From Susan Boyle to Michael Jackson, these are Timeout's reflections on the year's biggest moments in entertainment.
The unknown leading man
South African sci-fi alien action movie District 9 starred novice actor Sharlto Copley as unlikely hero Wikus Van De Merwe. Copley had directed and produced movies most of his life, and had worked with District 9 director Neill Blomkamp in the past, and expected to get some sort of lowly production job on the Peter Jackson-produced feature. But after Copley put together a promo piece to show Jackson and the film's backers, where he played the role of a bureaucrat who deals with the alien "prawns", it turned out to be the ideal audition and he got the lead role.
Meanwhile, who'd heard of Sam Worthington 12 months ago? Following a role in Terminator Salvation earlier this year, the Aussie actor is now starring in Avatar, possibly the biggest movie ever.
However, the unknown bloke with possibly the biggest boots to fill was Chris Pine who played James T. Kirk in the latest Star Trek film. He filled them admirably despite only having some soppy romantic comedies and a few other movies behind him.
And then there were the four guys we can't remember the names of from The Hangover, the biggest comedy hit of the year.
The 3D revolution
Long touted by some as the third great development in cinema after sound and colour - digital 3D finally felt like it arrived this year. Pixar's first 3D release, Up, led a big pack of goggles-required animated flicks (Ice Age 3, Coraline, Monsters vs. Aliens, A Christmas Carol). While James Cameron's Avatar proved digital age 3D in action and sci-fi fantasy films was no cheap gimmick but a really expensive one which delivered an experience that played havoc with one's suspension of disbelief.
Now it's rolling, the only thing hold back the 3D cinema revolution is the movie business itself - exhibitors outfitting cinemas with the projection systems required and studios giving the likes of Cameron the budget to make his immersive movies.
Susan Boyle
Who would have thought a shy Scottish 48-year-old would be this year's saviour of the record industry? The Britain's Got Talent star's album, I Dreamed A Dream, was Amazon's best-selling album in pre-sales ever; in Britain it was the fastest-selling debut album of all time; and in the US it had the biggest first week sales of the year, beating Eminem. In New Zealand, the album charts hadn't seen this sort of sales action in years, with Boyle selling more than 135,000 copies - and counting - in four weeks.
The old timers
Neil Young started the reign of rock's old-timers on January 16 with a cranking headline set at the Big Day Out, which enticed a few more older punters through the gates than usual. A week later Leonard Cohen delivered a spirited wander through his extensive songbook at a sold-out Vector Arena; and in June Simon and Garfunkel played two nights at Vector. On the first night during Bridge Over Troubled Water the sound system cut out, so the crowd took over, to which Art Garfunkel responded: "That was the nicest thing an audience has ever done for us."
Vampires
In the 1890s there was Count Dracula, this year there was Edward. But while the Count scared the world out of its wits, the film New Moon has got it positively drooling over the pale, red-lipped blood-suckers. While the books have been out since 2005, and the first film screened in 2008, it's this year that Twilight has really knocked other cult films off their stands. New Moon shattered box-office records; cinemas everywhere put on extra screenings to cope with demand. Merchandise is still selling like crazy. Fans are desperately waiting for their next Twilight hit, due in six months time. Meanwhile there's also anticipation building around the next series of Prime Television's vampire hit True Blood, which is filming now. The show stars - gush - Anna Paquin as the blond waitress Sookie and her now-fiance Stephen Moyer as Bill. But the intrigue is not so much to do with their on-screen and off-screen relationship as the allure of the vampire thing. The association with which has also worked for Shapeshifter's new album - The System is a Vampire.
Flight of the Conchords finale
After the second season had aired, and the album I Told You I was Freaky had been released, Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement went into hiding and got acquainted with fatherhood. After months of rumours it was a bit of a stab in the heart to hear they were pulling the plug on the show. Anyway, we're sure it won't be the last we see of them. Clement stars in a film Gentlemen Broncos, which still doesn't have a release date, but should be next year, and hopefully McKenzie will keep up the ukelele. And while Flight of the Conchords decided to call it a day, Rhys Darby, TimeOut's man of the year in 2007, has spent 2009 winding up as the everywhere man. He has a new TV series starting next year (Radiradirah, see Local Comedy) and will no doubt rent himself out to some advertising campaigns along the way.
Local comedy
Sending local comedians into living rooms via the current affairs piss-take 7 Days means every Joe Blogg-er can now tell the difference between Ben Hurley and Peter Jackson, and pin a face to names Paul Ego, Steve Wrigley, Michelle A'Court and Dai Henwood. The show blasted predicted ratings and its success has no doubt encouraged TV3 to screen a similar show Radiradirah next year. This one will star those who aren't on 7 Days; Oscar Kightley, Taikai Waititi and Rhys Darby.
A New Zealand Idol in Australia
We Poi E singers and them Waltzing Matilda warblers did as we do with pavlova and Russell Crowe when Stan "the man" Walker won Australian Idol. But he shut us all up when he announced, for the record, that he was in fact a Mozzie (Maori Aussie). Stan is one of those Tasman hybrids - born there, grew up here, now lives back there - and, lovely guy that he is, wants us to all get along. That's not what his songs are about though. They are all R'n'B lurve.
No more NZ's Next Top Model or Dancing with the Stars
Two of the most successful local shows on TV were canned because they were too expensive to make. And who said reality TV was cheap? TVNZ announced it would not be funding a sixth season of the big-budget celebrity dancing show - won this year by weatherman Tamati Coffey - and over on TV3 NZ's Next Top Model suffered the same fate. Although, the network said it might be back at a later date.
Viewers' favourite Ruby may have exited the show early but it has not had a negative impact, with her gaining a bigger profile than eventual winner Christobelle.
The lady
There was Lady fever last year too, but in 2009 Ladyhawke scooped six awards at the Tuis and Lady Gaga took on Madonna-sized proportions in her pursuit for worldwide fame. First up, no one really took great notice of shy unassuming Pip Brown last year when her self-titled debut album was released. But with songs like My Delirium, a surge in popularity in Australia and Britain, we put her on our shoulders and rightly paraded her round as our own. Meanwhile, Lady Gaga's domination hit an all-time high, and with it so did her eccentric dress sense when she turned up to the MTV Music Video Awards in an all-consuming red veil. Her debut album, The Fame, has sold more than four million copies, including more than 30,000 in NZ, which is one reason her first show at Vector Arena on March 13 sold out with a second being added.
Go Girls
It was always going to be risky airing a show about Auckland's North Shore - given that anyone who doesn't come from there fears the place - but South Pacific Pictures knew it was on to a winner. The show met rave reviews and a second season is being filmed as we type. As well as giving pretty Anna Hutchison a chance to keep everyone focused on her acting (as opposed to taking her kit off in Underbelly) Go Girls sparked the interest of TV executives in the US.
World War II movies
Inglourious Basterds saw a return to form for director Quentin Tarantino with this brutal caper about a squad of Jewish-American commandos led by Brad Pitt's Aldo Raine who go round killing and scalping Nazis. Tom Cruise played a Nazi leading a plot to assasinate Hitler in Valkyrie; Kate Winslet won a best actress Oscar for her role in The Reader; The Boy In the Striped Pyjamas told the story of a German boy who befriends a Jewish lad being held in a concentration camp; and - the odd one out perhaps because of its bland title - Defiance starred Daniel Craig as the oldest of the three Bielski brothers who escaped the Nazis by hiding in the forests of Belarus during the war.
Fashion designer flicks
Bruno may have made a mockery of the industry, but Valentino: The Last Emperor, Coco Avant Chanel and The September Issue gave women a reason to justify their fashion obsession to their husbands. Fashion powerhouses are about art, dah-ling. The two documentaries followed legendary designer Valentino Garavani in the wake of his exit and the legendary Vogue fashion editor Anna Wintour in the lead-up to the mag's most important issue. Coco, starring Audrey Tatou, was of course, more of a "making-of" biography and had fans split, because there was less focus on the actual clothes than how Coco got into making them.
At least now when talking fashion, we can do so with a bit of know-it-all context: Anna Wintour's actually quite charming in a stiff, coiffed kind of way while Coco was adorably gamine - well, when played by Tatou anyway.
Michael Jackson's death
The King of Pop, and arguably the greatest pop star who ever lived, died on June 25 aged 50 after suffering a cardiac arrest. In August the Los Angeles coroner announced it was treating his death as a homicide and the stars personal physician, Conrad Murray, is currently being investigated.
When he died, Jackson was rehearsing for 50 come-back concerts at London's O2 arena, due to start in July. However, the world - and the thousands of fans who paid big bucks for the upcoming shows - did get to see Jackson perform one last time. Kind of. This Is It, a concert film by High School Musical director Kenny Ortega, was made up of footage shot during rehearsals and pre-production for the shows.
For those hoping for a no-holds barred insight into Jackson's life, or even some portent to why he might have died, you were out of luck. The film focused firmly on giving the fans the concert they missed out on - and even though they were rehearsals, there were some priceless performances.
Autotune
And the overuse of the dastardly plug-in voice manipulator which can be used to mask vocal and tonal mistakes. Thankfully, there has been an anti auto-tune movement this year, led by bands like Death Cab For Cutie and hip-hop mogul Jay Z, and his track D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune) from his latest album, The Blueprint 3. Ironically, the track was co-produced by Kanye West who used auto-tune extensively - and quite remarkably, it has to be said - on last year's 808s & Heartbreak album. It's not like West to swallow his words, but in this case he did.