The Bounty Hunter—Gerard Butler and Jennifer Aniston in a wacky, gender-switched re-creation of Midnight Run? No thank you. Oh, and Gerard? Stop making romantic comedies!

According to Peter Hyams’ not particularly well-regarded sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi landmark 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010 was supposed to be The Year We Make Contact. No such luck. Aside from sending a bouquet of party balloons floating across New York City in October, space aliens kept their usual distance. Which just goes to show you: You can’t always believe what movies—or their trailers (or, for that matter, their critics)—are telling you. With that in mind, here are my picks for the best of the best of 2010.