January 6, 2012 by Vinnie Leduc
- Battle: Los Angeles
- Fast Five
- Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
- Sucker Punch
- Transformers: Dark of the Moon
2011 offered something for everybody via the action/adventure genre. There were plenty of films that caught our eye, as you can see by the extensive list of honorable mentions. Battle: LA‘s endless CoD-style barrage of bullets and bombs earned it a nomination here, but its cheesy dialogue and one dimensionality (read: no brains) nearly kept it off the list. Same goes for crowdpleasers Fast Five and Transformers 3: they excelled at their action/adventure strengths (especially that last hour from Michael Bay), but they were relatively empty beyond the noise. Nerdgasm-inducing Sucker Punch not only boasted some of the most spectacular action sequences of the year, but a boldly layered (albeit polarizing) plot as well. However, in a very close decision, we’re crediting M:I 4‘s consistency and completeness as a franchise-extending package, a thrilling one that somehow makes you forget about Bond, Bourne, and Tom Cruise’s Scientology-rooted off-screen slump. Winner: Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
Honorable Mentions: The Adventures of Tintin, Captain America: The First Avenger, Hanna, Immortals, Kung Fu Panda 2, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Thor, X-Men: First Class
