The Avengers - B

Under the mountains of hype, it's hard to remember that there's a movie behind The Avengers and not just a global marketing event. With guaranteed blockbuster earnings from the moment it was greenlit, it would have been easy for the crew behind the film, led by Joss Whedon, to simply phone it in. With a team this talented, Whedon has avoided that, creating a feature that is as cleverly constructed as it is pure spectacle. But with the expectations as it were, it's hard not to see The Avengers as a slight cut above the rest and not quite the genre redefining piece it might have been.

Jumping off the numerous tentpoles that have populated theaters in the past few years (multiple Hulk films, Iron Man, and last year's one-two punch of mediocrity, Thor and Captain America), there's much ground for the film to cover. But even so, the film's opening acts get bogged down in mountains of exposition, and the pacing for assembling the team gets lost in the anticipation. Yet things kick into gear in the halfway point when our team - the aforementioned joined by the underdeveloped Black Widow and Hawkeye - finally come together aside the bombastic set pieces we've been waiting for.

Cabin in the Woods - B

A jock, a stoner, a "nice guy," a party girl, and a virgin go into the woods to spend a weekend in an empty cabin. As so many other films have proven, it's a recipe for success in the horror world. Director Drew Goddard and writer Joss Whedon, continuing his lucky streak, understand this well. They kid because they love. And Cabin in the Woods finds them at their most sickly sly, working up genre tropes into a frenzy and creating a film that is both tribute and criticism.

Right from the get-go, we understand all is not as it seems in the film's universe. Goddard and Whedon take us deep into the dark woods where, ironically, we feel safe, already expecting what will inevitably follow and settled in for a night of gruesome violence. They deliver on that count, but with Cabin, you get slightly more bang for your buck. Cabin in the Woods knows what it's talking about and has a welcome view on the genre that has not been quite been seen in some time (Scream comparisons abound, although it's far from that level) but it's merely an exercise in theory rather than a game changer.

21 Jump Street - B-

The best thing about 21 Jump Street is that it understands how silly it all is. The film is only loosely an adaptation of the semi-popular but mostly forgotten 80's series of the same name. Mostly, though, it takes the same basic premise (two adult cops hired to go back to high school in an undercover sting) and turns it into something slightly more appeasing to today's chaos craving young audiences. With leads like Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill, the film could easily coast on its pre-established good will, but goes out of its way not to.

There's a strange mean streak that runs through 21 Jump Street. As if the writers don't entirely trust the energy radiating from their two leads to be enough to carry the film on their own. They're wrong - Tatum and Hill have a natural chemistry that carries the typical bromance humor past its tired form. The overblown aggression and forced humor detracts from their natural charisma and would be better suited elsewhere. For what its worth, Tatum finds new ways to play with his persona, while Hill mostly leans on his own, but both come together to form a dynamic pair.

The Kid with a Bike - B+

The main character of The Kid with a Bike, Cyril, is a boy entirely at the mercy of his youth. His father, unable to parent him any longer, has abandoned him at foster care. He routinely attempts to escape and seek him out. He is consistently caught, but eventually, his carers must appease him and direct him to the truth about his father. Along the way, he meets Samantha, a local hairdresser who returns him to the bike and the father that he was separated from, and watches over him as he comes to the brutal realization of his father's carelessness.

A simple plot, and one that could easily descend into melodrama, but we're in safe hands. The Dardennes Brothers, a year after the film's positive Cannes reaction, present the film as a touching anecdote about a lost boy and the woman who seems predestined to care for him. It's a bracing tale that's willing to strike heavy notes when it needs to, but throughout its brisk 87 minute running time, The Kid With a Bike never hits its notes too hard, but rather focuses on the supple emotion of its performers and its narrative.

Damsels in Distress - B+

Damsels in Distress has one of the rare titles that lets you instantly understand the mood of the film. It's a quiet, often charming, slyly funny movie, but also one with a bit of pretension and an active mind. The film is uncompromising in its vision, and certainly will wind up irritating many who are hesitant to enter its hazy world, but for those who are, it becomes a surprisingly effective slice of wit from a man eager to please if you're willing.

The film opens immediately with a trio of girls scouting out newcomers at their University to decide which is worthy of their mentoring. They settle on Lily, a quiet-but-assured transfer student, whom the girls immediately welcome into their group of self-proclaimed suicide prevents. The group, who run a center on campus, seek out girls with low self esteem and attempt to immerse them in their pleasant way of life. Until, inevitably, issues between the girls (aided by their distress - the opposite gender) start to make their way into frame.

The Hunger Games - B+

There's a lot to admire in the long awaited film adaptation of The Hunger Games, but the film hardly requires any endorsements to get it on its way. The tale of Katniss Everdeen, teenage resident of the post-apocalyptic nation of Panem chosen to participate in a televised fight to the death, has already captured the attention of audiences across the globe. They shouldn't be disappointed - the passion and intrigue of the novel, as well as its raw entertainment value, come through clearly in the film, which should more than live up to its lofty ambitions.

Immediately thrust into comparisons with the other franchises aimed at young adults that populate theaters, The Hunger Games only follows along with those up to a point. It carries enough action, adventures and requisite romance to qualify, but for what it's worth, it dares to be a bit more visceral and challenging than even, I must say, the Harry Potter films. Where that franchise emphasized the grandiose wonderland of its setting (and the Twilight films hobbled along hiding behind their forced fantasy elements) Hunger Games is something else.

A Separation - A-

There's so much genuine humanity infused into the scenes of A Separation, it's hard to think you're not watching reality. What a cliche that is, but it certainly rings true of a film that carries so many layers designed to bring you into a word that, for American audiences, will be as foreign as it is enlightening. A Separation is a wonderfully realized and wholly felt work that accomplishes so much by seemingly doing so little that it's almost miraculous.

Do the components of a film ever work in such harmony as well as this? Writer-director Asghar Farhadi has crafted a screenplay with such raw feeling that it seems almost impossible his direction could be as good. But Farhadi's skill is evident in each part of the film, he carefully brings us into the lives of his characters and takes the film from being a mere morality tale to a portrait of human authenticity as effective as anything you'll find in the multiplexes for some time.

Silent House - B-

A young woman returns to her father's lakeside house and finds herself trapped as intruders pursue her. It's not an original premise, but the twist of Chris Kentis and Laura Lau's second feature, is that all 85 minutes of the film are presented in one seemingly nonstop take. It's a clever bit of trickery, one that adds some interesting spice to a worn out formula. But what presents unlikely thrills for the film's first half soon gets bogged down in implausible twists and the inescapable sense that this is all perhaps leading nowhere.

For all its technical virtuosity, Silent House isn't content enough to stick to its simple premise. Instead, it forces a resolution that is beyond unsatisfying and works hard to undo all the good will the film had earned up to that point. It's too bad, Elizabeth Olsen does wonders in the role of Sarah, the girl trapped inside the seemingly inescapable beach house. After Martha Marcy May Marlene, it's no surprise Olsen can convey mental and physical turmoil like no other young starlet today, but here Olsen actually manages to give one of the most fully realized horror performances of recent times.

Dream Oscar Ballot 2011

Oscar nominations are a few days away. As always, a lot of what gets in is going to be standard awards bait. But whenever the Academy gets the chance to truly break ground, they typically stay away from it. Even this year, while they have the opportunity to honor difficult-but-rewarding material like Shame or We Need To Talk About Kevin, we can't be sure they'll ultimately bite. Meanwhile, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio and Glenn Close will likely glide by on name recognition and prestige despite the fact that their films are very near terrible.

So each year, I like to highlight what I would have paid attention to if I was ever given the chance to vote for these awards. Of course, some of our tastes inevitably overlap (you cannot deny the charms of Michelle Williams or The Artist and you shouldn't try) but many do not. The Academy keeps it to five for each category (except Best Picture, which now can be 5-10, I'll be going with the latter) yet I usually let myself go beyond to six and sometimes seven. After all, what's with the reluctance to honor too many great works?

There are a number of works I didn't have time for this year, and some smaller ones that simply never came around to me. (Most notably, everyone's favorite foreign language film A Separation still has not arrived, as well as a number of other foreign and documentary entries). But these choices are almost perfectly representative of what the year was for me and more than a few surprises are surprising even for me. Winners are bolded (and pictured) while runners-up are italicized for fun. And, of course, these are inevitably subject to change, but for now, enjoy.

The Best Films of 2011.

If you looked at the list of presumed Oscar nominees, you might have no idea what a fairly great year of film it happened to be. With their need to embrace the mediocre (The Help, War Horse) and sometimes plain bad (Albert Nobbs, J. Edgar) this year's best films will likely go unnoticed by the Academy and other awards bodies. Yet 2011 carried a number of gems, some you have surely heard of, others perhaps not, but all worthy of your attention.

This year was so good, in fact, that I don't even feel compelled to write about the worst the year had to offer. Mostly because I avoid that which seems obviously bad (no Jack & Jill reviews for me) but also because it's hardly worth talking about a piece of dreck like Green Lantern when focusing on the films that made this year so memorable seems far more important. I will have more to say when I write up my personal Oscar ballot as this year, more than any other, featured a number of great performers and technical achievements in less satisfying works. But for now, let's celebrate that which makes going to the movies my continued favorite past time, and the people who make that possible.

Over the year that was, I managed to see about 90 films and wrote about a great deal of them (not most, of course). Looking back on it, I had neglected to realize how difficult it would be to narrow that list down to my very favorite. 10 features made my final list, with a few honorable mentions, and a number of others that merit a note among this year's best. Before you is a mix of mainstream and independent, homemade and foreign, silent and talkie (okay, perhaps only one silent), but all films that stuck with me over the year that was 2011. Let me know if you agree, or just as intriguingly, if you don't.

The Artist - A-

The Artist is a crowd pleaser in the best sense of the term. It wields a simple plot together with technical panache and two dedicated lead performers to create a film that both visits and builds upon the history of the medium. Sure, it blatantly aims to please, but it does so with such ease that its impossible not to be won over by it. By the time the audience leaves, you can't shake the giddy feeling that the movie has imposed upon you.

You may have heard The Artist referred to as "the black and white silent film" that's struck gold on this year's award circuit. Technically, this is accurate, yet the film is more than the sum of its parts. It's not merely a gimmick presented in feature length, but a fully realized entertainment brimming at the seems with the passion of its actors and crew in a way that's destined to win over even the steeliest audiences.

The film takes place squarely between 1927 and 1932 as George Valentin, a silent film star, struggles to make the transition to sound. As the talkies grow in popularity, as does a beautiful young starlet named Peppy Miller, who starts to care for the man as his world begins to crumble. Part-comedy, part-romance, The Artist demonstrates its clear love for the cinema as it wraps us up in a world that too many have relegated to the past.

War Horse - C+

"Wherever you are, I will find you," proclaims Albert as his beloved steed, Joey, is whisked away to fight in World War I. "I solemnly swear we will be together again." War Horse starts firmly on this level of kitsch and never backs down. Even with the oncoming gloom of one of the greatest wars this world has ever known, War Horse keeps its emotions boiled down to one simple formula: the love of a boy for his horse, and that horse's determination to get back to him. At some points during the film's bloated run time, this formula works, but those moments are few and far between.

Albert, an English boy living with his parents on their struggling farm, meets Joey after his father drunkenly buys him at a local auction. The family is struggling to plow their farm and Joey's their only hope. The smartest aspect of the film is that it takes its story beyond there and follows Joey, rather than his human owners, as he moves through an anthology of war tales, each somehow more cliche than the last.

It's a story about a boy and his horse, surely it was bound to fall into melodrama? But the problem with War Horse is that its far too content - even excited - to embrace its schmaltzy trappings. There's a lot of heart, but no soul to its story. It's the cinematic equivalent of a Hallmark card without the personalized message.

Carnage - C

 

It's easy to imagine that a situation like the one in Carnage might actually happen. After a schoolyard fight leads one child to lose some teeth, the parents of each child involved meet in an effort to mediate the situation. In their well-decorated city loft, Penelope and Michael, the parents of the proclaimed victim, invite the others over to discuss the events over some wine and cobbler.

Inevitably, things go wrong, as the pride of each parents and their own marital issues take over. The introduction of alcohol does nothing to aid each couple's temper. Neither does the constant interruptions of Alan, father of the alleged bully dragged along by his wife Nancy, who repeatedly interrupts to proceedings to answer business calls on his cell phone.

There are moments of wit and satisfaction buried in the dialogue of Carnage, but much of it seems too on point. The characters are too self-aware to fully resonate and their altercations, while entertaining, rarely seem fluid. Combined with the film's obvious stage roots and its inability to ever break from those restrictions (save a quick prologue) Carnage seems more like a case of professionals coasting on the established material (God of Carnage, the Tony winning Broadway production) rather than expanding upon it.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - B

Based on the enormously successful trilogy of novels by Steig Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo covers the first work in the sprawling tale of Lisbeth Salander, the striking, tattooed and pierced protagonist that has captured the admiration of readers across the globe. The book gained its popularity through a rather routine, but appropriately absorbing, whodunit murder mystery. It's no surprise that a story like this would find success, its compelling with just the right amount of sleaze, but there's something fascinating about the woman at its center.

Lisbeth, as a character, is an interesting creation who operates on one too many stereotypes but represents something unique in popular culture. Her looks and actions are too easy, yet her motivations are intriguing and present a nice alternative to the male-centric mainstream action fare we are inundated with. The movie is successful because it understands this and presents Lisbeth uncompromisingly. There's a lot surrounding her, but in the film's effective closing moments, we realize why we are here.

If Dragon Tattoo does not fully convince, it's the natural result of the limitations this adaptation was bound to have. To capture all of Larsson's twists, red herrings and false suspects would take a film twice as long and half as tidy. Yet what's remarkable is that rather than take the easy way out, Dragon Tattoo creates a believable slice of the novel's world and turns it into compelling cinema. It's a fun ride that knows its a fun ride and it works hard to earn the audience's approval.

Young Adult - B+

The character at the center of Young Adult is a rarity. Mavis Gary is 37 years old, divorced, living in Minneapolis working as a ghost writer on a series of teen novels. From the moment we meet her - passed out on her bed, chugging bottles of coke, and watching reruns of whatever city the Kardashians have teamed up to take next on E - we feel like we know her.

She's stunningly beautiful (as only Charlize Theron could be) even with her unkempt hair and oversized sweatpants. We see her go on a date, gossip over lunch a friend, and receive an email from an ex-boyfriend inviting her to celebrate the birth of his newborn baby. "It's like he's trapped," she says, and she sets out to save him from his suburban imprisonment with the hopes of rekindling their flame.

You probably went to high school with someone like Mavis and you probably did not like her. What's startling about Young Adult, and what makes it one of the most surprisingly effective films of the year, is that it does not ask you to. Thanks to the committed work from Theron and a sharp script by Diablo Cody, Young Adult is a spirited examination of a character whose been tossed off too many times by numerous films in the past.