Pessimistic? Melodramatic? Sure. But then again, the films of 2011 were pessimistic and melodramatic. In their scope and specificity, Like Crazy, Margin Call, Martha Marcy May Marlene and Melancholia were desperate to demonstrate that this generation's worries will both ensnare the individual and engulf the planet. High unemployment. Student loans. A world caught in political and financial decay. A movie industry that thought we harbored deep nostalgia for The Smurfs.

That same industry can prophesy dark times ahead for its key demographic even as it panders to our wallets with robots, superheroes and vampires. Talk about biting the hand that feeds. We gorged ourselves on tales of invincible crime-fighters and immortal lovers, and then in the next theater over we saw Joseph Gordon-Levitt battling cancer. Pass the popcorn.

But films — at least the serious ones — are supposed to reflect and synthesize the world around us, even if we can't (or won't). That's the key service they've always provided to younger generations, second only to a cheap date. Maybe it's beneficial sometimes for the movies to tell us, "You know what? Not everything can be solved with know-how and explosives. Sometimes the deck is just stacked against you."