- The VisitorThe personal and political dovetail around a performance of uncommon complexity and grace. A humanist parable that stands as a key film of a lamentable political decade.
- Jar CityAll talk was on Let the Right One In, but this unheralded forensic thriller from neighbouring Iceland transported me like no other. Art/pulp bliss.
- Forbidden LiesSeeing is still not believing this, er, unbelievable documentary, as it thoroughly and deftly exposes a complex ego of epic proportions.
- HungerHard to deny this Irish prison drama as a masterpiece, even if its tough subject matter perhaps makes it a conditional one.
- Red Riding TrilogyThe first part, ‘1974’, was a stunner, and if the other two not quite as much, as a whole this is still essential and substantial. Champion.
- Rain of the ChildrenAn artistically bold, heartfelt love letter to cinema, to Maori, and to New Zealand. Bravo, Vincent Ward.
- Up The YangtzeA near perfect filmic essay on the seismic dichotomy that is modern China.
- Wendy and LucySimplicity is this American indie’s greatest virtue, but not its only one. A model of “less is more”.
- In Search of a Midnight KissAn indie rom-com that charmed the pants off me, and even squeezed a tear. There’s hope for Gen-Y yet!
- La AntenaEven the festivals have overlooked this sumptuous homage to expressionism. A designer’s wet dream.
Second 11:
Time Crimes, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Dean Spanley, Frost/Nixon, Duplicity, Fear(s) of the Dark, Synecdoche New York, Let the Right One In, Coraline, Persepolis, Big Man Japan. …
- My WinnipegIt’s all about Guy Maddin in this hilarious, self-pitying essay on hermaphrodites, beauty salons, and sweaty ice hockey players.
- Wendy and LucyA luminous, compassionate American indie about hardship in modern times that’s also a marvel of economic filmmaking.
- Star TrekThe blockbuster of the year: brash, blasphemous, and a bundle of youthful energy.
- Red Riding TrilogyGobsmacking television, this murky Yorkshire policier is a boldy cinematic triptych recommended for recovering Wire addicts and everyone else.
- HungerA shit-smearing, laugh-a-minute prison movie that’s, in all seriousness, an astonishing work of formal virtuosity and raw physicality.
- RequiemSandra Huller, in the year’s most riveting performance, anchors this rational dramatization of irrational events.
- Brand Upon the Brain!Fulfilling the ‘boner quotient’, Herr Maddin delivers another horny, Oedipal fantasy-autobiography in German expressionist overtones.
- You the LivingA comedy for the depressed, Roy Andersson’s latest doomsday pantomime features improbable visuals and laughs-a-plenty.
- 30 Rock - Season 3Tina Fey’s rapid-fire sitcom - in its best season yet - boasts some of the sharpest dialogue this side of 40s screwball comedy. Larry David’s sixth season of Curb Your Enthusiasm is similarly in fine form.
- Not Quite HollywoodAn unruly retrospective of discarded Australian cinema that revives at least a dozen trash classics, and one genuine masterpiece: the sensational Wake in Fright.
Well-loved:
Private Property, Somers Town, Crows O, The Edge of Heaven, Fay Grim, 5 Centimetres Per Second, The Wayward Cloud…
- Tony ManeroThe grimy exploits of the death dealing disco diva. Fascist allegory of the year.
- RequiemBlessedly quiet film of hysteria and exorcisms.
- Wendy and LucyMasterful miniature of life on the margins.
- Role ModelsThe potty mouthed big kids version of the little-kids-who-could movie.
- Heartbeat DetectorLike a cinematic glacier: cold as all get out and slooooowwww moving, but riveting to watch if you’ve the mind to.
- Red Riding TrilogyScuzzy neo-noir with atmosphere to spare.
- Fay GrimUnder-appreciated spy malarkey from a forgotten talent.
- Somers TownWhat started life as a commercial for Eurostar becomes a winning portrait of mateship and the joy of mischief.
- Times and WindsIdiosyncratic drama of the wishing your father dead variety. Memorable in all sorts of unexpected ways.
- Mother of TearsSuperlative nonsense. Unhinged in the best sense and a total triumph of bad taste.
Bubbling under:
Revanche, Wild Combination, Standard Operating Procedure, Private Property, Pineapple Express, Observe and Report, I Know Who Killed Me…
- Brand Upon the Brain!A screwed up and sexy fetishistic homage to silent cinema.
- 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 DaysAn honest and bracing account of life in communist Romania, which made me want to vomit with its shocking and impressively realist portrayal of an illegal abortion.
- Love Live LongA drama, or perhaps a documentary, about the Gumball 3000 Rally, or perhaps about a treacherous one night stand? Whatever it is, I loved it.
- ChocolateKick-ass Thai martial arts movie in which an autistic and introverted teenage girl revenges her mother’s debtors.
- RequiemCatholic religion and mental illness converge as a girl battles her demons in 1970s Germany.
- HungerThe politically motivated hunger strike of IRA volunteer Bobby Sands is rendered so palpable that I could almost smell and touch it. An ode to individual sacrifice.
- Lorna’s SilenceThe plight of Belgian immigrant Lorna is given the Dardenne brothers’ signature mix of realist materialism and spiritual overtones.
- Rubbings From A Live ManAn intelligently self-aware foray into the eccentric world of New Zealand theatrical performer Warwick Broadhead.
- Big Man JapanDiscombobulating creative sequences abound in this hilarious anti-hero mockumentary.
- My WinnipegDirector Guy Maddin's unforgettably clever ‘docu-fantasia’.
Highly Commended:
Iron Maiden - Flight 666, Son of Rambow, Up the Yangtze…
- Red Riding TrilogyUp there with the original Edge of Darkness as memorable television
- AppaloosaNice to know that there are decent westerns still out there.
- Star TrekThis film will make you wish you had a better television.
- District 9I wonder what ‘Halo’ would have been like if he had got to direct it?
- TakenLiam Neeson + cartoon violence = fun for grownups.
- Let the Right One InA great movie from the vampire sub-genre. Take that Twilight!
- In BrugesA well made crime comedy.
- Tony ManeroAh! The 70s. You have to admire the chap for his persistence.
- WatchmenAh! The 80s. The music, the fashion, the ageing superheroes.
- Not Quite HollywoodAaaargh! The 70s AND the 80s. So many bad films, fondly remembered. Be sure to watch Wake in Fright, just released: the film the Australian Tourism Board doesn’t want you to see!
Honourable mentions: Ghost Town, Milk, Doubt, Time Crimes, Watchmen Animated; Knowing (Biggest disappointment!)…
- Let The Right One InAn elegant, moody vampire parable from Sweden: the perfect antidote to Twilight hysteria.
- Wendy and LucyGentle, politically conscious character piece features my favourite performance of the year from an unexpected Michelle Williams.
- Drag Me To HellDirector Sam Raimi gives us what we want in this twisted tale that luxuriates in its own bawdy, playful genre.
- District 9At last, an intelligent, character-driven sci-fi that’s also a hell of a lot of fun.
- Role ModelsPaul Rudd is at his most deadpan in my pick for best comedy, complemented by a genius supporting turn from goddess Jane Lynch.
- Forbidden LiesLeft-field docudrama thinks it’s telling the story of a Jordinian Campaigner against honour killing. It’s not.
- Star TrekGlorious reboot of the franchise delivers a hell of a ride for fans and newcomers alike - as long as you ignore Winona Ryder.
- PersepolisWhimsical, offbeat and gorgeously animated, this autobiography of a spirited girl growing up in Iran is the year’s best example of a complex story told simply.
- Vicky Cristina BarcelonaWoody Allen proves he’s still got it in this devastatingly sexy rom-com that features someone to tickle everyone’s fancy.
- Jar CityUnsettling forensic thriller with an aloof Icelandic sensibility. Will leave you chilled to the bone.
Hot on the heels::
I’ve Loved You So Long, Eden Lake, Second Skin, Trick r’ Treat…
- Wendy and LucyMichelle Williams shines in this heartbreaking story of companionship and loss in modern day America.
- RevancheA superbly crafted thriller which slowly unfolds. An organic experience.
- My WinnipegDelightful and hilarious semi-autobiographical take on Guy Maddin’s hometown (also easily his most accessible film).
- I Love You, ManLaughs-a-plenty in this awkward rom-com, depicting the challenge of male friendship and masculinity in SNAGS (sensitive new age guys).
- MartyrsTesting the limits of what the body (and audience!) can withstand. A brutal revenge horror that spiritually transforms.
- My Kid Could Paint ThatAn interesting and probing look at the art world, and at family life in the spotlight.
- Inglourious BasterdsPurely suspenseful and cinematic. And almost without any of the Tarantino cliches.
- XXYAn intriguing coming of age story of sexuality. Wonderfully performed.
- The ClassWell-observed and compelling. An in-depth glance at the school system that recalls The Wire - Season 4.
- Iron Maiden - Flight 666A touching insight into a long history of music and touring. Best enjoyed with a heavy metal buddy.
Waiting in the wings:
Encounters at the End of the World, Red Riding Trilogy, Bacon’s Arena, Lorna’s Silence…
- The ClassA microscope on the combatitive, complex, sometimes heartfelt interactions between a teacher and his class. Less of a documentary than it appears, but no less beautiful for that.
- Wall-EYet more proof that digital animation – especially from the Pixar team – need not be the death of the humane and well told tale.
- Waltz With BashirSomewhere between investigative doco and work of art, this animated piece marks Israeli director Ari Folman’s attempt to fill in the blanks of his time fighting in Lebanon.
- Star TrekWith director JJ Abrams at the helm, and a script with zest, humour and assured retoolings of Kirk and Spock, this is probably the best Trek movie to date.
- Frost/NixonRiveting, brilliantly-acted recreation of the time an interviewer risked his career to try to get Richard Nixon to admit his guilt in front of the cameras.
- Slumdog MillionaireThe fairytale success that almost didn’t even get a cinema release.
- The HangoverA hangover with energy! A comedy with mystery and surprises! Wow.
- Up The YangtzeA documentary about the tide of change in China, shot with a poet’s eye.
- Men's GroupAvoided by far too many renters, perhaps out of fear of saccharine or hippy touchy stuff. Semi-improvised, this provides a fascinating peek inside the male mind.
- Dean SpanleyAlso seen by too few – sad, because it is far stranger and funnier than the overly safe advertising campaign made it appear.
Further faves:Inglourious Basterds, District 9, The Wrestler, Watchmen, Requiem, Hunger, Let the Right One In, Gomorrah…
- Star TrekWheeeeeeeee!! Who knew it could be such fun without the old wrinkly cast.
- The VisitorA friendship develops between disparate people. Heartbreaking. Needs tissues.
- Young at HeartOldies rock out to modern songs. More tissues.
- ShelterThe indie “coming out” story. Plus some surfing.
- I Love You, ManThe bromance to make you laugh your arse off.
- Harry Potter and the Half Blood PrinceMagical. Darker. More grown up. Satisfyingly gathering momentum for the grand finale.
- Skins (Series 3)New characters breathe life into the excesses of teen sex, drugs and drama. Great soundtrack.
- 30 Rock (Series 3)It just keeps getting better and betterer. Tina Fey is a comedy goddess.
- District 9Gritty and disturbing sci-fi film, made all the more effective for being set in South Africa.
- XXYHauntingly beautiful Spanish story centered around Alex, (an intersex teenager) that boldy confronts notions of gender, sexuality, love and acceptance.
Contenders for the crown:Ben X, Trick 'r Treat, Role Models
…