best of 2008 in movies

technically some of these movies are 2007 releases but actually didnt arrive at Irish cinemas until 2008. Ive watched plenty of movies this year , but not nearly enough. Some of these movies i caught on the cinema screen, others on dvd and in the case of one choice on tv. Of course this list is entirely subjective and i'm probably totally off the mark but i am being honest. So the fact that The Dark Knight gets no mention is because in all honesty i found it a boring , overlong, semi- coherent piece of filmmaking.

So heres my top 5...


1) In The Shadow Of The Moon






- visually poetic, beautifully scored , intelligent measured filmaking..




2) The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford





- graceful, elegiac , magic piece of moviemaking + the best movie score ive heard in a long time.


3) Paranoid Park



- as visually pure and beautiful as moviemaking gets..


4) The Mist




- a "horror movie for grown ups". An "allegory for the current post-911 culture of fear". Both of these and maybe the best Frank Darabont film since Shawshank.


5) The English Surgeon




- a gem of movie. Funny , sad , deeply touching.