And “Up” for Best Animated Feature. It was such a strong year for animated features. “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” showed how magical stop-motion animation can be and “The Princess and the Frog” reminded us of how fun classic Disney hand drawn animation is. But “Up” was in a different league. The film’s emotionally ravaging first seven minutes was award-worthy enough, and when you throw in a talking dog…no contest.

Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin continue to dominate. Their back and forth is fun without feeling overly polished or rehearsed. Loved how they introduced Miley Cyrus and Amanda Seyfried. “Two girls who have no idea who we are.”

And yet another worthy winner, “The Weary Kind” for best song. No brainer as far as I am concerned. Just a gorgeous song.

How bad-ass is Robert Downey Jr.? Even playing the tool, he is always cool. Is it just me or should Hollywood get him and Tina Fey in a romantic comedy, like, right now? And I really liked how they presented the best original screenplay nominees. Letting you see the actors interpret the script…really cool.

What a stacked category. Honestly there is not a weak script in the bunch. Loved them all, though I have to say I am partial to “Inglorious Basterds.” What an ultra-fun script. And, as largely predicted, it is Mark Boal with “The Hurt Locker.” The film has picked up a ton of steam as the awards season has gone on and is now looking like a freight train that wont be stopped. Nice short and sweet acceptance speech for you.

One of Blast’s resident film critics weighs in on the top 10 movies of last year.

10. Funny People: While many didn’t connect with Judd Apatow’s third film, I found it to be his most complete and satisfying feature to date. Boasting an honest and emotionally unguarded performance from Adam Sandler as George Simmons, a famous comedian who finds out he is dying- and then that he isn’t. While the film proves a bit ungainly at times, it’s both sweet and wickedly funny.

9. District 9: Along with "Star Trek" and "Avatar,” “District 9″ proved that Sci-Fi can be both smart and tons of fun. Neil Blomkamp’s first feature is exciting, thrilling, brutal and packs a surprising and rather emotional punch at the end. First time actor Sharlto Copley makes a great unlikely hero as Wikus and Blomkamp is definitely a director to watch.

8. Up: Yet another classic from Pixar. As gorgeous and intelligent as you would expect from Pixar, which can seemingly do no wrong. And "Up’s" opening, which tells a couple’s 60 year story in 10 minutes, is as emotionally affecting as anything I saw all year.

7. The Road: John Hillcoat’s second feature is as unflinching as his first. An adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel tells the story of a man protecting his young son as they journey across a post-apocalyptic U.S., rife with cannibalism and haunting reminders of an entire culture lost. Viggo Mortensen gives yet another fine performance as the desperate father and strengthens his status as one of the finest actors working. The film doesn’t shy away from the dark nature of the subject matter, but still earns its somewhat hopeful ending.

6. An Education: Director Lone Scherfig’s delicately told story about Jenny, a London teen in the 1960′s, who falls for the wrong man. Nick Hornby’s script is beautifully constructed and heartbreakingly honest. And Carey Mulligan is sensational as Jenny, embodying innocence and a woman’s maturity in equal measure. Mulligan easily earns the comparisons she has been getting to Audrey Hepburn. While she has been somewhat overshadowed by Meryl Streep so far this awards season, Mulligan’s performance was the best by an actress I saw all year.

5. Avatar: The year’s most singular cinematic experience. James Cameron’s first film in 12 years is a visual triumph and demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Using newly designed Performance Capture technology Cameron creates an entire world and a new species, the Na’vi who feel like living, breathing and most importantly, feeling creatures.

4. The Hurt Locker: Katherine Bigelow’s visceral and thrilling tale follows William James, a bomb unit member serving in Iraq. The action is fierce and genuinely exciting and Jeremy Renner turns in a star-making and award-worthy performance as James, an adrenaline junky who only feels alive when he is deciding which wires to cut to defuse a bomb. "The Hurt Locker" keeps the tension dialed up to the max and brilliantly captures the violence and destruction that follows an explosion. Bigelow, who has a real chance to be the first female director to win an Oscar, delivers the best and most muscular action film in years.

3. 500 Days of Summer: Along with "Up in the Air" proves that romantic comedies don’t have to be mind-numbingly predictable. Director Marc Webb and a smart script make this tale of love found and lost wholly original. "(500) Of Summer" shows that a love story does not have to have a happy ending to be funny and romantic.

2. Inglorious Basterds: Quentin Tarantino’s ode to cinema and Nazi killing is a delight from start to finish. While Brad Pitt is fun as Aldo Raine, the hillbilly leader of the Basterds, it’s Christophe Waltz who walks away with the movie. Waltz’s turn as "Jew Hunter" Hans Landa is the year’s finest performance and Landa proves to be an instant classic screen villain. "Inglorious Basterds" is Tarantino’s ode to the power of cinema, which he proves by rewriting history in grand fashion. When Aldo Raine looks into the camera at the end of the film and says "I Think this might be my masterpiece" it is hard not to agree with him.

1. Up In the Air: Jason Reitman continues his ridiculously hot start to his directing career with his third and finest film. "Up in the Air" takes flight thanks to three fine performances from George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, and Anne Kendrick and a funny and perceptive script by Reitman- seriously the guy is ridiculously talented. The film is smart, funny, thoughtful and engaging. Clooney is better than ever as Ryan Bingham, a man who slowly comes to question his entire way of life. Not much to say that hasn’t been already, but in this case the hype is well deserved. "Up in the Air" is as good as advertised.

“Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs” has held its number one spot for two weekends in a row, though it only raked in $24 million this weekend as opposed to a whopping $30 million last weekend.

At a distant second, we have “Surrogates” which brought in $15 million.

And somehow, “Fame” beat out “The Informant!” for third place with $10 million. Maybe people were just curious.

I think it’s worth mentioning that “9″ came in in…yep, you guessed it. 9th.

Here’s how it went down.

1. Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs: $24,600,000
2. Surrogates: $15,000,000
3. Fame: $10,033,000
4. The Informant!: $6,915,000
5. Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself: $4,750,000
6. Pandorum: $4,408,000
7. Love Happens: $4,327,440
8. Jennifer’s Body: $3,500,000
9. 9: $2,832,053
10. Inglourious Basterds: $2,722,000
11. All About Steve: $2,300,000
12. Julie & Julia: $1,200,000

Source: Rentrak Corporation