Year-End Lists

Peter Bradshaw: 10 Best Films of 2012, as published by The Guardian

[see also Top 5 Films of 2012 • Best Films of 2011]

1. The Master
   Paul Thomas Anderson
2. Ted
   Seth MacFarlane
3. Amour
   Michael Haneke
4. Silver Linings Playbook
   David O. Russell
5. Holy Motors
   Leos Carax
6. This is Not a Film
   Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
7. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
   Nuri Bilge Ceylan
8. Beasts of the Southern Wild
   Benh Zeitlin
9. Alps
   Yorgos Lanthimos
10. The Queen of Versailles
    Lauren Greenfield

Dennis Cooper: 21 Favorite Books of 2012 (as numbered on Cooper’s site, but note that he precedes the list with “in no order”)

[see also 2019 • 2018 • 2016]

1. Action, Figure
   Frank Hinton
2. Sky Saw
   Blake Butler
3. You Private Person
   Richard Chiem
4. Baby Geisha
   Trinie Dalton
5. Autoportrait
   Edouard Leve
6. fuckscapes
   Sean Kilpatrick
7. Billie the Bull
   xTx
8. Assisted Living
   Nikanor Teratologen
9. Spreadeagle
   Kevin Killian
10. Confessions from a Dark Wood
    Eric Raymond
11. The No Variations
    Luis Chitarroni
12. The Collected Works of Scott McClanahan Vol. 1
    Scott McClanahan
13. One
    Blake Butler/Christopher Higgs/Vanessa Place
14. Daniel Fights a Hurricane
    Shane Jones
15. Treees
    Stephen Michael McDowell
16. Cataclysm Baby
    Matt Bell
17. The Obscene Madame D
    Hilda Hilst
18. Immobility
    Brian Evenson
19. The Sky Conducting
    Michael Seidlinger
20. Town of Shadows
    Lindsay Stern
20. Slow Slidings
    M. Kitchell

Salon: Top 10 Books of 2012 (a poll of nearly 20 critics)

[see also 2022]

1. Behind the Beautiful Forevers

   Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity
   Katherine Boo
2. Bring Up the Bodies
   Hilary Mantel
3. Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk
   Ben Fountain
4. Far From the Tree

   Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity
   Andrew Solomon
4. NW
   Zadie Smith
6. How Should a Person Be?
   Sheila Heti
7. Gone Girl
   Gillian Flynn
8. Arcadia
   Lauren Groff
9. Beautiful Ruins
   Jess Walter
10. The Guardians
    Sarah Manguso

Andrew O’Hehir: 20 Best Movies of 2012, as published by Salon

[see also 2014 • 2011]

1. Wuthering Heights
   Andrea Arnold
2. Holy Motors
   Leos Carax
3. Amour
   Michael Haneke
4. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
5. Rust and Bone
   Jacques Audiard
6. Lincoln
   Steven Spielberg
7. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
   Nuri Bilge Ceylan
8. Whores’ Glory
   Michael Glawogger
9. Oslo, August 31st
   Joachim Trier
10. Take This Waltz
    Sarah Polley

Honorable Mention (in alphabetical order)

• Bachelorette
  Leslye Headland
• Beasts of the Southern Wild
  Benh Zeitlin
• Chico & Rita
  Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
• The Dark Knight Rises
  Christopher Nolan
• End of Watch
  David Ayer
• Keep the Lights On
  Ira Sachs
• Marina Abramović: The Artist is Present
  Matthew Akers
• Moonrise Kingdom
  Wes Anderson
• Not Fade Away
  David Chase
• The Turin Horse
  Béla Tarr & Agnes Hranitzky

Ty Burr: Top 26 Movies of 2012, as published by The Boston Globe

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2010s • 2014 • 2011]

1. Beasts of the Southern Wild
   Benh Zeitlin
2. Amour
   Michael Haneke
3. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
4. Moonrise Kingdom
   Wes Anderson
5. Holy Motors
   Leos Carax
6. Lincoln
   Steven Spielberg
7. Argo
   Ben Affleck
8. Django Unchained
   Quentin Tarantino
9. This is Not a Film
   Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
10. Oslo, August 31st
    Joachim Trier

Honorable Mention

• Bachelorette
  Leslye Headland

Runners-up

• The Sessions
  Ben Lewin
• The Master
  Paul Thomas Anderson
• Silver Linings Playbook
  David O. Russell
• Safety Not Guaranteed
  Colin Trevorrow
• The Central Park Five
  Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon
• Killing Them Softly
  Andrew Dominik
• The House I Live In
  Eugene Jarecki
• Frankenweenie
  Tim Burton
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower
  Stephen Chbosky
• Searching for Sugar Man
  Malik Bendjelloul

Wesley Morris: Top 25 Movies of 2012, as published by The Boston Globe

[see also 2014 • 2013 • 2011]

1. The Master
   Paul Thomas Anderson
2. How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tamed AIDS
   David France
3. The Paperboy
   Lee Daniels
4. Amour
   Michael Haneke
5. Django Unchained
   Quentin Tarantino
6. Moonrise Kingdom
   Wes Anderson
7. Polisse
   Maïwenn
8. Holy Motors
   Leos Carax
9. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
   Nuri Bilge Ceylan
10. 21 Jump Street
    Phil Lord and Chris Miller

15 More Excellent Moves in No Particular Order

• Elena
  Andrey Zvyagintsev
• Barbara
  Christian Petzold
• Miss Bala
  Gerardo Naranjo
• The Gatekeepers
  Dror Moreh
• Magic Mike
  Steven Soderbergh
• Where Do We Go Now?
  Nadine Labaki
• The Turin Horse
  Béla Tarr & Agnes Hranitzky
• Zero Dark Thirty
  Kathryn Bigelow
• The Loneliest Planet
  Julia Loktev
• Gayby
  Jonathan Lisecki
• Sister
  Ursula Meier
• The Color Wheel
  Alex Ross Perry
• Silver Linings Playbook
  David O. Russell
• Lincoln
  Steven Spielberg
• Argo
  Ben Affleck

Keith Uhlich: 10 Best Movies of 2012, as published by Time Out New York

[see also 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2011]

1. Almayer’s Folly
   Chantal Akerman
2. Not Fade Away
   David Chase
3. Domain
   Patric Chiha
4. The Kid with a Bike
   Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
5. Killer Joe
   William Friedkin
6. This is Not a Film
   Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
7. Girl Walk // All Day
   Jacob Krupnick
8. Damsels in Distress
   Whit Stillman
9. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
10. Cosmopolis
    David Cronenberg

Joshua Rothkopf: 10 Best Movies of 2012, as published by Time Out New York

[see also 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2011]

1. Bernie
   Richard Linklater
2. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
3. How to Survive a Plague: The Inside Story of How Citizens and Science Tamed AIDS
   David France
4. Lincoln
   Steven Spielberg
5. Keep the Lights On
   Ira Sachs
6. Elena
   Andrey Zvyagintsev
7. Marina Abramović: The Artist is Present
   Matthew Akers
8. The Imposter
   Bart Layton
9. Silver Linings Playbook
   David O. Russell
10. Django Unchained
    Quentin Tarantino

David Fear: 10 Best Movies of 2012, as published by Time Out New York

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2018 • 2017 • 2011]

1. The Master
   Paul Thomas Anderson
2. Compliance
   Craig Zobel
3. Bestiaire
   Denis Côté
4. Zero Dark Thirty
   Kathryn Bigelow
5. Magic Mike
   Steven Soderbergh
6. Lincoln
   Steven Spielberg
7. The Raid: Redemption
   Gareth Evans
8. Amour
   Michael Haneke
9. Keep the Lights On
   Ira Sachs
10. Wuthering Heights
    Andrea Arnold

Engine 145: Top 25 Albums of 2012

1. Nashville, Vol. 1. Tear the Woodpile Down
   Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives
2. 100 Proof
   Kellie Pickler
3. And So It Goes
   Don Williams
4. Living for a Song: Tribute to Hank Cochran
   Jamey Johnson
5. Sing the Delta
   Iris DeMent
6. Goin’ Down Rockin’: The Last Recordings
   Waylon Jennings
7. Thirty Miles West
   Alan Jackson
8. AM Country Heaven
   Jason Eady
9. The Time Jumpers
   The Time Jumpers
10. Cabin Fever
    Corb Lund
11. 3 Pears
    Dwight Yoakam
12. High, Wide & Handsome
    The Trishas
13. Wreck & Ruin
    Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson
14. Ghost of Browder Holler
    Chelle Rose
15. Leaving Eden
    Carolina Chocolate Drops
16. Tornado
    Little Big Town
17. Buddy and Jim
    Buddy Miller & Jim Lauderdale
18. Kin: Songs by Mary Karr & Rodney Crowell
    various artists
19. Calling Me Home
    Kathy Mattea
20. Uncaged
    Zac Brown Band
21. Hello Cruel World
    Gretchen Peters
22. His and Hers
    Joey + Rory
23. Sun Midnight Sun
    Sara Watkins
24. Darker Than Light
    Bobby Bare
25. Bear Creek
    Brandi Carlile