However, I still part company from my colleagues in my staunch refusal to serve as a marketing arm of the film industry which would have us only mention movies currently in theaters. So, I’m strongly suggesting that after perusing my primary list based on Hollywood blockbusters, that you continue reading think about renting some of the equally-deserving lesser-knowns representative of other genres.
Over the past year, I literally screened hundreds of movies, the bulk of which were independently-produced artsy and foreign flicks that never made it into circulation beyond a few select theaters in New York, Los Angeles and a few other cities. This means that if I were to consider these indies in preparing my 10 Best List, it would primarily be comprised of pictures that you probably never heard of. Since I don’t want to write an exclusive retrospective that only other film critics could relate to, I’ve decided to limit my Top 10 to big-budget productions. However, I still part company from my colleagues in my staunch refusal to serve as a marketing arm of the film industry which would have us only mention movies currently in theaters.
So, I’m strongly suggesting that after perusing my primary list based on Hollywood blockbusters, that you continue reading think about renting some of the equally-deserving lesser-knowns representative of other genres.
Ten Best List:
1. Crash;
2. Munich;
3. War of the Worlds;
4. Coach Carter;
5. Hustle & Flow;
6. Hitch;
7. Zathura;
8. The Producers;
9. Batman; Begins; and,
10. The Gospel.
Best Foreign Films:
1. Calypso Dreams (Trinidad);
2. Nina’s Tragedies (Israel);
3. Ma Mere (France);
4. Don’t Move (Italy);
5. Emmanuel’s Gift (Ghana);
6. Bride & Prejudice (India);
7. 3-Iron (Japanese);
8. Darwin’s Nightmare (Tanzania);
9. Private (Palestine); 1
0. Deserted Station (Iran);
11. Cape of Good Hope (South Africa);
12. Balzac & the Little Chinese Seamstress (China);
13. Head-On (Germany);
14. The Man Who Copied (Brazil);
15. Aristide and the Endless Revolution (Haiti);
16. Congo: White King, Red Rubber, Black Death (Congo);
17. Turtles Can Fly (Iraq);
18. Torremolinos ’73 (Spain);
19. The Holy Girl (Argentina); and,
20. The Beautiful Country (Vietnam).
Best Documentaries:
1. The Vanishing Black Male;
2. The Grace Lee Project;
3. Walmart: The High Cost of Low Price;
4. The Untold Story of Emmett Till;
5. After Innocence;
6. Protocols of Zion;
7. Rock School;
8. The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill;
9. Mad Hot Ballroom;
10. March of the Penguins;
11. Gunner Palace;
12. Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room;
13. New York Doll;
14. Tell Them Who You Are;
15. Isn’t This a Time!
Honorable Mention:
1. Four Brothers;
2. Goodbye, and Good Luck;
3. Ice Princess;
4. Just Like Heaven;
5. Lila Says;
6. Mr. & Mrs. Smith;
7. G;
8. A Tout de Suite;
9. Sin City;
10. The Reception.
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