The Top 10 Films of 2010

1. Monsters

With the title, “Monsters” — I think people expected a different film that they ultimately got.  While there are aliens in the film, they are largely ignored and irrelevant.  This film is actually a love story — and a superbly moving one at that.  Andrew and Samantha, superbly played by Scoot McNairy and Whitney Able, are a seemingly mismatched couple who need to cross the “Infected Zone” from Mexico to the USA.  The entire journey, we are expecting alien action and we never get it.  The love story sneaks up on us and wins the day.  Director, Gareth Edwards crafts a deceptive masterpiece.

2. Blue Valentine

A masterclass in how to show the disintegration of a relationship… “Blue Valentine” weaves between the begining and the ending of the same couple.  Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams are pitch perfect.  This film captures those particularly small moments that can define a love story.  It is not an easy watch… but it is a riveting one.

3. Somewhere

Some directors have a “tone”.  Sofia Coppola absolutely has her own unique tone… and it suits my taste perfectly.  This film harkens Coppola’s 2003 masterpiece, “Lost in Translation”.  If you like one, you will like the other.  Elle Fanning and Stephen Dorff both nail the roles.

4. The Social Network

For a film that is so extremely dialogue heavy, you would think that “The Social Network” wouldn’t hold up to repeat viewings.  I have seen the film a half dozen times over the past decade, and it gets better every time.  Sure, it takes liberties with the truth, but the conversations are like music.  Fincher may have directed it… but Sorkin’s script is the predominant force.

5. Last Night

Here is a very small film that most people will have missed.  Keira Knightley and Sam Worthington play a married couple who face a night where both are confronted with temptations.  Who will hold?  Who will cave?  This is a brilliant gem of a film with superb performances all around. 

6. Tron: Legacy

Having barely remembered the original, I was dragged kicking and screaming to the theater to see “Tron: Legacy”.  Everything about this film seemed like something I would hate.  I was so wrong.  This was one of the best blockbuster sci-fi movies in years.   The effects were indeed special.  The story was fascinating.  The music by Daft Punk was spectacular.  I had a great time with this one.

7. The American

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8. Black Swan

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9. True Grit

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10. Inception

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Toy Story 3 ………. 9.2
Let Me In ………. 9.1
Buried ………. 9.0
Hereafter ………. 8.9
The Next Three Days ………. 8.8
The Other Guys ………. 8.8
Greenberg ………. 8.8
Never Let Me Go ………. 8.7
Easy A ………. 8.7
Unthinkable ………. 8.7
The Housemaid (KOR) ………. 8.6
The Yellow Sea (KOR) ………. 8.6
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work ………. 8.5
127 Hours ………. 8.4
Repo Men ………. 8.3
Fair Game ………. 8.2
The Man From Nowhere (KOR) ………. 8.1
Klown (DEN) ………. 8.1
Catfish ………. 8.0
Inside Job ………. 8.0
Animal Kingdom ………. 8.0
Salt ………. 7.9
Chloe ………. 7.8
4.3.2.1 ………. 7.7
The Kids are All Right ………. 7.6
Centurion ………. 7.6
Letters to Juliet ………. 7.5
Hot Tub Time Machine ………. 7.5
Frozen ………. 7.4
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World ………. 7.3
Knight and Day ………. 7.3
The Joneses ………. 7.3
The Book of Eli ………. 7.3
True Legend (CHN) ………. 7.2
The Way Back ………. 7.1
The Last Airbender ………. 7.0
Splice ………. 7.0
Dear John ………. 6.9
The Ghost Writer ………. 6.9
The Disappearance of Alice Creed ………. 6.9
The Town ………. 6.8
Please Give ………. 6.7
Certified Copy (FRA) ………. 6.7
Green Zone ………. 6.6
MacGruber ………. 6.5
Winter’s Bone ………. 6.5
Happy Housewife, The ………. 6.4
Rabbit Hole ………. 6.3
She’s Out of My League ………. 6.3
Machete ………. 6.2
Date Night ………. 6.2
Shutter Island ………. 6.2
Due Date ………. 6.2
I Saw the Devil (KOR) ………. 6.1
Solitary Man ………. 6.0
Bitch Slap ………. 6.0
The Expendables ………. 5.9
Black Death ………. 5.8
Enter the Void (FRA) ………. 5.7
I’m Still Here ………. 5.7
Dinner for Schmucks ………. 5.7
Tamara Drewe ………. 5.7
Burlesque ………. 5.6
Countdown to Zero ………. 5.5
You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger ………. 5.5
Cyrus ………. 5.4
Our Family Wedding ………. 5.3
Room in Rome ………. 5.2
Brooklyn’s Finest ………. 5.1
Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief ………. 5.1
When in Rome ………. 5.0
Kick-Ass ………. 5.0
The King’s Speech ………. 4.8
The Fighter ………. 4.6
Valentine’s Day ………. 4.4
Stone ………. 4.2
The Robber (GER) ………. 4.2
The Killer Inside Me ………. 4.1
22 Bullets (FRA) ………. 4.0
Diary of a Wimpy Kid ………. 3.8
Middle Men ………. 3.6
Iron Man 2 ………. 3.5
Predators ………. 3.3
Little Fockers ………. 3.2
Eat, Pray, Love ………. 3.2
Get Him to the Greek ………. 3.1
Unstoppable ………. 2.9
Grown Ups ………. 2.6
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps ………. 2.5
From Paris with Love ………. 2.4
Extraordinary Measures ………. 2.2
Red ………. 2.2
The Story of F*** ………. 2.0

My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend ………. 2.0
Confessions (JPN) ………. 1.8
The Human Centipede ………. 1.6
A Serbian Film (SRB) ………. 1.5
Love and Other Drugs ………. 1.5
Sex and the City ………. 1.5
I Love You Phillip Morris ………. 1.3
The A-Team ………. 1.0
Piranha ………. 0.7
Freight ………. 0.1