2008, The Year in Film (Through My Distorted Eyes)

Late last week, I put together a "Top 8 Films of 2008" list over at the KING Mag website, so I'll spare doing another one here. But in doing said countdown, there was a great number of this year's flicks that I couldn't discuss/single out/insult thanks to space restrictions. On the same token, I'm not in the mood to write ad naus about every f'n movie that left a real mark on me, so here I present, a lazy list of films both great, surprising, and despicable (in no particular orders, and not limited to specific numerical boundaries).

As you can tell, this was a pretty great, diverse year at the movie for yours truly. Great (mostly solo) times.

2008's Movies That I Loved, And Will Watch For Years To Come
The Wrestler
Synecdoche, New York
The Dark Knight
Slumdog Millionaire
Revolutionary Road
Wendy and Lucy
Wall-E
Doubt
Rachel Getting Married
The Signal
Snow Angels
The Strangers
Let The Right One In
Pineapple Express
Timecrimes
Cloverfield

2008's Films I Respect And/Or Enjoyed, But Can't See Myself Re-watching Much
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Milk
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Speed Racer
Changeling
Redbelt
The Wackness

2008's Films That Surprised The Hell Out Of Me, and I Loved Unexpectedly (Or More Than Expected)
Quarantine (a remake of a beloved flick that I expected to drop the ball, but thankfully carried it into the endzone, and then did the Iggy Shuffle)
Role Models
Iron Man
Rock N Rolla
Red
Che
Burn After Reading
The Visitor
Funny Games (another triumphant Quarantine-like remake case)
Tropic Thunder
Step Brothers (had damn-near written Will Ferrell's once-great-funny off, but he came to play here, as did Mr. John C. Reilly)
The Ruins
Fear(s) of the Dark
The Midnight Meat Train
Doomsday
Frost/Nixon
Kung Fu Panda
Wanted
Mulberry Street
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Choke

2008's Films That Left Me Indifferent, And I'll Soon Forget...Actually, I Have Forgotten
Miracle at St. Anna
Eagle Eye
Zack & Miri Make A Porno
Sex & the City
Repo! The Genetic Opera
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Traitor
Stop-Loss
The Incredible Hulk


2008's Films That Truly Sucked, With Little-To-No Redeeming Factors, And I'll Hate Forever
The Happening
Mirrors
Hancock
Seven Pounds
Blindness
Vantage Point
Righteous Kill
The Spirit

2008's Straight-to-DVD Films That Kicked Much Ass
Inside
Frontiere(s)
6 Films to Keep You Awake

....and, looking ahead:
***2009 Films I'm Anxious-As-All-Goodness-Gracious To See...Don't Let Me Down (Yes, This List Is Long...)
Inglourious Basterds
Shutter Island
Watchmen
The Wolf Man
Trick 'r' Treat
The Lovely Bones
Observe & Report
Vinyan
Martyrs
Funny People
Gomorrah
My Bloody Valentine 3D
The Unborn
Friday the 13th
Coraline
The Hurt Locker
Surveillance
Terminator Salvation
Drag Me to Hell
Monsters Vs. Aliens
The Soloist
The Road
Bruno
Bitch Slap
Last House on the Left
Moon
Whiteout
The Crazies
The Class
Kick-Ass
Jennifer's Body
Black Dynamite
Year One
Riot

...and finally, since I'm such a swell guy, a little treat for enduring these long, probably your-time-wasting lists: a pic of this year's biggest "sexy female I'd slept on for far too long" revelation....Mila Kunis.