2011: The Year in Film

I have mixed feelings about the film year that was 2011. On the one hand, there's a glaring lack of four-star titles. That said, I was really intrigued by so many films that even if they didn't pan out perfectly, they've lingered with me a long time. I'll say that this list more so than any other in recent memory is fluid. I expect a lot of changes as I revisit films again and catch up with some of the big ones I missed (including Shame, The Artist, Tinker Tailor Solider Spy, Margaret, Le Havre, The Guard, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and a dozen or so others).

If you follow me on Twitter, you might have already seen my top 10 films of the year. I'll be writing more about them tomorrow (as well as giving some honorable mentions). For now, I'm going to repeat what I did last year and share some thoughts on the best performances and technical achievements from this year's crop of films. Enjoy.

Best Lead Actor: Woody Harrelson, Rampart
Runner-up: Michael Shannon, Take Shelter

Best Lead Actress: Elizabeth Olsen, Martha Marcy May Marlene
Runner-up: Charlize Theron, Young Adult

Best Supporting Actor: Andy Serkis, Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Runner-up: Viggo Mortensen, A Dangerous Method

Best Supporting Actress: Anjelica Huston, 50/50
Runner-up: Jessica Chastain, The Help

Best Director: Abbas Kiarostami, Certified Copy
Runner-up: Martin Scorsese, Hugo

Best Original Screenplay: Sean Durkin, Martha Marcy May Marlene
Runner-up: Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian, Moneyball
Runner-up: George Clooney and Grant Heslov, The Ides of March

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, The Tree of Life
Runner-up: Robert Richardson, Hugo

Best Original Score: Cliff Martinez, Contagion
Runner-up: John Williams, War Horse

Best Trailer (for films released in 2010): The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (click here to view)
Runner-up: Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol (click here to view)

Best Animated Feature: Rango
Runner-up: Winnie the Pooh

Best Documentary: How to Die in Oregon
Runner-up: The Interrupters

Best Foreign Film: Certified Copy
Runner-up: A Separation

Biggest Surprise: Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Runner-up: Hugo

Biggest Disappointment: Super 8
Runner-up: Carnage

Worst Performance: Amandla Stenberg, Colombiana
Runner-up: Jodie Foster, Carnage

Worst Films of the Year:
5.) Super 8
4.) Transformers: Dark of the Moon
3.) Limitless
2.) Dream House
1.) Colombiana

Best Films of the Year:
Come back tomorrow!