Yes I am saying that this was the best of all the 2006 movies. This movie has it all: Wonderful cinematography thanks to idyllic Chinese locations and sumptious period production, continually twisting and gripping narrative thanks to Somerset Maughum's story and just plain addictive precision delivery by a strong cast headed by Norton and Watts who just sizzle in their roles. Yes. I like it.

The story itself may be light and even whimsical but the subject matter is solid and the performances enchanting as you would expect from the seasoned, talented cast. Ultimately uplifting story of a lady who had a far greater benevolent impact on our lives than I had even realized until watching this.

Deliciously twisted journey through the petty wickedness and flaws of very ordinary people. Masterpiece of orginality played inevitably well given the cast.

As I reflect on this movie, I'm encouraged to assert it was clearly one of the better movies of the year. Certainly in terms of originality, an important factor for me, it was a total winner and that's tough for a murder mystery, especially one that's hardly mysterious. Just a great story, well performed, wonderful locations wonderfully photographed - formula for success!

The story is a small fragment taken from the life of its subject but what a fragment - certainly the most significant in recent times. It is played for us by a very able cast but way above all else is the performance of Helen Mirren who frankly shows herself here to be simply in a different league to everybody else in her profession. Incredible.

My favorite genres are comedy, horror and sci-fi. So why is the highest ranking movie from these genres down at #9 on my list? Quality. It has dropped year on year since they're the easiest money-spinners- Hollywood just got LAZY. Lamentable but true. This is not a great story, not even very original - just gives priority to mindplay over body count.

Okay- technically it should not be on this list because Sicko is a movie I saw in the theater as soon as it was released being a big Michael Moore fan. It's another must-see documentary not as strictly partisan as some of Moore's other offerings but delivering a very important message to the American people about the sorry state of healthcare in this country.

Nicely done - between The Return, The Gift and this one, my faith in a good old fashioned horror movie is slowly being restored.

Put simply, I'm a huge Jack Black fan and so as with Michael Moore, Jack's movies get preferential treatment from me. This was not really the best comedy of the bunch but because it was JB doing his favorite thing, it's an automatic hit with me.

Sweet story did a better job of satisfying my craving for comedy and sci-fi than just about any movie in either of those genres in 2006!

(2007). As with 'Superbad' a much anticipated movie based on the trailer and further supported by the great reviews. Was actually even better than I expected in terms of witty dialogue and some originality. Still didn't warrant a top 10 placing though as comedies should given my taste.

Light sci-fi fantasy for the family well performed from an original if lightweight story. Once again I have to look on the family shelf to get original sci-fi worth watching this year. Too bad.

(2007) Pretty much standard Simspsons fare topically themed on environment earned a spot in my list because once upon a time I was a huge Simpsons fan but that was over 10 years ago in the early days. Now they seem to have outstayed their welcome.

Trailer looked good if formulaic. Like Fracture it was somewhat contrived and formulaic but also like Fracture it was pleasantly better than it could have been. The story was a little more twisted than expected, Costner was reliable if unspectacular in his role and I think mostly the pace kept this watchable in the end.

Light comedy "chic flick" I would normally avoid for a couple of years but for the great cast of Diaz, Winslett and of course most notably Jack (albeit in the least of the four main roles). Also, I loved the portrayal of the snug English cottage in the snowy Surrey village - even though I know its rare and largely unrealistic- it still made me homesick!

Drawn to this by the good reviews I liked it better than expected even though it was a little lightweight. Apart from Molina, the stars are not really my favorite (the only movie I really enjoyed Gere in was The Mothman Prophecy) as they don't typically appear in movies I enjoy but this one is an exception. Watch it for the story alone and you'll like it.

Perhaps my most anticipated DVD though good was marred (to me- sue me if its not an intellectual thing to say) by subtitles and was not quite what I expected BUT, that said, it was still very good.

Danny Boyle continues to prove his versatility as well as his accute familiarity with the darker sides of the human psyche.