Top Ten of 2010

Before I make the list, I should tell you that the following critically acclaimed movies will not appear on the list because I have not had the pleasure of watching these:

127 Hours
The American
Another Year
The King's Speech
The Town
The Secret in Their Eyes
The Kids Are All Right
True Grit
I Am Love
Somewhere
Hereafter
Rabbit Hole
Secretariat

With those being listed, here are my choices for the top ten as of now. When everything is released on DVD, I will most likely update the list.

1. Black Swan
"Black Swan" is a devilishly energetic, angelically over-the-top, passionately driven, beautifully choreographed melodramatic masterpiece. The music by Clint Mansell fuels the sheer excitement and intensity of this nightmare tragedy while Natalie Portman is gorgeous and unforgettable in one of the greatest screen performances I have ever witnessed. The rest of the cast secures this as the year's most daring film and quite possibly the best. The White Swan soars above traditional Hollywood simplicity while The Black Swan gives two middle fingers to cinematic cowardice all while refusing a safety net. "Black Swan" is in a class all by itself because of how perfectly it juxtaposes beauty with violence, sex with horror, good with evil, character with thrills, reality with fantasy, and humanity with perfection. The only word I could mutter as I left the theater was 'wow.' This examination of dedication to the arts and overcoming your nature is a warning to those who fall too deeply into a performance. It's anything but dismissible.

2. Inception
A thoroughly engrossing sci-fi epic with several unique and unforgettable passages. The characters are all equally fascinating with a finale that is as tense as anything I've ever watched.

3. The Ghost Writer
It's an excellent thriller based on an excellent novel. It works on several levels, and the performances (mostly Ewan McGregor as The Unnamed Ghost) are memorable. The movie looks great, the score makes it sound great, and the feeling in the end isn't one of being duped but instead something that adds a whole new meaning to the previous context without taking away from it.

4. Leaves of Grass
A wonderful dark comedy with an engrossing performance by Edward Norton. There are many fascinating philosophical questions raised, and the plot is never compromised. It's entirely original, and I can't name a single movie like it.

5. Thee Social Network
Its base concept of how we as people living in an age of technology where nothing can possibly be real if we can't see it works. The movie runs on several noteworthy performances, especially Andrew Garfield. David Fincher makes a fine film overall.

6. The Girl Who Played With Fire
Noomi Rapace continues The Millennium Trilogy with power and substance. It's more of a thriller than the modern masterpiece that is "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," but it works extraordinarily well.

7. Winter's Bone
A very nice, toned-down drama about a girl who must locate her father (or his body), the film remains filled with hope despite its dark nature. Jennifer Lawrence is a notable newcomer as she fuels the entire movie with an unflinching performance. It's not something you may want to watch over and over again, but it's definitely worth at least one viewing.

8. Shutter Island
It's an incredibly engrossing film that shows a new edge to Martin Scorsese. Leonardo DiCaprio gives another fine performance in this wonderful thriller set on an isolated asylum, but the supporting cast is what ultimately makes the movie as wonderful as it is.

9. Toy Story 3
In the front-runner for Best Animated Feature, this story manages to be quite thrilling with a wonderful sense of humor. It works on many levels, but on sheer enjoyment, it's a great one of its kind. It falls short of last year's amazing winner, "Up," but I enjoyed myself.

10. Kick-Ass
Alright, this will most likely be getting the boot after I watch the unseen notables previously mentioned, but as a dark comedy, there isn't much that I could call bad. It has energy, proves that Chloe Moretz is an up-and-coming child actor, and it has a nice, juicy role for Nicolas Cage (who was channeling James Woods' Batman in his comedic performance).