Even though I don't get to the movie theater that often, I still made some great movie discoveries in 2012. Some of these films are indeed ones that were released this year, but most of them are movies that I watched for the first time this year. Maybe next year I can get to the theater more. Some of the films had a unique emotional impact because the second half of this year has been colored by my father's death in June. In that light, some of the movies impact carried special significance.
Hugo
This movie directed by Martin Scorsese is wonderful. But one of the things that made it unique was that I was able to sit down and watch it with my children without screening it first. As I watched the wondrous vision of the movie, I was brought back to a simple reality...I love cinema, and I love sharing it with my kids. This is a love letter to movies, and I can't think of anyone better suited to make such a movie than Scorsese.
About Schmidt
If there was a movie that reflected a big part of my emotional journey for 2012, it would be this film. I really found some solace in this film. Jack Nicholson plays a man who retires from his insurance career and promptly loses his wife. As a widower, he comes to realize that there is not much meaning to his life. But, in the end, he does discover that there are things worth living for. The depiction of a death in the family (the post-mortem, the people bringing food, the attempts of others to comfort the grief stricken) was spot on, and Nicholson's performance is extraordinary.
Midnight in Paris
A movie with such a warm glow to it that I simply could not stop smiling. Woody Allen directed this story of nostalgia set in Paris. Owen Wilson stars as a writer who can't stop pining for the Paris of the Roaring 20's. As he vacations in Paris with his fiancee and her family, he starts to grow discontent with his own relationship (he is engaged). Then, he finds himself somehow transported to Paris in the 1920's. He meets many of the artists of that period, and learns a lot about life in the process. This is a warm and fun fantasy film. The lives in it are only possible if one is extraordinarily rich, but the story itself still is very enchanting.
Lincoln
One of the nice things about not getting to the movies much is that when I do make it to the movies, I usually end up seeing a "sure thing". This movie was great, and it is made so not only by the performance of Daniel Day Lewis as the nation's 16th president. The supporting cast in this movie is second to none, and I couldn't help but walk out of the film thinking about how much I wish I could have shared it with my dad. This is a special American story brilliantly told by director Steven Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner.
Tokyo Story
This 1950's Japanese film has been on my list of "movies to see" for years now. It is very interesting that I picked this year to watch it for the first time. Director Yasujiro Ozu gives us a fascinating story of Post World War 2 Japanee domestic life. An elderly couple with four grown children (a fifth child died in the war) travel to Tokyo to visit with their two older children. While in Tokyo, their children treat them as burdens, while their widowed daughter in law goes out of her way to entertain them. As the film moves on, the statements that it makes about family dynamics are profound. Then, as death enters the family, the scenes concerning how a family responds to death resonate so well. This is not just a film, but a composition, and I am so glad I discovered it this year.
Ken Burns' Prohibition
This 5-6 hour documentary by Ken Burns is so relevant. I watched it last May, and I was very impressed by the ideas that it brings to the forefront. The chief idea with which it grapples is how much should the government tell its citizens what to do. In this case, the people themselves (through the government and an amendment) demanded prohibition, so no one is really to blame except the citizens. But the themes that it explores (individual liberty versus collective good) are fascinating. And, in this case (as I believe is the case with most things) a big key to the collective good is indeed individual liberty.
My Father's Glory/My Mother's Castle
These two French films go wonderfully together. They both explore themes of family, rest, individual glory, and childhood. It follows a family who live in Marseilles but who spend their summers in the Provence. The boy who is the central character of the film falls in love with the times he has in the wilderness, and as he grows older and things become more complicated, the holidays he had as a kid provide wonderful memories. Wonderful, simple storytelling.
Brave
I saw this new Pixar movie with my kids, and it is one of my favorites from that studio, despite what the critics had to say about it. This movie gives us a story with teeth, a heroine who is forced to do the right thing instead of the selfish thing, and a bit of classic fairy tale storytelling. The protagonist in this story actually grows, and how often can you say that about a fairy tale?
And last, but not least....
Moonrise Kingdom
I am an unabashed lover of Wes Anderson's films. So his newest entry was a breath of fresh air, because it was my favorite film of his since The Royal Tennebaums. This is a story of innocent young love and disfunction. The cast is great, and the quirky Wes Anderson moments abound. At the center of it all is a misunderstood 12 year old boy, whose pain and life experience spoke to me in a unique way this year.
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