Lists, 12/21.

"It may not go down as a great year for movies, but 2005 has certainly been a great year for movies worth talking about," writes Noel Murray, introducing his "Top Ten," the "Next Five," his "Performance of the Year" (Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line), the "Overrated" and "Underrated," a "Future Film That Time Forgot," and of course, the "Worst of the Year." This is the template followed in the AV Club's "Year in Film 2005" special followed by Keith Phipps (#1: A History of Violence), Nathan Rabin (saluting Uwe Boll), Tasha Robinson (nope, Keith, she says, A History of Violence is "Overrated") and Scott Tobias ("Underrated": Pretty Persuasion).

What a year Werner Herzog's had. "[I]n case you're wondering, Richard Schickel and I don't consult each other in compiling our Ten Best lists," writes Richard Corliss for Time. "That we both chose Herzog documentaries were not conspiracy but coincidence - and, I think, a fitting tribute to a filmmaker of the purest craft, and of his acute understanding that the most thrilling adventures are those that illuminate man’s quest both to tame nature and become one with it." Corliss goes for The White Diamond, Schickel for Grizzly Man.

No other film blog has zoomed from zero to a hundred as quickly and as inexorably this year as Cinematical. When I sat beside Karina Longworth on a panel at SXSW in March, I had no idea she was quietly brewing a new drug. The team of contributors isn't just the fastest draw with a feed and a smirk, they're also sharp as hell. Karina's real coup is to allow each of their distinct personalities to pierce through the persistent info-fog. Now Karina and Ryan Stewart have written up Cinematical's top ten. The top of the tops: Match Point.

The Phoenix Film Critics go for... Cinderella Man?

Update: The Toronto Film Critics go with David Cronenberg and A History of Violence. More accolades for Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laura Linney, Catherine Keener, Paul Giamatti and Werner Herzog.

Update #2: "J Robert Parks' Top 10 Moviegoing Experiences of 2005."

Posted by dwhudson at December 21, 2005 7:46 AM