Yes, it is that time again, where a critic looks back at the year just past and anoints the best and the brightest of the past twelve months. So without further ado …

 

 

#1 - WALL-E

Once again, Pixar proves unbeatable when it comes to creating motion pictures as enriching as they are enthralling. Read what you will into Andrew Stanton’s story of a garbage-covered future Earth and its bloated former inhabitants, but at WALL-E’s core is the tale of a plucky little robot with a lot of heart who goes to the end of the universe -- and inadvertently saves the world -- to express his love.

 

#2 - THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS

Tim Burton and Henry Selick’s stop motion animated masterpiece was revisited in a ghoulishly appointed special edition complete with an engrossing and in-depth visit to Disneyland’s “Jack’s Haunted Mansion Holiday” attraction.