So far, my first year as a film critic in print has been more pleasurable than it otherwise might have been. Since I don't yet operate under strict orders to review every single film that is invited to screen in our fair city or generously stocked by our faithful video rental outlets, I've been able to avoid certain selections which my good judgement tells me I'd have remained richer without having seen (sorry, Jackass Number Two, The Benchwarmers, and The Holiday). Oh, sure, I could be very very wrong about all those ones that got away (Let's Go To Prison, after all, could very well be the next Shawshank Redemption or Le trou), but for now I'm satisfied with keeping that little bit of mystery alive in my life.

I got to watch a whole lot of what I wanted to watch, and as a film critic that's a special privilege. What makes 2006 that much better is a lot of what I saw happened to be, to varying degrees, quite rewarding, enlightening, and captivating. While I can't say with any authority that this year has been a better one than any previous years, I am nonetheless able to say that I've not laughed as much at a film as I did Borat, not been as scared as I had at Jesus Camp and An Inconvenient Truth, not cared as deeply about James Bond as I did at Casino Royale, and not understood as clearly until now the life-affirming aspect of death as explored in The Fountain.

Here is how I regard the films of 2006 I saw. These are my personal thoughts and views and are by no means definitive (despite whatever posturing I may indulge in for sensationalism's sake). Number ratings, though at first glance out of whack, are entirely relative and subjective, so go figure. Use the list purely as a means to get to know me better and to help you decide whether mine is a voice you'd care to have advise you on the films which may or may not change your life.


SUMMA CUM LAUDE ~ TOP TEN


Dir. Darren Aronofsky, USA. Darren Aronofsky has grappled with religion and faith in his two previous films (Pi and Requiem For A Dream), but neither has been as profound as his ambitious and epic The Fountain, a sprawling search both on-screen and off for everlasting life in the most fundamental, spiritual way I've ever experienced in a film. If anybody is ever commissioned to direct Plato's Phaedo, a work I was reminded of for its insistence upon the fearlessness with which death ought to be approached and the luminescent glory of eternal life, then I pray it's this man. 10/10



Dir. Larry Charles, USA. It's debatable what cultural learnings exactly made benefit the hyperbolic yet glorious nation of Kazakhstan in Borat because both it and the actual "U.S. and Aiii" visited upon by the film are intentionally presented as the same. Sacha Baron Cohen's playful yet implacable desire to confront audiences with their own prejudices and have them examine their bedrock attitudes and beliefs certainly offended enough people indignant either because they were revealed to be fools or they truly bought into Borat's ignorant, racist, sexist and homophobic act, thus revealing themseles to be fools as well. This was an alternately scary and hilarious film that played for laughs and got them but one whose cultural learnings are, to intelligent audiences, of a morbidly funny sort. 10/10

Dir. Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris, USA. "She's all right! She's all right! The girl's all right with me!" Little Miss Sunshine is a superfreak, and one of the most lovable and embraceable films among critics and the public alike to have come along this year. Some panned the obviousness of the film's inherent metaphor for the contemporary American ethos, not necessarily to be contrite or conservative I grant, yet for me being able to recognize its underlying message is by no means an indication of artlessness, nor does it negate its overall positivity. I saw a celebration of diversity and moral integrity that in actuality, I'm pleased to say, reinforces much of what makes America a beautiful country. 10/10



Dir. John Cameron Mitchell, USA. The Shortbus is a fictitious boudoir of sorts, nestled somewhere within post-9/11, pre-August '03 blackout NYC where the less gentrified among us convene to mingle and loosen up in safe quarters. Shortbus, by the same token, is a film about some such individuals, browbeaten and downtrodden, leading variously fragile lives, who want to feel safe and find in one another outlets for growth and healing. What sets this them and the film apart from most is that the method of choice is graphicly outlandish yet honest and heartfelt sexual acts. Director Mitchell with his brave crew of thesps wisely decided not to shy away from hardcore sex since to do so would have been less genuine. Pornography it's not, though; somehow, the sex is captured in a way less erotic than one might think that actually finds in its carnality a wondrous, transformative sense of magic. This is a raw film, fearless of its emotions, and therefore poised to foster the truest sort of understanding and change in its characters and, I can only hope, among audiences with open minds. 10/10


Dir. Doug Atchison, USA. Children's movies are tragically among the most demeaning, potentially damaging insults to intelligence in cinema because they often underestimate their potential and undervalue their experiences. Akeelah And The Bee is a jewel of a film because it recognizes the very best of what children are capable of and portrays personal excellence in an attainable, attractive manner - the way it ought to be regarded. True, it may sound like the innumerable Afterschool Specials that have come and gone, but Akeelah stands apart as one of the most convincing inspirational tales I've seen. Writer/director Atchison refrains from exposition or sugarcoating, instead assuming that kids have the wherewithal to drum up confidence, dedication and support when necessary in their quests for self-actualization. I'm sincere when I say I believe every school-aged child, parent, and guardian should see it. 10/10


Dir. Mike Clattenburg, Canada. Like Borat in a way, Canada's Trailer Park Boys seem to be bringing people's haughty, snide little prejudices to the surface - myself included. Based of course on the runaway Showcase hit programme, the television incarnation was an apparent glorification of lowlife booze-n-drugs culture, and I resisted this film version as I have an unknown number of perceived blue collar cinemtic turkeys. Boy, was I wrong. Trailer Park Boys: The Movie, like its source material, is a warm and strangely compassionate brand of comedy, straddling the balance between poverty-stricken despair and humour very carefully and effectively. Be cautious of those who would have you believe it's merely a lazy exercise in poor taste as they share more in common with fascistic suit dummies than is healthy. 10/10


Dir. Martin Scorsese, USA. Another film about our hidden natures and the disturbingly malleable way they manifest themselves in adverse situations, The Departed concerns itself with the moral ambiguity left behind by the stain of corruption (or, as per Scorsese, sin). More to the point, the film is a brutal meditation on the reality that how we are regarded while alive and how we may be remembered after we die is not always in accordance with justice, even when you're working for the law or doing good. Utilizing Scorsese and longtime editing colleague Thelma Schoonmaker's usual kinetic flair and eye for action, and boasting perhaps the richest ensemble acting in a feature all year, The Departed is a thoroughly satisfying and important work. 9.5/10


Dir. Robert Altman, USA. Many mourned the loss of Robert Altman this year when he passed away following a decade or so coloured with health problems of varying degrees. The news didn't exactly surprise me, given his precarious situation, nor did it particularly sadden me for the same reason. I rather smiled in reverence and felt thankful that he was able to produce a body of work as marvellous and staggering as the one he left us, then chuckled at the serendipity with which A Prairie Home Companion, his latest film, wound up being his last. Here was a film also about the end of a certain legacy which was bound to meet its end sooner or later, the radio programme of the same name, whose final moment was handled as nonchalantly and professionally as Altman's own, without great flourish or drippy, genuflecting sentimentality. That's not to suggest it's a tepid anti-climax either since it's as full of life and vigour as anything he's ever done. How he blended austerity and poignancy with raucous cowboys and their song about bad jokes (my favourite: "What do we do with the useless boob?") and pulled off a sad yet glimmering encomium may be the best secret he took to the grave with him. 9.5/10


Dir. Hirokazu Koreeda, Japan. Hirokazu Koreeda has emerged as one of the most important directors to have come out of Japan since Akira Kurosawa was laid to rest. After a string of slow-moving and highly contemplative films, his latest, Hana yori mo naho (translation: "even more than the flowers"), is a decidedly more ebullient and audience-friendly film that questions the solemnity of the samurai code of honour which places abject emphasis on death over life. Viewed after the surfeit of stone-cold samurai action flicks which have dominated popular consciousness, Hana yori mo naho is a rare breath of fresh air for its willingness to challenge the past in favour of a better future. 9.5/10


Dir. Paul Greengrass, France/UK/USA. Worries about how a 9/11-themed film made only five years after the fact might needlessly open old wounds or callously capitalize on pain and grief were largely put to rest after director Paul Greengrass's powerful United 93 played early in the year. Like Mel Gibson's The Passion Of The Christ, United 93 derives its strength from the visceral connection it creates between the viewer and the events depicted so that the victims of the fated flight are made as relatable to us all as possible. What makes it that much more special, though, is that the passengers aren't dramatized for effect but rendered as realistic as possible (few details are given because, to the average person on the flight, not many would have been known in the first place). This also includes, yes, the terrorists who, despite whatever misgivings we have about them, thought they were serving Allah's will faithfully and did not think they were doing anything evil (hey, for that matter neither did Jack Nicholson's character in The Departed, yet he's somehow the epitome of cool). We're entreated to see the entire ordeal from every angle (even the staff at the airports and air traffic towers, who are frequently played by the real-life figures) and soak it in, whether in tribute to heroism or in acknowledgement of history. 9.5/10

MAGNA CUM LAUDE ~ HONOURABLE MENTIONS

11. Flags Of Our Fathers (dir. Clint Eastwood, USA, 9/10)
12. The Host (dir. Joon-ho Bong, South Korea, 9/10)
13. The Journals Of Knud Rasmussen (dir. Norman Cohn, Zacharias Kunuk , Canada / Denmark, 9/10)
14. An Inconvenient Truth (dir. Davis Guggenheim , USA, 9.5/10)
15. Dave Chappelle's Block Party (dir. Michel Gondry, USA, 9.5 /10)
16. Mongolian Ping Pong (dir. Hao Ning, China, 9.5/10)
17. Neil Young: Heart Of Gold (dir. Jonathan Demme, USA, 9.5/10)
18. Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (dir. Gore Verbinski, USA, 9.5/10)
19. Inside Man (dir. Spike Lee, USA, 9/10)
20. Eve And The Fire Horse (dir. Julia Kwan, Canada, 9/10)
21. 49 Up (dir. Michael Apted, UK, 10/10)
22. The Pursuit Of Happyness (dir. Gabriele Muccino, USA, 9/10)
23. Blood Diamond (dir. Edward Zwick, USA, 9/10)
24. Stranger Than Fiction (dir. Marc Forster, USA, 9/10)
25. Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby (dir. Adam McKay, USA, 9/10)

CUM LAUDE ~ FILMS OF NOTE (34)

- Babel (dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu, USA / Mexico, 7.5/10)
- The Black Dahlia (dir. Brian De Palma, Germany / USA, 8/10)
- Brick (dir. Rian Johnson, USA, 7.5/10)
- Bubble (dir. Steven Soderbergh, USA, 8/10)
- Cars (dir. John Lasseter, Joe Ranft, USA, 8.5/10)
- Casino Royale (dir. Martin Campbell, USA / UK / Czech Republic, 8.5/10)
- The Da Vinci Code (dir. Ron Howard, USA, 7.5/10)
- Death Of A President (dir. Gabriel Range, UK, 7.5/10)
- Deja Vu (dir. Tony Scott, USA, 8/10)
- The End Of Silence (dir. Anita Doron, Canada, 8.5/10)
- Fearless (dir. Ronny Yu, China / Hong Kong / USA, 7.5/10)
- The Illusionist (dir. Neil Burger, Czech Republic / USA, 7.5/10)
- Jesus Camp (dir. Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady, USA, 8.5/10)
- The Lake House (dir. Alejandro Agresti, USA, 8.5/10)
- Lights In The Dusk (dir. Aki Kaurismäki, Finland / Germany / France, 8/10)
- The Lives Of Others (dir. Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Germany, 8.5/10)
- Man Push Cart (dir. Ramin Bahrani, USA, 8.5/10)
- Marie Antoinette (dir. Sofia Coppola, USA, 8.5/10)
- Miami Vice (dir. Michael Mann, USA, 8/10)
- Mission: Impossible III (dir. J.J. Abrams, USA, 8/10)
- Monster House (dir. Gil Kenan, USA, 8.5/10)
- Night At The Museum (dir. Shawn Levy, USA, 8.5/10)
- The Notorious Bettie Page (dir. Mary Harron, USA, 8/10)
- Pan's Labyrinth (dir. Guillermo Del Toro, Mexico / Spain / USA, 8/10)
- Pulse (dir. Jim Sonzero, USA, 8/10)
- Renaissance (dir. Christian Volckman, France / UK / Luxembourg, 8/10)
- The Queen (dir. Stephen Frears, UK / France / Italy, 8/10)
- A Scanner Darkly (dir. Richard Linklater, USA, 7.5/10)
- Scoop (dir. Woody Allen, USA, 8/10)
- Shut Up & Sing (dir. Barbara Kopple, Cecilia Peck, USA, 7.5/10)
- Strangers With Candy (dir. Paul Dinello, USA, 8.5/10)
- Thank You For Smoking (dir. Jason Reitman, USA, 7.5/10)
- The Three Burials Of Melquiades Estrada (dir. Tommy Lee Jones, USA / France, 8.5/10)
- The Wild Blue Yonder (dir. Werner Herzog, UK / USA / France / Germany, 8/10)

SATIS BENE ~ COMMON (17)

- Catch A Fire (dir. Phillip Noyce, France / UK / South Africa / USA, 7/10)
- Children Of Men (dir. Alfonso Cuarón, UK / USA, 7/10)
- Cinderella (dir. Man-dae Bong, South Korea, 6.5/10)
- Destricted (dir. Various, UK / USA, 6.5/10)
- The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift (dir. Justin Lin, USA, 6.5/10)
- Friends With Money (dir. Nicole Holofcener, USA, 6.5/10)
- The Hills Have Eyes (dir. Alexandre Aja, USA, 6.5/10)
- Ice Age: The Meltdown (dir. Carlos Saldanha, USA, 7/10)
- Lady In The Water (dir. M. Night Shyamalan, USA, 6.5/10)
- Lucky Number Slevin (dir. Paul McGuigan, USA, 7/10)
- Mistress Of Spices (dir. Paul Mayeda Berges, USA / UK, 7/10)
- Scary Movie 4 (dir. David Zucker, USA, 6.5/10)
- The Sentinel (dir. Clark Johnson, USA, 7/10)
- Take The Lead (dir. Liz Friedlander, USA, 7/10)
- Underworld: Evolution (dir. Len Wiseman, USA, 6.5/10)
- The Wild (dir. Steve 'Spaz' Williams, USA, 7/10)
- X-Men: The Last Stand (dir. Brett Ratner, USA, 7/10)

RITE ~ TRASH (14)

- Black Christmas (dir. Glen Morgan, Canada / USA, 6/10)
- Crank (dir. Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor, USA, 2/10)
- Flushed Away (dir. David Bowers, Sam Fell, UK / USA, 6/10)
- F**k (dir. Steve Anderson, USA, 5.5/10)
- Game 6 (dir. Michael Hoffman, USA, 5/10)
- Happy Feet (dir. George Miller, Australia / USA, 6/10)
- Imprint (dir. Takashi Miike, USA / Japan, 6/10)
- Little Children (dir. Todd Field, USA, 5.5/10)
- The Quiet (dir. Jamie Babbit, USA, 6/10)
- Room 6 (dir. Michael Hurst, USA, 3.5/10)
- The Tooth Fairy (dir. Chuck Bowman, USA, 3.5/10)
- Ultraviolet (dir. Kurt Wimmer, USA, 4/10)
- V For Vendetta (dir. James McTeigue, USA / Germany, 3/10)
- Voodoo Moon (dir. Kevin VanHook, Canada / USA, 1/10)

Blind Spots

51 Birch Street, Apocalypto, The Bridge, Crossing The Line, The Curse Of The Golden Flower, Dreamgirls, Fast Food Nation, For Your Consideration, The Good German, The Good Shepherd, Half Nelson, Hard Candy, Indigènes, Inland Empire, The Last King Of Scotland, Letters From Iwo Jima, Miss Potter, Mutual Appreciation, The Nativity Story, Notes On A Scandal, Offside, Old Joy, The Painted Veil, Perfume, Private Fears In Public Places, The Science Of Sleep, Tales From Earthsea, This Film Is Not Yet Rated, Time, Volver, The Wind That Shakes The Barley