Best of 2005

One of the best of its year.

Solid follow up to the incredible Dogville. Not quite as good, but just barely misses the mark.

A stunning western set in the Australian outback in the 19th century. Visually amazing.

Nick Frost is in it. Need I say more?

An outstanding and almost otherworldly documentary.

A film noir set in suburban modern day high school. Sounds off-putting, but it works beautifully.

It's hard to pick a favorite in Park Chan-Wook's revenge trilogy, but this one holds a special place in my heart. A wonderfully twisted, fun and exciting ride.

One of the best films of its year. Ellen Page and Patrick Wilson give incredible performances in this unsettling film.

Michael Haneke's slow, creepy and tense thriller.

Another great Cronenberg film. A great companion piece to Todd Fields' 'In the Bedroom.'

Rob Zombie's best film to date, this captures the atmosphere and look of 70s road/exploitation flicks and runs with it. Amazing use of classic 70s rock on the soundtrack.

Gripping and disturbing film by Gregg 'Doom Generation' Araki. Excellent performances all around, but a standout for Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

A deserved showcase for Cillian Murphy.

An inventive take on H.P. Lovecraft. Probably the best adaptation to date.

Strange little film, but I liked it.

Excellent film, the first English language film from the director of 'City of God,' adapted from the novel by John LeCarre.

Genuinely claustrophobic and intense.

Beautiful and haunting, certainly not the feel good movie of the summer.

Excellent and revealing documentary. One of the best of its year.

Liev Schreiber's adaptation is a strange and wonderful film experience.

Wow. This film was funny, disgusting, disturbing, disgusting, inventive, disgusting...you get the idea. Highly recommended for those that can stomach it.

Miike for kids! A fun diversion about a war among the monsters of the world starring Chiaki Kuriyama (Gogo of Kill Bill).

An interesting look at the 70s porno hit 'Deep Throat' that also takes a look at the social climate surrounding the film leading to both its success and condemnation.

A brilliant documentary for the patient man.

Another great film from Sam Mendes.

I was very impressed with this zombie outing. I felt it had some good characters and interesting ideas.

Excellent, and not your usual Woody Allen by any means.

Full of great imagery and wonderment. The direction was slightly uneven, the rest of the film made up for it.

Strange little film, but it grabbed me. Sometimes funny, sometimes tragic, sometimes both at the same time with some of the most deplorable characters in recent cinema. It's a hard one to take in some ways, but it's worth the journey.

A clever little film that takes the original propaganda film and turns it into a campy, hilarious musical.

This is one funny lady. Crass, lewd and roll on the floor hilarious.

Good character piece from Noah Baumbach, who is very hit or miss for me.

A film to see for the performance of Felicity Huffman. She's a knockout.

Wallace and Gromit is a favorite, and this film is no exception.

A good little horror flick. Critically lambasted, and I don't see why. I thought there was some good tension built throughout, and some genuinely creepy moments.

Pierce Brosnan has never been better, and the film flows so well...I recommend it to anyone willing to go for something a bit different.

Damn near perfect telling of the journey of Ernesto Guevara and Alberto Granado in the 1950s. Exquisite location cinematography only further enhances the beauty of this film. Highly recommended.