AND THE TOMATO GOES TO…
Welcome to RT’s 13th Annual Golden Tomato Awards, in which we honor the best-reviewed movies of 2011. From the biggest Hollywood hits to the most provocative indies, we’ve got the films that won the critics’ hearts — and probably inspired you as well.
It was another wild and wonderful year for cinephiles, as we collectively bade farewell to the Harry Potter franchise while offering a hearty “welcome back” to The Muppets. In addition, we delighted at the antics of stat geeks (Moneyball) and jealous frenemies (Bridesmaids). Over at the arthouse, we empathized with a down-on-his-luck silent movie star (The Artist) and an anthropomorphized chimp (Project Nim). Which films will take home the coveted Golden Tomato Awards? Where do your favorites rank? And which of these flicks took home the User Tomato award, decided by you, the RT faithful?
Best Wide Release
#1
Adjusted Score: 109689%
Critics Consensus: Thrilling, powerfully acted, and visually dazzling, Deathly Hallows Part II brings the Harry Potter franchise to a satisfying -- and suitably magical -- conclusion.
Synopsis: A clash between good and evil awaits as young Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) prepare...
[More]
Best Limited Release
#1
Adjusted Score: 102440%
Critics Consensus: Equal parts hilarious, poignant, and heartbreaking, Project Nim not only tells a compelling story masterfully, but also raises the flag on the darker side of human nature.
Synopsis: In the 1970s, professor Herb Terrace and his team raise a baby chimp as a human child, as part of...
[More]
Top UK
#1
Adjusted Score: 109689%
Critics Consensus: Thrilling, powerfully acted, and visually dazzling, Deathly Hallows Part II brings the Harry Potter franchise to a satisfying -- and suitably magical -- conclusion.
Synopsis: A clash between good and evil awaits as young Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) prepare...
[More]
Top AU
#1
Adjusted Score: 87264%
Critics Consensus: It's a bleak and brutal endurance test, but for viewers with the strength and patience to make it to the end, Snowtown will prove an uncommonly powerful viewing experience.
Synopsis: A charismatic but violent predator (Daniel Henshall) takes his girlfriend's teenage son (Lucas Pittaway) under his wing and makes him...
[More]
User
#1
Adjusted Score: 100734%
Critics Consensus: A good-hearted film about a difficult topic, 50/50 maneuvers between jokes and drama with surprising finesse.
Synopsis: Adam Lerner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) has always tried to take good care of his health, so it comes as a cruel...
[More]
Best Action/Adventure
#1
Adjusted Score: 103160%
Critics Consensus: Stylish, fast-paced, and loaded with gripping set pieces, the fourth Mission: Impossible is big-budget popcorn entertainment that really works.
Synopsis: Blamed for a terrorist attack on the Kremlin, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and the entire IMF agency are disavowed by...
[More]
Best Animation
#1
Adjusted Score: 98499%
Critics Consensus: Aardman Animations broadens their humor a bit for Arthur Christmas, a clever and earnest holiday film with surprising emotional strength.
Synopsis: Everyone knows that, each Christmas, Santa Claus delivers presents to every last child on Earth. What everyone doesn't know is...
[More]
Best Comedy
#1
Adjusted Score: 108513%
Critics Consensus: A crowd-pleasing tribute to the magic of silent cinema, The Artist is a clever, joyous film with delightful performances and visual style to spare.
Synopsis: In the 1920s, actor George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a bona fide matinee idol with many adoring fans. While working...
[More]
Best Documentary
#1
Adjusted Score: 102440%
Critics Consensus: Equal parts hilarious, poignant, and heartbreaking, Project Nim not only tells a compelling story masterfully, but also raises the flag on the darker side of human nature.
Synopsis: In the 1970s, professor Herb Terrace and his team raise a baby chimp as a human child, as part of...
[More]
Best Drama
#1
Adjusted Score: 105175%
Critics Consensus: Director Bennett Miller, along with Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill, take a niche subject and turn it into a sharp, funny, and touching portrait worthy of baseball lore.
Synopsis: Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), general manager of the Oakland A's, one day has an epiphany: Baseball's conventional wisdom is all...
[More]
Best Foreign
#1
Adjusted Score: 105896%
Critics Consensus: Morally complex, suspenseful, and consistently involving, A Separation captures the messiness of a dissolving relationship with keen insight and searing intensity.
Synopsis: When Nader (Payman Maadi), a bank employee, refuses to leave Tehran, his wife, Simin (Leila Hatami) sues for divorce in...
[More]
Best Horror
#1
Adjusted Score: 98205%
Critics Consensus: Effortlessly mixing scares, laughs, and social commentary, Attack the Block is a thrilling, briskly-paced sci-fi yarn with a distinctly British flavor.
Synopsis: South London teenagers (John Boyega, Alex Esmail, Leeon Jones) defend their neighborhood from malevolent extraterrestrials....
[More]
Best Kids/Family
#1
Adjusted Score: 104322%
Critics Consensus: Clever, charming, and heartfelt, The Muppets is a welcome big screen return for Jim Henson's lovable creations that will both win new fans and delight longtime devotees.
Synopsis: Walter, the world's biggest Muppet fan, is on vacation in Los Angeles with his brother Gary (Jason Segel) and Gary's...
[More]
Best Musical
#1
Adjusted Score: 76662%
Critics Consensus: Viewers expecting an in-depth biopic will be disappointed, but The Runaways is as electric as the band's music, largely thanks to strong performances from Michael Shannon, Dakota Fanning, and Kristen Stewart.
Synopsis: Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) and Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning), two rebellious teenagers from Southern California, become the frontwomen for the...
[More]
Best Romance
#1
Adjusted Score: 97838%
Critics Consensus: It may be a chamber piece but Weekend's revelations on modern sexuality expand far beyond the modest setting.
Synopsis: A gay man's (Tom Cullen) weekend-long encounter with an artist (Chris New) changes his life in unexpected ways....
[More]
Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy
#1
Adjusted Score: 109689%
Critics Consensus: Thrilling, powerfully acted, and visually dazzling, Deathly Hallows Part II brings the Harry Potter franchise to a satisfying -- and suitably magical -- conclusion.
Synopsis: A clash between good and evil awaits as young Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) prepare...
[More]
Best Thriller
#1
Adjusted Score: 104219%
Critics Consensus: With its hyper-stylized blend of violence, music, and striking imagery, Drive represents a fully realized vision of arthouse action.
Synopsis: Driver is a skilled Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver for criminals. Though he projects an icy exterior,...
[More]
