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The Best Films Of 2012: 21 Runner-Ups (#30-#11)

Today, I aim to rectify that by expanding my Top 10 picks out to 30 (or 31, given that I cheated and included a tie), counting down the best runners-up from the number 30 slot all the way down to number 11. Even with so many more films represented here, there were still plenty of tough omissions, good and great films like Argo, Holy Motors, The Hunger Games, Arbitrage, Celeste and Jesse Forever, and even animated fare like Frankenweenie and Rise of the Guardians. If this countdown continued forever, those and other excellent films would be represented, but the festivities had to end somewhere, and I am more than happy with these 30 films representing my favorite cinematic memories of 2012.

14. TIE: The Avengers and The Cabin in the Woods

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I equate these two films largely inseparably not just because they share Joss Whedon’s distinctive voice and vision – though Drew Goddard co-wrote and directed Cabin, doing a spectacular job on both counts – but because both breathed new, innovative life into their respective genres. The Avengers is quite possibly the best superhero film ever made, and though The Cabin in the Woods is more comedy than straightforward horror, it is still the sharpest, most hilariously insightful deconstruction of modern horror one is ever likely to see. Groundbreaking, unexpected, and gleefully defiant of expectations in every possible way, these films provided two of the purest, most enthusiastic shots of unadulterated cinematic joy I have seen in years. 

The Avengers and The Cabin in the Woods are both currently available on DVD and Blu-Ray.

13. Jiro Dreams of Sushi 

I am sad to say I saw too few documentaries in 2012, but of the ones I watched, David Gelb’s Jiro Dreams of Sushi is far and away my favorite. More than just one of the best films about food ever produced, Jiro is a fascinating and profound exploration of humanity’s capacity for artistic drive, one with meaning and applicability that extends far outside the (delicious) realm of sushi.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi is currently available on DVD, Blu-Ray, and all manner of digital streaming services.

12. This is 40 

This is 40 is far and away the best film of Judd Apatow’s career, a deep, funny, and blisteringly honest statement on the enigmatic nature of family. Through protagonists Debbie and Pete – previously seen in Knocked Up and played beautifully here by Leslie Mann and Paul Rudd – Apatow has found the perfect touchstone for his own observations and worldview, the thematic center shining through so loud and clear that the rest of the film seems to just fall into place. This Is 40 is whole and complete in a way none of Apatow’s previous work can even approach, and the cumulative impact is as powerful and poignant as nearly anything released this year.

This is 40 arrives in theatres nationwide December 21st. 

And the best runner-up film of 2012 is…

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