Which of this year's movies deserve the industry’s highest honor?
This has been an incredible year for movie lovers, especially fans of genre movies. There were fewer superheroes on the big screen, but they ruled the box office, nonetheless, with smartly written, ingeniously directed and just plain fun comic book adaptations coming in first, second, and fifth on the list of the highest-grossing movies of the year. Sci-fi fans were made to suffer through a couple of early duds, but had their patience rewarded with the return of some classic characters and one of the most influential directors to work in the genre after a thirty-year hiatus. Fantasy fans got to choose between whimsical and warrior Snow Whites, and the world's most popular vampire couple had a baby, not to mention that the greatest high fantasy franchise of all time returns to theaters this month after a decade slumbering in the Shire. (Horror fans got the short end of the stake stick this year, with too many sequels and not enough original content.)
Women continued to assert themselves in 2012, with more female-driven comedies getting laughs for the kinds of jokes once reserved for men, and the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Director is almost a sure thing for another nomination. Independent studios also made a splash this year, turning out several engaging, moving, and downright brilliant dramas that are every bit as good as the big studio dramas with A-list directors.
Which movies were the best? Which ones deserve the honor of being nominated for the movie industry's top prize? That's up to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to decide, but we want to know what you think. Ignore genre and tell us which movies deserve to be nominated for Oscars, whether for Best Picture, Best Animated Feature or Best Documentary.
Top 10 Most Oscar-Worthy Movies of 2012 >>
Posted 12.11.12 by BrentJS 
It's Will Hunting vs. Jim Halpert in this politically and environmentally-charged dramedy
No matter where you stand on the issue of natural gas drilling, otherwise referred to as fracking, it looks like the upcoming indie drama Promised Land looks like it will build a case for both sides. Written by and starring Matt Damon (Contagion, Good Will Hunting) and John Krasinski (NBC's The Office), Promised Land follows corporate salesman Steve Butler (Damon) who is hired to sell the small farm community of McKinley on drilling for natural gas, which becomes a problem when a local farmer (Krasinski) tries to rally the town against it. The first trailer for the movie, it could be argued, may wear its intentions on its sleeves, but doesn't posit Damon as the villain or Krasinski as the hero, an element of character development that was key to the actor-writers. In January, Krasinski told MTV that the movie emulated the kind of movies made by Joel and Ethan Coen (No Country For Old Men, Fargo).
unearthing the best trailersSaturdays 10:00a ET / 7:00a PT
watch the trailer and read about Krasinski's inspiration >> Posted 09.24.12 by Ryan