2012 was a good year for movies. For the first time in 3 years, movie attendance increased over the previous year. It was up by 5% and not because of gimmicky iMax or 3-D, but because Hollywood produced movies that people actually wanted to see.

Some big franchises ended in 2012. Chritopher Nolan's Batman trilogy ended with The Dark Knight Rises and there was much fanboy sadness. Thankfully, the Twilight series also ended, although that franchise had its fanbase too.  Hollywood is always ready to fill a void however and filling the superhero breach was megahit, The Avengers, while The Hunger Games took over where Twilight left off, only with a movie even men could enjoy. One franchise that kept right on moving, was the oldest big budget franchise of all when James Bond celebrated its 50th anniversary with its 23rd installment.

Of course, not every movie was a winner. As usual, Hollywood churned out as many flops as it did hits. Anything with Taylor Kitsch for instance, stood a good shot of flopping as John Carter and Battleship proved. Cloud Atlas attempted to innovate, but failed rather loudly. Lincoln was a hit when directed by Spielberg, but a flop when he was killing vampires. Still, all in all, the good stuff seemed to outweigh the bad this year.

Here then are our picks for the best and worst films of the year.

Our Favorite Films of 2012
	Eric	Patrick	Scott
1	The Avengers	Beasts of the Southern Wild	The Avengers
	"The most fun to be found in any superhero film ever made."	"A beautifully wrought cinematic poem that tells an original childhood fable."	"Big summer blockbusters don't come any bigger or better than this."
2	21 Jump Street	Lincoln	Wreck-It Ralph
	"A laugh out loud comedy"	"Daniel Day-Lewis IS Abraham Lincoln!"	"The most fun I've had in a theater for quite a long time."
3	Ted	The Avengers	Skyfall
	"This film should not have worked, but it does."	"Popcorn movies don't get much better than The Avengers."	"In more ways than one, Bond is back."
4	Life of Pi	Safety Not Guaranteed	Les Miserables
	"Sometimes you gotta have faith."	"A quirky good time at the movies!"	"The musical epic comes to life on the big screen."
5	Safety Not Guaranteed	The Paperboy	Silver Linings Playbook
	"Crazy people need love too."	"Lee Daniels' most entertaining movie to date."	"Worthy of all the buzz."
Our Least Favorite Films of 2012
	Eric	Patrick	Scott
1	The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2	Alex Cross	2016: Obama's America
	"She has her perfect life and never had to lift a finger to get it."	" Stay far away from Alex Cross."	"Regardless of its political slant, this just isn't a good movie."
2	Man on a Ledge	The Words	Chernobyl Diaries
	"Fun if you want to play the plot hole game."	"Wants to be clever, well-wrought, and romantic but it is none of the three."	"You should avoid this movie as if it were radioactive."
3	Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance	Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter	This Means War
	"Of all the famous actors in all the world, how in the hell does Nicolas Cage still get work?"	"Not an idea whose time has come."	"The cast deserves better and certainly audiences do as well."
4	Journey 2: The Mysterious Island	Cloud Atlas	That's My Boy
	"An almost plotless cartoon."	"An interesting failure."	"Suitable for diehard Adam Sandler fans only."
5	Magic Mike	Gone	The Cold Light of Day
	"Stripping movies. They're not just for men any more."	"A poorly written mystery/thriller with a noticable lack of either."	"Slickly packaged, but poorly put together."