2009 — the year in film — belated edition.

I've finally seen almost everything I wanted to from 2009, eight months after the fact. Some of these I saw more than a year ago, and some last week, so the frail memory is making this task difficult ... here is my much-belated, best-of 2009 movie list. Discuss.

Best
1. District 9
2. The Hurt Locker
3. The Informant
4. Inglorious Basterds
5. Moon
6. The White Ribbon
7. A Serious Man
8. Gomorrah
9. Big Fan
10. Up in the Air
11. The Hangover
12. An Education
13. Bad Lieutenant: Port Call of New Orleans

Good
14. Zombieland
15. In the Loop
16. Drag Me to Hell
17. Star Trek
18. Funny People
19. The Road
20. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
21. Fantastic Mr. Fox 

Meh :
Up
Bruno
Whatever Works
Observe and Report
The Strangers
Extract
Avatar
Where the Wild Things Are
The Men Who Stare at Goats

Shitlist:
Terminator Salvation
Transformers: Rise of the Fallen
Gamer
Crank 2
The Box
Year One
Invention of Lying
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
I Love You Man
Friday the 13th
Sherlock Holmes
Angels and Demons

Unseen
Public Enemies
Antichrist
35 Shots of Rum
Coraline
Duplicity
Precious

and hundreds more ...

Best films of the year, not really

I don't see enough movies in theaters to honestly make a list, dammit.

Most everything good that came out this year I'll probably see on video in the next year.

The best films I did see in theaters were District 9, Adventureland and The Hangover.

Inglorious Basterds was an interesting and sharp production by a master craftsman. Not perfect by any means, but as with any Tarantino film, I will definitely purchase and will probably become more fond with repeated viewings.

Year One was terrible.

Then again, what the fuck else came out this year? I only vaguely want to see Public Enemies. I wanted to see Terminator: Salvation until I realized it was PG-13. Something is seriously not right in the world when a Terminator flick is anything less than an R.

The top grossing film at the box office was Transformers 2. I'd probably laugh harder at that than with most of the comedies forced upon us this summer. Paul Blart. Really, America?

I read that Star Trek managed to be a blockbuster uncursed by cynical, pandering stupidity or inane plotting, so I guess I'll rent that. And, as with all Pixar productions, I'm sure Up will be fantastic, but again, I didn't see it.

A Serious Man has not yet come to my crappy Illinois city, but I could probably just put it on the top of my list without seeing it.

I am intrigued by master-provocateur Lars Von Trier's latest art-squirm fest Antichrist, and fellow cinematic knife-wielder Michael Haneke's The White Ribbon.

Any suggestions? What are your top-of-the-year lists?