THE "ALUMINUM POLE" POLL:
Top Ten Films of 2003:
1. "Big Fish" (Tim Burton)
2. "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" (Peter Jackson)
3. "Kill Bill: Volume One" (Quentin Tarantino)
4. "Lost in Translation" (Sofia Coppola)
5. "School of Rock" (Richard Linklater)
6. "Elephant" (Gus Van Sant)
7. "Master and Commander: the Far Side of the World" (Peter Weir)
8. "Shattered Glass" (Billy Ray)
9. "Swimming Pool" (Francois Ozon)
10. "Bend It Like Beckham" (Gurinder Chadha)
Honorable Mention: "A Decade Under the Influence" (Ted Demme/Richard LaGravanese); "Fog of War" (Errol Morris); "A Mighty Wind" (Christopher Guest); "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" (Jonathan Mostow); "Old School" (Todd Phillips); "Finding Nemo" (Andrew Stanton/Lee Unkrich).
Films I Haven't Yet Seen: "Mystic River," "Cold Mountain," "28 Days Later," "Matchstick Men," "American Splendor," "21 Grams," "Capturing the Friedmans," "Seabiscuit," "Monster," "The Battle of Shaker Heights."
Ten Top Albums of 2003:
1. Fountains of Wayne- "Welcome Interstate Managers"
2 (tie). Led Zeppelin- "How the West Was Won"; The Beatles- "Let It Be… Naked"
3. Dave Matthews- "Some Devil"
4. The Jayhawks- "Rainy Day Music"
5. Damien Rice- "O"
6. Warren Zevon- "The Wind"
7. Barenaked Ladies- "Everything to Everyone"
8. Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks- "Pig Lib"
9. Liz Phair (self titled)
10. Triumph the Insult Comic Dog- "Come Poop With Me"
Honorable Mention: Brand New- "Deja Entendu"; Outkast- "Speakerboxx/The Love Below"; Jason Mraz- "Waiting For My Rocket To Come"; Alicia Keys- "The Diary of Alicia Keys"; Pete Yorn- "Day I Forgot"; John Mayer- "Heavier Things", Jesse Harris- "The Secret Sun," The Shins- "Chutes Too Narrow"; The Strokes- "Room on Fire," The White Stripes- "Elephant."
Top Ten TV Shows of 2003:
1. "The Wire" (HBO)
2. "Six Feet Under" (HBO)
3. "The Joe Schmo Show" (Spike TV)
4. "JFK: Beyond Conspiracy" (ABC)
5. "Angels in America" (HBO)
6. "Project Greenlight" (HBO)
7. "The Shield" (FX)
8. "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" (MSNBC)
9. "Arrested Development" (FOX)
10. "Line of Fire" (ABC)