by Sam Juliano
The prevailing opinion expressed by a fair number of bloggers is that the just-expired year was not particularly memorable in the world of movies. Some compiled lists in the spirit of ‘the best of the least’ and seemed to have little to be excited about. Still, while just about as many were far more favorable in their summary assessment, it appears that most of the lingering euphoria surrounds a plethora of foreign-language releases, which arrived on these shores steadily over the twelve month period, with some carry-overs from 2009, when they opened in their respective countries. Any ten-best list that fails to acknowledge cinema from board, though still artistically valid, can be seen as lazy in construction and predicated on a paucity of available contenders. The most dedicated and enthusiastic bloggers can be relied on to seek out as much of the newer crop as is physically negotiable, this invariably leads to the most informed and interesting year-end wrap. 2010 was no better or no worse than the years immediately preceeding it, and in all probability won’t be eclipsed by the coming years. For those adventurous souls with the hankering and the wherewithal to put in the needed investments, there are always between 30 and 40 films each and every year that will reward cineastes with a bevy of accomplished works by world-class directors, and some notable independents and documentaries, in large measure by artists trying to make their marks. Hence, for those throwing up their hands, I pose that they must seek out and not wait for the films to come to them.
After examining past diary entries, I discovered I managed close to 200 new releases over the past twelve months, and additionally approximately 75 big-screen showings of classic films offered up at retrospective houses (mostly the Film Forum and the IFC Film Center). Complicating the allocation of time, I also attended 36 stage plays, 8 concerts and 9 at-house operas and 6 others movie-theatre simulcasts. That all adds up to about 334 cultural out-of-home “events” over a 352 day period, enough to substantiate a serious mental unbalance that far outstrips any tame admissions of obsessive-compulsive disorder. This does not include a sporadic domestic regimentation of DVDs, blu-rays and CDs from what has developed into a massive collection, that can’t ever receive full justice from appraising eyes. Yet, I’m far from alone. A new blogger from Canada named “Sachin” admits in his own extraordinary blogsite wrap that he viewed 400 films over the past year, while old reliables like John Greco, Bobby Josson, Just Another Film Buff, Craig Kennedy, Jon Lanthier, Judy Geater, Drew McIntosh, Jake Cole, our two friends at Ferdy-on-Films, David Schleicher, the Olson brothers, and some others are active on the theatrical and home front each and every week as per their “diary” submissions and/or full reviews at their own sites. Of course any discussion of prolific movie viewing can be incomplete with the mention of Allan Fish, who all things considered has led the way for years, and the congenial staff at WitD, especially Jamie Ulher, Dee Dee, Jaime Grijalba, Bob Clark and the unassailable Joel Bocko.
Without further ado, I present to the film community my choices for the ten best films of 2010, with two caveats: 1) I continue to stand behind long-adhered to stipulations regarding release dates. The scope of eligibility is govered by USA theatrical appearance. Festival screenings do not count, only legitimate openings available to the public. Mind you, I have in the past made appearances at the New York Film Festival, and regularly attend Tribeca, but the best films at those venues must subsequently win theatre release before being considered. Otherwise, this year’s brilliant Dog Pound, (apparently scheduled for 2011 release) would certainly finish in my list. 2) I reserve the right to choose an extra film, thus creating a tie for the number 10 spot, a practice I’ve followed each and every year since I began compling lists. My “runners-up” list will include a dozen films, listed in no particular order. Films that made that sub-group are films I liked quite a bit, and are features that competed for the top ten right up until the last moment. Listings such as these are often arbitrary and are subject to second though days, even hours later. As always they reflect the taste of the composer, and in no way attempt to suggest that these are the films others will find equally as venerable. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Numerical order is perhaps the most arbitrary of all, and is the conceit of the drama queen.
Top Ten:
1 Lourdes (France) directed by Jessica Hausner
Bressonian in its tone (with a satirical nod to Bunuel) Jessica Hausner’s film is often as aesthetically beautiful as it is religiously touching, intoxicating to the eyes and ears with painterly compositions and Schubert and Bach on the soundtrack, but the question remains as to what the director is really trying to imply here. No doubt it is esasentially a satiric strike against the fanaticism that annually informs a visit to this sacred site, while still offering up reverence for those adherents who maintain the ritual and belief. At the film’s center is a petite wheelchair-bound woman, played superbly by Sylvie Testud, who doesn’t seem at all caught up in all the religious euphoria, until an event later on changes her life, but still doesn’t mitigate pertinent issues raised by a specialist on multiple sclerosis. While it seems obvious that the film doesn’t buy into blind adulation, it’s also clear that Hausner is willing to broach the contradictions inherent in Catholic doctrine, where some unfortunates are shot down indiscriminately, while devotion is often ‘rewarded’ with terminal disease. Perhaps the most facile aspect of Catholicism, (and for any religion for that matter) is the belief that things are there for a reason, and don’t need to be explained. This is film that haunts you months after the first viewing, and one that in its beauty and unbiased insights stands as one of the most accomplished in years.
2 Blue Valentine (USA) directed by Derek Cianfrance
Both Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams deliver explosive performances in Derek Gianfrance’s film, which the director admitted in a post-screening discussion was nearly ten years. The achingly realistic observational “day in the life” styled film may indeed have been a long time in planning mode, but you’d never know it from it’s seemingly improvisational execution, nor in its dearth of events that could be characterized as anything out of the ordinary. There’s more than a hint of Cassavettes here, and the raw and naturistic urgency of the work validates the cinematic use of a magnifying glass to document marriage fallout by way of an aching idiosyncratic portrait. Rarely has movie intimacy achieved such harrowing results. And even rarer still is the remarkable navigation of a narrative balancing act by Cianfrance that has the viewer wondering well after the screen turns black who is really the blame for the painful deterioration of such a supreme example of unconditional love. Gianfrance never takes the side of either protagonist, and as a viewer it’s hard to solve the source of the fallout. Hand-held camerwork and a superb flashback structure seem to consort to imply there is no difference from “then” and “now.” It’s quite a downer, but it rings with naked truth.
3 Carlos (France) directed by Oliver Assayas
The five-and-a-half hour epic Carlos by one of the best of all contemporary filmmakers, Olivier Assayas, is the story of Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, who for two decades was one of the most wanted terrorists on the planet. Between 1974, in London, where he tried to assassinate a British businessman, and 1994 where he was arrested in Khartoum, he lives several lives under various pseudonyms, weaving his way through the complexities of the international politics of the period. The riveting drama (there wasn’t a boring minute) is built around questions like ‘Who is Carlos? and what instigated him on his never-ending body and soul war against various groups in the political and social stratosphere? Assayas may well have crafted his masterpiece here, and by any barometer of measurement it’s one of the very best films of 2010. Edgar Ramirez is remarkable as are a plethora of supporting players, and the use of music and pulsating rhythms propel this film with an electrifying undercurrent. A number of showcase scenes stand out like the raid on OPEC headquarters. It’s been compared with Goodfellas, and like that Scorsese gem, the final segment (when Ramirez goes through a stage of hedonistic corpulence) may lag a bit, but it’s a tiny blemish on a film that’s as entertaining as any one is likely to see these days. Assayas was as successful with his marathon film as Steven Soderbergh was not a few years back. Where Carlos was rich, vivid and diverse, Che was redundant, tedious and one-note. In any case Carlos vies with Summer Hours as the director’s finest work.
4 Another Year (UK) directed by Mike Leigh
In the opening scene of Mike Leigh’s great and astonishingly perceptive Another Year Imelda Staunton visits her gynecologist, and asks for sleeping pills without discussing the real causes of her depression. This sets in motion a film of shared difficulties by other characters whose behavior and interactions broach issues of life, death, marriage and unhappiness all presented in typical improvosational Leigh style, with characters eschewing preachy speeches in favor of the small moments that inform the much larger human condition. It may well have eclipsed Vera Drake and Life is Sweet as Leigh’s finest film ever, but it’s bittersweet underpinnings show the director in a more contemplative and elegiac mood. Broadbent (one of the finest actors in the world), Manville and Sheen give performances of great depth and aching resonance, and several show piece scenes like the one where Manville smokes a cigarette with a spooky character outside are classics.
5 Rabbit Hole (USA) directed by John Cameron Mitchell
Rabbit Hole is a painfully real-life situational chamber drama that examines a faltering marriage and the callousness that may result from a failure to process grief and do the kind of things that might facilitate the healing process. At the center of the drama are Becca and Howie, played by Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart. No blame is implied or asserted in Rabbit Hole, which in mainly concerned with how people interact and how the most unlikely of developments may actually allow the healing process to accelerate through mutual understanding and even kindness. to procreate again. Lindsay-Abair’s script insightfully opines that sorrow is isolating, and within these claustrophobic verbal parameters everything that is said is wrong, jokes and ‘cute’ anecdotes only serve to wound and family conversations are shaped by spastic pattern of recriminations and apologies. The film rightly asserts that dialogue in and of itself is a healer, and that the most unlikely of meetings can lead to some kind of begruding acceptance. Beautifully lensed in sedate hues and scored with autumnal tones, the film is one of the best of American chamber dramas about the process of grief, that includes Robert Redford’s Ordinary People.
6 Un Prophete (France) directed by Jacques Audiard
Jacques Audiard’s film, which first appeared on USA screens back in March, is one of the great prison dramas, one whose long running time yields to sustained tension and a fascinating character metamorphosis. The raw and realistic story of murder, redemption and role-reversal contains hucinatory florishes and a no-holds-barred view of the despair behind the walls, that invariable leads to murder, mob control and a survival-of-the-fittest pecking order. Both Tahar Rahim, who plays Malik, and Nils Arestrup, who plays the corpulent Luciani, are electrifying in their portrayals, and in the end there’s audience sympathy fro Malik, whose stamina, charisma and independence show inner strength that was forged over a period of times in this thankless setting, where danger lurks at every turn. Audiard’s greatets film is a worthy successor to Bresson and Becker.
7 Toy Story 3 (USA) directed by Lee Unkrich
The final saga in the Toy Story saga is the one with the most lasting emotional resonance, a film that sacrifices much of the zippy homor for a pervading sense of melancholy enconsed in issues of abandonment, abuse and close calls. One of the most deeply felt moments in Pixar’s entire arsenal is the one where Andy says goodbye to his toys. It’s a wenching moment that defies logic but was built on a long and loving relationship with characters made famous in the commercial channels. Newbie director Lee Unkrish, a longtime associate of Lassetter spent years refining the arc of the story to reflective a mature perspective and the entire inner story of teh toys being on their own. This is technologically the most advanced animation, and proof parcel that the most accomplished craftsmen can collaborate to produce the best product. Square can be beautiful too folks!
8 The King’s Speech (UK) directed by Tom Hooper
All it really takes is two great actors (Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush), astory about a speech impediment in the English monarchy, some plaintive if repetitious music from ace composer Alexander Desplat, a generous dose of Ludwig Van’s Seventh, the period of Britain’s “finest hour” and a striking visual period replication. Nothing more, nothing less. There’s areason why nearly every critic is smitten with this film, and I’ll be damned if I jump off the wagon.
9 My Dog Tulip (USA) directed by Paul and Sandra Fierlinger
Near the beginning of the charming and wistful animated feature My Dog Tulip, Christopher Plummer intones “Unable to love each other, the English turned to dogs.” Based on a 1956 memoir by British author J.R. Ackerly, and patterned after the dog drawings of James Thurber, the delightful and wryly humorous work loosely chronicles the travails of the dog tulip, who is moved from one owner to the next. The film has a breezy charm while broaching universal themes, and it’s clear that directors Paul and Sandra Fierlinger are fans of both Ackerley and Thurber, as their own style here is infectious. Plummer, Lynn Redgrave, Isabella Rossellini and Brian Murray contribute wonderful voice support.
10 The Strange Case of Angelica (Brazil) dir. by. M. de Oliveira (tie)
102 year-old Portugese director Manoel de Oliveira is more than a legend, he’s a near-aberation of what people consider as normal or even possible. Yet, his miraculous achievement is far more that he is even working at that age, but that he can craft films of this kind of quality. The Strange Case of Angelica combines mystery, obssession and satiric humor, while telling a story with surrealist underpinnings, visualized in ravishing art house compositions that in and of themselves are impossible to divert from. There’s a touch of Bergman and Bunuel here, yet Oliveira is a unique talent whose hybrid approach is most original. This is his best film in years, and one that appeal equally to a number of genre fans.
10. Waste Land (USA/Brazil) directed by Lucy Walker (tie)
Lucy Walker’s inspiring documentary Wasteland shows just how much impoverished people can do with so little. It’s kind of classical with with it’s art-from-refuse underpinning, but there so many human interest stories, and many examples of how creativity and perseverence can bring forth finished products that would make professionals proud. It’s a story of hope and teamwork, and submerged talent. So many portraits, like the man who finds a book on Machiavelli and reads it, and the woman who makes soup in the refuse, add to a story of lives changed by their surroundings. There’s a soaring lyricism packed in so many frames and an indominability of the human spirit on display.
Runners-Up: 12 Films in no particular order:
White Material (France)
Shutter Island (USA)
Winter’s Bone (USA)
Samson and Delilah (Australia)
Vincere (Italy)
Jean-Michele Basquiat: The Radiant Child (USA)
Inside Job (USA)
Mademoiselle Chambon (France)
The Kids are All Right (USA)
Fish Tank (UK)
Never Let Me Go (USA)
and
How To Train Your Dragon (USA)
Best Director: Oliver Assayas (Carlos)
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Edgar Ramirez (Carlos)
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Giovanna Mezzogiorno (Vincere)
I am still pondering many of the other categories and am unable and/or unwilling to post final choices at this time.
Another great top ten list popping up on another great film blog. With so many other film sites like the Seventh Art and The Reverse Image providing brilliant top tens last week, I was beginning to wonder when you would put up one of your own. I’m happy you didn’t disappoint. I’m also jealous you got to see both Manoel de Oliveira’s “The Strange Case of Angelica” and Mike Leigh’s “Another Year” this year (both films sadly missed my top ten which will be up hopefully by tomorrow). I’m happy to see A Prophet (my number 2 last year) make the top 5; An instant classic in the gangster genre with some of the best performances of the past decade. Carlos (which will definitely be on my own top ten) has been the favorite for almost every art house critic and for good reason. Its a shame the film won’t have a chance at the Oscars but I hope it sweeps the Golden Globes for the Mini-series awards. I haven’t seen a better lead performance from 2010 than Edgar Ramirez. I missed out on Lourdes in 2009 and never thought about catching it in 2010. I’ll make sure that wont happen in 2011. As always great post!
This is a Hall of Fame comment, Anu, and hearing from you is a very special treat. It’s quite an opening salvo to this thread too! You have been here supporting all of us for a very long time, and your commentary during all the countdowns will be remembered with deep appreciation. I can’t thank you enough for the ultra-generous words about Wonders in the Dark and this post in particular.
I really can’t wait for your own list, and will be keeping an eye out at THE CONFIDENTIAL REPORT.
I caught ANGELICA and ANOTHER YEAR near the very end of December, and was thrilled the made such a resounding impact, although with Leigh and de Oliveira the odds are good! I do think this is Leigh’s greatest masterpiece in a career of a number of em.
Completely agree there on what you say about Ramirez, CARLOS and UN PROPHETE!
Thanks as always my very good friend!
Sam I believe it was your 2009 top ten list that I stumbled upon last year and was first introduced to you and Wonders in the Dark. Well I am here to catch your list first hand this year! 🙂
Thanks so much for mentioning that Terrell! That was also the window to enter the wonderful world of the Creative Potager, where new treasures appear at every turn! Here’s to the best year ever in 2011 my very good friend!
Hello Sam!
Intriguing list here. I’m thrilled that you chose Giovanna Mezzogiorno as the year’s best actress- her performance in “Vincere” was unforgettable.
I’m woefully behind on my 2010 viewing, still struggling to catch up. So there will be no list from me this year, but I very much enjoyed reading yours.
Thnks so much Pat! I will be keeping an eye out for your own much-valued perspective in the coming weeks!
Yes, Ms. Mezzogiorno was electrifying, and I didn’t see a greater performance this year in any acting category. VINCERE was an exceptional film as well, and it missed my own Top 10 here by a hair.
What?
No GREENZONE, HARRY POTTER, LITTLE FUCKERS or YOGI BEAR?!?!?!?
Christ almighty Schmulee, you’re really losing it…
Dennis, that distinguished lot deserved further contemplation, you are quite right. I am seriously pondering a revision!
Thanks very much my good friend!
Lol Dennis can I add Season Of The Witch (the Cage strikes again!!!!), The Last Airbender, and Country Strong to inexplicable Sam snubs. Mr Juliano disappoints with this latest year end list. Subtitles hurt my eyes…
Ha! You and my wife both Maurizio!
I figured Dennis would go bonkers over “Yogi Bear” but I never thought he’d choose to go public about it. You should have taken him along to see Gulliver.
Sam, a few of your pictures have disappeared.
This is a very great Top Ten that was reached only after a year of torrid film going. I can imagine how difficult it was to make eliminations, and that a Top 20 wouldn’t have been all that bad an idea. I’ll heed your call on “Lourdes” and I am impatiently waiting for “Blue Valentine.” Your write-ups, opening, excellent mix, all first-rate. And to have published two posts like these on the same day is an amazement. I hope Lucille and the kids had as wonderful time as you did over the past year at the movies. By rights, you could put together a Top 10 of all the film classics you saw.
Fred: The pictures keep appearing and disappearing. That’s what happens with my dubious cut and paste method I’m afraid, but thanks for the heads-up!
The suggestion of a list of classics is a very good one, and I’ll have to put some time into it. But with so many masterworks seen, it would be quite an arduous task to pare it all down. The family did by and large have a great time, especially at that William Castle retrospective, where the Film Forum was fully rigged to carry out the horror master’s glorious gimmicks!
Thanks as always my very good friend. Yes, I had a busy week on the PC!
Blimey, marvellous list. I thought ‘Inside job’ might have been in there, but vis your descriptive reviews – it’s a real tantalising selection.
Bobby: The numerical order is always so difficult and subject to re-evauluation just hours after. I guess that’s the arbitrary nature of it all. But I thought INSIDE JOB was quite excellent, and among documentary features was one of the year’s best.
Thanks as always my supportive friend for the very kind words!
“Numerical order is perhaps the most arbitrary of all, and is the conceit of the drama queen. ” – Hahaha.
One thing I noticed that this time around is that it has been the year of women directors – Maren Ade, Lisa Cholodenko, Tanya Hamilton, Sofia Coppola, Sharon Lockhart, Laura Poitras, Debra Granik, Catherine Breillat, Kelly Reichardt, Tamra Davis, Jessica Hausner, Lucy Walker, Andrea Arnold, Claire Denis, and so many more. This is such a marvelous trend and the only reason 2010 seemed passable.
A truly eclectic list and an equally superb set of capsules here, Sam. Loved the take on Lourdes. Why is it that religion-tinged movies bring out the best in you? 😉 I haven’t seen seven of the ten films mentioned here, can you believe it?! I just can’t wait to see Blue Valentine, Another year and Angelica. Splendid work here, Sam, which is only representative your work on and off WitD for the past year. Bravo!
P.S: That pic of Sylvie Testud reminds me so much of Giulietta Masina…
Stupendous, insightful comment here, JAFB, one of your greatest ever!
I knew that female directors made their mark this year, but never gave thought to the amazing scope of that achievement! I’ve seen the lion’s share of those films, and I’d pose to add with gusto the name of Nicole Holefcener, whose PLEASE GIVE could well have made that Runner-Up 12. With further thought it should have, as that was a most impressive work.
You have a point there with religious-themed films, as I have maintained a lifelong reverence for the likes of Bresson, Bunuel and Bergman, and have found the subject eternally fascinating. I am a kind of lapsed Cathoilc myself, though I continue to follow along with the upbringing of my children, all of whom have received (or will receive) their baptism, communion and confirmation and attend after-school “catechism” taught by church volunteers. I am not an atheist, but rather an agnostic who remsins a part-time parishoner. Religious films have intrigued me back to the silent Biblical epics (THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC, DAY OF WRATH, BEN-HUR, THE ROBE, THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, THE SONG OF BERNADETTE, THE MIRACLE OF OUR LADY OF FATIMA, etc.) and I find the thematic treatment by the great masters among the cinema’s greatest achievements.
With all you’ve seen this yrear, I find it incredible that a few of these have slipped by you to this point, but it gives me something to look forward to after you complete some viewings!
Thanks as always my generous friend!
I know full well the enormous amount of time you put aside to deliberate on and make this remarkable presentation.
That you stood with Lourdes (over what is it, ten months?) is a testament to the film’s greatness. It had to kill you to toss out some of your favorites like Vincere and White Material, but to do this kind of thing you must make the hard choices.
You definitely made a statement by ignoring The Social Network.
Yes, Frank, the absense of THE SOCIAL NETWORK is rather bizarre, in view of its unanimous regard by the professional and blogging ranks. I like teh film, and see some great things in it, but it all seems to always come down to an emotional connection, which I found lacking here.
Thanks for the exceedingly generous words about the time spent in finalyzing the choices. Yes, it is highly unusual for me to hold on to a #1 for that long a time. The film really stayed with me, needless to say!
My deepest appreciation for your amazing (and prolific) loyalty for the longest time my excellent friend!
We are in the mutual admiration society for a number of films on your list. Sadly, I didn’t see some of them, but hope to catch up with them in the coming year. Great work, my friend.
Many thanks Marilyn for the exceedingly kind words!
Yes, I have gleefully noticed the mutual choices, and that bolsters my own security by choosing them! I look forward to future essays at FERDY ON FILMS, which will undoubtably enrich the literature!
An interesting list with two movies I’ve actually seen: Rabbit Hole and Toy Story 3. I agree with both assetsments here, but I feel that Rabbit Hole owed way too much to ‘Le Fils’, and it really pales in comparison.
As you know, some of your films would never make my own 2010 list (Lourdes, Un Prophete, Strange Case of Angelica), because I am a purist and if I went by USA dates I’d be called a snob, and if I went by Chilean dates I’d be lost between stuff that’s available in DVD from about six months (or even a year) before it has its theatrical release, which date I go by?
Oh, and I also count short films in my list. Here is my (as of now) top 10 list of 2010:
1. Black Swan (Aronofsky)
2. Inception (Nolan)
3. The Trip (Winterbottom) – miniseries
4. I Saw the Devil (Kim)
5. Never Let Me Go (Romanek)
6. Toy Story 3 (Unkrich)
7. Nostalgy of the Light (Guzmán)
8. Wisdom Teeth (Hertzfeldt) – short
9. Certified Copy (Kiarostami)
10. Film Socialism (Godard)
Best Director (so far): Darren Aronofsky – Black Swan
Best Actor Leading Role (so far): Al Pacino – You Don’t Know Jack (tv movie)
Best Actress Leading Role (so far): Natalie Portman – Black Swan
Best Actor Supporting Role (so far): Rob Brydon – The Trip (miniseries)
Best Actress Supporting Role (so far): Marion Cotillard – Inception
I love LE FILS as well, Jaime, and just about every other Dardenne film for that matter. I can see where you are coming from, and while I am loathe to compare them, I am perhaps moved more with this film, perhaps because it’s social mores are more immediate and culturally negotiable. But they are both great films for sure.
I respect your method of considering films on their country-of-origin release year, though I have at least maintained consistency by going with a method that is embraced by USA critics, one that allows for a clearer view of what is currently out there and what physically appeared. This has allowed me to look to the present time, and not to engage in revisions. But either method is sound for several reasons. I may not be the biggest fan of BLACK SWAN, but I love teh director, and have seen some of teh net’s best work over teh past month in sizing up it’s artistic worth. Of course I applaus you for including Godard, Kiarostami, TOY STORY 3 and that Romanek film. And just yesterday Allan sent me a link to buy THE TRIP! Ha!
Many thanks as always for your wonderful support and astute perceptions my very good friend!
Now he’ll mull it over till the end of days.
Sam, you’ll have my opinion on Lourdes within the week (thanks for the opportunity) but right now Carlos sets the standard for me. I’ve been wavering between that and Social Network for a while, but in the not-quite-final analysis the Assayas is a film more than twice as long as the Fincher, yet has fewer false notes. I haven’t been as diligent a viewer of new films as some, so I won’t dare venture a top ten yet, but there’s a top two for the time being.
Samuel: I considered CARLOS for the top spot, believe me. I’ll never forget that marathon viewing Lucille and I attended at the IFC Film Center, and how this great film held us enraptured for four-and-a-half hours. Assayas managed something here that Stephen Soderbergh failed at a few years ago. I can’t at all blame you for going with it (if you do) as I can’t as well if you go with the spectacularly-praised THE SOCIAL NETWORK. (I blame myself for not falling into line with that one!) For me it was only a hair between CARLOS, LOURDES, BLUE VALENTINE and ANOTHER YEAR for the top spot. The numbers as always are there for drama.
I can’t wait to hear what you think of LOURDES.
Many thanks my very good friend, as always!
Sam – Not only do I LOVE this list, I LOVE the runners-up list too. I’ve printed the whole kit-and-kaboodle and fully intend to see each one of your recommendations by year’s end!
Thank you for pointing to Speaking from the Heart.
What a beautiful compliment and validation there Laurie!!! I can’t thank you enough for that!
I am stunned that you’ll seek out so many of these, and am on Cloud Nine to hear it! I know you loved THE KING’S SPEECH, and I would speculate that at least a dozen more would fall under your tasteful list of favorably-responded-to-films!
As always thanks exceedingly my excellent friend!
Great List Sam. I liked Lourdes enough to make my own top ten. I found that Ms Hausner was critiquing the absurdity of religion but doing it in such a subtle way as to have believers enjoy the movie as well. My top ten…..
1. Carlos (Assayas)
2. A Prophet (Audiard)
3. True Grit (Coen)
4. The Illusionist (Chomet)
5. Exit Through The Gift Shop (Banksy)
6. Animal Kingdom (Michod)
7. The Tillman Story (Bar-Lev)
8. Winter’s Bone (Granik)
9. Waste Land (Walker)
10. Inside Job (Ferguson)
With five of your ten making my own list Maurizio, I can only say BRAVO to you, Sir!
But it’s a great list all-around. I do like TRUE GRIT, even if it missed out on my own list. And I am thrilled to see LOURDES there, and the brilliant UN PROPHETE at #2. Then there is WINTER’S BONE, a raw and haunting film that barely missed with me. LET ME IN will always be underrated because it follows the Swedish film, and ANIMAL KINGDOM is a very interesting choice. That one was well-reviewed, and I liked it fair enough at the end of the day. Thrilled to see WASTELAND, and that you did a bang-up job in pulling everything together over the past month. It’s a fantastic Top Ten! You will no doubt collar those unseen titles soon enough.
Sam, Sue and I kept our promise and saw “Another Year” on Saturday night. Too bad I didn’t know you were over there seeing that play or we could have hooked up for a snack. I have not seen enough films to make a list by a long-shot, but if I did I think this newest Mike Leigh movie would top it. It never ceases to amaze me how everything flows so naturally with his actors. And Broadbent is incredible.
What work, time and money went into this list. Despite the disappearing pictures, it’s a show up there with the best of them. There are at lest five that I am dying to check out.
Thanks so much for that Peter!!
And what great news to heard that you and Sue haeded over for ANOTHER YEAR! You kept that well under wraps there my friend!
I knew you would both respond to it in a big way. You are the ultimate Broadbent fan, but who could argue. He was unforgettable in IRIS and so many other films.
I will keep you abreast of openings and the other “methods” and have hopfully resolved the missing picture problems!
Many thanks.
(the order is really of no importance to quality, more for me to complete)
1.Enter the Void*
2. Wild Grass*
3. Carlos (still yet to see entire 5 hour cut, so this may leap higher)
4. White Material*
5. Life During Wartime*
6. I Saw the Devil
7. Un Prophet*
8. Serbian Film*
9. Amer*
10. The Ghost Writer
11. The Two Escobars
12. Lebanon*
13. Mother*
14. Map of the Sounds of Tokyo*
15. Bluebeard*
I’d like to make special mention to films I was pretty excited about, and disappointed me quite a bit (the ‘artists’ in Hollywood had a very bad year IMHO):
True Grit
Killer Inside Me
Shutter Island
Inception
Black Swan
Still waiting to see ‘My Dog Tulip’, ‘Meek’s Cutoff’, ‘Winters Bone’ ‘Samson and Delilah’*, ‘Basquiat: Radiant Child’, ‘Lourdes’*, ‘Blue Valentine’, ‘This is England ’86’, ‘Film Socialisme’, ‘Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past…’, ‘Dogtooth*’ (I will be seeing ‘Winters Bone’, ‘Film Socialisme’, ‘Lourdes’, and ‘My Dog Tulip’ soon– probably this week– will return and edit this comment accordingly)
* = technically a 2009 release, but first available to me in a theater in 2010.
I’m also dying to see ‘Certified Copy’ which I haven’t had the chance to.
Well Jamie, that’s a list there to be proud of; eclectic, diverse and devoid of the multiplex spirit. I like CARLOS, WHITE MATERIAL, UN PROPHETE and BLUEBEARD from your Top 15, and only intensely dislike your #5. But there will always be such instance both ways, and one can look at a presentation like this and be humbled. I will look for your possible revisions, and would be most curious about your reaction to MY DOG TULIP later this week.
As UNCLE BOONMEE opens for the very first time in USA theatres in March (at the Film Forum here in NYC) I am counting it myself for 2011, but I’ve seen some count it as 2010. Same for the Godard.
Masterful stuff Jamie! Many thanks for enriching this thread immeasurably my very good friend!
Yep the ‘intense dislike’ for my #5, is equaled by mine for your #7! LOL.
LOL!!! Aye Jamie. My #5 is not your kind of film, but that’s cool.
What a wonderful list Sam. I look forward to seeing a lot of the films from your list, especially the top 2 and Another Year. Also, I am glad you mention merit for Dog Pound, a film that has me interested even though I had mixed feelings for Kim Chapiron’s previous film Sheitan.
Edgar Ramirez was indeed mesmerizing and I would give a runner-up nod to Vincent Cassel in Mesrine. I couldn’t help but compare Mesrine and Carlos as the two films share some ground even though the films are about two varying characters with different agendas.
Ah, a Mesrine fan. Cassel was magnificent. It was 2008, criminal it took so long to get to the States. It’s certainly as good a work as Carlos. Been telling Sam about it for about a year now.
Wow I have Mesrine on my Netflix queue. Will bump it up to the top immediately.
It is indeed incredible that it took more than 2 years for Mesrine to get released in Canada. Since it is a Canadian co-production, shot partly in Montreal and had Roy Dupuis in part I, I had expected it would have gotten a wider theatrical release in Canada but I believe it mostly showed in Quebec. I had to see it in DVD but in the end I am glad to have seen it a month apart from Carlos so as to compare the two.
It’s been out on DVD and Blu Ray in the UK for ages now, it’s very cheap. It placed in my 2000s countdown, where it was roundly ignored. 🙂
But it did get me to see it (I hadn’t when you highlighted it). I bought that great R2 box, then about a month later it came to Chicago on the bigscreen where I saw it with some friends who always claim “HEAT is the greatest crime film post 1980 (basically out birth date)”… it, um, got them to rethink some positions (and they are still yet to see any cut of CARLOS).
Sachin, thanks so very much once again! It’s amazing you haven’t seen these few, after the year you just had. But being that they just released, I guess we can say you haven’t yet had a chance. I also saw that last Chapiron film, and I agree it was mediocre. With DOG POUND, the director has taken a big leap forward. I much definitely see MESRINE, a film that my colleague Allan here has urged on me for a while.
I urge all Wonders in the Dark readers to head over to Sachin’s place to check out his list. This spectacular year-end wrap is incredibly comprehensive and will have people scurrying for ways to secure copies of many if not all of these:
http://likhna.blogspot.com/2010/12/best-of-2010-film-list.html
Thanks as always my very good friend for your kindness and friendship!
Both Another Year and My Dog Tulip only had a single showing at our film festival and I missed both films as I picked other options. I was certain Another Year would make it by Dec but it might be another few months for a theatrical release. Blue Valentine is now slated for end of Feb. I am sure I would have seen a lot more of those titles had I lived in Toronto or Vancouver but I certainly can’t complain as I was lucky to see many other titles, especially about 20-30 films from Rotterdam, many of which may not get released for another 1-2 years.
Thanks again for mentioning my list Sam. You are too kind.
Sachin: It was worth the trade off to see that Rotterdam batch for sure! MY DOG TULIP is actually back here at the Film Forum for one week ending on Thursday, but it’s basically a ‘Back by Popular Demand’ week, which has it being paired with the documentary KINGS OF PASTRY, a film that ran at around teh same problem in the same theatre. I would imagine a DVD is around the corner, but I would have hoped this film made its rounds.
I am very surprised (and disappointed) to hear that the Mike Leigh film will take that long to get there. I will keep my eyes and ears open on this title. You were just unlucky that you had that screening conflict.
Many thanks again!
I’ll be attending to your fascinating list, Sam. It brings me back to the present with some sense of direction. All I know there are The King’s Speech and Never Let Me Go, both of which I love.
And I quite agree Jim on both of those, films that I will visit again more than once! When the smoke clears I would love to know what films will impress you and Valerie the most. There may even be an essay or two in the cards. Many thanks my very good friend, and kudos to you for your incomparable work at this site!
As always I can depend on your list for some true unheralded gems that I would’ve never heard of otherwise — The Strange Case of Angelica being the case in point.
I can wait to watch Lourdes and Rabbit Hole.
I do have one question, though – wasn’t Un Prophete in US theaters in 2009? I recall it being up for an Oscar. I just saw it recently and loved it. Certainly list worthy!
I am a minor leaguer David, when it comes to introducing the film world to relatively obscure gems that may have escaped the radar.
That role in this world has been designated by the Lord Almighty to that delightful scholar from half way around the world, the esteemed Just Another Film Buff, (JAFB) of “The Seventh Art” fame, who, like the above-mentioned Sachin, restlessly search for the art house stuff that may have even been overlooked by NYC theatre bookers.
Ha! But thanks David, I would like to think my own list included some of the platform Manhattan openings that would be so easy to ignore. I can’t wait to hear your response to THE STRANGE CASE OF ANGELICA! I have a very good vibe!
UN PROPHETE did indeed get an Oscar nod, but that’s always the way it works with that category. The nomination comes and then the official USA release is always the following year. But my rules (the rules followed by 99% of USA critics) are that the March 2010 opening in the US means it counts for this past year. But it’s still open for debate.
Many thanks my excellent friend!
That was supposed to say I can’t wait to watch Lourdes and Rabbit Hole
Fantastic work Sam. You have made compelling cases for all, even those I am not so much in love with like “Blue Valentine.”
This is why my own list is tentative. I still haven’t seen “Lourdes”, “My Dog Tulip”, “Wasteland”, or “The Strange Case of Angelica”. So I will get to these as soon as possible. We’ll see if they affect my own, though they would have to be pretty strong to break into my top five. The bottom five I am a little less smitten with.
Anyway, your list nearly outshines my own. As for 2011, I have already seen a movie that will be in the running for the worst of the year. More on that later…
Many many thanks Jason! I know BLUE VALENTINE didn’t make the same impression on you, but I understand that. Although the reviews were strong, it’s a polarizing kind of film, that will affect people differently just on an emotional level alone. Looking ahead to those four films, I’d say there’s a good chance every one will work to varying degrees. WASTELAND and LOURDES may be the two that hit the most with you, but we’ll see.
I have a good idea as to what that awful film you are talking about might me. Ha!
Here’s Jason’s Best of the Year List:
http://moviesovermatter.com/2011/01/09/the-real-world-and-my-best-and-worst-lists-of-2010/
Sam,
Having only seen two (The King’s Speech and Toy Story 3) of your top 10 there are obviously eight more I am looking forward to catching up on. Two I have waiting and DVD and will surely watch over the next few weeks while BLUE VALENTINE will open in theaters here in a week or two. Some of them will have to wait for DVD releases since they will most likely not make it down here on the big screen.
A most interesting list Sam, an amazing year and some great work, Sam.
Aye John, but you’ll get the them soon enough, and as you say you have two to watch and Blue Valentine opening within two weeks. I am assuming Another Year will be by you in two weeks too, as they opened concurantly in the Angelika here, where they are still running. But I know it doesn’t always work that way. The toughest ones I would think would be My Dog Tulip and The Strange Case of Angelica. Un Prophet of course is on DVD.
Many thanks for the very generous words of support my very good friend!
Great list, Sam. I really need to see your top 2, as well as your 10a and 10b. They all appear to be fantastic, and Lourdes – while being one I was already curious about – I am extremely anxious to catch now after landing in the sweet spot here. I still need to catch the Leigh also, which I’ve just heard fantastic things about.
I obviously share in your love for Carlos and A Prophet, and from your runner-ups I of course adore White Material and Shutter Island, so it’s wonderful seeing them make an appearance. A typically thorough and thoughtful post from you, Sam. Keep up the great work!!!
Thanks very much for that splendid appraisal and much-appreciated compliments. Setting the bar with your own Top 25 at THE BLUE VIAL, where you showcased some eclectic art house titles, and irrefutable masterworks, these kind words are particularly gratifying! I am itching to know what you think of LOURDES and would much appreciate hearing the reaction. I know you are a huge fan of CARLOS and UN PROPHETE, as well as WHITE MATERIAL and SHUTTER ISLAND, and I can only be grateful to be in such excellent company!
Many thanks my very good friend!
Great work, Sam, and a fascinating list. I must admit I’ve seen very few new releases over the past year – mainly concentrating on the 1930s! – but will look forward to referring back to your list as I hopefully catch up with more of these in the weeks and months ahead. I should be seeing ‘The King’s Speech’ later this week.
And what a fantastic job you have done with that pre-code era my friend! Many thanks for the support and confidence, and I would think a fair number of these would please you exceedingly. THE KING’S SPEECH should indee dbe one, and I can’t wait for your summary judgement! Many thanks my very good friend!
Great list. Everytime I come to Wonders I’m once again amazed at what a great site this is and the passion that goes into it. Keep up the good work guys.
Many thanks to you Brian, for stopping in and saying what is music to our ears. The writers here are passionate for sure, and the result is always a red-blooded, no-holds-bared discussion. You’ve supported us right along, and I tip my cap to you my friend!
Sam, the thing I always like best about your Top 10s are that they are uniquely you. So many other lists seems like they’re just trying to catch a popular wave in an effort to seem “right.” Your lists are always reflective of your own interesting tastes.
Also, thrilled to see Waste Land sneak in for a tie in the 10th spot.
That is quite the thoughtful and typically creative comment from you Craig! I would indeed love to hear that one of my lists bears my stamp, but one always ponders before deciding on the films that connected with one intimately. Such was the case with the films I finally decided on. Thanks again for making my viewing of WASTELAND possible, and by championing this from the very start!
Hey, Sam!!!!!!!!
So I just couldn’t wait and watched Lourdes last night. I enjoyed it a great deal. It would definitely be considered top ten material were I to edit my current list (or at the very least be added to honorable mentions). I found it very subtle, very French, and very catholic (which as you know me being a lapsed Catholic, admirer of French filmmakers, and hugely appreciative of subtle artistic techniques used to tell stories…this was a perfect storm for me). Sylvie Testud was just amazing and spoke volumes with just her face. The calm static directorial style, the little bits of humor, the little bits of humanity, the open-mindedness of the central conceit, the solitude of the closing shot on Testud (with that infectious and ironic Italian pop song playing)…all of it worked quite well. It didn’t move me as much as say, Silent Light, which just blew me away with its extraordinarily ordinary terrestrial images, pure sound design and quietly intense intimate look into a community I knew very little about…but I would rank Lourdes along with it as one of the best religious-themed films of the past…oh, I dunno, ten years at least.
I’m tempted to do a full write-up, but I don’t think I could say anything new (or as well) as you have already illuminated here in this post and your original review of the film. Great job bringing this one to light, my friend!
David, that’s quite a spectacular submission: gracious, humble…….and damn brilliant!!! You speak volumes here in your own capsule, and yes, I KNEW this would be your cup, as you do love French fillmakers, subtle filmmaking, and Catholic themes. I knew of your love of SILENT LIGHT (which you reiterate here!) and likewise have been attuned to your generl embrace of religious-themed pictures (which I do share with you!) and agree with your acknowledgement of the humor, the humanity and the central conceit. The film was also captivating in his lush widescreen composition and the magnificence of Shubert and Bach on the soundtrack. And great too that you picked up that ironic and infectious Italian pop song over the end credits, which I was singing for days much to the disdain of my family! Testud was brilliance incarnate, as you also note. And I am thrilled to hear it would probably make your Top 10.
I am grateful to you for showing me the respect to watch it; it is a great honor you carried it through my friend!
Sam Juliano said,”after examining past diary entries, I discovered I managed close to 200 new releases over the past twelve months, and additionally approximately 75 big-screen showings of classic films offered up at retrospective houses (mostly the Film Forum and the IFC Film Center). Complicating the allocation of time, I also attended 36 stage plays, 8 concerts and 9 at-house operas and 6 others movie-theatre simulcasts. That all adds up to about 334 cultural out-of-home “events” over a 352 day period…”
Wow, Sam Juliano, that is astonishing…I have yet, to come close to match or watch all the films that you, Allan, your writers, and commenter, have watched this year.
Thanks, for sharing…your top ten choices with your readers, However, I’am totally “shocked” to find The Strange Case of Angelica on your list…Not!
Once again,
Thank-you, for sharing!…your top-ten films with the WitD readers.
DeeDee 😉 🙂
Dee Dee, believe it or not that “75” that I provided for the classic films seen on the big screen was too low an estimate. When you figure in 19 Ozus, 16 Takemitsus, 20 Chaplins, 32 Manns, 10 3Ds, 14 Castles, 5 Russells, and about 12 more individual classics, we’re talking here about 130, not 75. That makes my case for admission to a mental institution even stronger of course!
Thanks very much for the kind words about the list. I do believe that THE STRANGE CASE OF ANGELICA will greatly impress you, and I hope to get a screener of DVD of it in the very near future.
Sam, I finally got around to seeing Another Year this evening (after ditching a chance to see The Social Network a second time for reconsideration). Despite my confidence in this fine director’s work, I was a bit apprehensive that Leigh’s film would be unpleasantly depressive and therefore braced myself as I entered the theater. Not to worry I learned — this is a lovely, splendid film all around. For all its quietness and simplicity, it’s anything but quiet and simple. I understand why AMPAS didn’t go for it in a big way (the sands of age either didn’t resonate or voters didn’t want them to resonate). But this is really Leigh at his wisened best. The screenplay was rightly honored, the directorial perspective on point, and the acting first-rate all around. During the credits I balked for a few seconds at the choice of ending but then realized it was perfect.
Sam, I just saw part I of Carlos and must say it’s already definitely in my top 10 for the year — which, by the way, hasn’t been formulated yet until I’ve seen all the usual suspects. Edgar Ramirez certainly is electrifying so far.