2010 Movie Recommendations

My girlfriend and I are movie fanatics. We watch around 15-25 movies every month, most of them through Netflix. I am a notoriously tough grader of movies. I only give out a handful of 5's a year, so I think that the group is pretty interesting to recap. In reverse chronological order of when I saw them:

• Edge of Darkness, a Mel Gibson cop thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat for the duration
• The Secrets in Their Eyes, a crime story investigating a cold rape/murder case that effectively weaves in a storyline of old love. An exceptionally well done movie that won the 2010 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year.
• City Island - Andy Garcia, Juliana Margulies, and Alan Arkin all star in this movie about a family who come to grips with their secrets that they keep from each other.
• Whip It, Drew Barrymore's directorial debut. It's not just another Ellen Page coming-of age story. It's witty, funny, and downright good. I wasn't expecting much so I just got blown away.
• The Fog of War, a documentary about Robert McNamara that makes you question what you really know or feel about the former Secretary of Defense. In some ways, a man so powerful became just a cog in the wheels of government - I wouldn't full abdicate his complicity in Vietnam but I would definitely refrain from calling him a warmonger after watching this film.
• Tetro, a story about two brothers who reunite after many years apart. It's not a movie with a plot that is very engaging, but this Francis Ford Coppola movie definitely is.
• Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, a fantastic kid comedy. You can absolutely tell that the SNL writers had their hands in the storyboards which absolutely adds to the movie's value. And
• Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America, hilarious 90-minute video cut from an even longer stand-up routine Will Ferrell performed in NY to close out his 8-year run as the premier George W. Bush impersonator.