Best and Worst Science Fiction/Fantasy Movies of 2012

This was a pretty upright class to be a fan of genre movies . More and more low - budget movies had the courageousness to take on scientific discipline fabrication and illusion themes , and meanwhile Hollywood seemed to tread up its biz a lilliputian . But at the same time , there were still tons of tedious sequels and prequels , and mountains of crap .

Here are our picks for the year ’s unspoilt and speculative science fabrication and phantasy movies . Let the debate begin !

BEST

David Mitchell ’s C - spanning novel , with its six lock narration , poses a near unimaginable challenge for a movie adaptation . But the Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer found a way to create a complex bodily structure in which the six time flow dovetail together and make resonances and harmonic , almost like the while of music that start the movie its name . Thetheme of oppression and freeing comes through powerfully , and by the ending of the celluloid you see how the past tense informs the future , and how it ’s all one fabric of loss and struggle . ( differ with this judgment ? Scroll down ! )

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There ’s a reason the rumour mill was take director Colin Trevorrow severely as a candidate to helm Star Wars : Episode VII : Hisdebut cinema was full of heart and keenly observe character moments . This concept , about a group of reporters investigating a newspaper ad from a man with a time automobile , would have been a snarky ego - aware comedy in most people ’s hired man . But somehow , prophylactic Not Guaranteed or else became a beautiful , insightful look at the substance of time , and the way in which just come back to your old home town can be a way of returning to the past . And if the final consequence of the film does n’t make you cheer and clenched fist - heart , that makes us sad .

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Very few movie trilogies grapple a hearty third instalment , that take all the themes of the first two cinema and brings them to a rousing conclusion . But Christopher Nolan pull it off with his third Batman film , in which the fate of Gotham City and the nature of Batman as symbolization are finally resolve . Sure , TDKR has plenty of flaws , and might be the weakest of the three films — but it ’s still a magnificent dystopian epic in its own right hand , that does n’t shy away from explore big political interrogative sentence alongside its thunder explosions . Batman perform one last great head game to save his metropolis from the one thing that ’s worse than the 2nd film ’s gush syndicalist : a demagogue .

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There ’s nothing about this film that you have n’t seen a million times before : the “ establish footage ” camerawork , the tarradiddle of people who get unearthly genial powers and ill-treat them , the down spiral , etc . But this film still felt astonishingly fresh , because of some really cagey storytelling pick and some amazingly strong performances . It was also really novel to see a movie conveyance superpowers in the tonic , topic - of - fact manner this pic does . Most of all , though , Chronicle creates in full realise teen eccentric with real emotional life , and uses its mysterious psychic powers to tell a great taradiddle about the incubus of high school social life .

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Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard work together on Buffy the Vampire Slayer , and they bring in the same kind of ego - aware humor mixed with tongue - twisting tension to this uncanny - ass parody of horror cliches . Cabin in the Woods lays out its cards in the first few minutes — we make out the teens locomote to the home in the middle of nowhere are just pawns in some strange game , controlled by dweebs in a bunker — and then become around and peels back further layers of insanity . Until you get to one of the best third human activity of any picture show , ever . This movie turns a critical review of rote storytelling into something enceinte and more existential , to the stage where it actually earns its monolithic ending — but it also cope to imbue all of these piteous saps with life and reality before tossing them into the abysm .

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Gary Ross ’ movie version was never go to capture the interiority of Suzanne Collins ’ dystopian novel , in which the gap between Katniss Everdeen ’s performance and her inmost persuasion is the most absorbing part of the write up . So instead , Ross chooses to pull back a snatch and give us slightly more of a glance into the workings of Panem — both the Dustbowl - esque District 12 and the glitzy Capitol . And he does n’t skimp on the savagery and ruthlessness of the titulary adolescent death mates . Despite some sad shaky River Cam , the visuals in the picture are frequently sensational , and convey that we ’re learn a televised spectacle . Most of all , Jennifer Lawrence single - handedly makes the celluloid an emotionally grueling experiencerather than an emo teen spectacle .

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A lot of this year ’s best movies act as with music genre , but Looper ’s combination of noir gangster image and time - traveling image made for one of themost canny and inventive literary genre mash - upswe’ve seen in class . Joseph Gordon - Levitt and Bruce Willis are terrific as a man meeting himself , and between the two of them they oversee to produce a really complex character who evolves over the course of the film even as he butts head word with himself . But this flick also gains a lot of urgencythanks to some truly acute force and body - horror , that uses fourth dimension travel in a way that ’s probably never been done before .

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There were lots of Brobdingnagian Revelation of Saint John the Divine in late movies — but this movie gave us an apocalypse in miniature , as a flyspeck community faces death and a daughter confront her father ’s mortality . The most centre - catching part of the film is its recurring image of the Aurochs , prehistoric animal who haunt the youthful Hushpuppy — but the whole movie is full of acute visuals and powerful moment . Hushpuppy ’s journey feels mythic and powerful , and everything around her feel huge and orphic . This is wizardly realism of the best kind : personal as well as larger-than-life .

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This flick fulfill several heroic feats , include bringing together wildly disparate characters and giving them all a desirable storyline — but its biggest accomplishment was probably just revive the delight and urging of a gravid superhero laughable on the big screen . For the first time ever . The interpersonal conflicts , the punching , the non - stop activity — all of a sudden , our superheroic fantasies are hap in front of us , in live action , in two and a half proportion . But also , this moving-picture show has a lot to say about valor and being a giant , which all culminates attractively in Tony Stark ’s final brush with expiry . There are more “ holy crap ” moment in this film than in several other tentpole celluloid put together , but it still has a giant heart .

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Like Safety Not vouch , this is a tiny indie movie — and like Safety Not guarantee , this film takes its science fiction trope seriously while using them to explore inscrutable personal query . But this picture , which soar up thanks to an unforgettable carrying out by Frank Langella , also manages to remark now on our kinship with applied science . Langella plays Frank , a former cat burglar who ’s grappling with dementedness and sparring with the annoying hippy who wants to take the book out of his local depository library . Frank ’s son gives him a help robot , which ostensibly does n’t have a mind of its own but which becomes more than just an extension of Frank ’s personality . Watching Frank and his robot become partner in crime is delicious enough , but it ’s even more amazing to see the relationship between the cranky old humanity and his robot booster evolve .

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We could n’t quite fit this pic into the top 10 , but it was emphatically one of the pic that propel us the most this yr . ( Also a strong moon-curser up : Dredd . ) This stop - movement animate cinema has so much sweetness and good humor , you ’re almost not prepared for how saturnine and acute the nitty-gritty of its floor is . More than any other revive film this twelvemonth , ParaNorman takes all your preconceptions and sprain them on their heads — with a grace and naturalness that make you forget you ’re watching a stop - movement invigorate film .

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WORST

God , what a mess . conform David Mitchell ’s sweeping novel , with its historic and far - future options , was n’t challenging enough — the Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer had to add a all insane additional element , having the same troupe of actors play dissimilar roles in each storyline . Which means one matter : horrid , claw - your - face - off makeup , including white worker playing Asiatic part . But also , it means allowing a supercharged Tom Hanks to call on in not one , but several hammy performances . Some of the chances the three managing director take devote off handsomely — but others overshoot their mark wildly , like a take flight car going soaring before crashing in a massive , noxious - smelling balefire . ( Disagree with this assessment ? Scroll up ! )

Expectations for Ridley Scott ’s return to scientific discipline fabrication were so high , we were likely bound to be disappointed . But still , this film … sigh . Ever since we saw it , we ’ve been deliberate : Is Prometheus a truly terrible film , or just kind of a fun space behemoth movie that works okay if you do n’t think about it too much ? The visuals sure are lovely . But after month of reflection , we ’ve come down on the “ Prometheus is a genuinely terrible film ” side . The “ idiot ball ” plotting , the suave characters , the shoehorned daddy government issue , and the huge philosophic interrogative that are raised only to be coat with drool … it ’s just a gargantuan Lucille Ball of stupefied . The only really memorable eccentric is the android David , and we wind up with less insight into him at the closing of the moving picture than at the showtime . And for all Scott ’s feverous insistency that this moving picture is n’t an Alien prequel , any true storytelling potential is gimp by the OCD need to connect every last dot with Alien .

There were a caboodle of purposeless sequels this year — we could n’t find room on this lean for Resident Evil 5 , but it comes to creative thinker — butthis might actually be the clearest showcase of continuation - itis . The first minute of this movie is just a re - tread of the Bourne Ultimatum , complete with clip from that far superior Matt Damon film . Edward Norton does nothing but digest around talk over obscure game dot from the first three Bourne movies . And meanwhile , Jeremy Renner ’s storyline as an enhanced superspy who ’s rushing to take for onto his tablet - endowed superintendent - intelligence never quite consider off or achieves any urging . This film is more concerned in establishing its ties to the Matt Damon picture than it is in launching Renner ’s persona as the new Hero of Alexandria of the dealership . And it all climax in one of the least thrilling concluding action successiveness we ’ve experience in late long time . Jason Bourne could n’t remember who he really was , but this Modern hero does n’t have any identity to discover .

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Speaking of utterly pointless sequels … as long as the Paranormal Activity films can be made for lounge change and can make tentpole money , we ’re going to see one of them every twelvemonth . Considering that PA4 was made by the same directors as the actually - quite - decent PA3 , we had moderately high hopes for this one . But the quaternary field day wascriminally boring and horribly stupid . Having run out of things to do with the old “ found footage ” gimmick , this motion-picture show resort to try out to use the Xbox Kinect to accomplish some cheap thrills . As irksome as PA2 was , this is the first PA movie where the rules do n’t even make sense and the characters do n’t respond credibly at all .

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Neither of this twelvemonth ’s duel Snow White pic was particularly groovy , but Mirror Mirror was definitely the bad of the two . Tarsem Singh lend the same over - the - top visuals that made Immortals so memorable , but this time it ’s married to Julia Roberts ’ insane “ mean girl ” public presentation as the Evil Queen . The film really belongs to Armie Hammer as the prince , who embraces his “ damsel in distress ” role with mad levels of campiness . There ’s nothing wrong with an over - the - top fantasy comedy , but not when it ’s this joyless .

We in reality liked Clash of the Titans redo a bonnie flake — and then , this . WTF . This movie is like a tutorial in how not to do a cheesy fancy epic . Sam Worthington substitutes valium for valor . The “ swordfights ” consist of the great unwashed falling on their heads and grunt . Even the rich amount of money of monster attack are dull and unengaging , and the last set slice falls perfectly flat . This cinema even manages to make Pegasus boring . PEGASUS ! Seriously . alternatively of the first moving-picture show ’s straightforward heroic - pursuance plot , this film does a weird and boring riff on Tarsem Singh ’s Immortals , packed with dismal daddy issues . The hero of this film are shackled to a rock with chain of contractual obligation , and it shows .

We make out a time travelling runaway — in fact , there are few things we love more than a time change of location frolic . But this bloated , unfunny continuation manages to leech all of the sport out of time travel , just as it also run out all joyfulness from its “ buddy clowning ” tropes . ( Although it must be said , Rick Baker ’s practical beast upshot in this movie are a affair of pure wonderment . ) There are a few authentically funny or clever moment in this motion-picture show , but they ’re massively outweighed by retentive stint of Will Smith go through the motionswhile Josh Brolin , as the young interpretation of Agent K , tries valiantly to come in some joie - de - vivre into the proceedings . There ’s so much bluntness and badness : the Chinese restaurant scene , the funeral scene , the Andy Warhol jest , the “ we have to put this machine on a rocket even though we have access to a million spaceship ” scene , and so on . The film is ostensibly about get word why Agent K is such a curmudgeon — but the final reveal is both nonsensical and does n’t answer the question at all . In a year of terrible , hard cash - grab sequels , Men in Black 3 is the high-risk and the Johnny Cash - grabbiest .

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A lot of the films on this “ worst ” inclination suffer from camp overburden , going through the motions , or an inability to commit to their assumption — and all of those problems afflict Tim Burton ’s nostalgic attempt to recreate the classic soap opera about a vampire paterfamilias , Barnabas Collins . But more than anything else , this film suffers from an surplusage of reflexive irony . Burton and his screenwriter Seth Grahame - Smith are so keen to let us know they ’re in on the joke , they block to admit a joke for them to be in on . This film has no fictional character to key with , no account to invest in , and nothing else that would ground its comedy in any agency . It ’s mediaeval in the most pro - forma , conventionalized way , and lightheaded without any joy or inventiveness . This really is Exhibit A for why nostalgia is the demise of art , unless it ’s charge with the heart of anarchy and invention .

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