It's been a pretty exciting year here at the fictional offices of Punch Drunk Critics International. We've seen the number of folks standing around the water cooler double with the additions of Rocky Hadadi and +Julian Lytle , allowing for a greater diversity of opinions(I have no idea what Rocky's talking about half the time!) and the chance to review more movies than ever. Speaking just for me, 2012 wasn't the strongest movie year, certainly less so than the excellent 2011. But there are always a ton of great flicks to choose from, and the PDC staff got together and came up with our individual picks for what the absolute best movies of the year are. And now we can start turning our attention towards 2013...
+John Nolan
As I’m sitting here looking at the list in front of me I still can’t believe that The Raid: Redemption is so high on my list…trust me I’ve had to fight with myself about where this one should go. I honestly can’t name one movie that not only delivered on my expectations but blew them away. As far as action goes this is hands down #1, for a martial arts junkie like me it may even be #1 of the last decade. There’s nothing wrong with the movie, it just knows what it is, a showcase for the martial art silat, its star Iko Udwai, and its director Gareth Evans. An amazingly good time that many action fans will likely place higher on their lists than I have done here.
4. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Well, if this wasn’t a year of total surprises I don’t know what is. A remake of a cult 80’s TV show starring stock action star/female eye pleaser Channing Tatum and the guy from Superbad that probably should have moved into writing. I’m literally still pulling bits of shoe from my teeth because of how far my foot went in my mouth. Channing Tatum is hilarious, Jonah Hill is revived with a fresh angle to his humor and the show they are adapting is apparently perfect for a comedic makeover. Topping the cake is an amazing cameo that you’ll kick yourself for not seeing earlier and the funniest Ice Cube I think I’ve ever seen. Without a doubt the best comedy of the year (sorry Ted) and that’s if you only watch the first 30 minutes. 2. Skyfall
I wasn’t able to get to see this until after most of my critic brethren, for 2 weeks I was bombarded with “Best Bond Ever” claims… whatever, they don’t know what they’re talking about, I’m a REAL James Bond fan. Apparently so are they. Casino Royale is still a contender for the top spot on the Bond ladder but it’s a close fight. 'Royale'gave us a Bond we had never seen before. Skyfall takes that new Bond and adds in genius touches of familiarity. The movie manages to take the most personally mysterious cinema icon and show us some of what lies behind the vodka martinis, high end cars and higher end women without sacrificing any of what makes Bond the definition of “Women want him, men want to be him”. 1. The Avengers
5: The Raid: Redemption
I really look forward to new types of martial arts films from other countries in Asia. I like the trend started by Ong Bak in 2003 where it seems practitioners of a certain unknown martial art (Pencak Silat) to the mainstream world decide introduce it to world in an exciting and fresh film. This film also for me is like a movie version of old arcade games where you’re a dude that goes up level to level beating people up and fighting bosses. So much butt kicking it was like a little piece of heaven for my brain.
4: The Master
This film by Paul Thomas Anderson had me sold from the trailer. I knew about earlier in the year and I must’ve made my brain forget or the Hulk must’ve knocked it out of my head but once I rediscovered it I had to see it. This film is all about the performances especially from Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman. It just seemed like they were trying to outdo each other in each scene. This film also has some of the most beautiful cinematography of any film released this year. The angles, composition and color really set it a apart and really outshine the story a number of times in the film. And I loved all of Phoenix’s weird faces he made he was like a weird John K cartoon at times on screen.
Now I don’t really like to re-watch films a lot after I see them since I have pretty good memory and can remember much of what I see so I get easily bored re-watching most films. But Moonrise Kingdom is an instant exception; I knew that I like Wes Anderson but didn’t expect to like the adventures of two 12 year olds on an island as much as I did. This movie was like Fantastic Mr. Fox but with real live people instead of Claymation animals and I LOVED that film. The care that was taken with production design and the music really shined through in this a lot. This film even had a scout troop that was like watching a live action version of old comic book Jack Kirby’s Newsboy Legion. 2: Skyfall
See I love Bond. Like really LOVE BOND. I’ve seen every movie, read some of the novels, read some of the comic strips, became a beast at Goldeneye 64 and even seen every episode of James Bond Jr. So after 4 long years without my MI6 peoples I was so bout it (that’s slang people) to see the return of my dude 007. I got what I wanted and more in Skyfall though. I never expected Mendes to make such great Bond movie though since it never seemed like action was his thing. BOY was I wrong. This is another film that really is one of the best looking films of the year. It excels in its use of color to set mood and setting. It also has one of the best filmed fight scenes in years. This one right here is one of the best James Bond films ever in the 50 year old catalogue.
In the year of the battle of the Superhero franchise titans The Avengers might have grossed more but I think at least for me TDKR is the one that will stand the test of time. For me this film covered a lot of ground and adapted some pretty classic modern Batman stories into cohesive story really well. It’s not as good as The DarkKnight but I don’t think it’s fair to expect it to be. It’s not like Michael Jackson was able to beat Thrillerwith Bad and both are classic pieces of work. But in the end this is the only Superhero that almost got me to cry at the end. I got Robin people. I got Robin. Rocky Hadadi
5. The Dark Knight Rises/Chronicle
OK, so this is a tie. But let me explain my reasoning. The former is a movie we had been waiting on for years; the latter seemed to come out of nowhere—and both of them kept me glued to my seat. I kept urine inside of my body for HOURS because of these movies, and that’s because they’re both ridiculously exciting and I couldn’t risk a trip to the bathroom. The Dark Knight Rises, though inferior to The Dark Knight, is nevertheless an experience movie, something that feels monumental. Chronicle was a visual spectacle, like a slap in the face, a great introduction for Dane DeHaan and a reminder of Michael B. Jordan’s charisma, which we saw so wonderfully on The Wire (“Where’s the boy, String? ... Where’s Wallace? That’s all I wanna know”). When it comes to action movies in 2012, these are my go-to picks.
4. 21 Jump Street/Magic Mike
Again, with the ties. STOP JUDGING ME. But these movies succeed because of Channing Tatum, that glorious bastard. His “Fuck you, science!” was an embodiment of 21 Jump Street’sgleeful irreverence; its zany ridiculousness was a welcome delight. And talking about delights, Magic Mike turned out to be more than just a male stripper movie, another solid excursion from Steven Soderbergh and a great mix of sexy and seedy. I’m hesitant about these films’ respective sequels, but for now, their DVDs are getting a fair amount of use.
3. Lincoln.
Daniel Day-Lewis. Are any other words necessary for this description, this declaration of love? Daniel. Day. Lewis.
2. The Master/Life of Pi
LOOK, CLEARLY I AM A VERY INDECISIVE PERSON. I LOVE TIES. JUST ACCEPT THAT. Anyway, The Master and Life of Pi seemingly have nothing in common. The former was a jarring, dissonant offering from Paul Thomas Anderson and featuring standout performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and the latter, from director Ang Lee and adapted from the book by Yann Martel, pondered about the meaning of life, the importance of faith, and the impact of isolation and solitude on the human mind. So there’s a little overlap there, but not much. Yet each film profoundly discomforted me—The Master is just so fucking weird, such a disconnected narrative, that I really had to consider the aimlessness of individual human existence both during and after the movie. And though I’m not a religious person, Life of Pi is affecting in other ways, too, like in its depiction of relationships between parents and children and the suggestion that choosing what to believe in or stand for is entirely up to us. Weighty shit from each director, presented beautifully, and with impressive performances, too. I’ll be re-watching these, even though they made me cry. 
Part of me is upset this film underperformed at the box office because I love Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Christopher Walken, and director and writer Martin McDonagh, and I wish more people could have seen the genius of this movie. And yet this other part of me is like, “Fuck those people! Seven Psychopaths is my own well-kept secret!” Well, not anymore, because I’m writing about how much I love it. It’s witty, it’s kooky, it’s smart, it’s self-aware, it’s genre-rejecting, it’s genre-affirming—it’s challenging in a way that people who love movies should appreciate, a play on form and presentation and purpose. It’s a movie I want to keep watching over and over again not only because it’s hilarious, but because it’s weird, and because that weirdness has the specific function of making viewers reflect on why we expect certain things from certain genres, how the writing process works, why we hate certain plot developments and love other ones, why characters are our favorite or our most-hated. Seven Psychopaths is the kind of movie that makes you think about cinema without you even knowing it, and yes, I know that wanting to use my brain at the movies is pretty nerdy. BUT I OWN MY NERDINESS. It’s my best quality. Aside from my ability to eat ice cream like it’s air. That quality is both a blessing and a curse. 
Probably the most light-hearted movie about humanity's destruction you're likely to find, Lorene Scafaria's directorial debut is basically two fantastic movies rolled into one Her trademark ear for realistic dialogue is put to great use by Steve Carell and Keira Knightley, who find surprising chemistry as two people who discover one another during the Earth's final days. A charming, tender love story about making the most out of life, regardless of how much of it is left.4. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Pure magic. It's really the only way to describe Benh Zeitlin's wildly imaginative, aesthetically incomparable fairy tale. What's most impressive are the power and realism behind the two lead performances, the astonishing young Quvenzhane Wallis as the story's sparkplug, Hushpuppy; and Dwight Henry's raw magnetism as her protective father, Wink. 3. The Master
Paul Thomas Anderson doesn't make small movies. Of course he doesn't necessarily make them for anybody other than himself, either. Which may explain why The Master is probably his most polarizing, and certainly his most challenging, a deeply psychological look at two charismatic men who are flipsides of the same dark coin. While the attention has been on Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln, Joaquin Phoenix trumps him in every conceivable way, rendered unrecognizable as Freddie Quell, a disturbed and destructive man whose inner rage finds new focus as part of a secret religious organization.
2. Zero Dark Thirty
It's amazing how Kathryn Bigelow has shaken this country out of its collective malaise in regards to "War on Terror" movies. Zero Dark Thirty isn't just a stunning achievement, it's one of the most important movies in years. A dark and gripping crime procedural documenting the hunt for Osama Bin Laden, it's also an uncomfortable look at the moral compromises we've made in the name of national security. Jessica Chastain gives an Oscar-worthy turn as the one woman who has dedicated her life to finding the terrorist leader.1. Rust and Bone
Without a shred of sentimentality or conventionality, Jacques Audiard presents a love story like no other, where two badly damaged people look for whatever shreds of comfort can ease their troubled souls. Marion Cotillard's fearless performance as a killer whale trainer who sees everything she loves, including her sense of self, stolen from her is the finest of her career. Matthias Schoenaerts' ferocity will remind American audiences of a more vulnerable Tom Hardy, and the spark he finds with Cotillard is undeniable. A cinematic tour de force and an emotional juggernaut, Rust and Bone is quite simply the best movie of the year.
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