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2010 Film Critic Top Ten Lists [Updated Jan. 6]

  • by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor
  • Publish Date: December 9, 2010
  • Comments: ↓ 56 user comments

Below, we collect every year-end Top Ten list published by major film critics and publications. This page will be updated throughout December and January whenever new lists are published; be sure to check back frequently.

The Scorecard: Critics pick the best movies of 2010

Added in last update (1/6): Austin Chronicle, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Below is our updated running tally of the films most frequently mentioned by individual critics on their year-end Top Ten lists. Note that if a critic ranks more than the standard 10 films, we will not include films ranked 11th or worse. In case of a tie for first or second, each film will receive the full points for that position. Our points system works as follows:

  • 3 points for each 1st place ranking
  • 2 points for each 2nd place ranking
  • 1 point for being ranked 3rd - 10th, or for being included on an unranked list
  Movie # 1st Place # 2nd Place # Other Points
1 The Social Network 95 22 12 44 134
2 Winter's Bone 90 7 6 43 76
3 Black Swan 78 7 8 28 65
4 Inception 74 5 7 26 55
  Toy Story 3 92 2 3 43 55
6 The Ghost Writer 77 5 4 25 48
7 The Kids Are All Right 86 2 4 33 47
8 The King's Speech 88 3 4 29 46
9 Carlos 94 5 3 21 42
10 127 Hours 82 4 1 21 35
  A Prophet 90 2 5 19 35
12 Exit Through the Gift Shop 85 3 2 20 33
13 Another Year 79 3 0 23 32
14 True Grit 80 1 0 27 30
15 Dogtooth 70 4 2 11 27
16 Blue Valentine 80 4 1 12 26
17 I Am Love 79 1 2 18 25
18 Inside Job 88 1 3 14 23
19 The Fighter 78 0 3 15 21
20 Animal Kingdom 83 2 1 9 17

Individual critic top ten lists

Below are the individual top ten lists published by the film critics regularly included in Metacritic's score calculations, as well as a few extra lists from additional prominent film sources. Some critics merely list ten films without ranking them in order; such lists are displayed below, without numbers, in alphabetical order.

The Arizona Republic Bill Goodykoontz View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Inception
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. The King's Speech
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Get Low
  7. 127 Hours
  8. Animal Kingdom
  9. The Fighter
  10. Nowhere Boy
Associated Press David Germain View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. Four Lions
  3. Barney's Version
  4. The King's Speech
  5. Never Let Me Go
  6. Inception
  7. Another Year
  8. True Grit
  9. 127 Hours
  10. The Social Network
Associated Press Christy Lemire View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Inception
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. I Am Love
  5. Black Swan
  6. 127 Hours
  7. Never Let Me Go
  8. Animal Kingdom
  9. The King's Speech
  10. Exit Through the Gift Shop
Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten View article
  1. A Prophet
  2. The Fighter
  3. Black Swan
  4. Winter's Bone
  5. The Social Network
  6. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  7. Fish Tank
  8. The Kids Are All Right
  9. Inside Job
  10. Let Me In
Austin Chronicle Kimberley Jones View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Black Swan
  3. Everyone Else
  4. Red Riding Trilogy
  5. Monsters
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. Winter's Bone
  8. It's Kind of a Funny Story
  9. The Exploding Girl
  10. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov View article
  1. Black Swan
  2. The King's Speech
  3. Monsters
  4. Restrepo
  5. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  6. Winter's Bone
  7. The Fighter
  8. A Prophet
  9. Down Terrace
  10. Get Low
Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Vincere
  3. The King's Speech
  4. The Kids Are All Right
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
  7. Winter's Bone
  8. True Grit
  9. The Tempest
  10. Inside Job
Boston Globe Ty Burr View article
  1. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  2. The Social Network
  3. The Kids Are All Right
  4. Toy Story 3
  5. Marwencol
  6. Boxing Gym
  7. The Fighter
  8. A Film Unfinished
  9. Last Train Home
  10. True Grit
Boston Globe Wesley Morris View article
  • The Fighter
  • Inside Job
  • Jackass 3D
  • Machete
  • Mother and Child
  • Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  • The Social Network
  • Sweetgrass
  • Toy Story 3
  • Vincere
Boxoffice Magazine Pam Grady View article
  1. Animal Kingdom
  2. Marwencol
  3. 127 Hours
  4. The Trotsky
  5. Brighton Rock
  6. True Grit
  7. Triage
  8. Soul Kitchen
  9. Undertow
  10. Kick-Ass
Boxoffice Magazine Pete Hammond View article
  • Another Year
  • Biutiful
  • Black Swan
  • The Ghost Writer
  • Inception
  • The King's Speech
  • Rabbit Hole
  • Shutter Island
  • The Social Network
  • Toy Story 3
Boxoffice Magazine Mark Keizer View article
  1. Another Year
  2. Black Swan
  3. Carlos
  4. Inception
  5. OSS 117: Lost in Rio
  6. The Juche Idea
  7. The King's Speech
  8. The Social Network
  9. The Tillman Story
  10. Winter's Bone
Boxoffice Magazine Wade Major View article
  1. The King's Speech
  2. Ajami
  3. Rabbit Hole
  4. Mother and Child
  5. The Way Back
  6. Made in Dagenham
  7. Animal Kingdom
  8. Another Year
  9. It's Kind of a Funny Story
  10. Father of My Children
Boxoffice Magazine John P. McCarthy View article
  1. The Eclipse
  2. Inception
  3. Another Year
  4. Winter's Bone
  5. Four Lions
  6. Alamar
  7. Black Swan
  8. Lebanon
  9. The Father of My Children
  10. The Social Network
Boxoffice Magazine Amy Nicholson View article
  1. Let Me In
  2. Life During Wartime
  3. The Illusionist
  4. Please Give
  5. The Square
  6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  7. The King's Speech
  8. Somewhere
  9. Babies
  10. The Tempest
Boxoffice Magazine Steve Ramos View article
  1. Blue Valentine
  2. The Social Network
  3. Carlos
  4. Dogtooth
  5. Red Riding Trilogy
  6. Last Train Home
  7. A Prophet
  8. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  9. Daddy Longlegs
  10. Mesrine: Public Enemy No 1
Boxoffice Magazine Sara Maria Vizcarrondo View article
  1. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  2. I Love You Phillip Morris
  3. Red, White and Blue
  4. Biker Fox
  5. Audrey the Trainwreck
  6. Lover of Hate
  7. Jackass 3D
  8. Four Lions
  9. Flooding with Love for the Kid
  10. The Last Exorcism
Chicago Reader Andrea Grunvall
  1. The Social Network
  2. I Am Love
  3. A Prophet
  4. Restrepo
  5. The Kids Are All Right
  6. Inside Job
  7. The Ghost Writer
  8. Winter's Bone
  9. Red Riding Trilogy
  10. True Grit
Chicago Reader J.R. Jones View article
  • Carlos
  • Dogtooth
  • Enter the Void
  • Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • Please Give
  • Restrepo
  • The Social Network
  • The Square
  • Winter's Bone
Chicago Sun Times Roger Ebert View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. The King's Speech
  3. Black Swan
  4. I Am Love
  5. Winter's Bone
  6. Inception
  7. The Secret in Their Eyes
  8. The American
  9. The Kids Are All Right
  10. The Ghost Writer
Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer View article
  1. Another Year
  2. I Am Love
  3. Inside Job
  4. Last Train Home
  5. The Ghost Writer
  6. The Illusionist
  7. The King's Speech
  8. Toy Story 3
  9. Vincere
  10. Winter's Bone
Cleveland Plain Dealer Clint O'Connor View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. The King's Speech
  3. The Social Network
  4. Nowhere Boy
  5. Inception
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. Blue Valentine
  8. Marwencol
  9. Let Me In
  10. Robin Hood
Dallas Morning News Chris Vognar View article
  1. 127 Hours
  2. A Prophet
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. The Social Network
  5. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. Red Riding Trilogy
  8. Inception
  9. True Grit
  10. The Fighter
E! Online Luke Y. Thompson View article
  1. Four Lions
  2. Enter the Void
  3. The Ghost Writer
  4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
  5. I'm Still Here
  6. Idiots and Angels
  7. Legend of the Guardians: the Owls of Ga'Hoole
  8. Inception
  9. The Illusionist
  10. Piranha 3D
Empire View article
  1. Inception
  2. The Social Network
  3. Toy Story 3
  4. Up in the Air
  5. A Prophet
  6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  7. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
  8. Shutter Island
  9. Winter's Bone
  10. Kick-Ass
Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. The Kids Are All Right
  3. Toy Story 3
  4. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  5. The Ghost Writer
  6. Another Year
  7. Blue Valentine
  8. The Town
  9. Ajami
  10. 127 Hours
Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. The Kids Are All Right
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. Toy Story 3
  5. Last Train Home
  6. Animal Kingdom
  7. The Ghost Writer
  8. A Prophet
  9. Another Year
  10. 127 Hours
Film School Rejects Neil MillerView article
  1. Black Swan
  2. A Prophet
  3. Four Lions
  4. The King's Speech
  5. The Good, The Bad, The Weird
  6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  7. Inception
  8. Micmacs
  9. Merantau
  10. Thunder Soul
The Globe and Mail Rick Groen and Liam LaceyView article
  • Another Year
  • Carlos
  • Despicable Me
  • Inside Job
  • The King's Speech
  • Marwencol
  • Rabbit Hole
  • The Social Network
  • Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
  • Winter's Bone
HitFix Gregory Ellwood View article
  1. I Am Love
  2. Inception
  3. 127 Hours
  4. Black Swan
  5. Rabbit Hole
  6. The Kids Are All Right
  7. The Ghost Writer
  8. Another Year
  9. True Grit
  10. How to Train Your Dragon
HitFix Drew McWeeny View article
  1. Black Swan
  2. Blue Valentine
  3. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  4. Rabbit Hole
  5. I Saw the Devil
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. Four Lions
  8. True Grit
  9. Inception
  10. A Serbian Film
The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt View article
  1. Inception
  2. The Social Network
  3. The King's Speech
  4. 127 Hours
  5. True Grit
  6. Carlos
  7. A Prophet
  8. The Kids Are All Right
  9. Winter's Bone
  10. The Way Back
The Hollywood Reporter Todd McCarthy View article
  1. Carlos
  2. The Social Network
  3. Wild Grass
  4. A Prophet
  5. Sweetgrass
  6. Inside Job
  7. Toy Story 3
  8. Animal Kingdom
  9. The Kids Are All Right
  10. Unstoppable
The Independent [UK] Anthony Quinn View article
  1. The Kids Are All Right
  2. A Prophet
  3. The Secret in Their Eyes
  4. I Am Love
  5. Down Terrace
IndieWire Peter Knegt View article
  1. Another Year
  2. Everyone Else
  3. I Am Love
  4. Dogtooth
  5. Carlos
  6. The Ghost Writer
  7. True Grit
  8. Black Swan
  9. Last Train Home
  10. The Kids Are All Right
IndieWire Eric Kohn View article
  1. Dogtooth
  2. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. Daddy Longlegs
  5. Another Year
  6. Animal Kingdom
  7. Catfish
  8. Alamar
  9. Prince of Broadway
  10. Enter the Void
IndieWire/Thompson on Hollywood Anne Thompson View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. The Kids Are All Right
  3. The Social Network
  4. Toy Story 3
  5. Inside Job
  6. Carlos
  7. Let Me In
  8. The King's Speech
  9. True Grit
  10. The Ghost Writer
LA Weekly David Ehrenstein View article
  1. The Ghost Writer
  2. Howl
  3. I Am Love
  4. Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno
  5. Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench
  6. The Social Network
  7. The City of Your Final Destination
  8. The Kids Are All Right
LA Weekly Karina Longworth View article
  1. Trash Humpers
  2. Greenberg
  3. Daddy Longlegs
  4. Dogtooth
  5. Somewhere
  6. The Red Chapel
  7. Everyone Else
  8. Shutter Island
  9. The Ghost Writer
  10. Enter the Void
LA Weekly Chuck Wilson View article
  1. The Ghost Writer
  2. Please Give
  3. Toy Story 3
  4. I Am Love
  5. Vincere
  6. Blue Valentine
  7. Daddy Longlegs
  8. Greenberg
  9. Easier with Practice
  10. Breaking Upwards
Los Angeles Times Betsy Sharkey View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Winter's Bone
  3. Carlos
  4. The Kids Are All Right
  5. 127 Hours
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. True Grit
  8. Black Swan
  9. Restrepo
  10. The King's Speech
Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan View article
  1. (tie) Inception
  2. (tie) The Social Network
  3. (tie) Toy Story 3
  4. Animal Kingdom
  5. (tie) Inside Job
  6. (tie) The Tillman Story
  7. (tie) Ajami
  8. (tie) Eyes Wide Open
  9. (tie) Lebanon
  10. The King's Speech
  11. (tie) Night Catches Us
  12. (tie) Nora's Will
  13. (tie) A Prophet
  14. (tie) Mademoiselle Chambon
  15. (tie) White Material
  16. (tie) Kisses
  17. (tie) Prince of Broadway
  18. (tie) A Town Called Panic
  19. (tie) The Secret of Kells
  20. (tie) Unstoppable
  21. (tie) The Town
  22. True Grit
  23. Winter's Bone
Metacritic.com Marc Doyle
  1. Animal Kingdom
  2. Carlos
  3. Blue Valentine
  4. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
  5. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  6. I Am Love
  7. Fish Tank
  8. The Town
  9. The King's Speech
  10. The Art of the Steal
Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. The Fighter
  3. Black Swan
  4. Carlos
  5. I Am Love
  6. Inception
  7. Animal Kingdom
  8. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  9. Blue Valentine
  10. Somewhere
Movieline Michelle Orange View article
  • 127 Hours
  • Black Swan
  • Exit Through the Gift Shop
  • The Ghost Writer
  • Greenberg
  • I Am Love
  • Inside Job
  • The Social Network
  • Sweetgrass
  • Tiny Furniture
Movieline Stephanie Zacharek View article
  1. Somewhere
  2. The Ghost Writer
  3. The Social Network
  4. The King's Speech
  5. I Am Love
  6. (tie) Despicable Me
  7. (tie) My Dog Tulip
  8. Vincere
  9. Carlos
  10. Vengeance
  11. (tie) The American
  12. (tie) The Tourist
MSN Movies Sean Axmaker View article
  1. Carlos
  2. The Social Network
  3. Let Me In
  4. White Material
  5. Red Riding Trilogy
  6. Winter's Bone
  7. Black Swan
  8. Wild Grass
  9. Eccentricities of a Blonde-Haired Girl
  10. Sweetgrass
MSN Movies Jim Emerson View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Carlos
  3. Sweetgrass
  4. Mother
  5. Let Me In
  6. The Killer Inside Me
  7. Winter's Bone
  8. Dogtooth
  9. The Kids Are All Right
  10. The American
MSN Movies Richard T. Jameson View article
  1. The Ghost Writer
  2. Let Me In
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. The Social Network
  5. Sweetgrass
  6. The Kids Are All Right
  7. Hereafter
  8. A Prophet
  9. Please Give
  10. (tie) The American
  11. (tie) White Material
MSN Movies Don Kaye View article
  1. Black Swan
  2. Inception
  3. The Social Network
  4. A Prophet
  5. Monsters
  6. Another Year
  7. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  8. Winter's Bone
  9. Animal Kingdom
  10. Rabbit Hole
MSN Movies Glenn Kenny View article
  1. Carlos
  2. The Social Network
  3. Everyone Else
  4. Bluebeard
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Black Swan
  7. Wild Grass
  8. Fish Tank
  9. Shutter Island
  10. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
    The Social Network
MSN Movies Dave McCoy View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Black Swan
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. Red Riding Trilogy
  5. Dogtooth
  6. Another Year
  7. Splice
  8. The Ghost Writer
  9. Down Terrace
  10. Carlos
MSN Movies Kim Morgan View article
  1. Black Swan
  2. The Social Network
  3. Somewhere
  4. The Ghost Writer
  5. Enter the Void
  6. Carlos
  7. Mother
  8. Life During Wartime
  9. Unstoppable
  10. Jackass 3D
MSN Movies Kat Murphy View article
  1. The Ghost Writer
  2. Winter's Bone
  3. Let Me In
  4. Sweetgrass
  5. A Prophet
  6. The Social Network
  7. Please Give
  8. The Kids Are All Right
  9. White Material
  10. Black Swan
MSN Movies Frank Paiva View article
  1. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  2. Mother
  3. Dogtooth
  4. Black Swan
  5. Winnebago Man
  6. Last Train Home
  7. Endhiran (Robot)
  8. Toy Story 3
  9. The Social Network
  10. Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
MSN Movies Mary Pols View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Toy Story 3
  3. The Kids Are All Right
  4. Fish Tank
  5. I Am Love
  6. Black Swan
  7. Please Give
  8. Another Year
  9. True Grit
  10. Rabbit Hole
MSN Movies Bryan Reesman View article
  1. Inception
  2. Remember Me
  3. Predators
  4. Micmacs
  5. The Ghost Writer
  6. Daybreakers
  7. Iron Man 2
  8. Green Zone
  9. How Do You Know
  10. Toy Story 3
MSN Movies James Rocchi View article
  1. Black Swan
  2. Dogtooth
  3. The Social Network
  4. Winter's Bone
  5. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  6. And Everything Is Going Fine
  7. True Grit
  8. How to Train Your Dragon
  9. Rabbit Hole
  10. White Material
MSN Movies Glenn Whipp View article
  1. True Grit
  2. Black Swan
  3. Another Year
  4. Winter's Bone
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Last Train Home
  7. 127 Hours
  8. Cyrus
  9. The Ghost Writer
  10. Exit Through the Gift Shop
New Orleans Times-Picayune Mike Scott View article
  1. 127 Hours
  2. Restrepo
  3. Winter's Bone
  4. The Social Network
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Blue Valentine
  7. The King's Speech
  8. Inception
  9. Get Low
  10. Easy A
New York David Edelstein View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. (tie) Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer
  3. (tie) Inside Job
  4. Please Give
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Another Year
  7. Mother and Child
  8. Vincere
  9. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  10. Marwencol
  11. Despicable Me
New York Daily News Joe Neumaier View article
  1. Blue Valentine
  2. The Kids Are All Right
  3. Toy Story 3
  4. The Social Network
  5. The King's Speech
  6. The Tillman Story
  7. The Fighter
  8. Let Me In
  9. Get Low
  10. Never Let Me Go
New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman View article
  1. The Kids Are All Right
  2. Please Give
  3. Let Me In
  4. The Social Network
  5. Black Swan
  6. Inception
  7. Animal Kingdom
  8. The Fighter
  9. True Grit
  10. Easy A
The New York Times A.O. Scott View article
  1. Inside Job
  2. Toy Story 3
  3. Carlos
  4. Somewhere
  5. The Kids Are All Right
  6. Greenberg
  7. 127 Hours
  8. Last Train Home
  9. Secret Sunshine
  10. Exit Through the Gift Shop
The New York Times Stephen Holden View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Inside Job
  3. Inception
  4. Carlos
  5. Another Year
  6. Vincere
  7. White Material
  8. The Kids Are All Right
  9. True Grit
  10. My Dog Tulip
The New Yorker Richard Brody View article
  1. Shutter Island
  2. The Social Network
  3. Somewhere
  4. Greenberg
  5. Black Swan
  6. Around a Small Mountain
  7. Daddy Longlegs
  8. The Strange Case of Angelica
  9. Tiny Furniture
  10. Our Beloved Month of August
The New Yorker David Denby View article
  • Denby did not rank films after his 1st choice (The Social Network), so the remaining titles are alphabetized
  • 1. The Social Network
  • Company Men
  • Exit Through the Gift Shop
  • The Fighter
  • The Ghost Writer
  • Inside Job
  • Please Give
  • Restrepo
  • Toy Story 3
  • Winter's Bone
The New Yorker Anthony Lane View article
  • Dogtooth
  • The Father of My Children
  • I Am Love
  • Life During Wartime
  • Mother
  • A Prophet
  • The Social Network
  • Sweetgrass
  • Toy Story 3
  • Winter's Bone
Newsweek David Ansen View article
  1. A Prophet
  2. Winter's Bone
  3. Fish Tank
  4. The Kids Are All Right
  5. The King's Speech
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. Carlos
  8. The Social Network
  9. Kawasaki's Rose
  10. The Fighter
NOW Magazine (Toronto) View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. A Prophet
  3. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  4. True Grit
  5. Police, Adjective
  6. Inception
  7. 127 Hours
  8. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
  9. Marwencol
  10. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
The Observer Philip French View article
  1. Of Gods and Men
  2. The Social Network
  3. Inception
  4. A Prophet
  5. Another Year
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. The Kids Are All Right
  8. Up in the Air
  9. Winter's Bone
  10. The Ghost Writer
The Onion A.V. Club Noel Murray View article
  1. Black Swan
  2. Winter's Bone
  3. The Social Network
  4. Mother
  5. The Illusionist
  6. Greenberg
  7. Inception
  8. Carlos
  9. Dogtooth
  10. True Grit
The Onion A.V. Club Keith Phipps View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. Black Swan
  3. The Social Network
  4. Inception
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. True Grit
  7. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  8. Mother
  9. Rabbit Hole
  10. Carlos
The Onion A.V. Club Nathan Rabin View article
  1. Blue Valentine
  2. Black Swan
  3. Greenberg
  4. Best Worst Movie
  5. Inception
  6. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  7. The Social Network
  8. The King's Speech
  9. True Grit
  10. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
The Onion A.V. Club Tasha Robinson View article
  1. Inception
  2. The Social Network
  3. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  4. Black Swan
  5. Toy Story 3
  6. Winter's Bone
  7. A Prophet
  8. Another Year
  9. Red Riding Trilogy
  10. Mother
The Onion A.V. Club Scott Tobias View article
  1. Dogtooth
  2. Winter's Bone
  3. Carlos
  4. The Social Network
  5. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  6. Everyone Else
  7. Shutter Island
  8. Mother
  9. Toy Story 3
  10. Restrepo
The Oregonian Stan HallView article
  • About Elly
  • The Agony and Ecstasy of Phil Spector
  • Down Terrace
  • Fish Tank
  • Marwencol
  • Prodigal Sons
  • A Prophet
  • White Material
  • The White Ribbon
  • Winter's Bone
The Oregonian Shawn Levy View article
  • Babies
  • Black Swan
  • The Fighter
  • The Ghost Writer
  • Inception
  • The Illusionist
  • The King's Speech
  • The Social Network
  • A Town Called Panic
  • Winter's Bone
The Oregonian Marc Mohan View article
  • 127 Hours
  • The Ghost Writer
  • I'm Still Here
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • Mid-August Lunch
  • A Prophet
  • The Social Network
  • A Town Called Panic
  • Toy Story 3
  • Winter's Bone
The Oregonian Mike Russell View article
  1. 127 Hours
  2. Black Swan
  3. The Fighter
  4. Inception
  5. Let Me In
  6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  7. The Secret in Their Eyes
  8. The Social Network
  9. Toy Story 3
  10. True Grit
Orlando Sentinel Roger MooreView article
  1. 127 Hours
  2. The Fighter
  3. The King's Speech
  4. The Social Network
  5. Black Swan
  6. Winter's Bone
  7. The Kids Are All Right
  8. Rabbit Hole
  9. I Love You Phillip Morris
  10. Buried
Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea View article
  • 127 Hours
  • Black Swan
  • Fish Tank
  • I Am Love
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • The King's Speech
  • Never Let Me Go
  • A Prophet
  • The Social Network
  • Winter's Bone
Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey View article
  • Inside Job
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • The King's Speech
  • My Dog Tulip
  • Night Catches Us
  • Nowhere Boy
  • Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  • Toy Story 3
  • Waiting for 'Superman'
  • Winter's Bone
Reelviews James Berardinelli View article
  1. The King's Speech
  2. Inception
  3. True Grit
  4. Toy Story 3
  5. Black Swan
  6. Rabbit Hole
  7. Flipped
  8. The Millennium Trilogy
  9. The Social Network
  10. Love and Other Drugs
Reverse Shot View article
  1. Alamar
  2. Mother
  3. White Material
  4. Everyone Else
  5. Another Year
  6. Secret Sunshine
  7. Our Beloved Month of August
  8. The Social Network
  9. Bluebeard
  10. Sweetgrass
Rolling Stone Peter Travers View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Inception
  3. The King's Speech
  4. True Grit
  5. The Kids Are All Right
  6. 127 Hours
  7. Black Swan
  8. The Fighter
  9. Winter's Bone
  10. Toy Story 3
Salon Andrew O'Hehir View article
  1. Carlos
  2. Black Swan
  3. Fish Tank
  4. Blue Valentine
  5. Poetry
  6. Inside Job
  7. The Fighter
  8. Night Catches Us
  9. I Am Love
  10. The Kids Are All Right
San Francisco Chronicle Peter Hartlaub View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. Toy Story 3
  3. The Social Network
  4. Blue Valentine
  5. The Town
  6. True Grit
  7. Mother
  8. The Tillman Story
  9. The Fighter
  10. Inception
San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle View article
  1. Blue Valentine
  2. The Ghost Writer
  3. Mademoiselle Chambon
  4. The King's Speech
  5. Hereafter
  6. Toy Story 3
  7. The Social Network
  8. Black Swan
  9. The Kids Are All Right
  10. The Runaways
Slant Magazine View article
  1. Dogtooth
  2. The Ghost Writer
  3. Lourdes
  4. Everyone Else
  5. Mother
  6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
  7. Vincere
  8. Wild Grass
  9. Carlos
  10. Let Me In
Slate Dana Stevens View article
  • Another Year
  • Blue Valentine
  • Exit Through the Gift Shop
  • The Ghost Writer
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • Marwencol
  • Mother
  • Please Give
  • The Social Network
  • Toy Story 3
St. Louis Post-Dispatch Joe Williams View article
  • 127 Hours
  • Black Swan
  • Blue Valentine
  • City Island
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • The King's Speech
  • The Social Network
  • Toy Story 3
  • True Grit
  • Winter's Bone
St. Petersburg Times Steve Persall View article
  1. The King's Speech
  2. Winter's Bone
  3. The Social Network
  4. Toy Story 3
  5. Blue Valentine
  6. 127 Hours
  7. I Love You Phillip Morris
  8. Alice in Wonderland
  9. Rabbit Hole
  10. Inside Job
Telegraph [UK] Tim Robey View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. A Prophet
  3. Toy Story 3
  4. Another Year
  5. I Am Love
  6. The Kids Are All Right
  7. Dogtooth
  8. How to Train Your Dragon
  9. The Ghost Writer
  10. Inception
Time Richard Corliss View article
  1. Toy Story 3
  2. Inside Job
  3. Never Let Me Go
  4. Life During Wartime
  5. The Social Network
  6. Rabbit Hole
  7. Wild Grass
  8. Green Zone
  9. Waiting for 'Superman'
  10. Four Lions
Time Out New York David Fear View article
  1. Winter's Bone
  2. The Social Network
  3. Red Riding Trilogy
  4. Another Year
  5. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  6. Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench
  7. The Exploding Girl
  8. Last Train Home
  9. I Am Love
  10. Enter the Void
Time Out New York Joshua Rothkopf View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. Exit Through the Gift Shop
  3. Carlos
  4. Another Year
  5. Winter's Bone
  6. Dogtooth
  7. The Kids Are All Right
  8. Lourdes
  9. A Prophet
  10. 127 Hours
Time Out New York Keith Uhlich View article
  1. Wild Grass
  2. The Ghost Writer
  3. Step Up 3-D
  4. Boxing Gym
  5. Shutter Island
  6. The Strange Case of Angelica
  7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
  8. Another Year
  9. You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger
  10. Have You Heard from Johannesburg?
USA Today Claudia Puig View article
  1. 127 Hours
  2. Black Swan
  3. Blue Valentine
  4. Inception
  5. The King's Speech
  6. Please Give
  7. The Social Network
  8. Toy Story 3
  9. True Grit
  10. Winter's Bone
Village Voice Simon Abrams View article
  1. Dogtooth
  2. Amer
  3. Let Me In
  4. Oceans
  5. The Ghost Writer
  6. Eccentricities of a Blonde-haired Girl
  7. Hadewijch
  8. Life During Wartime
  9. Lourdes
  10. Black Swan
Village Voice Melissa Anderson View article
  1. Carlos
  2. Lourdes
  3. World on a Wire
  4. Lebanon
  5. The Social Network
  6. White Material
  7. Alamar
  8. Night Catches Us
  9. Daddy Longlegs
  10. I Love You Phillip Morris
Village Voice Michael Atkinson View article
  1. Red Riding Trilogy
  2. Dogtooth
  3. Never Let Me Go
  4. Mother
  5. A Prophet
  6. I Am Love
  7. Ajami
  8. Vincere
  9. Monsters
  10. The Good, The Bad, The Weird
Village Voice FX Feeney View article
  1. The Ghost Writer
  2. Road to Nowhere
  3. Inception
  4. Black Swan
  5. The King's Speech
  6. Fair Game
  7. Winter's Bone
  8. The Social Network
  9. 127 Hours
  10. Salt
Village Voice J Hoberman View article
  1. The Strange Case of Angelica
  2. Carlos
  3. The Ghost Writer
  4. Lebanon
  5. White Material
  6. Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno
  7. The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu
  8. The Juche Idea
  9. Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench
  10. Inception (the last 40 minutes)
Village Voice Nick Pinkerton View article
  • 45365
  • Buried
  • The City of Your Final Destination
  • Ghost Town
  • Piranha 3D
  • The Portugese Nun
  • The Runaways
  • Shutter Island
  • The Temptation of St. Tony
  • World on a Wire
Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern View article
  • Films 3-10 are unranked.
  • 1. The Social Network
  • 2. The King's Speech
  • Carlos
  • The Fighter
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • Mother
  • Please Give
  • Precious Life
  • Toy Story 3
  • Winter's Bone
Washington Post Ann Hornaday View article
  1. The Social Network
  2. 127 Hours
  3. The Tillman Story
  4. I Am Love
  5. Please Give
  6. Inception
  7. No One Knows About Persian Cats
  8. The Kids Are All Right
  9. The Ghost Writer
  10. Fair Game

We're sorry, but comments are closed for this article.

Comments (56)

  • Oscar picks and pred  
    • Feb 22, 2011 9:34PM

    [...] which aggregates the opinions of the nation’s highest-profile movie reviewers, lists only three who ranked “The King’s Speech” as the best film of the year (compared [...]

  • Jeremy F  
    • Feb 2, 2011 6:49PM

    my personal top 5:

    5. I Am Love
    4. Blue Valentine
    3. The Millenium Trilogy (all three combined)
    2. Black Swan
    1. Rabbit Hole

  • RBread  
    • Jan 30, 2011 2:25PM

    All great movies. It woulda been nice to see the last Shrek movie on the list, but eh, it's a good list.

  • Grant Quine  
    • Jan 29, 2011 12:50AM

    Agree with...someone, I don't know it was a long way back in the discussion. Let Me In was fine, but if you're remaking an awesome movie within 2 years and you make it 'fine' it's not going to top these lists.

    Someone else also made a pretty good point about complaints and the fact that they are coming from people who aren't seeing the 7 movies they watched that year in the top 10...calm yourselves down. The top tens I'm seeing are perfectly understandable.

    Having said that, no "Diary of a Whimpy Kid"? C'mon!!!!!!! (jokes...just in case anyone is rushing to paste some nasty retort)

  • Tatu  
    • Jan 27, 2011 7:20PM

    Mark Kermode has a list of top five:
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/2010/12/my_top_five_films_of_the_year.html

  • Kalle  
    • Jan 23, 2011 3:40PM

    Thanks Kenny, for Phillips and Roeper.

  • The Bauer Confidenti  
    • Jan 15, 2011 4:18PM

    [...] posted much of anything in about half a year or more.  Recently, I’ve been looking at various movie critic top ten list for recommendations to rent on Netflix.   Now, I used to go to more then my fair share of movies, [...]

  • kenny_of_bookface  
    • Jan 4, 2011 7:11AM

    there are a couple of critics who i know have put out their top ten list that aren't on here: Richard Roeper and Michael Phillips.
    here's their lists:
    Richard Roeper
    1. Inception (Christopher Nolan)
    2. The Fighter (David O. Russell)
    3. The Social Network (David Fincher)
    4. The Kids Are All Right (Lisa Cholodenko)
    5. The Town (Ben Affleck)
    6. Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich)
    7. 127 Hours (Danny Boyle)
    8. True Grit (Joel & Ethan Coen)
    9. The King's Speech (Tom Hooper)
    10. Somewhere (Sofia Coppola)
    Michael Phillips
    1. The Kids Are All Right (Lisa Cholodenko)
    2. The Secret in their Eyes (Juan Jose Campanella)
    3. Boxing Gym (Frederick Wiseman)
    4. Last Train Home (Lixin Fan)
    5. Greenberg (Noah Baumbach)
    6. Carlos (Olivier Assayas)
    7. The Social Network (David Fincher)
    8. The King's Speech (Tom Hooper)
    9. The Ghost Writer (Roman Polanski)
    10. The Fighter (David O. Russell)

  • Nathan  
    • Jan 3, 2011 10:39PM

    There were some very good movies this year and the same last year. There are movies that are nominated for awards that I don't agree with like Winter's Bone or The Hurt Locker (which are both really good but not great movies) but, for the most part these are still really good movies. I for one am pretty happy with the Top Ten Lists here. My lists below. Top Ten:

    The Social Network
    Inception
    Toy Story 3
    Shutter Island
    The King's Speech
    True Grit
    Let Me In
    The Fighter
    Black Swan
    The Town

    Best Actor

    Leonardo DiCaprio, Shutter Island / Runner Up: Colin Firth, King's Speech

    Best Actress

    Natalie Portman, Black Swan / Runner Up: Annette Benning, Kid's Alright

    Best Supporting Actor

    Christian Bale, The Fighter / Runner Up: Geoffrey Rush, The Kings Speech

    Best Supporting Actress

    Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit / Runner Up: Melissa Leo & Amy Adams, Fighter

    Best Original Screenplay

    Christopher Nolan, Inception / Runner Up: David Seidler, The Kings Speech

    Best Adapted Screenplay

    Aaron Sorkin, Social Network / Runner Up: Michael Arndt, Toy Story 3

    Best Director

    Christopher Nolan, Inception / Runner Upavid Fincher, Social Network

    Best Art Direction

    Inception / Runner Up: Tron Legacy

    Best Make Up

    Alice in Wonderland / Runner Up: Inception

    Best Sound Mixing

    Inception / Runner Up: Toy Story 3

    Best Sound Editing

    Inception / Runner Up: Toy Story 3

    Best Costume Design

    Tron Legacy / Runner Up: Black Swan & The King's Speech

    Best Visual Effects

    Tron Legacy / Runner Up: Inception

    Best Cinematography

    Wally Pfister, Inception / Runner Up: Matthew Libatique, Black Swan

    Best Editing

    Lee Smith, Inception / Runner Up: Kirk Baxter Angus Wall, Social Network

    Best Original Score

    Hans Zimmer, Inception / Runner Up: Trent Reznor, The Social Network & Daft Punk, Tron Legacy

    Best Foreign Language Film

    The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo / Runner Up: The Prophet

    Best Documentary Feature

    Exit Through the Gift Shop / Runner Up: Inside Job

    This is my opinion on the year 2010. It is important to note that I have not seen Blue Valentine yet so this could possibly change a little but, probably not. I also would like to honorably mention newcomers Chloe Moretz, Kodi Smit Mcphee, and Andrew Garfield who I am excited about watching in the future.


    This is my opinion

  • Metacritic tabulates  
    • Jan 2, 2010 12:08AM

    [...] 1/1/11 every1!)  Metacritic charts another way of looking at Top 10 Lists collected from 50 individual critics.  Tabulated on [...]

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