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Another year at the movies is in the books. It was the year of Mel and Moore as politics mixed with cinema as never before. Superheroes were again all the rage. Zombies were chic once again. Ultra-nerds became pop-culture icons, yet Ben Affleck could no longer open a movie.

We put our heads together to decide on the ten most important film industry stories. Many were foretold in our Top 12 Stories of 2003. In the waning days of the year, we'll revisit the trends and events which had the greatest impact on film.

December 27
#10: Eisner and Ovitz go to court
#9: Return of the King wins big at the Oscars

December 28
#8: MPAA files suits against Internet movie file traders
#7: Few clear-cut awards favorites emerge before holidays

December 29
#6: Sam Raimi's monster year
#5: Disney refuses to distribute Fahrenheit 9/11

December 30
#4: Pixar Leaves Disney
#3: Jack Valenti Steps Down from the MPAA

December 31
#2: Fahrenheit 9/11 Easily Becomes Highest-Grossing Documentary
#1: The Passion's Box Office Matches Pre-Opening Hype

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Other stories receiving votes:
Three 2004 films crack all-time box office top ten; Ben Affleck can no longer open a film; Shrek 2 is highest-grossing film of 2004; Sony buys MGM; GE/NBC buy Universal; Sherry Lansing steps down as head of Paramount; Miramax cuts jobs