The 2012 RyMickey Awards - Best Ensemble

This was a solid year for ensembles, but not as successful as 2010 and 2011's groupings (which can be seen via links at the bottom of this post).  Still, when films like Safe House, The Intouchables, The Grey, Silver Linings Playbook, and Skyfall don't make the list, it's obvious you had some decent ensembles this year.

Best Ensembles of 2012

Honorable Mentions

#10 - Butter

(Jennifer Garner, Ty Burrell, Yara Shahidi, Alicia Silverstone, Rob Corddry, Ashley Greene, Olivia Wilde, Kristen Schaal, and Hugh Jackman)

#9 - The Sessions

(John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy, Moon Bloodgood, Annika Marks, and Adam Arkin)

#8 - Your Sister's Sister

(Mark Duplass, Emily Blunt, and Rosemarie Dewitt)

#7 - Friends with Kids

(Adam Scott, Jennifer Westfeldt, Maya Rudolph, Chris O'Dowd, Kristen Wiig, Jon Hamm, Edward Burns, and Megan Fox)

#6 - Cloud Atlas

(Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Doona Bae, Ben Whishaw, Susan Sarandon, and Hugh Grant)

And the Top Five are...

#5 - Arbitrage

(Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, Tim Roth, Brit Marling, Laetitia Costa, and Nate Parker)

"Smart" is all I have to say about this ensemble.  As a group, this cast exudes intelligence, all perfectly capturing the slimy underbelly of this film's seedy corporate business. 

#4 - Flight

(Denzel Washington, John Goodman, Kelly Reilly, James Badge Dale, Don Cheadle, Brian Geraghty, Tamara Tunie, Nadine Velazquez, Bruce Greenwood, and Melissa Leo)

Really fantastic performances from the top of the credits to the bottom.  Little parts like those of James Badge Dale and Nadine Velazquez shine just as much as Denzel's main character.

#3 - Lincoln

(Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, James Spader, Tommy Lee Jones, Hal Holbrook, John Hawkes, Jackie Earle Haley, Lee Pace, Gloria Rueben, and tens of other folks whom you'd recognize from other films)

Although rightfully lauded for Daniel Day-Lewis' fantastic work, Lincoln was a who's who list of "I've seen that person before" and that's always kind of fun to see.  Of course that wouldn't matter if the performances weren't up to snuff, but the talent onscreen certainly shows.

#2 - The Impossible

(Tom Holland, Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Samuel Joslin, Oaklee Pendergast, and Geraldine Chaplin)

Considering the fact that the three youngest members of the cast were making their film debut here makes the cast of The Impossible even more impressive.  Add in the wonderful and gripping performances of Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor and this is an incredibly engaging ensemble.

#1 - Argo

(Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Victor Garber, Tate Donovan, Clea Duvall, Scoot McNairy, Rory Cochrane, Christopher Denham, Kerry Bishé, Kyle Chandler, Chris Messina, and Sheila Vand)

Much like Lincoln, Argo oftentimes feels like all of Hollywood makes an appearance in it.  Argo excels at making three different worlds -- Hollywood, Washington, D.C., and Iran -- successfully be portrayed by its fantastic cast who together is one of the reasons I loved the movie so much.

Previous RyMickey Award Winners

2011

2010

2009