5. The Guard
This little Irish film somehow became one of the most enjoyable movies of 2011, as it followed the always lovable Brendan Gleeson as an Irish cop who teams up with an FBI agent to track down an incoming drug shipment. The debut film of John Michael McDonagh, The Guard is a hilarious twist on the buddy cop genre as Gleeson's character gleefully goes against the grain while Don Cheadle's FBI agent is the classic by-the by the book straight man. Mark Strong and Liam Cunningham round out a great cast who are provided with some brilliant dialogue from McDonagh who wrote the film as well. The Guard's colorful characters are its driving force but sadly it remains underseen. It's the all time highest grossing film in Irish history but made less than five million dollars in the U.S. Luckily, The Guard picked up excellent reviews and even scored a Golden Globe nomination for Brendan Gleeson. Hopefully, the accolades will eventually turn The Guard into something of a cult favorite where more film fans would be exposed to it.