2011 in Review

  1. The Artist, A, gimmicky premise fulfilled by characters and story
  2. Moneyball, A, well-written and acted atypical baseball movie
  3. Too Big To Fail, A, great cast tells the story of the 2008 meltdown
  4. Midnight in Paris, A-, nice mystical romance
  5. The Descendants, A-, George Clooney does a nice job with a sharp script
  6. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, A-, slow paced spy movie with a great cast
  7. Bridesmaids, A-, very funny, obscene movie with great characters
  8. Contagion, A-, prophetic movie about a global pandemic
  9. The Adventures of Tintin, A-, an underappreciated fast-paced action movie
  10. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 2, A-, flawed series has a satisfying end
  11. Batman: Year One, A-, well made Batman origin story is fun to watch
  12. Drive, B+, great story and characters with some gory violence
  13. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, B+, well crafted action movie, some flaws
  14. Limitless, B+, neat movie about brain power doesn't hold up
  15. Bernie, B+, great characters portrayals and crime intrigue
  16. The Help, B+, tells a good story through southern stereotypes
  17. Conan O'Brien Can't Stop, B+, a kind of funny, kind of candid look at tour life
  18. Thor, B+, fun early Marvel movie, with comedy and romance
  19. Rango, B+, dark, oddball, animated movie is mostly fun
  20. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, B+, good mystery nearly undone by some deep flaws
  21. Super 8, B, largely derivative movie of a menacing ET
  22. Winnie the Pooh, B, short and very familiar doings of great characters
  23. The Muppets, B, entertaining, but not much new
  24. Rio, B, fun story, but silly, undeveloped characters
  25. Hugo, B, nice movie but a little stuffy and slow
  26. Friends With Benefits, B, bad writing lets down a promising cast
  27. Puss in Boots, B, solid CGI animated feature, but not outstanding
  28. Captain America, B, good character and plot, but getting formulaic
  29. The Hangover Part II, B, same formula as before and still pretty good
  30. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, B-, melodramatic story of a 9/11 orphan
  31. Rise of the Planet of the Apes, B-, okay but with a clunky story and lackluster CGI
  32. Crazy, Stupid, Love, B-, underwhelming movie about unhealthy relationships
  33. J. Edgar, C+, hammy acting, bad makeup, and a creepy lead