Now that I’ve awakened from my long L-tryphophan-induced post-Turkey Day nap — and inspired by David Poland of The Hot Button and his annual Things I’m Thankful For column — herewith my list of what I’m thankful for, cinematically speaking, in 2006:

= filmakers who take chances: Sacha Baron Cohen, Darren Aronofsky, Emilio Estevez, Michel Gondry, Terry Gilliam, Paul Greengrass, Guillermo del Toro, Richard Linklater, Sophia Coppola, Albert Brooks, Michael Mann, Michael Winterbottom …

= Netflix‘s eight-out-at-a-time program

= Daniel Craig, Daniel Craig, Daniel Craig

= all-singing, all-dancing revues of adorable baby penguins

= Hugo Weaving, who dominates the screen even with any actor’s greatest asset, his face, completely hidden

= Al Gore, for finding his nerve and recognizing the necessity of scaring the crap out of us

= Gael Garcia Bernal, Gael Garcia Bernal, Gael Garcia Bernal

= Box Office Mojo, ridiculously detailed and happy to indulge all manner of movie-biz obsessions

= Helen Mirren, who made us feel a deep sympathy for and understanding of a woman who barely even seemed human previously

= Forest Whitaker, who took a monster and made him human … and hence even an even scarier monster than he had been

= Cinematical, where I get all my geek-movie news, and a whole lot more

= Olive, and her uncrushable quest to be herself, out loud and proud

= Hugh Jackman, Hugh Jackman, Hugh Jackman

= multiplex Golden Topping(TM), which warms the cockles of my heart while it clogs my arteries

= digital video recorders

= Johnny Depp, who made fey, possibly psychotic pirates sexy all over again

= the Cinemarati, my homies in film criticism, where a good argument about art, film, and DVD addiction is always in the offing

= Will Ferrell, who turned out to be so much sweeter than I could have imagined

= Meryl Streep, and the power of a whisper

= the Internet, for giving me a soapbox that allows me to reach movie lovers all over the planet

= all my readers — at Film.com, at FlickFilosopher.com, and everywhere else I am privileged to have my cinematic musings appear — for continuing to indulge me in my passion for The Movies.

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MaryAnn Johanson
author of The Totally Geeky Guide to The Princess Bride
minder of FlickFilosopher.com