A little about my favorite movies of 1986: Brazil: You may have heard of this one. It's a mess, and I am a little ambivalent about it, but ultimately I come out in favor of it. Turtle Diary: Small movie, about mild-mannered people who steal a turtle. Of course it doesn't hurt if Harold Pinter writes your screenplay, and you get chameleon Ben Kingsley and Glenda Jackson to star in it. Aliens: More of a comedy than an action film or a masterpiece, which is what they get from using a hack director (James Cameron) instead of an auteur. But still fun to watch. Hannah and Her Sisters: When this came out, I compared it to Woody's films of the seventies, and didn't like it. Later, I compared it to Woody's films of the nineties, and loved it. It's somewhere in the middle, both chronologically and in terms of quality. Stand By Me: The movie about twelve-year olds that theatres wouldn't let you see unless you were at least seventeen to see! For that reason alone, it makes my list. It's overly sentimental but has some merit. Something Wild: It may not hold up to repeated watchings, but that first time is a kicker. The Mission: Roland Joffe will never make another film as good as this. Tampopo: Cult film from Japan about noodles, and everything else imaginable. Manon of the Springs: Despite the frolicking scenes, a fine tragedy. Down By Law: Jim Jarmusch's Louisiana film.