The Top 100 Movies of the Decade
A decade of film-making has come to pass and like every other film critic and armchair critic out there, I have come up with my top 100 movies of the decade. I must admit that this took quite a lot of effort to compile as I wanted to go beyond just posting the name of the movie or a picture and at least give a short explanation of why I liked each movie. I hope it will help you discover a handful of movies that you wouldn’t have given a chance otherwise.
I don’t pretend to have seen every movie made in the last 10 years but aside from personal enjoyment, I also considered as a secondary factor how much of an impact each particular movie may leave on future generations ten or twenty years down the road and beyond. May this new decade bring us much joy both in the movie theater and outside of it! Happy new year to all of you.
Updated May 9th, 2010: I have now expanded the Top 100 to a Top 125 as well as fairly significantly shuffled some movies around as I was growing unsatisfied with the list after seeing more movies from last decade. Please take a look and let me know what you think!
Original post date: January 2nd, 2010
Do you agree or disagree with my Top 100? Any movies I should have included? What movies should be higher or lower? Don’t hesitate to let your opinion be known in the comment area.
 | 125. The Fountain (2006) Directed by Darren Aronofsky Starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz, The Fountain spans over one thousand years, and three parallel stories. One about a Spanish Conquistador seeking the tree of life in Mayan country, the second about a contemporary scientist trying to save his cancer-striken wife, and finally, a space traveler hallucinating about his long-lost love. This highly ambitious movie is a story about love, fear of death, spirituality, and the fragility of our existence in this world. Despite its flaws, the movie is a visual feast and attempts to reflect on numerous universal themes. |
| 124. Million Dollar Baby (2004) Directed by Clint Eastwood The powerfully emotional story of Maggie Fitzgerald (Hillary Swank), a struggling waitress who decides to become a boxer with the help of Frankie Dunn (Eastwood) and his only close friend Iron Dupris (Morgan Freeman). The three actors give nearly perfect performances in this well-told, moving and inspirational tragedy. |
 | 123. The Incredibles (2004) Directed by Brad Bird Saving lives and battling evil on a daily basis, Mr. Incredible and his wife Elastigirl are crime-fighting superheroes in Metroville. Fifteen years later, they have been forced to adopt civilian identities and retreat to the suburbs to live a "normal life" with their three children Violet, Dash and Jack-Jack. Itching to get back into action, they get a chance when a mysterious communication summons them to a remote island for a top secret assignment. They soon realize that it will take a family effort to rescue the world from annihilation. Funny, charming, entertaining, Pixar does it again. |
 | 122. Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) Directed by Alfonso Cuarón A deceptively profound and far reaching movie, Y Tu Mama Tambien follows Tenoch and Julio, two young adolescent males and Luisa, a young woman in a road-trip premise. The movie has highly explicit sexuality but Cuarón only uses them to point out the universal quality of the characters and ultimately our society. |
 | 121. Walk the Line (2005) Directed by James Mangold Walk the Line retraces the life of Johnny Cash from his childhood, with the loss of a brother, to 1968 when his drug habits and unhappiness give way to the twin triumphs of his concert at Folsom Prison and his engagement with his long-time collaborator June Carter. Walk the Line is an overlong but otherwise solid biopic elevated by outstanding performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. |
 | 120. Let the Right One In (2008) Directed by Tomas Alfredson One of the best vampire/horror movie in a long time, Let the Right One In is the tale of Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant), an overlooked and bullied boy, who finds love and revenge through Eli (Lina Leandersson), a beautiful but peculiar girl who turns out to be a vampire. This movie makes vampires cool again! |
 | 119. The Counterfeiters (2007) Directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky Loosely based on a true story, the film is set in 1936 in Nazi Germany. Jewish Russian Salomon 'Sally' Sorowitsch is the most skilled currency forger in the country. He is arrested by the agent Friedrich Herzog and sent to Mauthausen concentration camp. Years later, he is transferred to Sachsenhausen concentration camp to work with a group of professionals to counterfeit the British sterling pounds under the command of Herzog in Operation Bernhard. When the group is ordered to produce American dollars, the team is faced with the dilemma of saving their own lives or helping the German war machine. |
 | 118. Into the Wild (2007) Directed by Sean Penn After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch) abandons his possessions, gives away his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life. Based on a true story, Into the Wild is a fascinating look into the motives of the young adventurer. |
 | 117. Superbad (2007) Directed by Greg Mottola Seth, Evan and Fogell are three teenage guys who love to drink and desperately wish to get laid. When a girl that Seth really likes, asks him to get some alcohol for her party, he sees this as a perfect opportunity to make her his girlfriend. The trio plan out how to get the alcohol, even including Fogell's new fake ID, which has him take on the identity of "McLovin". Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Seth Rogen, and Bill Hader combine for one of the most memorable comedy of the 2000's. |
 | 116. Catch Me if You Can (2002) Directed by Steven Spielberg The true story of Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio) who, before his 19th birthday, successfully conned millions of dollars worth of checks as a Pan Am pilot, doctor, lawyer and legal prosecutor. Tom Hanks plays the FBI agent in charge of apprehending him. The superb supporting cast includes the likes of Christopher Walken, Amy Adams, Martin Sheen and Josh Brolin. |
 | 115. Babel (2006) Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu The Oscar-nominated Babel is composed of 4 seemingly unrelated but interlocking stories all connected by a single rifle shot and all converging at the end to reveal a complex and tragic story of seemingly random people from around the world and how we truly aren't all that different. The film stars Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. |
 | 114. Tokyo Sonata (2008) Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa Tokyo Sonata tells the story of an ordinary Japanese family whose life slowly disintegrates after the father loses his middle management job at a prominent company and hides that fact from the family. A great film that stays off the beaten track and offers excellent insight into Japanese society and people who have lost their job during the current economic crisis. |
 | 113. Grizzly Man (2005) Directed by Werner Herzog A compelling docudrama that centers on amateur grizzly bear expert Timothy Treadwell who periodically journeyed to Alaska to study and live with the bears. He was killed and eaten, along with his his girlfriend, Amie Huguenard, by a rogue bear in October 2003. Herzog put the movie together from a hundred hours of footage so we can explores their compassionate lives as they found solace among these endangered animals. One of the best documentary of the decade. |
 | 112. Ponyo (2009) Directed by Hayao Miyazaki Directed by the god of animation, Hayao Miyazaki, Ponyo revolves around 5-year old Sosuke and a goldfish who is the title character. Upon rescuing her, Sasuke names her Ponyo but soon finds out that she is no ordinary goldfish. Ponyo uses her magician father's magic to transform herself into a young girl and quickly falls in love with Sosuke, but the use of such powerful sorcery causes a dangerous imbalance in the world. As Ponyo's father sends the ocean's mighty waves to find his daughter, the two children embark on an adventure of a lifetime to save the world and fulfill Ponyo's dreams of becoming human. |
 | 111. Chicken Run (2000) Directed by Peter Lord and Nick Park With all the computer-generated animations from Pixar and Dreamworks, it's tough to even remember the days before those two studios took over Hollywood by storm. Chicken Run is a British stop-motion animation comedy set on a sinister Yorkshire chicken farm in 1950's England. The film follows the turbulent romance between two farmyard chickens, Rocky and Ginger, who yearn for freedom and plan a daring 'prisoner of war' style escape. |
 | 110. Kung Fu Hustle (2004) Directed by Stephen Chow Set in Canton, China in the 1940s, this Kung-Fu comedy revolves in a town ruled by the Axe Gang, an organization that Sing (Stephen Chow) desperately wants to join. He stumbles into a slum ruled by eccentric landlords who turn out to be the greatest kung-fu masters in disguise. Sing's actions eventually cause the Axe Gang and the slumlords to engage in an all-out kung-fu confrontation. An hilarious parody of the genre, Kung Fu Hustle is a must-see if you enjoy Hong-Kong Kung Fu movies. |
 | 109. The 40-Yr Old Virgin (2005) Directed by Judd Apatow Apatow's first commercial smash hit, The 40-Yr Old Virgin was a funny and highly quotable comedy starring the likes of Steve Carell, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd and Catherine Keener. Most of them went on to become big Hollywood stars afterward so it's always nice to watch them just before they broke out big. |
 | 108. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) Directed by Andrew Dominik Starring Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, and Mary-Louise Parker, the artsy Jesse James is a profound character study of troubled characters set in an hauntingly gorgeous recreation of the old West. Brad Pitt may be the bigger name but Casey Affleck is the revelation in this film. Only problem I had with the movie was the duration: 152 minutes which is at least half-an-hour too long for this (very) slow-building western. |
 | 107. Julie & Julia (2009) Directed by Nora Ephron Julie & Julia recounts the parallel stories of Julia Child and Julie Powell. In 1949, Julia Child (Meryl Streep) is in Paris, the wife of a diplomat, wondering how to spend her days. She discovers her passion for French cooking and eventually writes the book "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". In 2002, Julie Powell (Amy Adams), about to turn 30 and underemployed with an unpublished novel, decides to cook her way through the 524 recipes of that same book in a year and blog about it. Both find meanings in their lives cooking in their kitchen. This is a delightful film that will make you hungry! |
 | 106. Minority Report (2002) Directed by Steven Spielberg In the near future where murders are predicted before they happen, Chief John Anderton (Tom Cruise) searches for clues to the murder's location using the images transmitted by future-viewing psychic beings named Precogs. One day, however, his life turns around when the Precogs have a vision of him committing a murder within the next 36 hours. Now on the run from the cops, Anderton has to prove his innocence and discover if his murder was one of the rare cases in which one Precog sees things differently from the other two, called a Minority Report. |
 | 105. You Can Count on Me (2000) Directed by Kenneth Lonergan The wonderful Laura Linney plays Sammy, a single mom whose 8-yr old son Rudy begins imagining his unseen father as a fantastic hero. Sammy gets back with her ex-boyfriend, gets a new boss who imposes foolish rules, and gets a visit from her estranged brother (Mark Ruffalo). The boyfriend proposes, the relationship with her boss takes an unexpected turn, and her brother and son bond, not always with positive consequences. When Terry asks young Rudy if he wants to meet his father (Josh Lucas), a familial crisis ensues, and brother and sister must re-kindle their relationship. |
 | 104. Blood Diamond (2006) Directed by Edward Zwick Nominated for 5 Oscars, Blood Diamond is set against the backdrop of civil war and chaos in 1990's Sierra Leone. Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio) --an ex mercenary from Zimbabwe-- and Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou) - a Mende fisherman join in a common quest to recover a rare pink diamond that can transform their lives. With the help of reporter Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), the two men embark on a trek through rebel territory, a journey that could save Solomon's family and give Archer the second chance he thought he would never have. |
 | 103. Traffic (2000) Directed by Steven Soderbergh The highly ambitious Traffic sought to entertain the mass while shedding a light on the consequences of the war on drugs. The thriller succeeded mostly thanks to a fantastic ensemble cast including Benicio Del Toro, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Don Cheadle among others. Traffic is also technically brilliant with stunning and stylish photography. |
 | 102. Training Day (2001) Directed by Antoine Fuqua Denzel Washington gives one of his most memorable performance of the decade as L.A.P.D detective Alonzo Harris, a veteran narcotics officer whose methods of enforcing the law are questionable, if not corrupt. Training Day follows Harris as he trains rookie Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) over a 24 hour period. Ethical dilemmas arise for Hoyt as well as the audience as to whether or not Harris' methodology for ridding the streets of South Central Los Angeles of drugs is right or wrong. |
 | 101. Gosford Park (2001) Directed by Robert Altman Tea At Four. Dinner At Eight. Murder At Midnight. Although the tagline sums up this period mystery quite well, Gosford Park is a somewhat misunderstood film. It is less about its whodunit mystery premise and more about the master/servant relationship that Altman so minutiously recreated. What separates Gosford Park from similar movies about the British aristocracy is the outstanding script by Julian Fellowes which populates the film with fully fleshed out characters played by an outstanding ensemble cast. Gosford Park is a highly intricate film that requires several watches and is definitely not for everyone. |
 | 100. A Beautiful Mind (2001) Directed by Ron Howard Russell Crowe's Oscar-nominated portrayal of John Nash alone make this movie worth watching. If there was ever any doubt that he is one of the best actors out there, they were dispelled with the movie. A Beautiful Mind is the biography of the famed schizophrenic mathematician, whose work in game theory were far reaching and eventually earned him a Nobel Memorial prize. Nash was arrogant and antisocial and fought severe delusions and paranoia that had him believe he was working for the CIA. The supporting cast is highlighted by Jennifer Connely, who won an Oscar for her role as Nash's wife, as well as the terrific Ed Harris. |
 | 99. Rachel Getting Married (2008) Directed by Jonathan Demme An emotional roller-coaster, Rachel Getting Married features Anne Hathaway in her strongest role to date. She plays Kym, a drug addict in rehab who gets to come home for her sister's wedding. She brings back a haunted and bitter past into a time of celebration and love. Demme manages to make the movie exuberant, colorful, sad and bitter all at the same time. Read the review |
 | 98. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003) Directed by Peter Weir. Starring the charismatic Russell Crowe as Captain Jack Aubrey, the commander of the HMS Surprise, who is tasked to pursue and destroy the French privateer Acheron during the Napoleonic war. Master and Commander is an underrated historical and naval battle movie which combine grandiose battle sequences with an introspective study of war and its consequences on the people who fight in it. IMDb |
 | 97. The Bourne Trilogy (2002-2007) Directed by Doug Liman ("Identity"), and Paul Greengrass ("Supremacy" and "Ultimatum") The tribulations of amnesiac assassin Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) made for a gritty and entertaining action thriller trilogy that spanned five years. The Bourne Trilogy had a distinct feel of a spy movie with constant high stake situations that had you thinking a little instead of just throwing all the answers at the audience. The well-shot action scenes also had a realism and grittiness to them that separated these movies from the pack. |
 | 96. WALL-E (2008) Directed by Andrew Stanton I have to admit I did not enjoy WALL-E as much as a lot of people did and think it might be one of the most overrated film of the decade. This explains why it is positioned a bit lower in my top 100. Nevertheless, this is not to say that WALL-E is not a charming and funny movie. It is a beautifully crafted Pixar film that really hammers in a cautionary green and anti-consumerism agenda. The movie also features some nifty non-speaking sequences between the two main characters, WALL-E and his robot crush EVE. |
 | 95. Cloverfield (2008) Directed by Matt Reeves The movie follows five New Yorkers from the perspective of a hand-held video camera. The movie is exactly the length of a DV Tape and a sub-plot is established by showing bits and pieces of video previously recorded on the tape that is being recorded over. Cloverfield possess a tremendous atmosphere due to its first-person look at the events unfolding. The characters themselves are a bit lame and the camera a bit too shaky but this film is one of best horror monster movie to have come out last decade. |
 | 94. Sherlock Holmes (2009) Directed by Guy Ritchie After seeing Sherlock Holmes a second time recently, I must say I liked it even more than the first time I saw it in theater (I did give it a B+). Although it has some flaws and quirks, Guy Ritchie and Robert Downey Jr. reinvigorate Conan Doyle's cerebral detective with some much needed life. The movie is a solid foundation for the start of a new franchise and I look forward to the next installment |
 | 93. Team America: World Police (2004) Directed by Trey Parker Beyond the simplistic and downright idiotic premise of the movie, Team America is one heck of an hilarious movie that had me laughing like a movie rarely does. With some truly great sequences that left me in tears, the movie is a fearless parody that is idiotic and a piece of genius at the same time. Team America nails it because at the end of the day, its analysis of our nation and people is simply dead-on. We simply wouldn't laugh if we didn't see what is portrayed in ourselves as a society. If you have avoided this movie because it seems childish and offensive, give it a chance. |
 | 92. Enemy at the Gates (2001) Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud Enemy at the Gates filled in a nice niche in World War II movies. There has been countless movies about American or British involvement in the war but very few about the Russian front. Stalingrad was one of the major turning point and it is where the movie is set. Jude Law plays Vassili Zaitsev, the legendary sniper, deadlocked in a chess game with Major Konig (Ed Harris), a cunning German marksman. The movie has some historical inaccuracies but is a thrilling and entertaining war movie. |
 | 91. Sideways (2004) Directed by Alexander Payne One of the funniest movie of the decade, Sideways tells the story of two disappointed and bitter men reaching their mid-life with nothing to show for it. They set out on a road trip through California's wine country, searching for their identity. Sideways is simply a wonderfully written and acted movie. Paul Giamatti has always been a superb character actor but he showed here and in American Splendor (2003) he could take on more significant role as well. |
 | 90. Shrek (2001) Directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson Shrek is a riot of an animation that combined parody, romance, drama, and an original retake of the "happily ever after" theme. When most animation were content with nice looking CGI (that was fairly new back then), Shrek also had a great script which separated it from the pack. The characters are fully developed and it's easy for the audience to sympathize with that green blob and his friends. The movie takes all the fairy tale cliches and spit them all back out with a roaring laughter. Shrek is humorous, emotional and great entertainment for children and adults alike. |
| 89. Shaun of the Dead (2004) Directed by Edgar Wright. An hilarious and original satire of Dawn of the Dead (1979), this movie revived the stagnant zombie genre with a breath of fresh air. Simon Pegg and the rest of the cast intelligently play dumb and self-centered characters who are so preoccupied with their own little lives that surviving a major catastrophe like a zombie invasion becomes a secondary quandary for them. IMDb |
 | 88. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) Directed by Shane Black Robert Downey Jr and Val Kilmer combine forces for the exhilarating Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. A big satire of Hollywood filled with dark humor, the movie is a non-stop string of witty, snappy dialogue and awkward situations. The movie also helped Robert Downey Jr. relaunch his career as a lead actor and we couldn't be happier. Read the review |
 | 87. Michael Clayton (2007) Directed by Tony Gilroy George Clooney plays a "fixer" for a prestigious law firm and his latest assignment is to remedy the situation after a fellow lawyer has a breakdown while representing a chemical company that he knows is guilty in a multi-billion dollar class action suit. A very good thriller thanks to outstanding supporting actors with the likes of Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson. |
 | 86. The Last Samurai (2003) Directed by Edward Zwick The visually stunning The Last Samurai stars Tom Cruise as a military advisor whose mission is to train the Japanese military in the use of modern firearms and tactics at the end of the nineteenth century. It is however Ken Watanabe who steals the show with a fantastic performance of his own as Katsumoto, a dying breed of Samurai who fight wars only the "right way" (basically anything but firearms). Some have criticized the movie for its overly romantic view of the Samurai, who were quite brutal people themselves, but the movie succeeds in transporting the audience to an era and way of life long gone. |
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96 Comments
It truly was a great decade. Nice top ten, although I would’ve ranked There Will Be Blood a bit higher and definitely would’ve included some Almodóvar and von Trier.
Thank you Jose. Unfortunately I haven’t had a chance to see any movies from Almodóvar or von Trier at this point but your blog definitely makes me want to!
Not a big Von Trier fan, he’s just a bit “up himself” (for lack of a more eloquent term) for me.
I feel the same way, I always imagine Von Trier in his lair (or wherever) just laughing his head off as we endure his mind games.
Great list! Although I would have put Eternal Sunshine as first. And Amélie a lot higher as well. I didn’t see The Science of Sleep in your list. That one would be pretty high on my list as well. Its really impressive that you have made a list like that!
I haven’t seen The Science of Sleep but I will be sure to add it to my playlist. I absolutely love Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and think it is the most romantic movie ever made and it was a close call between all those top 10 movies.
Interesting list, though I just realized while looking at it we have quite a different taste in films
Anyway, I’m glad you didn’t put the overrated “The Dark Knight” in the Top 10. Respect for that.
What films should be higher:
SHAUN OF THE DEAD – waaaaaaaay higher. In the Top 20 at least. It’s the only (and I mean only) parody that never ever once insults my intelligence (i.e. doesn’t have fart jokes, no one gets hits in the head with a mishit tennis/baseball/football ball and/or some other object). And frankly, it’s the only one beside “Hot Fuzz” that doesn’t get just plain boring with repeated viewing.
THE LAST SAMURAI – also waaaaaaay higher. It has one of the most emotional endings ever and not in the slimy mushy-mushy kind of way. I’d definitely put it in the Top 20 and certainly higher than “Mongol”. It’s just amazing in every way.
What films should be lower:
BLACK HAWK DOWN – actually, I wouldn’t even put it on the list, certainly not in the expense of some other great films I’ll mention shortly. It just doesn’t sit well with me.
What films should’ve been included:
WATCHMEN – this is the most engaging film I’ve ever seen. I also consider it the BEST film ever. It’s too often overlooked as just another superhero flick and then bashed when discovered it is not. To fully appreciate it, one must have developed views and opinions about life, death, existence, one’s place in the Universe and philosophy in general, not to mention political and moral views, just to name a few. And it just pains me to see it so under-appreciated.
HOT FUZZ – the best comedy/parody ever.
THE WRESTLER & RAMBO – you probably already know I don’t like the whining kind of dramas. The “Oh, no, poor me! I love her, but she doesn’t love me! Boo-hoo-ho!” kind, like “Slumdog Millionaire” for example. There’s more emotion in Rambo’s line “Live for nothing, or die for something.” than in any of this whining bullshit. “The Wrestler” is the best and manliest drama of the decade. “Rambo” is the best and manliest action film so far, until “The Expendables” come out.
JCVD – if “The Wrestler” is the best drama of the decade, then “JCVD” is the second. People just refuse to admit Van Damme made a truly good film.
EQUILIBRIUM – it should’ve at least been between 100-50.
IDIOCRACY – one totally overlooked comedy by Mike Judge. The sad thing is, one could actually see it as a documentary…
DISTRICT 9 – one of the best SF’s of the decade.
PLANET TERROR/DEATH PROOF – Rodriguez and Tarantino did good for the film industry with this flick more than anyone in the past decade. It brought a wonderful genre revival and films became fun again!
Wow thanks Ventilation Shaft. This was the kind of comment I had in mind when I made my Top 100! I saw Watchmen and was a bit underwhelmed but gave it a promise to give it a second chance because I could see that the movie had a lot more substance than your average comic book movie. JCVD first 30 minutes really blew me away but then it felt a bit too long. Also shame on me, but I still haven’t seen The Wrestler
Thanks Shaft!
“The Last Samurai” is “Avatar” without the Smurfs. Boring, boring, boring. And it has Tom Cruise, which is like negative points.
And “Watchmen” is very good, but I think it’s a MASSIVE stretch to call it the best movie ever.
I guess I’m a little bitter (in general, not at your particular Top 100 list) because people only take seriously films that are certified dramas, with “lots of tears, heart-tearing moments, sobbing, hugging, whining, etc.” which more and more come to me as plain pathetic. I generally use the term “pussified” to describe them (no disrespect to women meant here).
To illustrate my point, I’ll provide a somewhat lengthy but real life example, involving myself and my friend Magnum with whom I write my/our blog. We were walking back home from the theater after seeing “The Dark Knight” and sometime prior we saw “John Rambo”. He wasn’t so impressed with TDK, I was initially quite blown away. So we discussed. I was telling him how the character development was great, etc. We particularly discussed why Batman never kills. I was prepared to argue further when Magnum said something in lines:
“Yeah, yeah. Rambo said: ‘When you’re pushed, killing is as easy as breathing.’”
And I was left without arguments. Because, when you ARE pushed, killing would be indeed easy as breathing. I know I’d kill without second thought if someone threatened me, or anyone I care about. All of that philosophy and moral preaching in TDK now seems to me like… well, bullshit
So why, doesn’t Batman kill that fucking Joker? Because if he does, he’s no better than Joker himself? Or is he afraid for his own soul, so he won’t become the “villain”? If that’s the case, then he’s no hero. He’s a whining little prick dressed in a bat costume.
The Punisher is the real hero then, “I never took the time to think about where I was headed. I’m far down that road now.” is what he said. He’s willing to sacrifice his soul and accepts his own damnation in order to protect the innocent, just like Rambo. And that’s true heroism.
And that’s why I sincerely find works like “Rambo”, “Punisher: War Zone”, “JCVD” better in every aspect than all the TDK’s and Slumdog Millionaires of this world.
Phew… now that was a long post – I think I’m gonna expand it into an article for “Cool Awesome Movies”
You are very articulate and formulated your opinion very clearly and I definitely respect your view for that. Not that I wouldn’t otherwise
but some people when asked why they hate some type of movies have only superficial reasons to give you. One thing though that I have to wonder is that this would necessarily restrict you to seeing certain types of movies and create a cynical attitude toward possibly 50% of movies (or more). By not being as open minded, you might miss truly good movies because of your predisposition. Don’t you think?
I’m not sure if I agree with the notion that Batman is a “whining little prick dressed in a bat costume”. I think Nolan did an excellent job at layering this topic throughout both movies.
In the first movie, Bruce Wayne was willing to kill. He was at the point that he was willing to kill Chill, the murderer of his parents, right in front of the open public. Then after that opportunity was lost, he was disappointed. Rachel then slapped some sense into him, quite litterally. She woke him up to the thought of how much his father would be disappointed in him. This was something that struck a chord with Bruce Wayne, as Bruce thought the highest of his father.
One could even argue that his father, Thomas Wayne, was unwilling to fight to protect himself and his family in the face of death.
And then after a trip to Nanda Parbat, Bruce Wayne was transformed into Batman, with Bruce Wayne becoming merely an alter ego. He was able to shed fear, which seperated himself from everybody else, and allowed him to fight crime with the upmost sense of justice.
In his eyes, killing somebody doesn’t bring justice. Everybody deserves a fair trial, and skipping that process is in fact an injustice and corrupt, the very thing that Batman is trying to fight against.
I’m not much of a comic guy, but after a little reading online, you find out that Batman has such a strong sense of justice that when the villain Darkseid has Batman cloned, in an attempt to capture the personality traits that make Batman such a great super-hero, the clones kill themselves rather than serve Darkseid.
And in response to your “I know I’d kill without second thought if someone threatened me, or anyone I care about” comment. I am no entitled to say you wouldn’t. In fact, the vast majority of the population should. But there are people out ther like myself that would have a very hard time taking another person’s life over my own. I mean, if someone has a gun pointed to my head, you bet your bottom dollar I’m not gonna just sit there and let them pull the trigger. But at the same time, I will do my best not to kill them in the “dis-arming” process. Granted, I’m the military, so eventually I may be faced with the situation of shoot-to-kill, but as a civilian, it’s not my part to take someone else’s life.
Of course, the situation gets even more messy with loved ones are brought into the situation, but that is why super-heroes go to such extreme measures to keep their secret identities exactly that…secret.
Heroism doesn’t come from killing people, but from perseverance, and leading the way. “Winter’s Bone” protagonist for example is a true hero. Not Rambo or Punisher who believe killing in mass amounts gets them somewhere and provides justice in the world.
I believe everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that doesn’t mean I like everyones opinion. And your though process, your notion of heroism and “being a pussy” is quite frankly, a bunch of shit.
Looking in a broader sense – yes, I might miss many films generally regarded as good. But, looking from my personal standpoint – no harm done if I do miss them, because frankly, I just don’t care about them. Just like most people don’t care about Steven Seagal’s latest direct-to-video flick, for example.
I also loathe traditional French cinema, as another example. The first thing I check when I see a film is French is the genre: if I find both drama and romance there it’s bye-bye for me because I just don’t have any interest in seeing it. The same is with Almodovar’s films, who’s been mentioned here earlier. Or Woody Allen’s, or Gus Van Sant’s, etc.
There are 2 genres which I simply avoid: romantic comedies and romantic dramas, although I make an exception now and then: “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People”, because it starred the genius Simon Pegg. Or “P.S. I Love You”, because of the manly Gerard Butler, or “Sweet November” with the cool Keanu Reeves, to name a few.
P.S. I forgot to mention a few more films who in my opinion deserve to be mentioned in the last decade:
[●REC] – the scariest horror in years, by far. I mean the Spanish original, not the American remake “Quarantine”. See it at night, alone, with the lights turned off and preferably on a surround system or with headphones and you’re in for the scare of your life.
SOUTHLAND TALES – the writer/director is Richard Kelly of “Donnie Darko” fame. Don’t let the cast – Sarah M. Gellar, The Rock, Sean William Scott and Justin Timberlake – fool you, because this is far from a shallow superficial film.
ROCKY BALBOA – a bottomless well of inspiration for me.
We do have very similar top tens. I suppose the only two that are in your top ten that aren’t in mine I haven’t seen.
Kudos for including Enemy At The Gates and I just watched Collateral yesterday, so I know my list would have been altered after seeing it as well. Far From Heaven is one I forgot about but an amazingly wonderful movie with great performances
I would have preferred to see The Bourne Trilogy and The Last Samurai higher, but overall a tremendous list.
@ Ventilation Shaft: I tend to agree with you with French drama/romance. There is something about them that make many of them very very slow. Thanks for your comprehensive list of movies, I shall watch some of those I haven’t seen. Also you might enjoy The Ugly Truth where Gerard Butler plays a very “manly” character as well
@ Heather: Thank you. It’s always comforting to know someone has quite similar taste in movies
@ unknown person (Jenna81 on Reddit) who submitted the post to Reddit: Thanks!
First off great list Castor. Gone Baby Gone doesn’t appear on many lists even though it deserves the attention.
@Ventilaion
District 9 is littered with too many writing problems to be taken seriously, especially with that pig-launcher scene.
-deus ex machina device used too frequently
-the aliens wouldn’t be allowed to have access to their weapons anymore
And as for your Punisher/Rambo argument: they are nothing more than blood-thirsty fascists. They don’t kill to protect the innocent any more than religious fundamentalists do. They’re one dimensional characters that have no bearing on reality.
@Castor
Thank you for mentioning “The Ugly Truth”. I’ll check it out soon.
@Fitz
You and me have absolutely nothing to discuss, as you are everything that I despise in moviegoers.
Excellent rebuttal, really.
Ah come on guys, just relax. To each his own! I’ve been catching a lot of flak on Reddit
, I need to post some of those comments a little later
Did you see how crazy it got? I was the one that posted it on there. Hope it brought you lots of traffic though!
http://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/aldmj/top_100_movies_of_the_decade/
Yes I saw it this morning and I thought it might have been you but I wasn’t sure. Thanks a bunch!!! As for traffic, only about 1100 visitors today, not bad …
(Insane!!) And of course, I will try to reciprocate this for you.
Don’t worry about what the crazies on Reddit say though. I’ve been using it forever and they are bonkers but it does generate a reasonable amount of traffic usually. I only check the comments once every week or so because usually all I hear is what an idiot I am. I started a new account a few months ago just because people were sending me literally hate mail, just for posting stuff about movies! HA!
“I started a new account a few months ago just because people were sending me literally hate mail, just for posting stuff about movies! HA! ”
Now that’s heinous! You probably incurred the wrath of some fan boys
Anyways, I don’t worry about what most people say either
The beauty of movies is that each experience is subjective and I’m glad it got some discussion going.
Yeah, it’s still going too, and it’s weird the stuff that picks up there and what doesn’t. A lot of the movie discussion has familiar names though, and some are really big fans of movies even if they want me to die! LOL
It seems a rather large Faux Pas to put Wedding Crashers lower than the Departed, but what I think is funny is that most of them wouldn’t have even noticed if they weren’t side by side…….silly rabbits.
Those jerkoff deleted all my posts on there. I’m not sure what happened. I just went on for the first time in awhile a few days ago and everything was gone!
Love re-posting of lists. It’s fun to revisit!
Umm weird! Reddit has been crappy lately, submissions go into spam 90% of the time, I don’t bother anymore.
I hadn’t in awhile. It’s such a spiteful forum. I should finally just give up on it. I seriously wonder about the people that spend all day there trolling. Can you imagine?
Reddit is hilarious. But, if you really want psychos, go to any IMDb message board, make a thread saying anything positive about anything, and come back in a day. Honestly, someone should make a book of all the comments on the Donnie Darko page.
But… I like Wedding Crashers… LOL
Yes indeed
Also funny that the very vast majority of top 100 list don’t even include Road to Perdition and they call me out for it being too low?! If you put too many foreign movies, then you are a movie snob. Not enough and you are an ignorant American. Go figure, can’t please them all 
I’ll try to pump up your material on those social bookmarking site every chance I can.
Awesome and I will continue to do the same.
As Mitch Hedberg said: “You can’t please all the people all the time and last night all those people were at my show.” Hahahaha.
Our lists are made for our personalities, that’s what makes them so interesting!
Nice list, here’s my post and almost all the films mentioned in it appear in your top 100!
http://paragraphfilms.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/top-films-of-the-decade/
Ventilation Shaft posting above is also a legend!!! ^^
@ Paragraph Films: I enjoyed your top 10. I’ve added a Bittersweet Life and Together to the list of movies I need to watch!
“Ventilation Shaft posting above is also a legend!!! ^^ ”
LOL yes! It got a little heated but I guess I’m happy my top 100 got some strong reactions.
I think I’m going to copy paste some of the priceless comments from Reddit later, just for souvenir.
Great list Castor. As I said when you sent it to me a couple weeks ago, our lists are gonna be very similar, especially the top 10. I really can’t argue with anything on this list, except for maybe “The Pianist”. I thought Brody’s performance was marvelous, and deserving of the Oscar he received because of it, but I thought the movie was a little slow, and sloppy at times. Still a really good movie, but not among the decade’s true elite.
Thanks! Looking forward to read your top 100. Hit me up on skype or email if you have problem logging into the site. It should be all set up.
OK… these things are matters of opinion so I won’t rip this too hard. I’ll just say this… Million Dollar Baby is far superior to Gran Torino (which I did like a lot, but still). Shaun of the Dead deserves a huge leap up on this thing. I hated Mulholland, except for the nudity, so I have a hard time seeing that at #1. I have a best friend that absolutely worships Lynch, and that film, and even he doesn’t put it up top. I like your 100 over all… I may have played with the order a bit if it were mine but that’s the joy of having a blog… expressing what movies mattered to, or made an impression on, you. I’d rather hear about the films you like than the same films 1,000 different critics decide are the collective best! Overall, good list!
“They say Sprite is made from Lemon & Lime but I tried it at home and there’s more to it than that.”
R.I.P. Mitch Hedberg
You have a GREAT film blog! I enjoy it very much. I enjoyed your list, even though I don’t agree with a lot of your rankings – but that’s what makes it fun! I for one think “Antichrist” deserves to be in the top tier, along with “A Single Man”. But too each is own.
Thank you Frank and welcome to my blog!
I really need to update this since I have seen a lot of movies the past three months that should find a spot in there.
Damn, good additions, man. Could write a comment about 20 of those or so, but I’m very glad to see The Fountain making the list. Been aching to see that one again for a while now, was one of the best of ’06 IMO even if no one else liked it.
I’ve never seen “The Fountain”, I need to soon. So many movies and so little time. Damn work and sleep!
The Fountain…………..was weird even for me. No like or dislike on this end, just a respectful indifference. Then again I once felt that way about 2001: A Space Odyssey.
I was sitting at my desk at work, and I started getting chest pains. I thought it was rather strange since I try to keep a consistently healthy diet and stay active for most of the day. When I visited your blog, I realized my chest pains were coming from your new addition to the top 125 films of the decade – number 36.
I am being rushed to get a quadruple bypass. The nurse is trying to take away my blackberry!
#36? The Hurt Locker? Not a new addition, it’s been there since the start
Your list is hogwash! Hogwash I say!!! And do you know why? Because I like the word hogwash, and was desperately looking for a moment to use it…
I must have come along here post-this, but fascinating. I nearly went insane doing my top 100 all time and I change my mind on the films on that list every 5 seconds (primarily every film from #50 – #100). Wouldn’t want to even try this.
The LOTR trilogy (though I seperate them in my list) would probably be #1 on my top of the decade. Along with Spirited Away as well. I also incredibly love The Pianist, Requiem for a Dream, Hero, Crouching Tiger/Hidden Dragon, so those would all be features. Though I can’t complain about any of yours (except for Anchorman – personally, not a fan, but I know I’m in the minority there).
I’m hip to throwing things at me whenever I speak out against “Anchorman”.
Pretty good list…can’t imagine how much time it must have taken!
Best part about the list…Russell Crowe, and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Thanks Adam! Actually, it took quite a lot of effort and time to make the top 100 and I was growing mad after a while, typing a paragraph for each movie!! The additional update to 125 wasn’t all that time consuming since I slowly added to it for weeks.
I know what you mean, I’ve been working on Top Fifty Performances of all time. I started it in January – it’s a work in progress.
Treading on my territory!
Interesting list! I give props to ANYONE who can effectively rank films… partly why my site is so chaotic.
There were actually a few films here that I haven’t heard of and added to my Netflix queue. Plus there were a number of films that you reminded me I should see again to give a fair chance like 25th Hour, The Illusionist and to finally get my butt in gear to see The New World.
Great list! I was also excited to see certain films finally given the credit they deserve… like The Prestige, Collateral and The Visitor!
Thanks TG! Glad to give exposure to some movies you haven’t seen!
A very long list, Castor. My would probably include only about 10 movies including THE FALL by Tarsem Singh, READER, THE FOUNTAIN, CRASH, LOTR and of course MOULIN ROUGE.
OK… this is a good list and I can nit pick the order but I’m not going to do that because it’s just opinion. I’ll just say this:
1. I love that Begins is above Dark Knight and…
2. Mulholland Drive sucks… I hope it made THE LIST strictly for the lesbian scene… in which case, I’m fine with it!!!
I would put TDK even lower but I don’t want my blog hacked again
Lower? Do you want to lose my readership?
LOLZ
Well even though I will just never be on board with nor understand that number-one movie of yours, I thought you made some really brilliant choices (hooray for No. 3!), and the way it all was presented is quite visually appealing.
Thank you Luke! I think most people can agree Spirited Away was one of the greatest film of the 2000′s.
For “Rachel Getting Married”, I loved the movie a lot. But the one thing I found distracting was the guy who played the best man seems to me like he’s George Clooney’s shitty cousin or something.
Ooooh, “The Fountain”? Maybe I need to see it again, but I remember it as being three movies jammed into one, and only one had any emotional impact. Mostly I regard it the way I do “Avatar” — jaw-dropping visuals, a few affecting moments and that’s it.
Good call on “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,” one of the higher points in RDJ’s career.
It’s definitely a flawed movie because of how jumbled and unfocused it is. I’d rather watch a movie that tried to be great and epic instead of the pretentious but shallow junk we usually get from Hollywood studios.
It’s been a while since I saw The Fountain…But I do remember leaving slightly confused and enormously impressed with the music and the AMAZINGLY beautiful imagery.
Immortality is Humanities oldest fascination…all Hugh Jackman needed was a Katana and a couple of baddies to decapitate…wrong movie?
Finally had a chance to read through all of this. Thorough and a seemingly personal (which is the best, if you ask me) list. It makes me even more angry with myself for still not having seen Muholland Drive. I’m going to the Netflix queue right now. Though, I still I have to say (I just have to – I mean no ill will), Million Dollar Baby is about 123 places too low.
Yes, I know of your infinite love for Million Dollar Baby, sorry to disappoint
Hope you enjoy Mulholland Dr, it’s an experience by itself but it’s not for everyone.
So many great movies here. I wish I could go through and really comment on all your choices, but there are so many!!! I don’t think you really left anything out though, and the only thing I would take out would be a few of the Will Ferrell movies and such. But I love your top 20, again, I’d reorder them a bit, but still great picks. I loved Oldboy, glad to see it here. Just saw Mulholland Drive… wow, not sure about number one, but yeah, it’s fucking great.
My number one would either be Children of Men or There Will Be Blood.
After just seeing Mulholland Dr. for the first time weeks ago, I was amazed. I watched it again a few days ago and was still amazed. I’d already written a best of the decade list before I watched it, and now that list feels incomplete. Great list though, very in depth. I personally prefer Kill Bill over Basterds, but Tarantino’s great nonetheless. As I said great list.
@ Luke, Matt: At last some people who share my love for Mulholland Dr!!!! Glad you loved it! Thanks for the comments
So much to say – I don’t think it’s fair for me (or anyone) to disagree with your choices. It’s your 125, so I’ll just give some general musings.
I will say, the snubs that hurt the most are for “Atonement” and “Corpse Bride” – I know you were not too fond of the former, but what were your thoughts on the latter…incidentally, no Burton films but I know he’s not wholly loved.
Clearly you’re a Nolan fan, I’m never too keen on “Memento”, of course it’s a film that finds its beauty in its technique for the most part but after the first “thrill” of it, I’m left mostly unmoved. Told in chronological order, I don’t find it particularly scintillating. I’d say The Prestige (flawed as I find it sometimes) is my favourite work of Nolan. Very nuanced, and very natural.
I happen to have a strong kneejerk dislike of “Adaptation” that I often find myself unable to explain, it probably comes back to Nicolas Cage in the end…
I’m glad you threw “Gosford Park” a bone, even if my initial reaction to its placement was…ummm…not pleased
I feel a sense of injustice when my favourite Spielberg film is next to Julie & Julia, ugh. Okay, I think that’s enough chatter for now.
Insightful or spam…? Choices, choices…
I LOVE THE PRESTIGE but how can yopu not adore Momento… it’s totally awesome on a nothing budget!
I just went back thru the older comments for this post and saw Heather was quoting Mitch Hedberg making her that much more awesome than I all ready thought she was… Mulholland sucks… I’m outta here!!!
Okay I know I promised…but umm, Castor The Aviator is not here…I mean…other than the obvious…WHY?????
Does your vision of Gotham City not look like Chicago then, Castor?
And where is “Up in the Air!?!?”
Batman Begins had this dark, gothic feel to Gotham City. I was disappointed to see the average American city in TDK.
That’s cuz Begins was primarily shot on a sound stage and TDK was shot a lot in Chicago! It worked… the city just felt larger than in the first film. I like the Gotham you see when young Bruce Wayne is riding the train with his father.
And the “Narrows”. Sorry to “Ripley” this comment!
Dunno, I just found it fake and “comic booky” looking to me. Even though it is a comic book movie…
This still doesn’t answer my question about “Up in the Air,” the movie that I would put above about 120 movies on this list.
I would have sworn I included it somewhere near the #100 mark. Simple omission chief
Haha, I can see how it would be easy to leave one out on a list so big…
You know, with all the great films you listed (even the ones I don’t agree with) it looks like this last decade has given the wild and crazy 80′s a run for the money! I think you named nearly half my DVD/BRD collection:)
But damn Castor…125!! Sure make us bloggers who painstakingly got it down to 10 look quite lazy by comparison:P Yeah, you put in the hours alright. Fine list…your 85-36 does need some weeding out though. But you really killed me inside when I see that Edwards Zwick’s MASTERPIECES (at 104 and 86) didn’t make top 50…for shame!!
But you get points for adding those extra lens flares to the Star Trek photo:)
Great list and interesting picks.
You say that WALL-E is overrated and I have to completely disagree. I thinks it’s a stunning film with some of the best animation I’ve seen. There are some scenes that looks so realistic that it’s almost liked live action.
I was surprised to see United 93 isn’t anywhere near the near list. Sure, it’s hard to watch because of the subject matter, but it’s done with so much respect (and better then Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center) to the victims in it didn’t make it a action-packed film, but as a poignant telling of 9/11.
Other films that I would add as well.
Downfall- A German film about the last days of Adolf Hitler and the Third Rich. A brillent protrayal by Bruno Ganz as Hitler as a human, not a monster.
Little Miss Sunshine- A dysfuntional family road trip to a beauty pageant that is both hilarious and heartwarming.
Fantastic Mr. Fox- Very charming with great stop-motion animation, story, characters, & production design.
Thanks for input Brian and welcome!
I know I’m in the minority with WALL-E but that’s only my take
United 93 was a close one to make the list and it certainly would be in the top 150.
And another thing, I don’t think “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” is overrated. People give the movie it’s due … which is a lot, and it deserves all the praise it gets.
Holy shit! This must be the most comprehensive list I’ve ever seen. Kudos for putting it all together the way it is, this is freakin’ amazing.
Damn this is comprehensive – a don’t need to look no further type of list. Great commentary, brilliant images. Very eclectic mix of films, quite a few I still have to see. I finally got round to doing my top 50: http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/1756. I also did a ‘best of the 2000s’ feature here: http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/1738
Wow this is really a great list. I couldn’t even fathom doing a list like this but you pretty much got a majority of what I would put. My only differences would be films probably only I loved but most of the ones I liked made it
Avatar must be in TOP 20 list..50+ is somewhat lesser impact.
Wow..Great list. I knew the preparation was damn hectic. BTW you done it very well. But some of my favorite movies are got rank around 20′s and 30′s. Also I prefer ‘The Prestige’ movie is on TOP 3 for sure…
man … great list … the best list ever …
but I just can’t believe that “High Fidelity” is not in it !!!
one of the best comedies ever …
Thanks Bashar, very kind of you to say.
No I’m Not There? Muh. That movie is so tragically overlooked.
For the rest: wicked list! Seriously, well done. Could use a little more cult, though.
Haven’t seen it Max, to be honest never heard of it until you mentioned it a couple times a couple weeks ago
Looking forward to rent it though!
A great list. I was so surprised and very happy to see Mulholland Drive at #1 and am very thankful for that. You also have a few other great choices on here that people don’t normally think of but you, thankfully, did. Here’s my Top Ten of the Decade, pending further editing:
10: Irreversible
9: Memento
8: Dancer in the Dark
7: Inland Empire
6: American Psycho
5: Amores Perros
4: Cache
3: Requiem for a Dream
2: Mulholland Drive
1: There Will Be Blood
Slight critiques… I think Traffic should be way up higher (easily in the Top 50) and I don’t know why Inland Empire is not on this list. If Mulholland Drive can be number One, why can’t Inland Empire, which is like it’s uber-epic sister movie, be present as well? Even if it’s in the hundreds?
Anyway… great list.
Black hawk down and the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford should be in the top 5. Those 2 are some of the greatest films of all time in my opinion. And finding nemo is way to high. But still a good list though.
Where’s Brokeback Mountain?
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