It won’t be long until the most wonderful time of the year is here again – the time when critics announce their annual 10 best lists (what, where you expecting me to say the holidays?)!
Typically by this time of the year, a single film stands out that is certain to be crowned the year’s best by hundreds of critics (think of last year’s “No Country for Old Men”), but this year no such film has emerged. That’s not to say that we haven’t already seen many films that will top several lists.
Top 10 Prediction:
Two of this year’s biggest blockbusters, Pixar’s WALL-E and Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight should have no problem breaking the 100+ barrier this year.
They will be joined by a slew of independent films; most likely Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire, Gus Van Sant’s Milk and Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married.
Most year’s a documentary slips into the top 10, and with this year being weaker than past years for nonfiction films, Man on Wire – the year’s most acclaimed documentary – will likely appear on several lists.
That puts us up to six, but there’ still four spots to go – most of which will likely go to films that haven’t been released in most areas yet.
The final four spots will likely go to films by filmmakers who have cracked the top 10 in previous years. Sam Mendes, who had the most acclaimed film of 1999 with American Beauty, could find himself topping the list for a second time. David Fincher’s follow-up to Zodiac, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, has also been hyped by nearly everyone in the film industry.
Darren Aronofsky, whose Requiem for a Dream was hailed as a masterpiece, has received strong praise at film festivals for The Wrestler, staring Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei.
That leaves just one final spot, and two films still battling for a position. John Patrick Shanley brings his acclaimed play Doubt to the big screen with star treatment (Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Phillip Seymour Hoffman) and Ron Howard adapts a screenplay by Peter Morgan (The Queen) in Frost/Nixon.
Although both films have received strong early reviews, Streep’s performance should give Doubt the edge it needs to crack the top 10.
Top 10 Prediction:
1. Slumdog Millionaire
2. WALL-E
3. Revolutionary Road
4. The Dark Knight
5. Doubt
6. Milk
7. The Wrestler
8. Man on Wire
9. Rachel Getting Married
10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Possible Spoilers: Frost/Nixon, Happy-Go-Lucky, The Reader
Well, enough with my theories – what do you expect the top 10 to consist of?