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People have a penchant for saying that the current year is a terrible year for film. Of course, 2010 can be considered a terrible year for film if we just focus on the Grown Ups and Blue Valentines of the year, but it's the same for any year. I think overall 2010 has been a pretty good year for film. My top 10 are all movies I love, and even my runner-ups are great; there's no filler here. Although there are no masterpieces (like in 2007, where There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men both came out), damn good filmmakers made some damn good films. And what's wrong with that?

The ten best picture nominees are not the ten best films of the year (three are on my list), but just because the Academy didn't "get" Greenberg doesn't really annoy me. It's a good, eclectic selection with both mass and limited appeal. Although having ten nominees somehow makes the Oscar race less exciting (it's been down to two for quite some time), it does help get lesser-known titles out there and gives Hollywood overall encouragement to keep making small, quality films. Let's hope every year there's a Winter's Bone nominated instead of a Blind Side.

I know you're as sad as I am that Greenberg won't be listed below, but overall we can't complain.


1. Black Swan

I’ve seen Black Swan three times. It’s my favorite movie of 2010. I’ve been asked to defend my choice and it’s a little hard to. Each time I’ve seen it I’ve found it funnier and funnier yet subtler and even more exciting than previous viewings. Black Swan is basically an over-the-top version of Swan Lake itself (provided the premise given in the film is the actual premise) put into a modern, sexy context.

One thing I find fantastic about Black Swan is the minor unsettling pieces that are prevalent throughout. This applies to the music, of course, but there are some great small visual pieces that not only are great in terms of character emotion but also show Aronofsky’s overall effectiveness as a director. Not only does he manage to get great performances out of people from whom one usually doesn’t expect greatness (although I couldn’t get the image of Meg Griffin out of my mind any time I saw Mila Kunis, and Meg Griffin is not someone you want to see making out with Natalie Portman), but he mixes it perfectly with visual flair and a general tautness. I’ve never understood the common thought on Aronofsky, that his films can only be seen once. I find them addictive. I can watch Requiem for a Dream on repeat, and while disturbing, Black Swan is hardly the type of movie that cuts deep into your soul. It’s no Eraserhead.

What I do like about Black Swan, too, is that it doesn’t make any sense and is unashamed about it. There’s no wrapping up what’s going on in Natalie Portman’s mind, and events basically go unexplained. It goes past a simple hallucination explanation to the point of no explanation. And it works.

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