Let’s Do It Again: The 10 Best Movies of 2010

Now that Keshaunta and Matt have told you everything that Hollywood did wrong this year, they have come back to talk the studio heads down from the ledge. Hopefully 2011 will follow the lead of these ten films, as Keshaunta and Matt reveal ten movies this year that left them saying, “I’ll have another PLEASE!!!”

10. Let Me In : Let Me In manages to do what very few horror films can: chill you to the very core with its frank reality. It doesn’t rely on such easy means of shock and gore to bring a thrill, yet this subtly nuanced film brings its own brand of terror to human nature. Boasting a great cast and excellent characters, this film can’t help but pull you in to their young protagonists’ lives. Let Me In is both horrifying and heartbreakingly sweet as it questions how far you would go to be loved.

9. Kick-Ass: You’ve got to admire Kick Ass for its sheer audacity: crime fighting superheroes all under drinking age. The fact that this movie introduces a stellar cast and focuses on the empowering of the ordinary man is just icing on top of a very delicious cake. Kick-Ass is funny, packed with action and at its core endearing. It embraces the part of all of us that longs to right every injustice in the world and makes us think, at the end of the day, we have the power to change the world.

8. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt. 1: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt. 1 had a lot riding on its shoulders, not only did it have the monumental chore of setting up for the series finale but Part 1 of film 7 had to wash the foul stench of film 6 from the collective conscious of the world at large. Deathly Hallows succeeded admirably at both tasks. With excellent pacing and great performances by the principal cast (Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint,) Deathly Hallows builds the audience to a breathless pause… that will not be resolved until July of next year.

7. The Social Network: Aaron Sorkin is a god among men when it comes to writing so the combination of his skills with director David Fincher to tell the almost Shakespearean rise of Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook is too hard to resist. Jesse Eisenberg succeeds in creating a character that you love to hate thanks to his fascinating motivations and questionable morals. Look for this to take the top prize at this year’s Oscars.

6. How to Train Your Dragon: How to Train Your Dragon is one of those films that manage to be as entertaining for children as it is for adults. And the fact that Dragon has an overwhelming message of friendship and acceptance of who you are that makes it a automatic must see. Charming and sweet, Dragon is part comedy, part fantasy mixed with action, but all over entertaining. This film is sure to please even the most cynical heart.

5. The King’s Speech: If I had to label a film as the most charming film of the year – there would be no question of that title going to The King’s Speech. Director Tom Hooper leads a stellar cast in telling the tale of stuttering king struggling to find his voice but making a great friend in the process. Watching this play out is an utterly pleasant experience and with top notch production values in almost every category, this film deserves every accolade sent its way.

4. Scott Pilgrim vs The World: Every year there are great movies that somehow just seem to get ignored by the populace at large and this year one of the most maddening examples of that is Scott Pilgrim vs The World. How this movie did not catch on like wildfire will always evade me. Every single shot is bursting with style and humor. It is hilarious and at times heartfelt. The action scenes are fantastic and the music is infectious. This is pure cinematic joy on display and to dislike it is to be without a pulse.

3. The Kids Are All Right: Annette Bening and Julianne Moore have quite simply never been better on screen and to say that their story of an unconventional family touched me would be an understatement. The script is both hilarious and sweet and applicable to relationships of every shape and kind. Watching this family, you can’t help but be enthralled in their lives and the events unfold piece by piece, before you know it you’re waiting for the tension to break.

2. Inception: ‘Christopher Nolan can do no wrong’ is a statement that I believe in wholeheartedly and am willing to fight anyone who says otherwise. Inception, a film that was completely his brainchild, is the closest thing to Hitchcock we’ve seen since the great master of movies laid down his camera. The story and screenplay are so intricate that even thinking about it writing it and keeping it all sensible, would enroll me years of study, therapy, and anti-anxiety pills.  Yet with Nolan at the helm, this film breaks into the fantastic world of what movie-making could and should be.

1. Black Swan: Black Swan is far and away my favorite film of the year. Watching what Darren Aronofsky and Natalie Portman created on screen is to witness a terrifying descent into madness that will make you flinch, laugh, scream, cry, and worry all at once. It will likely put you in a dark place after viewing it but it is perfect and well worth your time.

If you want to know what they didn’t like check out: I Want My Money Back by Keshaunta Moton and Matt DeGroot. And don’t forget to have a safe and Happy New Year.

The Social Network Photo is by Merrick Morton – © 2010 Columbia TriStar Marketing Group