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I'm not sure how the 2002 movie year will be remembered, but for me it was one of the better years in quite a while. While 2001 had dozens of solid, enjoyable movies, it had few great ones. This past year rectified that with at least half a dozen genuinely great films and several other legitimate contenders. Which makes coming up with a Top 10 particularly difficult. One day my favorite is a huge Hollywood epic with a fantastic story and spectacular production values, another day it's a dark comedy from Sweden that hardly anyone saw. All of which is to say that this top 10 is merely a picture written in sand of what was great in 2002.

1. Songs from the Second Floor
I always feel bad when my #1 movie is something you've probably never heard of. Though I am an elitist, I'm not rub-it-in-your-face elitist, if you know what I mean. But several months after seeing this dark, Swedish comedy, I still can't get it out of my head. The scene with a magician at a business party, a long, slo-motion sequence in an airport lobby as people wrestle with mounds of luggage, a spectacularly wide-screen finale across a barren landscape--these pictures seemed to capture the zeitgeist of 2002 in a way no other movie could. They punctured the myth of progress we're fed daily and reminded me of the starkness of the human soul and the spiritual quest each of us are on. It's definitely not a date movie, but its philosophical, even theological, message was the most urgent thing I heard all year.

2. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Ah, something you've undoubtedly heard of. Clearly the best Hollywood movie of the last several years, The Two Towers is an old-fashioned epic with new-fangled tricks. The special effects, particularly in the creation of Gollum and Treebeard, are awe-inspiring; the production design and cinematography are gorgeous; and Peter Jackson condenses Tolkien's story into a gripping, three-hour roller coaster of action and romance. My friend Garth was slightly disappointed, but then he was expecting perfection and we haven't had that since Krzysztof Kieslowski died. This is the next best thing, a thrilling holiday gift for everyone over the age of 10. When was the last time a #2 movie was one that almost anyone could enjoy?

3. Bowling for Columbine
Michael Moore's discursive documentary on what led to the Columbine shootings (as well as a whole host of other issues) is preachy at times, rambling at others, and not without its glaring mistakes. But it's also brilliant, incisive, provocative, thought-provoking, touching, funny, and powerful. Its use of montage is revelatory, and its documentary sequences are fantastic. Moore's persona has mellowed, which makes for a more compassionate film, but lost none of his left-wing fervor. But before you consign Bowling to a liberal closet, remember that Moore is a lifetime member of the NRA. With the corporate control of media growing, documentaries might be the last bastion of independent voices. This is a compelling example.

4. Y Tu Mama Tambien
With the burgeoning cinema scene in Mexico, it's no surprise that one of its films graces the Top 10. But how about a ribald, teen sex comedy that doubles as a road movie? Director and writer Alfonso Cuaron weaves a beautiful tapestry from these genre elements, using his trio of stars to wonderful effect and undercutting the comedy and frank sexual talk (and action) with a powerful class commentary. Entertaining and thought-provoking.

5. Bloody Sunday
The events of January 30, 1972 in Derry have been much written about, but no book or article can match the visceral power of Paul Greengrass's docudrama. With a towering performance from James Nesbitt as a Catholic politician and jarring, extraordinary cinematography from Ivan Strasburg. My friend Garth complained that the movie had an ax to grind, but then that's true of any movie attempting to speak the truth in the face of power. This is a blistering success.

6. The Hours
Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman offer beautifully nuanced performances in this movie based on a book which was inspired by Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway. The portrayal of depression is powerful, and the cutting between stories in three different time periods is effective and compelling. This is a rich example of a bio-pic that actually tells us something unique about the subject.

7. Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner
With the rise of digital cameras and editing, moviemaking is becoming a more accessible form of storytelling. If this example from the Inuit people is any indication, we have much to look forward to.

8. Adaptation
From the people who brought you Being John Malkovich comes another quirky, complicated, unusual production that is, if possible, even more self-referential than Malkovich was. Nicolas Cage offers his best performance in years as twin brothers--the "real" Charlie Kaufman who wrote Malkovich and is struggling to adapt The Orchid Thief and the fictional Donald who's writing a ludicrous serial killer screenplay. But how real is real is something the movie explores with humor and strange pathos. Brilliant.

9. City of God
A bravura piece of filmmaking from Brazil that played at this year's Chicago Film Festival and opens for a theatrical run later this spring. Set
in the barrios of Brazil, it's a hyper-violent, compelling exploration of gangster life and those caught in its clutches. Scorsese's Gangs of New York could only hope to be as good as this.

10. The Last Waltz
Speaking of Scorsese, I finally saw his wonderful documentary about The Band's final performance this year. Though it was made in 1978, it feels like a final farewell to the '60s and a different type of music-making, when music mattered more than profits. Even those who aren't familiar with The Band (I wasn't) will warm to the joy they exude in this gorgeous documentary.

Other films that almost made the cut include: ABC Africa, About a Boy, Antwone Fisher, Barbershop, 8 Mile, Far from Heaven, Femme Fatale, Intacto (opening next week), Italian for Beginners, Monsoon Wedding, Promises, Rabbit-Proof Fence, Signs, Sunshine State, and Warm Water Under a Red Bridge. I recommend each of those enthusiastically. Finally, I say it every year, but I mean it every year--thanks for reading.