The royal list As review boards and critics weigh in on their top films of the year, leave it to Stephen King to suggest a few offbeat choices. He makes the case for (10) "Death Race," (9) "Redbelt," (8) "The Ruins," (7) "Lakeview Terrace," (6) "The Bank Job" and (5) "Funny Games" before moving into more conventional territory with (4) "Tropic Thunder," (3) "Wall•E," (2) "Slumdog Millionaire" and (1) "The Dark Knight." Sounds like King has a thing for Jason Statham (Nos. 6 and 10).

The final reel "Batman 2" rumors abound: Eddie Murphy as the Riddler; Rachel Weisz as Catwoman, and Shia LaBeouf as Robin. ... Tom Cruise's Golden Globe nomination for a nearly unrecognizable cameo in "Tropic Thunder" has spurred talk of a full-length movie featuring his Les Grossman character. ... Michael Sheen will continue his run as Britain's former prime minister in "The Special Relationship," the last of Peter Morgan's Tony Blair trilogy. The film, which follows "The Deal" and "The Queen," focuses on the relationship between Blair and Bill Clinton. Rumored for Bill is Russell Crowe. ... Harrison Ford and Rachel McAdams will be bickering TV news types in "Morning Glory." ... A movie about one of architect Frank Lloyd Wright's scandalous love affairs, based on the bestseller "Loving Frank," is in the works. ... Cheech & Chong are planning an animated film of their pot-addled comedy bits. For what audience, we're not sure.

CYNTHIA DICKISON