The Best and Worst of 2008

The author’s considered best/worst in each category are listed in bold italics with an asterisk (*). The listed links will take you to more detailed reviews of each film.

The 10 Best Films

  1. The Dark Knight
  2. Wall-E
  3. Synecdoche, New York
  4. Mary and Max
  5. Lost in Austen
  6. Blindness
  7. Let the Right One In
  8. Dean Spanley
  9. Pontypool
  10. Martyrs

Worst Films

  1. Birdemic: Shock and Terror
  2. An American Carol
  3. Die Cheerleader Die
  4. Beverly Hills Chihuahua
  5. Meet the Spartans

Best Director

Timur Bekmambetov – Wanted
Fernando Meirelles – Blindness
Frank Miller – The Spirit
Christopher Nolan – The Dark Knight (*)
The Wachowski Brothers – Speed Racer

Best Original Screenplay

Chemical Wedding
Lost in Austen
Mary and Max
Synecdoche, New York (*)
Wall-E

Best Adapted Screenplay

Blindness
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight (*)
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Dean Spanley
Pontypool

Best Actor

Robert Downey Jr – Iron Man (*)
Stephen McHattie – Pontypool
Robert Pattinson – Twilight
Ron Perlman – Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Brad Pitt – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Actress

Lina Leandersson – Let the Right One In
Jena Malone – The Ruins
Samantha Morton – Synecdoche, New York
Saoirse Ronan – City of Ember
Kristen Stewart – Twilight (*)

Best Supporting Actor

Aaron Eckhart – The Dark Knight
Vinnie Jones – The Midnight Meat Train
Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight (*)
Sam Neill – Dean Spanley
Peter O’Toole – Dean Spanley

Best Supporting Actress

Morven Christie – Lost in Austen
Christina Cole – Lost in Austen
Catherine Keener – Synecdoche, New York
Gwyneth Paltrow – Iron Man (*)
Emily Watson – Synecdoche, New York

Best Cinematography

Blindness
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Max Payne
The Spirit (*)
Speed Racer
Vinyan

Best Special Effects

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Colour of Magic
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Iron Man (*)
Speed Racer
10,000 BC

Best Makeup Effects

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Day of the Dead
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (*)
The Midnight Meat Train
Tokyo Gore Police

Best Production Design

City of Ember (*)
Mary and Max
The Secret of Moonacre
Speed Racer
The Spirit