Image via Complex Original
Stuck in the abyss of late-August movie inferiority, it’s important to remind one’s self that September is just around the bend—meaning, it’s almost time for Hollywood’s awards season rush. Within mere weeks, major studios and indie companies alike will begin unspooling their finest properties, ranging from prestigious dramas starring A-list talent to smaller film festival darlings ready to kick-start the careers of currently unknown filmmakers.
Until then, though, we’re still vulnerable to awful Z-grade horror like The Apparition, so-so diversions like Premium Rush, and incomprehensible children’s flicks like Oogieloves in the BIG Balloon Adventure. Which, of course, begs the question, what the hell is an Oogielove?
Rather than search for the answer to that inquiry, let’s instead look back on all that’s come before Oogieloves. From long-awaited blockbusters that didn’t disappoint to indie breakthroughs still being discovered by audiences, this summer’s crop of new films was a formidable one.
Granted, to catch most of the better flicks, you had to steer clear of AMC venues and find the nearest art-house cinema or stay home and utilize Video On-Demand platforms, but greatness was definitely out there. To see just how exceptional the last few months have been, get familiar with The 25 Best Movies Of Summer 2012. And to all you comic book fanboys, we apologize in advance.
Written by Matt Barone (@MBarone)
25. Prometheus
Director: Ridley Scott
Stars: Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Idris Elba, Logan Marshall-Green, Rafe Spall, Sean Harris, Guy Pearce, Kate Dickie
In many ways, Ridley Scott's heavily anticipated Alien prequel Prometheus ranks as the summer's most disappointing movie. Story-wise, it's a convoluted mess, a far-reaching meditation on mankind's origins that can't decide whether it's also a gruesome creature feature, an ambitious sci-fi action-adventure, or all of the above. And in the process of its own self-discovery, Prometheus alienates more than it welcomes.
But the infuriatingly clunky script can't detract from the film's eye-popping, visual grandiosity. Proving that the pupillary muscles he flexed while making Alien and Blade Runner haven't lost any strength in old age, Scott creates a futuristic landscape overflowing with imagination and compelling ideas. And when Prometheus emphasizes its freaky Alien connections, the director executes several dynamite sequences of gory intensity, namely a horrific, self-administered C-section fearlessly performed by an impressive Noomi Rapace.
Rapace and Michael Fassbender (whose superb turn as a conniving android is one of the movie's undeniable high points) help Scott to salvage the film's uneven narrative with sheer showmanship. They alone give purpose to the endless debates that have surrounded the divisive Prometheus since its early June release.
24. Little Birds
Director: Elgin James
Stars: Juno Temple, Kay Panabaker, Leslie Mann, Neal McDonough, Kate Bosworth, Kyle Gallner, Chris Coy
Despite its title, Little Birds isn't a PG-13 Disney flick about young, small-town girls embarking on a magical adventure. In fact, it's almost entirely embedded in a harsh truth. The film tells first-time director Elgin James' life story, except through the eyes of a pair of lonely and lost teenage girls (Juno Temple and Kay Panabaker).
Together, the girls attempt to escape their deserted hometown of the Salton Sea, a barren, fetid whistle-stop in southern California, by following a group of delinquent and homeless skater boys toward the bright lights of sparkly Los Angeles. However, what they encounter isn't postcard-perfect. The girls find themselves involved in a series of petty crimes that culminates in a jarring penultimate scene that'll leave some of the most mature men squirming in their seats.
Given the conventional plot line, certain scenes become predictable. However, the strength of the film is that it doesn't glorify violence or sexuality, so its genuine portrayal of stark reality proves easy to connect to. Instead of leaving the theater feeling like you just saw another typical indie movie, you'll leave reminiscing on your own coming-of-age story.
23. Cosmpolis
Director: David Cronenberg
Stars: Robert Pattinson, Sarah Gadon, Paul Giamatti, Kevin Durand, Juliette Binoche, Samathan Morton, Mathieu Amalric, Jay Baruchel
Cosmopolis is, to put it bluntly, a difficult film to like. It's as if director David Cronenberg doesn't want audiences to walk away from his adaptation of novelist Don DeLillo's dark satire of corporate soullessness with immediate satisfaction, if any enjoyment at all.
Cosmopolis, which follows a young, suave Wall Street tycoon (a surprisingly commanding Robert Pattinson) as he navigates a particularly eventful day in NYC inside a claustrophobic limousine, is coldly performed, densely plotted, and ripe with impenetrable dialogue. Upon a first viewing, moviegoers are liable to scratch their heads while considering outright hatred versus numbed indifference.
If you find yourself in such a situation after bravely experiencing the iconic Cronenberg's latest thought-provoker, though, do yourself a favor and give Cosmopolis at least one more chance. Simply for its audacity, the film deserves admiration, achieving a funereal unease through cryptic conversations, self-aware pretentiousness, and a frustrating main character who's so dead inside that even he hates himself. Feeling the same way about Cosmopolis itself is perfectly reasonable. Something tells us that Cronenberg wouldn't have it any other way.
22. Sleepwalk with Me
Director: Mike Birbiglia
Stars: Mike Birbiglia, Lauren Ambrose, Carol Kane, James Rebhorn
What a novel concept: a funny movie without any meanness, dick jokes, or set-ups based around flatulence. Mike Birbiglia might be onto something here.
Closely based on his own battles with romantic commitment and sleepwalking, all of which has been covered in his on-stage jokes, Sleepwalk with Me, the veteran stand-up comedian's directorial debut, centers on Matt, a struggling comedian (played by Birbiglia himself) who tends the bar at a local comedy club while dodging marriage to his loving and extremely patient girlfriend of eight years (Lauren Ambrose).
As his career slowly picks up, Matt questions both his relationship and his life even more, and it’s all told with the Birbiglia’s usual dry, unassuming sensibilities—his pleasantness and warmth give Birbiglia a sympathetic edge from the first scene onward. With its subtle humor and likeable sweetness, Sleepwalk with Me is the kind of comedy that easily wins you over by simply appreciating its own characters and simplicities, right down to the film’s honest, bittersweet, yet happy ending.
21. Lovely Molly
Director: Eduardo Sánchez
Stars: Gretchen Lodge, Johnny Lewis, Alexandra Holden, Ken Arnold
Horror and comedy go hand in hand—the two genres always have, and they always will. Essentially, horror filmmakers and directors concerned with laughs are all trying to accomplish the same thing, and that’s to provoke an extreme reaction out viewers.
But there’s nothing like a scary movie made with no other purpose than to wholly disturb audiences, without a nary of mirth. That’s exactly what Lovely Molly director, Eduardo Sánchez, one half of the revolutionaries behind the seminal found-footage hit The Blair Witch Project, has done with his latest creepfest, which warranted more attention during its brief, very limited May theatrical run.
Newcomer Gretchen Lodge, in a blistering performance, plays Molly, a newlywed who moves into her old childhood cabin with her new husband (Sons of Anarchy alum Johnny Lewis). Once she’s there, past traumas bring Molly’s suppressed inner demons (i.e., drug abuse and fears of a malevolent supernatural force) to the surface.
Blending traditional camerawork with sporadic flips on the intimate, first-person/found-footage approach, Lovely Molly paints an extremely bleak picture of a volatile character. And, to his credit, Sánchez is surgical when it comes to setting an eerie mood (the film’s unnerving sound design plays a part in that) and serving up paranormal pay-offs.
20. Klown
Director: Mikkel Nørgaard
Stars: Frank Hvam, Casper Christensen, Marcuz Jess Petersen
Who knew that jokes about masturbation and pint-sized wieners were so universal? Roaring out of Denmark with an intense aversion to good taste and proper morals, the very-R-rated comedy Klown send art-house audiences into hysterics this summer thanks to the kind of edgy bromance and graphic imagery that gave The Hangover its unique appeal, except that, in the case of director Mikkel Nørgaard's much raunchier film, the filth is undercut by a quietly beating heart.
Reprising the roles they popularly embodied on the Danish TV series of the same name (think Denmark's answer to Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm), comedians Frank Hvam and Casper Christensen form the summer's funniest on-screen duo as a couple of knuckleheads getting into a series of increasingly dirty sexual shenanigans while on a canoe trip. It's made all the more uncomfortable by Hvam's decision to "kidnap" a little boy and bring him along to prove to his unconvinced, pregnant girlfriend that he has what it takes to be a father.
It's not a spoiler to say that Frank doesn't have what it takes, at least not at first, and watching him repeatedly fail throughout the uproarious course of Klown's briskly paced duration is a blast.
19. Oslo, August 31st
Director: Joachim Trier
Stars: Anders Danielsen Lie, Hans Olav Brenner, Ingrid Olava
Oslo, August 31st, the unfairly overlooked Norwegian drama from filmmaker Joachim Trier, is the somberly meditative examination of a trouble drug addict's return home that's marred by his worst inner demons shrouding his mind in tragic discomfort. So, yeah, it's pretty much the exact opposite of the kind of film people want to see in the sunny, warm, popcorn-filled days of summer. It's no wonder that more people talked about Adam Sandler's idiotic That's My Boy than Trier's Oslo, August 31st.
That is their massive loss. Led by Anders Danielsen Lie's remarkable performance as the redemption-seeking Anders, Oslo, August 31st soars without ever looking above its main character's world-carrying shoulders. Trier spends the whole of the film's 95 tense minutes analyzing Anders' intense regret and loneliness resulting from a life tainted by mistakes and ruined opportunities. Somehow, though, by the movie's end, Oslo, August 31st finds a poignant happiness in its unpleasantness. That's the mark of an incredibly gifted storyteller, a description that, as evidenced by Oslo, August 31st, suits Trier nicely.
18. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
Director: Lorene Scafaria
Stars: Steve Carell, Keira Knightley, Rob Corddry, Patton Oswalt, Derek Luke, Connie Britton, Adam Brody, William Petersen, Melanie Lynskey
Most of the critics who’ve written negatively about novice director (and more experienced screenwriter) Lorene Scafaria’s Seeking a Friend for the End of the World have chastised the filmmaker for bouncing around tonally, settling into a reflective vibe before quickly upending the sentiment with cheap laughs. And we agree, Seeking a Friend doesn’t have the most fluid of screenplays behind it, but here’s what it does have: two excellent leads and a well-developed romance that pays off in a beautifully heartbreaking manner.
Scafaria also receives bonus points for mining originality out of the otherwise tired end-of-the-world narrative set-up. With only 21 days left before an asteroid crashes into Earth, people are partying hard and indulging in illegal vices, except for Dodge Petersen (Steve Carell), a disenchanted man whose wife has just left him. He finds a reason to wake up in Penny (an enthralling Keira Knightley), his perky, cute neighbor who convinces Dodge to track down an old high school sweetheart before mankind ceases to exist.
It’s not a spoiler to say that Dodge and Penny gradually fall in love with one another, but what may come as a surprise is that, for once, Seeking a Friend supplies us rom-com skeptics with a heart-to-heart connection we can actually feel. Together, Carell and Knightley sell every sentimental moment, principally the film’s profound closing sequence. You’d have to be made of stone not well up a bit.
17. Magic Mike
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Stars: Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Matthew McConaughey, Cody Horn, Olivia Munn, Adam Rodriguez, Matt Bomer, Joe Manganiello, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Riley Keough
We feel bad for those silly dudes who begrudgingly stayed at home when their girlfriends flocked to the local cinema to watch Channing Tatum and company strip down in Steven Soderbergh's Magic Mike. Little did they know that the film their girls were salivating over is actually one of the summer's most pleasant surprises, handled by acclaimed director Soderbergh (Traffic, Ocean's Eleven, Che) with an acute sense of humor and a non-intrusive dedication to character development.
In a triumphantly likeable and charismatic performance, Tatum, who infamously spearheaded Magic Mike based on his own pre-Hollywood experiences as an exotic dancer, owns the stage, so to speak, as a hot-shot performer falling out of love with his sleazy profession after taking an aimless guy (Alex Pettyfer) under his oiled-up wing. Fully aware of the unavoidable goofiness of seeing guys gyrate before groups of horny chicks, Soderbergh, Tatum, and their cohorts wisely play the dancing sequences more for laughs than seduction, resulting in a crowd-pleasing flick that's surprisingly entertaining whenever the guy candy gets served up.
As for co-star Matthew McConaughey, who steals the film's limelight as an untrustworthy and seasoned strip club owner, the year's biggest Comeback Kid upgrades an otherwise guilty pleasure into a movie that deserves some awards season attention. The Best Supporting Actor category would be, excuse the pun, naked without him.
16. The Avengers
Director: Joss Whedon
Stars: Chris Evans, Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgard, Gwyneth Paltrow
Yes, we’re aware that The Avengers is the third-highest grossing American movie of all time. Indeed, we loved every second of Mark Ruffalo’s interpretation of the Hulk, a Marvel character previously unable to make a triumphant leap to cinemas. And, of course, we also ogled Scarlett Johansson’s curves in that black latex outfit.
All that being said, we stand by The Avengers landing at the No. 16 spot in this countdown’s rankings—sorry, comic book stalwarts. Enormously entertaining, Joss Whedon’s superhero blowout is a towering accomplishment that should be applauded, namely because Whedon somehow managed to fit so many larger-than-life characters into one movie and give them all breathing room.
The film’s closing action sequence, an eye-popping siege upon New York City that runs for nearly an hour and never loses its appeal, is extraordinary enough to excuse the script’s flaws (read: some hokey jokes and a slightly lagging first act). Simply for re-instilling that old, childlike feeling of cinematic grandiosity, previously experienced back in the Independence Day and Jurassic Park days, Whedon’s The Avengers deserves every bit of its staggering success.
15. Polisse
Director: Maïwenn
Stars: Karin Viard, Joey Starr, Marina Foïs, Nicholas Duvauchelle, Maïwenn, Karole Rocher, Emmanuelle Bercot, Frederic Pierrot
Admittedly, French actress/writer/director Maïwenn's sprawling procedural Polisse requires a great deal of patience. Clocking in at a slightly overlong 127 minutes, the award-winning French film slowly builds to a stunning, considerably bleak coda as Maïwenn (High Tension) provides an all-access look at the inner workings of police officers assigned to the Child Protection Unit in Paris.
On the job, the ensemble of characters have to contend with abused kids, wayward parents, and homeless families, all of which weigh heavily on the authority figures' emotions. Off the clock, those emotions are tested even further, and Polisse does a fine job of making you care just as much about the officers as you do for the battered youngsters they're forced to save on a daily basis. Imagine your favorite cop TV show done with subtitles, French sensibilities, and unflinching darkness; in other words, Polisse is The Wire for Parisians.
14. Ted
Director: Seth MacFarlane
Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Joel McHale, Giovanni Ribisi, Jessica Stroup, Patrick Warburton, Laura Vandevoort
Even if you’re not totally up on director/voice actor Seth MacFarlane’s animated mega-hit Family Guy, his directorial debut, Ted, should make you laugh more than any other movie in 2012 so far, save for 21 Jump Street (more on that flick later).
Thanks to Mark Wahlberg’s best comedic performance yet (as John, a 35-year-old slacker who pals around with a potty-mouthed teddy bear) and MacFarlane’s voice work as the titular bear with a taste for weed, booze, and flesh-and-blood women, Ted is a laugh machine with plenty of filthy humor. And, for Family Guy purists, MacFarlane’s signature knack for welcomed, obscure pop culture jokes (see: Tom Skerritt and the 1980 superhero bomb Flash Gordon).
What lifts Ted above your typical R-rated comedy, however, is its palpable sweetness. Firmly establishing the 27-year bond between John and Ted, the film is actually a rather sweet buddy comedy; albeit, one that’s aided by the peripheral presence of an unsurprisingly radiant Mila Kunis and a prostitute unable to control her bowels. Bet you never thought you’d hear those two things mentioned in the same sentence.
13. Take This Waltz
Director: Sarah Polley
Stars: Seth Rogen, Michelle Williams, Luke Kirby, Sarah Silverman
The fragile lead character in actress-turned-filmmaker Sarah Polley’s brave and original romantic dramedy Take This Waltz is a role that Academy Award nominee Michelle Williams was born to play. She naturally exudes vulnerability and effortless sexiness, so it’s easy to accept her as an unhappily married girl-next-door who struggles to curb her attraction to, and acute fascination with, an artsy charmer (Luke Kirby), in hopes of not cheating on her well-meaning but unexciting husband (a nicely restrained Seth Rogen).
Following Williams’ character every step of the way, Polley’s buoyant script never loses touch with reality. Whether she’s running back to her spouse’s arms or inching closer to another man’s forbidden, um, fruit, Williams blurs the line between conjuring up viewer contempt and earning audience sympathy. Especially in the film’s unforeseen third act, an intriguing turn of events that, through sharp writing, piercing dialogue, and Polley’s commitment to honesty, separate Take This Waltz from every other “chick flick” in the market.
12. ParaNorman
Directors: Chris Butler and Sam Fell
Stars: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Anna Kendrick, Leslie Mann, Casey Affleck, John Goodman, Jeff Garlin
Keep the little pre-school-aged kids away from ParaNorman, unless you want to promote night terrors. Though its anti-bullying, wholly positive story (about forgiveness and finding one's purpose in life) is meant to uplift, not petrify, this magnificent achievement in stop-motion animation is decidedly too grown-up for wee lads.
Blame that on the shared affinity for, and readiness to pay homage to, classic horror films on display courtesy of filmmakers Chris Butler and Sam Fell. Nightmarish-looking zombies stumble about, corpses are used for sight gags, and the olden days' practice of executing women thought to be witches is the basis for the script's villainous sub-plot. Yeah, ParaNorman is a bit darker than, say, Ice Age.
More importantly, though, it's also stronger in the originality department, striking a delicate balance between adult horror and child-friendly wonder. Also worthy of praise is the fact that its protagonist, the kind-hearted, spirit-seeing Norman (voiced with heartfelt conviction by Let Me In's Kodi Smit-McPhee), is a well-realized, multifaceted triumph of a kiddie character offering something more than aww-shucks naivety. If not for the little girl at the center of this countdown's top-ranked film, Smit-McPhee's Norman would rank as the summer's most inspiring hero.
11. Searching for Sugar Man
Director: Malik Bendjelloul
You don't have to be a passionate music lover to fully appreciate Searching for Sugar Man, but it certainly wouldn't hurt. Directed with vibrant energy and riveting mystery by documentarian Malik Bendjelloul, the summer's most uplifting documentary investigates the enigma surrounding Sixto Rodriguez, a rocker who released an obscure album in the 1970s comparable in style and sound to early Bob Dylan. He disappeared from the public eye shortly after it tanked in the States, and, unbeknownst to him, became a megastar in South Africa after a bootleg copy of the record surfaced there.
The majority of Searching for Sugar Man operates as a detective story, piecing together clues, interviews, and other tidbits to attempt to locate Rodriguez. Once his true story comes to light, Bendjelloul's rousing character study elevates into the kind of inspirational underdog narrative that's impossible to complete without erupting into rapturous applause. Those VH1 Behind the Music specials look like Surreal Life by comparison.
10. Ruby Sparks
Directors: Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
Stars: Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, Chris Messina, Elliot Gould, Annette Benning, Antonio Banderas, Steve Coogan, Deborah Ann Woll, Aasif Mandvi
Take our advice: Whenever Ruby Sparks hits the DVD/Blu-ray market, pick up a copy, schedule a home video night with your preferred chick, and be prepared to receive cool points a-plenty from your fairer-sexed partner. Perhaps even some post-movie loving as a reward for displaying such quality taste in cinema.
What's truly special about the second feature film from husband-and-wife directing team Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine) is, their sharp directing aside, the wonderful script from star Zoe Kazan. Blending magical-realism with touching romance, Kazan's screenplay brilliantly develops a romance from the seemingly impossible.
The actress' real-life boyfriend, the perennially underrated Paul Dano, gives a strong leading man performance as a struggling novelist who inexplicably wills a fictional dream girl (Kazan) into existence and falls in love with her. Ruby Sparks works on several levels concurrently: It's a genuinely sweet comedy, a heart-tugging love story, and a Twilight Zone-esque look at human connection in a heightened reality. Don't be surprised if it holds up as the year's best romantic comedy come late December.
9. The Loved Ones
Director: Sean Byrne
Stars: Robin McLeavy, Xavier Samuel, John Brumpton, Richard Wilson, Victoria Thaine, Jessica McNamee
Unless you’re a die-hard horror supporter or a frequent user of the see-by-request movie service TUGG, this is probably the first time you’re even hearing about Australian writer-director Sean Byrne’s long-awaited The Loved Ones. Fortunately, we were lucky enough to catch the stellar horror-comedy two years ago (seriously) at a special New York screening, so it’s all the more disappointing that the film received such a lame, inaccessible release.
Whenever The Loves Ones hits the DVD circuit, though, make it a top priority. Incredibly gory, often hilarious, and never conventional, Byrne’s loony thrill ride is equal parts John Hughes, John Waters, and Eli Roth. Robin McLeavy (seen on AMC’s Hell on Wheels) cements herself as one of modern cinema’s greatest female villains, playing the insane Lola Stone. Obsessed with a high school classmate (Xavier Samuel), Lola kidnaps him on prom night, ties him to a chair in her kitchen, and, with the help of her similarly unhinged dad, tortures him beyond belief. And that’s just the first half of the movie—please believe, it goes wonderfully downhill from there.
It’s a crying shame that The Loved Ones wasn’t given a wider theatrical release—it’s the quintessential “midnight movie,” ripe with money shots and crowd-geared scenes just begging for an audience packed with excitable moviegoers. Guess Byrne and company will have to settle for the eventual word-of-mouth DVD/Blu-ray circulation.
8. The Dark Knight Rises
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Matthew Modine, Morgan Freeman, Juno Temple, Josh Pence
With staggering ambition comes the occasional misstep, and Christopher Nolan's third, and final, Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises certainly has its fair share of slip-ups. While being swept away in every stirring, visceral, and emotionally resonant moment, audiences can't help but succumb to Nolan's magic, but take a few post-viewing steps back and the film's script begs a large number of questions.
Here are a few: How could they end Bane's (Tom Hardy) story-line with such an anticlimactic punch line? How in Sam hell did Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) manage to restore his broken-down body, with its cartilage-less knees, to walk properly, let alone fight an army of bad guys? And how could Batman's customized airplane get away from that nuclear bomb's three-mile blast radius?
Taking such logical questions into consideration, it's inevitable to label The Dark Knight Rises an inferior follow-up to Nolan's 2008 masterwork The Dark Knight. But here's the thing: Even with those flaws, The Dark Knight Rises is still superior to any summer blockbuster in recent memory.
With the odds against him, post-Heath Ledger and mountains' worth of piled-up expectations, Nolan relied upon his dazzling visual sense and command of high-stakes emotion to put together a satisfying conclusion to arguably the greatest big screen trilogy of all time (don't act like The Dark Knight Rises isn't superior to The Godfather Part III). And as far as comic book movies go, we'll take an imperfect showstopper of this caliber over formulaic efforts like The Amazing Spider-Man any day.
7. Safety Not Guaranteed
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake M. Johnson, Karl Soni
Safety Not Guaranteed is almost too good to be true: It’s a romantic comedy that’s both hilarious and genuinely touching. So it figures that its recent limited release has rendered it all but overlooked by mainstream audiences, which is a real pity, because director Colin Trevorrow’s nimble comedy gives independent cinema a great, singular name.
Beautiful and quirky Aubrey Plaza, proving that she’s more than the cold, awkward character she so brilliantly plays on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, is a delight as one of two magazine interns who, along with their chaperone/arrogant reporter (New Girl’s Jake M. Johnson), investigate a newspaper ad from a recluse (The League’s Mark Duplass) who’s looking for a shotgun driver with whom to time travel. Oddly enough, it’s based on an actual ad, too.
With uniformly convincing performances, consistently spot-on humor, and a ballsy climax that’s unexpectedly poignant, Safety Not Guaranteed is a heartfelt little picture that dishes out laughs and butterflies in equal measure.
6. Side by Side
Director: Chris Kenneally
It sounds like the kind of documentary that film school professors would use in classes and casual moviegoers would equate to paint drying on celluloid: With a partially educational mission, Side by Side, directed by Chris Kenneally, details the behind-the-scenes revolution brought about by the rise of digital technology. Nowadays, within circles of directors, cinematographers, and editors, the debate pitting digi advances against old-school photochemical film types is as polarizing as it exciting. But should Joe Popcorn Eater really care?
As this highly entertaining and informative documentary (produced by on-camera guide Keanu Reeves) makes perfectly clear, they sure as hell better. Thanks to deep insight from an esteemed lineup of professionals (including Martin Scorsese, James Cameron, George Lucas, and David Fincher), Side by Side pulls the curtain back and reveals the inner mechanisms of cinema in such a way that both film buffs and folks who call Michael Bay’s Transformers blockbusters “brilliant” can appreciate its messages.
5. Moonrise Kingdom
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward, Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, Harvey Keitel, Bob Balaban
So what if writer-director Wes Anderson always makes the same kind of incessantly quirky little comedies? When they’re as superbly made as Moonrise Kingdom, there should be no reason to complain, haters—especially since this one is arguably the best movie of Anderson’s illustrious 16-year career.
Set in 1965, the dreamlike Moonrise Kingdom feels more like a fable come to life than a traditional movie. The perfectly cast young duo of Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward play an orphaned boy scout and an eccentric dreamer, respectively, who, guided by a shared first-time love, run away from their homes and cause a formidable cast of grade-A actors (including Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, and Bill Murray) to drop everything and search for them. Bizarre shenanigans, tender (and somehow not creepy) kiddie romance, and unpredictable storytelling ensue.
Admittedly, most of the movies included in this countdown don’t have the most pleasant dispositions; Moonrise Kingdom, however, will make you want clap your hands and flash a cheese-grin, partly because of its wonderful execution but mainly as a reaction to Anderson’s unflappable, singular brand of optimism.
4. Compliance
Director: Craig Zobel
Stars: Dreama Walker, Ann Dowd, Pat Healy, Bill Camp, Philip Ettinger, Ashlie Atkinson
The summer's most uncomfortable movie to watch? Independent writer-director Craig Zobel's Compliance, hands down. Using several real-life cases as his inspiration, Zobel conceived a film that's best viewed as a case study in the darkest of human behavior.
The film's set-up is straightforward enough: A prank caller phones into a nondescript fast food joint saying he's a cop and convinces the manager (Ann Dowd) that one of her employees (Dreama Walker) stole money from a customer. The entirety of Compliance consists of the young, cute worker's humiliation, which begins with an awkward strip search and escalates into heinous acts of sexual violation.
How far Zobel's film goes is best experienced for one's self, but what we can say about Compliance is that you'll definitely ask yourself, "Would I be so gullible?" Zobel deftly explores our subservience in the face of authority, showing how fears of legal punishment can make people do the craziest things. Staged with an unsettling matter-of-fact vibe, Compliance mines psychological horror out of basic human miscommunication, and the excellent performances from all on board sell every cringe, gasp, and wide-eyed shock.
3. Killer Joe
Director: William Friedkin
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple, Thomas Haden Church, Juno Temple, Gina Gershon
The power of a thunderous movie ending should never be underestimated. Even if everything that precedes a film’s closing scenes underwhelms, the last shot can send audiences out on a high that’ll make them forgive all of the inadequacies. Yet, what makes acclaimed director William Friedkin’s (The French Connection, The Exorcist) extremely pulpy and grimy, though unfairly NC-17-rated, Killer Joe such a complete success is that, yes, it has one of the craziest, entertainingly off-the-rails endings in recent years, but the film as a whole is a victory.
In screenwriter Tracy Letts’ adaptation of his own Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Matthew McConaughey serves a smoldering, combustible turn as a seedy Dallas cop, nicknamed Killer Joe, whose side hustle involves killing folks for cash. His target of the moment is the good-for-nothing mother of a young, in-debt deadbeat (Emile Hirsch) from a dysfunctional trailer park family. Unable to pay Joe, Hirsch begrudgingly gives his cute space cadet of a little sister (Juno Temple) up as a “retainer.”
From there, Killer Joe fires on all trashy cylinders, gleefully offering up sex with a minor, corpses, brutal misogyny, and the most perverted use of a fried chicken leg imaginable. And the best part of it all: It’s a black comedy. One that’s funny as hell, in fact.
2. The Imposter
Director: Bart Layton
File this under both the "stranger than fiction" and "disturbing reality" categories. Directed by Bart Layton with the tightness, mystery, and subtle creepiness of a David Fincher narrative thriller, The Imposter is a documentary so profoundly unsettling that it's arguably the summer's scariest movie. Of course, it's devoid of any jump scares, instead focusing on the inherent paranoia at the center of master con artist Frédéric Bourdin's truly bizarre case.
Without giving away too much of The Imposter's deep impact, Layton's real-life white-knuckler focuses on Bourdin's elaborate, unbelievably successful stint posing as Texas kid Nicholas Barclay, who disappeared as a 13-year-old in 1994. Despite the fact that Bourdin, a Frenchman, looked nothing like Barclay, the missing boy's family allowed themselves to fall victim to the criminal's rouse, and that's just the beginning of The Imposter's fascinating and unpredictable tale.
Mixing in-depth interviews with all involved (chiefly a manipulatively charming Bourdin) with taut reenactments and a macabre score, The Imposter is a first-rate horror show disguised as a probing investigative piece, one that has the power to make viewers question their own perceptions. Layton knew that the immediate reaction from audiences would be, "How could these people fall for such a trick?" The ways in which The Imposter casually puts viewers in the same unknowingly vulnerable positions as Barclay's own family members is only one of its key strengths.
1. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Director: Benh Zeitlin
Stars: Quvenzhane Wallis, Dwight Henry
It’s rare that a movie given such a high amount of critical hyperbole and instant prestige lives up to the hype. After winning both the top grand jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival in January and the Caméra d’Or (designated for best first-time director) at the Cannes Film Festival last month, debut feature helmer Benh Zeitlin’s Beasts of the Southern Wild has been riding one of the loudest, most enthusiastic waves of pre-release build-up seen in quite some time.
We’re more than happy to report that all of the positive word is absolutely justified. Anchored by an astounding performance from 6-year-old rookie Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts is an emotional powerhouse. The film follows a tough little girl, Hushpuppy, who, living in a fictional New Orleans marshland community called “The Bathtub,” must contend with both a dying father (the equally dynamite Dwight Henry), mythical monsters known as “aurochs,” and rising waters that are washing her homeland away.
Shot in the heart of New Orleans with newbie actors and a tight-knit production crew, Zeitlin’s picture is as authentic as it is captivating. When Hushpuppy’s defiant narration isn’t either making you laugh or stand at attention, the film’s rich characters and brave narrative turns will leave you clutching for fresh Kleenex. It’s a towering achievement from a director and young rugrat/actress whose names we’ll be hearing a lot of come awards season.