AIMEE'S TOP 10 FOR 2010

THE MAID - (CHILE, dir. Sebastián Silva) - Mariana Loyola is absolutely captivating as a stubborn live-in housekeeper who takes so much pride in her job that she sabotages all the assistants the family hires for her. Sophisticated comedy with a very human twist.

THE LAST STATION - (USA, RUSSIA, Michael Hoffman) - Asks some difficult moral questions about family versus country, with abundant wit and charm.

VALHALLA RISING - (DENMARK, Nicolas Winding Refn) -  Not what I expected at all, this has to be the artsiest Viking flick in history. Mesmerizing.

MICMACS - (FRANCE, Jean-Pierre Jeunet) - (pictured above) Another absurdist comedy from the director of AMÉLIE, this time with an anti-war message. All the delightful eye-candy sets and physical humor you would expect from a Jeunet film.

WINTER'S BONE - (USA, Debra Granik) - Part of what made this chilling Ozark drama succeed was the absence of distractingly recognizable actors (aside from a cameo by Sheryl Lee of "Laura Palmer" fame). Let's hope Debra Granik continues on this path.

PLEASE GIVE - (USA, Nicole Holofcener) - Another dramedy that poses interesting questions, this time about upper-middle-class guilt, with Catherine Keener as the perfect imperfect character to explore it. See also Holofcener's LOVELY & AMAZING.

THE ROAD - (USA, John Hillcoat) - I have a soft spot for post-apocalyptic movies, even the cheesiest ones, so it was refreshing to see such a literary take adapted to the screen in such a classy way (if you can ever call hordes of redneck cannibals classy).

VENGEANCE - (HONG KONG, Johnny To) - I didn't think I would like this so much, what with the blah title and ubiquitous revenge theme, but Johnny To can really do no wrong. Not only did he cast aging "French Elvis" Johnny Hallyday in the role of the avenger, but he has Hallyday slowly going senile throughout the film, making the vengeance of his soon-to-be-forgotten family ever more poignant. And the scene at the recycling center - WOW!

MY SON, MY SON, WHAT HAVE YE DONE - (USA, Werner Herzog) - Produced by David Lynch, and it certainly shows. If this sounds like a bad thing to you, you may want to skip this one, but if you're a fan of both Herzog and Lynch, this is a dream team of WTF weirdness, adapting a true story that was stranger than fiction to begin with. And Michael Shannon is my new favorite actor, by far -- could he go on to be this generation's Klaus Kinski? I can only hope.

ALTIPLANO / THE MILK OF SORROW - [tie] (PERU, Peter Brosens, Claudia Llosa) - Both of these films star Peruvian actress Magaly Solier, and both of them tackle the subject of indigenous struggles in Peru in surreal, thought-provoking ways. ALTIPLANO is based on a true story of mass mercury poisoning in the high Andes, weaving in mythology of the region, and THE MILK OF SORROW takes on the subjects of children-of-war and cultural appropriation. Both are visually impeccable and hard to shake.

MERRICK'S TOP 10 FOR 2010

MAKE WAY FOR TOMORROW - (USA, 1937) Leo McCarey

RESTREPO - (USA) Sebastian Junger, Tim Hetherington

FOUR LIONS - (UK) Chris Morris

THE SNAKE - (USA) Adam Goldstein

MOTHER - (Korea) Bong Joon-Ho

BAD BIOLOGY - (USA) Frank Henenlotter

TAXIDERMIA - (HUNGARY) György Pálfi

WINTER'S BONE - (USA) Debra Granik

JACK SMITH & THE DESTRUCTION OF ATLANTIS - (USA) Mary Jordan

GENTLEMEN BRONCOS - (USA) Jared Hess (pictured above)

GRANT'S TOP 10 FOR 2010

See also: Grant's 18 Noteworthy Film Villains of 2010 at his blog A Canticle for Grantowitz.

SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD (USA, Edgar Wright) - Awesome, fun, pretty and hilarious. Michael Cera's best film. (Pictured above)

TOY STORY 3 (USA, Le Unkrich) - It's amazing that a cartoon about dolls can be so human. Best kids movie of the year and Pixar's finest.

DOGTOOTH (Greece, Giorgos Lanthimos) - This one took me a while to get into, but stuck with me longer than most films. It's eerie.

GENTLEMEN BRONCOS - (USA, Jared Hess) - It's not destined for cinema eminence, but consider it a must-see.

KICK-ASS (USA, Matthew Vaughn) - In a surfeit of meta-superhero movies, "Kick-Ass" stands out in its violent splendor. Chloe Moretz is kid actor of the year.

FOUR LIONS (UK, Chris Morris) - Seemingly poised to offend everyone, "Four Lions" is a hilarious portrait of a group of jihadists in England. It's clever and surprisingly tasteful.

EASY A (USA, Will Gluck) - What can I say? I'm a sucker for teen girl rom-coms (see "Saved", "Mean Girls"). Emma Stone is the perfect not-ditzy female protag.

BUNNY AND THE BULL (UK, Paul King) - Visually intoxicating indie quirkfest from the makers of "The Mighty Boosh." Vince Noir looks great in a matador's outfit.

EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP (UK, Banksy) - The Banksy doc could've used more guerilla art footage - but the main conceit of the film is intriguing. Another film whose ambiguity sticks with me.

THE ROAD (USA, John Hillcoat) - It was hard to distance myself, but "The Road" is true to the Cormac McCarthy novel. It's grim, grim, grim but the acting is fine. Kodi Smit-Mcphee is the other kid actor of the year.

Runners Up: Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans, Cyrus, Greenberg, Moon

BARRI'S TOP 10 FOR 2010

THE POWER OF NIGHTMARES - (UK) Adam Curtis

THE NATIONAL PARKS - (USA) Ken Burns

RED CLIFF PARTS I & II -  (CHINA) John Woo (pictured above)

I NEED THAT RECORD! - (USA) Brendan Toller

HACHI: A DOG'S TALE - (USA, UK) Lasse Hallström

GENERATION KILL - (USA, UK) Susanna White, Simon Cellan Jones

DAVID CROSS: BIGGER AND BLACKERER - (USA) Lance Bangs

MACGRUBER - (USA) Jorma Taccone

WHIP IT - (USA) Drew Barrymore

DISINFO TV - (USA) Richard Metzger

See also: our ULTIMATE 2010 YEAR-END WRAP-UP for lesser known, recommended titles in various genres, our CUSTOMER TOP 10 LISTS, and our OTHER FINE LISTS, including TOP UNDERRATED FILMS OF THE DECADE!