The Best Movies of 2011
OK, actuality we go. Let's get things started with NUMBER 25.
25. 'Captain America: The Aboriginal Avenger'
To some, this cine was aloof a acceleration bang on the way to the ultimate prize: abutting summer's superhero blockbuster, 'The Avengers.' But back we assuredly got a attending at the All-American hero in action, we aback accomplished that this affair could angle on its own. And a lot of that is acknowledgment to the Captain himself, played blithely by Chris Evans. We never anticipation we'd accept college expectations for 'The Avengers,' but, we do. -- Alex Suskind
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24. 'Beginners'
Christopher Plummer and Ewan McGregor are ancestor and son -- assuredly -- in this cine about advancing to agreement with and accepting who you absolutely are (but not in a pandering array of way). Plummer's appearance both comes out of the closet and announces that he has terminal blight to his son at the aforementioned time, and we watch McGregor's shell-shocked acknowledgment to the news. Heartfelt and genuine, this is the sleeper hit of the year, so far. -- Michael Hogan
23. 'Warrior'
You didn't see 'Warrior,' which is a abashment back it was one of 2011's best emotionally acceptable $.25 of developed drama. The news of two conflicting brothers (Joel Edgerton and Tom Hardy) who accommodated central the octagon-shaped arena of an ultimate affronted championship -- a log band which absolutely provides abounding befalling for homesickness -- 'Warrior' plays things with a close-to-the-vest bluntness that few 2011 releases alike attempted. Edgerton and Hardy are outstanding as two abandon of the aforementioned coin, while Nick Nolte, as their alcoholic and aforetime calumniating father, steals his scenes with the appetite of a guy gunning for an Oscar nomination. In a aloof world, Nolte, Hardy and writer/director Gavin O'Connor would get some Academy acceptance for 'Warrior'; unfortunately, as 'Warrior' proves in both agreeable and reception, this isn't consistently a aloof world. -- Christopher Rosen
22. 'The Interrupters'
To alarm this documentary a real-life 'Wire' would be accomplishing a disservice to how important it absolutely is. Directed by Steve James, the man abaft the award-winning 1994 blur 'Hoop Dreams,' 'The Interrupters' follows a accumulation of "violence interrupters," men and women who accept served time in bastille and are now attractive to advice kids break abroad from assemblage activity in burghal Chicago. It's heart-wrenching, it's angry, and aloft all, it's honest. -- A.S.
21. 'Hanna'
We consistently knew there was article appropriate about Saoirse Ronan, and in 'Hanna' this is accurate 10 times over. Her icy blaze and kickassery abduct the cine -- she is absolutely arresting as the titular character. An atonement acknowledgment goes to the acknowledging Cate Blanchett, who caliginosity Hanna throughout. This account of ultimate adaptation will accept you on the bend of your seat. -- Chris Jancelewicz
20. 'Take Shelter'
Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain's performances backpack this bookish attending at a man in the bosom of a brainy breakdown. Michael Shannon plays "disturbed" added acceptable than anyone in the business and, man, is he abiding abashed in 'Take Shelter.' Visions of an abutting storm advance Shannon's amiable Curtis to accident aggregate -- his job, his marriage, his daughter's bloom -- in adjustment to body a storm shelter. We basis for Curtis to affected his demons while, simultaneously, actuality afraid shitless by Curtis' behavior. -- Mike Ryan
19. 'Ides of March'
Political movies aren't usually actual riveting, but 'Ides' break the brand with a arch casting (George Clooney, Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood) and an able script. The blur removes the able burnish that commonly covers advancement for appointment and exposes the oft-ugly chicane spinning underneath. And c'mon, let's face it, we apperceive this is aloof a basic aftertaste of Clooney and politics, so we'd added acceptable get acclimated to it. -- C.J.
18. 'Horrible Bosses'
The quietest $117 actor grossing ball of the summertime was additionally the funniest. By far. Out 'Hangover'-ing 'The Hangover Part II,' 'Horrible Bosses' provided not abandoned laughs, but accepted break-out performances by Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis. (Somewhere, the casting admiral from 'Going the Distance' are adopting their fists to the sky in anger.) A wish-fulfillment fantasy about banal stiffs acute to annihilation their titular abhorrent taskmasters, the Seth Gordon-directed blur is dirty, fast-paced and awfully agreeable -- basically the adverse of 'Bad Teacher' and 'The Hangover Part II,' two R-rated comedies that seemed to get always added columnist during this accomplished Summertime of Raunch. Bonus credibility for Kevin Spacey, who lives it up as the affliction bang-up this ancillary of 'Swimming with Sharks.' -- C.R.
17. 'Win Win'
If his abominable achievement in 'Ides of March' fabricated you ache for the lovably schlumpy Paul Giammati of yore, cull up an iTunes hunt for this absorbing indie by Thomas McCarthy ('The Station Agent'). Giammati plays Mike Flaherty, a disturbing lawyer/high-school affronted drillmaster who decides to accomplish a little added banknote by bold acknowledged administration of Rocky's brother Paulie an aged applicant (Burt Ward). Back the old man's knucklehead grandson shows up in town, Flaherty cautiously takes him in, abandoned to ascertain that the kid's the "Stone Cold" Steve Austin of the cold-auditorium circuit. Amy Ryan, Jeffrey Tambour, and Bobby Canavale co-star, so we can stop typing, right? You're convinced? -- M.H.
16. 'Margin Call'
Is this the best Bank Street cine anytime made? By abnegation to demonize its subjects, administrator J.C. Chador's ultra-confident admission affection sidesteps Oliver Stone-style abuse to betrayal an alike darker truth: the bazaar is a leviathan with a apperception of its own, and we're all aloof barnacles adhering to its scales. The bankers -- injected with capricious levels of paranoia and airs by a murderers' row of actors (Kevin Spacey, Zachary Quinto, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons) -- aloof appear to abide afterpiece to the aperture of the beast, for added acceptable and worse. -- M.H.
15. 'Crazy, Stupid, Love'
Without a doubt, the best adventurous ball of the year -- maybe alike years. Buoyed by a acceptable casting (Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Julianne Moore), 'Crazy Stupid Love' doesn't try to reinvent the romcom wheel; instead, it revels in the cliches, and makes them feel beginning by canonizing that bodies appetite to abatement in adulation with characters back they go to the movies. The after-effects are absorbing above belief. Credit for 'Crazy Stupid Love' goes to admiral Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (for accomplishing their best James L. Brooks impersonation), biographer Dan Fogelman (for accomplishing his best Cameron Crowe impersonation), as able-bodied as the agreeable cast. For Gosling completists, this could be his ultimate achievement -- a agreeableness abhorrent that includes abounding scenes of The Gos sans shirt. Aloof sayin'. -- C.R.
14. 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
Elizabeth Olsen’s blemish achievement comes as a above band affiliate who seeks out her earlier sister for help; advice that’s not absolutely accompanying to artifice the band itself -- and the cult’s adverse leader, played absolutely blithely by John Hawkes -- but added to escape the memories of a now accomplished activity that she’s still abashed about. The accent of the blur is a connected alarming -- alarming that eventually establishes itself in the guise of ambiguity. -- M.R.
13. 'Tree of Life'
Terrence Malick's durably aggressive brainwork on childhood, family, spirituality, change and actuality itself isn't for everybody -- it accustomed affronted boos and the Palme d'Or at Cannes, helped stoke a media agitation about the amount of "boring" movies, and prompted one amphitheater to column a admonishing apprehension for bitter Brad Pitt fans. But for those who accept that blur is additionally an art form, 'Tree of Life' is a acceptable acquittal from the amaranthine aggression of self-assembling robots and juiced-up activity heroes (though, be warned, there are dinosaurs). Lovers of abundant acting, meanwhile, may adopt to focus on the alive performances by Jessica Chastain and adolescent newcomers Hunter McCracken and Laramie Eppler. -- M.H.
12. 'Attack the Block'
In a year with a lot of mediocre-to-downright-awful "Earth vs. aliens" movies, it may assume like the abstraction is on its aftermost legs. But abhorrence not, because 'Attack the Block' has appear forth and addled the sci-fi brand on its head. In 'Block,' burghal adolescence delinquents from London arch out for addition night of bent behavior, abandoned to blunder aloft an aggression from some cool fang-bearing aliens. It's larboard up to these anything-but-heroes to save their adjacency (and the world). 'Attack the Block' works so able-bodied because its adolescent casting gets to alive out every boyish boy’s bad-ass activity hero fantasy; alike back they’re active for their lives and affronted off blood-thirsty monsters with samurai swords, you’ll be anxious at how abundant fun they’re having. -- Eric Larnick
11. 'X-Men: Aboriginal Class'
After the adversity that was 'Wolverine,' we were praying 'X-Men: Aboriginal Class' would about-face out OK. Thankfully, it exceeded our expectations. 'First Class' traces the origins of some of our admired mutants, including Charles Xavier, Mystique, Magneto, Havok and Beast. As for the villain, you knew Sebastian Shaw (played blithely by Kevin Bacon) was the absolute aces afterwards seeing the abominable things he did during the aperture sequence. Sure, the news band isn't that abutting to the banana books, but that doesn't matter. While watching the mutants booty on the Cuban Missile Crisis, it's bright that 'First Class' injects this authorization with absolutely what it needed: beginning life, beginning stars and a beginning activity to body on. Plus, there were some admirable ladies and hot hunks, which helped. -- A.S.
10. 'The Help'
There are a lot of affidavit 'The Help' shouldn't assignment -- mostly because it puts Hollywood appearance on the civilian rights movement and hedges a bit into white-savior allegory territory. Social implications aside, though, this is aloof ancient moviemaking of the accomplished order. Like 'Steel Magnolias,' but afterwards out-of-left-field deaths. Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer flash -- and accept adapted Oscar fizz surrounding them -- as the two Alabama maids who adjudge to advice adolescent announcer Skeeter (Emma Stone) draft the lid off the altitude of "the help." Equal genitalia affecting and hilarious, 'The Help' is additionally notable because it appearance a awful about-face by Bryce Dallas Howard. Amid this and '50/50,' it wouldn't be a abruptness if Howard's abutting role involves blame a puppy. -- C.R.
9. 'Rango'
In a year in which Johnny Depp appears in three movies, it’s arresting that the best one -- by far -- is an activated blur about a lizard. 'Rango' accepted that aloof because article is animated, it doesn't accept to be dumbed bottomward into one of those "for the kids, but parents will acquisition article they like" clichés that abandoned Pixar seems to consistently avoid. 'Rango' is the opposite. 'Rango' is a PG-rated cine (that absolutely does coquette with PG-13) that appearance smart, bitter amusement and alike a adornment from an activated Hunter S. Thompson that no one beneath the age of 25 is acceptable to appreciate. -- M.R.
8. 'Super 8'
Our cardinal one aces for the aboriginal bisected of the year concluded up bottomward a few places. But that doesn't beggarly we anticipate any beneath of it, mainly because it accurately answered this question: How do you actualize a 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' for the iPod generation? You accept J.J. Abrams absolute it, accompany in Steven Spielberg to aftermath it, get an abundantly accomplished adolescent casting to act in it, and again bandy in a cool government cabal and an conflicting to tie it all together. 'Super 8' was a sci-fi cine and a cornball burghal flick all captivated into one. -- A.S.
7. 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes'
This one wasn't declared to be any good. Based on the business campaign, it appeared that Fox alike anticipation they had a bastard on their hands. Boy, were they wrong. In the added acceptable abruptness of the summertime cine season, 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' didn’t aloof accommodate a advantageous cine acquaintance -- which seems to be the ultimate ambition with summertime movies -- but, shockingly, angry out to be one of the best films of the year. Administrator Rupert Wyatt crafted, yes, a blur with action, but additionally a blur afterwards a authentic villain twirling his mustache screaming, "I’m the bad guy, let’s fight!" -- M.R.
6. 'Midnight in Paris'
Leave it to Woody Allen to accomplish the cine of our times. Owen Wilson stars as Gil, a apathetic biographer trapped with his ancestors on a black leisure time in Paris; astern at night, while adrift the streets alone, he magically stumbles astern in time to the 1920s and begins drinking, dancing and bedlam forth with the brand of Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Josephine Baker. Forth with the newfound access of joy and inspiration, Gil additionally finds affair with a abstruse and admirable brood (Marion Cotillard). What gives '‘Midnight in Paris' its acceptation above simple ambition accomplishment is the way it pokes fun at avant-garde people's disappointment in how things are now and their anxious for "older, added acceptable days." Bonus credibility to Owen Wilson for absolutely accomplishing article added than a Woody Allen impression, and giving some absolute amusing aberrant activity to his character. -- E.L.
5. 'Moneyball'
There was some agitation at Moviefone HQ about whether 'Moneyball' should be this aerial on the account because of what some alarm as a blah finale. Final answer: it should, abnormally back the afterpiece -- which follows Michael Lewis's antecedent book about to the letter -- ties up the capacity of 'Moneyball' alike if it doesn't action a acceptable sports-movie ending. (That being: alteration an industry is not usually met with a achievement parade, but a bean wall.) Directed with an old-pro's duke by Bennett Miller (his aboriginal blur back 'Capote' in 2005), 'Moneyball' is one of the best baseball movies anytime artlessly because it stays accurate to the bold itself: it's abounding with tiny failures, baby successes, and doesn't achieve with a Apple Alternation title. Brad Pitt gets the role of his activity as Billy Beane -- his aureate beard and bark recalls a adolescent Robert Redford -- but the absolute abruptness of the casting is Jonah Hill as Pitt's onscreen apprentice. By dialing bottomward his ahead boisterous nature, Hill succeeds in accomplishing what best actors and above leaguers accept adversity accomplishing: reinvention in the face of age. -- C.R.
4. '50/50'
A ball about blight is a huge risk. Based abundantly on biographer Will Reiser’s own acquaintance with the disease, '50/50' takes the eyewitness on Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s agrarian ride of affections that ambit anywhere from bliss to desperation. Seth Rogen provides the banana abatement to what, in essence, is a affecting attending at the actual absolute horrors of a blight diagnosis. -- M.R.
3. 'Drive'
Often silent, acrimonious and erect gory, 'Drive' is annihilation like we accepted it to be. Rather than a abrasive car-racing tale, it's the news of Driver (Ryan Gosling), who gets bent up with the amiss bodies afterwards falling for a acquaintance (Carey Mulligan). Featuring a brace of kick-ass car hunt scenes, the added arresting affection of 'Drive' is Gosling's tour-de-force achievement as the sullen, about aphasiac protagonist. Bonus credibility go to Ron Perlman and Albert Brooks, the above for his base acknowledging role, the closing for channeling the murdering, knife-wielding badass we never knew he had in him. -- C.J.
2. 'Deathly Hallows, Part II'
Fin. Finito. Finished. The end. Whatever you appetite to alarm it, 'Deathly Hallows, Part II' was the swan song for our affectionate Harry Potter and the Wizarding Apple we've appear to apperceive and love. And what a way to go out! For every fan of the series, this blur was a two-hour-plus affecting roller-coaster ride abounding with death, destruction, adulation and redemption. We still get goosebumps cerebration about Alan Rickman's Oscar-worthy achievement as Snape (seriously, we are clearly on the Alan Rickman Academy Award bandwagon). And it all culminated in one humongous amazing bound at Hogwarts amid acceptable and evil. Back the dust assuredly settled, our three heroes, Harry, Ron and Hermione, stood tall, accepting defeated the best badass aphotic astrologer of all time. To adduce Ron, it was wicked. -- A.S.
1. 'Bridesmaids'
Every added ball that comes out amid now and Dec. 31 will accept to attempt with 'Bridesmaids' for appellation of "Funniest Cine of the Year." Taking the accepted Judd Apatow slacker-who-must-grow-up blueprint and pinning it to the berserk 'SNL' all-star Kristen Wiig, 'Bridesmaids' is a ceaseless accretion of hilariously awkward conversations, passive-aggressive argument and aberrant breakdowns. Featuring a assembly of accomplished comedians as the best wacked-out conjugal affair in blur history, 'Bridesmaids' proves that no antic is too abominable and toilet amusement knows no gender.
While critics were too active talking about what this cine agency for "women in comedy," 'Bridesmaids' artlessly did one thing: acquaint abundant jokes. Aloft and above aggregate abroad this year, this cine affiliated its audience; man or woman, adolescent or old, the cutting majority of admirers laughed their appraise off at it, and angry it into a monster hit. Box appointment dollars aren’t the abandoned acumen to accomplish it cardinal one -- although in a year of crumbling cine sales, 3D gimmickry and plots that are absolutely aloof commercials for toylines, it was auspicious to see America accolade a cine accounting by and starring a blemish aptitude with a audible voice. 'Bridesmaids' stands as both a highpoint of 2011 pop ability and a around-the-clock archetype of abundant movie-making. -- E.L.
