My Top Ten Favorite Movies of 2012

What is this post doing in 2021. Well, I attemped to do this list back in 2015, but only got to 9. Maybe I could only rank them up to 9. And I have most likely watched more films from 2012 now. However, I do not want this post to go to waste so I am posting it now. I even listed the movies I watched from 2012 up to 2015 at the end. I decided not to add to it by continue to keep it at 9.

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2012? Clearly we are in 2015 already? Yes, I know, I watch them there movies at a very slow pace. I spell it out in my 2013 top ten list. Here's the 2012 US Box Office Top 9.

Here are my top films of 2012 of which I've seen at least 46 of!

一 - Marvel's The Avengers (復仇者聯盟)


二 - The Dark Knight Rises (黑暗騎士:黎明昇起)


三 - The Hunger Games (飢餓遊戲)


四 - Skyfall (007 空降危機)


五 - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (哈比人：意外旅程)


六 - The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (暮光之城:破曉2)


七 - The Amazing Spider-Man (蜘蛛人:驚奇再起)


八 - Brave (勇敢傳說)


九 - Ted (熊麻吉)


Retrieved from Box Office Mojo on March 18, 2015


List of movies that could make the top 10:
Marvel's The Avengers
Argo
The Amazing Spider-Man
Here Comes the Boom
Skyfall
Flight
Pitch Perfect
Jack Reacher
Zero Dark Thirty
The Dark Knight Rises
Looper
The Bourne Legacy
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2
The Hunger Games
Premium Rush
Lincoln
Snow White and the Huntsman
Django Unchained
Taken 2
End of Watch
Dredd
Contraband
Lawless
21 Jump Street
Safe House
The Vow
Magic Mike
The Expendables 2
Wrath of the Titans
Silver Linings Playbook
John Carter
This Is 40
Chronicle (2012)
Total Recall (2012)
Battleship
American Reunion
Project X
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
The Grey
Resident Evil: Retribution
The Cabin in the Woods
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
That's My Boy
The Watch
Alex Cross
Brave
Ted
Wreck-It Ralph
Haywire
Safe (2012)
The Man with the Iron Fists
Killing Them Softly
People Like Us

Updated Marvel Cinematic Universe Releases - November 2021

The Marvel Cinematic Universe released more information about their upcoming plans on Disney+ during DisneyPlusDay back on November 11. Because they tweeted all their plans, I've embedded the tweets here.

Marvel Studios' She-Hulk, an Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/RNWzKH0sQf

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' X-Men '97, an animated Original Series, coming in 2023 to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/9LbEWSrWQc

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' Moon Knight, an Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/PO3TzFRfzl

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Ms. Marvel, an Original Series from Marvel Studios, coming Summer 2022 on @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/GZzAqoeIn0

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

The second season of Marvel Studios' What If...?, an animated Original Series, is coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/TAt7oPIDjx

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' Echo, an Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/NGQ8RNwYWn

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' Spider-Man: Freshman Year, an animated Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/EgdSomykPG

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' I Am Groot, an animated Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/4hpCsxzLkG

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' Ironheart, an Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/aM2l6pW0Jo

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' Agatha: House of Harkness, an Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/VgdooGmvLM

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Zombies, an animated Original Series from Marvel Studios, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/YetfOYpDPj

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

Marvel Studios' Secret Invasion, an Original Series, coming soon to @DisneyPlus. #DisneyPlusDay pic.twitter.com/2Jjzw8Uz29

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) November 12, 2021

披荆斩棘的哥哥 - Call Me By Fire

披荆斩棘的哥哥 (Call Me By Fire) is a 2021 variety show out of Zhong Guo. The premise of the show is 33 "brothers" whom come from different walks of the entertainment industry come together to form a 17 member final group. In essence, it is a survival show format.

The show is a spin-off of the "sisters" show, Sisters Who Make Waves (乘风破浪的姐姐). But the format is vastly different. Instead of eliminations every week, elimations came more sporatic. The groups also had repeating "Captains" through the entire show.

The chatter online were that these folks were beyond their prime and trying to get attention. I love it. Get attention, get work again! I love some of these 33 folks and watched them for years. My favorite is Jerry Yan, whom they focused on a lot in week 1, but went more low key later on. Terry Lin started out as annoying to me, but ended up being one of my favorites at the end. The Canto group was so funny.

There were folks I was not as familiar with so I fast forwarded through their segments. That's the beauty of watching via Youtube. The ads sucked doe.

Youku did a similar show called Shine! Super Brothers (追光吧哥哥) with 21 brothers that was in a more dance and sing kind of way. I also liked that show. It's all about getting away from the real world for a brief moment every week and Call Me By Fire did it in spades.

Battle Creek Brawl - The Big Brawl - 殺手壕

Battle Creek Brawl (The Big Brawl/殺手壕) is a 1980 film. The movie stars Jackie Chan in his first attempt to break into Hollywood. The supporting cast include Mako, Rosalind Chao, Chao-Li Chi,and Jocelyn Lew. The film was set in the 1930s Chicago era.



Jerry is a disappointment to his family as his father wants him to stop being lazy and take over the family resturant. However, Jerry would rather do other things. While defending his father's turf, he catches the eye of a local gangster we has fighters in the underground, but is not able to beat his nemisis. The gangster is able to blackmail Jerry into fighting for him. Will Jerry be able to win the fight and get these gangsters out of his hair?

I caught this on Amazon Prime recently. Took me about 3 weeks watching it on and off while I was washing dishes. The movie as based in Chicago and completely in English. The movie was made circa 1980 and it reflects that time period. There were a couple of sequences that specifically tried to show off Jackie Chan's phyisical traits, specifically his acrobatic skills. There were than a couple of other sequences include the finale fight that highlighted his physical comedy skills. You see the acrobatic skills display in some other Shaw Bros movies of that era as well. In today's era where the actors have not Peking opera trained as their foundation, you no longer see these displays. So it was refreshing to see that Jackie Chan is both an actor and athlete with skillz.

If you're Jackie Chan fan, this film may not live up to his other films of that era as the storyline was on the weaker side. The brawl itself was comedical in nature and it played out that way as you never felt that he was in real danger. However, I am glad I was able to watch this once.

Once Upon a Time in China IV - 黃飛鴻之四王者之風

Once Upon a Time in China IV (黃飛鴻之四王者之風) is an 1993 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Vincent Zhao as Wong Fei-hung. The supporting case include Jean Wang, Max Mok, Hung Yan-yan, Lau Shun, and Wang Jing Hua. This is the 4th installment of Tsui Hark's Wong Fei-hung movie series. And the first of two without Jet Li.

Wong Fei-hung Beijing for a tournment after the third film. Before they can go, they are convinced by a General to particpate in another tournament. They pass by a parade of Red Lantern Sect who end up attacking foreigners. Wong Fei-hung steps in to stop them and is captured and accused of being in cahots with the Red Lantern Sect. While waiting for his excustion, they make an escape but are too late to the tournament where the General dies. They are given another chance and go one to win, but the nation is lost. They set out to head back to Foshan.

I caught this in Cantonese on Amazon Prime Video. Took me a couple of weeks to finish this on and off. I was inspired after seeing it pop up on my recommendations and Vincent Zhao showing up as a GeGe in Call Me By Fire. Although the movie series has the same feel, the story in this one was all over the place. If you are a fan of these series, you can't miss it.

Love Hard

Love Hard is an 2021 film. The movie stars Nina Dobrev and Jimmy O. Yang. The supporting cast include Darren Barnet, James Saito, Harry Shum Jr., Mikaela Hoover, Matty Finochio, Heather McMahan, Rebecca Staab, and Althea Kaye. The movie was released via Netflix.

Nina Dobrev plays Natalie, a serial online dater out of Los Angeles who writes about her disaster of a dating life for job. Natalie finds a cute guy out of Lake Placid New York and they hit it off. Natalie decides to take it to the extreme and travel out to meat this cute guy for Christmas. When she gets there, Natalie finds out that she has been cat fished. The cute guy, Josh Lin, is not the person in the photos. While at a bar trying to figure things out, Natalie sees the cute guy from Josh's profile, Tag. Natalie wants to impress Tag, but fails and is semi-saved by Josh. While at the vet, Josh and Natalie decide to deal. Natalie plays along as Josh's girlfriend for the holidays and Josh helps Natalie get together with Tag. Will this deals work?

Having just finished The Opening Act the day of, I went striahgt into another Jimmy O. Yang movie. And to be honest, the characters were not that much different. However, Josh Lin was his own unique being too. As for the story, its not crazy different from all the other rom-coms out there. There's a love, a misunderstanding, a reconcilation plot, and the realization you were meant to be together all along. Love Hard is pretty much along those lines. And it was great. I had a blast watching it with my family. And like all Rom-coms, some raunchy items were inserted to get some laughes to get you out of thinking its a serious movie.

Spoiler alert! Don't read this if you have not seen the movie. I like the movie as it is a play on words of the two movies that the protagonist talk about. Die Hard is Natalie's favorite Christmas movie along with her justifcations and Tag's favorite movie is Love Actually. Take one work from each movie to get Love Hard.

The Opening Act

The Opening Act is an 2020 film. The movie stars Jimmy O. Yang. The main supporting cast are Alex Moffat, Cedric the Entertainer, Jermaine Fowler, and Neal Brennan. The rest of the cast show up in more of a cameo sense and include Debby Ryan, Ken Jeong, Roy Wood Jr., Bill Burr, Russell Peters, Iliza Shlesinger, and Whitney Cummings. The movie is the directing debut of Steve Byrne.

Jimmy O. Yang plays Will Chu, a insurance claims worker who does stand up at a local club. Will's dream is to be a stand up comedian, but is scared to go all in. When a local friend presents him with an opportunity, Will has to decide to take it or not. Will goes all in and even quits his job. Will is "the opening act" and emcee of a weekend at a Improv with a famous established comedian, Billy G. Will Will be able to impress the right people and get his chance at a life of stand up?

This was a coming of age story movie. You can kinda see it from the trailer and you knew it was going to be an happy ending. However, with any coming of age story, the middle portions will be ripe with failure and self doubt, before they get it together to succeed.

I really enjoyed this movie. I had had my eye on this for many months and finally pulled the trigger a weekend ago and got it off Amazon Prime Video. I spent 3 sessions to finish this over the week right before I started on Jimmy's Love Hard. Which made my family confused as they walked by to see me watching Yang for over a week. Jimmy O. Yang is great and I hope him much success in the future. I highly recommend this movie.

Part of the movie does dive into the protaginst as an Asian American. It does not ask for pitty, but it is one of the roadblocks that was faced. I thought it was dealt with well.

Eternals - 永恆族

Eternals (永恆族) is an 2021 film. The movie is an ensemble cast starring Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, Salma Hayek, Angelina Jolie, Kit Harington, and Kumail Nanjiani. The movie is based the Eternals from Jack Kirby and their bad counterparts, the Deviants. The movie version has been adapted for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The movie is directed by Chloé Zhao.



The Eternals were brought to earth to fight monsters that are against the Celestrals, Deviants. Over the years, the Eternals have only been given permission to fight conflicts that include the Deviants. Sersi is in modern day London and a teacher in a relationship with Dane Whitman. But Sersi was in a relationship with Ikaris for thousands of years. Sersi and Sprite are roommates and go out on the town with Dane. While haeding back home, a Deviant attackes them. Ikaris comes to the rescue but the Deviant gets away. This sets into events that there may be a bigger event happening. Sersi, Sprite, and Ikaris set out to form the gang again. Will they be able to get everyone together and fight off the deviants?

I did not follow the Eternals that closely when I was reading comics more regularly. I only remember Sersi as part of the Avengers back in the 1980s. Beyond that, I only read about them in the Marval Universe guides. This was also the same with Gaurdians when it became a movie. I think these are good concepts for Marvel as they can really go in any direction in the films as the characters were not as impactful as say a Spider-man or Iron Man.

This movie was very well made. From the locales to the special effects. Seems earth has lots of hidden mysteries and evil monsters that have not been attacking the Avengers recently. I thought the locales were one of the highlights of the movie. Instead of spending time in front of a green screen, they were actually there to feel it for real. I thought the acting was suberb. How can it not be with so many veterans?

I would recommend you watch it for the locals and acting. And of course, its part of the MCU so you'll need the context going forward. Normally, I judge my euthasiasm for films based on if I want to pick up the Blu-ray to watch again. In this case, I thought one watch was good enough. Onto the next MCU movie!

2021 November Blockbuster Movie Guide

Here are the movies to look out for this month, US Edition.

Eternals (永恆族)

Ghostbusters: Afterlife (魔鬼剋星:未來世)



Top Gun: Maverick (捍衛戰士:獨行俠)



Sources:
IMDB Coming Soon
Box Office Mojo
Wikipedia.org
Taiwan Yahoo! Movies
WMoov Hong Kong