in

The Cynical Optimist: Best of 2010

It’s that time of the year again, as we draw closer to Golden Globe and Academy Award announcements, a full 12 months of movie watching has come to an end. With that being said, here’s my list of the best films of 2010:

The Top Ten Films of 2010:

“Black Swan,” directed by Darren Aronofsky
“Inception,” directed by Christopher Nolan
“The Social Network,” directed by David Fincher
“True Grit,” directed by Joel & Ethan Coen
“The Fighter,” directed by David O. Russell
“Winter’s Bone,” directed by Debra Granik
“The Town,” directed by Ben Affleck
“The Kids Are All Right,” directed by Lisa Cholodenko
“127 Hours,” directed by Danny Boyle
“Toy Story 3,” directed by Lee Unkrich

Honorable Mentions and Personal Favorites:

“How to Train Your Dragon,” directed by Dean DeBlois
“Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World,” directed by Edgar Wright
“Exit Through the Gift Shop,” directed by Banksy
“Let Me In,” directed by Matt Reeves
“Splice,” directed by Vincenzo Natali
“Easy A,” directed by Will Gluck
“Kick-Ass,” directed by Matthew Vaughn
“Cyrus,” directed by Mark and Jay Duplass
“Shutter Island,” directed by Martin Scorsese
“Machete,” directed by Robert Rodriguez
“Predators,” directed by Nimród Antal

Not Screened (As of 12/28/2010):

“Restrepo,” directed by Tim Hetherington
“Rabbit Hole,” directed by John Cameron Mitchell
“Somewhere,” directed by Sofia Coppola
“Another Year,” directed by Mike Leigh
“Animal Kingdom,” directed by David Michôd
“The King’s Speech,” directed by Tom Hooper

Next column: The Worst of 2010

Bustin’ Makes Nic Cage Feel Good!

Judi Dench Joins Eastwood’s Hoover Biopic