Here’s a preliminary look at my 2009 top ten list. There’s still a lot I haven’t had the chance to see yet, so it will inevitably change.

Dogtooth (Giorgos Lanthimos)

Lourdes (Jessica Hausner)

Letter to Uncle Boonmee/Phantoms of Nabua (Apitchatpong Weerasethakul)

Vincere (Marco Bellochio)

Mother (Bong Joon Ho)

Inglorious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino)

The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow)

Bruno (Larry Clark)

Up (Peter Docter)

Face (Tsai Ming Liang)

Honorable Mention: Anti-Christ (Lars Von Trier), Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi), Tales from the Golden Age (Cristian Mungiu), A Prophet (Jacques Audiard)