And so, the first post-Millennium decade comes to an end. In 2010, Hollywood offerings were dominated by the 3D wave, which still seems a bit gimmicky to be honest, especially when the extra-dimension feels like an afterthought. The year's most-anticipated movie — the penultimate outing of the boy wizard — was smart enough to abandon this retro-fit idea, though we will get the 3D version at some stage.
Animation fared strongly this year: Toy Story 3 ( TS3 ), grossing over a billion dollars, became the top animated earner of all time. Unusually, no less than four animated films — TS3, Shrek Forever After, Despicable Me, How to Train Your Dragon — featured in the year's top ten highest-grossing films.
While some movies have day-date releases with the U.S., certain 2009 films such as Invictus were released here only in 2010. The criterion — apart from quality — in picking the year's outstanding movies, then, was that the film should have come to town this calendar year.
With “ten” the number of choice at the end of the decade, here's our Top 10 for 2010:
Inception
Christopher Nolan takes such abstruse notions as how the mind creates ideas and identities, to deliver the year's most rewarding thriller. Superbly written, stylishly filmed and smartly cast, it bears repeated viewing.
The Social Network
David Fincher harvests gold from Aaron Sorkin's brilliant screenplay about the machinations behind the creation of mankind's most significant social networking phenomenon since, well, sitting around a campfire.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) and his friends hunt for the elusive Horcruxes amid the evil unleashed by Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), and without the protection of Hogwarts, parents or mentors. A good set up to the finale.
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock goes steampunk with Guy Ritchie. Tremendous fun, with Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law playing Holmes and Watson; a sequel has been promised in 2011.
Invictus
A rare sports movie with so much soul that it doesn't matter if you don't understand the game. Clint Eastwood's cleverly crafted tale of how Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) championed South Africa's underdog rugby team and its white captain François Pienaar (Matt Damon) in a bid to unite a divided nation.
Toy Story 3
With Pixar and director Lee Unkrich bringing the adventures of Andy's toys to a thoroughly fulfilling finish, it can finally be said of this animated franchise: it's one of the best trilogies of all time. Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Tim Allen) will be sorely missed.
The American
Anton Corbijn's mood poem centres on George Clooney as a somewhat shady gun-maker who seeks new beginnings while haunted by a troubled past.
The Town
The heist gone wrong makes for a film done right. Though it feels mean-spirited, this coda must be added: Ben Affleck proves, again, how he is as intuitive behind the camera as he is leaden in front of it.
Alice in Wonderland
Just when you think Johnny Depp has exhausted his patent on the role of the vulnerable eccentric, he plumbs a different depth to play the Mad Hatter in this curious and curiouser take on the Lewis Carroll classic. A feminist film with fabulist visuals, it could only have come from Tim Burton's oddball imagination. Alice's adventures, incidentally, earned over a billion dollars worldwide, second only to TS3 .
Secretariat
Unabashedly feel-good film about the American racing legend and his feisty owner (Diane Lane).
Top 10 Contenders that didn't make it to Chennai
… but we would have liked to see
*The Kids Are All Right
Yes they are, really. It's the parents that need to sort out their lives: mums Annette Bening and Julianne Moore – they're a gay couple - and sperm-donor dad Mark Ruffalo.
*The Ghost Writer
Roman Polanski returns to form with this sleek, haunting thriller about a ghost writer (Ewan McGregor) who is whisked off to an island to finish the memoirs of an ex-prime minister (Pierce Brosnan).
*Winter's Bone
Teenager Ree (Jennifer Lawrence) needs to find her missing father if she is to keep her family together. Debra Granik's noir story of a mountain community involved in the meth business won the grand jury prize at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.
* Nowhere Boy
Artist-turned-director is quite the trendy hyphenate, but Sam Taylor-Wood makes it work in her uneven, powerful film about the 15-year old who would later record Nowhere Man. An obvious must for Beatles and retro fans, with a great performance by Aaron Johnson as John Lennon.
*Kick Ass
Matthew Vaughn's take on the superhero brand isn't an easy watch with its ultra-violent style – Tarantino, are you taking notes? - but it's ultra-entertaining as well. Nicholas Cage in his best avatar for a long time.
And if we were doing the Top 15 that made it to Chennai in 2010
… we would have also included
Iron Man 2
How to Train Your Dragon
Green Zone
Unstoppable
Knight and Day
