Year-End Lists

Les Inrockuptibles: Top 100 Albums of 2012

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2011]

1. An Awesome Wave
   alt-J
2. Lonerism
   Tame Impala
3. Wixiw
   Liars
4. Channel Orange
   Frank Ocean
5. Django Django
   Django Django
6. In Our Heads
   Hot Chip
7. Born to Die
   Lana Del Rey
8. Lescop
   Lescop
9. Boys & Girls
   Alabama Shakes
10. Coexist
    The xx
11. Bloom
    Beach House
12. Shields
    Grizzly Bear
13. Mature Themes
    Ariel Pink
14. Sun
    Cat Power
15. Vengeance
    Benjamin Biolay
16. Kill for Love
    Chromatics
17. Beams
    Matthew Dear
18. Swing Lo Magellan
    Dirty Projectors
19. Mondo
    Electric Guest
20. Visions
    Grimes
21. Places
    Lou Doillon
22. World, You Need a Change of Mind
    Kindness
23. Mermonte
    Mermonte
24. good kid, m.A.A.d city
    Kendrick Lamar
25. Here We Are
    Citizens
26. Other People’s Problems
    Breton
27. The invitation to the Voyage
    Eugene Mc Guiness
28. Sweet Heart, Sweet Light
    Spiritualized
29. Vampiric way
    Bewitched Hands
30. Oshin
    DIIV
31. ‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!
    Godspeed You! Black Emperor
32. Standing at the Sky’s Edge
    Richard Hawley
33. Home Again
    Michael Kiwanuka
34. Come of Age
    The Vaccines
35. Acousmatic Sorcery
    Willis Earl Beal
36. Life is People
    Bill Fay
37. X-Pianos
    Chassol
38. Vers les lueurs
    Dominique A
39. America
    Dan Deacon
40. Psychedelic Pill
    Neil Young & Crazy Horse
41. The Seer
    Swans
42. Old Ideas
    Leonard Cohen
43. L’Amour, l’Argent, le vent
    Barbara Carlotti
44. R.I.P.
    Actress
45. Beacon
    Two Door Cinema Club
46. Astronomie
    Avec Pas D’Casque
47. Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose
    Beth Jeans Houghton
48. Big Inner
    Matthew E. White
49. Give You the Ghost
    Poliça
50. Apnea
    O. Children
51. Centipede Hz
    Animal Collective
52. Blunderbuss
    Jack White
53. Something
    Chairlift
54. Cheek Mountain Thief
    Cheek Mountain Thief
55. Orkney Symphony of The Magnetic North
    The Magnetic North
56. Be Your Own King
    Concrete Knives
57. We Keep The Beat, Found The Sound, See The Need, Start The Heart
    Jonathan Boulet
58. Putrifiers II
    Thee Oh Sees
59. A Wasteland Companion
    M. Ward
60. Meat + Bone
    The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
61. Manifest!
    Friends
62. Nootropics
    Lower Dens
63. Passion
    Para One
64. We’re All Dying to Live
    Rich Aucoin
65. Circles
    Moon Duo
66. Rich Forever
    Rick Ross
67. Locked Down
    Dr. John
68. Total Loss
    How to Dress Well
69. Coline
    Baden Baden
70. Until the Quiet Comes
    Flying Lotus
71. Rover
    Rover
72. Tantale
    Monogrenade
73. Held
    Holy Other
74. The Lion’s Roar
    First Aid Kit
75. Taranta
    Mina Tindle
76. Desesperanza
    Meridian Brothers
77. $O$
    Die Antwoord
78. Pray to Be Free
    James Levy & The Blood Red Rose
79. Riots in the Jungle
    SKIP&DIE
80. La Fin De L’espèce
    Klub des Loosers
81. Tarnished Gold
    Beachwood Sparks
82. Fear Fun
    Father John Misty
83. O Deus que devasta mas também cura
    Lucas Santtana
84. Given to the Wild
    The Maccabees
85. Melody’s Echo Chamber
    Melody’s Echo Chamber
86. Rituels d’un nouveau monde
    Zombie Zombie
87. Top Ten Hits of the End of the World
    Prince Rama
88. Palindrome Hunches
    Neil Halstead
89. The Haunted Man
    Bat for Lashes
90. Free Time!
    Pinkunoizu
91. Daughter of Cloud
    of Montreal
92. Spooky Action at a Distance
    Lotus Plaza
93. I Predict a Graceful Expulsion
    Cold Specks
94. Futur
    Booba
95. The Bravest Man in the Universe
    Bobby Womack
96. Awe Naturale
    THEESatisfaction
97. Please Her, Please Him
    Théodore Paul & Gabriel
98. Shy Pursuit
    The Spinto Band
99. Dept. of Disappearance
    Jason Lytle
100. [Sic]
     Bang On!

The New York Times: 100 Notable Books of 2012

[see also The 10 Best Books of 2023 • 100 Notable Books of 2023 • The 10 Best Books of 2022 • 100 Notable Books of 2022 • The 10 Best Books of 2021 • 100 Notable Books of 2021 • The 10 Best Books of 2020 • 100 Notable Books of 2020 • 100 Notable Books of 2019 • The 10 Best Books of 2019 • 10 Best Books of 2018 • 100 Notable Books of 2018 • 100 Notable Books of 2017 • 10 Best Books of 2017 • 10 Best Books of 2016 • 10 Best Books of 2015 • The 10 Best Books of 2014 • The 10 Best Books of 2013 • 10 Best Books of 2012 • 100 Notable Books of 2011 • Ten Best Books of 2011]

Fiction

• Alif The Unseen
  G. Willow Wilson
• Almost Never
  Daniel Sada. Translated by Katherine Silver
• An American Spy
  Olen Steinhauer
• Arcadia
  Lauren Groff
• At Last
  Edward St. Aubyn
• Beautiful Ruins
  Jess Walter
• Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
  Ben Fountain
• Blasphemy
  Sherman Alexie
• The Book Of Mischief

  New And Selected Stories
  Steve Stern
• Bring Up the Bodies
  Hilary Mantel
• Building Stories
  Chris Ware
• By Blood
  Ellen Ullman
• Canada
  Richard Ford
• Carry The One
  Carol Anshaw
• City Of Bohane
  Kevin Barry
• Collected Poems
  Jack Gilbert
• Dear Life
  Alice Munro
• The Devil in Silver
  Victor LaValle
• Enchantments
  Kathryn Harrison
• Flight Behavior
  Barbara Kingsolver
• Fobbit
  David Abrams
• The Forgetting Tree
  Tatjana Soli
• Gathering Of Waters
  Bernice L. McFadden
• Gods Without Men
  Hari Kunzru
• HHhH
  Laurent Binet. Translated by Sam Taylor
• A Hologram for the King
  Dave Eggers
• Home
  Toni Morrison
• Hope

  A Tragedy
  Shalom Auslander
• How Should a Person Be?
  Sheila Heti
• In One Person
  John Irving
• A Land More Kind Than Home
  Wiley Cash
• Married Love

  And Other Stories
  Tessa Hadley
• NW
  Zadie Smith
• On The Spectrum Of Possible Deaths
  Lucia Perillo
• Pure
  Julianna Baggott
• The Right Hand Shore
  Christopher Tilghman
• The Round House
  Louise Erdrich
• Salvage The Bones
  Jesmyn Ward
• San Miguel
  T. Coraghessan Boyle
• Shine Shine Shine
  Lydia Netzer
• Shout Her Lovely Name
  Natalie Serber
• Silent House
  Orhan Pamuk. Translated by Robert Finn
• The Starboard Sea
  Amber Dermont
• Sweet Tooth
  Ian McEwan
• Swimming Home
  Deborah Levy
• Telegraph Avenue
  Michael Chabon
• The Testament Of Mary
  Colm Tóibín
• This Is How You Lose Her
  Junot Díaz
• Three Strong Women
  Marie NDiaye
• Toby’s Room
  Pat Barker
• Watergate
  Thomas Mallon
• What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank

  Stories
  Nathan Englander
• The Yellow Birds
  Kevin Powers

Nonfiction

• All We Know

  Three Lives
  Lisa Cohen
• American Tapestry

  The Story Of The Black, White, And Multiracial Ancestors Of Michelle Obama
  Rachel L. Swarns
• American Triumvirate

  Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, And The Modern Age Of Golf
  James Dodson
• Are You My Mother? A Comic Drama
  Alison Bechdel
• Barack Obama

  The Story
  David Maraniss
• Behind the Beautiful Forevers

  Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity
  Katherine Boo
• Belzoni

  The Giant Archaeologists Love To Hate
  Ivor Noël Hume
• The Black Count

  Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, And The Real Count Of Monte Cristo
  Tom Reiss
• Breasts

  A Natural And Unnatural History
  Florence Williams
• Coming Apart

  The State Of White America, 1960 2010
  Charles Murray
• Darwin’s Ghosts

  The Secret History Of Evolution
  Rebecca Stott
• A Disposition To Be Rich

  How A Small Town Preacher’s Son Ruined An American President, Brought On A Wall Street Crash, And Made Himself The Best Hated Man In The United States
  Geoffrey C. Ward
• Far From the Tree

  Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity
  Andrew Solomon
• Flagrant Conduct. The Story Of Lawrence V. Texas

  How A Bedroom Arrest Decriminalized Gay Americans
  Dale Carpenter
• The Folly Of Fools

  The Logic Of Deceit And Self Deception In Human Life
  Robert Trivers
• The Grey Album

  On The Blackness Of Blackness
  Kevin Young
• Haiti

  The Aftershocks Of History
  Laurent Dubois
• How Children Succeed

  Grit, Curiosity, And The Hidden Power Of Character
  Paul Tough
• How Music Works
  David Byrne
• Iron Curtain

  The Crushing of Eastern Europe, 1945–1956
  Anne Applebaum
• Kayak Morning

  Reflections On Love, Grief, And Small Boats
  Roger Rosenblatt
• Lincoln’s Code

  The Laws Of War In American History
  John Fabian Witt
• Little America

  The War Within The War For Afghanistan
  Rajiv Chandrasekaran
• Memoir Of A Debulked Woman

  Enduring Ovarian Cancer
  Susan Gubar
• My Poets
  Maureen N. McLane
• The Obamas
  Jodi Kantor
• Oddly Normal

  One Family’s Struggle To Help Their Teenage Son Come To Terms With His Sexuality
  John Schwartz
• On A Farther Shore

  The Life And Legacy Of Rachel Carson
  William Souder
• On Saudi Arabia

  Its People, Past, Religion, Fault Lines — And Future
  Karen Elliott House
• The One

  The Life And Music Of James Brown
  RJ Smith
• The Passage of Power

  The Years of Lyndon Johnson
  Robert A. Caro
• The Patriarch

  The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy
  David Nasaw
• People Who Eat Darkness

  The True Story of a Young Woman Who Vanished from the Streets of Tokyo
  Richard Lloyd Parry
• Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay

  Reflections On Art, Family, And Survival
  Christopher Benfey
• Rule And Ruin. The Downfall Of Moderation And The Destruction Of The Republican Party

  From Eisenhower To The Tea Party
  Geoffrey Kabaservice
• Saul Steinberg

  A Biography
  Deirdre Bair
• Shooting Victoria

  Madness, Mayhem, And The Rebirth Of The British Monarchy
  Paul Thomas Murphy
• Short Nights Of The Shadow Catcher

  The Epic Life And Immortal Photographs Of Edward Curtis
  Timothy Egan
• The Social Conquest Of Earth
  Edward O. Wilson
• Sometimes There Is A Void

  Memoirs Of An Outsider
  Zakes Mda
• Spillover

  Animal Infections And The Next Human Pandemic
  David Quammen
• The Taste Of War

  World War Ii And The Battle For Food
  Lizzie Collingham
• Thomas Jefferson

  The Art Of Power
  Jon Meacham
• Victory

  The Triumphant Gay Revolution
  Linda Hirshman
• When God Talks Back

  Understanding The American Evangelical Relationship With God
  T.M. Luhrmann
• Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?
  Jeanette Winterson
• Why Does the World Exist? An Existential Detective Story
  Jim Holt

Treble: Top 50 Albums of 2012

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2011]

1. Channel Orange
   Frank Ocean
2. Kill for Love
   Chromatics
3. Lonerism
   Tame Impala
4. Bloom
   Beach House
5. The Idler Wheel…
   Fiona Apple
6. All We Love We Leave Behind
   Converge
7. Shields
   Grizzly Bear
8. Visions
   Grimes
9. R.A.P. Music
   Killer Mike
10. good kid, m.A.A.d city
    Kendrick Lamar
11. Until the Quiet Comes
    Flying Lotus
12. The Seer
    Swans
13. Attack on Memory
    Cloud Nothings
14. Interstellar
    Frankie Rose
15. Celebration Rock
    Japandroids
16. Yellow & Green
    Baroness
17. Coexist
    The xx
18. The Money Store
    Death Grips
19. Luxury Problems
    Andy Stott
20. Confess
    Twin Shadow
21. Swing Lo Magellan
    Dirty Projectors
22. Cancer 4 Cure
    El-P
23. The Haunted Man
    Bat for Lashes
24. Kaleidoscope Dream
    Miguel
25. Harmonicraft
    Torche
26. R.I.P.
    Actress
27. Mature Themes
    Ariel Pink
28. Ekstasis
    Julia Holter
29. Sun
    Cat Power
30. Put Your Back N 2 It
    Perfume Genius
31. Gossamer
    Passion Pit
32. Reign of Terror
    Sleigh Bells
33. Spooky Action at a Distance
    Lotus Plaza
34. Open Your Heart
    The Men
35. fIN
    John Talabot
36. Sweet Heart, Sweet Light
    Spiritualized
37. 2
    Mac DeMarco
38. Ocean Roar
    Mount Eerie
39. ‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!
    Godspeed You! Black Emperor
40. Book Burner
    Pig Destroyer
41. Shrines
    Purity Ring
42. Pink
    Four Tet
43. Devotion
    Jessie Ware
44. Kindred
    Burial
45. I Know What Love Isn’t
    Jens Lekman
46. Slaughterhouse
    Ty Segall Band
47. Melody’s Echo Chamber
    Melody’s Echo Chamber
48. (III)
    Crystal Castles
49. Mr. M
    Lambchop
50. Metz
    Metz

Gigwise: 50 Albums of the 2012

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2011]

1. Confess
   Twin Shadow
2. Channel Orange
   Frank Ocean
3. An Awesome Wave
   alt-J
4. Boys & Girls
   Alabama Shakes
5. Valtari
   Sigur Rós
6. The Only Place
   Best Coast
7. Part & Parcel
   The Skints
8. Coexist
   The xx
9. Celebration Rock
   Japandroids
10. Come of Age
    The Vaccines
11. Put Your Back N 2 It
    Perfume Genius
12. Django Django
    Django Django
13. My Head is an Animal
    Of Monsters And Men
14. Plumb
    Field Music
15. Cruel Summer
    G.O.O.D. Music
16. Votive Life
    Cave Painting
17. TOY
    TOY
18. R.A.P. Music
    Killer Mike
19. Visions
    Grimes
20. Gossamer
    Passion Pit
21. Lonerism
    Tame Impala
22. The 2nd Law
    Muse
23. Given to the Wild
    The Maccabees
24. Make Me Believe in Hope
    Bright Light Bright Light
25. Shrines
    Purity Ring
26. Fragments
    Submotion Orchestra
27. Time Capsules II
    Oberhofer
28. The Money Store
    Death Grips
29. Playin’ Me
    Cooly G
30. Baby
    Tribes
31. Devotion
    Jessie Ware
32. World, You Need a Change of Mind
    Kindness
33. Shields
    Grizzly Bear
34. Port of Morrow
    The Shins
35. TNGHT EP
    TNGHT
36. Mature Themes
    Ariel Pink
37. In the Belly of the Brazen Bull
    The Cribs
38. Lido
    Darren Hayman
39. Master of My Make-Believe
    Santigold
40. Halcyon
    Ellie Goulding
41. Jake Bugg
    Jake Bugg
42. Born to Die
    Lana Del Rey
43. Portico Quartet
    Portico Quartet
44. Attack on Memory
    Cloud Nothings
45. Babel
    Mumford & Sons
46. The Orbserver in the Star House
    The Orb Featuring Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry
47. Wrecking Ball
    Bruce Springsteen
48. Instrumental Mixtape 2
    Clams Casino
49. Happy to You
    Miike Snow
50. Blunderbuss
    Jack White

musicOMH: Top 100 Albums of 2012

[see also 2011]

1. Channel Orange
   Frank Ocean
2. Lonerism
   Tame Impala
3. Beams
   Matthew Dear
4. Kill for Love
   Chromatics
5. Blondes
   Blondes
6. fIN
   John Talabot
7. Oshin
   DIIV
8. Wixiw
   Liars
9. Transverse
   Carter Tutti Void
10. SSSS
    VCMG
11. Portico Quartet
    Portico Quartet
12. Young Man in America
    Anaïs Mitchell
13. Love this Giant
    David Byrne & St. Vincent
14. One Day I’m Going to Soar
    Dexys
15. Wrecking Ball
    Bruce Springsteen
16. TOY
    TOY
17. Palindrome Hunches
    Neil Halstead
18. Plumb
    Field Music
19. Make Me Believe in Hope
    Bright Light Bright Light
20. Give You the Ghost
    Poliça
21. Blunderbuss
    Jack White
22. Tarnished Gold
    Beachwood Sparks
23. Until the Quiet Comes
    Flying Lotus
24. Visions
    Grimes
25. Tramp
    Sharon Van Etten
26. An Awesome Wave
    alt-J
27. Ekstasis
    Julia Holter
28. Crown And Treaty
    Sweet Billy Pilgrim
29. My God Is Blue
    Sébastien Tellier
30. Rispah
    The Invisible
31. Six Cups of Rebel
    Lindstrøm
32. Devotion
    Jessie Ware
33. Put Your Back N 2 It
    Perfume Genius
34. This Is PiL
    Public Image Ltd.
35. The Seer
    Swans
36. Bloom
    Beach House
37. Sun
    Cat Power
38. The Lion’s Roar
    First Aid Kit
39. Playin’ Me
    Cooly G
40. The Haunted Man
    Bat for Lashes
41. Ground Of Its Own
    Sam Lee
42. The Silicone Veil
    Susanne Sundfør
43. Music for the Quiet Hour
    Shackleton
44. Words and Music by Saint Etienne
    Saint Etienne
45. RIP
    Actress
46. Other People’s Problems
    Breton
47. Ten Freedom Summers
    Wadada Leo Smith
48. America
    Dan Deacon
49. ‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!
    Godspeed You! Black Emperor
50. 2:54
    2:54
51. In A Dim Light
    Nedry
52. Toward the Low Sun
    Dirty Three
53. Heaven
    Walkmen
54. Into The Diamond Sun
    Richard Hawley
55. Into The Diamond Sun
    Stealing Sheep
56. Mid Air
    Paul Buchanan
57. Isle Of Dogs
    Tigercats
58. Race The Loser
    Lau
59. Old Ideas
    Leonard Cohen
60. Nude
    The Irrepressibles
61. Europe
    Allo Darlin’
62. Awe Naturale
    THEESatisfaction
63. The Bravest Man in the Universe
    Bobby Womack
64. Shields
    Grizzly Bear
65. Everything Touching
    Tall Ships
66. Among the Leaves
    Sun Kil Moon
67. Koïma
    Sidi Touré
68. Swing Lo Magellan
    Dirty Projectors
69. The Money Store
    Death Grips
70. Paszport
    Katy Carr
71. Fear Fun
    Father John Misty
72. The Violence
    Darren Hayman and the Long Parliament
73. Confess
    Twin Shadow
74. Bouger Le Monde!
    Staff Benda Bilili
75. In Our Heads
    Hot Chip
76. Coexist
    The xx
77. The Something Rain
    Tindersticks
78. Django Django
    Django Django
79. good kid, m.A.A.d city
    Kendrick Lamar
80. Locked Down
    Dr. John
81. The Light The Dead See
    Soulsavers
82. World Music
    Goat
83. Accelerando
    Vijay Iyer Trio
84. Total Loss
    How to Dress Well
85. DROKK
    Geoff Barrow & Ben Salisbury
86. We’ll Be The Moon
    Fixers
87. Oh No I Love You
    Tim Burgess
88. Warato’o
    Narasirato
89. Steam Days
    Nathan Fake
90. 1982 + BJ Cole
    1982 + BJ Cole
91. Narrow
    Soap & Skin
92. Mad Love
    Cheval Sombre
93. The Plot Against Common Sense
    Future of the Left
94. Quarantine
    Laurel Halo
95. The Cherry Thing
    Neneh Cherry & the Thing
96. Algiers
    Calexico
97. Banks
    Paul Banks
98. Apnea
    O. Children
99. A+E
    Graham Coxon
100. World, You Need a Change of Mind
     Kindness

Stephen Holden: Top 11 Films of 2012, as published by The New York Times

[see also 2016 • 2015 • 2013 • 2011]

1. Lincoln
   Steven Spielberg
2. Amour
   Michael Haneke
3. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
4. Beasts of the Southern Wild
   Benh Zeitlin
5. Argo
   Ben Affleck
6. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
   Nuri Bilge Ceylan
7. Elena
   Andrey Zvyagintsev
8. How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tamed AIDS
   David France
9. The Invisible War
   Kirby Dick
10. The Sessions
    Ben Lewin
11. Rust and Bone
    Jacques Audiard

Manohla Dargis: Top 36 Movies of 2012, as published by The New York Times

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2010s • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2011]

1. Amour
   Michael Haneke
2. The Deep Blue Sea
   Terence Davies
3. The Gatekeepers
   Dror Moreh
4. Holy Motors
   Leos Carax
5. The Master
   Paul Thomas Anderson
6. Moonrise Kingdom
   Wes Anderson
7. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
   Nuri Bilge Ceylan
8. Searching for Sugar Man
   Malik Bendjelloul
9. Silver Linings Playbook
   David O. Russell
10. Zero Dark Thirty
    Kathryn Bigelow

Rest of the List, Alphabetically

• Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry
  Alison Klayman
• Argo
  Ben Affleck
• August and After
  Nathaniel Dorsky
• Auto-Collider XV
  Ernie Gehr
• Barbara
  Christian Petzold
• Beasts of the Southern Wild
  Benh Zeitlin
• Bernie
  Richard Linklater
• Brooklyn Castle
  Katie Dellamaggiore
• The Dark Knight Rises
  Christopher Nolan
• Departure
  Mr. Gehr
• Footnote
  Joseph Cedar
• The House I Live In
  Eugene Jarecki
• The Kid with a Bike
  Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
• Life of Pi
  Ang Lee
• Magic Mike
  Steven Soderbergh
• A Man Vanishes
  Shohei Imamura
• Middle of Nowhere
  Ava DuVernay
• Miss Bala
  Gerardo Naranjo
• Napoleon (1927)
  Abel Gance, restored by Kevin Brownlow
• Oslo, August 31st
  Joachim Trier
• The Pirates! Band of Misfits
  Peter Lord
• Rust and Bone
  Jacques Audiard
• Skyfall
  Sam Mendes
• Starlet
  Sean Baker
• This is Not a Film
  Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
• The Turin Horse
  Béla Tarr & Agnes Hranitzky
• View From the Acropolis
  Lonnie van Brummelen and Siebren de Haan

A.O. Scott: 25 Favorite Films of 2012, as published by The New York Times

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2010s • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2011]

1. Amour
   Michael Haneke
2. Lincoln
   Steven Spielberg
3. Beasts of the Southern Wild
   Benh Zeitlin
4. Footnote
   Joseph Cedar
5. The Master
   Paul Thomas Anderson
6. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
7. Django Unchained
   Quentin Tarantino
8. Goodbye First Love
   Mia Hansen-Løve
9. Neighboring Sounds
   Kleber Mendonça Filho
10. The Grey
    Joe Carnahan

Honorable Mention, Alphabetically

• Argo
  Ben Affleck
• Barbara
  Christian Petzold
• Brave
  Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman
• Consuming Spirits
  Chris Sullivan
• The Deep Blue Sea
  Terence Davies
• Moonrise Kingdom
  Wes Anderson
• Pitch Perfect
  Jason Moore
• Rust and Bone
  Jacques Audiard
• Take This Waltz
  Sarah Polley
• The Turin Horse
  Béla Tarr & Agnes Hranitzky

Top Five Documentaries

1. The Gatekeepers
   Dror Moreh
2. The Queen of Versailles
   Lauren Greenfield
3. How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tamed AIDS
   David France
4. This is Not a Film
   Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
5. The Central Park Five
   Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon

Resident Advisor: Top 20 Albums of 2012

[see also 2023 • 2018 • 2015 • 2014 • 2011]

1. Voices from the Lake
   Voices From The Lake
2. R.I.P.
   Actress
3. fIN
   John Talabot
4. Luxury Problems
   Andy Stott
5. Jiaolong
   Daphni
6. Music for the Quiet Hour
   Shackleton
7. Order of Noise
   Vessel
8. The Killer
   Shed
9. Motor: Nighttime World 3
   Robert Hood
10. Transsektoral
    Barker & Baumecker
11. Classical Curves
    Jam City
12. Visions
    Grimes
13. Diversions 1994-1996
    Lee Gamble
14. On Acid
    Recondite
15. Negative Fascination
    Silent Servant
16. Kill for Love
    Chromatics
17. Dependent and Happy
    Ricardo Villalobos
18. Salty Days
    Smallpeople
19. Quarantine
    Laurel Halo
20. Quarter Turns Over A Living Line
    Raime

Slant Magazine: 25 Best Films of 2012

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2011]

1. This is Not a Film
   Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
2. Holy Motors
   Leos Carax
3. The Deep Blue Sea
   Terence Davies
4. The Kid with a Bike
   Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
5. The Master
   Paul Thomas Anderson
6. Tabu
   Miguel Gomes
7. Oslo, August 31st
   Joachim Trier
8. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
9. The Turin Horse
   Béla Tarr & Agnes Hranitzky
10. Moonrise Kingdom
    Wes Anderson
11. Neighboring Sounds
    Kleber Mendonça Filho
12. The Color Wheel
    Alex Ross Perry
13. Cosmopolis
    David Cronenberg
14. The Day He Arrives
    Hong Sang-soo
15. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
    Nuri Bilge Ceylan
16. Lincoln
    Steven Spielberg
17. How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tamed AIDS
    David France
18. Killer Joe
    William Friedkin
19. Girl Walk // All Day
    Jacob Krupnick
20. Beasts of the Southern Wild
    Benh Zeitlin
21. The Comedy
    Rick Alverson
22. Almayer’s Folly
    Chantal Akerman
23. Attenberg
    Athina Rachel Tsangari
24. Barbara
    Christian Petzold
25. Magic Mike
    Steven Soderbergh