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The 2009 Calvin Award for Best Overlooked Film is a great mix of the type of films that are overlooked by the American public year after year. There's a documentary, two foreign films (including one that made my Overlooked list for the 2008 award), and a slew of independent comedies and dramas. First-time filmmakers share space with revered veterans, sharing the distinction of making great films that nobody saw. In general, I have no problem with any of the films on this list (well, that's not entirely true. I have serious problems with Rachel Getting Married, but only because it's God awful).

My only problem with this list is that it doesn't push the envelope far enough in its idea of what makes a film Overlooked. Four of the 11 films on this list grossed more than $10 million—The Visitor was only a few hundred thousand off from that mark—and two of them would have been disqualified from being in this category had it been made a month later. Milk made over $30 million and won two major Academy Awards. It's hard to imagine that many of the people who check out this site haven't seen it. There were some truly fantastic films made in 2008 that got no attention from audiences, and I'm making it my job to ensure that people pay some attention. All of the films on this list made less than $5 million, and all ten combined for a paltry two Oscar nominations.

One of those Oscar nominations went to the first film on my list, Happy Go Lucky. Mike Leigh is known for making darkly realistic films like Secrets and Lies and Vera Drake, but most people forget that many of the films he made in the ‘70s and ‘80s were lighthearted comedies, admittedly with a touch of darkness in them. Happy Go Lucky is a throwback to those films; there is no story arc, the characters don't really change, and there isn't much conflict. All it aims to be is a funny, charming character study, and it is a delight to watch. Much of the credit must be given to the superb Sally Hawkins, who positively glows onscreen with positivity and gives this breezy film a surprising heft.

Things stay light and cheery at number nine with Son of Rambow an ode to the magic of movies and the innocence of childhood. Will Proudfoot is a young boy from a very religious family. He meets Joshua, a "bad boy," and after watching the movie First Blood, Will decides to make his own version of the film, with unintentionally hilarious results. Reminiscent of Danny Boyle's Millions, Rambow is a sweet and unassuming film about hope and passion. Bill Millner is outstanding as Will, completely owning the role and, unlike many child actors, never working for the laugh. He doesn't have to; his performance and the film earn so many that they have some to spare for the credits.

Childhood innocence and the power of storytelling take a turn for the horribly depressing in The Fall, number eight on my list. Director Tarsem Singh's followup to his psychological thriller The Cell tells the story of, Alexandria, a young girl who befriends a Hollywood stuntman in the hospital with a broken leg. The stuntman tells her a story of a group of warriors on a seemingly impossible quest, and we slide back and forth between the mythical story and the depressing reality of the man's life. Lee Pace, who starred in the cult TV hit Pushing Daisies, shows off his dramatic chops in a commanding performance, and Catinca Untaru's innocent Alexandria is a perfect foil for Pace's jaded character. But it is the visuals that make The Fall such a spectacular and memorable film. Simply put, it is a work of art.

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