By: Sam Watermeier <[email protected]>

1. Zodiac

This murder mystery depicts the real-life case of the Zodiac killer, the man who terrorized the San Francisco Bay area in the late 1960s and 1970s. “Zodiac” captures this period in history in a way that is eerily realistic and haunting. The film follows three men: a reporter (Robert Downey Jr.), a cartoonist (Jake Gyllenhaal) and a detective (Mark Ruffalo). All of these compelling characters become so obsessed with catching the Zodiac killer that they endanger themselves and their families. Few films of this genre evoke the same type of obsession within the viewer. “Zodiac” is one of the few.

2. Bug

Misery loves company. “Bug” is about a man and woman stuck in a hotel room with paranoid delusions of mind-reading bugs. This tragic love story filled with bugs and paranoia is William Friedkin’s comeback film. Like his earlier films “The French Connection” and “The Exorcist,” “Bug” defines movie magic. Its stunning originality and intensity evokes giddiness and wonderment.

3. No Country for Old Men

The Coen Brothers are back! This film is a fantastic atmospheric thriller. Like “Fargo,” the setting is the most important character. The vast, desert wasteland is as menacing as some of the characters and the plot. The film stars Josh Brolin as a man who stumbles upon a large sum of money after a drug deal goes wrong, and Javier Bardem is the man who pursues Brolin and that money.

4. Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke star as two brothers desperate for money who devise a plan to rob their parents’ jewelry store. Unfortunately, the robbery bears tragic results. Eighty-three-year-old Sidney Lumet, the director behind such masterpieces as “Dog Day Afternoon” and “12 Angry Men,” directs with the energy of a 20-year-old. Hoffman and Hawke also deliver their finest performances yet.

5. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

This film captures Jesse James’s world so vividly that you will feel you are actually inside it. Master cinematographer Roger Deakins and writer-director Andrew Dominik strip this Western of all conventions, delivering a bleak yet hauntingly beautiful and poetic film. Casey Affleck delivers one of the best performances of the year as Robert Ford. Brad Pitt is also effective as Jesse James, capturing his charisma and the sorrow he hid underneath.

6. Rescue Dawn

This film puts you at the front lines of Dieter Dengler’s truly terrifying experience as a prisoner of war. This is a unique war film in that it is not about gunfire and chaos, but the quiet before the storm. With this film, director Werner Herzog delivers another haunting and heartbreaking account of one man’s struggle with the horrors of physical and human nature.

7. Interview

A reporter’s (Steve Buscemi) interview with a Britney Spears-esque starlet (Sienna Miller) turns into a surprisingly intense battle of wits. This film intelligently explores the darkest and most violent parts of the human psyche. Buscemi’s direction is spot on and his chemistry with Miller is genuine. This film is one of those gems that only arrives once a decade.

8. American Ganster

In this masterfully crafted crime drama, Denzel Washington portrays real-life gangster and smooth operator Frank Lucas, and Russell Crowe is Richie Roberts, the cop who pursued Lucas in the 1970s. These acting heavyweights create compelling characters who share fierce determination yet sorrow underneath. The tone of the film matches the intensity and energy of films from the 1970s while maintaining the perfect amount of tragedy, like “The Godfather” and “Dog Day Afternoon.” Ridley Scott’s meticulous direction and Steve Zaillian’s suspenseful screenplay make this film an Oscar contender.

9. Superbad

This raunchy comedy is as heartfelt as it is downright hilarious. From the team that brought you “The 40-Year-Old Virgin” and “Knocked Up,” “Superbad” delivers non-stop laughs and insight into the peer-pressure-filled world of teenagers. It stars Michael Cera and Jonah Hill as two friends who spend an entire day trying to buy beer for a party. This is one wild and crazy adventure of a movie.

10. The Hoax

This smart, funny and taut film follows Clifford Irving as he attempted to fool America in writing and publishing a fake autobiography of Howard Hughes. Richard Gere delivers the best performance of his career as Irving. Screenwriter William Wheeler proves to be a fresh, new talent. Director Lasse Hallstrom (“What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” and “The Cider House Rules”) also shows range in his direction of this light-hearted thriller.