Top Ten Films of 2012

Why, hello. Nice to see you (hypothetical reader) after nearly a year of my absence from this blog!

Though I have heard fellow friends and acquaintances bemoan the "slim pickings" from amongst film choices released in 2012, personally I found no such dearth of absolutely terrific cinema to be found. Below, I am happy to present my list of the top ten films that played at festivals, or in limited and wide release in the year of the supposed Mayan Apocalypse. Please to enjoy. I hope to soon publish several other "Best Of" lists in various film categories in the coming days. In the meantime, if you do plan on screening any of these films in the near future (which I highly encourage), happy watching!

1. 

Amour, dir. Michael Haneke

2. 

Holy Motors, dir. Leos Carax

3. 

Moonrise Kingdom, dir. Wes Anderson

4. 

Life of Pi, dir. Ang Lee

5. 

Once Upon a Time In Anatolia, dir. Nuri Bilge Ceylan

6. 

Beasts of the Southern Wild, dir. Benh Zeitlin

7. 

Wuthering Heights, dir. Andrea Arnold

8. 

Killer Joe, dir. William Friedkin

9. 

Breathing, dir. Karl Markovics

10. 

Oslo, August 31st, dir. Joachim Trier

Honorable Mentions In No Particular Order: Keep the Lights On, dir. Ira Sachs; Monsieur Lazhar, dir. Philippe Falardeau; Looper, dir. Rian Johnson; Argo, dir. Ben Affleck; The Loneliest Planet, dir. Julia Loktev; Seven Psychopaths, dir. Martin McDonagh; Red Hook Summer, Spike Lee; Miss Bala, Gerardo Naranjo; The Deep Blue Sea, dir. Terence Davies; Jiro Dreams of Sushi, dir. David Gelb; Goodbye First Love, Mia Hansen-Love; Postcards from the Zoo, dir. Edwin; Una Noche, dir. Lucy Mulloy; Habibi Karbak Rahsan, dir. Susan Youssef; Magic Mike, dir. Steven Soderbergh; Rust and Bone, dir. Jacques Audiard; Beyond the Hills, dir. Cristian Mungiu; Your Sister's Sister, dir. Lynn Shelton; Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, dir. Alison Klayman; The Imposter, dir. Bart Layton; The Queen of Versailles, dir. Lauren Greenfield; Jackpot, dir. Magnus Martens; Lincoln, dir. Steven Spielberg; Zero Dark Thirty, dir. Kathryn Bigelow; Django Unchained, dir. Quentin Tarantino; The Master, dir. Paul Thomas Anderson; Anna Karenina, dir. Joe Wright; Les Miserables, dir. Tom Hooper; Silver Linings Playbook, dir. David O. Russell; Cheerful Weather for the Wedding, dir. Donald Rice