In 2011, Malick planted a tree and Michael Fassbender showed no shame. The help made many disagree while two artists showed us the fragility of fame. Three descendants came together in paradise while a driver drove for a price. Siblings discovered the secrets of their mother while Billy Bean was our baseball brother. London teens saved the world and two young lovers gave it a whirl.

Last year I said 2010 was not a great year for films having only awarded 13 four star reviews. In 2011, I awarded 12, so you can judge accordingly. However, there were a lot of really good 3 ½ star films that I wanted to weave into the top 25, but couldn’t make it work. Many of the honorable mentioned films are just as worthy to be on the list. Like always here is a list of the films I wish I could have seen but missed.

ALBERT NOBBS, ARMADILLO, BARNEY’S VERSION, THE BEAVER, BEING ELMO, BELLFLOWER, A BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY, CITY OF LIFE AND DEATH, CORIOLANUS, EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE, LE HAVRE, INSPECTOR BELLAMY, I WILL FOLLOW, THE INTERRUPTERS, INTO THE ABYSS, THE IRON LADY, KINYARWANDA, THE LAST CIRCUS, THE LAST RITES OF JOE MAY, THE MILL AND THE CROSS, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL, MOZART’S SISTER, MY WEEK WITH MARILYN, MYSTERIES OF LISBON, NOSTALGIA FOR THE LIGHT, OF GODS AND MEN, PARIAH, PASSIONE, PAUL, PINA, THE PRINCESS OF MONTPENSIER, PROJECT NIM, QUEEN TO PLAY, RESURRECT DEAD, ROAD TO NOWHERE, SARAH’S KEY, A SCREAMING MAN, A SEPARATION, SILENT SOULS, THE SKIN I LIVE IN, THAT GIRL IN YELLOW BOOTS, TUCKER AND DALE VS. EVIL, TUESDAY, AFTER CHRISTMAS, TYRANNOSAUR, VIVA RIVA!, WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN and THE WHISTLEBLOWER.

As always, I’ve amended my top 25 lists from 2009 and 2010 to include films I’ve seen in the past year. Now for the best of 2011.

1) THE TREE OF LIFE
Picking my #1 film hasn’t been this easy since the Coen Brothers’ made their best film in 2007 with NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. Terrence Malick’s ambitious epic created a cinematic religious experience for me while watching it. As it unfolded I knew I was watching something special. Due to the quiet nature of their roles, it’s easy to miss the difficulty of Brad Pitt and breakout star of 2011 Jessica Chastain’s Oscar-worthy performances. It’s the master filmmaker’s best work. In a seemingly contradictory act, Malick highlights both the insignificance and significance of a single human life. On a macro cosmic scale, we are but a blip in the universe’s history, but on a micro human scale, we are the universe to our family and friends. Through evocative cinematography, Malick has created something that is so dense one viewing is really not enough. But when tackling the subject of life and death, anything less wouldn’t really cut it.

2) SHAME
Only one film made me contemplate not making TREE OF LIFE my top film of the year. Steve McQueen’s look at sex addiction is one of the best films I’ve seen on any kind of addiction. Michael Fassbender proves that he is a fearless actor, willing to put himself out there for his art. The film was strapped with an NC-17 for full frontal male nudity and a graphic orgy that are anything but erotic. Fassbender’s Brandon Sullivan has a face of pain not joy when having sex. He’s looking to find that high that will never come again. He might be intimate with many people, while never being able to be intimate with anyone. Following their work together in HUNGER and now SHAME, McQueen and Fassbender are becoming a classic cinematic collaboration.

3) THE HELP
Films about the civil rights movement always become hot button issues for critics. The Association of Black Women Historians ripped into this film, but then the Black Film Critics Circle named it the Best Film of the Year. For me, I was moved by the story of black women telling their stories about doing the thankless job of raising white folk’s children. Like so many other films, the criticism falls on a white character needed to tell a black character’s story. But that overlooks the point that the film highlights the unique relationship between black maids and white children. Emma Stone’s “Skeeter” Phelan is one of those children. With Stone, the Oscar worthy performances run seven deep, notably the breakout performers Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain. A dishonest film wouldn’t have the bittersweet ending that works so poignantly here.

4-tie) THE ARTIST & HUGO
These two films make for a perfect double feature. Both celebrate the joy of film history and the fickle nature of success. Michel Hazanavicius’ black & white silent film is a celebration of a bygone era a cinema, while being new and ingenious. It has comedy and dance and drama all wrapped into one film. French actors Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo are perfectly charming as a silent movie star stuck in the past and an up-and-coming ingénue. Martin Scorsese’s 3-D family film is not just a story of a boy who fixes things, but also an ode to cinematic magician Georges Melies, who was the father of cinematic special effects, but ended up working at a toy store in a Paris train station. In his motivated use of 3-D and his emotional approach to film conservation, Scorsese proves that be was born to be a filmmaker.

5) THE DESCENDANTS
George Clooney gives one of his best performances in the latest from SIDEWAYS director Alexander Payne. Clooney’s Matt King’s life turns into a bumper car out of control following the boating accident of his wife. The tragedy puts his life into focus and reveals secrets that change his view of his entire life. Nat Faxon and Jim Rash’s script based on Kaui Hart Hemmings’ novel has a unique ear for how families actually communicate. In a year of breakout actresses, teen Shailene Woodley gives a mature performance as Clooney’s oldest daughter, who knows more than he understands. Set in Hawaii, the bittersweet tale of death and family shows that paradise is only what we make of it. That is our responsibility.

6) DRIVE
In my original review, I called DRIVE artful and bloody and visceral and elegant. This is all due to the unique style of director Nicolas Winding Refn, who takes his time, builds tension along with his characters and hits us in the face with bursts of adrenaline. Ryan Gosling is perfect as the enigmatic nameless antihero – a stunt driver by day and a get away driver by night. He takes sympathy on a young mother, played by Oscar-nominee Carey Mulligan, and her young son while her husband is away in prison. But when daddy gets out, his past comes back and The Driver must get involved. The Driver is a person you definitely want on your side. And any good hero needs good villains and you won’t forget the memorable low-rent, but ruthless, gangsters played by Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman.

7) INCENDIES
This French Canadian production was nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film last year and deserved to win. The story follows two siblings whose mother has asked them to find their father and brother who they never knew existed following her death. Through their search, they discover the shocking past of their mother, a woman they believed to have lead a boring life. This epic drama reminded me of Asian extreme cinema in many ways with its twisted turns. In its story of a son and daughter uncovering more about the bravery of their mother, the film makes us wonder how much we really know anyone in our lives. What secrets do we hold that would transform our images in the minds of those we think we know so well?

8) MONEYBALL
It was a good year for Brad Pitt. In TREE OF LIFE he gave his most subtle performance, here, he gives one of his most likeable. As Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane, he plays a smart jock, who challenges the powers that be to change the game that kept him from attending college. Pitt’s Beane is teamed with an Ivy League grad that uses stats to build a better baseball team, played by Jonah Hill. Pitt and Hill are like a perfect comedy duo, working off each other using their unique characters to make us laugh and root for their risk taking. This insider’s look at the business of baseball is a new kind of baseball movie.

9) ATTACK THE BLOCK
If BOYZ IN THE HOOD was an alien invasion flick with the sensibility of SHAUN OF THE DEAD, it might be something like this badass entertainment. This British import finds a London gang from the poor section of town fighting off shadowy aliens. Equally funny and scary, the film from director Joe Cornish breaks down stereotypes of the horror genre with this witty dialogue and pitch perfect action. On the block, there are things more dangerous than aliens sometimes. For sheer fun, this one is the best of the year.

10) LIKE CRAZY
This intoxicating romance is the best tale of a long distance romance I’ve ever seen. Writer/director Drake Doremus’ breakout film also features the breakout performance of Felicity Jones as Anna, a British student who overstays her visa after meeting Anton Yelchin’s Jacob. She is remarkably charming, making the audience fall in love with her. The story gets young romance so right in the ups and downs and uncertainty. Doremus makes us see why Jacob and Anna might not work and why they should be together. In the end we just want them to be happy whether that means they end up together or not.

11) TERRI
John C. Reilly gives a hilarious performance as a vice principal looking out for an overweight outcast and the other freaks in his school. It’s a familiar high school tale told with original characters.

12) THE FUTURE
Miranda July’s follow up to her wondering ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW is a bittersweet romance about how we sometimes sabotage our own happiness. With a stalking shirt and the power to freeze time, this whimsical dramedy is not your typical romcom.

13-tie) A DANGEROUS METHOD, MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE & TAKE SHELTER
These three films dealt with mental conflict in uniquely powerful ways. David Cronenberg’s story of Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud deals with the mental anguish of repression in a thought provoking way. Sean Durkin’s tale of a survivor of a cult features a remarkable performance from Elizabeth Olsen, whose paranoid character can’t reorient herself to the regular world. Jeff Nichols’ tale of a man struggling to control his increasing schizophrenia is the best film I’ve seen on the disorder, which features first rate performances from Oscar-nominee Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain.

14) HIGHER GROUND
Actress Vera Farmiga makes her directing debut in this thoughtful look at the issue of faith. This is a powerful drama that doesn’t belittle believers or live in a fantasy world of moralistic platitudes.

15) YOUNG ADULT
Director Jason Reitman reteams with his JUNO screenwriter Diablo Cody for this biting black comedy about a YA author who decides to go back to her hometown to steal her high school boyfriend away from his wife. Charlize Theron is magnificent as the self centered would-be home wrecker and Patton Oswalt is the moral center as “hate crime boy.”

16) WAR HORSE
Steven Spielberg’s tear-jerking melodrama is like discovering a lost film from the 1950s. Stylistic and cinematically beautiful, this drama about a boy searching for his horse during WWI is like John Ford had a chance to make another epic.

17) MIDNIGHT IN PARIS
Woody Allen’s loving ode to Paris in the 1920s stars Owen Wilson as a Hollywood screenwriter who dreams of living in a bygone era. With the vibe of Allen’s THE PURPLE ROSE OF CAIRO, this magical comedy celebrates the past but still has something to say about today.

18-tie) 50/50 & CONTAGION
These two radically different films both deal with disease in a compelling way. Jonathan Levine’s cancer comedy, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen and Anna Kendrick, is not just a humorous look at how a young man deals with the disease, but how those around him react as well. Steven Soderbergh’s super flu thriller is a masterful look at how the CDC would actually approach an epidemic, which features an all-star cast and makes you want to wash your hands more often.

19) MELANCHOLIA
Lars von Trier is one depressing filmmaker, so that is why his version of the apocalypse is so compelling. Kirsten Dunst gives the best performance of her career as a depressed new bride who feels like the world is coming to an end. As they say, just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean a rogue planet isn’t on a collision course with Earth.

20) MARGIN CALL
Director J.C. Chandor makes the most impressive feature debut of the year with this honest, but damning, look at one fictional firm who started the downfall of the U.S. economy. It’s not a tale of conspiracies, but one of ruthless survival.

21) WARRIOR
Like a Greek epic, this human drama of fallen men is masked as an MMA flick. This story of brothers and their father has powerhouse performances from Tom Hardy, Joel Edgerton and Nick Nolte.

22) JANE EYRE
Michael Fassbender was the stand out male performer of the year and gives the most unblinking version of Charlotte Bronte’s Rochester. Combine his performance with Mia Wasikowska’s perfectly prim Jane and director Cary Fukunaga has made the best screen version of the classic tale.

23) RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
Rupert Wyatt’s reboot of the classic sci-fi franchise is a smart piece of entertainment and an honorable addition to the series. At its center, Andy Serkis gives an Oscar-worthy performance as Caesar the chimpanzee, who leads a revolt against their human oppressors.

24) HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS - PART 2
Simply the most consistently good series in film history ended on a strong note. Harry clearly moves from a boy to a man as he becomes the hero he was destined to be.

25) TABLOID
Errol Morris’ documentary about the 1970s Mormon sex in chains case is the perfect tabloid tale that seems too insane to be true. The film works as a profile of tabloid journalism and a character piece on Joyce McKinney, a fascinating romantic who sees kidnapping a man as act of love.

Honorable Mentioned
13 ASSASSINS
THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU
AMERICAN: THE BILL HICKS STORY
ANONYMOUS
ANOTHER EARTH
ARTHUR CHRISTMAS
BEGINNERS
A BETTER LIFE
BILL CUNNINGHAM NEW YORK
BOY WONDER
BRIDESMAIDS
CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS
CERTIFIED COPY
COLD WEATHER
THE CONSPIRATOR
COWBOYS & ALIENS
THE DEBT
DETECTIVE DEE AND THE MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
THE GUARD
HANNA
HORRIBLE BOSSES
THE IDES OF MARCH
IN A BETTER WORLD
J. EDGAR
LIFE, ABOVE ALL
LOUDER THAN A BOMB
MEEK’S CUTOFF
POETRY
LE QUATTRO VOLTE
SUBMARINE
SUPER 8
TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY
TRUST
UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES
WATER FOR ELEPHANTS
WIN WIN
WINNIE THE POOH
X-MEN: FIRST CLASS

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After a disappointing summer of movies, I’m quite excited about the fall “good movie” season to start this year. With the scheduled releases and the crop of potential releases coming out of the Toronto Film Festival, there could be a lot of the year’s best. But you never know until the credits roll. Nonetheless, here is what is really piqued my interest.

On the Look Out (In Alpha Order)
360
Fernando Meirelles, director of the amazing Brazilian gangster film CITY OF GOD, working from a script by FROST/NIXON writer Peter Morgan, creates a hyperlink drama about love spanning various cities around the globe. Film stars Jude Law, Anthony Hopkins, Rachel Weisz and Ben Foster.

CHICKEN WITH PLUMS
Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud follow up their masterful animated feature PERSEPOLIS with this tale of a celebrated violinist whose instrument is broken, which makes him think back over his life of love and music.

DARK HORSE
Todd Solondz is a savage filmmaker. His latest casts Justin Bartha (THE HANGOVER) and Selma Blair (HELLBOY) as two thirtysomethings suffering from arrested development that fall in love. But in a Solondz film, love always leads to tragedy in the end.

JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME
Jay and Mark Duplass made the wonderful comedy from last year, CYRUS. Starring Jason Segel, Ed Helms, Judy Greer and Susan Sarandon, the film follows a man who finds the meaning of life while heading out to buy wood glue.

KILLER JOE
William Friedkin helms this twisted crime drama. Emile Hirsch (INTO THE WILD) plays a drug dealer who hires a contract killer (Matthew McConaughey) to murder his mother after she steals his stash. In order to pay the hitman, he offers up his younger sister (Juno Temple). Thomas Haden Church and Gina Gershon also star.

THE LADY
Luc Besson is more of a producer these days than a director, so it’s worth noting when he steps behind the camera. The film is the story of Aung San Suu Kyi and her husband, Michael Aris who fought for democracy in Burma. Stars Michelle Yeoh and David Thewlis.

PEACE, LOVE, & MISUNDERSTANDING
Directed by two-time Oscar nominated Bruce Beresford (DRIVING MISS DAISY), Jane Fonda plays a hippie who takes in her granddaughter when a weekend trip turns into a summer stay. Catherine Keener, Chace Crawford (TV’s GOSSIP GIRL) and Elizabeth Olsen (MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE) star.

SHAME
Steve McQueen follows up his harrowing and artistic Irish prison film HUNGER with this drama about a man whose life spins out of control when his sister moves in with him. Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge Dale and Nicole Beharie star.

TAKE THIS WALTZ
Actress Sarah Polley (DAWN OF THE DEAD) steps behind the camera dealing with the issue of long-term relationships. The cast includes Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen and Luke Kirby.

TWIXT
Francis Ford Coppola has been making artsy indie releases for a couple years now. This time he brings his twisted eye to horror. A writer whose career is in the crapper gets wrapped up in a small town murder mystery while on a book tour. Val Kilmer, Bruce Dern, Elle Fanning and Ben Chaplin star.

TYRANNOSAUR
Actor Paddy Considine (HOT FUZZ) makes his feature directing debut with this drama about a violent man who gets a second chance when he meets a Christian charity shop worker. Peter Mullan and Olivia Colman stars.

Honorable Mentions
David Frankel’s THE BIG YEAR (OCT. 14), George Miller’s HAPPY FEET TWO (NOV. 18), Tarsem’s IMMORTALS (NOV. 11), Marc Forster’s MACHINE GUN PREACHER (SEPT. 23), J.C. Chandor’s MARGIN CALL (OCT. 21), Lars von Trier’s MELANCHOLIA (NOV. 11), Simon Curtis’ MY WEEK WITH MARILYN (NOV. 4), Cameron Crowe’s PEARL JAM TWENTY (Sept. 20), Chris Miller’s PUSS IN BOOTS (NOV. 4), Shawn Levy’s REAL STEAL (OCT. 7), Kevin Smith’s RED STATE (OCT. 19), Gus Van Sant’s RESTLESS (SEPT. 16), Bruce Robinson’s THE RUM DIARY (OCT. 28), David Gordon Green’s THE SITTER (DEC. 9), Pedro Almodóvar’s THE SKIN I LIVE IN (OCT. 14), Brett Ratner’s TOWER HEIST (NOV. 4), Madonna’s W.E. (Dec. 9) and Lynne Ramsay’s WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN (Dec. 2).

Most Anticipated Films of the Fall
30) IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY (Dec. 23)
Angelina Jolie makes her directing debut with this film. This is what has me interested primarily. It’s a cause film for her, showing the effects of the Bosnian War. The cast is Bosnian actors. Jolie has starred in political themed film before, but this is all her. Let’s hope this is closer to A MIGHTY HEART and less like BEYOND BORDERS.

29) ARTHUR CHRISTMAS (Nov. 23)
Teaser Trailer
Aardman Animations, the creators of Wallace and Gromit, now brings us the true story behind Santa Claus’ operation. How does he deliver all those presents in one night? The jolly old guy has a son, Arthur, who is a Christmas junkie and when it seems the presents might not get out this year, Arthur has to step up. From the test footage I’ve seen it looks really funny.

28) 50/50 (Sept. 30)
Trailer
The buzz is high on this cancer comedy. Directed by Jonathan Levine (THE WACKNESS), the film follows Adam, played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, a 27-year-old dealing with the disease. What a cast this film has – Seth Rogen, Bryce Dallas Howard, Anna Kendrick, Anjelica Huston and Philip Baker Hall.

27) MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE (OCT. 21)
Trailer
Sean Durkin won the directing award at Sundance for this, his debut feature. Star Elizabeth Olsen became the hot actress out of the festival. She plays a paranoid young woman who struggles to rejoin the world after fleeing from a cult. Her co-stars include Oscar-nominee John Hawkes, Sarah Paulson (SERENITY) and Hugh Dancy (TV’s THE BIG C).

26) LIKE CRAZY (Oct. 28)
Trailer
This romance won the dramatic grand jury prize at Sundance. Anton Yelchin and Felicity Jones, who won the dramatic acting prize at Sundance, star as an American and a British student in love. It gets complicated when she is deported for overstaying her visa. Cast also includes Oscar-nominee Jennifer Lawrence and TWILIGHT’s Charlie Bewley. I’m a sucker for a good romance; the problem is they come so far and few between.

25) CONTAGION (Sept. 9)
Trailer
A flu mutates and threatens to kill millions as it spreads across the world. It feels like I’ve seen this before with Dustin Hoffman. But this one is directed by Stephen Soderbergh. In my opinion, the cast alone gives reason to see this one. It includes Oscar-winner Matt Damon, Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard, Emmy-winner Bryan Cranston, Oscar-winner Kate Winslet, Oscar-winner Gwyneth Paltrow, Oscar-nominee Jude Law, Oscar-nominee Laurence Fishburne, Oscar-nominee John Hawkes, Oscar-nominee Elliot Gould, Jennifer Ehle, Sanaa Lathan and Demetri Martin. Definitely want to catch this one. Couldn’t help myself.

24) WE BOUGHT A ZOO (Dec. 23)
It’s been six years since Cameron Crowe made the disappointing, but not awful, ELIZABETHTOWN. Matt Damon plays a man who moves his family to South California where he buys a failing zoo in hopes of bringing it back. The cast includes Scarlett Johansson, Elle Fanning, Thomas Haden Church, Peter Riegert and ALMOST FAMOUS’ Patrick Fugit. Crowe is a good filmmaker and I trust he can make this material work. Family drama and animals could be too sappy, but this is from the man who made ALMOST FAMOUS and JERRY MAGUIRE so my hopes are it will be just the right amount of sap.

23) DREAM HOUSE (Sept. 30)
Trailer
A psychological thriller from Jim Sheridan (IN AMERICA, IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER) really has me intrigued. A family moves into a new house and discovers that a terrible crime was committed there. The film stars Daniel Craig, Naomi Watts and Rachel Weisz. The trailer seems to give a lot away, but it certainly piqued my interest, because it doesn’t seem like material that this filmmaker or these actors would take.

22) MARGARET (Sept. 30)
Finally! After years on the shelf due with a lengthy editing process and lawsuits, we finally get to see Kenneth Lonergan’s follow-up to his great 2000 film, YOU CAN COUNT ON ME. Anna Paquin stars as a young woman who witnesses a bus accident and how she gets involved into whether the accident was actually intentional. Cast also includes Matt Damon, Mark Ruffalo, Allison Janney, Matthew Broderick, Jean Reno, Kieran Culkin, Olivia Thirlby and Rosemarie DeWitt. The buzz for those who have actually seen the film say it’s brilliant. I hope so, because it’s been a long wait.

21) EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE (Dec. 25)
Stephen Daldry (THE HOURS) takes on this 9/11 themed drama. A nine-year-old amateur inventor, jewelry designer, astrophysicist, tambourine player and pacifist searches New York for the lock that matches a mysterious key left behind by his father who was killed in the terrorist attacks. Thomas Horn, the Teen Jeopardy champion, plays the kid. The cast also includes Oscar-winners Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock, Oscar-nominees Viola Davis and Max von Sydow, Emmy winners James Gandolfini, John Goodman and Jeffrey Wright. Eric Roth (FORREST GUMP) adapted Jonathan Safran Foer’s novel. Looks good in the details, but without a trailer and the dubious record of 9/11-themed films thus far, my anticipation isn’t as high as might be in December.

20) CORIOLANUS (Dec. 2)
Trailer
Ralph Fiennes makes his directorial debut with this modern-set adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play. In the turmoil of Rome the Tarquin kings were kicked out, Caius Martius Coriolanus is a general who has only contempt for the common people. Fiennes stars as the military leader and he faces off against Gerard Butler’s Tullus Aufidius. They are joined by the 2011 breakout star Jessica Chastain, Brian Cox, Vanessa Redgrave and James Nesbitt. This is a Shakespearean work that I’m not particular familiar with, so I’m excited to get introduced to it by such a powerful performer both in front of and behind the camera.

19) THE MUPPETS (Nov. 23)
Trailer
It’s the Muppets, what else could you need? Self-described puppet nerd Jason Segel stars and co-wrote this new Muppet adventure where Kermit and the crew come back together in order to save a failing movie studio, which is under threat from an oil tycoon. Co-stars include Amy Adams and Chris Cooper. As for cameos, you can expect a who’s who list of performances including Mila Kunis, Emily Blunt, Neil Patrick Harris, Zach Galifianakis, Jack Black, Katy Perry, Ricky Gervais just to name a few. One of my childhood favs I hope it can stand next to the best of the features THE MUPPET MOVIE and A MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL.

18) IN TIME (Oct. 28)
Trailer
Andrew Niccol writes and directs this new sci-fi thriller, which stars Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried. The story opens up so many thoughtful possibilities. In the future, people stop age at 25. Time has now become the currency and if you want to avoid death you have to have time. When a rich man commits suicide and gives a century of time to a poor man that man is hunted by the police for murder. Cast also includes Cillian Murphy, Olivia Wilde, Alex Pettyfer and WHITE COLLAR’s Matt Bomer. When you have to be rich to live, what does that say about where society is going? Niccol created GATTACA another thoughtful sci-fi flick, so I expect ideas here as well.

17) ANONYMOUS (Oct. 28)
Trailer
INDEPENDENCE DAY’s Roland Emmerich takes a break from destroying the world to tell this conspiracy thriller. Set against Elizabeth I’s rise to the throne and the Essex Rebellion, the story proposes that Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, actually penned Shakespeare’s plays. The cast features Rhys Ifans (NOTTING HILL) as De Vere, Vanessa Redgrave as Queen Elizabeth I, David Thewlis (HARRY POTTER) as William Cecil and Rafe Spall (HOT FUZZ) as Shakespeare. Do I believe the film’s premise in the least? Not at all. But as an alternative history tale this could be really fun.

16) THE IRON LADY (Dec. 16)
Trailer
Meryl Streep is transformed into British Prime Minster Margaret Thatcher. Streep has been nominated 16 times for an Oscar and has won two. But she hasn’t won since SOPHIE’S CHOICE in 1983. That was 12 nominations ago. Could this performance snap the dry spell? Streep will be given aid from Oscar-winner Jim Broadbent, BUFFY’s Anthony Head and WITHNAIL & I’s Richard E. Grant. I do like a good political biopic. This is a big change from director Phyllida Lloyd’s previous Streep collaboration — MAMMA MIA! Thatcher is a conservative icon who is called the British Ronald Reagan, so I’m curious who the film handles the politics and personality.

15) YOUNG ADULT (Dec. 9)
The last collaboration between director Jason Reitman and writer Diablo Cody created JUNO. The story follows a recently-divorced writer who moves back to her hometown in order to win back her old boyfriend who is now married with kids. Reitman has said that this is the film where if people are going to hate him for something it will be this film. Charlize Theron stars as what Reitman calls the most unlikable character you will ever meet. She is joined by Patrick Wilson, J.K. Simmons and Patton Oswalt. A dark comedy from these two could be great. I hope Cody brings more bite than her horror flick JENNIFER’S BODY. Give us the trailer.

14) MONEYBALL (Sept. 23)
Trailer
I’ve heard from people who have already seen it that it’s one of the best of the year. Brad Pitt plays Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane who under budget constraints uses a computer algorithm to field a winning baseball team. People thought he was crazy and that it would end in a total disaster, but he really changed the game. Cast includes Jonah Hill, Robin Wright and Philip Seymour Hoffman. I actually heard Hill on Oscar contenders list. Director Bennett Miller made the fabulous CAPOTE and doc THE CRUISE. The script comes from Steven Zaillian (SCHINDLER’S LIST) and Aaron Sorkin (THE SOCIAL NETWORK). This just looks like a winning team.

13) DRIVE (Sept. 16)
Trailer
Ryan Gosling plays a Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights are a getting away driver. Nicolas Winding Refn won the directing prize at Cannes for this thriller. He meets a young mother (Oscar-nominee Carey Mulligan) whose husband gets out of prison and refuses to do another job, so Gosling’s driver takes the job. But things don’t go as planned. Albert Brooks plays the gangster and there is Oscar buzz for his performance. Cast also includes Emmy winner Bryan Cranston, MAD MEN’s Christina Hendricks, Oscar Isaac and Ron Perlman. This looks like an artful and badass actioner, which seems to be contradictory. Makes me all the more excited for it.

12) THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN (Dec. 23)
Trailer
America is going to get introduced to Tintin in a big way this holiday season. The rest of the world knows the intrepid young reporter and his dog Snowy. He is as well known as Mickey Mouse in Europe. Via performance capture, Steven Spielberg will bring the first of a planned trilogy of films to the screen. This time Tintin will be introduced to Capt. Haddock and set out at seas for sunken ships and treasure. The cast includes Jamie Bell (BILLY ELLIOT) as Tintin and Andy Serkis (RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES) as Capt. Haddock. We also get Daniel Craig as Red Rackham and the SHAWN OF THE DEAD duo Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as Inspector Thompson and Thomson. And let’s not forget Toby Jones and Cary Elwes too.

11) THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (Dec. 23)
Trailer
This is a great thriller, but I saw it last year. Not this version of course, but the Swedish version. I put that film at #4 on my top 25. Now we get an English language version from David Fincher, starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara (THE SOCIAL NETWORK). Can Mara’s Lisbeth Salander hold up to Noomi Rapace’s iconic performance? Will Craig be a distraction because he’s a star? How does Fincher distinguish the film from the foreign language version without going too stylistic? These questions will be answered at Christmas time. It still feels weird to have a “remake” of a great film a year after its release though.

The Ides of March

10) THE IDES OF MARCH (Oct. 7)
Trailer
As a director George Clooney has given us the quirky CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND, the powerful true-life drama GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK. and the screwball sports flick LEATHERHEADS. Now he brings us a political drama. He stars as a governor running for president. Ryan Gosling (is he in everything this year?) plays an idealistic campaign worker who learns the ropes of dirty politics first hand. Something happens that he can’t just let slide and he is torn about what to do. Cast includes Oscar-winner Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood, Oscar-nominee Paul Giamatti, Oscar-winner Philip Seymour Hoffman, Emmy-winner Jeffrey Wright and rising young actor Max Minghella. Clooney’s a political guy so this should be interesting.

Carnage

9) CARNAGE (Dec. 16)
Trailer
Roman Polanski has entered a new fabulous period in his career with THE PIANIST, OLIVER TWIST and THE GHOST WRITER. Now the iconic director gets a stellar cast for a savage comedy. Jodie Foster and John C. Reilly play a couple whose son was beat by the son of Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz. Reilly is the only one of those without an Oscar win. Polanski worked with playwright Yasmina Reza to adapt her play. Could be stagey but who cares with these actors? Plus I think Polanski is too good to not make this filmic. The trailer alone had me laughing out loud.

The Descendants

8) THE DESCENDANTS (Nov. 23)
Trailer
Alexander Payne’s last film was 2004’s SIDEWAYS. In this one, a busy businessman tries to bond with his daughters on a vacation meant to recovery after his wife dies in a boating accident. But then he discovers he was cheating on him, so his sadness and guilt shift gears. How is he supposed to feel? Payne’s work always has a dark twist to it that I like a lot. This time he has George Clooney as his star. Cast also includes Judy Greer, Matthew Lillard, Beau Bridges and Robert Forster. Payne has the right name for the dramedies he does, because his reoccurring theme is to deal with men whose lives are in total disorder.

Hugo

7) HUGO (Nov. 23)
Trailer
Martin Scorsese does a 3-D family fantasy film? That’s right. Based on Brian Selznick’s unique illustrated novel, the story follows an orphan who lives in the Paris train station where he befriends a quirky young girl and down-on-his-luck filmmaker Georges Méliès. It’s this last part that makes sense why Scorsese would want to make this film. Méliès was an early film innovator, who is best known for his TRIP TO THE MOON where a rocket crashes into the man on the moon’s eye. Later in life he was relegated to working at a toy store and selling his films which were turned into shoes. Hugo is played by Asa Butterfield, who was in the devastating WWII drama THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS. Oscar-winner Ben Kingsley plays Méliès while KICK-ASS’ Chloe Moretz plays Hugo’s friend Isabelle. Cast also includes Sacha Baron Cohen, Jude Law, Christopher Lee, Michael Stuhlbarg, Emily Mortimer, Ray Winstone and Richard Griffiths. Scorsese, 1930’s Paris, automatons, mysterious keys – this could be a dream.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

6) TINKER, TAILOR, SOLIDER, SPY (Nov. 18)
Trailer
Tomas Alfredson, who made the remarkable vampire film LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, brings a new version of John Le Carre’s classic spy tale to the screen. Gary Oldman is getting big Oscar buzz for his portrayal of George Smiley, a semi-retired British spook who is called back into duty to root out a mole. His suspects range from the likes of Oscar-winner Colin Firth to INCEPTION’s Tom Hardy to John Hurt to Toby Jones to Mark Strong to Ciaran Hinds to the up and comer Benedict Cumberbatch. This is another early Oscar contender and with all this talent put into a story from master thriller writer Le Carre, it’s hard to see it not being that good. Can’t wait to see.

The Artist

5) THE ARTIST (Nov. 23)
Trailer
It’s a modern black & white silent film. The story follows a movie star who falls for a common woman. Over the course of the film, their positions switch. The cast is amazing Jen Lilley, Bérénice Bejo, Joel Murray, Beau Nelson, Missi Pyle, Jean Dujardin, James Cromwell, John Goodman, Beth Grant, Malcolm McDowell and Penelope Ann Miller. The Oscar buzz has already started for this one. French star Dujardin won the acting prize at Cannes, where the film was a favorite. I was just mesmerized by the trailer. This could be a special film.

A Dangerous Method

4) A DANGEROUS METHOD (Nov. 23)
Trailer
A story about Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud from a master mind screw filmmaker David Cronenberg; that alone had me. But it’s Viggo Mortensen playing Freud and Michael Fassbender as Jung. Keira Knightley plays a patient that drives a wedge between the two pioneers in psychology. Vincent Cassel also stars. The trailer is intense. I wanted to see the film the second it ended. Since 2002’s SPIDER, Cronenberg has never disappointed me. He is working at the top of his game with an amazing cast. I might go crazy before Thanksgiving.

Take Shelter

3) TAKE SHELTER (Sept. 30)
Trailer
Jeff Nichols’ debut film SHOTGUN STORIES ranked second on my top 25 for 2008. Reteaming with that film’s star Michael Shannon, he tells a story of a man obsessed with dreams that a tornado is coming to his town. His family questions his sanity. TREE OF LIFE and THE HELP’s breakout star Jessica Chastain plays his wife. Nichols has a beautiful Southern gothic style. Shannon is a master at playing slightly off characters. The film won the Critics Week Grand Prize at Cannes and was up for the Grand Prize at Sundance. Along with all my top five picks, I’m bubbling with excitement for this one.

J. Edgar

2) J. EDGAR (Nov. 9)
Clint Eastwood makes a new film. It appears on my lists. Many are saying this could be Leonardo DiCaprio’s year for his first Oscar win as he plays the controversial FBI director. The most interesting element of this film is the screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, who won an Oscar for MILK. I’m curious how Hoover’s secret life as a cross dresser will play into the story. DiCaprio gets support from Josh Lucas as Charles Lindbergh, Namoi Watts as his secretary Helen Gandy, Armie Hammer, Lea Thompson, Dermot Mulroney and Jeffrey Donovan. Eastwood might be a better director than he was an actor. His work since 2003’s MYSTIC RIVER has been some of the best of his career. There is no reason to think this will change here.

War Horse

1) WAR HORSE (Dec. 28)
Trailer
Steven Spielberg takes a page from Robert Bresson’s AU HASARD BALTHAZAR and casts an animal as his lead, which allows for various stories to be told as the animal moves from owner to owner. Adapted from Michael Morpurgo’s novel by Lee Hall (BILLY ELLIOT) and Richard Curtis (FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL), the WWI story follows a young man who heads to the front lines to recover his beloved horse who has been sold to the cavalry. Newcomer Jeremy Irvine makes his feature debut as the lead Albert. Cast includes Benedict Cumberbatch, THOR’s Tom Hiddleston, David Thewlis, Emily Watson, Eddie Marsan and Peter Mullan. This one is at the top of many early Oscar buzz lists. I can’t wait to see what Spielberg brings to WWI like he brought to WWII in SAVING PRIVATE RYAN and SCHINDLER’S LIST. My Christmas present this year is two Spielberg films released within five days of each other.

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No yammering this year. Just heading to the list. Enjoy.
30) Winnie the Pooh (July 15)
Trailer
It seems like a strange film to be releasing in the summer, especially due to the fact that the film is done and was released in Europe in the spring. Films that skew this young just don’t do well at the box office anymore. But that doesn’t mean the film won’t be good. It takes four previous un-adapted Pooh stories from A.A. Milne and brings them to the screen. This could also be the last hand-drawn Disney film for the foreseeable future, so to see it on the big screen is a must.

29) Horrible Bosses (July 8)
This is the one of the only two films on the list that doesn’t have a trailer yet. The story follows three friends who plot to murder their horrible bosses. I like dark comedies and director Seth Gordon made the awesome doc THE KING OF KONG. But then he also made the stinker comedy FOUR CHRISTMASES. So we’ll see. But wait, check out this cast — Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Colin Farrell, Jamie Foxx, Donald Sutherland and Kevin Spacey (who knows a thing or two about playing a horrible boss, just think SWIMMING WITH SHARKS). Can we hope that it’s as good as SHARKS?

28) 30 Minutes or Lee (Aug. 12)
Trailer
Judging from the trailer this one could be really funny or awful. Oscar-nominee Jesse Eisenberg stars as a pizza deliveryman who is strapped with a bomb and forced to rob a bank. His best friend is comedian Aziz Ansari and the criminals are Danny McBride and Nick Swardson, who’s a staple of Adam Sandler flicks. The most promising thing about this one is director Rueben Fleischer, who made the fun ZOMBIELAND.

27) Midnight in Paris (May 20)
Trailer
Woody Allen comes with this comedy about a businessman who goes to Paris and experiences fantastic journeys through time while on walks at night. Owen Wilson stars with Rachel McAdams as his wife. Allen can always put together a cast to make anyone excited. Here he also has Michael Sheen (FROST/NIXON), Tom Hiddleston (THOR) and Alison Pill (MILK), as well as Oscar-winners Marion Cotillard (LA VIE EN ROSE), Adrien Brody (THE PIANIST) and Kathy Bates (MISERY). I’m always excited about a good Allen comedy. Hope this one is one of them.

26) The Troll Hunter (June 10)
Trailer
Found footage films are really hot following CLOVERFIELD and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY. This one comes from Norway and follows investigators looking into the legend of trolls. The trailer makes this one look quite fun. The buzz out of festivals where it played was good. Has there ever been a good troll movie? I mean TROLL 2 is totally entertaining, but good is not a word to describe it.

25) Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (May 20)
Trailer
While the first two PIRATES sequels were disappointing, the fact that Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow is more the focus makes the fourth installment promising. Plus, he gets a love interest in the gorgeous Penelope Cruz. The story finds Capt. Jack searching for the fountain of youth, which is also being sought by Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) and Black Beard (Ian McShane). This one has mermaids and zombies and a trip to London. Big adventure for sure. This franchise could be like James Bond and have one good sequel here and a bad one there. For this one I’m hoping for the former.

24) Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (Aug. 12)
Trailer
This remake of the 1973 TV movie comes from Guillermo del Toro, who co-wrote the script and produced. The story finds a young girl moving into a creepy new house with her father and his new girlfriend. Katie Holmes plays the girlfriend — really creepy. All kidding aside, Holmes joins Guy Pearce and Bailee Madison (BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA). The trailer is spooky. It’s from a new feature director Troy Nixey. Del Toro involved in an R-rated version of the TV horror flick has me interested for sure.

23) Larry Crowne (July 1)
Trailer
I have such mixed feelings about this one. Tom Hanks directs himself in a straight comedy. I’ve been wanting him to go back to a straight comedy for a while. He plays a super employee at a “Wal-Mart” type store, but gets laid off. He decides to go back to school where he falls for his teacher, played by Julia “Queen of the RomCom” Roberts. The trailer made me giggle, but not really laugh. I liked Hanks’ first directing effort, THAT THING YOU DO!, but I didn’t love it. Plus he co-wrote this one with Nia Vardalos, who hasn’t done anything slightly good since MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING (and that was only likeable at best too). I’m just curious because there is so much talent here. The cast also includes Cedric the Entertainer, Bryan Cranston, Wilmer Valderrama, Pam Grier, Taraji P. Henson, Rob Riggle and George Takei. That cast alone is worth a watch to me.

22) Thor (May 6)
Trailer
The early reviews have been solid. They mostly praise newcomer Chris Hemsworth as a new star and director Kenneth Branagh for bringing a Shakespearean scope to this superhero tale. Well, if you want a Shakespearean scope whom else do you get than Branagh? This one skews a bit from the comics, giving the thunder god no secret identity. But like the comics, he is banished from the heavens by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) for his arrogance with a chance to learn to be a real hero. Now if you’re looking for a hot love interest whom else do you get than Natalie Portman? The Oscar winner plays scientist Jane Foster. Newcomer Tom Hiddleston is in as the villain Loki. The cast also includes Stellan Skarsgard, Kat Dennings, Clark Gregg, Idris Elba and Ray Stevenson. I’m interested in seeing if this story of gods finds a human story to ground it.

21) Cars 2 (June 24)
Trailer
Can Pixar do wrong? I guess we’ll find out this summer. CARS is not the pinnacle of their canon, but I was thoroughly surprised when I saw it. It was much better than I thought it would be. Early buzz has people liking the spy riff that this film takes. In the trailer the American in Europe gags stood out for me and they seemed like stuff we’ve seen many times before. But every time I doubt Pixar they run me over with a semi-truck of brilliance. So while I’m not bubbling with excitement for this one, I’m certainly not doubting that it could be great.

20) Kung Fu Panda 2 (May 26)
Trailer
The original film was a huge step forward for DreamWorks Animation. I’m curious to see how the sequel handles Po as a real master. The charm of the first film was him as the ultimate fanboy trying to play with the real heroes. Returning voices include Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, David Cross, Lucy Lu and James Hong. New voices include Gary Oldman, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Michelle Yeoh and Dennis Haysbert. My hopes are very high on this one. I hope it’s not a disappointment like the latter SHREK sequels.

19) Hesher (May 13)
Trailer
Now the early reviews of Spencer Susser’s indie comedy have been mixed. The title character played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a vile one. The reviews say the character pushes so many buttons from the start that he easy alienates the audience. Think BAD SANTA to the extreme. The world hating young man befriends a young boy named T.J. (Devin Brochu) who recently lost his mother. The boy’s father (Rainn Wilson) is hardly fit to take care of him. T.J. also befriends a clerk at the grocery store (Natalie Portman, who also produced the film), but will Hesher mess that up too? The sheer anarchy of the trailer has me intrigued. I love films that push boundaries and with this cast I can’t resist.

18) Our Idiot Brother (Aug. 26)
Trailer
Paul Rudd plays the idiot brother of the title. After getting arrested for selling pot to a uniformed cop, he goes to live with his various siblings. It seems things don’t go well anywhere he goes. The great cast also includes Elizabeth Banks (ZACK AND MIRI), Zooey Deschanel ((500) DAYS OF SUMMER), Emily Mortimer (LOVELY & AMAZING), Steve Coogan (TRISTRAM SHANDY: A COCK AND BULL STORY) and Rashida Jones (I LOVE YOU, MAN). Rudd is very good at playing slackers and everymen, so he’s right in his comfort zone here. Director Jesse Peretz worked on IMPORTANT THINGS WITH DEMETRI MARTIN, which was smart and often quite funny. So I’m hoping for the same vibe here.

17) A Better Life (June 24)
Trailer
Chris Weitz directs this film, which from the trailer reminds me of THE BICYCLE THIEF. Only this time a beat-up pickup truck is the lifeblood of a poor father. He is an illegal immigrant in L.A. trying to make a better life for his son. Once his truck is stolen, his life begins to spiral out of control. Weitz showed such promise with ABOUT A BOY, but hasn’t lived up to that potential with such disappointments as THE GOLDEN COMPASS and THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON. this one seems more like a grounded drama instead of a high concept flick, which might be exactly what he needs to do. It also seems like a right time to do a modern American riff on Vittorio DeSica’s Italian classic.

16) Submarine (June 3)
Trailer
Here is a coming of age story where a young man sets out to lose his virginity. Wow, I’ve never seen that before. However, from the trailer, it does seem like something fresh. Oliver Tate (Craig Roberts, 2011’s JANE EYRE) meets Jordana (Yasmin Paige, BALLET SHOES) who he believes is willing to have sex with him, He overcompensates and she thinks he’s a serial killer. Meanwhile, his parents, played by Sally Hawkins (HAPPY-GO-LUCKY) and Noah Taylor (SHINE) are going through a rough patch and he worries when one his mother’s old flames, played by Paddy Considine (HOT FUZZ), comes poking around. Richard Ayoade of the British series THE IT CROWD directed this adaptation of Joe Dunthorne’s book. It’s being called a cross between Wes Anderson and Michel Gondry. Nothing wrong with that.

15) Beginners (June 3)
Trailer
From Mike Mills, the writer/director of the good THUMBSUCKER, comes this dramedy about a man who learns that his father has terminal cancer and is gay. Ewan McGregor plays the man and Christopher Plummer his father. The cast also includes INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS heroine Melanie Laurent and Goran Visnjic from E.R. The early reviews have given big points to the smart screenplay. Apparently, the story is based on Mills’ real life. When his mother died he discovered that his father was gay and was dying. The trailer makes the film look funny and touching and a touch whimsical. Good elements in my book.

14) Sarah’s Key (July 22)
Trailer
British actress Kristin Scott Thomas has really been making a career of late in French language films. Her performance in I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG garnered her some Oscar buzz. Based on journalist Tatiana de Rosney’s book, the story follows a journalist who looks into a Holocaust story and finds connections to her own family. Young Melusine Mayance is getting ravs for her performance as a Jewish girl who gets wrapped up in the roundups in Paris in 1942. Some are invoking SOPHIE’S CHOICE as a way to describe this one. So how devastating is it?

13) Bad Teacher (June 17)
Trailer
Cameron Diaz plays a boozing, foul-mouthed junior high teacher who wants to land a rich man so she can quit her job. She sets her eyes on the new teacher played by Justin Timberlake. The dude comes from money. Meanwhile, the gym teacher, played by Jason Segel, is hot for teacher. The trailer really made me laugh, especially the droll approach of Phyllis Smith, a teacher Diaz’s Elizabeth Halsey befriends. The film is from Jake Kasdan, who made the brilliant quirky comedy ZERO EFFECT and directed the cult TV series FREAKS AND GEEKS and the underrated ORANGE COUNTY. Now the only X factor is the script from Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg. Lets hope for more of THE OFFICE and less of YEAR ONE.

12) X-Men: First Class (June 3)
Trailer
I was lukewarm about this one until the full trailer hit. James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender seem perfectly cast as Mr. X and Magneto, respectively. While this of course deviates from the comics in order to keep the film continuity in tact, it’s interesting to see the “original” X-Men mutants woven into real events like the Cuban Missile Crisis. The cast also includes Oscar nominee Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique, Rose Byrne (GET HIM TO THE GREEK) as Dr. Moira MacTaggert, MAD MEN beauty Jennifer Jones as Emma Frost, Nicholas Hoult (A SINGLE MAN) as Beast and Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw. Origin stories can be boring because they go through the motions of typical events. From the trailer this one seems to be stepping outside the box. I really hope I’m right.

11) The Help (Aug. 12)
Trailer
Based on Kathryn Stockett’s bestselling novel, this one seems like one of those crowd-pleasing, uplifting dramas that is lifted up by good actors and witty writing. Judging from the trailer only, it has all of those elements. Headlining this one are two of the finest 20-something actresses working today — Emma Stone, who plays a ’60s reporter working on a book about they way black maids are really being treated, and Bryce Dallas Howard, who plays the smiling racist that wants to make it a law that the black maids use a separate bathroom in their homes. Joining them are Oscar-nominee Viola Davis as one of the black maids and Oscar-winner Sissy Spacek as one of the Southern housewives. Another standout in the trailer is Octavia Spencer, a character actress who has been in everything from BEING JOHN MALKOVICH to SPIDER-MAN. And if that wasn’t good enough you also get the awesome Allison Janney and Cicely Tyson. Just looks a moving and funny alternative to the summer explosion fests.

Louder than a Bomb

10) Louder than a Bomb (May 18)
Trailer
I like poetry slams. Yeah, don’t knock them. Directed by Greg Jacobs and Jon Siskel (Gene Siskel’s nephew), this doc has garnered some rave reviews. Roger Ebert gave it three and a half stars during its brief indie Chicago run earlier in the year. The film follows Chicago-area high school students preparing for the world’s largest youth poetry slam. The suspense comes from watching talented kids prepare for the contest and seeing if the inner-city Steinmetz school can repeat as champs, after surprising many the year previous by winning in their first year of competition. If you’ve ever watched DEF POETRY JAM then you know how awesome these performers can be.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

9) Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Aug. 5)
Trailer
While the original title, RISE OF THE APES was tighter, the addition of THE PLANET OF links the film to the past entries. Harkening back to CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, the apes rebel against their human oppressors. In this reboot of sorts, scientists experiment on apes, increasing their intelligence. James Franco plays a scientist who wants to protect Caesar, a thoughtful chimp. Andy “Gollum” Serkis provides the performance capture for the ape. Franco is joined by Freida Pinto, Brian Cox and John Lithgow. I’m hoping the film has some smart FRANKENSTEIN theme, instead of a simple monster movie agenda. While not all the PLANET OF THE APES sequels were solid, one can hope this re-imagining is closer to the original film, or even ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE APES.

Green Lantern

8) Green Lantern (June 17)
Trailer
Warner Bros. and DC are finally venturing outside of Superman and Batman on the big screen. With Martin Campbell (CASINO ROYALE) at the helm, they have a great captain. Ryan Reynolds is a charming actor, who seems like a good choice to fit into the shoes of the risk-tasking test pilot Hal Jordan. His love interest Blake Lively is an actress I’ve been excited about since her wonderful turn in THE TOWN and the cast also includes the always wonderful Peter Sarsgaard and Mark Strong, as well as Geoffrey Rush and Michael Clarke Duncan in voice over roles. What I’ve seen of the visual effects, they look amazing (but lets hope they get them done, it was reported that the studio had to hire on more studios and add $9 million to the budget to hit its release date). Like Warners did in the very good animated direct-to-DVD GREEN LANTERN: FIRST FLIGHT, if they stick to the comic, they won’t go wrong.

The First Avenger

7) Captain America: The First Avenger (July 22)
Trailer
Of all the classic superhero films of this summer, this is the one that captures my imagination the most. The WWII period setting of the story feels right. Heroes battling Nazis gives me fond memories of Indiana Jones, which director Joe Johnston has experience with having directed an episode of THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES. His credits are mixed I know (OCTOBER SKY; HONEY, I SHRUNK THE KIDS; THE ROCKETEER; JURASSIC PARK III = good — THE WOLFMAN = bad). As far as the cast, I really like Chris Evans. I’ve always thought he just needed the right project to jump from B-level actor to bona fide star. I also find the effects to make him too like a 90 lbs. weakling to be impressive. He is joined by Hugo Weaving (always good as a villain), Tommy Lee Jones, Stanley Tucci, Hayley Atwell, Dominic Cooper, Toby Jones, Sebastian Stan, Neal McDonough and Derek Luke. Like I’ve said before, if they stick to the comic, they won’t go wrong.

Crazy, Stupid, Love.

6) Crazy, Stupid, Love. (July 29)
Trailer
Here is the premise for this romantic comedy. A man’s wife cheats on him and they split. He meets a ladies man at a bar who teaches him how to get girls. As the man tries to win back his wife, he gives lessons to the ladies man on love and commitment. How many ways could this go wrong? But watching the trailer, I laugh every time. It’s mainly due to the performances. Steve Carell plays the jilted husband. Ryan Gosling plays the lothario. Julianne Moore plays Carell’s dissatisfied wife. Emma Stone plays the woman who makes Gosling’s character want to settle down. Marisa Tomei is Carell’s bubbly new girlfriend. Kevin Bacon is Moore’s confident new lover. In the 2 ½ minutes of the trailer, they made me believe in these characters, especially Gosling. Written by Dan Fogelman (CARS) and directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (directors of I LOVE PHILLIP MORRIS and writers of BAD SANTA), the film better be more than a brilliant trailer. There is too much talent involved for this to be bad, right?

Cowboys & Aliens

5) Cowboys & Aliens (July 29)
Trailer
Based on Platinum’s comic book, the story sees an alien invasion during the Wild West bringing together warring factors in order to save humankind. Besides having a love for Westerns, the collection of talent around this one has me excited. IRON MAN’s Jon Favreau is directing from a script that includes such writers as STAR TREK’s Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman and LOST’s Damon Lindelof. That’s just behind the camera. The cast boasts Daniel “James Bond” Craig, Harrison “Han Solo” Ford, Olivia “The Best Part of TRON: LEGACY” Wilde and Sam “F’in’” Rockwell, as well as Paul Dano (LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE), Clancy Brown (THE SHAWKSHANK REDEMPTION), Keith Carradine (DEXTER) and Adam Beach (FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS). Here’s hoping for a fun genre mash-up.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2

4) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (July 15)
Trailer
The franchise comes to end. I’ve been waiting since PART 1 ended to see the rest of this film. With the first entry more build up than payoff, it shouldn’t be too bold to suggest that it will tell Harry’s journey into becoming an adult hero. The epic battle that closed J.K. Rowling’s novel was cinematic in its scope anyway and should translate very well to the screen. As one of the most consistently great film franchises in history, fans will miss new entries, but with the quality of what was produced there is a lasting classic series of films that are endlessly rewatchable. I’m really hoping PART 2 in conjunction with PART 1 will bring it to a satisfying conclusion.

The Future

3) The Future (July 29)
Miranda July’s ME, YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW was a remarkable film, so, of course, I’m excited about her latest. The word out of Sundance has been spectacular. The performance artist and short story writer brought her quirky sensibility to her previous film and from what I’ve heard it overflows in this surreal tale of love and life. The story follows Sophie (July) and Jason (Hamish Linklater, TV’s THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE) take in a stray cat that is ill, which makes them question their lives. The cat, Paw Paw, narrates the film, Jason discovers he has a superpower and Sophie deals with animated inanimate objects in a dream world. July has a cinematic eye and a poetic heart. There is nothing pretentious about her work, it’s simply brilliant. I have great hope for her newest venture.

Super 8

2) Super 8 (June 10)
Trailer
J.J. Abrams pays tribute to the ’80s flicks of Stephen Spielberg. In this summer of sequels and franchise films, this is the closest we’re going to get to original spectacle. The story follows a group of kids who, while making their own film, capture a train wreck on film. But the cargo of the train isn’t ordinary, there is something living inside. Something the government doesn’t want anyone to know about. It seems that the kids recorded that something on film. Afterwards people start disappearing from town. Elle Fanning takes the part of the young love interest her sister Dakota would have played a few years back. The trailer really captures a CLOSE ENCOUNTERS vibe crossed with E.T. and SON OF RAMBOW.

The Tree of Life

1) The Tree of Life (May 27)
Trailer
A new Terrence Malick film is always something to get excited about. This one stars Brad Pitt and Sean Penn. It’s a grand story that starts in the 1950s with a young boy who is pushed and pulled between the selfish and selfless views of his father and mother. Upon witnessing death, he loses his innocence and the world becomes a complex place for him to navigate into adulthood. The trailer looks gorgeous. The film deals with life on a cosmic scale dealing with prehistoric, microbial and astronomical realms. Every time I watch a Malick film I am reminded the heights that cinema could attain when it tries for art.

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The purpose of this article each year to recognize some of the best films and performances that were missed at the big awards. This year’s crop of films is an eclectic mix of indies, foreign language films and documentaries. Many of these film flew under the radar and truly deserve reaching a wider audience.

Picture
Winner: CATFISH
Whether Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman’s film isn’t as non-fiction as some might like, is actually pointless to the final project. The story of the film follows photographer Nev Schulman as he develops an online relationship with Angelia Wesselman and her family. But things aren’t as they seem. Whether the filmmakers knew what was up earlier than they let on is really pointless, because they saw a story and made it happen. The film on an emotional level deals with our online lives better than THE SOCIAL NETWORK. Social media has allowed us to be online stars in the comfort of our homes. Many times the anonymity allows us to be more like ourselves even when we’re not being like ourselves at all. It’s a remarkable and compelling film that says a lot about our modern cyber world.

Honorable Mentions
ANIMAL KINGDOM
A wonderful Australian crime drama that earned Jacki Weaver an Oscar nod for best supporting actress. It’s like GOODFELLAS if it were about Ma Parker’s gang.

ANOTHER YEAR
Mike Leigh is a master director who crafts his films with his actors through improv. Lesley Manville gives the overlooked female performance of the year with  great support from Jim Broadbent and Ruth Sheen.

CYRUS
This sly comedy features the overlooked male performance of the year from John C. Reilly as a man trying to find love with a woman who has a very close relationship with her adult son. Reilly is assisted well by Marisa Tomei, Catherine Keener and Jonah Hill.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
The book phenomenon has already been brought to the screen in a captivating Swedish thriller. Noomi Rapace has become an international star thanks to her unforgettable portrayal of Lisbeth Salander.

MICMACS
It’s an innocent satire of the weapons industry done by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who made the delightful AMELIE. It’s if he took that film and mixed in HUDSUCKER PROXY and YOJIMBO.

MOTHER
An amazing thriller from Korea that keeps your guessing the start to finish as a dedicated mother tries to free her son from jail after he is arrested for murder.

NEVER LET ME GO
A sci-fi tale like no other, in this alternative history clones are born to provide organs for humans. We watch as their lives lead to their inevitable donations. Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley and Andrew Garfield star in this touching drama.

RED RIDING TRILOGY
This epic British crime series chronicles a decade plus investigation into child murders that involves police corruption at every level. The series starts strong with a wonderful performance from Andrew Garfield and concludes with a bizarre finale that you can’t forget.

THE TILLMAN STORY
Pat Tillman gave up an NFL career to enlist in the Marines after 9/11. This thought-provoking documentary tells his true story, something the U.S. Government didn’t want to tell.

Best Actor
Winner: John C. Reilly - CYRUS
Reilly brings tenderness and vulnerability to this hilarious film. He never plays for laughs, which makes us laugh even harder. I will always remember him asking Marisa Tomei’s character, “Are you flirting with me? I’m Shrek. What are you doing out here in the forest with Shrek.”

Honorable Mentions
Andy Garcia – CITY ISLAND
Garcia leads this overlooked comedy. He plays a corrections officer who is secretly auditioning for plays and movies. The scene where he first auditions is remarkable in watching an actor in such control of his performance.

Hal Holbrook – THAT EVENING SUN
Holbrook was a revelation in INTO THE WILD. He is the spark that ignites this drama about a man whose home is sold out from under him.

Aaron Johnson – NOWHERE BOY
Johnson was also impressive in KICK-ASS in 2010, but his turn as John Lennon shows his real talent. He makes the young rock ‘n roller John Lennon without making it a caricature of the icon.

Joaquin Phoenix – I’M STILL HERE
While I didn’t like the end result, you have to give it to Phoenix for his dedication. He stayed in character everywhere he went for over a year. Nothing in his performance was unconvincing. Take that Borat!

Best Actress
Winner: Lesley Manville - ANOTHER YEAR
The most overlooked performance of the year in my book. As a woman who drinks to much and is just ticking off each year, she is the sad emotional core of Mike Leigh’s film. Her antics make us laugh, but the more desperate she gets the less funny they seem. Remarkable work.

Honorable Mentions
Paola Mendoza — ENTRE NOS
Having also directed and co-wrote the film about an immigrant and her two children abandoned in NYC, she is a talent to watch.

Noomi Rapace – THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
Rapace has created an iconic character for the ages that ranks up their with Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley in ALIENS or Thelma and Louise.

Emma Stone – EASY A
She is pretty and funny. In this surprisingly smart teen comedy, Stone established herself as a movie star.

Tilda Swinton - I AM LOVE
Swinton is amazing. She learned Italian for the role and then did it with a Russian accent. As the unhappy matriarch of the rich family who has an affair with a cook, she brings out quiet sadness and rapturous joy.

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Andrew Garfield – NEVER LET ME GO or THE SOCIAL NETWORK
When it was announced that he was the new Spider-Man, many wondered why they went with this total unknown. Then his films of 2010 came out and now we know. Garfield was the emotional glue of both NEVER LET ME GO and THE SOCIAL NETWORK. As the innocent clone or the wronged friend, he brought such power and raw emotion to his performances. If I take one thing away from 2010, it will be his talent that cinema has been given.

Honorable Mentions
Niels Arestrup – A PROPHET
As the mobster leader trying to keep a grip on his empire from behind bars, Arestrup is a tour de force.

Matt Damon – TRUE GRIT
Damon’s subtly humorous performance as the do-goody Texas ranger was overshadowed by Jeff Bridges’ showy role and Hailee Steinfeld’s starmaking turn, but it’s still an integral part of the Western’s success.

Tom Hardy - INCEPTION
Adding the right dose of wry humor to Christopher Nolan’s mind-bending thriller, Hardy is now a star. He’s also a thief, because he stole every scene in INCEPTION he was in.

Ben Mendelsohn – ANIMAL KINGDOM
As the head of a suburban crime family, Mendelsohn brings raw intensity that is frightening. He’s like a dog who got the bone and won’t ever let go.

Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Dale Dickey - WINTER’S BONE
Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes most certainly deserved their Oscar nominations, but so did Dickey. As the enforcer of an Ozarks drug family, she is an intimidating presence, but Dickey brings a strange depth to the character that is haunting.

Honorable Mentions
Bryce Dallas Howard – HEREAFTER
Howard is so good. In what could have been a forgettable girlfriend role, she brings out sexiness, vulnerability and raw emotion.

Julianne Moore – THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Moore is always good and as a tormented woman in a relationship on the rocks, she makes big dramatic changes in the character work.

Chloe Moretz – KICK-ASS
Moretz is a real talent. Her giddy performance as a teenaged vigilante, she embodies all the satire and kick-ass attitude the role needed.

Marisa Tomei – CYRUS
Playing the mismatched love interest of John C. Reilly, she makes her character subtly neurotic and emotionally fragile, which helps sell the entire premise of this comedy.

Best Director
Winner: Banksy – EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP
Was he wasn’t he at the Oscars? Is the documentary real or fake? Who cares. No matter what he made the best film of 2010. A good director shapes the film. If the doc is real, he found a profound commentary on the art world within hours of footage of street artists at work. If it was all an elaborate hoax, he devised a brilliant commentary on the art world. Either way he shaped a remarkable piece of art.

Honorable Mentions
Jacques Audiard – A PROPHET
Audiard shows a deft hand at balancing the epic tale of crime inside prison walls.

Danny Boyle –  127 HOURS
Boyle does an amazing job keeping our attention in a movie that is one character in one location for most of its running time.

Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman – CATFISH
Like Banksy, they shaped a brilliant commentary on our current world through either reality or fiction or a combination of both.

Mark Romanek – NEVER LET ME GO
Romanek’s patient direction and quiet tone is what makes this sci-fi tale so unique.

Best Screenplay
Winner: Thomas Bidegain and Jacques Audiard, and Abdel Raouf Dafri and Nicolas Peufaillit – A PROPHET
Like THE GODFATHER and GOODFELLAS before it, this epic crime story finds new twists on the venerable genre. The four writers bring out the impossibility of reforming prisoners in prison and the current view of Arabs in French society. The scope of the story is grand, but it keeps the viewer enraptured from start to finish with tight plotting and original compelling characters.

Honorable Mentions
Nikolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg (based on a novel by Stieg Larsson) – THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
The plot is not what makes this thriller great. It’s the richly drawn complex characters. Lisbeth Salander is an amazing iconic character, who will not be forgotten.

Alex Garland (based on a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro) – NEVER LET ME GO
Heart-breaking, thought-provoking sci-fi is rare. Garland does a masterful job of translating Ishiguro’s somber tale to the screen without losing its subtly.

David Michôd – ANIMAL KINGDOM
Michod also directed this crime drama, but his script is what made it special. He efficiently sets up his large cast and makes us quickly care about the dangerous world his young hero is thrust into.

Eun-kyo Park & Joon-ho Bong   – MOTHER
Like GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, it’s not the plot that makes this thriller great, but the characters. Revelations are doled out throughout the story, which change the landscape of the story completely, while redefining our thoughts of the various characters. American thrillers should take notes.

Best Animated Short
No prize awarded this year. (Didn’t see enough shorts this year to choose.)

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Well the new year is here and it’s time to start getting excited for what 2011 will have in store for us movie-wise. As always, we have to endure the winter dumping ground and the summer sequel parade for the serious fall films. This spring already has some intriguing films for us. Here’s hoping that this is better than the last.

Honorable Mentions (Some are just curiosities at best)
THE GREEN HORNET (Jan. 14), BARNEY’S VERSION (Jan. 14), THE COMPANY MEN (Jan. 21), THE RITE (Jan. 28), THE MECHANIC (Jan. 28), SANCTUM (Feb. 4), FRANKIE & ALICE (Feb. 4), THE EAGLE (Feb. 11), GNOMEO AND JULIET (Feb. 11), I AM NUMBER FOUR (Feb. 18), OF GODS AND MEN (Feb. 25), APOLLO 18 (March 4), BATTLE: LOS ANGELES (March 11), MARS NEEDS MOMS (March 11), RED RIDING HOOD (March 11), LIMITLESS (March 18), THE LINCOLN LAWYER (March 18), HOP (Apr. 1), INSIDIOUS (Apr. 1) and ARTHUR (Apr. 8).

Most Anticipated Winter/Spring Films
15) DIARY OF A WIMPY KID 2: RODRICK RULES (March 25)
Trailer
Last spring, the original screen adaptation of the best-selling illustrated book series just missed my anticipated list. After seeing it, I certainly don’t want to miss the sequel. While the trailer is heavily loaded to all the scatological humor found in the books, Jeff Kinney’s follow-up book was just as good as the original, so lets hope the same can be said of the follow-up film.

14) SCREAM 4 (Apr. 15)
Trailer
It’s hard to believe that it’s been over a decade since the last film in this series hit theaters. Now maybe that’s because I’m trying to forget it. For the latest installment, the franchise’s creators, director Wes Craven and writer Kevin Williamson, are back to bring the story into the new age of horror. As a passing the torch story where the surviving original cast members hand the reins over to younger stars, I have a feeling there could be some good surprises left in the scary series. At least I hope so.

13) MEEK’S CUTOFF (Apr. 8)
Clip
Director Kelly Reichardt made the well-received indie flicks, OLD JOY and WENDY AND LUCY, and now moves into the world of Westerns with her WENDY AND LUCY star Michelle Williams. Cast also includes Paul Dano, Bruce Greenwood, Shirley Henderson and Will Patton. The true-life story follows settlers who get trapped in the Oregon desert in 1845. Stephen Meek (Greenwood) was a wagon train guide who offered emigrants an alternative route to avoid the Blue Mountains, which turned deadly. The story could make for a tense drama.

12) YOUR HIGHNESS (Apr. 8)
Trailer
I don’t know what to think of this one. It could be hilarious or total crap. But I have faith in David Gordon Green, who seems to be transitioning from quiet, soulful indie pieces to broad comedies. His PINEAPPLE EXPRESS might just be the best any stoner comedy could hope for. For this medieval laugher, he gets EXPRESS standouts James Franco and Danny McBride to play princes. Franco is the valiant one who sets out to save his betrothed, played by Zooey Deschanel, from the clutches of the evil wizard Leezar (Justin Theroux). McBride plays Franco’s loser brother who is forced to help. On their adventure they pick up gorgeous archer Isabel, played by Natalie Portman. This cast alone makes me want to see it.

11) SOURCE CODE (Apr. 1)
Trailer
Duncan Jones, the director of MOON, brings us this sci-fi thriller where a soldier is sent into the body of a man on a train that is set to explode into order to figure out who is behind the attack. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga and Jeffrey Wright. Gyllenhaal plays the soldier who only has eight minutes each time he jumps back in time. Of course, he begins to fall for the passenger, played by Monaghan. I’m hoping this is more than the yearly dose of sci-fi that has a premise and nothing else. Director and cast make me confident it might be something more.

10) PAUL (March 18)
Trailer
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost not only star in this comedy, they wrote it too. They play comic book geeks who meet an alien at Area 51. Seth Rogen voices the alien named Paul. Cast also includes Kristen Wiig, Jane Lynch, Sigourney Weaver, Jason Bateman, Blythe Danner, Bill Hader, Jeffrey Tambor, David Koechner and John Carrol Lynch. It’s hard to see that cast and not think funny. Even better is that it’s directed by Greg Mottola, who made the hilarious SUPERBAD and ADVENTURELAND.

9) THE WAY BACK (Jan. 21)
Trailer
While this had a qualifying run in 2010, it really won’t be seen until 2011. It’s the latest from great director Peter Weir. Story follows a group of soldiers escaping a Siberian gulag in 1940. Stars include Colin Farrell, Jim Sturgess, Ed Harris, Saoirse Ronan and Mark Strong. Farrell, Harris and Ronan are all getting Oscar-buzz for this one. This is Weir’s first film since 2003’s MASTER AND COMMANDER and it’s long overdue for the filmmaker who made PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK, THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY, WITNESS, DEAD POETS SOCIETY, FEARLESS and THE TRUMAN SHOW.

8) UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES (March 2)
Trailer
This Thai comedy/fantasy won the Cannes Film Festival last year. Uncle Boonmee tells his family about his past lives on his deathbed. Some of his visitors include the ghost of this dead wife and this lost son returning in a non-human form like Big Foot. There’s also sex with a catfish in there as well. Sounds bizarre. Cannes winners are always interesting and artistic.

7) JANE EYRE (March 11)
Trailer
Yep, it’s another version of the Charlotte Bronte classic. But this one is directed by Cary Fukunaga, who made the amazing immigrant tale SIN NOMBRE. It also has an impressive cast, which includes Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins and Simon McBurney. Past adaptations have always played up the romance; this one seems more focused on the psychological drama of the tale. Watch the trailer; there is nothing Masterpiece Theater stuffy about this one.

6) RIO (Apr. 15)
Trailer
The latest from ICE AGE creators, Blue Sky Studios finds a domesticated blue macaw paired with a wild female blue macaw in order to have the species. They ended up back in their native habitat of Rio de Janeiro. Voice cast includes Anne Hathaway, Jesse Eisenberg, Leslie Mann, Jamie Foxx, Jemaine Clement, George Lopez and Will I.Am. This is Blue Sky’s first completely original story since ICE AGE. The word on this one is really good. Let’s see how they do Scrat-less.

5) HANNA (Apr. 8)
Trailer
Ronan returns once again on the countdown. From ATONEMENT director Joe Wright comes this thriller starring his Oscar-nominated discovery. Think THE PROFESSIONAL crossed with KICK-ASS and THE WILD CHILD. Check out this cast Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana and Olivia Williams. Ronan, one of the most talented teen working today, plays a young girl raised by her ex-CIA father (Bana) to be a killing machine. When she is captured by the government, she escapes and goes to live with a normal family. The trailer looks awesome.

4) RANGO (March 4)
Trailer
Johnny Depp plays a chameleon who dreams of being a real life swashbuckler. He gets a chance to play the part when he wonders into a Western town. Now that’s the premise of the most off-the-wall animated feature of 2011. Making it even more unique is that it’s directed by PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN helmer Gore Verbinski. Depp is joined by Timothy Olyphant, Bill Nighy, Abigail Breslin, Isla Fisher, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Ray Winstone, Harry Dean Stanton and Stephen Root. Oh yeah and it was animated by the iconic visual effects company Industrial Light & Magic.

3) THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU (March 4)
Trailer
This is the first feature from the writer of OCEAN’S TWELVE and THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM, George Nolfi. He adapted the screenplay from Philip K. Dick’s short story ADJUSTMENT TEAM. Matt Damon plays a politician who has an affair with a ballerina, played by Emily Blunt. But a secret government organization plots to break them apart in order to keep the world operating on fate’s plan. Co-stars include Terence Stamp, John Slattery, Shohreh Aghdashloo and Anthony Mackie. This one was on my fall anticipated list until it was moved at the last minute to spring. Dick has inspired some great films and not so great films. Lets hope this is one of the former.

2) WATER FOR ELEPHANTS (Apr. 22)
Trailer
I must admit that I am a circus fanatic. So a screen adaptation of Sara Gruen’s bestselling novel set in a traveling circus is good enough to have me excited. It’s directed by Francis Lawrence, whose I AM LEGEND I very much admired. His cast includes Oscar-winner Reese Witherspoon, Oscar-winner Christoph Waltz, Oscar-nominee Hal Holbrook, James Frain and Paul Schneider. The only reason this isn’t #1 is because the lead is Robert “Team Edward” Pattinson. Does he have the acting chops to do anything other than smolder and glitter in the sun? I hope so for the success of this film.

1) SUCKER PUNCH (March 25)
Trailer
Zack Snyder, who brought us the remarkable entertainments 300 and WATCHMEN, is bringing us his first completely original vision. And it looks amazing. The premise is this — a young girl is institutionalized by her pervy wanker stepfather who has lined her up for a lobotomy in order to cover up his crimes. In the asylum, Babydoll uses a fantasy realm as a way to escape. The hot young female cast includes Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens and Jamie Chung. Supporting them are Carla Gugino, Jon Hamm and Scott Glenn. The trailer shows off samurais, dragons, giant robots, trench warfare — it’s like a geek Id splattered on the screen. I’m really hoping this is the badass flick of the year.

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In 2010, were docs real or just a street artist prank? Did catfish swim in fiction or was it honest and frank? Audiences friended the Facebook flick and Lisbeth Salander was one badass… I shouldn’t call her that. An Arab teen ruled the thugs and the Pat Tillman debacle got swept under the rug. Dream thieves blew our minds and a poor teen was stuck in a cold bind. A mother fought to save her son from jail and clones lived in a world that’s pale.

Sadly, 2010 was not a stellar year for films. Over the past few years, I’ve been awarding four stars at least 20 films. This year only 13 films received a four star rating. Many years I have to make tough choices on what stays on the top 25 and what falls off. This year it wasn’t too difficult. As every year there were a bunch of films that I wish I could have seen in the year. Some like LET ME IN, INSIDE JOB and CARLOS I really wish I could have seen. Here’s a list of some others.

35 SHOTS OF RUM, 45365, 9500 LIBERTY, AGORA, ALAMAR, ALL GOOD THINGS, ANIMAL KINGDOM, BIUTIFUL, BLUE VALENTINE, BLUEBEARD, BOXING GYM, BURIED, CARLOS, CASINO JACK AND THE UNITED STATES OF MONEY, CELL 211, CLIENT 9, CONVICTION, DADDY LONGLEGS, DEATH AT A FUNERAL, DOGTOOTH, ENTER THE VOID, EVERYONE ELSE, FAIR GAME, FAREWELL, THE FATHER OF MY CHILDREN, FISH TANK, FOUR LIONS, GET LOW, HOME, HOWL, I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS, IDIOTS AND ANGELS, INSIDE JOB, IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY, JACK GOES BOATING, THE KARATE KID, LAST TRAIN HOME, LEBANON, LET ME IN, LIFE ABOVE ALL, LIFE DURING WARTIME, LOOKING FOR ERIC, MADE IN DAGENHAM, MARWENCOL, MESRINE: KILLER INSTINCT, MESRINE: PUBLIC ENEMY #1, MONSTERS, MORNING GLORY, MY DOG TULIP, NOWHERE BOY, ONDINE, PUTTY HILL, RABBIT HOLE, RARE EXPORTS: A CHRISTMAS TALE, THE RED MACHINE, SCRAPPERS, SECRET SUNSHINE, SECRETARIAT, A SMALL ACT, SOMEWHERE, STILL BILL, THE STRANGE CASE OF ANGELICA, SWEETGRASS, TAMARA DREWE, THE TEMPEST, A TOWN CALLED PANIC, TRASH HUMPERS, UNSTOPPABLE, VINCENT: A LIFE IN COLOR, VINCERE, WAITING FOR SUPERMAN, WHITE MATERIAL and WILD GRASS.

As always, I’ve amended my top 25 lists from 2007, 2008 and 2009 to include films I’ve seen in the past year. Now for the best of 2010.

1) EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP
For those not aware of the street art scene, Banksy is one of the most provocative artists. His documentary on street art is like his art — thought-provoking, daring, political and darkly humorous. Since its debut camps have formed on whether the film from an artist no one has ever seen is truly a film about a real person who followed street artists around with a camera then turned into a hack artist himself or if that man is just another Banksy creation. I fall into the later camp. The film to me is in the spirit of Andy Kaufman’s performance art. Either way the film is a brilliant look and commentary on street art and its move into the mainstream. Whether it’s real or not doesn’t change its power. No film made me think more this year, while entertaining me completely. But if it is all a joke, how many people is Banksy punking and are some of them fellow artists? The whole film makes one rethink what art is.

2) CATFISH
Here is another doc that created debate over whether it is real or faked. I am in the former camp. A young New York photographer develops a relationship with a woman online and it turns out to be not what he expected. Whether the NYC hipsters was really falling for the woman online or not doesn’t change what the film says about our lives online. If the romance is a manipulation it doesn’t change the impact of the film. It almost feels fitting if it is a fiction to start, because when the filmmakers go to meet the woman and her family in real life I’m for sure she is for real. The enigmatic title is truly fitting to this enigmatic film.

3) THE SOCIAL NETWORK
If CATFISH exposed the personal side of our digital lives, David Fincher’s tale of the creation of Facebook is the historical side. In telling the story of Mark Zuckerberg, the film tells the story of our age. Nerds rule the corporate world. It’s not about the money, but transforming society. Jesse Eisenberg plays Zuckerberg with ruthless arrogance. The film sees star making turns from Andrew Garfield and Armie Hammer and a career best from Justin Timberlake. What does having a 1,000 friends online mean when you’re not really close to anyone in real life?

4) THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
This wasn’t just a book phenomenon. Noomi Rapace put her stamp on the character of Lisbeth Salander and it will be hard for the upcoming English remake to match. This Swedish thriller does an excellent job of developing it’s characters, while keeping use gripped by the murder mystery at its core. Few thrillers are driven by their characters like this one. And what great characters they are. Lisbeth is a heroine for the ages.

5) A PROPHET
Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film before its theatrical release in the States, this French gangster tale finds yet another unique and compelling way to exploit the genre. It has the epic scope of THE GODFATHER and the raw bite of GOODFELLAS. Via its story of an Arab man, whose conviction is questionable, this gripping crime tale explores Arabs second class status in French society, as well as the difficulties of prison as a place for rehabilitation.

6) THE TILLMAN STORY
This documentary on Pat Tillman, the pro football player who gave up the multi-million dollar contract to enlist in the military, details how the Bush administration and the military used him as propaganda for the war effort the moment he signed up. In telling his story, the film challenges expectations about soldiers and why people decide to serve. This atheist liberal didn’t fit the military model, but that didn’t stop them from fitting him into it after his death. Then they wonder why his family is so determined to uncover how he really died. It’s a maddening and emotional first rate character study.

7) INCEPTION
Christopher Nolan’s put the original back into original content. This thriller brings corporate thieves into the minds of competitors. The story wraps the themes of how ideas are formed in our minds around an edge of your seat suspense flick. The film creates mind bending visuals that seamlessly fit into the live-action. Big scope entertainments rarely are this smart and films this smart are rarely this accessibly entertaining.

8) WINTER’S BONE
This crime drama takes a simple premise — a man misses bail, which threatens seizure of his family home — and weaves a powerful human drama. Jennifer Lawrence emerges as a new talent as a teenager forced to protect her younger siblings from the harsh realities of their poverty. She is supported in raw performances from John Hawkes and Dale Dickey.  Where the film succeeds so well is it contains hicks from the Ozarks without being a film about “hicks from the Ozarks.”

9) MOTHER
This unique Korean crime mystery defies expectations at every turn. A mentally
challenged young man confesses to the murder of a teen girl and his mother sets out to free him. When we think we know the characters the film reveals new information that flips our understanding of them upside down. This mother’s determination is motivated from more than love.

10) NEVER LET ME GO
This somber sci-fi drama takes place in an alternative history where clones are born to provide organs for needy humans. Raised in oblivion at boarding schools until they come of age, the clones know little of the outside world. The haunting tale has a lot to say about living with the knowledge that we will die. Carey Mulligan, Kiera Knightley and Andrew Garfield make for a stellar cast in this truly one of a kind genre film.

11) THE FIGHTER
With great performances from Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Melissa Leo and Amy Adams, David O. Russell creates another great boxing film whether the fighter’s toughest battle is the one between his family loyalty and what is right for himself.

12) TOY STORY 3
An fitting finale to his amazing animated franchise tells a compelling escape tale while dealing with the things we have to give up when we move into adulthood.

13) MICMACS
From the maker of AMELIE, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, comes this effortlessly charming satire of the weapons industry where a man seeks comeuppance for the manufacturer of the bullet lodged in his head.

14) THE KING’S SPEECH
This entertaining drama about King George VI’s fight over his stutter in order to succeed in his duties features great performances from Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush.

15) THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
This comedy that explores the modern family has the children of a lesbian couple seek out their sperm donor, featuring an Oscar-worthy performance from Annette Bening.

16) BLACK SWAN
In Darren Aronofsky’s own THE RED SHOES, Natalie Portman gives one of her best performances as an insecure ballet dancer who is beginning to crack under the pressure.

17) 127 HOURS
Danny Boyle’s true life survival story about Aron Ralston, who had to cut off his own arm after getting trapped in a remote cave, contains a tour de force performance from James Franco.

18) ANOTHER YEAR
Mike Leigh’s latest is the opposite of HAPPY-GO-LUCKY featuring a marvelous central performance from Lesley Manville, who plays an aging single woman who only gets more depressed and desperate every year.

19) RED RIDING TRILOGY
1974
1980
1983
These epic British crime films chronicles a series of child murders and the police cover-up that lasted over a decade. Starts hauntingly and ends with power, a remarkable series that works each separately and together as a whole.

20) TRUE GRIT
Containing three great performances from Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, the Coen brothers take on this classic Western features their signature attention to language and violence mixed with dark humor.

21) CYRUS
Comedy abounds as John C. Reilly tries to date Marisa Tomei, who has an awkwardly close relationship with her adult son, played by Jonah Hill.

22) CITY ISLAND
Andy Garcia gives a great performance in this comedy about a family filled with secrets, which collide in hilarious and sometimes creepy ways.

23) THE ART OF THE STEAL
If you think your will will cover your wishes you need you see this film. Dr. Albert C. Barnes wanted only students to see his art collection, but the powers that be chipped away at his wishes to get their hands the collection, which is worth billions. An infuriating true life crime tale.

24) SHUTTER ISLAND
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Martin Scorsese’s mind-blowing psychological thriller has one of those twists that redefines everything you have seen before.

25) SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD
This endlessly inventive romantic comedy uses video game culture as a metaphor for the burden of past relationships on new ones.

Honorable Mentioned
BATMAN: UNDER THE RED HOOD
THE CHASER
CHLOE
DATE NIGHT
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID
EASY A
ENTRE NOS
FLIPPED
THE GHOST WRITER
THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE
GREENBERG
GREEN ZONE
HEREAFTER
I AM LOVE
THE ILLUSIONIST
KICK-ASS
LEAVES OF GRASS
PLEASE GIVE
RESTREPO
SALT
THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES
THE SECRET OF KELLS
SOLITARY MAN
THE SQUARE
THAT EVENING SUN
THE TOWN
VENGEANCE

Amendment

1) Exit Through the Gift Shop
2) Catfish
3) The Social Network
4) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
5) A Prophet
6-tie) Inside Job (Added on 12/29/11)
6-tie) The Tillman Story
7) Inception
8) Winter’s Bone
9) Mother
10) Never Let Me Go
11) Marwencol
12) The Fighter
13) Toy Story 3
14) Micmacs
15) The King’s Speech
16) The Kids Are All Right
17) Black Swan
18) 127 Hours
19) Rabbit Hole (Added on 12/29/11)
20) Another Year
21-tie) Animal Kingdom (Added on 12/29/11)
21-tie) Red Riding Trilogy
22) True Grit
23) Cyrus
24) City Island
25) The Art of the Steal

Honorable Mentioned
Agora (Added on 12/29/11)
All Good Things (Added on 12/29/11)
Batman: Under the Red Hood
Blue Valentine (Added on 12/29/11)
Buried (Added on 12/29/11)
The Chaser
Chloe
Date Night
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Dogtooth (Added on 12/29/11)
Easy A
Entre Nos
Flipped
Frozen (Added on 12/29/11)
The Ghost Writer
The Girl Who Played with Fire
Greenberg
Green Zone
Hereafter
I Am Love
I Love You Phillip Morris (Added on 12/29/11)
The Illusionist
Kick-Ass
Leaves of Grass
Lebanon (Added on 12/29/11)
Let Me In (Added on 12/29/11)
Made in Dagenham (Added on 12/29/11)
Monsters (Added on 12/29/11)
Nowhere Boy (Added on 12/29/11)
Please Give
Restrepo
Salt
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
The Secret in Their Eyes
The Secret of Kells
Shutter Island
Solitary Man
Somewhere (Added on 12/29/11)
The Square
That Evening Sun
The Town
Unstoppable (Added on 12/29/11)
Vengeance

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Every season a take a look over the release schedule and compile a list of the films I’m most excited about seeing. As it is for most serious movie fans, the fall is the most exciting time for movie going. This fall is no exception with new films from a host of major and up-and-coming filmmakers. Because the fall is so jam-packed with films I’ve also included an Honorable Mention list and an On the Look Out list, which features titles with no firm dates that could easily sneak into the fall schedule. So lets get going.

Must-See List
CATFISH (Sept. 17)
Trailer
This is the story behind this documentary — filmmakers Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman saw Ariel’s brother Nev developing a relationship with a family over the Net and decided to film it. When he goes to meet them, what he finds is shocking. The trailer really hooked me and I had to see what happens and let me tell you it’s astonishing. I was lucky enough to see this one really early and let me tell you it’s the best film I’ve seen this year so far. There is nothing like it. The only way I could describe it is to say it’s like an Errol Morris documentary filtered through a modern cyber thriller that provides unbelievable twists. It’s the kind of film I want to take different people to just to witness their reactions to it.

On the Look Out (In alpha order)
ALL GOOD THINGS
I’ve included this murder mystery from Andrew Jarecki (CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS) on several of my anticipated lists. Due to some distribution problems with the Weinstein Co., Jarecki had to buy it back and now Magnolia has picked it up for a December release. I’m not holding my breath until I’m sitting in a theater watching it. Stars Kirsten Dunst, Ryan Gosling, Kristen Wiig and Frank Langella.

BIUTIFUL
This drama from Alejandro González Iñárritu (BABEL) was on my On the Look Out list last fall. Now Roadside has picked it up for distribution. Stars Javier Bardem as a man whose life is spiraling out of control.

BRIGHTON ROCK
28 WEEK LATER writer Rowan Joffe adapts Graham Greene’s novel into a feature starring John Hurt, Helen Mirren and Andy Serkis. Follows the story of a rebellious teen with a religious death wish.

THE CONSPIRATOR
If Robert Redford’s Abraham Lincoln assassination thriller comes out this year, I’d put this one in my top five most anticipated films of the fall. Evan Rachel Wood stars as Anna Surratt the only woman charged as a co-conspirator in the murder of Lincoln. Co-stars include James McAvoy, Justin Long, Robin Wright and Alexis Bledel.

LONDON BOULEVARD
THE DEPARTED scribe William Monahan makes his directorial debut with this thriller about a con who falls for a movie star and gets wrapped up with gangsters. Stars Keira Knightley, Colin Farrell, Ray Winstone, David Thewlis, Eddie Marsan and Ben Chaplin.

RABBIT HOLE
HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH auteur John Cameron Mitchell turns to drama with this story of a couple who lose their young son. Stars Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, Sandra Oh and Dianne Wiest.

THE TREE OF LIFE
Here’s another film that if it actually comes out this year will rocket to the top of my must see list. Terrence Malick tells the story of a family with three boys in the 1950s. Stars Brad Pitt and Sean Penn. Malick has never made a bad film.

THE WAY BACK
This drama comes from Peter Weir (WITNESS, MASTER & COMMANDER) and tells the true-life story of soldiers that escaped from a Siberian gulag. Stars Colin Farrell, Mark Strong, Saoirse Ronan, Jim Sturgess and Ed Harris.

Honorable Mentions
John Wells’ THE COMPANY MEN (Oct. 22), John Madden’s THE DEBT, Todd Phillips’ DUE DATE (Nov. 5), Gaspar Noe’s ENTER THE VOID (Sept. 17), anthology doc FREAKONOMICS (Oct. 1), Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY (Sept. 24), Philip Seymour Hoffman’s JACK GOES BOATING (Sept. 17), Nigel Cole’s MADE IN DAGENHAM (Nov. 19), Roger Mitchell’s MORNING GLORY (Nov. 12), Paul and Sandra Fierlinger’s MY DOG TULIP (Sept. 3), Wes Craven’s MY SOUL TO TAKE (Oct. 8), Paul Haggis’ THE NEXT THREE DAYS (Nov. 19), Robert Schwentke’s RED (Oct, 15), Randall Wallace’s SECRETARIAT (Oct. 8), John Curran’s STONE (Oct. 8), Nathan Greno and Byron Howard’s TANGLED (Nov. 24), Sngmoo Lee’s THE WARRIOR’S WAY (Dec. 3), Tony Scott’s UNSTOPPABLE (Nov. 12), and Woody Allen’s YOU WILL MEET A TALL DARK STRANGER (Sept. 22).

Most Anticipated Fall Films
30) A WOMAN, A GUN AND A NOODLE SHOP (Sept. 3)
Trailer
Here’s a catch line — a remake of the Coen Brothers’ BLOOD SIMPLE set in feudal China directed by Yimou Zhang, the director of HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS and HERO. Those pieces have me giddy with the possibilities for this film. It’s getting a very small release from Sony Pictures Classics, so its not going to be out there long, but I’m hoping to catch it at some point.

29) HOW DO YOU KNOW (Dec. 17)
Trailer
James L. Brooks makes smart romantic comedies. His BROADCAST NEWS, AS GOOD AS IT GETS and SPANGLISH stand as some of the best of the genre and his TERMS OF ENDEARMENT is a genuinely moving tearjerker. Now he has two rom-con superstars in Reese Witherspoon and Paul Rudd, in addition to Jack Nicholson and Owen Wilson. The simple premise is how do you know if someone is the one? Looking forward to seeing how Mr. Brooks answers that question.

28) CONVICTION (Oct. 15)
Trailer
While it reeks of Oscar bait, I have to admit the premise seems promising. Look at all the pieces. Two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank. Oscar nominees Minnie Driver, Melissa Leo and Juliette Lewis. The inevitable future Oscar nominee Sam Rockwell. A true story about a woman overcoming huge odds. Sounds like it’s made for Oscar voters. Here’s the story — a man is wrongfully convicted of a crime and his sister gets a law degree in an effort to free him. I really hope it is as powerful as it could be and not movie-of-the-week material.

27) THE AMERICAN (Sept. 1)
Trailer
The one line premise sounds so boringly generic — an assassin takes one last job. But you put George Clooney in that premise and you have me interested. Since his career really took off he’s picked quality projects one after another. Director Anton Corbijn helmed the well-received Joy Division biopic CONTROL and writer Rowan Jaffe (28 WEEKS LATER) based it on Martin Booth’s novel. It’s kicking off the fall and I’m eager to see how it does it.

26) WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS (Sept. 24)
Trailer
What better time than now for Oliver Stone to revisit the film that coined the phrase, “Greed is good?” While the reviews out of the festival circuit have been luke warm, I can’t say I’m not still very curious. Michael Douglas returns as Gordon Gekko and Shia LaBeouf steps in the “Charlie Sheen” role as an eager young Wall Street trader. The film takes place right before the global economy tanked. Cast includes Sheen, Josh Brolin, Carey Mulligan, Susan Sarandon, Eli Wallach, and Frank Langella. Stone’s films are always provocative and worth seeing.

25) LEGEND OF THE GUARDIANS: THE OWLS OF GA’HOOLE (Sept. 24)
Trailer
Based on a very popular series of young adult books, the story follows a young owl who is sent to an orphanage where they brainwash the owlets into becoming soldiers. THE WATCHMEN’s Zack Snyder is at the helm, which makes me curious. The last time Warner Bros. and animation house Animal Logic teamed up we got the surprisingly fun Oscar winner HAPPY FEET, so that brings great promise to this production in my book.

24) I LOVE YOU, PHILLIP MORRIS (Dec. 3)
Trailer
This is another left over from an anticipated list of the past. Jim Carrey plays a married man who becomes a gay partying conman in Miami and ends up in jail where he falls in love with his cellmate Phillip Morris, played by Ewan McGregor. Now it’s finally getting a release in December. This Sundance fav seems like it could be hilarious.

23) THE TEMPEST (Dec. 10)
If director Julie Taymor brings half of the visual power she brought to her first Shakespeare adaptation TITUS to this one then this one will be breathtaking. She also has a dream cast to work with — Helen Mirren (yes, she is in every film this fall), Alfred Molina, Russell Brand, Djimon Hounsou, Alan Cumming, Chris Cooper, David Stathairn and Ben Whishaw. Taymor does tinker with the bard’s work by casting Mirren in the role of Prospero, aka Prospera. If Taymor can make the lesser-known Shakespearian play thrilling on the screen than I can’t image the potential here.

22) THE KING’S SPEECH (Nov. 24)
Watch this AP Report
This historical drama finds Oscar nominee Colin Firth playing King George VI as he reluctantly takes the throne and seeks the help of unorthodox speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) to help him conquer his stutter. With those two actors in the leads, I think this one could be really fun. But in addition we get Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon, Guy Pearce and Timothy Spall as Winston Churchill. It also has the Weinstein stamp on it, which with this kind of film makes me even more confident in its potential.

21) LET ME IN (Oct. 1)
Trailer
I’m really getting tired of remakes, but this one has so much promise. The film is based on the Swedish horror film, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, which is one of the best vampire films ever made. THE ROAD’s Kodi Smit-McPhee stars as a bullied young boy who befriends a young-looking female vampire, played by KICK-ASS’s dynamic Chloe Moretz. Cast also includes Oscar nominee Richard Jenkins and Elias Koteas. When it comes to remaking foreign language films, I’m the first to say, “just watch the original,” but I hope director Matt Reeves (CLOVERFIELD) puts a new twist on this one so it can stand on its own and not be just a carbon copy.

20) MACHETE (Sept. 3)
Trailer
Hell yeah I’m excited about this one. Out of all the fake trailers in GRINDHOUSE, the story of Mexican vigilante Machete seemed like the most promising to bring to a full feature. Now directors Ethan Maniquis and Robert Rodriguez have done it with a crazy cast, which includes not only Danny Trejo in the title role, but also Robert DeNiro, Jessica Alba, Steven Seagal, Michelle Rodriguez, Jeff Fahey, Cheech Marin, Don Johnson, Tom Savini and Lindsay Lohan. This revenge flick seems like it’s gunning for Arizona and the immigration debate for sure.

19) THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER (Dec. 10)
Trailer
Yes, PRINCE CASPIAN was less than amazing, but it was respectable. Now we come to what I believe is the best of the Narnia stories. This time around Michael Apted is in the director’s chair. In addition to making the monumental UP documentary series, he has helmed such films as COAL MINER’S DAUGHTER, GORILLAS IN THE MIST and THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH. I’m excited to see Will Poulter from the wonderful SON OF RAMBOW in the role of the Pevensie’s bratty cousin. If they stay true to the C.S. Lewis story this could be better than the first film.

18) THE FIGHTER (Dec. 10)
Yeah I know it’s another true-life boxing movie. But it’s a true-life boxing movie from iconoclastic director David O. Russell. And we know he can fight just Google David O. Russell Lily Tomlin. Mark Wahlberg stars as “Irish” Mickey Ward as he trains for a pro career with his half-brother Dickie Eklund, whose hard living ruined his shot at the big time. Co-stars include Christian Bale, Amy Adams, and Melissa Leo. Iconoclastic director Darren Aronofsky was originally attached to this film, so it makes me believe there has to be something special in this story.

17) MIRAL (Dec.3)
Trailer
From Julian Schnabel, the maker of THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY, comes this drama about an orphaned Palestinian girl who gets wrapped up in the conflict between Arabs and Israelis following the first Israel-Arab war. Cast includes Willem Dafoe, Freida Pinto, Vanessa Redgrave and Hiam Abbass. This one is already getting Oscar buzz before its debut at the Toronto Film Festival.

16) INSIDE JOB (Oct. 8)
Trailer
Charles Ferguson’s NO END IN SIGHT was one of the most levelheaded critiques of the Bush administration’s handling of the Iraq War I have seen. Before turning to film, he was a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. Now he turns his keen eye toward the global financial crisis chronicling it from 2007 to 2010. I love how many people seem flabbergasted by his questions in the trailer. In the same vein as Alex Gibney, he is a documentary filmmaker that I eagerly await seeing what he tackles next.

15) THE TOWN (Sept. 17)
Trailer
Ben Affleck made a big impression with his first directorial effort, GONE BABY GONE. Now he’s back with a thriller that follows a bank robber who falls for a bank manager and must contend with the FBI agent who wants to catch him. This time around Affleck is doing double duty as director and star. He’s brought together great acting supporters in Blake Lively (who is getting amazing buzz for her performance), Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Pete Postlethwaite, Rebecca Hall, and Chris Cooper. Looks very character driven, which is exactly how I like a thriller to be.

14) THE TOURIST (Dec. 10)
The simple premise sounds a bit like this summer’s KNIGHT & DAY, only with the genders switched. But instead of Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz, we get Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie. Yep, Depp and Jolie together. That had me interested right there. Then you add in the director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, the maker of one of the great political thrillers THE LIVES OF OTHERS, and you have me bubbling with excitement. Story follows Depp as he travels to Italy to heal a broken heart. There he meets Jolie who uses him to keep confused those trying to find her former lover. Cast includes Paul Bettany, Rufus Sewell, and Timothy Dalton. If this is half as tense as LIVES than it could easily be the best thriller of the year.

13) BLACK SWAN (Dec. 1)
Trailer
Now we get to the film Darren Aronofsky chose instead of THE FIGHTER. Natalie Portman stars a ballerina who has an unnerving relationship with her chief rival, played by Mila Kunis. Cast includes Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder and Barbara Hershey. After watching the trailer it seems like THE RED SHOES flittered through the TWILIGHT ZONE. What’s up with Portman sprouting feathers? This one looks awesomely trippy.

12) LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS (Nov. 24)
Trailer
Edward Zwick (GLORY, LAST SAMURAI) tackles a romantic dramedy this time around. Jake Gyllenhaal plays a lady’s man Viagra salesman who meets his equally free-spirited match in Anne Hathaway. Supporting those wonderful leads are Judy Greer, Hank Azaria, Oliver Platt, Gabriel Macht and George Segal. It’s based on the memoir HARD SELL: THE EVOLUTION OF A VIAGRA SALESMAN. It seems chopped full of ironic potential. What I hope more than anything though is that it keeps the critique of Big Pharma in tact. The book took an inside look at how drug companies rewarded reps for their lack of ethics, abuse of the system and call for profits before people.

11) ANOTHER YEAR (Dec. 29)
Trailer
When Mike Leigh makes a film I’m pretty confident it will be one of the best films of the year. SECRETS & LIES, TOPSY-TURVY, ALL OR NOTHING, VERA DRAKE and HAPPY-GO-LUCKY were all featured on my top 25 of their respective years. Coming out of Cannes the film was hailed as one of Leigh’s best. Like SECRETS and NOTHING, this is another ensemble family dramedy. Film stars Oscar winner Jim Broadbent, Ruth Sheen and Oscar nominee Imelda Staunton. The film follows the seasonal routine get-togethers of a middle-aged couple. Of course drama builds as the years go by. Sheen is said to steal the show as the manic wife of Broadbent, who always breaks the illusion of contentment with their friends and family.

10) SOMEWHERE (Dec. 22)
Trailer
Sophia Coppola has never made a misstep in my book. I really think her MARIE ANTOINETTE was a misunderstood critique of celebrity culture that is sorely underrated. This story follows a partying Hollywood star whose life is shook up when his 11-year-old daughter comes on a surprise visit. Stephen Dorff stars opposite Dakota Fanning’s little sister Elle. Can Coppola do for Dorff what she did for Bill Murray — make him viewed as a different kind of actor? I’m eager to find out. I just love the powerfully sad quality to Coppola’s work. It always feels from the heart.

9) NEVER LET ME GO (Sept. 15)
Trailer
This film brings a classic geek debate to the screen via Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel — if there were human cloning, would clones have the same rights as the original? In this world, clones are put in boarding schools where they await the possibility that their host needs a transplant. But what happens when the clones find out the truth? The film comes from Mark Romanek, who made the haunting thriller ONE HOUR PHOTO, starring a very creepy Robin Williams. Now check out this cast — Oscar nominees Keira Knightley and Carey Mulligan, as well as Golden Globe winner Sally Hawkins, Charlotte Rampling and Andrew Garfield, who is the new Spider-Man. I so desperately want this one to be great.

8) HEREAFTER (Oct. 22)
Here is my top ten most anticipated films of the fall list, and this is this year’s slot for the new Clint Eastwood film. The master filmmaker tackles the supernatural thriller genre this time around, which only makes me more excited. Death finds a way of connecting three unconnected people in this story. Film stars Matt Damon, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jay Mohr, and Richard Kind. Script is from Peter Morgan who penned FROST/NIXON and THE QUEEN. In the case of Eastwood, the only detail that matters is when does it come out.

7) THE ILLUSIONIST (Dec. 25)
Trailer
Sylvain Chomet’s THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE was one of the best animated films of the 2000s. Now he takes an idea that Jacques Tati was working on at the time of his death and animates it in the style of the great comedian. The whole idea of this project illustrates the amazing things that animation can attempt to do. The story follows a vaudeville performer, whose thunder is being dampened by rock music and a changing culture. However, he finds a new lease on life with a young fan. Some have already put this as a lock for a Best Animated Feature nod at the Oscars, along with TOY STORY 3. Others are saying it’s the film that most deserves to win.

6) HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS - PART 1 (Nov. 19)
Trailer
The HARRY POTTER franchise is coming to an end and it’s a bittersweet event. It’s one of the the most consistent film series ever. I’m curious how the churning parts of the novel will play on the screen. With the final battle saved for next summer, I hope this first half can stand as its own film. But I can’t see who this one will let me down when all the others haven’t.

5) TRON LEGACY (Dec. 17)
Trailer
The early buzz for this one glows brighter than the neon world the franchise is famous for. Director Joseph Kosinski is the hot helmer in Hollywood and audiences haven’t even seen his first film yet. It’s been almost three decades since the original film made history for its CG visual effects. This time Jeff Bridges is still lost in the cyber world and his son ventures in to find him. Even the early visual effects test for this one started extreme excitement. Of all the spectacles of the fall this is the one I’m most interested in, because I really want to see if it lives up to the hype and can build on a very intriguing world that wasn’t fully mined in the original.

4) FAIR GAME (Nov. 5)
Trailer
Doug Liman, who launched the BOURNE franchise, now turns to a real life thriller. Out of all the Bush administration controversies the outing of Valerie Plame was one of the most vindictive. Senior officials revealed she was a CIA agent, which not only ruined her career, but put her family’s lives in danger, all because her husband told officials truth they didn’t like. Film stars Naomi Watts, Sean Penn, and Sam Shepard. With those involved in the real scandal unlikely to ever be put on trial, this could be a chance to tell the political and human toll of these treasonous actions. That said I’m hoping it’s not a preachy hatchet job. The potential for this one to be poignant and powerful has me very excited.

3) THE SOCIAL NETWORK (Oct. 1)
Trailer
The film banned from advertising on Facebook. It tells the real life story behind the creation of the social media site. Jesse Eisenberg plays Mark Zuckerman as a college student with a big idea who is accused of having stolen that big idea. The early reviews have put David Fincher’s film in the top of the heap for the Oscar hunt. Cast includes Andrew Gardfield (aka new Spider-Man) and Justin Timberlake. With the vast cultural shift that Facebook and such sites have made, it was inevitable that it’s origins would make for a feature film. With the word so glowing and it’s subject, could this be a defining production of the era?

2) 127 HOURS (Nov. 5)
Trailer
Danny Boyle follows up his Oscar winning SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE with this true-life story about Aron Ralston who had to cut off his arm in order to save his life when he was pinned under a rock while out hiking. James Franco stars. Could this be his ticket to his first Oscar nod? The survival story seems intense and reminds me of the thriller documentary TOUCHING THE VOID. With SLUMDOG and MILLIONS, Boyle has made some of the best films of the 2000s. Some wonder if this is just a thriller or an Oscar contender. But what does that really mean? A great film is a great film.

1) TRUE GRIT (Dec. 25)
The Coen Brothers are unstoppable these days and a new film from them is a filmgoers’ holiday. Now we’re going to get a Coen Brothers Western, come on. The NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN filmmakers have said they are going to keep closer to Charles Portis’ original book than the John Wayne version did. But these are the same guys who made a version of THE ODYSSEY and claim to have never read it, so you never know. Jeff Bridges takes the role of Marshall Reuben J. Cogburn, who is hunting down the murderer of a young girl’s father. Could this earn him another Oscar? The role did it for Wayne. Cast also includes Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, and Barry Pepper. What a poetic list; it began with a remake of a Coen Brothers film and ends with a Coen Brothers remake.

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Each year the RFP Overlooked Awards celebrates films that didn’t quite get the praise in the awards season they deserved. New to this year’s awards is the expansion of the Best Picture Honorable Mentions to nine entries. If the Academy Awards can nominate 10 films, there’s no reason why I can’t highlight 10 films as well.

Picture
Winner: GOODBYE SOLO
Ramin Bahrani’s touching drama blew me away like few films did in 2009. As a result I named it the best film of the year. It was a hard choice along with THE HURT LOCKER and A SERIOUS MAN as the three films were instant masterpieces to me. Bahrani’s story of Solo, an African immigrant who befriends an old white man who seems determined to kill himself, is full of life — both the good and bad parts. The tight, but simple, screenplay wraps the audience up in the lives of these characters and uses our discovery of them as the driving force of the narrative. Souleymane Sy Savane’s lead performance is electric and he is supposed wonderfully by the gruff Red West. Bahrani’s direction is simple and direct, ending the film with bittersweet poetry. Small films with no stars get overlooked every year, but rarely do they have the dramatic power of this one. Bahrani has quietly become an indie superstar. His previous films, MAN PUSH CART and CHOP SHOP, have received great praise. From story to direction, this magnificent film clearly shows he is a master of his craft.

Honorable Mentions
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Marc Webb’s romantic comedy was the best of 2009. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel are charming as a couple where the man loves a woman who says she doesn’t believe in love. Filled with poignant bits of whimsy, the film reminded me of Woody Allen’s ANNIE HALL.

ANVIL!: THE STORY OF ANVIL
One of the best docs of 2009. The Academy wrongly left it off its short list for nominations. The film follows Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner who have been friends since middle school and have been playing metal music ever since. They were a hit band in the early 1980s, but quickly faded. Lips hasn’t given up. It’s like THIS IS SPINAL TAP meets AMERICAN MOVIE.

INVICTUS
Clint Eastwood’s story of how Nelson Mandela used South Africa’s love of rugby to unite the country is an emotional drama about leadership, racism and sports. Both Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon deserved their Oscar nods.

JULIA
Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton gives the best female performance of 2009 in this unpredictable thriller from Erick Zonca. It starts off as a portrait of an alcoholic than transforms into a harrowing kidnap yarn and ends in a world of dark irony.

THE ROAD
Based on Cormac McCarthy’s brilliant novel, John Hillcoat’s screen adaptation is a powerful ode to the responsibility of parents to protect their children from a dangerous world. Viggo Mortensen and Robert Duvall give memorable performances.

SIN NOMBRE
Newcomer Cary Fukunaga showed great promise with this powerful story of gangs and illegal immigration in South America. The drama takes a compelling look at why people risk their lives to make it to the U.S.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
Spike Jonze’s brooding ode to the confusion of growing up is about children, but not necessarily for children. He transforms Maurice Sendak’s picture book into one of the most daring studio productions in ages.

WATCHMEN
Zack Snyder sticks very close to Alan Moore’s seminal graphic novel and crafts a visually arresting superhero film unlike any other superhero film. The film contemplates the realities of putting on masks to save the world and the implications of how superpowers would alienate one from humanity.

WE LIVE IN PUBLIC
Another great doc overlooked at the Academy Awards. Ondi Timoner’s film profiles Josh Harris, an early Internet pioneer turned performance artist, who predicted how we’d be living in 2010 in 1999.

Best Actor
Souleymane Sy Savane — GOODBYE SOLO
A former flight attendant, Savane is an actor to watch. Since landing an Independent Spirit nod for this performance, he has acted on the TV series DAMAGES. His effervescent performance in Ramin Bahrani’s brilliant drama is the heart and soul of the story. He is a natural and a joy to watch.

Honorable Mentions
Matt Damon – THE INFORMANT!
While he was great in INVICTUS, this is the performance from 2009 he should have received an Oscar nod for.

Viggo Mortensen – THE ROAD
Once again another harrowing performance from one of the best actors working today. He makes the film work.

Sam Rockwell — MOON
In playing two roles in a film with few other actors, Rockwell carries this ingenious sci-fi film with a touching performance.

Michael Stuhlbarg - A SERIOUS MAN
As the Job-like lead in the Coens’ latest masterpiece, Stuhlbarg was one of the breakthrough performers of 2009. His subtle performance is serious, which makes the rest of us laugh at this dark comedy.

Best Actress
Winner: Tilda Swinton – JULIA
Oscar-winner Swinton gives the best female performance of 2009. She is simply brilliant as the alcoholic who thinks that she’s smarter than everyone else around her. She’s a manipulator and a schemer. Swinton doesn’t try to soften her up so that we’ll like her and that’s what makes her performance one of the bravest of the year as well.

Honorable Mentions
Emily Blunt — THE YOUNG VICTORIA
Blunt has been turning in one great performance after another. She gives rare emotional depth to a monarch who isn’t supposed to show emotion.

Charlotte Gainsbourg — ANTICHRIST
Gainsbourg’s performance in Lars von Treir’s shocking drama is the bravest of 2009. The Cannes Film Festival rewarded her, but other awards were not brave enough to follow suit.

Saoirse Ronan — THE LOVELY BONES
Oscar-nominee Ronan is a joy to watch in Peter Jackson’s misread drama. She full of life performance underlines the tragedy of the story even more.

Zoe Saldana — AVATAR
The technology prejudice got in the way of her passionate performance. Saldana’s power and vulnerability shine through though in her warrior princess.

Best Supporting Actor
Anthony Mackie – THE HURT LOCKER
Jeremy Renner received a very deserved Best Actor Oscar nod for this brilliant film, but without Mackie, he wouldn’t stand out as much. As the opposite of Renner’s lead, Mackie is a voice of reason in the madness of war. He is everything that a supporting actor should be.

Honorable Mentions
Zach Galifianakis – THE HANGOVER
Another one of the breakthrough performances of 2009, he steals this raunchy comedy like John Belushi stole ANIMAL HOUSE.

Alfred Molina – AN EDUCATION
Molina brings heart to the overbearing and naïve father of Oscar-nominee Carey Mulligan’s young lover.

Peter Sarsgaard – AN EDUCATION
Sarsgaard is great in every role he takes. As the older lover of Oscar-nominee Carey Mulligan, he is both charming and unsettling at the same time.

Jason Schwartzman– FANTASTIC MR. FOX
He steals every scene his voice performance appears in. Schwartzman brings an honest teen angst to his role that is rarely seen on screen in animation or live-action.

Best Supporting Actress
Vera Farmiga – NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH
Farmiga was nominated for her role in UP IN THE AIR, but this was the role of 2009 that stood out. The problem is that the film went direct-to-DVD. Nonetheless, her performance as an exposed CIA agent is powerful. She makes us understand how this tough woman could succeed in a male-dominated profession.

Honorable Mentions
Paula Patton – PRECIOUS
Patton gives a touching performance as the inspirational teacher to Oscar-nominee Gabourey “Gabby” Sidibe.

Imelda Staunton – TAKING WOODSTOCK
Oscar-nominee Staunton is the highlight of Ang Lee’s ode to the 1960s as a Russian immigrant with irrational fears and a frugal nature.

Meryl Streep – FANTASTIC MR. FOX
In MR. FOX, Streep proves that nearly every role she takes is worth praising. She wry delivery as the beleaguered momma Fox is hilarious.

Rachel Weisz – THE BROTHERS BLOOM
Weisz is electric as the eccentric heiress in this con game movie where the mark loves the excitement of the game.

Best Director
Ramin Bahrani - GOODBYE SOLO
Bahrani is a patient filmmaker who allows his story to build one revelation upon the next. He draws natural performances from his actors and understands all his characters from the leads to the small supporting roles and allows each of them to be themselves all the time. GOODBYE SOLO never steps wrong under his confident leadership.

Honorable Mentions
Neill Blomkamp – DISTRICT 9
In adapting his short film ALIVE IN JO’BERG into a feature, Blomkamp avoided all the problems that come with adapting short stories into features and made a $30 million sci-fi actioner seem like it cost millions more.

Joel & Ethan Coen – A SERIOUS MAN
The Coen brothers are geniuses and they show it will this complex dark comedy that says a lot about life without getting bogged down in artsy dogma.

Michael Haneke – THE WHITE RIBBON
This stark black & white thriller leaves a great deal of questions unanswered but that is the point. It took a daring and confident director like Haneke to pull it off.

Oren Peli – PARANORMAL ACTIVITY
Peli is an inspiration to all aspiring filmmakers. He took the resources he had and crafted one of the most compelling and frightening horror films in years.

Best Screenplay
Bahareh Azimi & Ramin Bahrani - GOODBYE SOLO
Because Bahrani is not a flashy director, it’s hard to see where the screenplay ends and his direction begins. But the honesty and brilliance of his third feature film must have started on the page. It’s the most emotionally honest story I saw in all of 2009.

Honorable Mentions
Ron Clements & John Musker and Rob Edwards – THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG
The Disney story crew took what had come before in Disney princess fairy tales and twisted it for the modern age while staying true to its heart.

Michael Haneke – THE WHITE RIBBON
Haneke’s thriller is a murder mystery wrapped up in turbulent German history. The complex narrative juggles multiple storylines with ease. His story is a puzzle that cannot be completely solved in one pass.

Barry Jenkins - MEDICINE FOR MELANCHOLY
One of the best romances of 2009, Jenkins crafts two modern lovers who are exactly that. His understanding for contemporary relationships is precise.

Aude Py and Erick Zonca – JULIA
Py and Zonca’s epic thriller is like three films in one. They take the time to lay out a complex portrait of their lead character and then thrust her into a world she isn’t prepared for, and in the process they fascinate the viewer from start to finish.

Best Animated Short
RUNAWAY – Cordell Barker
The National Film Board of Canada is like Warhol’s Factory but for animated films. It was a big surprise when Cordell Barker’s latest wasn’t nominated for an Oscar after his first two, THE CAT CAME BACK and STRANGE INVADERS, were both nominated. Seven years in the making, this is a simple story of a runaway train that has poignant things to say about the financial schemes of the modern world.

Honorable Mentions
THE CAT PIANO – Eddie White and Ari Gibson
Another one of the Oscar short listed films of 2009, this is a slick animated poem, narrated by Nick Cave, that tells the story of a devious musical instrument. Great visual and a creepy original tale drive this one.

SWEET DREAMS – Kirsten Lepore
This award-winning stop-motion short was made entirely of food and says something about being an outsider and the importance of eating well. And you have to love a film that stars a cupcake.

Jury Prize
This is category recognizes films and performances that I missed seeing in time for previous RFP Overlooked Awards that would have made the list, as well as films that were overlooked in the craft categories that I feel need to be acknowledged.

No prizes awarded this year.

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The supporting actor category is usually a category for surprises. This year the front runners are clear and the field is thin. But there is definitely room for some unexpected actors and actresses to find themselves with an Oscar nomination next Tuesday.

10) Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker) & Judi Dench (Nine)
The Hurt Locker review & trailer
Nine review & trailer
Mackie received an Indie Spirit award nomination last year for his performance in this Iraq War thriller. He deserves to be nominated but the film is being seen as a director’s film more so than one for its great cast. Lead Jeremy Renner has a far better chance, but Mackie should be there along with him.

The field for the supporting actress is far thinner than for the men. This allows room for solid performances for veteran actresses like Dench. The Oscar winner is a standout in NINE’s all-star cast. She adds grace to the film and gets to show off her singing chops. The film’s poor reception though weakens her real chances.

9) Alec Baldwin (It’s Complicated) & Maggie Gyllenhaal (Crazy Heart)
It’s Complicated review & trailer
Crazy Heart trailer
Baldwin’s role in this romantic comedy isn’t anything special, but he is really funny. Since becoming super hot on TV in 30 ROCK, Baldwin will be hosting the Oscars this year, which would make for some interesting moments if he winds up with a nomination as well. In reality, his chances are outside at best.

Gyllenhaal is less of an outside chance, but she is still being seen as the second fiddle to star Jeff Bridges. She’s well respected in Hollywood and it’s just a matter of time until she will be a nominee. She has a good shot, but there are a lot of other actresses with the same second-tier buzz around them as well.

8) Christian McKay (Me and Orson Welles) & Susan Sarandon (The Lovely Bones)
Me and Orson Welles trailer
The Lovely Bones review & trailer
For some time McKay was a top contender for a nomination, but his star has fallen because the film is just not getting seen. It will take a big push from his supporters for him to get a nomination. It’s said that his performance is so good that if one sees it, they will vote for him for sure.

Oscar-winner Sarandon is the comic relief in LOVELY BONES. She brings depth to a thin screen version of the character. It’s one of those performances where you can’t think of anyone else playing it after you see her. However, the film’s poor reception won’t help her chances.

7) Peter Sarsgaard (An Education) & Samantha Morton (The Messenger)
An Education review & trailer
The Messenger trailer
Now we start getting into more likely land. Like his wife Gyllenhaal, Sarsgaard is well respected in Tinsel Town and will have a nomination some day. Buzz for AN EDUCATION over all has been waning, the lack of certainty whether he should be in this category or Best Actor and a co-star to compete against only hurt his chances. That said, if the film rides into other categories, he could ride along with it.

THE MESSENGER is becoming the little film that could. While it has stronger chances in other categories, Oscar-nominee Morton has been getting rave reviews for her role as a war widow. Academy really likes to bring back past nominees and the film’s buzz is growing at the perfect time.

6) Christopher Plummer (The Last Station) & Zoe Saldana (Avatar)
The Last Station trailer
Avatar review & trailer
In my rundown of the Best Actor category, I put Plummer on that list, but he also has a chance to land here as well. His Golden Globe nomination was in the supporting category. He’s a beloved veteran and the actor’s branch might vote for him here just to see him among the nominees for the first time.

Whether Saldana lands here or the Best Actress category will only be revealed on Feb. 2nd. It’s one of those roles where a good case can be made for either. Academy members love her performance in this box office phenomenon. But can they get around the technology to vote for her? I think the supporting category makes it easier for them.

5) Alfred Molina - An Education & Penelope Cruz (Nine)
An Education review & trailer
Nine review & trailer
Molina gives a great performance in a film that looks pretty certain for the Best Picture nod. That gives him a slight edge on Plummer. He’s another one of those actors that is long over due for an Oscar nod.

Cruz gives the best performance in NINE. In some ways the poor reception for the film has helped her chances. Academy members might not like the film, but they respect what it was trying to do. Giving Cruz the nomination is like saying thanks for trying to the whole production. The past winner also deserves it.

4) Matt Damon (Invictus) & Julianne Moore (A Single Man)
Invictus review & trailer
A Single Man review & trailer
He’s Matt Damon. He’s very good in an inspiring film that will probably be nominated for Best Picture. He was nominated for the Golden Globe. The Academy wants him to be at the ceremony. I’d be surprised if he’s not among the final five.

In a stronger year, Moore wouldn’t be this high on the possible nominee list. She gives a solid memorable performance in what is virtually a cameo role. A SINGLE MAN is being looked at as an actor’s film, so that really helps her chances. She’s been nominated four times before, which doesn’t hurt.

3) Woody Harrelson (The Messenger) & Vera Farmiga (Up In the Air)
The Messenger trailer
Up in the Air review & trailer
When THE MESSENGER was first being screened, insiders were all talking about Morton. But critics’ circles have been putting their love behind Harrelson. He keeps picking up steam everyday. At this point the past nominee seems like a lock.

Farmiga has been great in everything she’s ever been in. She’s an actress that’s hot within Hollywood, but slightly under the radar in wider moviedom. This isn’t her most challenging role, but it seems like the one that will certainly get her her first Oscar nomination.

2) Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones) & Anna Kendrick (Up In the Air)
The Lovely Bones review & trailer
Up in the Air review & trailer
While Tucci’s star has fallen a bit, he’s still a lock for a nomination. He truly creates a unique creepy serial killer. The Academy loves nominating performances where the performer disappears into the character. It’s a worthy role for him to receive his first Oscar nod for.

Kendrick gives UP IN THE AIR a spark and heart that people are really responding to. She is one of the new it girls in Hollywood right now. The Supporting Actress category has notorious for being the category for crowning new talent.

1) Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds) & Mo’Nique (Precious)
Inglourious Basterds review & trailer
Precious review & trailer
The top contenders for both Supporting Actor and Actress are also nearly certain winners. They both walked away with the Golden Globe and nearly every major critics’ award. Waltz crafts a truly iconic villain in Quentin Tarantino’s Nazi-smashing epic. It’s a star-making turn. His extremely humble and gracious Globes speech won’t hurt his chances at all either.

Mo’Nique has had her name penciled in as the winner ever since people started seeing PRECIOUS. While the film’s buzz has faded a bit, she has remained on top. She gives a performance so powerful, it’s hard to ignore. It’s also one of those performances that makes people sit up and notice the depth of talent of someone who previously was only looked at as a funny lady.

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The last two weeks I’ve been looking at the Oscar contenders. First I looked at the Best Picture picture and then moved on to the Best Actor and Actress categories. This week we look at the directors. Last year I didn’t run down the director hopefuls but this year is a curious year because of how the Oscars have changed. In the past, there were cases where a director could get a nomination without their films being nominated for Best Picture. But now that there will be 10 Oscar nominees, I really, really think that the likelihood of that ever happening again are very slim.

10) Neill Blomkamp - District 9
If there is a chance of a director getting a nod without his film getting nominated then it might be Blomkamp. The Academy loves breakthrough directors and could reward the newcomer for his success. Don’t underestimate the respect given to a director who can make a big summer blockbuster for around $34 million.

9) Pete Docter - Up
An animation director has never been nominated for Best Director. But one would think that a Pixar director could do it. Docter’s UP is beloved so I’m sure he’s on some people’s minds, but he’s an outside chance at best.

8) Lone Scherfig - An Education
For a while Scherfig was on many lists as one of the final five. Recently the buzz for the film has waned and so has the buzz for its helmer. And as unfair as it seems, I really doubt that we’ll see two female directors nominated in the same year. And there is a woman higher on the list that is a lock.

7) Ethan and Joel Coen - A Serious Man
They’re the Coen Brothers. Many think that their Oscar for NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN helped allow them to make this film. It’s more likely they’ll be nominated in the screenplay category, but their names alone put them in the race.

6) Clint Eastwood - Invictus
He’s Clint Eastwood. He was nominated for the Golden Globe. He’s Clint Eastwood. He made an inspiring film that will probably have multiple nominations after Feb. 2^nd. Oh and did I mention that he’s freakin’ Clint Eastwood?

5) Lee Daniels - Precious
He’s on the bubble right now. At one time his film was a leading contender to win, but the buzz has fallen since its release. Rumors say he’s ruffed feathers in Hollywood, but his Director’s Guild nomination is very promising. It’s really a battle between him and Clint for the final slot. Let the best man win.

4) Quentin Tarantino - Inglourious Basterds
Tarantino is an Oscar winner, but not for director. He won Best Original Screenplay. He was nominated for PULP FICTION also as a director, but hasn’t been back to the dance since. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS is a director’s film. His talent raises the material for sure. He won’t win, but he will certainly be nominated.

3) Jason Reitman - Up in the Air
For a while there it looked like Hollywood’s wunderkind was going to win, but things have changed. He still has a chance, but even since writing the Best Picture outlook two weeks ago, the chances have dropped quite a bit. The two horses in front of him are pulling ahead.

2) Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker
Ask me a month ago who was going to win Best Director, I would have said Bigelow for sure. She deserves it for one. The Academy can calm critics that no woman has ever won Best Director. She deserves it. Her film is still a major contender to win the big prize. And did I mention that she deserves it?

1) James Cameron - Avatar
For every dollar more this film makes until Oscar ballots are due makes Cameron a stronger bet. He won the Golden Globe now and he’s a lock for a nomination. If this film breaks TITANIC’s box office record before awards night, he wins. And if he calls himself the King of the World in his acceptance speech again, who can argue with that?

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