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Thankfully someone put Mission Impossible 3 on the worst list. Everyone I talked to seemed to cut that movie way to much slack in my opinion. Though I didn't think Miami Vice was a good as it could have been I don't think it deserves to be on the worst list. Maybe I cut it too much slack??? And I'm also happy to see that someone champions Lady in Water. Not a great movie but unfairly attacked by people just waiting to pounce on M. Night. Only thing I would add to the best list is Children of Men. Not a movie I am dying to see again...but one of the years best I think.

hey gary - thank you - all this talk about MI3 being great and the best of the series makes no sense to me either - as for Miami Vice, it just really didnt work for me, although i am a fan of micheal mann - and its nice to meet one of the 10 other people that didnt hate lady in the water - since i wrote a whole post on that film i dont need to get into it here as well.... as for children of men i did put it in the honorable mention section but i have to admit i didnt like it as much as most people did - for me it was a good film with great potential that didnt fully work. i did like it, but i filt it needed to be about 20 minutes longer or so - basically the whole movie was them being chased and i felt that there was some depth to the characters and the ideas within the story that just never were never fully developed and realized. it was beautifully filmed however, and those long takes were pretty special. thats why it made the honorable mention rather then top 10.

Oh no, not again. Jesse, how many times must we discuss this? (I think it's turning into our Battle of the Lake House) I just can not understand how anyone can put MI2 above MI3. Had I seen MI2 at home by myself, and not in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with my dad while trying to kill time, I would have walked out, something I have never done. The first scene of MI3 alone was better than the entirety of MI2. But I guess we'll just never agree on this.

Speaking of not agreeing, I disagree about Children of Men. I thought it was fantastic. All the characters were wonderfully developed and it was the perfect length. I got out of the theatre and thought a lot more time had passed than actually had. So much happened in that film, without sacrificing character and without being afraid to take a moment (such as the scene with Michael Caine and his wife towards the end, you should know the one) when needed. It was one of the best films I saw last year. Granted, I only saw 32 films that were released last year, but still. I'm waiting to see Pan's Labrynth tonight before I post my top 10, but I'm certain Children of Men will be in my top 5.

Lastly, nice to hear from another FBNF listener, Gary! Don't understand your opinion on MI3, but apparently I'm in the minority on that one. What's your top 10 from last year?

Here's the really sad thing about MI3. I think your right Kate. It actually is better than MI2 and you have no idea how much that pains me to say. I love John Woo's work and was estatic that he was directing MI2. And so let down after seeing it. The fact that MI3 is actually better is not saying much. And any talk about it being the best in the series is nonesense of the first kind. The first MI was so good that the next two aren't even in the same league. Children of men is interesting because it really seems to polarize people for or against it. People either find it full of hope or extreamly depressing. It seems to be a litmis test about what kind of person you are. Sorry I don't have a top ten because I'm embarrassed to say I haven't had the chance to see enough quality films this year to make an educated judgement/list. So I'll just stick to panning the judgement of better and more thoughtful critics than myself. lol

lol - oh kate - we just can't get away from this MI thing can we lol. and i do have to admit not only do i think 2 was better then 3 but i also liked 2. the great hanz zimmer score, that cool opening cliff climbing scene, the car chase, that impossible yet cool motorcycle chase and fight, that rhythmic scene with the dancers and the spanish music and of course the requisite jon woo slow motion and doves - dont get me wrong though - Face Off is his american masterpiece, but something about mi2 worked for me - i think that both one and two had problems but that maybe i forgave them more in 2 because the film looked better and was more visceral for me then three which was just a regular action movie with some of that 'alias' type melodrama that works on tv but didnt work for me in the movie.. but moving on lol

Childern of Men: i am a big fan of clive owen and the director, and i did think the film was pretty good but like i said it felt like it left many issues and ideas in the background of a film that was basically in the end, one long chase - i do agree that there were moments however kate, you are right about that (the long take when clive, the girl and the baby walk through the crowd of soldiers in silence was something special) ... i dont think it is a question for me of either hope or depression its more that i had such such high hopes for it and was in the end a little depressed that it didnt completely work for me as much as i had hoped - but i do see where you are coming from on this one kate and i dont think this disagreement is of the MI type :)

Here's my essay-like list of 2006 films I saw last year, sorted by category and ending with my top 10.

Didn't like: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Scoop

Meh: Last Holiday, Curse of the Golden Flower, Wordplay, Winter Passing, Kinky Boots, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Inside Man

Liked: Nanny McPhee, Dave Chapelle’s Block Party, Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story, Sophie School - The Final Days, Joyeux Noel, Thank You for Smoking, Akeelah and the Bee, Mission: Impossible III, Idiocracy, The Lake House, Superman Returns, The Devil Wears Prada, Clerks II, The Prestige, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, Night Watch, The Break-Up, The Last King of Scotland

Top 10: (They're pretty interchangeable within their groups)

10. Dreamgirls9. Casino Royale8. Stranger Than Fiction7. The Good Shepherd6. Little Miss Sunshine--------------------------5. The Departed4. United 933. Brick2. Pan's Labrynth1. Children of Men

oh, make that Sophie Scholl, not Sophie School. Very different.

I'm so glad someone called out "Joyeux Noel". This was my Oscar pick for best foreign film last year but it lost out to ...I don't even remember what. I thought it was a pretty good film... Better than Days of Glory which I just saw last week.

I totally agree with Brick as #1. Disagree with Miami Vice though. I really liked that one, and can't figure out all the bashing it took, but I'm clearly in the minority on it. Ultraviolet wasn't great, but I get the feeling there was a better movie left on the cutting room floor thanks to studio interference. A lot of other great '06 movies I'm still waiting to see on DVD, with a bunch coming out over the next month or so...