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Kim Hollis: I've mostly had pretty good luck with my choices over the last couple of months.

Skyfall was a pretty significant step up from Quantum of Solace. It looked fantastic (the cinematography is pretty spectacular) and I really enjoyed Judi Dench. Also, New Q is a nice addition. The climactic set piece is extremely well done. I'm still not quite sure if I like Daniel Craig as Bond but I found myself really enjoying the film nonetheless.

ParaNorman is good but not as good as I was maybe expecting. I think my expectations were probably too high after the greatness from Laika that was Coraline. Norman is a really good character, though, and the story is certainly inventive.

Taken 2 is more or less exactly what I expected it to be, and there is nothing wrong with that. Once I got past the fact that Maggie Grace is almost 29-years-old playing about 12 years younger than that, I just went with it. I can't say that there were any surprises, but the ride is a lot of fun.

Seven Psychopaths is a movie about writing, which means it's not for everyone. I was certainly the target audience. Some people have compared it to Adaptation and I think that's fair but I enjoyed Psychopaths a whole lot more.

Wreck-It Ralph was also not as great as I was hoping it would be, but I still think it's Pretty Damn Good. I wonder if I might not like it more upon some repeat viewings. I pretty much love Vanellope as a character, and there is no denying that the movie itself is a feast for the eyes. I was wishing for a bit more old-school stuff for long-time gamers, but the games created specifically for the film were nicely implemented.

Cloud Atlas is one of my favorite books and I was dubious about whether the film could be successful. I think it was and it wasn't. There were aspects I didn't like (it felt like they were forcing the notion of actors playing multiple characters across the stories a little too much) and there were plot elements that were changed that disappointed me (Zachry is a teenager in the book versus being Tom Hanks in the movie). I didn't feel like my favorite of the stories was conveyed the way I would have hoped. But overall I do think they did the best possible job they could have. I was particularly surprised by how much I enjoyed the Timothy Cavendish story. It really came to life onscreen. I completely admire the ambition of what the Wachowskis and Tykwer tried to do. It might not have been entirely successful, but at least they went for it.

Life of Pi is another book-based film that I was intrigued to see. I read the book many years ago and enjoyed it. Like Cloud Atlas, it didn't seem like something that would translate well to film. I believe Ang Lee did as well as could possibly be imagined. The movie looks absolutely amazing and makes the best use of 3D that I have seen in some time, maybe even since Avatar. It's probably going to be among my most admired films of the year.

Speaking of favorites, Silver Linings Playbook is right up there with Moonlight Kingdom as one of my favorites of 2012. Bradley Cooper has probably never been better and Jennifer Lawrence continues to wow me. Even Robert De Niro is more like himself as opposed to the caricature of himself that he has been over these past several years. I'll be really looking forward to watching it again once it reaches home video.

I also had the chance to watch Arthur Christmas with my family (including my seven-year-old niece) and it's a pretty terrific little family film with stellar voice work. It's a completely unique take on the Santa Claus story and I really loved watching my niece be completely absorbed through the entire film.

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