Here we are at the beginning of a new year and a new site, and what better way for you, my new readers, to get to know about my moviegoing tastes and preferences than for us to start out by putting last year's flicks to bed?  2006 was a great movie year, starting with two top-shelf releases (Glory Road and Last Holiday) on Martin Luther King Jr. Day Weekend in January all the way through to the two four-star titles (Rocky Balboa and We Are Marshall) that came out days before Christmas.  Sure, there were bumps in the road, but in the end, I wound up with over 20 titles competing for spots on my inaugural Lamar's Movie Palace 10 Best List:

1.Stranger Than Fiction-Writer Zach Helm and Director Marc Forster's Valentine to human connection and second chances is the kind of movie everyone who's every laid hands on a keyboard wishes they could write.  Wildly imaginative, emotionally rich, and unusually literate, this tale of a man (perfectly cast Will Ferrell) who discovers that his life is a story someone else (Emma Thompson) is writing may never truly explain its' many mysteries, but succeeds in creating its' own emotional physics that somehow make perfect sense.
2.The Prestige-A movie you absolutely have not seen until you've seen it twice:  Christopher Nolan followed Batman Begins with a movie more akin to Memento, a twisted puzzle box of magic, mystery, and sci-fi that keeps all its' secrets in such plain view that it's a whole different experience once you know what they are.  Every line, every scene, every glance crackles with double meaning, making for a truly unique second viewing experience.  Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale shined as dueling magicians who each come up with their own diabolical method for performing an amazing trick, and the too-rarely seen David Bowie made an unforgettable mad scientist.
3.V For Vendetta-At last, the Wachowski Brothers who blew me away with the original Matrix were back, as writer-producers of James McTeigue's electrifyingly subversive thriller pitting a masked Freedom Fighter (what we call terrorists when we like them) against a totalitarian British government in a world very much like our own.  The original Agent Smith, Hugo Weaving, was amazing as the title character even while spending the entire film behind an unmoving mask.
4.Thank You For Smoking-Talk about subversive... to illustrate his point about the evils of political spin, debuting writer-director Jason Reitman set his satirical comedy about a tobacco lobbyist (sensational Aaron Echart) in a moral Bizarro world, using all the cinematic tricks at his disposal to get us to root for the bad guys and their dirty deeds.  Filled with wonderfully literate dialog and a boatload of great supporting performances, with particular notice to Echart's fellow Merchants of Death, Maria Bello and David Koechner.
5.Rocky Balboa-The year's best sequel came out of nowhere to rehabilitate the good name of one of the seminal movie underdogs.  His own career as down and out as that of the Champion he made famous, Sylvester Stallone created a moving, inspirational story sure to stir the “has-been” in us all.
6.Inside Man-From the “Who Knew?” file:  what sounded like Spike Lee selling out in hopes of landing his first mainstream hit in years actually showed off a previously untapped flair for smart, fun thrillers.  Denzel Washington, Clive Owen and Jodie Foster were all clearly having a great time, and Russel Gewirtz's screenplay had the rare distinction of dreaming up a “perfect crime” that actually sounds like a good plan. 
7.Mission:  Impossible III-How ironic that by the time Lost creator J.J. Abrams'  feature directorial debut finally put Tom Cruise's superspy Ethan Hunt at the center of a real summer fun machine, America would have lost all interest in him.  Cruise, rising star Michelle Monaghan, and the evil Phillip Seymour Hoffman all brought more to the table than we'd seen in previous Missions, and Abrams ripped off all the best stuff from his earlier hit show Alias.  No complaints here.
8.Akeelah and the Bee-Writer-Director Doug Atchison managed to make the kinda creepy National Spelling Bee cool in this uplifting spring flop (shame, America, shame!) that showcased a remarkable performance by young Keke Palmer and the usual fine work from Laurence Fishburne as her mentor.  He even managed to pull off one of those endings I hate that twists itself into a pretzel trying to make everyone a winner (just TRY not to cry as she spells that final word!).
9.United 93-The year's most powerful movie.  Paul Greengrass takes us back to the devastating morning of September 11, 2001 to show us what might have been done differently and ask if we could have found the courage to do what the passengers of doomed Flight 93 did.  A sensational cast made up of real-life 9-11 participants and character actors (Boston Legal's Christian Clemenson and ex-Sledge Hammer David Rasche show dramatic chops we never dreamed they had) makes what we're watching almost seem like a documentary.  Claustrophobic, terrifying and in its' own strange way uplifting, it's a movie everyone should see.
10.The Queen-Any movie that can make me feel for Queen Elizabeth II and British Prime Minister Tony Blair, while also making me for an hour and a half give a damn about the events surrounding the death of Princess Diana has to be great.  Director Steven Frears somehow turned the wrangling over how to put the best public face on the Monarchy's reaction into a breathlessly exciting, how can I put this... Thriller of Manners.  Helen Mirren staked her claim to the Best Actress Oscar with her wonderfully intimate performance, while Michael Sheen holds his own as Blair.

Just the slightest bit behind these great titles, I can easily summon ten more:  American Dreamz, The Ant Bully, Blood Diamond, The Fountain, Gridiron Gang, The Illusionist, Last Holiday, Snakes on a Plane, Superman Returns and We Are Marshall all made arguments to be on the list.  Always better to have too many than too few.