Film Review

Best Films: 2012

Best films (32, including documentaries) of 2012, listed in order of viewing:
A Separation (Iran)* [My best foreign film of the year]
Once Upon A Time in Anatolia (Turkey)
Miss Bala (Mexico)*
Chico & Rita (UK, Spain)
In Darkness (Germany, Poland)*
The Forgiveness of Blood (Italy, Denmark, et al)*
The Kid with a Bike (France, Belgium)*
The Deep Blue Sea (UK)*
House of Pleasures (France)
Monsieur Lazhar (Canada)*
Beasts of the Southern Wild (USA)*
Compliance (USA)*
Farewell My Queen (France)
The Master (USA)
Argo (USA)*
The Sessions (USA)*
Lincoln (USA)* [My best American film of the year]
A Royal Affair (Czech Republic, Denmark, et al)
Life of Pi (USA, China)*
Anna Karenina (UK, France)
Rust and Bone (France, Belgium)*

Documentaries:
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (USA)
5 Broken Cameras (France, Israel, Palestinian Territory)*
Harlan County, USA (USA; re-release)*
Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present (USA)
Ai Wei Wei: Never Sorry (USA)
Queen of Versailles (USA)*
Searching for Sugarman (USA)*
Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel (USA)*
The Waiting Room (USA)*
The Flat (Israel)*
The Central Park Five (USA)*

* Reviewed

Note that some of the early films on my list actually opened toward the end of 2011, but didn't screen in SF until January, 2012. Conversely some highly regarded films, such as Amour, Zero Dark Thirty and the Gatekeepers, that would have likely made my list, have already opened in NYC and LA, but not yet in SF. Bad news for film lovers this year is that Landmarks closed the Lumiere and the Bridge theaters. Have a great New Year, filled with more wonderful films on the big screen.

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