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It's that time of year again, folks: you know, the time when I yell at BOP editor/overlord David Mumpower about the “Best Overlooked Film” Calvin Award and how ridiculous the parameters are by which we define what constitutes being overlooked. Way back in 2002, the BOP staff decided, when creating this category, that any film that made less than $25 million during its domestic theatrical release would be deemed “overlooked” and thus be eligible for this award. That means that a film can earn — not even including international receipts and DVD sales — more than the gross domestic product of Latvia and still be considered overlooked. Latvia!

That's why I have started a new tradition on this site: The Best Seriously Overlooked Film of the Year, consisting of only films that made less than $1 million in the US. Last year the winner of the Best Overlooked Film category was The Hurt Locker, which, considering it won Best Picture, was probably seen, at least on DVD, by most of the readers of this site. Meanwhile, I put forward Bronson, a brilliant biopic starring up-and-comer Tom Hardy, as the Best Seriously Overlooked Film, with runners up including Lars von Trier's Antichrist, documentaries Anvil! and The Cove, and The Dardenne Brothers' Lorna's Silence.

This year there were a number of great films that made so little money their box office total wouldn't impress Dr. Evil (yeah, yeah, I made an Austin Powers reference. I'm working on a deadline here; give me a break). My list of the ten best seriously overlooked films of 2010 starts with another pair of documentaries, two films that I only saw due to a stroke of luck. Of the films that the Academy shortlisted for their Best Documentary award, only a handful were available on DVD, and even fewer of those was I able to stream via Netflix Instant Watch, the best tool in the arsenal of a man who tries to see movies nobody else has ever heard of.

William Kunstler: Disturbing the Unvierse, kicks off my list at number ten, and bears similarities to the 2003 documentary My Architect in the way it explores a public figure from a very personal perspective. William Kunstler was a civil rights lawyer who rose to fame defending the “Chicago Seven,” and became a wildly controversial figure, unafraid to challenge courts on issues of race. In his later years, Kunstler became vilified by conservatives and liberals alike when he chose to defend some very unpopular figures, and regularly received death threats. The film is directed by Kunstler's daughters, Sarah and Emily, who examine both their father's public persona and the role he had in shaping them. A touching and honest biodoc, Disturbing the Universe made just over $46,000, a disappointing figure for such a moving film.

GasLand comes in at number nine, another documentary that takes a personal approach to a public subject. Josh Fox chose to make this film after an oil company offered to buy his property, and his insightful look into the horrifying ways the oil industry is destroying our environment in its quest for profits is eye-opening and disturbing. Focusing on a process called fracking, Fox dared to challenge a multi-billion dollar industry and reveal the truth behind some of their more damaging practices. However, with only $30,000 in box office receipts, the message of this film was not heard nearly as loudly as it needs to be.

I wrote in detail about The Disappearance of Alice Creed in my “Don't Overlook It” series, but I'll gladly take the chance to sing its praises again by putting it at number eight on my list. Of the three films that Gemma Arterton starred in last year, two of them were awful and featured her in a dumb part giving a forgettable performance, and one of them was one of the most shocking films of the year, and sees her in a fascinating role giving a brilliant performance. Unfortunately, Clash of the Titans and Prince of Persia both made millions of dollars, while Alice Creed didn't even make it to the $167,000 mark. Arterton is magnificent as the title character, but she is matched by costars Eddie Marsan and Martin Compston. This is a film you truly need to see to believe.

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