My 2010 List of Lists

Posted on January 3, 2011 by James McNally

Having just come through the mathematical complications of compiling the inaugural CAST Awards, you’d think I’d be put off list-making for a while. But I actually found myself eager to revisit this year-ending tradition, mostly because I was sort of disappointed with the overall CAST list. Although it’s inevitable when asking a “committee” what the best of anything is, the fact that Inception topped the list sort of bugged me. At the time I saw it, I liked it well enough, and it did find its way into my Top 25, but it won not by being the best film of the year, but simply by being the film that most people saw.

There will always need to be a place for individual lists, for the quirky idiosyncratic choices that make us unique individuals. The group lists tend to look mostly the same. It’s only when we get to critics’ individual choices that we can figure out where our tastes overlap, or clash. And that’s when the interesting conversations can begin.

So, as in past years, I’ll present a number of unranked lists of films that I enjoyed this year. I look forward to hearing your comments!

Favourite Documentary Films of 2010

Favourites from TIFF 2010

Favourite Non-Festival Films from 2010

Favourite Films from 2009 That Are Appearing on a Lot of 2010 Lists

Favourite Undistributed Films of 2010 (no known distribution in Canada)

And the list that keeps me honest:

Biggest Omissions in My Filmgoing of 2010

Previous years’ lists:

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One Response to My 2010 List of Lists

  1. Joseph Belanger says:
    January 4, 2011 at 8:14 am

    Hey James … I love how you lump all these films into different categories. It really allows the films to shine in their own right. It also shows how vast your tastes range, from the mainstream to the obscure.

    I absolutely loved both The White Ribbon and A Prophet but just don’t consider them 2010 films. My calendar follows Oscar’s. Hehe.

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