Ratings for 2012 releases

Here’s a list of Muriel-eligible releases I’ve seen so far in 2012.  If it seems like I’m lenient with my ratings, reflect that my time is at a premium and I try to hand-pick the movies I really want to see while waiting to watch the ones about which I’m less enthusiastic until they hit Netflix.  That is, of course, unless it’s something the Offspring wants to see, in which case they generally take precedence over anything else, for good (The Avengers) or ill (Journey 2 The Mysterious Island).

Added 12/24: Numbers in /slash marks/ following the title denote the movie’s current rank in the Crix Pix poll, in which I’m a voter. Included for informational purposes.

Anyway, the ratings:

**** - Masterpiece
It’s Such a Beautiful Day (Don Hertzfeldt) {now on DVD} /2/

*** 1/2 - Near MasterpieceAmour (Michael Haneke) {15 Feb @ Drexel} /4/
Cloud Atlas (The Wachowskis & Tom Tykwer) {now in theatres} /103/
Holy Motors (Leos Carax) {26 Feb on DVD} /1/
The Loneliest Planet (Julia Loktev) {now streaming; 19 Feb on DVD} /3/
The Turin Horse (Bela Tarr) {now on DVD/streaming} /20/

*** - Must-see
Bernie (Richard Linklater) {now on DVD/streaming} /28/
Damsels in Distress (Whit Stillman) {now on DVD} /73/
The Day He Arrives (Hong Sang-soo) {now on DVD} /10/
Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino) {now in theatres} /14/
Goon (Michael Dowse) {now on DVD/streaming} /66/
The Grey (Joe Carnahan) {now on DVD/streaming} /70/
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (David Gelb) {now on DVD/streaming} /47/
The Kid With a Bike (Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne) {now streaming; 12 Feb on DVD} /9/
Looper (Rian Johnson) {now on DVD} /17/
The Master (Paul Thomas Anderson) {now in theatres} /21/
Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson) {now on DVD} /5/
Only the Young (Jason Tippet & Elizabeth Mims) {18 Jan at GFC}
Oslo, August 31st (Joachim Trier) {now on DVD/streaming} /18/
This Is Not a Film (Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb) {26 Feb on DVD} /7/

** 1/2 - Well worth your time
Chronicle (Josh Trank) {now on DVD} /96/
The Dark Knight Rises (Christopher Nolan) {now on DVD} /82/
The Deep Blue Sea (Terence Davies) {now on DVD/streaming} /8/
Footnote (Joseph Cedar) {now on DVD} /65/
Goodbye First Love (Mia Hansen-Løve) {now on DVD/streaming} /46/
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Peter Jackson) {now in theatres} /139/
How to Survive a Plague (David France) [4] {now streaming; 26 Feb on DVD} /12/
I Wish (Hirokazu Kore-eda) {now on DVD/streaming} /56/
Killing Them Softly (Andrew Dominik) {now in theatres} /86/
Life of Pi (Ang Lee) {now in theatres} /44/
Marvel’s The Avengers (Joss Whedon) {now on DVD} /64/
Miss Bala (Gerardo Naranjo) {now on DVD} /49/
Neighboring Sounds (Kleber Mendonça Filho) {TBA on DVD} /15/
Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Nuri Bilge Ceylan) {now on DVD/streaming} /24/
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Stephen Chbosky) {12 Feb on DVD} /36/
Prometheus (Ridley Scott) {now on DVD} /121/
Seven Psychopaths (Martin McDonagh) {29 Jan on DVD} /60/
Your Sister’s Sister (Lynn Shelton) {now on DVD} /81/

** - Pretty good
4:44 Last Day on Earth (Abel Ferrara) {now on DVD} /119/
Argo (Ben Affleck) {now in theatres; 19 Feb on DVD} /41/
Attenberg (Athina Rachel Tsangari) {now on DVD/streaming} /57/
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (John Madden) {now on DVD} /137/
Brave (Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman) {now on DVD} /34/
Dark Shadows (Tim Burton) {now on DVD} /171/
The Do-Deca-Pentathlon (Jay & Mark Duplass) {now on DVD/streaming}
Flight (Robert Zemeckis) {5 Feb on DVD} /133/
Frankenweenie (Tim Burton) {now on DVD} /107/
Haywire (Steven Soderbergh) {now on DVD/streaming} /55/
Last Ride (Glendyn Ivin) {now on DVD/streaming}
Lockout (Stephen Saint Leger & James Mather) {now on DVD/streaming} /101/
Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted (Eric Darnell & Tom McGrath & Conrad Vernon) {now on DVD} /136/
Magic Mike (Steven Soderbergh) {now on DVD} /71/
Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present (Matthew Akers) {now on DVD} /23/
Men in Black 3 (Barry Sonnenfeld) {now on DVD} /143/
Monsieur Lazhar (Philippe Falardeau) {now on DVD/streaming} /67/
ParaNorman (Sam Fell & Chris Butler) {now on DVD} /72/
Premium Rush (David Koepp) {now on DVD} /48/
The Queen of Versailles (Lauren Greenfield) {now on DVD/streaming} /45/
Red Hook Summer (Spike Lee) {now on DVD/streaming} /146/
Rise of the Guardians (Peter Ramsey) {now in theatres} /150/
Safety Not Guaranteed (Colin Trevorrow) {now on DVD} /154/
The Secret World of Arrietty (Hiromasa Yonebayashi) {now on DVD} /19/
Thin Ice (Jill Sprecher) {now on DVD} /189/
We Have a Pope (Nanni Moretti) {now on DVD/streaming} /170/

* 1/2 - Has redeeming facet
2 Days in New York (Julie Delpy) {now on DVD/streaming} /156/
Alps (Yorgos Lanthimos) {now on DVD/streaming} /142/
The Amazing Spider-Man (Marc Webb) {now on DVD} /169/
Arbitrage (Nicholas Jarecki) {now on DVD} /89/
Beasts of the Southern Wild (Benh Zeitlin) {now on DVD} /100/
The Cabin in the Woods (Drew Goddard) {now on DVD} /22/
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax (Chris Renaud) {now on DVD}
The Hunger Games (Gary Ross) {now on DVD} /147/
Jeff, Who Lives at Home (Jay & Mark Duplass) {now on DVD/streaming} /162/
John Carter (Andrew Stanton) {now on DVD} /141/
Kill List (Ben Wheatley) {now on DVD} /123/
Lawless (John Hillcoat) {now on DVD} /126/
Man on a Mission (Mike Woolf) {now streaming; TBA on DVD}
Les Miserables (Tom Hooper) {now in theatres} /128/
The Pirates! Band of Misfits (Peter Lord) {now on DVD} /99/
The Raid: Redemption (Gareth Evans) {now on DVD} /32/
A Royal Affair (Nikolaj Arcel) {12 March on DVD}
Silver Linings Playbook (David O. Russell) {now in theatres} /77/
Snow White and the Huntsman (Rupert Sanders) {now on DVD} /180/
The Three Stooges (Peter and Bobby Farrelly) {now on DVD} /127/
Wreck-It Ralph (Rich Moore) {now in theatres} /62/

* - Not good
Declaration of War (Valérie Donzelli) {now on DVD/streaming} /92/
The Woman in Black (James Watkins) {now on DVD} /157/

1/2 * - Awful and/or offensive
Compliance (Craig Zobel) {now on DVD} /111/
Journey 2 The Mysterious Island (Brad Peyton) {now on DVD}
Killer Joe (William Friedkin) {now on DVD} /83/

0 * - Offensive and awful
None (so far!)

Also, here are the ones I still want to see that I haven’t gotten around to yet for some reason or other.  As with last year, the numbers in [brackets] denote how interested I am in the movie, with the prioritization as follows:
[1] – Highest priority. Like, if somebody came to me on New Year’s Day 2012 with a list of all the 2012 releases and tasked me to predict my top 10-ish list for the year, these would probably have been my choices.
[2] – High priority. When I first heard/saw something about these, I most likely said, “hey, that looks/sounds awesome.”
[3] – Moderately high priority. Strong likelihood that I’ll enjoy these.
[4] – Medium priority. When I was still averaging a film per day, I would have had plenty of time for all these, but now that I need to be choosy many of these could end up falling by the wayside.
[5] – Low priority. Most movies fall into this category, to be honest, although I only include the ones here that (a) my family will want to see, or (b) could get Oscar love. Either way, I normally wouldn’t choose to see them on my own.

And as always, if anybody has screeners they’re willing to share, I won’t say no.

Now streaming via Netflix:
A Burning Hot Summer (Philippe Garrel) [4] /124/
Head Games (Steve James) [4]
Whores’ Glory (Michael Glawogger) [4] /11/

Now available on DVD:
Cosmopolis (David Cronenberg) [2] /88/
To Rome With Love (Woody Allen) [3] /153/
Detention (Joseph Kahn) [4] /25/
Detropia (Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady) [4] /35/
Farewell, My Queen (Benoit Jacquot) [4] /53/
Pitch Perfect (Jason Moore) [4] /110/
Samsara (Ron Fricke) [4] /61/

Coming soon to DVD:Fat Kid Rules the World (Matthew Lillard) [4] {22 Jan}
The Imposter (Bart Layton) [4] {22 Jan} /31/
Keep the Lights On (Ira Sachs) [4] {22 Jan} /16/
Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul) [4] {22 Jan} /42/

TBA on DVD:
Crazy Horse (Frederick Wiseman) [3] /76/
The Comedy (Rick Alverson) [4]
The House I Live In (Eugene Jarecki) [4]
Middle of Nowhere (Ava DuVernay) [4]
Wuthering Heights (Andrea Arnold) [4] /62/

Now playing in local theatres:
Lincoln (Steven Spielberg) [2] /40/
Zero Dark Thirty (Kathryn Bigelow) [2] /6/
Skyfall (Sam Mendes) [3] /38/
Anna Karenina (Joe Wright) [4] {19 Feb on DVD} /130/
Barbara (Christian Petzold) [4] /72/
The Central Park Five (Ken Burns & David McMahon & Sarah Burns) [4] /51/
Not Fade Away (David Chase) [4] /131/
Starlet (Sean Baker) [4]
Tabu (Miguel Gomes) [4] /13/
This Is 40 (Judd Apatow) [4] /140/
The Impossible (Juan Antonio Bayona) [5] /91/

Coming soon to Columbus (all dates tentative, obviously):
Sister (Ursula Meier) [3] {22 Feb @ Wex} /50/
Room 237 (Rodney Ascher) [3] {12 April @ GFC} /27/
Rust and Bone (Jacques Audiard) [3] {TBA @ Drexel} /90/
The Gatekeepers (Dror Moreh) [4] {TBA @ Drexel}
West of Memphis (Amy Berg) [4] {TBA @ Drexel}

No Columbus release date announced:
Almayer’s Folly (Chantal Akerman) [2] /94/
In Another Country (Hong Sang-soo) [2] /30/
Oki’s Movie (Hong Sang-soo) [3] /39/
Bad 25 (Spike Lee) [4]
The Color Wheel (Alex Ross Perry) [4] /98/
Easy Money (Daniel Espinosa) [4]
New Jerusalem (Rick Alverson) [4]
Photographic Memory (Ross McElwee) [4]
The Sheik & I (Caveh Zahedi) [4]
This Must Be the Place (Paolo Sorrentino) [4] /29/

My “See Again” List:
The Deep Blue Sea (Terence Davies) {now on DVD/streaming}

Oh, and by the way, if you’re wondering what all my [1]s would be for 2012:
Amour (Michael Haneke) [***1/2 out of 4]
The Dark Knight Rises (Christopher Nolan) [**1/2 out of ****]
Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino) [*** out of 4]
Holy Motors (Leos Carax) [***1/2 out of 4]
I Wish (Hirokazu Kore-eda) [**1/2 out of 4]
It’s Such a Beautiful Day (Don Hertzfeldt) [**** out of ****]
The Kid With the Bike (Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne) [*** out of ****]
The Loneliest Planet (Julia Loktev) [***1/2 out of 4]
The Master (Paul Thomas Anderson) [*** out of ****]
The Turin Horse (Bela Tarr) [***1/2 out of ****]