The Best and Worst of 2012

Top 10 films

1. Seven Psychopaths
       I was surprised this was my best film of the year. I thought it was going to be good, but never expected to be blown away by the great story, top acting performances, writing and humour.

2. Skyfall
       One of the best Bonds of all time and easily Daniel Craig's best Bond film. I enjoyed this so much I had to see it twice. It was also a great goodbye to the legendary Judi Dench as M.

3. Moonrise Kingdom
       An all star cast in this unusually brilliant film. There was great acting from the children and the film was hilarious from the off. A film that had the imagination, originality and great writing to be up there with the best of the year.

4. The Dark Knight Rises
       A great end to a fantastic Batman trilogy. Probably not as good as The Dark Knight, but still a brilliant film, with great music and an ending to die for.

5. Looper
       Bruce Willis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Emily Blunt perform at their very best in an action packed futuristic thriller filled with twist, turns and some of the best action scenes of 2012.

6. The Descendant
       A well written and solid film with nothing really wrong with it. Funny, emotional and enjoyable.

7. The Artist
       A favourite for the critics and it raked in the Oscars. An original and well made film for the 21st century.

8. Lawless
       A great film based on a true story, filled with action, gore and well placed comedy.

9. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
       A wonderfully written film with a lot of humour and great acting from some of British acting's ageing elite.

10. Killing Them Softly
       Superb acting from Brad Pitt and Richard Jenkins in a cool and dark thriller.


Best Performances

Judi Dench - Skyfall/The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Javier Bardem - Skyfall
Matthew McConaughey - Killer Joe
Jean Dujardin - The Artist
Brad Pitt - Killing Them Softly
Bruce Willis - Looper/Moonrise Kingdom



Worst films

1. War Horse
      A ridiculous farce, where a young man loves a horse more than his friends and family.

2. Dark Shadows
      Bitterly disappointing and curiously boring. Even Johnny Depp struggled through this one.

3. Here Comes The Boom
     Generic with not one original idea to be found in this unimaginative attempt at a story.

4. Expendables 2
     Unsurprisingly one of the poorest films of 2012, with laughably poor acting and an obvious storyline.

5. Life Of Pi
     Magnificent special effects, but corny, critically overrated and lacking characters to connect to.

Worst Performances


Sylvester Stallone - Expendables 2
Rebecca Hall - Lay The Favourite
Maggie Grace - Taken 2

Skyfall

   I was very much looking forward to the new Bond film, Skyfall and it did not disappoint! Though Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace were both very good films, they weren't like proper Bonds. I grew up with Pierce Brosnan and he has always been my favourite. However, with Skyfall there is a definite shift back towards the classic Bond style.
   The film is long, but it didn't feel too long, nor slow. The opening sequence was exciting, well shot and edge of the seat action. I was so involved in the action that I totally forgot about the classic Bond credits and although it's not Adele best song, I still think its a well made Bond song and Adele was a good choice.
   Daniel Craig played his best role so far and Judi Dench excelled as usual in her seventh film as M. It was good to see Q return, this time as the much younger Ben Whishaw, while Javier Bardem was an awesome villain bringing a lot of humour, tension and great acting to his scenes. The acting overall is top notch, the action scenes are exciting and varied and the main actors were supported immensely well by Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris and Albert Finney.
   Skyfall is a great Bond story and there's enough twists, turns and excitement to keep you entertained for the whole 2 and a half hours. Though I do love the exotic Bond locations, it was a nice change that much of the action took place in London and Scotland. Skyfall is a big step up from the last two Bond films and a great way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of James Bond. I was also very pleased with the film being released in Britain before the US, which is how it should be with James Bond . I am now very much looking forward to the future installments.

For fans of James Bond and bloody good films.

Stars ****