Best Movies of 2011
by davidmoens | created - 20 Oct 2011 | updated - 19 Apr 2015 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Black Swan (2010)
R | 108 min | Drama, Thriller
Nina is a talented but unstable ballerina on the verge of stardom. Pushed to the breaking point by her artistic director and a seductive rival, Nina's grip on reality slips, plunging her into a waking nightmare.
Director: Darren Aronofsky | Stars: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder
Votes: 825,178 | Gross: $106.95M
2. Drive (I) (2011)
R | 100 min | Action, Drama
A mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks
Votes: 704,775 | Gross: $35.06M
3. The Tree of Life (2011)
PG-13 | 139 min | Drama, Fantasy
The story of a family in Waco, Texas in 1956. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence and struggles with his parents' conflicting teachings.
Director: Terrence Malick | Stars: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain, Hunter McCracken
Votes: 184,164 | Gross: $13.30M
4. 127 Hours (2010)
R | 94 min | Biography, Drama
A mountain climber becomes trapped under a boulder while canyoneering alone near Moab, Utah and resorts to desperate measures in order to survive.
Director: Danny Boyle | Stars: James Franco, Amber Tamblyn, Kate Mara, Sean Bott
Votes: 401,533 | Gross: $18.34M
5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
PG-13 | 130 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Harry, Ron, and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord as the final battle rages on at Hogwarts.
Director: David Yates | Stars: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Michael Gambon
Votes: 948,956 | Gross: $381.01M
6. Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
PG-13 | 105 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
A substance designed to help the brain repair itself gives advanced intelligence to a chimpanzee who leads an ape uprising.
Director: Rupert Wyatt | Stars: James Franco, Andy Serkis, Freida Pinto, Karin Konoval
Votes: 559,654 | Gross: $176.76M
7. Hugo (2011)
PG | 126 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
In 1931 Paris, an orphan living in the walls of a train station gets wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Asa Butterfield, Chloë Grace Moretz, Christopher Lee, Ben Kingsley
Votes: 336,894 | Gross: $73.86M
8. X: First Class (2011)
PG-13 | 131 min | Action, Sci-Fi
In the 1960s, superpowered humans Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr work together to find others like them, but Erik's vengeful pursuit of an ambitious mutant who ruined his life causes a schism to divide them.
Director: Matthew Vaughn | Stars: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Kevin Bacon
Votes: 723,972 | Gross: $146.41M
9. Super 8 (2011)
PG-13 | 112 min | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi
During the summer of 1979, a group of friends witness a train crash and investigate subsequent unexplained events in their small town.
Director: J.J. Abrams | Stars: Elle Fanning, AJ Michalka, Kyle Chandler, Joel Courtney
Votes: 367,614 | Gross: $127.00M
10. Source Code (2011)
PG-13 | 93 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
A soldier wakes up in someone else's body and discovers he's part of an experimental government program to find the bomber of a commuter train within 8 minutes.
Director: Duncan Jones | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga, Jeffrey Wright
Votes: 549,960 | Gross: $54.71M
11. Warrior (2011)
PG-13 | 140 min | Action, Drama, Sport
The youngest son of an alcoholic former boxer returns home, where he's trained by his father for competition in a mixed martial arts tournament - a path that puts the fighter on a collision course with his estranged, older brother.
Director: Gavin O'Connor | Stars: Tom Hardy, Nick Nolte, Joel Edgerton, Jennifer Morrison
Votes: 498,077 | Gross: $13.66M
12. Sigur Rós: Inni (2011)
74 min | Documentary, Music
Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós melds its sonic landscape with visuals in this concert film/documentary.
Director: Vincent Morisset | Stars: Jon Thor Birgisson, Orri P. Dyrason, Georg Holm, Kjartan Sveinsson
Votes: 719 | Gross: $0.12M
13. The Fighter (I) (2010)
R | 116 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Based on the story of Micky Ward, a fledgling boxer who tries to escape the shadow of his more famous but troubled older boxing brother and get his own shot at greatness.
Director: David O. Russell | Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo
Votes: 389,014 | Gross: $93.62M
14. Real Steel (2011)
PG-13 | 127 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
In the near future, robot boxing is a top sport. A struggling ex-boxer feels he's found a champion in a discarded robot.
Director: Shawn Levy | Stars: Hugh Jackman, Evangeline Lilly, Dakota Goyo, Anthony Mackie
Votes: 355,768 | Gross: $85.47M
15. Country Strong (2010)
PG-13 | 117 min | Drama, Music
A rising country-music songwriter works with a fallen star to work their way to fame, causing romantic complications along the way.
Director: Shana Feste | Stars: Garrett Hedlund, Gwyneth Paltrow, Leighton Meester, Tim McGraw
Votes: 18,950 | Gross: $20.22M
16. True Grit (2010)
PG-13 | 110 min | Drama, Western
A stubborn teenager enlists the help of a tough U.S. Marshal to track down her father's murderer.
Directors: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Hailee Steinfeld, Josh Brolin
Votes: 357,630 | Gross: $171.24M
17. Tron: Legacy (2010)
PG | 125 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
The son of a virtual world designer goes looking for his father and ends up inside the digital world that his father designed. He meets his father's corrupted creation and a unique ally who was born inside the digital world.
Director: Joseph Kosinski | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde, Bruce Boxleitner
Votes: 356,001 | Gross: $172.06M
18. Thor (2011)
PG-13 | 115 min | Action, Fantasy
The powerful but arrogant god Thor is cast out of Asgard to live amongst humans in Midgard (Earth), where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston
Votes: 900,565 | Gross: $181.03M
19. Hesher (2010)
R | 106 min | Comedy, Drama
A young boy has lost his mother and is losing touch with his father and the world around him. Then he meets Hesher who manages to make his life even more chaotic.
Director: Spencer Susser | Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Devin Brochu, Natalie Portman, Rainn Wilson
Votes: 54,107 | Gross: $0.38M
20. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)
PG-13 | 132 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
The IMF is shut down when it's implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin, causing Ethan Hunt and his new team to go rogue to clear their organization's name.
Director: Brad Bird | Stars: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton
Votes: 528,593 | Gross: $209.40M
21. Moneyball (2011)
PG-13 | 133 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane's successful attempt to assemble a baseball team on a lean budget by employing computer-generated analysis to acquire new players.
Director: Bennett Miller | Stars: Brad Pitt, Robin Wright, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Votes: 464,844 | Gross: $75.61M
22. I Saw the Devil (2010)
Not Rated | 144 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A secret agent exacts revenge on a serial killer through a series of captures and releases.
Director: Jee-woon Kim | Stars: Lee Byung-hun, Choi Min-sik, Jeon Gook-hwan, Chun Ho-jin
Votes: 146,310 | Gross: $0.13M
23. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 (2011)
PG-13 | 117 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
The Quileutes close in on expecting parents Edward and Bella, whose unborn child poses a threat to the Wolf Pack and the towns people of Forks.
Director: Bill Condon | Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Gil Birmingham
Votes: 254,388 | Gross: $281.29M
24. Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011)
PG-13 | 118 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A middle-aged husband's life changes dramatically when his wife asks him for a divorce. He seeks to rediscover his manhood with the help of a newfound friend, Jacob, learning to pick up girls at bars.
Directors: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa | Stars: Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone
Votes: 564,674 | Gross: $84.35M
25. Attack the Block (2011)
R | 88 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A teen gang in South London defend their block from an alien invasion.
Director: Joe Cornish | Stars: John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker, Alex Esmail, Leeon Jones
Votes: 111,442 | Gross: $1.02M
26. Fast Five (2011)
PG-13 | 130 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Dominic Toretto and his crew of street racers plan a massive heist to buy their freedom while in the sights of a powerful Brazilian drug lord and a dangerous federal agent.
Director: Justin Lin | Stars: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Jordana Brewster
Votes: 407,312 | Gross: $209.84M
27. Scream 4 (2011)
R | 111 min | Comedy, Horror, Mystery
Ten years have passed, and Sidney Prescott, who has put herself back together thanks in part to her writing, is visited by the Ghostface Killer.
Director: Wes Craven | Stars: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Lucy Hale
Votes: 171,259 | Gross: $38.18M
28. Trust (I) (2010)
R | 106 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A teenage girl is targeted by an online sexual predator.
Director: David Schwimmer | Stars: Clive Owen, Catherine Keener, Liana Liberato, Jason Clarke
Votes: 44,031 | Gross: $0.12M
29. The Lincoln Lawyer (2011)
R | 118 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A lawyer defending a wealthy man begins to believe his client is guilty of more than just one crime.
Director: Brad Furman | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe, William H. Macy
Votes: 253,848 | Gross: $58.01M
30. Biutiful (2010)
R | 148 min | Drama, Romance
A man dying of cancer tries his best to leave the world on his own terms.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu | Stars: Javier Bardem, Maricel Álvarez, Hanaa Bouchaib, Guillermo Estrella
Votes: 94,635 | Gross: $5.10M
31. The Help (2011)
PG-13 | 146 min | Drama
An aspiring author during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.
Director: Tate Taylor | Stars: Viola Davis, Emma Stone, Octavia Spencer, Bryce Dallas Howard
Votes: 492,978 | Gross: $169.71M
32. Troll Hunter (2010)
PG-13 | 103 min | Drama, Fantasy, Thriller
A group of students investigates a series of mysterious bear killings, but learns that there are much more dangerous things going on. They start to follow a mysterious hunter, learning that he is actually a troll hunter.
Director: André Øvredal | Stars: Otto Jespersen, Robert Stoltenberg, Knut Nærum, Glenn Erland Tosterud
Votes: 79,577 | Gross: $0.25M
33. Bullhead (2011)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama
Sint-Truiden, Belgium. Jacky, a young cattle farmer who is constantly pumped on steroids and hormones, is approached by a veterinarian to make a deal with a notorious beef trader.
Director: Michaël R. Roskam | Stars: Matthias Schoenaerts, Jeroen Perceval, Jeanne Dandoy, Barbara Sarafian
Votes: 24,309 | Gross: $0.15M
34. The Man from Nowhere (2010)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.
Director: Lee Jeong-beom | Stars: Won Bin, Kim Sae-ron, Kim Tae-hoon, Kim Hee-won
Votes: 74,875 | Gross: $0.01M
35. 13 Assassins (2010)
R | 141 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A group of assassins come together for a suicide mission to kill an evil lord.
Director: Takashi Miike | Stars: Koji Yakusho, Takayuki Yamada, Yûsuke Iseya, Ikki Sawamura
Votes: 68,630 | Gross: $0.80M
36. Welcome to the Rileys (2010)
R | 110 min | Drama
On a business trip to New Orleans, a damaged man seeks salvation by caring for a wayward young woman.
Director: Jake Scott | Stars: James Gandolfini, Kristen Stewart, Melissa Leo, David Jensen
Votes: 25,273 | Gross: $0.15M
37. Blue Valentine (2010)
R | 112 min | Drama, Romance
The relationship of a contemporary married couple, charting their evolution over a span of years by cross-cutting between time periods.
Director: Derek Cianfrance | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams, John Doman, Faith Wladyka
Votes: 211,415 | Gross: $9.74M
38. The Ides of March (2011)
R | 101 min | Drama, Thriller
An idealistic staffer for a new presidential candidate gets a crash course on dirty politics during his stint on the campaign trail.
Director: George Clooney | Stars: Paul Giamatti, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ryan Gosling
Votes: 230,817 | Gross: $40.96M
39. Win Win (2011)
R | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Sport
A struggling lawyer and volunteer wrestling coach's chicanery comes back to haunt him when the teenage grandson of the client he has double-crossed comes into his life.
Director: Tom McCarthy | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, Jeffrey Tambor, Bobby Cannavale
Votes: 55,268 | Gross: $10.18M
40. Midnight in Paris (2011)
PG-13 | 94 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
While on a trip to Paris with his fiancée's family, a nostalgic screenwriter finds himself mysteriously going back to the 1920s every day at midnight.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, Kurt Fuller
Votes: 449,984 | Gross: $56.82M
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