There is not one film that most of us can say, 'that was the best film of the year,' because 2006 was an unusual mix of serious-minded, ultra-violent, mid-level films.

That's why I have 13 films in my top ten list - I just couldn't decide. Here's my picks for the best films of 2006.

10 - Stranger than Fiction, an articulate, emotional charmer starring Will Ferrell as an IRS auditor who literally hears voices in his head and the great Emma Thompson as the novelist voice he hears. Marc Forster, the director of Finding Neverland, created a smart, life-affirming film.

9 - Children of Men/ Perfume

A tie between two difficult part-time brilliant films from fine directors. Alfonso Cuaron's Children of Men, a futuristic combat movie with Clive Owen trying to keep the last pregnant woman on earth alive and Perfume, Tom Twykers stunning homage to Fellini, about a creepy lad in Paris and his creepy attempt to create the world's most unique fragrance.

8 - Apocalypto/ Water

Another tie between two foreign language films. Mel Gibson's ultra-violent mad genius of a film, Apocalypto, possibly the best photographed movie of the year and Water, a remarkable film from India's Deepa Mehta, set in the 1930s and follows the plight of local widows, both young and old, who are forced into hard labor and poverty.

7 - Little Miss Sunshine

Little Miss Sunshine, a wonderfully written and acted independent film about a dysfunctional family and their bus trip to a California beauty pageant. Little Abigail Breslin illuminates every frame of this edgy, entertaining film.

6 - The Queen/ Infamous Another tie between The Queen, featuring Helen Mirren as the aloof Queen Elizabeth II and the front runner to win this years Oscar for Best Actress and Infamous, the other Truman Capote movie. This one is just as good, shot in and around Austin, and featuring another fine performance by Sandra Bullock.

5 - Dreamgirls - the most entertaining, energetic movie of the year featuring Oscar-level, jump-off-the-screen performances by Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Hudson. The music, the performances, and the art direction fit perfectly.

4 - The Departed is another in-your-face cinematic ride from Martin Scorsese featuring an all-star Oscar-level cast. A rough-and-tumble movie that reminds me of The Sopranos on steroids.

3 - United 93 is a perfectly-made, tension-building look at what likely happened on the air and on the ground during that ill-fated flight on 9/11. No movie stars, just a respectful, amazing film.

1 - Letters from Iwo Jima

And finally, my choice for the best film of 2006, Clint Eastwood's Letters From Iwo Jima, or Flags of our Fathers from the Japanese point of view. Yes, a foreign language combat movie that is brilliant, tragic and triumphant. A war movie from the enemies' point of view and more than 65 years later, a story well-worth being told.