There’s an exhilarating sadness to it all that amounts to cinematic poetry.

I’ve always had my reservations about Sorkin as a director. His scripts tend to be better than his final products. Those druthers started to fade with the moving “Trial of the Chicago 7” and are now completely gone after “Being the Ricardos.” His vision of ‘50s TV production is spot-on — nostalgic, quick, boozy, but without the glamor of Hollywood movie-making.

Emotionally honest, feel-good saga with a universality that stands out in a season of singularly depressing and cynical Hollywood product.

A remarkable accomplishment, an absorbing documentary about the joy of reading that's also a positively gripping literary mystery.

An enthralling 3-D IMAX documentary.

It's a sharply written, unforgettably directed character study with brilliant performances by Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams - far more intimate but no less intense than director Paul Thomas Anderson's Oscar-winning last film, "There Will Be Blood.''

A crowd-pleasing baseball movie for people - like me - who don't like baseball movies...Probably the finest baseball movie since "Bull Durham".

Thanks to his (Oldman) mastery, and Alfredson's, no film this year left me hungrier for a sequel.

Like a dedicated teacher, this is a film that stays with you.

Thomas Vinterberg (“The Celebration”) directs with restraint that makes the story all the more affecting.

Soul amounts to more than technical wizardry and intelligent dialogue. Why artists keep pounding the pavement despite never finding commercial success is a meaty topic.

There is no shortage of indie movies about economically challenged women. This one is different, in that the women actually do something besides just talk about it.

Morales’ spin on the old ransom plot is fresher and more gripping than most big-budget Hollywood products.

A fantastically entertaining biography.

In a time when climate news is near-uniformly depressing, this is a nature documentary that pays loving and hopeful tribute to the complex web of life — and it won’t scare your kids.

This exhilarating brain-twister is a nonstop visual, aural and intellectual delight, steeped in movie conventions and yet fizzing with freshness. It’s what happens when film noir goes out to a rave.

The Martian is a straightforward and thrilling survival-and-rescue adventure, without the metaphysical and emotional trappings of, say, “Interstellar.’’ It’s pure fun.

The quirky High Fidelity really deserves being called the first must-see movie of the century.

White God has been compared to “The Birds,” but there are also echoes of “Lassie Come Home” and even “Dirty Harry.” Director Kornél Mundruczó goes big with allegory, violence, drama and sentiment, and the results are riveting.

Any plot greasing is quickly forgivable because of how damn delightful it is to be riding in the back of Squibb’s scooter. That this is the actress’ first leading role in a decades-long career is the greatest crime of all.

After years of diminishing returns, Woody Allen spectacularly returns to form with Vicky Cristina Barcelona, his funniest movie in years and arguably his sexiest.

Hilarious from first frame to last.

Thebest sports movies aren't really about sports. Dreamer has a few thundering horse races, but its finest moments are beautifully still ones, like the one in which a little girl peeks through a fence to give a lame filly a Popsicle.

It's an even rarer pleasure to see a film that combines exciting action with a smart, well-informed script and vivid yet restrained performances.

I still can't believe I Melt With You went there. Over the top, off the hook and just plain bonkers, it makes its mark.

I was laughing so hard, tears were streaming down my cheeks.

It's a positive hat trick by John Cameron Mitchell.

Astonishingly sharp and stunningly beautiful images of galaxies as far as 100 billion light-years away.