Top films for me this year:

- I see the Devil
- The Skin I Live In
- The Descendants
- Arriety (<3 Miyazaki)
- Rango
- Hanna
- Biutiful (saw this in 2011)

Might be more but I was bad with my ratings on IMDB and lost track.

For anyone who gets a kick out of reading their favourite director's favourite films. Here's Tarantino's best/worst and mentions for 2011
(interesting to see most of his choices in this thread. )

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/01/14/quentin-tarantinos-eleven-well-twelve-of-2011/

i won't harp on about my favourites, but i will say that, for me, Drive started out incredibly and then bombed.
I feel like 15 minutes in the director tossed the script out of the window and decided to just spend all his energy jerking off in the corner with his cinematographer.

The violent scenes were incredible though. I haven't been shocked like that since the bath house scene in Eastern Promises.

Nice list Darky.
Damn, just watched Hanna. Amazing!!! The final set piece was so good. Definitely one of my favorites of '11

Originally saw Rango @ the cinema. Cool movie. Dry sense of humor with a real psychedelic vision. Definately not intended as a childrens film. Loved it.

@ Moodydoom. Thanks for the link, interesting lists. Agreed re: Drive. The film really tapered off and never quite revisited the suspense of the opening scene.

Has anyone seen Kill List?

Just watched it,really liked it, still don't really know what the fuck was going on though.

I did happen to catch 'The Artist' this afternoon. I'd nominate it and 'Carnage' as my two favorite movies of the past year. Brilliant film.

It's funny my g/f had picked me up from work at noon with our intent being to go see an Indian film called The Businessman' with some of her co-workers. As soon as I got to the theater I saw the Artist was playing and it turned out the Indian film did not have subtitles as it promised so we just jumped theaters.

Just watched Kill List last night. Meh. Like Girl with Dragon Tatoo it felt like your average 70's thriller/cult flick. But the ad lib wife screaming up the stairwell for her husbands attention was excruciatingly annoying. And the end scene was far to obvious. Plus your left going "And...?" So all in all I wouldn't recommend it to anyone I know but I also wouldn't deny it.

Cold Fish by Sion Sono was released on dvd/br in 2011 so that would make up for one of my best of the year And even if it's not he's best shot and 2010 (although I think it was released in 2011 outside of Japan) I would still mention 'Outrage' by Takeshi Kitano.

I finally saw Drive. Meh it was OK... Not bad but not great either... It is so hyped up that I was expecting more.

damn, sorry you didn't like it.
i went opening week so heard absolutely nothing about it, and went in thinking it was just going to be a straight action flick.
i'm sure i would have still loved it but it just sent me for a loop since i knew nothing.

Yeah I can see how the hype would kill "Drive" because with the exception of a few bursts of ultraviolence, it's really a low-key mumblecore sort of movie. Some reviews I've read completely misrepresented it to make it sound like a much more straightforward flick about a hit man when it's really more of a mood and character study.

Here's the ones I enjoyed most:

Midnight in Paris - Woody Allen can still make a fantastic film!

Hanna - changed my relationship with dental hygiene permanently

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - I found the portrayal of the sick fucks quite convincing. Plus, chin strap winch!

Our Idiot Brother - stupid fun

Horrible Bosses - stupider fun

I had high hopes for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. I just read the book a couple months ago, and really enjoyed it. I agree that the atmosphere and the respect for the audience was there. I think the acting was incredible. The cast really seemed to get the various characters and their variously unpleasant relationships. However, I thought it was too terse to make for a good film. It ended up being a big intellectual and aesthetic tease, and not much else. I want to read more Le Carre, tho.

I liked it. It was fine. I LOVE Carrie Mulligan and Christina Hendricks But yeah the hype blew it up too much and I was expecting a total masterpiece I guess... It would be way better if I wasn't expecting anything.

These read like my top 9 reasons I'd off myself if forced to watch any of them...

Just had a look at Attack the Block. I'm going to go out a limb here and call it PERFECT!
Of the crop of B-minded films that have come out over the last 5 years or so I think this one
succeeded best of the lot of them, hitting just the right balance on all of it's seeming intentions.
It's the antidote to DOZENS of SF/action/horror bunkies that have been pizzled our way of late.
A treat.

For real though, I'm watching 13 Assassins right now and it's fucking amazing.

I might be the only person who loves jason statham movies but I thought "Blitz" was pretty good. The Sherlock Holmes sequel was better than the first. I have to add a 2010 movie but it didn't really become big here in America until 2011, The Troll Hunter had me entertained.

You're not alone. They're both great, and we saw them in 2010, but to be fair they are "2011 releases" and totally worth a watch.

Okay. I read a little bit about Drive but never got the chance to see it and basically forgot about it.

Anyway just got it on Itunes and loved it. I loved the dialogue, the way it was shot, the story..etc. It's a great movie.

oh yeah, great movie !

What dialog?
I think every line of dialog in the movie is included in the trailer.

Right. But I guess I should have stated...the lack of dialogue.... which is what I liked. It reminded me of a western...where the dialogue is sparse. It really had a feel of Clint Eastwood movie to me and it was realistic where no one was OVERLY witty...No rants and long winded speeches...etc. Lots of silence. Etc.

Great flick, with a great cast.

^^^ hotly contested earlier in the thread, but I'm with you, P!