Best in no particular order: THE READER, CHANGELING, IN BRUGES, DOUBT, I'VE LOVED YOU SO LONG, FROZEN RIVER, RACHEL GETTING MARRIED, IRON MAN, HAPPY-GO-LUCKY, THE BANK JOB, WENDY AND LUCY, THE FALL, SNOW ANGELS, THE DARK KNIGHT, WALL*E, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, THE WRESTLER
Honorable mentions: THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, FROST/NIXON, THE DUCHESS, TROPIC THUNDER, ROLE MODELS, DEATH-DEFYING ACTS, TELL NO ONE, REVOLUTIONARY ROAD, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA, MILK, DEFIANCE, MAN ON WIRE, GONZO, TRAITOR, AUSTRALIA, BRIDESHEAD REVISITED, PARANOID PARK
Ensemble cast of the year: BURN AFTER READING
Underachievers of the year (spotlighting films/filmmakers/actors who ought to be doing better work): MAMMA MIA!, GRAN TORINO, DEATH RACE, CASSANDRA'S DREAM, RIGHTEOUS KILL, DECEPTION, PINEAPPLE EXPRESS, HAMLET 2, HANCOCK, SEVEN POUNDS, STEP BROTHERS
Sort-of-guilty pleasures of the year: RAMBO, HELL RIDE
Best performance likely to be overlooked this year--Vera Farmiga in Rod Lurie's NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH (a film whose distributor--Yari Film Group--went into bankruptcy; perhaps it will still find some sort of theatrical distribution before going to DVD/pay cable).
DVD releases of the year: LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE FABULOUS STAINS, Universal/MGM's Alfred Hitchcock reissues, Criterion's TWO LANE BLACKTOP and BOTTLE ROCKET
Feel free to comment with agreements or dissenting views.
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