The slightness of it clearly displays its appeal: Its rhythm, with an almost quasi-Malick drift to it, has a soft, comfortable feel. Unfortunately, it could also be described as lulling. While watching the story of children enraptured by the story of Frankenstein (or, ahem, the alternate vision of the folly of creationism), I was constantly moved by their religious awakening. (While I could stay awake, that is.) I truly dig on its pace and its quiet - and I think the film is of merit - but it falls, instead, in that currently impossible status of films better seen on the big screen.

Do you need to hear any more reasons why the unsparing, revisionist French Resistance epic Army of Shadows is the best film of 2006: Because its stateside premiere took place on April 28, 2006 in NYC. By that rationale, this is its technical release date. And nothing released this year has come remotely close to topping Melville's masterwork.

The most satisfying thriller I can easily call to mind. On the same 90s greatness tier as The Game, Se7en and Memento. This is a film I feel like I will never get tired of watching. (I had really hoped to have a scanner by now; I'd like to gradually plug in the horrific reviews written by a fourteen year old me.)

Agh! Revenge of the overbearing performances by people named fucking Kevin: These include Costner's Kenny O'Donnell who, for some reason, has a hammy, downright spurious Bah-stin accent and Conway's gorillafied take on Gen. Curtis LeMay which features sinister smiles (that lack only a big cigar at mouth's corner) and jarring body movements (he moves like a mad scientist creeping around his lab). Digestibly informative and dramatically stable (Greenwood's and Culp's Kennedy Bros. extraordinaire), Thirteen Days is also a greatly sober view of a leader challenging his war-mad staff.