minus the requisite third-act problems. Featuring a breakout performance by Katie Parker and an ending that will have you nervously dusting off your shoulders, Absentia is a wake-up call to big-studio horror.
6. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo It's a remake. It's based on an insanely popular book. It's a tentpole studio film. But don't let any of that discourage you from falling into David Fincher's richly textured, deeply layered story of secrets, sex, and serial murder. Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara are this year's second-hottest on-screen duo (see #1 for the first); their bizarre chemistry may just take you off the plot's trail long enough for it to hit you over the head with a whopper of an ending.
5. Crazy, Stupid, Love. If only every romantic dramedy were this smart! Glenn Ficara, John Requa, and Dan Fogelman turn a cute premise into heartbreaking, life-affirming story. The trailer would have you believe it's all about Steve Carell getting dating tips from Ryan Gosling in order to win back his estranged wife. But this rich, funny film is really about parenting, first love, and the hard work of long-term relationships. Gosling is a revelation here, as is newcomer Analeigh Tipton as the shy and soulful babysitter to Carell's crumbling family.
4. Potpourri Probably the biggest surprise of the year for me is Restraining Hollywood's insane dimension-hopping, zombie-apocalypse musical set at a Minnesota college. Elliot Diviney proves that one can bring back amazing art from numerous mind-melting drug trips (at least, I hope that's the explanation). Unfortunately, the only way to see it is to buy it, but thirteen bucks for enlightenment is a hell of a bargain, especially in a down economy.
3. Warrior A powerhouse of both acting and directing, Warrior turns ultimate fighting into a tense family drama that left my heart in shreds. Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton and Jennifer Morrison are spectacular, but Nick Nolte is the year's biggest, most understated surprise. Gavin O'Connor's masterpiece of hard-fought redemption and the untidy consequences of alcoholism offers as many weepy gut-punches as triumphant adrenaline rushes.
2. Midnight in Paris Woody Allen's light tribute to the city of love and the great artists of the Twentieth Century reads like The Twilight Zone but plays like Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. Owen Wilson brilliantly channels Allen as a stunted screenwriter visiting Paris on the eve of his wedding to a cold elitist. A chance late-night stroll leads him into a world of culture and spiritual awakening that may or may not be his mid-life crisis bursting out of his skull. With crackling dialogue and funny, unexpected performances all around, it's Allen's must-see return to form.
1. The Artist In a year of hollow stabs at nostalgia, The Artist stands out as the only major motion picture to get everything right. Spielberg and Scorsese wish they had Michel Hazanavicius' ability to channel a deep appreciation for the past into relevant, entertaining art. This beautiful, modern-day silent film runs the full range of human emotion while commenting on the way technology informs and advances creativity--even if the creators aren't fully on-board. As star-crossed silent-era actors, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo should be cinema royalty after this; their chemistry and commitment is the best I've seen in years. The Artist will not only change the way you look at movies, old and new, it will change your idea of what movies can be.