indieWIRE CRITICS' POLL '08 | Stephanie Zacharek

This is the latest ballot in indieWIRE's 2008 Critics Poll, continuing the tradition of a national survey of critics by calling attention to the year's best -- and, in many cases, most overlooked -- films, providing a meaningful counterpoint to much of the year-end hoopla. Note that some lists are unranked at the discretion of the critic. For all categories except Best Undistributed Film, eligible feature films had first-run theatrical engagements in the U.S. during 2008. Films without a U.S. distributor, screened anywhere (festival circuit, one-off screenings, etc.), are eligible in the Best Undistributed Film category. The full list of critics poll ballots is available here at indieWIRE and tabulated results are being published by indieWIRE later this month.

Stephanie Zacharek
Film critic, Salon.com

Best Film
1 - Happy-Go-Lucky
2 - A Christmas Tale
3 - Ghost Town
4 - Cadillac Records
5 - The Class
6 - The Visitor
7 - Before I Forget
8 - Trouble the Water
9 - The Flight of the Red Balloon
10 - Iron Man

Best Performance
1 - Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky
2 - Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
3 - Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
4 - Tea Leoni, Ghost Town
5 - Greg Kinnear, Flash of Genius

Best Supporting Performance
1 - Viola Davis, Doubt
2 - Jean-Paul Roussillon, A Christmas Tale
3 - Hiam Abbas, The Visitor
4 - Beyonce Knowles, Cadillac Records
5 - Eddie Marsan, Happy-Go-Lucky

Best Director
Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky

Best Screenplay
David Koepp and John Kamps, Ghost Town

Best First Feature
The Gits

Best Documentary
Trouble the Water

Best Undistributed Film
1 - Sparrow