H 18°, L 6° | Tomorrow: This decade has seen box office records fall, traditional genres be redefined and film legends come and go, but the greatest impact the past 10 years of film have had is on our lives and culture.
In the good times and the bad, we turn to the movies as a two-hour escape from our everyday lives. It doesn’t matter if it’s comedy or drama, humor or romance, film always has a way of putting us in just the right state of mind.
As we come to the end of another decade, it only seems right to honor the films that have had the greatest impact on us throughout the years.
So, with no further ado, we bring you our list of the top 50 films of the decade, as voted on by the Herald staff and our ArtsEtc. writers.
While not every movie on this list was the most influential or critically acclaimed of the decade, each one has had at least some impact on moviegoers over the years. Although some films didn’t make the cut — we only chose one film per franchise — the people have spoken and this is our 50.
As this is our last paper we wish you the best of holidays and a happy new film year.
Love, Your ArtsEtc. Editors.
1. The Dark Knight (2008)
“The Dark Knight” did more than redefine the comic book film genre; it reminded audiences why we go to the theaters. Beyond the cape and mask, it is a gritty masterpiece and one of the best crime thrillers of all time. Plus, Ledger is just hauntingly brilliant.
2. The Departed (2006)
This Best Picture winner put audiences smack-dab in the middle of Boston’s heated streets, where the only thing more important than your life is your identity. An all-star cast keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way until the explosive end.
3. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
An inspiration for underdogs everywhere, this captivating Mumbai love story swept audiences off their feet with its breathtaking rags-to-riches tale. Throw in an exotic soundtrack and electrifying final dance sequence and you’ve got a jackpot.
4. There Will Be Blood (2007)
Yes, there was blood, but it was Daniel Day-Lewis’ compelling performance as a man who risks everything for wealth that gave this film its dramatic grit. Add in the growing tension between Day-Lewis and Paul Dano’s Sunday, and you’ve got a classic.
5. No Country for Old Men (2007)
The decade’s ultimate cat-and-mouse thriller, “No Country” is a bleak and exhilarating rundown through a dusty West Texas backdrop. Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin are fantastic, but it’s Javier Bardem’s Chigurh that keeps the chills coming.
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Charlie Kaufman can write some fucked-up movies. But this one gives romance such a bend for the strange that the film comes out the other side as a refreshing, brutally honest take on the importance of love and what it does to us, both good and bad.
7. WALL-E (2008)
Only Pixar can make a garbage-filled earth look appealing. With breathtaking views of outer space, we all got to know one astounding robot who won our hearts without saying anything aside from his own name. Sometimes silence truly is golden.
8. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Dripping with bloody good battles and stunning special effects, the final journey to Middle Earth was the best yet. Nonetheless, it was Jackson’s tremendous ability to bring Tolkien’s imaginative tale to life that made fantasy cool again.
9. Juno (2007)
With “Juno” we get everything: a pregnant girl, an awkward boy and Jason Bateman. We also got all those things wrapped in a perfectly quirky package with an awesome soundtrack, not to mention all the buzzworthy lingo courtesy of Diablo Cody.
10. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
From the suicidal uncle to the foul-mouthed grandpa to the little girl with aspirations of becoming a child beauty queen, this film is eccentric comedy at its finest. If every road trip was this much, Volkswagen Microbus sales would be out the roof.
11. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
12. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
13. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
14. Wedding Crashers (2005)
15. Memento (2000)
16. Gladiator (2000)
17. Mean Girls (2004)
18. V for Vendetta (2005)
19. Anchorman (2004)
20. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
21. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
22. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
23. The Prestige (2006)
24. Almost Famous (20000)
25. Up (2009)
26. Remember the Titans (2000)
27. Finding Nemo (2003)
28. A Beautiful Mind (2001)
29. Gran Torino (2008)
30. Million Dollar Baby (2004)
31. Kill Bill, Vol. 2 (2004)
32. Casino Royale (2006)
33. Zoolander (2001)
34. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
35. Borat (2006)
36. Chicago (2002)
37. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
38. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
39. Mystic River (2003)
40. Blood Diamond (2006)
41. Knocked Up (2007)
42. Big Fish (2003)
43. Cast Away (2000)
44. Mulholland Dr. (2001)
45. Catch Me if You Can (2002)
46. Training Day (2001)
47. Finding Neverland (2004)
48. Erin Brockovich (2000)
49. Shrek (2001)
50. Master and Commander (2003)
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Moar foreign films?
Finding Neverland, Cast Away, Borat, Erin Brockovich, Mystic River and Master/Commander are semi-questionable. But respect on Gran Torino and Inglorious Basterds, one might be hesitant to give ups to recents because they’re fresh in our minds, but I would agree.
Nice article and idea though
-Lee
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Shrek is about 40 places too low.
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The original HK movie Infernal Affairs, which The Departed was based on is much better. Check it out.
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Zoolander?
wow
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The Dark Knight? Seriously? What a POS movie. How does it always get propped up as this bastion of modern filmmaking with such an infantile, simplistic message (same goes for V for Vendetta)? Sure it’s well made, very much so, but when people start calling it this deep masterpiece (“not just a comic book flick”) it’s just too much. And Heath was better in Brokeback Mountain.
And only ONE foreign film on the list? Pan’s Labyrinth is great and all but the exclusion of so many great films kinda makes the editors seem a little ignorant. No City of God? 4 Months 3 Weeks 2 Days? Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon? The Lives of Others? In The Mood For Love? Spirited Away? Amelie (I don’t like this one too much, but it’s pretty popular)? I mean, not all of these deserve to be on the list (though, for my money, City of God is the best film of this decade) but at least some of them - and I’m sure I forgot a few other good ones. Maybe they should have just removed Pan’s Labyrinth and called it the “Top 50 American/English-Language Movies of the Decade”?
I’ve got other problems with this list, but I’ve got class soon, and I doubt anyone really cares.
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The Dark Knight is not a POS. Anyone who would make that argument is only trying to go against the grain. You might not think it’s perfect, and I understand that, but anyone who knows anything about movies would admit that it is far from a POS. Erin Brockovich on the other hand…
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Okay, my comment was a little heated and, admittedly, exaggerated. However, while the Dark Knight is not actually a piece of shit, I still don’t think it’s a good movie. It’s all style, no substance. Which is fine, except people (…like this list) blow it up and say it’s this really “deep,” “realistic” film, of which it is neither. All too often it receives these claims, which I can’t really blame the movie for so much as the people who say it, but I would argue that it is slickly deceiving. That is, the first time I saw it I thought it was amazing. After repeated viewings (oh god, how many times I have been forced to watch it) I saw it for what (in my opinion) it is - which is a super shallow film with pretentious themes and hollow characters.
Entertaining? Of course. A “masterpiece”? Maybe on the most superficial of levels.
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Dark knight comment aside, I completely agree with your point on foreign films. City of God topped at least one list I’ve seen.
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4 Months 3 Weeks 2 Days
Great movie
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The inclusion of Mulholland Dr. is pleasantly surprising, but the list is pretty terrible. Yeah, a lot of films on the list are great, but Wedding Crashers in the top 15? Pirates of the Caribbean? Zoolander?! TDK wasn’t even the best of the year, let alone the decade.
As 11:35 said, there should be a lot more foreign films on the list. City of God, Oldboy, Amelie, The Lives of Others, etc.
Here’s a tip for next time: don’t put Mean Girls next to Gladiator.
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How the hell is “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” so damn low on the list? And “V for Vendetta” is shit; it turned an excellent contrast of anarchy versus fascism into another ‘hurf-durf Bush-era bad lol’ film. Not to mention the total lack of foreign films on here, as well as the constant undue praise ‘The Dark Knight’ is getting.
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Snatch biggest omission on this list? That should easily be top 5.
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agreed
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Biggest Snub: Sideways
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damn, looks like “Serenity” missed another list…
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As it should.
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This is clearly a list that was put together by a bunch of kids just naming movies that a lot of people have seen and isn’t a list that is made based on cinematic quality. I can’t believe Juno would make anyones top 100 movies, they even praised the “lingo” of a movie that reminded me of 70 year old writers trying to remember what they talked like when they were 17. Wow that Ellen Page is sure “bitchin’”. Casino Royale? Zoolander? Borat? Mean Girls? this are all decent movies to get stoned and watch but in terms of showing up in the top 50 of the decade makes this list a complete joke.
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what a joke. this should be titled “top 50 blockbuster hits for the masses.” what a bad bad joke.
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I really can’t take this list seriously when it doesn’t contain fight club, the pianist, or cinderella man.
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I really can’t take this list seriously when it doesn’t contain fight club, the pianist, or cinderella man.
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I really can’t take this list seriously when it doesn’t contain fight club, the pianist, or cinderella man.
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Alright movie “connoisseurs” they were simply trying to create a list of the best movies of the decade. Yeah movies like Amelie and City of God might be more artistic but that’s not what this list is about. I mean who hasn’t quoted Anchorman over and over and who doesn’t enjoy watching Pirates multiple times? Try enjoying movies instead of criticizing the living hell out of them.