MY Top 5 Movies of 2008......

1. Dark Knight

Christian Bale is back ladies and gentleman! Back and better than ever! He is the best actor to portray Batman since Michael Keaton. Not only is this action packed from the beginning...but we get to witness the last acting gig of the famous Heath Ledger. He had a big role to play compared to Jack Nicholson: but he did it so well. He was truly evil and maniacal! The movie starts with a robbery; and just when you think you know who the bad guy is, out you get a big shock from the very beginning! Aaron Eckhart is great in his role as playing detective Harvey Dent. I also give applause for Gary Oldman in his reprising role as well. But as great as Christian Bale was, the focus was in Heath Ledger as The Joker. He was every bit as that character shoul be: gave me the chills with that laugh! The special effects are amazing! Maggie Gyllenhaal plays the love interest-not the best part for her. Wished Katie Holmes was in this one as well. The movie is pretty long, almost-if not over-3 hours long; but it is worth seeing! Anyone who loves action/adventure movies should ad this to their list. Ratings: Chicago Sun Times and USA Today give it 5 stars. Entertainment Weekly and NY Times give it 4 and a half stars.

2.Ghosttown

If you like comedies then you will definitely NOT regret seeing Ghosttown. Ricky Gervaise plays an introverted jerk who is a dentist and has to go in for a procedure at the hospital. He finds out that he was dead for 7 minutes and can now see and communicate with dead people. Greg Kinnear plays a guy that dies and comes to Dr. Pincus ( Gervias ) for help. Ricky Gervais is hysterical in this movie! You will crack up from the beginning! He has the subtle humor that just catches you by surprise. Anyone with any type of sense of humor will love this movie! It was well worth the 2 times I saw it in the theater! Critics agree it is a good laugh. The San Francisco Chronicle gives it 5 stars. The Washington Post and The New York Times give it 4 stars.

3. The Secret Life of Bees

This movie is a tear-jerker! Dakota Fanning plays a 14 year old girl-Lily Owens-who thinks she shot her mother when she was a little girl. After being abused by her father ( Paul Bettany ) she runs away with her nanny Rosalee ( Jennifer Hudson ) to a town in South Carolina. She is taken in by the Boatwright sisters ( Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys, not sure of the actress' name who plays the 3rd sister ) who have their own honey business. You are taken in by the potrayel of a betrayed and abused young girl who is trying to find some kind of normal life without her mother. Paul Bettany only has a small role, but he plays it well as the emotionally and physically abusive father to Lily ( Fanning ). Queen Latifah is an Oscar winning role as August Boatwright. The screenplay is amazing as is the cinematography. Roger Ebert gives this 4 and a half stars. Boston Globe gives this 4 stars.

4. Henry Poole IS Here

This is a great moral film for all people. Even those without religin in their lives. I should say "especially those"...Luke Wilson plays a man who is at the end of his rope. He leaves his fiance and business to spend what he thinks to be his last days on earth alone. He does nothing but drink alcohol and eat junk food all day. He buys a big house to spend the supposed remaining days he has to live. One day he spots a neighbor kneeling in his yard. She tells him that she has seen the face of God on his wall. He is more than skeptical. In fact he is rude and arrogant and doesn't want anyone to interrupt his way of life. At the end he does find his faith, with much encouragement and many obstacles along the way. I think this is truly an underestimated film and every one with a conscience should go see it. Ebert gives this film 4 and a half stars. USA Today gives it 2 and a half stars.

5. Australia

This is the best period piece I saw this year: another one I paid 2 times to see at the theater. It is set in northern Australia, before World War II. Nicole Kidman plays a woman who inherits a ranch after the death of her husband. She, grudgingly, partners with a stockman who helps her from others who are trying to take over the ranch and steal her cattle. As they drive 2,000 cattle across the wilderness, they witness the bombing of Darwin, Australia by the Japanese that had attacked Pearl Harbor months earlier. Hugh Jackman plays the stockman. Note to all Hugh Jackman fans-he is ruggedly good looking in this film! And there is a scene with his shirt off! The cinematography is spectacular! While the movie is long-3 hours-the plot and scenery keep you glued to the screen. Definitely a must see! Washington Post and Roger Ebert from Chicago Sun Times both give this movie 4 stars.

So that's it folks! Stay tuned for my top 5 favorite fall tv shows of 2008. Hope you get to see these movies and that you enjoy them!