Best of 2009: Top 10 Performances by a Leading Actress

In most of my lists, I'm reasonably on track with the awards' lists, however with the leading females of 2009, I highly disagree with - particularly Oscar - the dominant 5 ladies given nominations (although most of them make the list of 10).

Half of the women on my list consist of actresses portraying the lives of real women - biopics, I suppose. Emily Blunt provided wispy innocence and entertaining rebellion to Queen Victoria in "The Young Victoria." She came forth as an actress desiring the praise she had a few years ago with "The Devil Wears Prada." In "The Last Station," Helen Mirren terrorized the characters in the film as the devilish siren Sofya Tolstoy (Leo's wife). She snagged an Oscar nomination for the role and was clearly the dominating force of the film.

Taking on the role of Gabrielle Chanel in "Coco Before Chanel," Audrey Tautou bewilders in so many ways - mostly how the hell she's never been nominated for an Oscar yet. Independence and creativity completely resounded from her throughout the French film. Incredible in "Stop-Loss" and proving herself again in "Bright Star" as the muse of famous British poet John Keats, Fanny Brawne, Abbie Cornish was simply what the title suggests - and she and the script counter this possible sappy side with moving scenes of grief, strife, and hardship. Cornish was perfect. Finally for the biopic roles, Meryl Streep brings comedy, drama, and cooking to the role of Julia Child in "Julie & Julia." She, of course, is brilliant. She, of course, should have won the Oscar over Sandra Bullock, who, while delivering the best performance of her career, should have had no chance against any of the ladies in this list of 10. It shows that the awards can be plagued by campaigns and money - clearly, since "The Blind Side" (yes, "The Blind Side") was nominated for Best Picture.

Two young ladies who we nominated this year take on bildungsroman-type roles: Gabourey Sidibe in "Precious" and Carey Mulligan in "An Education." One has to be careful with Sidibe; I'm not fond of critics and other talkative people who believe that a performances is so damn good because the role is so unlike/oppositional to the actress. This is the case with Sidibe. Did she completely embody her role? Yes. Did she deliver "the goods"? Of course. Does this make her worthy of top 5? Not necessarily. Carey Mulligan created an addictive allure to her Jenny in "An Education." The audience is moved to follow her on her journey of discovery. In a role that could be perceived as weak and completely naive, Mulligan adds early-gained independence and control of her character.

The last three actresses include roles that demand power, risk, control and - at times - the ability to let go. Aside from Christoph Waltz, the most memorable role would be that of Shoshana Dreyfus played by Melanie Laurent. It's Hamlet; it's Lysistrata; it's the incredible talent of Laurent mixed with the eye of Quentin Tarantino. Her shining scene is when she's stuck with Waltz in the restaurant. She's stone-cold, stoic; when he leaves, her release of emotion shoud've got her some sort of award. In the indie-film "Trucker," Michelle Monaghan shows a new side of her as an actress in a hugely underrated role as truck-driver Diane who has to learn how to be a mother. And finally for the tough babes, Tilda Swinton as the title role in "Julia" punches a whopping hole in what it means to be a great actress. She tears the screen up. She is unstopable. She doesn't give a damn, just like her character. I feel like she completely lived her role; I feel she IS Julia, the smoking, drinking, insane woman who decides it's a good idea to involve herself in a kidnapping with one of her crazy AA friends. Actually, it was her first day in AA. If you want a heart-pumping "what did this chick get herself into" kind of flick, watch Tilda in "Julia" and you'll see why it's one of the best performances, not only of 2009, but of the entire decade.

So, here are the Top 10 Performances by a Leading Actress for 2009:

10. Helen Mirren as Sofya Tolstoy in THE LAST STATION

9. Emily Blunt as Queen Victoria in THE YOUNG VICTORIA

8. Gabourey Sidibe as Precious in PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL 'PUSH' BY SAPPHIRE

7. Audrey Tautou as Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel in COCO BEFORE CHANEL

6. Carey Mulligan as Jenny in AN EDUCATION

5. Meryl Streep as Julia Child in JULIE & JULIA

4. Michelle Monaghan as Diana Ford in TRUCKER

3. Melanie Laurent as Shoshanna Dreyfus in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

2. Abbie Cornish as Fanny Brawne in BRIGHT STAR

1. Tilda Swinton as Julia in JULIA

Best of 2009: Top 10 Performances by a Leading Actor

While the women this year mostly have roles that deal with their relationships with their men, the best performances by male actors are dominated by men of the law or military. The other performances are all intelligent, at times creative men dealing with their women. It rings true that drama - in the Aristotle sense - is solely about what it means to be human and discovering this through our surroundings and the other humans around us.

The militaristic/men of the law roles in 2009 include Nicolas Cage's turn for the best in "Bad Lieutenant" in which he entangles himself in criminal activity, drugs, and other shenanigans police shouldn't involve themselves in; the absolute non-stop brilliance of "The Hurt Locker's" Jeremy Renner, who proves himself worthy of every meaty, conflicted role out there in Hollywood; Brad Pitt as the cocky, hilarious leader of the Basterds in, of course, "Inglourious Basterds"; and Ben Foster's disturbed role in "The Messenger" went unnoticed during award season, and really should've been recognized here and there. Military roles are the perfect fit for any actor yearning to discover through cinema what it is to be human. Renner faced death every scene, Pitt showed the 21st century what it would've been like to slaughter Nazis, and Foster took us into the mind and life of soldiers telling other families that their son or daughter has died in the war.

Out of the other roles, two are filmmakers in the movie. Lluis Homar starred in the Almodovar film, "Broken Embraces," in which he controls two personalities - in one a blind man and the other a lustful director - and has an affair with his muse, Lena (Penelope Cruz). In "Nine," Daniel Day-Lewis clears a large path for himself as the sole male character and dominates the scene in a beautifully agonizing way. On a side note, while "Nine" certainly wasn't as good as Rob Marshall's other musical film, "Chicago," it certainly didn't deserve the snubs it did.

Next, there are the men dealing with the women in their lives - and these guys are the more creative of the bunch. Jeff Bridges - who won the Oscar for this role - helms "Crazy Heart" as he delves into the life of an alcoholic, washed-up ex-country star. He begins to find himself when he meets Maggie Gyllenhaal's character, and he has so many great, moving scenes that show that he deserved the Oscar (even though I don't agree). In "(500) Days of Summer," Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the best tortured greeting card maker out there. The chemistry between him and Zooey Deschanel is mesmerizing, then when you discover that it's one-sided, Gordon-Levitt allows you in, really feeling bad for this guy. His genius lies in his ability to not be super whiny and to keep his role heartfelt.

And finally, my list includes two college professors, both with VERY similar movie titles. Michael Stuhlbarg - an almost unknown actor - heads the Coen Brothers latest film, "A Serious Man." Stuhlbarg is funny, witty, sad, and deserving of any leading role. The entire ensemble of the film deserve a spot on these lists, but unfortunately they don't have enough camera time. In "A Single Man," Colin Firth delivers one of the best performances of the year as the grieving professor who goes through a sort of "Catcher in the Rye" kind of day. While receiving his first, much overdue Oscar nomination for "A Single Man," predictors are saying he's the top runner for his upcoming film, "The King's Speech."

So, here are the Top 10 Performances by a Leading Actor in 2009:

10. Nicolas Cage as Terrence McDonagh in BAD LIEUTENANT: PORT OF CALL - NEW ORLEANS

9. Lluis Homar as Mateo/Harry Caine in BROKEN EMBRACES

8. Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom Hansen in (500) DAYS OF SUMMER

7. Brad Pitt as Lieutenant Aldo Raine in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

6. Ben Foster as Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery in THE MESSENGER

5. Daniel Day-Lewis as Guido Contini in NINE

4. Jeff Bridges as Bad Blake in CRAZY HEART

3. Michael Stuhlbarg as Professor Lawrence "Larry" Gopnik in A SERIOUS MAN

2. Colin Firth as George in A SINGLE MAN

1. Jeremy Renner as Sergeant First Class William James in THE HURT LOCKER

Best of 2009: Top 10 Performances by a Supporting Actress

While some of the performances in the 2009 supporting actress category won't be remembered for lists to come, there were a lot of actresses that incorporated great acting with crucial scenes to land on this list. These scenes - just like those of the supporting actors - are what lands the actress on my list. Many actresses have had great, iconic roles this year (Vera Farmiga in "Up in the Air"; all the ladies - Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, Fergie, Judi Dench - of "Nine"; Rosamund Pike, the glamorous older friend of Jennie in "An Education"; Catherine Keener in "Where the Wild Things Are"; and Charlize Theron in "The Road." However, what these actresses didn't have - or didn't have enough of - are scenes that steal, scenes that escape the film and hold their own weight, scenes that make good movies great - or in some cases on my list, scenes that make bad movies watchable.

Also, it needs to be addressed that I - just like many of the award shows back in January through March - am confused about what makes an actress a lead and a supporting. I've taken the theory that leads must have their own main storyline; supporting roles are sub-characters. So, in some cases here, I have either agreed or disagreed with the Oscars or Globes or SAGs, but know that I've given their placement much thought.

First, let's talk about the actresses that have made bad movies watchable. Rachel Weisz lighted her way through the murky, silly waters of "The Brothers Bloom" alongside leading men Adrien Brody and Marc Ruffalo. Her character had so much spunk and so full of wit that I questioned why the writer couldn't put the same focus on the other roles and to the plot. "He's Just Not That Into You", a star-studded Valentine film, clustered characters, leaving you emotionless - except for Jennifer Connelly as the jealous, suspicious wife of a cheating husband. The scene in the supermarket still resides in my mind.

In my mind, Penelope Cruz had an incredible year in 2009 with her performances in "Nine" and "Broken Embraces". Many thought that her role in the latter was a leading role, but I beg to differ. Lena isn't the main character by far - she's supporting. Also, Cruz was nominated for the wrong film. Her performance in "Broken Embraces" far exceeds that of "Nine". Cruz's "Nine" co-star, Marion Cotillard should've been the one nominated for the film as Guido's elegant, angry wife.

Many of the performances (all of the ones talked about so far except Weisz) focus on women struggling with relationships and with the men in their lives. In "The Messenger", Samantha Morton plays a widow of an American soldier; Maggie Gyllenhaal falls in love with Bad Blake and she struggles with single parenthood in "Crazy Heart"; and Julianne Moore, in "A Single Man," clings to the hope that her best friend George - who is gay - will still be in love with her. Morton's scene is when she is told for the first time that her husband has died; Gyllenhaal steals the show from Bridges when he loses her son; and Moore's performance seems effortless as she battles with a memory - the memory of George's dead boyfriend.

"Up in the Air" as an ensemble and film was fun, quirky, and dramatic. However, when you think about it, the roles aren't incredibly conflicted. Actually, they are, but the scenes chosen aren't the most dramatic or comedic or substantial. However, the one performance that stands out of the whole film is that of Anna Kendrick. She embodies a youth, independence, and gullibility that exceeds the script's expectations.

Mo'Nique as the abusive, envious mother in "Precious" is quite possibly one of the best performances of the decade. It's not just the surprise of her acting or the fact that she basically said "fuck you, awards, I'm not campaigning", it's the fact that she attacked the character so thoroughly and bravely that the result was genius.

And so, the Top Performances by a Supporting Actress for 2009 are:

10. Jennifer Connelly as Janine in HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU

9. Rachel Weisz as Penelope in THE BROTHERS BLOOM

8. Maggie Gyllenhaal as Jean Craddock in CRAZY HEART

7. Penelope Cruz as Carla in NINE

6. Julianne Moore as Charley in A SINGLE MAN

5. Penelope Cruz as Lena in BROKEN EMBRACES

4. Marion Cotillard as Luisa Contini in NINE

3. Anna Kendrick as Natalie Keener in UP IN THE AIR

2. Samantha Morton as Olivia Pitterson in THE MESSENGER

1. Mo'Nique as Mary in PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL 'PUSH' BY SAPPHIRE

Best of 2009: Top 10 Performances by a Supporting Actor

2009 really was full of great performances throughout most of the films, especially in the supporting categories. In my opinion, to be legitimate supporting actors, you have to have that one scene that often steals the show from the other cast members.

For example, in "The Hurt Locker," two actors (Anthony Mackie and Brian Geraghty) not only took their roles in brave directions from the screenplay, but also stole a few scenes from lead actor Jeremy Renner. Mackie's final scene in the film is both heart-breaking and inspiring. It could have fallen flat but he added multiple dimensions to the scene. Geraghty - while having a smaller role - really embodied the soldier who just can't take anymore. His final scene is also his greatest moment in the film. Another scene-stealer is Woody Harrelson in "The Messenger." For most of the film, he allows hardly any emotion to emit, but near the end, we see a different, pained side - a human quality.

Some of the actors completely channel the roles from either page or real life. In "The Last Station," Christopher Plummer is a joy to watch as the famous Russian novelist, Leo Tolstoy. There is a moment in the film when Plummer speaks to James McAvoy about his life as a young man and how he longs for that now as an old one. This scene, amoung the high grass and sun, takes the audience into the world of the film's and character's past, something we do not see on the screen. From page to screen, youngster Kodi Smit-McPhee is the exact replica of the son I imagined when I read "The Road." Quiet, clingy, and sort of whiny, but loyal to his father and often sad.

Then there are two actors from the same film: "A Single Man." Matthew Goode is riveting, astounding and completely likeable as the dead boyfriend to Colin Firth's character. All Goode has to work with are flashbacks (and there are only a handful of them), but he brings such life, happiness and eminent doom to these scenes, certainly stealing them away from Firth who is a powerhouse in the film. The other actor in the film, Nicholas Hoult, is in the present plot as Firth's college student and possible love interest. Hoult exudes art, cinematic chemistry, California, and the '60s. If that's not enough, I don't know what is.

The final batch of supporting, scene-stealing actors are all the villians (or at least the antagonists). First off, there's Alfred Molina (who was incredible on Broadway in "Red," by the way) as Jenny's father in "An Education." He is the force always in the back of Jenny's mind as she experiences life outside her home, and also in the back of the audiences mind. His role resonates with us even when he's not on screen. Stanley Tucci plays the psychotic killer in "The Lovely Bones"; while the film is self-indulgent and over-the-top, Tucci's performance is a knock-out that would have deserved the Oscar and every other award if it were not for our final actor. Christoph Waltz, an unknown German actor, completely steals - I mean the biggest bank robbery in history - the show from every incredible actor in "Inglourious Basterds." He was funny, insane, despicable and loveable - and he was a Jew-hunting Nazi! Brilliant.

The Top 10 Performances by a Supporting Actor for 2009 are:

10. Brian Geraghty as Specialist Owen Eldrige in THE HURT LOCKER

9. Nicholas Hoult as Kenny in A SINGLE MAN

8. Kodi Smit-McPhee as the Boy in THE ROAD

7. Alfred Molina as Jack in AN EDUCATION

6. Christopher Plummer as Leo Tolstoy in THE LAST STATION

5. Anthony Mackie as Sergeant JT Sanborn in THE HURT LOCKER

4. Matthew Goode as Jim in A SINGLE MAN

3. Woody Harrelson as Captain Tony Stone in THE MESSENGER

2. Stanley Tucci as George Harvey in THE LOVELY BONES

1. Christoph Waltz as Colonel Hans Landa in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

Best of 2009 (Movies): Everything But...

So it has taken over six months to post my Top 10s of 2009 - I know, it's pathetic - but, first of all, living in small town Pennsylvania does not make it easy to be an unpaid film critic, especially since I have to drive over an hour to see decent movies; second of all, two movies in my top 10 didn't even come around here until now (because they just came out on DVD); and thirdly, I was real frickin' busy this year!

So without any further ado, here are all my Top 10s besides acting and best films:

Top 10 Directors of 2009
10. Pedro Almodovar for BROKEN EMBRACES

9. Spike Jonze for WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

8. Jane Campion for BRIGHT STAR

7. Louis Psihoyos for THE COVE

6. Wes Anderson for FANTASTIC MR. FOX

5. Quentin Tarantino for INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

4. James Cameron for AVATAR

3. Kathryn Bigelow for THE HURT LOCKER

2. Michael Haneke for THE WHITE RIBBON

1. Tom Ford for A SINGLE MAN

Top 10 Screenplays of 2009

10. AN EDUCATION, adapted by Nick Hornby

9. IN THE LOOP, by Jesse Armstrong & Simon Blackwell & Armando Iannucci & Tony Roche

8. A SINGLE MAN, adapted by Tom Ford & David Scearce

7. DISTRICT 9, by Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell

6. FANTASTIC MR. FOX, adapted by Wes Anderson & Noah Baumbach

5. UP IN THE AIR, adapted by Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner

4. (500) DAYS OF SUMMER, by Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber

3. THE HURT LOCKER, by Mark Boal

2. THE WHITE RIBBON, by Michael Haneke

1. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, by Quentin Tarantino

Top 10 Ensembles of 2009

10. The cast of NINE (Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Penelope Cruz, Sophia Loren, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, Kate Hudson, Stacy Ferguson)

9. The cast of UP IN THE AIR (George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Amy Morton, Melanie Lynskey, Danny McBride, J.K. Simmons, Zach Galifianakis)

8. The cast of A SINGLE MAN (Colin First, Julianne Moore, Nicholas Hoult, Matthew Goode, Ginnifer Goodwin, Lee Pace, Jon Kortajarena, Paulette Lamori, Ryan Simpkins)

7. The cast of THE HURT LOCKER (Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Guy Pearce, Ralph Finnes, Evangeline Lilly, David Morse, Christian Camargo, Christopher Sayegh)

6. The cast of A SERIOUS MAN (Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed, Sari Lennick, Aaron Wolff, Jessica McManus, Amy Landecker)

5. The cast of PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL 'PUSH' BY SAPPHIRE (Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz, Sherri Shepherd, Stephanie Andujar, Chyna Layne, Amina Robinson, Xosha Roquemore, Angelic Zambrana, Nealla Gordon, Barret Helms)

4. The cast of IN THE LOOP (Peter Capaldi, James Gandolfini, Anna Chlumsky, Steve Coogan, Tom Hollander, Olivia Poulet, Chris Addison, Mimi Kennedy)

3. The cast of THE MESSENGER (Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson, Samantha Morton, Jena Malone, Steve Buscemi, Eamonn Walker)

2. The cast of INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS (Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Diane Kruger, Denis Menochet, Eli Roth, Michael Fassbender, Daniel Bruhl, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Jacky Ido, B.J. Novak, Omar Doom, Martin Wuttke, Mike Myers, Julie Dreyfus, August Diehl)

1. The cast of THE WHITE RIBBON (Christian Friedel, Maria-Victoria Dragus, Leonard Proxauf, Leonie Benesch, Burghart Klaubner, Roxanne Duran, Ursina Lardi, Susanne Lothar, Rainer Bock, Ulrich Tukur, Thibault Serie, Fion Mutert, Steffi Kuhnert, Enno Trebs, Milijan Chatelain, Eddy Grahl, Branko Samarovski, Detlev Buck)

Top 10 Cinematographers of 2009

10. Rodrigo Prieto for BROKEN EMBRACES

9. Dion Beebe for NINE

8. Roger Deakins for A SERIOUS MAN

7. Greig Fraser for BRIGHT STAR

6. Lance Acord for WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

5. Barry Ackroyd for THE HURT LOCKER

4. John de Borman for AN EDUCATION

3. Robert Richardson for INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

2. Eduard Grau for A SINGLE MAN

1. Christian Berger for THE WHITE RIBBON

Top 10 Best Costume Designers of 2009

10. Hope Hanafin for (500) DAYS OF SUMMER

9. Arianne Phillips for A SINGLE MAN

8. Moidele Bickel for THE WHITE RIBBON

7. Monika Jacobs for THE LAST STATION

6. Colleen Atwood for NINE

5. Anna B. Sheppard for INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

4. Odile Dicks-Mireaux for AN EDUCATION

3. Catherine Leterrier for COCO BEFORE CHANEL

2. Sandy Powell for THE YOUNG VICTORIA

1. Janet Patterson for BRIGHT STAR

Top 10 Best Scores and/or Soundtracks of 2009

10. The soundtrack of NINE

9. J. Ralph for THE COVE

8. Mary Ramos & Jim Schultz for INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

7. Abel Korzeniowski for A SINGLE MAN

6. Michael GiacchinoUP

5. Carter Burwell & Karen Orzolek for WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

4. Stephen Bruton & T-Bone Burnett for CRAZY HEART

3. Randy Newman for THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG

2. Alexandre Desplat for FANTASTIC MR. FOX

1. The soundtrack of (500) DAYS OF SUMMER and original music by Mychael Danna & Rob Simonsen

Top 10 Best Visual/Special Effects

10. TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN

9. WATCHMEN

8. PARANORMAL ACTIVITY

7. FANTASTIC MR. FOX

6. STAR TREK

5. A SINGLE MAN

4. THE HURT LOCKER

3. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

2. DISTRICT 9

1. AVATAR