I was just having a conversation with a friend about what makes a ‘best picture’ (Oscar-wise) and I had always sort of thought of best pictures as trying to be something a little bit grander, excelling in multiple areas. But after more thought on this and my best pic lists it mostly comes down to what I enjoy. Here are some of the movies that I thought were doing something right (standard caveats apply, and if you’re interested in my pool of pics take a look at those I’ve seen, bolded on critic’s pics):

• Black Swan – I dig a little weird in my films and Aronofsky didn’t disappoint, with Portman and Kunis giving lovely portrayals of the fine line between ballet and insanity.
• Easy A – This flick, and Emma Stone in the lead, hit all the right notes in this perfectly modern take on Scarlett Letter themes with a perfect nod to teen flicks I’ve adored (harder to do than one might think).
• Scott Pilgrim vs. The World/Kick-Ass – I like a comic booky story (or graphic novel story) and thought that while Scott Pilgrim did a wonderful job of using a number of methods to create a unique world representative of the journey of battles, Kick-Ass did a surprisingly good job of putting the comic book in the real world (or at least movie real), it’s not so simple to be a superhero.
• The King’s Speech/The Social Network – I’m going to mention these two movies together because they were both somewhat unremarkable, simple stories where not a ton happens, but they both managed to weave a tale together with characters that kept me engaged throughout.
• The Town – Ben Affleck is doing a nice job carving out the directing and writing of work that creates worlds where you see inside the characters, in this the struggle of the primary character with his past, present, and future with love, family, and crime is nicely done.
• It’s Kind of a Funny Story – I at some point noted that this was kind of a sweet story, where we follow a teen who checks himself into a psych ward, with some of the somewhat predictable occurrences, the sincerity that they wove into each character drew me in.
• Inception – This is one of those movies that I give a little extra credit to because it tried to do something different, and I think it was mostly successful, though I mean really a dream inside a dream…
• 127 Hours – This movie goes against my rules of enjoyment because not only was this movie awful, it was worse than I expected, the reason it’s on this list is because despite my girlish squirming, eye covering, and nausea I was engaged throughout.

Honorable mentions: The Fighter (loved Bale, movie not the best of its ilk), True Grit (well done but meh), Winter’s Bone (yes it was good and I can’t quite tell you why I’m not more enamored), The Kids Are Alright (many very good things in this but a plot line that for a bit irritated me just enough to leave off).

Well I certainly can’t be exhaustive on this, I mean everyone does a top ten movie list, but following is a gathering of some of the critics and awards. The attributions with links are listed below and movies I’ve seen are bolded (a gal’s gotta keep track somehow), I can’t see them all but will cobble together my must see list after a quick run to the movies.

• 127 Hours – AFI, TC, LS, OG, Sat, AOS, RD, PGA, BM, BFCA, AA
• Ajami – OG
• Alice in Wonderland – GG
• Animal Kingdom – LS, Sat
• Another Year – LS, OG, SH
• The Art of the Steal – RD
• Black Swan – AFI, GG, MD, AOS, OFC, PGA, BAFTA, BFCA, CFC, GIFA, AA
• Blue Valentine – OG, Sat, GIFA
• Boxing Gym – MD
• Burlesque – GG
• Carlos – TC, MD, AOS, SH
• Cyrus – Sat
• Edge of Darkness – BM
• Exit Through the Gift Shop – TC, OG
• The Fighter – AFI, GG, AOS, PGA, BM, BFCA, AA
• Four Lions – RC
• Get Low – Sat
• The Ghost Writer – LS, OG, Sat, MD, BM
• Greenberg – AOS
• Green Zone – SK, RC
• Inception – SK, AFI, GG, Sat, MD, SH, OFC, RD, PGA, BAFTA, BFCA, CFC, AA
• Inside Job – RC, SH
• Jackass 3D – SK
• Kick-Ass – SK, RD
• The King’s Speech – GG, Sat, SH, PGA, BAFTA, BM, BFCA, CFC, AA
• The Kids Are Alright – AFI, LS, OG, GG, Sat, AOS, SH, PGA, GIFA, AA
• Knight and Day – BM
• Last Train Home – LS
• Let Me In – SK, TC, GIFA
• Life During Wartime – RC
• MacGruber – BM
• Made in Dagenham – Sat
• Monsters – SK
• Mother – TC
• My Dog Tulip – SH
• Never Let Me Go – RC
• The Other Guys – Sat, BM
• Please Give – Sat
• A Prophet – LS, MD
• Rabbit Hole – RC, RD
• RED – GG, Sat
• Scott Pilgrim vs. the World – Sat
• Shutter Island – TC, RD
• The Social Network – SK, RC, LAFC, AFI, TC, LS, OG, GG, Sat, MD, SH, OFC, RD, PGA, BAFTA, BM, BFCA, CFC, NYFCC, SFFC, AA
• Solitary Man – RD
• Somewhere – AOS
• Splice – SK
• Sweetgrass – MD
• Takers – SK
• The Tillman Story – RD
• The Town – SK, AFI, OG, Sat, PGA, BM, BFCA
• The Tourist – GG
• Toy Story 3 – RC, AFI, TC, LS, OG, AOS, SH, OFC, PGA, BM, BFCA, AA
• True Grit – AFI, TC, MD, OFC, PGA, BAFTA, BFCA, AA
• Vincere – AOS
• Waiting for ‘Superman’ – RC
• Wild Grass – RC, MD
• Winter’s Bone – AFI, TC, LS, Sat, AOS, SH, OFC, RD, BFCA, CFC, GIFA, AA

AA – Academy Award Nominations, AOS – AO Scott for NYTimes, AFI – American Film Institute, BAFTA – British Academy Film Awards, GG – Golden Globe Nominations, BM – Ben Mankiewicz for Huggington Post, BSFC – Boston Society of Film Critics, BFCA – Broadcast Film Critics Association, CFC – Chicago Film Critics, GIFA – Gotham Independent Film Awards, LAFC – LA Film Critics, LS – Lisa Schwarzbaum for EW, NYFCC – New York Film Critic Circle, MD – Manohla Dargis for NYTimes,  OFC – Online Film Critics, OG – Owen Gleiberman for EW, PGA – Producers Guild, RC – Richard Corliss for Time, RD – Rossiter Drake for 7×7, Sat – Satellite Awards, SFFC – San Francisco Film Critics, SH – Stephen Holden for NYTimes, SK – Stephen King for EW, TC – Tom Charity for CNN

For someone who sees a lot of movies in a year it’s always a pleasure to recommend ten. Though as with most years, at any given time depending on mood and what I’ve seen when, or if I’ve just talked about a film this list might be different. And although I do see quite a few films, I didn’t see them all, so for reference you can check out the critic’s roundup where all those that I’ve seen are in bold.

• Where the Wild Things Are – I will admit that I have a general weakness for creatures and although I can’t argue that everyone will love this film, I did, they created a beautiful world that felt true to spirit of the book (whose story was nearly all in the emotion of illustrations), particularly the way the characters conveyed moments of wondrous joy and frustration that is Max, and extra credit in my book for a risk that is pulled off, is Spike Jonze single?
• The Hurt Locker – A critical darling for good reason, the wonderful portrayal of the characters and situations of this bomb unit in Iraq, it focuses more on the small unit than the large battle and I was surprised at the tension and the suspense brought out in nearly each and every moment, it kept me on the edge of my seat.
• A Single Man – I love that fashion designer Tom Ford’s first feature was not only an incredible visual presentation of a tragically heartbroken man in the 60s, but was a touching moment of a story with incredible performances, particularly Firth in the title role.
• An Education – I would love to be won over by Peter Sarsgaard but watching a delightful young student well played by Carey Mulligan is almost as fun, the screenplay by Nick Hornby (another fav) brings us along for the ride in a fun and heartbreaking journey with the characters through England in the 60s, hmm maybe I like the 60s.
• Star Trek – Another soft spot for the Star Trek legacy but though they lost me on the last series of films this relaunch is quite fun, with nods to the original that don’t require a lifelong dedication to appreciate, the action and story stands on its own, thanks JJ Abrams.
• Sunshine Cleaning – Though put out early enough not to be on more folk’s radar, it was a wonderful small film where Amy Adams plays a single mom who was clearly trying to get it all together even if she’s often only almost successful, her move into the world of crime scene cleanup brings humor as well as poignant moments with a wonderful supporting cast.
• Up in the Air – Entering into the isolated world of downsizing and living on the road, or more aptly in the air, we catch George Clooney at a time where things could all change and we keep wondering if and how they will, Clooney leads a talented cast who is able to bring the humor and drama to moments well crafted by Jason Reitman.
• District 9 – Who doesn’t like a moral that is actually told through a well crafted engaging story (not pointing fingers at anything that rhymes with schmavatar), it was amazing to watch the totally unrelatable lead character transform himself literally and figuratively throughout his struggle, starting with the attempt to relocate a ghetto of aliens.
• Inglourious Basterds – I dragged my feet as long as I could, the previews of Brad, his accent, and that screaming Hitler just didn’t give me confidence that Tarantino hadn’t gone totally over the edge but this fictionalized look at WWII dragged me in with its characters, its scheming plots, and yes the Tarantino violence.
• Whip It/Zombieland – Sometimes a matinee, a fresh popcorn & soda, and low expectations are met with a delightful afternoon, and that’s what these two movies were, I just had fun at both of them, from girl power through roller derby (I almost walked out and got a shoulder tiger tattoo to match Wiig’s) to a few folks left to fend off the zombies, all you need is a good set of rules and a plan (always remember the double tap).

The award season isn’t over but many nominees are in and most of the critics have spoken. So get ready to add some titles to your Netflix queue. In alphabetical order, initials referenced are noted and linked where possible below. The flicks in bold are those that I’ve seen… always too many, never enough. Stay tuned for my favorites of the year.

• Adventureland – PH, MP
• Amreeka – GA
• Avatar – CC, GG, PH, DE, AOS, Bafta
• Bad Lieutenant – RE
• Big Fan – GA
• Bright Star – SA, AOS
• Brothers – DE
• Cheri – MLS
• Coraline – AFI, PH, DE
• The Cove – PH
• Crazy Heart – RE
• The Damned United – PH
• District 9 – RC, PH, BM
• An Education – CC, SAG, RE, SA, BM, Bafta
• Everlasting Moments – DE
• Every Little Step – BM
• Fantastic Mr. Fox – RC, DE
• 500 Days of Summer – GG
• Food, Inc. – MLS, DE
• Funny People – MLS, AOS
• Gomorrah – AOS
• Goodbye Solo – AOS
• The Hangover – AFI, GG
• The Headless Woman – Sla
• The Hurt Locker – RC, AFI, CC, GG, SAG, RE, CFC, SA, NYFCC, BSFC, LAFC, SFFC, GA, PH, MLS, BM, Sla, NSFC, MP, AOS, Bafta
• I Love You Man – BM
• The Informant – SA
• Inglorious Basterds – CC, GG, SAG, RE, CFC, PH, MLS, BM, Sla
• In the Loop – BM, DE, MP
• Invictus – CC
• It’s Complicated – GG, SA
• Julia – Sla
• Julie & Julia – GG, SA
• Knowing – RE
• The Maid – GA
• Me and Orson Welles – MP
• The Messenger – AFI, SA
• Nine – CC, GG, SAG, SA
• Of Time and the City – RC, DE, MP
• Precious – AFI, CC, GG, SAG, RE, SA, PH, MLS, AOS, Bafta
• The Princess and the Frog – RC
• Revanche – MLS, Sla
• A Serious Man – AFI, CC, RE, CFC, SA, GA, Sla, DE, MP
• A Single Man – RC, AFI, MP
• Sin Nombre – BM
• The Stoning of Soraya M. – SA
• Sugar – AFI, BM, MP
• Summer Hours – MLS, DE, AOS
• The Sun – Sla
• Tetro – Sla
• Thirst – RC
• 35 Shots of Rum – Sla
• Two Lovers – MLS, Sla
• Tyson – DE
• Up – RC, AFI, CC, BM, MP
• Up in the Air – NBR, RC, AFI, CC, GG, RE, CFC, SA, PH, MLS, BM, AOS, Bafta
• Where the Wild Things Are – CFC, MP, AOS
• The White Ribbon – RC, RE

AFI, AOS – AO Scott for At the Movies, Bafta – British Academy of Film and Television Arts, BM – Ben Mankiewicz, BSFC – Boston Society of Film Critics, CC – Critic’s Choice Awards, CFC – Chicago Film Critics, DE – David Edelstein for New York, GA – Gotham Independent Film , GG – Golden Globes, LAFC – Los Angeles Film Critics, MLS – Mick LaSalle for SF Chronicle, MP – Michael Phillips for At the Movies, NBR – National Board of Review, NSFC –  National Society of Film Critics, NYFCC- New York Film Critic’s Circle, PH – Peter Hartlaub for SF Chronicle,  RC – Richard Corliss for Time, RE – Roger Ebert, SA – Satellite Awards, SAG – Screen Actors Guild (best ensemble), SFFC – San Francisco Film Critics, Sla – Slant Magazine (see site for full lists)

* As always the list isn’t comprehensive just those I’ve run across, feel free to add additional notes in comments.