It's hard to believe another year has already zipped by, but it didn't go quickly enough to make me miss the fact that it's been one of the best crops of movies in years.

Whittling the list down to 10 was tough, which explains why there are actually 11 films on the list. Sadly absent from this year's list are any animated films, which, mainly consisting of computer-generated fare, are starting to lose their magic. Films like "Happy Feet," "Over the Hedge" and "Cars" -- the closest one to making this list -- were entertaining to be sure, but the gee-whiz factor just isn't as big as it used to be.

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So, agree or disagree, here are my picks. See you @ The Movies in 2007.

10. "X-Men: The Last Stand" -- Director Brett Ratner survived a brutal backlash from diehard "X-Men" fans as the unlucky filmmaker who replaced director Bryan Singer (who delivered as expected with his epic "Superman Returns"), and as a result churned out a movie just as entertaining and socially relevant as the first two films in the series. "The Last Stand" -- which added Beast (Kelsey Grammer) and Juggernaut (Vinnie Jones) to the mix, among others -- focuses on a mutant cure and the rise of The Dark Phoenix (Famke Janssen).

Ian McKellen (Magneto), Patrick Stewart (Professor X) and Hugh Jackman (Wolverine) all turn in great performances, as expected, but it's Janssen who steals the show as the tantalizing alter ego of Jean Grey. With the third-biggest box office take of the year, is this "X-Men" truly the last stand? Probably not -- there are too many doors left open at the end of the film -- and if you haven't seen it yet, watch it to the very end for a big surprise.

9. "Invincible"-- If it weren't a true story, it would feel like a cliche of umpteen sports dramas before it -- but that fact that it is true makes "Invincible" the feel-good movie of the year.

The film showcases Mark Wahlberg as Vince Papale, a bartender who defies incredible odds to make the Philadelphia Eagles as a walk-on. But the film is just as much the amazing story of famed head coach Dick Vermeil (Greg Kinnear), whose risky invitation for locals in the City of Brotherly Love to try out for the team (in a move intended to drum up support for the squad) actually yielded more than anyone could have anticipated.

An honorable mention in the inspirational sports drama category goes to "We Are Marshall," based on the true story that chronicles the aftermath of the 1970 plane crash that killed 37 Marshall University players -- and how a new coach, Jack Lengyel (Matthew McConaughey), and a surviving assistant coach, Red Dawson (Matthew Fox), rebuild the program and help a community recover from the tragedy.

8. "For Your Consideration" -- More of a straight-up comedy than his previous documentary-style comedies, Christopher Guest's send-up of the insanity known as "Oscar buzz" knocks everybody in the movie industry -- from narcissistic actors to eccentric producers and directors, and snooty critics to obnoxious interviewers and entertainment show hosts.

True, it's not as good as Guest's Community Theater romp "Waiting For Guffman," but the characters are just as woefully pathetic. That's a good thing if you're looking for laughs, but a bad thing for the people who are so misinformed that they don't realize they're being laughed at. It's a well-deserved swipe.

7. "Stranger Than Fiction" -- Even though critics drew comparisons to such films as "The Truman Show" and "Adaptation," there's no denying that "Stranger Than Fiction" is hardly a by-the-book comedy. Featuring a brilliant script, inventive filmmaking by Marc Forster and a stellar cast, the film catapults star Will Ferrell to new heights.

Ferrell plays it straight as Harold, a mousy IRS agent who leads a by-the-numbers life until his timing is thrown off when he starts to hear a distinctive voice of a British woman in his head who seems to be narrating his life. It turns out it's a reclusive author (the ever-impressive Emma Thompson), who's looking for a way to kill off her main character -- unless Harold can put a stop to it. Dustin Hoffman turns in a priceless supporting performance as a literary theorist trying to help Harold unravel the mystery. Maggie Gyllenhaal is also utterly charming as Harold's spitfire love interest.

6. "Blood Diamond" -- Leonardo DiCaprio turns in the best performance of his career in director Edward Zwick's searing South African action-adventure set amid the chaotic civil war that ripped apart Sierra Leone in the late 1990s. At the heart of "Blood Diamond" are "conflict diamonds" -- precious gems smuggled out of countries at war -- and the millions of dollars they generate to buy the arms that fuel the bloodshed. But the cost is much higher for the everyday people caught up in the chaos, including a fisherman (Djimon Hounsou) whose son is kidnapped and faces the grim fate of becoming a child solider.

DiCaprio and Hounsou should be nominated for Oscars for playing the men torn over a rare pink diamond that is one man's ticket out of the country and another's means for recovering his son; but if they aren't, they are winners anyway for helping bring the horrifying realities of conflict diamonds to light.

5. "The Departed" -- If those Oscar voters who've held out on director Martin Scorsese all these years are looking for that film that will justify a statuette, then "The Departed" may finally be the ticket. It's as close as it comes to the films for which he should have won years ago -- a compelling film that stands on its own, rather than being the basis of a "body of work" consolation prize.

An unflinching look at the infiltration of the Boston crime underworld, Scorsese masterfully orchestrates a bloody, brutal crime opus that's energetic, briskly edited -- and features Jack Nicholson in his most devilish performance in years. While Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon ably fit the bill as moles penetrating the mob and the police department, respectively, Mark Wahlberg steals the show from them as a foul-mouthed cop protecting DiCaprio's identity.

4. "The Queen" -- Helen Mirren gives the best performance her illustrious career in one of the most fascinating stories on screen this year -- a behind-the-scenes look at Queen Elizabeth II (Mirren) and the rest of the royal family's heartless response to the death of Princess Diana.

While the film could have been an out-and-out Queen bash-fest, director Stephen Frears and writer Peter Morgan tag-team for a brilliant narrative delving into why Elizabeth acted the way she did. The film is stocked with brilliant supporting turns, including Michael Sheen as the newly elected Prime Minister Tony Blair -- the only person who can save the queen from her own misgivings. James Cromwell also turns in a wicked performance as a mean-spirited Prince Philip.

3. "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" -- Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen unearths his genius creation Borat Sagdiyev from cable's "Da Ali G Show" for a big screen "movie film," and the result is the funniest movie of the year.

The set-up is that Americans think they're being interviewed for Borat's documentary for his fellow Kazakhs; the punch line is that Cohen and his producer are the only ones in on the joke. Brutally funny at every turn, "Borat" is as politically incorrect as it comes. And for those who are sick of everybody getting so offended at everything -- Borat is hopelessly misogynistic, racist and homophobic, but oddly has a likeable innocence -- it should come as a tremendous breath of fresh air. No matter his or her race, creed, religion or sexual orientation, everyone is a target in this film.

2. "Flags of Our Fathers"/"Letters From Iwo Jima" -- Clint Eastwood pulls off an unprecedented feat by presenting two different views of the bloody battle of Iwo Jima from the perspectives of both the Americans and Japanese.

"Letters" is more about the battle itself and examines the emotions and personal conflicts of the Japanese soldier in it; while "Flags" examines the aftermath of the iconic Associated Press photo that haunts the men who raised the flag after they return to the United States. Used as props in the country's effort to boost the sales of war bonds, the three surviving members deal with a slate of different emotions knowing that the true heroes of the effort and fighting are losing their lives at Iwo Jima. Sure, "Letters" is compelling, but "Flags" is the superior of the two films.

1. "United 93" -- British writer-director Paul Greengrass' docudrama about the fourth Sept. 11, 2001, hijacked flight, which crashed in a Pennsylvania field, is not only the best film of the year, but it's the most important film of our times.

Thoroughly detailing in real time the events aboard United Airlines Flight 93, Greengrass intersperses with controlled chaos the scenes from the air traffic control centers in Boston and New York, and the FAA Operations Center in Herndon, Va., as the personnel track in disbelief the other three hijacked jets before they hit the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. We also witness the shock of the tragedy unfold for the personnel at NORAD, as it becomes apparent that America is under attack and fighter jets might have to be scrambled to shoot down any jetliners that threaten the Capitol or civilians on the ground.

In short, it's like reliving Sept. 11 all over again, but worse. In fact, "United 93" is almost unbearable to watch. The feeling is so real and so intense throughout the film that you actually feel like you are there. What's amazing is that Greengrass pulls it off with a cast of virtual unknowns, as well as real FAA and military personnel on duty that fateful day.

If there's one positive glimmer of light to come out of this film, it's a wonderful tribute to heroes who had the courage to sacrifice themselves to save others. Whether they were among the passengers who remained in their seats or the ones we've come to learn about like Tom Burnett Jr., Todd Beamer or Mark Bingham -- who stormed the cockpit to take the plane back from the gutless al-Qaida terrorists -- every passenger was a hero.

MORE: Special Section: 2006 Year In Review