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Top films of 2012 | Betsy Sharkey

We had a wealth of documentaries that looked at the wreckage of broken infrastructures, but the one that affected me most was "Detropia's," top, unsparing but still beautiful examination of a crumbling Detroit. This cautionary tale directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady was spun with intelligence, candor and depth. No soft-soaping the situations and yet there was hope that a few strong spirits could rise above, that indeed change might be possible. (Honorable mention for docs "Brooklyn Castle," left, and "The House I Live In," right.)

We had a wealth of documentaries that looked at the wreckage of broken infrastructures, but the one that affected me most was “Detropia’s,” top, unsparing but still beautiful examination of a crumbling Detroit. This cautionary tale directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady was spun with intelligence, candor and depth. No soft-soaping the situations and yet there was hope that a few strong spirits could rise above, that indeed change might be possible. (Honorable mention for docs “Brooklyn Castle,” left, and “The House I Live In,” right.)  (Loki Films / Producers Distribution Agency / Charlotte Street Films)

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It was a year so rich that it made the winnowing extremely difficult. There are 30 or so more films that I struggled to shoehorn in but couldn’t. These survived that painful process -- my 2012 Top 10, with a few ties, a few honorable mentions. -- Times Film Critic Betsy Sharkey

Best of 2012: Movies | TV | Pop music | Jazz | Video Games | Art | Theater | Dance | Classical music

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