A bunch more critics have decided to let us all know what their favorites of the year are, and I’d be remiss at this point not to continue posting them for everyone. It’s a nice discussion point, and greedily a way to tease about what we at The Awards Circuit might include as our top 10 picks at the end of the month. Those will come in a few weeks, but for now, check out what Peter Travers, Richard Corliss, and others are partial to…
Peter Travers-
1. Drive (“too bloody, too creative, too ambitious and too polarizing to comfort audiences”)
2. The Artist (“style to burn and unexpected soul”)
3. The Descendants (“orchestrated without a false note”)
4. Moneyball (show us “how to find value in what others miss.”
5. Midnight in Paris (“Woody’s love letter to the City of Light”)
6. Hugo (“An irresistible bedtime story for movie lovers”)
7. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (“the acting artistry of Gary Oldman”)
8. Margin Call (“blue-chip acting as Wall Street gets it in the teeth”)
9. The Tree of Life (Malick’s “one-of-a-kind film strives even when it falls short”)
10. War Horse, The Help, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Richard Corliss-
1. The Artist
2. Hugo
3. Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame
4. The Tree of Life
5. War Horse
6. Super 8
7. Cave of Forgotten Dreams
8. Rise of the Planet of the Apes
9. Rango
10. Fast Five
Canada’s Top 10 Films (from TIFF)-
- Café de flore — Jean-Marc Vallée
- A Dangerous Method — David Cronenberg
- Edwin Boyd — Nathan Morlando
- Hobo With a Shotgun — Jason Eisener
- Keyhole — Guy Maddin
- Marécages [Wetlands] — Guy Édoin
- Monsieur Lazhar — Philippe Falardeau
- Starbuck — Ken Scott
- Take This Waltz — Sarah Polley
- Le Vendeur [The Salesman] — Sébastien Pilote
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Glad to see Drive come in #1 on a list…it’s in contention for the top spot on mine.
I’m also elated to see Drive as the top film on someone’s list. It’s been my favorite film of the year so far since it came out, and by the looks of things, it’ll probably stay that way. At this point, I’m almost wondering if it could make a bigger splash at the Oscars, since the support for it is so passionate. I’m not getting my hopes up, but I’m starting to wonder…
It’s one of the few films to get 4 stars out of me this year…
As for the Oscars, Albert Brooks is the only thing I’d bet on now, but I think it could surprise though.
I have a feeling that when Drive (My favorite of the year) comes out on DVD, word of mouth will spread like a wildfire.
It’s well known, just not blockbuster status. It should have platformed as an indie instead of opening wide, but if you look at it as an art film, its box office is actually quite good.
I’m suprised how many critics are loving Drive. I mean I think its a great movie (top 5 for sure) but I figured it would be a bit more polarizing. Everyone from Peter Travers (about as mainstream and predictable as critics get) to Slant Magazine (the polar opposite) have loved it. Which annoys me even more that it has no shot at getting a best picture nod. The beauty of the 10-film category is that little off-color movies like Drive had a chance of scoring a nomination. There’s no way that it’ll get enough number 1 votes to be included under the current criteria.
Yes, with 10 it would likely have been in…here, it’s a rather long shot. Alas.
French Canadian film industry seems to get better every year
Indeed.
Drive is a superbly crafted and very original film. People likes it, no doubt. I think it’s problem of the film is the studio and that neither the director or the star are Oscar insiders, despite Gosling’s previous nomination. I mean, if a film has its passionate followers it’s not that hard to rack up top tier votes. Genre and non-traditional bait projects do get in. From something like Black Swan to something as unlikely as District 9. But at the end of the day, the film has achieved somewhat of a cult following and gave a second wind in Refn and Gosling’s career in Hollywood. And people will likely to remember this film when the Oscars is all said and done, which is probably better than 95% of the films released this year. I’d take this over some oscar nominations any day.
But I do think Drive has the ability to pull off some dark horse nominations.
You certainly have the right idea…the Oscars are hardly the be all end all for the films we love.
I also happen to have it in play for a few nods, as you can see in the Staff predix.
I’ve always had an immense amount of respect for Peter Travers. He is a critic I’ve always shared opinions with. He calls it how he sees it and has a keen, critical eye for films. His list would be no different from mine and I appreciate the fact that his favorite film of the year is also mine: Drive… and deservedly so. Way to go Pete.
I definitely respect Travers.