2006 Top Ten Lists - Time to Throw Down! (1 Viewer)

[ChrisBEA]

I have a question for all of you.
When you put together your top ten's, do you only include films seen in a theater, or do you include those 2006 releases you've seen on DVD? I am just curious as I limit myself to theatrical viewings, even if I have seen good ones on disk.

 

[Chris Atkins]

I definitely include films I've only seen on DVD. Many of my home theater viewings are more enjoyable than theater viewings so I see no reason to not include them.

 

[Tim Glover]

Plus there are films that don't last very long in the theater but are highly regarded like the The Fountain that came here and went!!!!

Sorry. Out of my meds.

Chuck may not have his list ready but he dang sure got to see The Fountain.

Added the surprise comedy hit, Accepted & The Pursuit of Happiness to my "Worth Mentioning" list.

 

[Adam_S]

but folks are limiting themselves, to the most part to films released in the 2006 calender year in theatres. that can get a bit fuzzy with foreign films and limited releases, but even so, Kingdom of Heaven directors cut is actually quite high in the HTF list, and that's a 2005 film but that version was only seen on dvd by everyone who didn't see it in it's one week theatrical run in one of the worst theatres in LA (now closed, I believe).

 

[Elizabeth S]

As it turns out, everything on my list was theatrical viewings. (I looked at my theatrical list when making the Top 10.) I would include DVD-viewed films if something stood out, but frankly, I didn't watch too many on DVD this past year.

 

[Holadem]

Following Whyte's age old guidelines, I make it a rule to see at least 40 movies (hopefully 50) in a given year before posting any comparative lists. My current tally is too pathetic to mention, and disappearing for a month at the most exciting time of the year didn't help either, but I should have caught up somewhat by the time the AA rolls around on Feb 25(?), marking the unofficial end of the movie year. At least this exercise makes the suckiest months of the year (in and out of the theaters, unseasonably great weather notwithstanding) more bearable.

--
H

 

[ChrisBEA]

Thanks for the responses!
It isn't even an issue that would even come up much. The only reason I asked is because at another site where I have my list with complete comments a title came up that I really liked on DVD that was not in my list. I tend to keep my DVD viewing and theater viewing separate. Thanks again!

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Tentative Top 10:

1. Children of Men
2. Akeelah and the Bee
3. United 93
4. Winter Passing
5. Pan's Labyrinth
6. Clerks II
7. V for Vendetta
8. Superman Returns
9. Rocky Balboa
10. Brick

Superman Returns might jump on that list. Pacing problems perceiving during later viewings are the only thing keeping it off now. I also have to check when I saw Brick before it's confirmed as a 2006 release.

UPDATED: Moved United 93 up on my list, added Winter Passing, flipflopped Brick and Little Miss Sunshine, dropped Prada, added Last King of Scotland; Casino Royale fell off the list

UPDATE #2: After rewatching Superman Returns tonight, I decided that the good parts are so good they outweigh the rather substantial flaws. Boosted it up to #7, knocking Last King of Scotland - an undeniably great film - off the list. That says something strong about 2006's crop of films. Lot of shit early on, but it definitely got better.

UPDATE #3: A friend received a screener of "Pan's Labyrinth" so I can finally add that to my list at #5. Bumped Little Miss Sunshine off of my top ten.

Rest of my films below top ten:

Great:
Little Miss Sunshine
Last King of Scotland
Casino Royale
Superman Returns
Pursuit of Happyness
The Devil Wears Prada
Mission: Impossible III
Thank You For Smoking

Above Average:
She's The Man
16 Blocks
The Departed
Stranger Than Fiction
X Men: The Last Stand

Good:
Silent Hill
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
Snakes on a Plane
Imagine Me & You
The Guardian
Accepted
Gridiron Gang
The Hills Have Eyes
Last Holiday

Not bad:
RV
Beerfest
A Scanner Darkly
Failure To Launch
Night Watch (Nochnoy dozor)
Firewall

Mediocre:
Crank
The Descent
The Benchwarmers
Click
Final Destination 3
Scary Movie 4

Worst:
6. You, Me & Dupree
5. The Last Kiss
4. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
3. Bubble
2. The DaVinci Code
1. The Good Shepherd

 

[Tim Glover]

Edited my list...added The Illusionist to the worth mentioning list....

 

[BrettGallman]

Alright, I guess I can throw down now, even though I have a few more from 2006 I need to see. Thus, this list is tentative:

1. Superman Returns
2. The Prestige
3. Casino Royale
4. Clerks II
5. Miami Vice
6. A Scanner Darkly
7. V for Vendetta
8. The Descent
9. TBD
10. TBD

Wow. Going back over the year, I realize it was a pretty weak year for mainstream films. There are still a few lower profile movies I need to check out, though. For example, "The Fountain" came and went so fast it made my head spin.

And I still haven't seen "The Departed," which I'm ashamed to admit. I have a feeling that will be filling up one of the spots on this list.

 

[Adam_S]

fwiw I'll post an updated HTF list the monday before oscar nominations are announced, which I think is the 29th...

 

[Claire Panke]

My TOP TEN Theatrical Releases of 2006

1. Children of Men (#1 by a wide margin)
2. Pan's Labyrinth
3. Army Of Shadows
4. The Death Of Mr. Lazarescu
5. United 93
6. The Queen
7. The Departed
8. Tristram Shandy, A Cock & Bull Story
9. Volver
10. Inside Man

Best Documentary: When The Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts
(This, an HBO documentary, was one of the most riveting and deeply affecting movie experiences of the year.)

Notables: Thank You for Smoking, The Science of Sleep, A Prairie Home Companion, Little Children (For its fine performances), Shortbus, Sweet Land, Iraq In Fragments, Jesus Camp, Quinceanera, A Scanner Darkly, Brick, The Good Shepherd, Catch A Fire, Casino Royale, Ballet Russses

Not Yet Seen: L'Enfant, The Fountain, Old Joy, Letters from Iwo Jima, The Good German, Infamous, The Painted Veil (I doubt any of these would alter my top ten - I know they wouldn't change my top 5, which is set in stone, although L'Enfant might have made it the top ten somewhere.)

These were all films seen in theaters - I haven't included movies seen at festivals that will receive a 2007 North American release. As for the total number viewed, I stopped counting after 40.

Unlike some folks here, I thought 2006 was a fine year for cinema, at least the cinema that most interests me. Notwithstanding the fact that several of my favorite filmmakers had movies out in '06, the best work of the year took chances, stretching old formulas and genres in bold and unexpected ways (Especially Children Of Men and Pan's Labyrinth, but also The Departed, Inside Man and The Queen). And how sweet that the first "post-modern novel" should become the delightfully sly and hilarious, postmodern Tristram Shandy. When visionary directors can get personal films made and released by the big commercial studios - and they're as strong as this year's crop - I'm a happy camper.

On the down side, distribution for foreign films seems worse than ever and small indies are difficult to see outside of LA, Chicago and NY. The big summer blockbusters were a mostly forgettable lot. Inside Man and Casino Royale were my faavorite popcorn movies - neither came out in warm weather. Cars, though it had some lovely moments, is the first Pixar release I found hard to love. Monster House, Flushed Away and Happy Feet were the best for me in animation.

OTOH, any year that boasts ambitious fare from the likes of Martin Scorsese, Robert Altman, Spike Lee (two!), Stephen Frears, Michael Winterbottom, Paul Greengrass, Phillip Noyce, and the Mexican Triumvirate of Cuaron, Del Toro and Innarritu, is a fine film year. Children of Men and Pan's Labyrinth alone would have made 2006 a stellar year in my estimation. It's not often we see such gifted directors surpass all previous efforts in such brilliant fashion. I intend to savor it.

 

[Adam_S]

Sweet Land is the movie I most wanted to see but never got to. :frowning:

 

[Mike.P]

It really is sad how quick the Fountain got pushed out of theaters - I think it was around here for 2 weeks, at best.

 

[Dave Hackman]

My Top 10 out of 114 seen in multiple cities/states for 2006

1. United 93
2. Little Miss Sunshine
3. An Inconvenient Truth
4. The Queen
5. The World’s Fastest Indian *
6. The Good Shepherd
7. The Departed
8. The Last King of Scotland
9. Sophie Scholl: The Final Days *
10. Dreamgirls

* This didn’t play theatrically in my area until 2006.

 

[Greg Layton]

I just returned from seeing Letters from Iwo Jima. I ranked it at #2, right behind The Departed. Flags of our Fathers now sits at #12. Both are truly great films, but I think Letters is slightly better due to it being more focused. Ken Watanabe deserves a best actor Oscar nomination.

 

[Tim Glover]

Agreed. :frowning:

 

[ZacharyTait]

David Poland over at Movie City News has a list of films that are elgible for the Academy Awards. This list would be pretty useful in determining your Top 10 list if you go by Academy release date.

http://www.moviecitynews.com/awards/...1229_films.htm

 

[Justin_S]

Updated my list. I saw Children of Men on the 5th, but had a tough time deciding if I'd rank it above or below The King. I'll just say those two could switch preference positions on any given day.

Bubble was bumped off the list and into "honorable mention".

 

[Jose Martinez]

updated my top ten.

Letters From Iwo Jima is now number 1 and Children of Men at number 4.