This seemed like an off year for cinema. How bad was it? Well, I write a column for a women's monthly, and some months I couldn't even find one movie to recommend wholeheartedly. As usual, there were plenty of in-your-face junk flicks to wade through, but things like "Van Helsing" or "Catwoman" were just no fun.
Adding to the woe were numerous misfires from directors we've come to love: the Coen brothers' strained remake of "The Ladykillers"; Wong Karwai's opaque "2046"; Samira Makhmalbaf's clumsy symbolism in "At Five In The Afternoon"; Zhang Yimou's disappointing final act in "House of Flying Daggers." And then there were the totally disastrous forays into art-minimalist tedium by Gus Van Sant ("Elephant," "Gerry") and Vincent Gallo ("The Brown Bunny").
And yet, my Top 10 list filled up pretty easily. I would suggest, however, that the drop-off between "best" and "eminently missable" is quite precipitous. But let's not wallow in despair: Half the films listed are debuts, with another four representing strong sophomore efforts, so there is plenty of new talent on the rise.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.