Superheroes, sequels, comedies: 2011, one of the best years in film

Rather than write a list of my favorite movies from 2011 (in response to our previous worst-of list), I've decided to argue why I feel 2011 was actually one of the best years for movies in recent memory. The last truly great year for movies was 1999, where incredible original films such as "The Sixth Sense," "The Matrix," "The Iron Giant" and "American Beauty," among many others, were released. While 2011 was more loaded with adaptations, sequels, and remakes than 1999's selections, the majority of those turned out to be surprisingly good and even great.

Aside from "Green Lantern," the superhero movies turned out to be big successes. "Thor," against all odds, managed to overcome my expectations and made a potentially cheesy and ridiculous character work within Marvel's "Avengers" world. "Captain America" was similarly surprising, and even better than "Thor." Meanwhile, "X-Men: First Class" was able to rebound from the travesty of "Wolverine" and turn into one of the best superhero movies this side of "The Dark Knight."

On the sequel front, "Fast Five" won me over despite the fact that I didn't like not liking any of the previous "The Fast and the Furious" movies all that much. "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" finally nailed the tone of the original TV show and is easily better than the previous three in the film series. I also believe that "Kung Fu Panda 2" improved on the first movie by refining everything that was great about it before.

Meanwhile, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2" delivered a knockout final entry in the series with its stellar action and heartfelt emotion that was built up throughout the over seven previous films.            

Even recently forgotten franchises such as "The Muppets" and "Planet of the Apes" were given new life this year with their own respective reboots. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," in particular, revitalized my interest in a franchise that I never quite got into in the first place.

This, of course, isn't to say that 2011 didn't have memorable original tales to tell. "Limitless," "Hanna," and "Source Code" were energetic delights early in the year, keeping me entertained with their drug-fueled adrenaline rush ("Limitless") and pulsating techno soundtrack ("Hanna"). And "The Lincoln Lawyer," while not monumental, finally gave Matthew McConaughey a recent role that allowed him to flex his acting muscles.

Pixar may have sadly disappointed this year with "Cars 2," but other animated treats such as "Winnie the Pooh," "Arthur Christmas" and especially "Rango" were able to pick up the slack. "Rango" reunited Johnny Depp with his "Pirates of the Caribbean" director Gore Verbinski and the two delivered a funny, oddball and even trippy film to remember. Did I mention that "Kung Fu Panda 2" was also great already?

Comedies also came out strong this year for both men and women alike. Guys were able to identify with the put-upon trio in "Horrible Bosses," while girls could get their own version of "The Hangover" with "Bridesmaids." Saying that doesn't do "Bridesmaids" justice,  though. The film's only similar to "The Hangover" in its brand of humor, but "Bridesmaids" adds strong character development and resonance on top of that. Then, "Midnight in Paris" was a return-to-form of sorts for Woody Allen, who enjoyed his first major critical success in decades and his most commercially successful film to date.

Of course, the Oscar-type fare, including "Moneyball," "50/50," "The Descendents," "The Artist," "The Ides of March" and "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," stood out in a huge way. I would also be remiss if I didn't mention the three movies that I didn't know much about before seeing, wind up in my top five of the year: "Attack the Block," "Warrior," and "Drive."

My main point here is that, in addition to the type of films that win awards, 2011 was a great year for blockbuster entertainment, which I felt was sorely lacking for the last two years ("Inception" notwithstanding). Despite what my colleagues might say in opposition, 2011 was the year that I felt Hollywood finally got its act together and I have high hopes for 2012.