Publication Date: Friday, January 09, 2004

AUFMUTH'S BEST MOVIE OF 2003: LORD OF THE RINGS: RETURN OF THE KING Peter Jackson's no-apologies exclamation point to his ambitious cinematic trilogy is saturated with the kind of stirring sentiment and vigorous passion rarely found in mainstream cinema. This immense achievement, founded on the enduring themes of loyalty, destiny and hope, is so thoroughly intimate and substantial that it is hands down my best film of the year.

Capturing the Friedmans: This tragic, tour-de-force documentary chronicles a searing domestic witch-hunt that tore a suburban American family to shreds. Director Andrew Jarecki shades his visceral drama with an aura of ambiguity that is psychologically haunting and pregnant with doubt. Disturbing and deleterious cinema.

City of God: "God" was the film to beat for 11 months of my year; a flawless ode to slum warfare that pulses with the seductive rhythms of Brazil but stings like an acid bath. Beneath its vibrant carnage lies a surprisingly uplifting spirit and social relevance, tinged with humor, laughter and hope.

Finding Nemo: This colorful and emotional odyssey pits real and imagined fears against the powerful love for an only child. "Nemo" is smooth sailing throughout, never missing a beat of relentless humor, gloriously hued animation or the thrill of the chase. The energetic storyline is interlaced with the moody strains of a classic Thomas Newman score, lending an element of darkness that ingeniously penetrates the perpetual submarine light.

Gerry: This risky, experimental work has lingered with me throughout the year. Heat and desperation trickle off the screen with muted vibration as a pair of hapless hikers lose themselves in the desolate horror of Death Valley. A spare tone and virtually no dialogue tap into gut-level fears -- of loss, loneliness and uneasy foreboding.

Lost in Translation: Two wounded souls wandering the halls of Tokyo's Park Hyatt Hotel navigate the treacherous waters of cultural dislocation and romantic regret with an aura of unspoken yearning. The pleasures of their kinetic rapport are punctuated by genuine laughs at the expense of cultural differences. Subtly realized and finely nuanced, "Lost" is fresh and unspoiled filmmaking.

Pieces of April: Snappy, stirring and laced with ancestral arsenic, "April" is a comic horror story of economical and poignant proportion. The holiday meal is the crux of the comic narrative, with family values striking the perfect balance of trepidation, frustration and a foundation of unexpected warmth.

Shattered Glass: Journalism is the art of capturing behavior, a craft fluently evident in Billy Ray's polished re-telling of the high-profile plagiaristic scandal of disgraced writer Stephen Glass. This sharp and intelligent drama about the cutthroat nature of gotcha journalism reeks of the melodramatic desperation to succeed, and the indefensible ethics and careless deceit that can get you there.

Thirteen: The pain of segueing into adolescence and a queasy sense of disquiet pervade every frame of "Thirteen"'s coming-of-age horror show. Young actresses Evan Rachel Wood and Nikki Reed cunningly spin-doctor their way into ersatz adulthood by plying a disruptive blend of anxiety and defiance whose emotional fury positively aches. Holly Hunter screams Oscar as a tough-as-nails mom gullible enough to get sucked into the vortex with her dissolute daughter. Raw, compelling and positively indelible.

Whale Rider: Sweet mysticism pervades every frame of this beautifully constructed coming-of-age tale that addresses the evils of cultural assimilation with poignant optimism. Twelve-year-old Keisha Castle-Hughes gives a vulnerable and direct performance, her unflagging spirit and feminism in the face of staggering personal hardship resonating with eloquent inspiration.

Jeanne Aufmuth's Pans

AUFMUTH'S WORST FILM OF 2003: GIGLI The worst reviewed movie of the year deserves every ruthlessly printed word. Bow-wow.

Gothika: Littered with cliches, this year-end jumper screamed blatant box-office pimping.
Intolerable Cruelty: A huge hiccup in the illustrious careers of the quirky and prolific Coen brothers. No chemistry, no laughs, no fun.

Matrix Revolutions: Less is more, a lesson the brothers Wachowski should have heeded when they set out to extend the chaotic philosophical chronicles of their beleaguered Neo.

Northfork: They say the Polish brothers are the next Coen brothers. A compliment in any year but this (see above), but the fact is they're not.