January 5, 2011, Film
KCMetropolis film critic's best films of 2010
"Black Swan," "True Grit," "Social Network," "Toy Story 3," "Inception," or perhaps "Piranha 3D" or "Hot Tub Time Machine"? Did your favorite film of the year make KCM's Michael D. Smith's top 10 of 2010 list?
It’s always a difficult challenge to narrow down an entire year’s worth of films into a list of ten, much less pick the best film of the year. Still, I have provided you, the loyal KCMetropolis reader, my definitive list. Enjoy and Happy New Year!
1. Inception – One way a work of art’s greatness can be measured is by how much thought and discussion it provokes long afterwards. Christopher Nolan’s effort achieves that greatness. His multi-layered story seizes attention as its terrific cast, headlined by Leonardo DiCaprio, maneuvers through twisting dreams and realities which are brought to life with incredible special effects.
2. Black Swan – Under the brilliant direction of Darren Aronofsky, Natalie Portman delivers the performance of her career as Nina Sayers, a frigid ballerina whose grip on reality collapses under the weight of being the Swan Queen. Portman’s mesmerizing portrayal of paranoia at its worst is skillfully supported by Mila Kunis as Nina’s free-spirited rival and Barbara Hershey as her smothering mother.
3. A Prophet – A French/Arab teenager without a sense of identity is sent to prison where he falls in with a powerful Corsican mob boss. Over time, the student becomes a master in the criminal world. A Prophet is emotionally raw and pulls no punches. Its characters are well-developed but nothing is glamorized or made overly sentimental. The best prison drama since Shawshank Redemption.
4. Winter’s Bone – The Grand Jury Prize winner at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, Winter’s Bone is a tense, riveting drama set against a backdrop of poverty, drugs, and an unrelenting code of silence. Shot in the Missouri Ozarks, it’s an intelligent work of cinema punctuated by a genuine and consistent performance from Jennifer Lawrence as a teenager burdened by tremendous demands as she tries to find her father.
5. The King’s Speech – This well-crafted British drama examines a little known and seemingly unlikely friendship involving Colin Firth’s stammering King George VI and Geoffrey Rush’s Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue. Firth and Rush share some of the best acting chemistry captured in cinema all of last year. The former should be a lock to win an Oscar for Best Actor.
6. The Social Network – If you love films with a lot of smart dialogue then you’ll certainly enjoy this well-paced work by David Fincher. Jesse Eisenberg shines in an unflattering portrayal of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg who in six short years went from being a Harvard undergrad to the youngest billionaire in history. Excellent supporting performances abound from Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake.
7. The Fighter – In this classic sports-related drama, Mark Wahlberg plays Micky Ward, a struggling boxer overshadowed by his crack-addicted half-brother, Dicky who’s a local hero because he once knocked down Sugar Ray Leonard. Christian Bale is a strong Oscar contender for his outstanding supporting role as Dicky. Based upon real events, The Fighter is guaranteed to make you stand up and cheer.
8. Inside Job – With effective narration by Matt Damon, Inside Job parades economists, academics, politicians, and foreign government officials in front of the camera as it thoroughly details the 2008 financial collapse and how it caused America’s worst economic recession since the Great Depression. It’s simply the best documentary of the year.
9. The Town – In the vein of epic crime thrillers like Heat, The Town stars Ben Affleck as a member of a 4-man bank robbing crew in Boston whose relationship with an unstable partner, played with great effect by Jeremy Renner, turns rocky after he becomes romantically involved with an unsuspecting ex-hostage. There’s plenty of suspenseful action to go around as the FBI hunts down Affleck’s crew.
10. True Grit – Filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen deserve credit for tackling a great American novel which had already been turned into an iconic film. Their version is darker yet it preserves the humor contained in the rich dialogue. Jeff Bridges is entertaining as the drunken U.S. Marshal Rueben Cogburn, but it’s the debut performance of Hailee Steinfeld that steals the show. The best western since Unforgiven.
Indie Film Editor
Michael D. Smith earned a Bachelor of Arts in history at College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri followed by a Master of Arts in history at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Inspired by such critics as Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, Michael started reviewing films in 1992 for College of the Ozarks's student-run newspaper. After returning to the Kansas City area in 1994, he continued film reviewing by writing for the Cass County Democrat Missourian in Harrisonville.
In 2000 Michael joined Sun Publications in Overland Park, Kansas where he served as its film critic and Arts and Entertainment Editor. During his tenure there, he was also the film critic for the "Fine Arts Radio Hour" and "Celebrity Scoop" radio shows on KXTR. After leaving the Sun in late 2002, he became the A&E writer for the Olathe News in Olathe, Kansas. He also worked as a freelance writer for The Squire in Leawood, Showcase Publishing in Lake Ozark, Missouri and the Kansas City Star.
Michael is currently a member of the Kansas City Film Critics Circle, a professional film critic organization established in 1966 by the late Dr. James Loutzenhiser.