By BOB BLOOM
bbloom@journalandcourier.com

        So, another movie season comes to an end.

        Like the past few years, this one was filled with remakes, sequels and features that aimed for the broadest audience by appealing to the lowest common denominator of filmgoers.

        Some disturbing trends: Horror films seem to get nastier and more sadistic. Trailers continue to reveal too much about a film instead of trying to tease a customer into the theater.

        Nevertheless, some bright spots did rise above the muck.

        My choice for the best films of 2006.

        1. Flags of Our Fathers: Director Clint Eastwood's examination of heroism, patriotism and the exploitation of both.

        2. United 93: A cinematic memorial to ordinary people who, under extraordinary circumstances, came together and sacrificed their lives.

        3. The Departed: Martin Scorsese's dynamic remake of the Hong Kong action-thriller, Infernal Affairs, was profane, violent and brilliant, with great performances by Leonardo Di Caprio, Matt Damon and especially Jack Nicholson.

        4. The Queen: Helen Mirren was outstanding as Queen Elizabeth II in this surrounding the death of Princess Diana. The queen's lack of understanding of what her people needed and demanded forced her to re-examine her traditional role as monarch.

        5. Dreamgirls: A bouncy, dazzling adaptation of the Broadway musical about the tumultuous career of a Supremes-like singing group. Eddie Murphy gives the performance of his career, and newcomer Jennifer Hudson's voice will send chills through your body. A splendid combination of song and dance.

        6. An Inconvenient Truth: Forget Hostel, Saw III, and those other horror features. This documentary was the scariest movie of the year. Former vice president Al Gore's lecture on how we are abusing our planet and the dire consequences of our actions makes you want to lock up your car, throw away the key and plant a tree.

        7. World Trade Center: Oliver Stone's straightforward, non-political retelling of the darkest day in American history and of the rescue of two Port Authority police officers, trapped in the rubble of the collapsed towers. Stone's strength was in not sensationalizing the tragedy.

        8. Little Miss Sunshine: An endearing comedy about one dysfunctional family's journey to a child beauty pageant and the bonding process the trip creates. The movie's best asset was its strong ensemble cast, including Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette and Alan Arkin.

        9. The Good Shepherd: Robert De Niro's quiet, but chilling, look at the early years of the CIA. Matt Damon, again, is outstanding as Edward Wilson, a man's who idealism is slowly sapped away by performing the necessary dirty deeds to keep his country safe.

        Other odds and ends

        • Most disappointing movie of the year: The Da Vinci Code. A fast-paced, potboiler novel is transformed into a lumbering sloth in this painful adaptation.

        • Worst film of the year: Nacho Libre. Jack Black needs a refresher course at the School of Rock as well as the school of acting.

        • Most welcome introduction: Daniel Craig as the new James Bond in Casino Royale.

        Bob Bloom is the film critic and DVD reviewer at the Journal & Courier in Lafayette, Ind. He can be reached by e-mail at bbloom@journalandcourier.com or at serialhero48@yahoo.com. Bloom's reviews also can be found at the Journal & Courier Web site: www.jconline.com
Other reviews by Bloom can be found at the Rottentomatoes Web site: www.rottentomatoes.com.