Top 10 from 2006? Not quite…

I jotted down some notes the other night that will form the embryonic beginnings of my top 10 movies from 2006; it’s way too early to attempt an official list yet, as there are more than a dozen movies that I feel I need to see before I can intelligently write this list. (Last year, I didn’t feel ready to do a top 10 from 2005 until June 21.) I’ll break down my candidates for this list into several categories:

Movies that will definitely make the final cut: Notes on a Scandal, United 93, Borat, Superman Returns

Movies that will likely make the final cut: Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, The Departed, Thank You For Smoking

Movies that may make the cut, but I’ll be surprised if they do: The Queen, Little Children, X-Men: The Last Stand

Movies that I have yet to see but will almost definitely make the cut when I do: Half Nelson

Movies that have a good chance of making this list if I see them: Children of Men, Letters from Iwo Jima, Pan’s Labyrinth, The Last King of Scotland, Casino Royale, The Good Shepherd, Inside Man, Lady in the Water (seriously)

Movies that I need to see even though they probably won’t make the list: Dreamgirls, Babel, Cars, The Prestige

Movies that I will almost certainly not see before I make the list, but I’m bummed that I won’t, because I have a feeling that I’ll like them a lot: Volver, The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, Brick, Sweet Land, Science of Sleep, Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story, Sherrybaby

Movie that is getting inexplicable recognition from critics and industry groups: Little Miss Sunshine

Movie that everyone else has seen but I very well may not see before I die: Pirates of the Caribbean II

Movies that I suspect I will enjoy with the same mixture of guilt and pleasure that comes from watching good porn: Little Man, Take the Lead