Sixth and seventh place go to the latest film from Studio Ghibli and a title whose quality was such that its producers demanded an apology because its box office run was so poor. The former film is of course Ponyo, a film that skews very young but has such a tender sensibility that children and grown-ups alike should be won over by its charms. Yes, it's a distinctly Japanese movie, by which I mean that some aspects of the story are very, very weird but as long as you can get past sexually hermaphroditic fish and a nursing home's underwater landing right by the Moon (sans Sam Rockwell), you'll be fine.

Bandslam made $5.2 million domestically, a total of roughly one third of the critically reviled I Love You Beth Cooper's $14.8 million. The difference between the two titles is that Bandslam is quite good, which naturally lends itself to the question of why a garbage film catering to the same demographic would do so much better. This very question was asked by Bandslam's producers in assailing Summit Entertainment, the Twilight people, for failing to market a good movie any better than they did. BOP isn't looking to pick sides here, but we are reminded of a quote from the final episode of our beloved Sports Night: "Anyone who can't make money off of Sports Night should get out of the money-making business." Sub in the word Bandslam for Sports Night and you catch our drift. It is a warm, optimistic look at life as an outcast teen and it seems to celebrate the tenet that Conan O'Brien offered in his final appearance on The Tonight Show: ""All I ask of you, especially young people . . . is one thing. Please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen. I'm telling you, amazing things will happen." Bandslam is an uplifting film that celebrates this philosophy that good things happen to good-natured people.

A trio of indie films comprise our final Best Overlooked Film selections for the year. Eighth place goes to Sunshine Cleaning, a well crafted story of two sisters and a father who are all trying to find a vocation that pays the bills without making them want to blow their brains out. Fittingly enough, the job that satisfies their needs involves the cleaning of brains that have been blown into walls. In the Loop, our ninth choice, is a foul-mouthed look at how one overstatement from a political official can lead to an unending series of political boondoggles. I cannot state in words how funny this film is, particularly if you are a political wonk. It is wildly entertaining watching a series of dislikable, incompetent characters operate in a situation that is best described as the incarnation of Murphy's Law. Even Tony Soprano himself, James Gandolfini, falls victim to the process. Rounding out the top ten is An Education, a spirited tale that sounds depressing when described. A teen girl meets a 30-something man and is seduced by his charms and rather exciting, quite illegal job. Yes, he's a bastard and yes, his presence in her life is disruptive to the point of potentially damaging her future. Even so, the chemistry between leads Carey Mulligan and Peter Sarsgaard is such that he borders on being a lovable rapscallion, at least for most of the film. The feature does a marvelous job of demonstrating how she could come to love a man she realizes is deeply flawed and, as with Bandslam, it avoids the temptation to offer cynicism in the end. Also, this film announces Carey Mulligan as a bona fide movie star and hopefully this happens sooner rather than later.

Just missing selection this year are Whip It (one of my favorite films of the year), The Cove, The Brothers Bloom, Goodbye Solo, Food, Inc., The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, and The Class. BOP expects you to head over to Netflix and immediately fill your queue with all of the titles mentioned above. (David Mumpower/BOP)

Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Album
Best Breakthrough Performance
Best Cast
Best Director
Best DVD
Best Overlooked Film
Best Picture
Best Scene
Best Screenplay
Best Supporting Actor
Best Supporting Actress
Best TV Show
Best Use of Music
Best Videogame
Worst Performance
Worst Picture

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