Carlos

This was at the top of many critics' 2010 lists, but I can't really consider it a "film" in the usual sense of the word. It was originally produced as a mini-series for French TV and I watched all 330 minutes of it as such. In installments, not in France. (The theatrical release was about 200 minutes shorter and, all circulatory and renal benefits aside, must have been a completely different experience.)

I was reminded of the early 80s when American TV actually aired quality movies and mini-series. That feeling was no doubt helped by the subject matter as that time period was rife with tales of hijacked planes and terrorism. While my tastes at the time tended toward the Chuck Norris worldview on homeland security, I remember being fascinated/frightened by the more realistic takes on people like Carlos, or as you may know him, Carlos the Jackel.

If ever there was a celebrity terrorist, this was your guy. Granted, he considered himself a revolutionary in the Che Guevara mold, though minus the lucrative t-shirt side business. He did build himself up into the world's most wanted criminal and Olivier Assayas's biopic covers that rise to infamy. The filmmaking is excellent and Assayas seamlessly weaves together action, politics and historic footage in eight different languages over nine different international locations. Holding it all together is a magnetic, versatile, and brave star turn by Edgar Ramirez. (By brave I mean he shows his dong a lot.) It's one of the best performances in years.

As for Carlos, he never got to be the martyr he seemed destined to be and rots away in prison today as the delusional thug he proved to be. PLUS