It must be a right pain in the proverbial to be one of those directors who is only known for one project. Sure, that project may be the last four films in the Harry Potter franchise and has made him very rich and very famous – but let’s spare a thought for those nineteen years prior to Hogwarts with this week’s David Yates Cheat Sheet shall we?

You know, the big hench action star. And the little boy in the raggedy green frock. What do you mean, “ropiest casting decision since Megan Fox was first given a speaking role”?

Acclaimed doc-maker to tackle life of music legend

BFF: defenders of the weak, trumpeters of the down-trodden, makers of wild, unsubstantiated claims and lovers of Ben Affleck. That’s right. It’s a heady mix.

Not content with conquering the world of TV, it seems like our favourtie permanantly frowing hero Jack Baur is set to take on the big screen. Watch out world. Baur is coming for you, and his time management is frighteningly accurate.

It turns out hell does have a fury like a woman scorned – a father’s loss. Just ask Liam Neeson in Taken and now Mel Gibson in his new ‘actioner’, Edge of Darkness. After a good few years dedicating himself to his behind the camera endeavours, Gibson returns to his -just this side of sanity- best with Edge of Darkness. Bad guys beware, you went after his daughter, now he’s coming for you!

2009 certainly brought us a few cinematic corkers, from sci-fi epic Avatar to comic-book crunching goodness from Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight and Watchmen. But it wasn’t all wham, bam and explosions – will 2010 be a year of smarter movies? Judging this list… maybe.