Roger Ebert, David Edelstein, Sarah Kerr, Jonathan Rosenbaum, and A.O. Scott are film critics at, respectively, the Chicago Sun-Times, Slate, Vogue, the Chicago Reader, and the New York Times. This week and next, Slate has asked them to compare notes on the year in film. To read a continuation of this discussion, click here for the second week and here for the third.

Who are these people?

To read the continuation of this discussion, click here for the second week and here for the third.

As host of this "Movie Club," I am remiss in not pointing out a few things to our readers.

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1. This is a two-week Movie Club, with postings scheduled for Wednesday through Friday of this week and next week. A.O. Scott and Sarah Kerr will be joining the discussion in its second week and are not being unusually taciturn or lazy—or if they are, it's on their own time.
   
   
2. It is presumed that regular Slate readers know that when I refer to Vanilla Sky as one of the worst films of the year "for obvious reasons," they will understand that this is not an imperial dismissal but will recall my review of two weeks back or know how to access it in Slate's archives. (Well, it is an imperial dismissal, but it's buttressed by a review.) Similarly, full reviews by participants of the movies under discussion can be accessed at their respective Web sites.
   
   
3. The Movie Club tends to bring out the angry Somali in readers (ironic, nonracist Black Hawk Down reference). Please do not send mail to the effect that we're elitist pointy-heads out of touch with the reasons people go to movies—i.e., to escape and not think. If this isn't your box of popcorn, go snack somewhere else.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

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