The 2010 List
(in no order)
Top Albums
The National – High Violet
Arcade Fire – The Suburbs
Beach House – Teen Dream
Frightened Rabbit – The Winter of Mixed Drinks
The Seabellies – Limbo Lake
Deerhunter – Halycon Digest
Besnard Lakes - Are the Roaring Night
(Runners-up - Band of Horses, The New Pornographers, James, Paul Weller and two fists up for Brandon Cox aka Atlas Sound for releasing four full albums online for free ).
Best Films
Mostly it was a year of tracking down past films I hadn't seen. (Caught a lot of Bergman, which made everything else seem a little facile). Yet, there are always a few gems. Here goes...
North Face
True thrilling story of rock climbers in prewar Germany.
The Ghost Writer
Underrated Polanksi drama with a threatening undercurrent.
The Social Network
Greed is Good. Fincher does it again.
The Killer Inside Me.
A film this bold should not be overlooked.
Shutter Island
Not one of Scorsese's best nor the most original but still enjoyable.
Inception
Spectacle with intelligence. Who would have thought?
Fish Tank
Brilliant verite style film about being stuck in the English class system.
Makes Mike Leigh seem passé.
Terribly Happy
Creepy but amusing Czech film about a cop with post traumatic stress.
(unseen as yet but purported to be very good - Winters Bone, The King's Speech, 127 Hours, Blue Valentine, Black Swan & Lebanon - of course, mostly released at the end of the year to be fresh in voters minds come Oscar time).
Most over-rated Film
Alice in Wonderland
Yawn. Apart from Ed Wood, Tim Burton has been making the same film over and over again since Beetlejuice.
Worst
(Apart from the ludicrous amount of remakes like Saw 174 - STOP!)
After.Life.
Terrible in every regard. Not even Christina Ricci's boobies could save it.
And it makes no sense. Liam Neeson, why?
Best Australian Film
Beneath Hill 60
Claustrophobic, World War I underground drama.
With the budget of The Pacific's one afternoon coffee break.
(runner-up)
Tomorrow When the War Began
What we all feared – the film that could never live up to the book. But it tried.
Most over-rated
Animal Kingdom
Good but style over substance.
Worst
Bran Nue Dae
Bryng Moi A Buket.
(Granted, aside from Grease, I'm not into musicals. This was bad, but still not as bad as Glee. Now there's an oxymoron).
Best Novel
Freedom
Jonathen Franzen
Yes it is that good. His intelligence is beyond compare.
Insightful, witty and he makes it looks easy.
Best TV Series
(This is nearly pointless as Australia is usually behind the U.S. with many shows, but unfortunately not Glee, so for what it's worth.)
Kings
Cancelled after it's first season. What a shame.
Dexter
I keep waiting for the quality and ideas to fall but it keeps surprising.
Doctor Who
I miss David Tennant but the new Doc is refreshing.
So is the lovely Amy Pond.
The Killing
Okay, it officially came out in Denmark in 2008 but it was only released on DVD this year. Brilliant.
Most Disappointing
The Pacific
A couple of good episodes, but pretty dull compared to Band of Brothers.
Too many pointless battle scenes with no characters to care about.
More script development please!
Caprica
After Battlestar Galactica, how could they get it so wrong?
Anything you'd care to add?
My Books