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10. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
Writer/Director: Wes Anderson
Writer: Owen Wilson
Stars: Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Andrew Wilson, Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Danny Glover, Bill Murray
Studio: Buena Vista Pictures
With his third movie, Wes Anderson let all his quirks run rampant: a storybook setting that is and is not New York, a uniform for each character and an obsession with childhood detritus. Rather than deflect the family’s conflicts (as Anderson’s critics claim), these elements only enhance its spiritual conundrums, making The Royal Tenenbaums Anderson’s most directorially confident and emotionally cathartic film—a bittersweet ode to regret, forgiveness and hard-won contentment.—Stephen Deusner
9. No Country For Old Men (2007)
Writer/Directors: Joel and Ethan Coen
Writer: Cormac McCarthy (novel)
Stars: Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones, Kelly Macdonald, Woody Harrelson
Studio: Miramax Films
What is it about the Coen Brothers’ inconsolable No Country for Old Men that still chills the blood, even under the South Texas sun? No doubt its inscrutability plays a role: Is it a Western, a noir or a morality play? And the Academy Award-winning performance by Javier Bardem disturbs because he himself remains a mystery: Is Anton Chigurh a merciless hitman or the Angel of Death? The story of a drug deal gone wrong soon reveals its true theme: the futility of being good and just in the face of abject evil. But the Coens also meditate on the faltering of the physical body. “Age’ll flatten a man,” Tommy Lee Jones’ Sherrif Bell esteems, and for this Texan, the evocation of my childhood landscape—right down to the tiniest detail—means that the specter of Chigurh will haunt not only the end of my life but stomp through its earliest remembrances as well.—Andy Beta
8. The Son (Le fils) (2002)
Writer/Directors: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
Stars: Olivier Gourmet, Morgan Marinne, Isabella Soupart
Studio: New Yorker Films
Renowned Belgian filmmaking brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne found the perfect distillation of their stark style with this masterpiece about a man who teaches woodworking to troubled teens. One boy in particular draws his attention, but the brothers parcel out the plot so carefully that watching it unfold is rewarding in itself. The greatest pleasure, though, comes from watching the Dardennes treat the simple details of building a toolbox and the limits of human forgiveness as if they’re both vital, and maybe somehow related.—Robert Davis
7. Lost In Translation (2003)
Writer/Director: Sofia Coppola
Stars: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris
Studio: Focus Features
Fueled by Bill Murray’s impeccable performance, Sofia Coppola delivered a picture of sublime nuance for her sophomore effort. The physical and emotional unavailability of spouses, words left unspoken, life’s missing purpose, an affair devoid of sex—absence is the looming presence here, and Coppola perfectly captured the ineffable human conditions of dislocation and ennui. Lost in Translation is a testament to the power of a raised eyebrow, a gentle touch and a parting whisper.—Tim Regan-Porter
6. Beau Travail (2000)
Writer/Director: Claire Denis
Stars: Denis Lavant, Michel Subor, Grégoire Colin
Studio: New Yorker Films
French filmmaker Claire Denis has such a keen eye and natural sense of rhythm that her movies often hypnotize viewers even when they aren’t following the plot. She’s subtle. For Beau Travail, Denis transplanted Herman Melville’s Billy Budd to the African landscape where she grew up. She gave her movie one of the greatest endings of any film this decade when her lead character—wound tight as a spring—finally allows himself a spastic, joyous moment. Whether it’s real or metaphorical isn’t clear, but we know this much: It’s music. It’s dance. It’s pure cinema.—Robert Davis
5. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Writer/Director: Michel Gondry
Writers: Charlie Kaufman, Pierre Bismuth
Stars: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, Tom Wilkenson
Studio: Focus Features (2004)
Michel Gondry’s debut feature, Human Nature, was a whimsical dud, but his follow-up suggested a mature, disciplined director with his playful side intact. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind traffics in his signature sleights of hand, which serve two touching and tragic love stories: between red-haired Kate Winslet and a supremely sad Jim Carrey, and between headstrong Kirsten Dunst and a pining Mark Ruffalo. All of their performances—including Gondry’s—stay in your memory long after the credits have rolled.—Stephen Deusner
4. The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001, 2002, 2003)
Writer/Director: Peter Jackson
Writers: J.R.R. Tolkein (novels), Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair
Stars: Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Sean Astin, Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies
Studio: New Line Cinema
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy took the work J.R.R. Tolkien himself described as “unsuitable for dramatic or semi-dramatic representation” and translated its epic story in a far more literal manner than could’ve ever been guessed. What comes across in Jackson’s adaptation is a passion not just for telling the epic tale, but for telling it correctly. Corners weren’t cut for time or expense, nor were compromises made to create a tighter plot and more streamlined experience. In a sprawling 11 hours, the series’ meticulous recreation captures the same wonder and awe of the books. We suspect that were he still around, Tolkien would’ve reconsidered his comment and enjoyed seeing his world on screen just as much as the rest of us.—Sean Gandert
3. Almost Famous (2000)
Writer/Director: Cameron Crowe
Stars: Patrick Fugit, Kate Hudson, Jason Lee, Zooey Deschanel, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Studio: DreamWorks
Cameron Crowe’s semi-autobiographical film perfectly captured the essence of the world music geeks inhabit—the passion for the music; the joy in the concert experience; the obsession over the tiniest details of melody, lyrics, musicianship, artwork and liner notes; the camaraderie of fans and musicians. But even beyond the resonance that music fans feel, Crowe crafted flawless little scenes, peopled with fully fleshed-out characters who were funny, romantic, heart wrenching and utterly believable. Almost Famous is the essential movie for music aficionados, and a great one for anyone who cares about humanity.—Tim Regan-Porter
2. Amélie (2001)
Writer/Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Writer: Guillaume Laurant
Stars: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Rufus, Claire Maurier
Studio: Miramax
With the face of an angel, the heart of a child and the haircut of a Parisian pixie, do-gooding waitress Amélie Poulain (Audrey Tautou) swept us clean off our feet. Hers was a love story, a French love story—as if it could get more romantic. And her fantastical adventures in the name of love unfolded in flights of magical realism. Indeed, the film held up love itself as both magical and realistic. Which, of course, is how it really is.—Nick Marino
1. City of God (2003)
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Writers: Paulo Lins (novel), Bráulio Mantovani
Stars: Alexandre Rodrigues, Alice Braga, Leandro Firmino, Douglas Silva, Seu Jorge, Philipe Haagensen
Studio: Miramax (2003)
Originally released in January 2003 to critical praise, Fernando Meirelles’ masterful yet brutal City of God receded from view until Miramax re-released it for Oscar consideration. And while it failed to even garner a foreign-language-film nomination that year, the alternately intense and intimate depiction of Rio’s desperate favelas has only grown in stature and power. Based on the novel by Paulo Lins (and adapted by Bráulio Mantovani), Meirelles turned an unflinching eye on a world forgotten by the wealthy and powerful, ignored by police and indifferent to law and order. City of God set the template for other shocking urban films to follow (not to mention a revival of “favela funk” by music-marauders like Diplo and M.I.A.). But whereas other cinematic studies like Gomorrah (about modern Sicily) and the documentary Dancing with the Devil only wallowed in such viciousness, this film plunged deeper, gripped harder, and yet always allowed glints of humanity into such darkness. City of God’s harrowing depiction of daily violence in the favelas exemplifies in shocking detail the Hobbesian view of life as “nasty, brutish, and short,” but the film never casts judgment. While chaos and bloodshed rule the world of protagonist Rocket and those of his generation—psychotic druglord Li’l Zé, groovy playboy Benny and solemn Knockout Ned (singer Seu Jorge, in his breakout role)—City of God elucidates an underlying symmetry, exhibiting if not poetic justice, then the street version of the same.—Andy Beta
The 50 Best Albums of the Decade…
The 10 Most Iconic Opening Scenes in…
The 25 Best Horror Movies of All…
The 20 Best Gadgets of the Decade…
The 10 Best Video Game Characters of…
The 17 Best Romantic Comedies This Decade
Blind Pilot - The Story I Heard
B.O.B. - Put Me On
Punch Brothers - Punch Brothers at CMJ
Not much argument from me. The Lord of the Rings shouldn't be on there. Those movies are grandiose showpieces of technology, and nothing particularly special. Read the books instead. (Then again, that's my advice for a lot of things.)
I'd probably "rate" High Fidelity higher, if we're suggesting that #1 is somehow "better" than #50. I tend to take such listings as this as collective groupings rather than rankings of superiority. High Fidelity is one of my favourite movies ever...at least the equal of Almost Famous.
Maybe I missed it (it's early here) but I don't remember seeing the Diving Bell and the Butterfly on here.
My Netflix list just grew enormously. Great top 3 picks, though.
No Requiem for a Dream or Pi or Butterfly? No Aronofsky at all? Odd.
Mostly good selections, some way too high, but 1 terrible, terrible, terrible, almost unforgivable mistake... The German film the Lives of Others does not qualify as one of the 50 Best Films of the Decade? A possible top 10 of the decade on any respectable critics' list and it does not even gain entry?
I usually don't use those internet abbreviations, but WTF? OMG?
Take the chance to sit your entire staff down for a couple of hours and watch this film. It is something that must be done before you review another film. As a Pan's Labyrinth freak, I was shocked when it lost best foreign film to this film, until I watched it.
You must ask yourselves, what else are we missing?
In Bruges? The Lives of Others?! Pan's Labyrinth ranked lower than Almost Famous?!!
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly should definitely be on here. So much more moving than L'enfant in my opinion.
I think an argument could be made for Crash and V for Vendetta as well.
A good chunk of my personal favorites are on here. But I definitely have some more movies to check out now!
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly should definitely be on here. It was much more moving than L'enfant in my opinion.
An argument could be made for Crash and V for Vendetta as well.
Overall, good picks! A good chunk of my favorite movies are on here, but I definitely have several to check out now!
OK, one glaring omission from my P.O.V.: Clean by Olivier Assayas. Stars Maggie Cheung, Nick Nolte and it opens with a killer performance by Metric.
It's one of my favourite films of all time.
Any movie that can make the shithole that is Hamilton, Ontario look interesting should be on this list.
No STATION AGENT? Easily a top 5 movie of the last 10 years. Nothing by Shane Meadows? Really? Totally agree with THE LIVES OF OTHERS comment. Would also add in LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, SYBECDOCHE NY, FROZEN RIVER... Lists like this are always conspicuous by what they leave off.
Just a heads up. The box cover for #41 is incorrect. While both are French films from this decade, L'Enfant(The Child) and Le Renard et l'enfant (The Fox and Child) are two different movies.
Rick, I attended the premiere of The Lives of Others in Toronto and reviewed it in Paste (before it won the Oscar, by the way). Just don't want you to think its omission from this list was solely because nobody had seen it.
Of course this isn't my personal collection of favorite films, even though I contributed votes and blurbs (and reviews from which blurbs were pulled). And it includes a few I wouldn't have, but that's the nature of group lists, and it's pretty hard to winnow the thousands of movies released in a decade down to 50 slots. What else are we missing, you ask? That's easy: tons.
I will forgive you for forgetting Lives of Others if only because you did not put Crash & Brokeback Mountain on the list. To see a list of Top 50 and not see that treacle is heart warming.
Robert, you do need to smack some sense into your colleagues for forgetting it though.
Glad to see that City of God got much deserved respect. Bonus points for Junebug and Iraq in Fragments
Judging by your critera of each choice being "an exquisitely made, exceptionally satisfying piece of cinema that we believe will endure well after the decade has ended," I have a few critiques.
Requiem for a Dream will stand the test of time. It is better written, directed and acted than most of these choices.
Half Nelson- Great performances (I love all three of those actors), but not much else that hasn't been done better in other movies.
While Man on Wire was both enlightening and entertaining, there are a number of better documentaries out there. Born Into Brothels, Taxi to the Dark Side, Encounters at the End of the World, to name just a few.
Other notable omissions:
Amores Perros
Road to Perdition
The Pianist
Slumdog Millionare
Narc
Shaun of the Dead
Inglourious Basterds (maybe a little soon, but I think this one will be around for years to come and though it stings a bit to say this, it's a better film than Kill Bill)
There's no such thing as a definitive list, though. I applaud you for this effort. It's a thoughtful one.
theagent37, check back next Tuesday for our list of the 25 Best Documentaries of the Decade.
Missing from my own personal list: All the Real Girls, To End All Wars, Narc, Training Day, Hot Fuzz, Anchorman, Punch-Drunk Love, Team America, Shotgun Stories, Gladiator, War Dance (docu), In Bruges. I realize that Anchorman and Team America would never make a list of top "respectable/indie" films, but damn, they do make me laugh. And Ben Kingsley's performance in Sexy Beast rivals--and exceeds--that of Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland... so I'd perform a switcharoo there.
Missing from my own personal list: All the Real Girls, To End All Wars, Narc, Training Day, Hot Fuzz, Anchorman, Punch-Drunk Love, Team America, Shotgun Stories, Gladiator, War Dance (docu), In Bruges. I realize that Anchorman and Team America would never make a list of top "respectable/indie" films, but damn, they do make me laugh. And Ben Kingsley's performance in Sexy Beast rivals--and exceeds--that of Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland... so I'd perform a switcharoo there.
Missing from my own personal list: All the Real Girls, To End All Wars, Narc, Training Day, Hot Fuzz, Anchorman, Punch-Drunk Love, Team America, Shotgun Stories, Gladiator, War Dance (docu), In Bruges. I realize that Anchorman and Team America would never make a list of top "respectable/indie" films, but damn, they do make me laugh. And Ben Kingsley's performance in Sexy Beast rivals--and exceeds--that of Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland... so I'd perform a switcharoo there.
I like the list overall, almost all my favorites were there. I've long said "City of God" was one of the most powerful films I ever saw. I was glad to see the little noticed "Elephant" get such props, that movie is haunting to its core. "Half Nelson," "Junebug," and "Millions" were all Indie Gems that triumphed.
I was surprised that no love was given for the epic Musicals of the past decade. No "Moulin Rouge" or "Chicago"?
theagent37, I disagree about Half Nelson. It's a much more complex film than just a few good performances, as good as they are. It works on several levels, and I appreciate that someone can enjoy one without caring about the others. For me, it's a time capsule of a certain political sentiment that a few films from that period (Old Joy is another) captured quietly and subtly.
Of the omissions you mention, the only one I'm really partial to is Inglourious Basterds. I'm eager to see it again.
I was surprised to see you left off the two epic Musicals of the past decade: Moulin Rouge! and Chicago
Errr....think I'm not in your demographic.
Some great flicks, but Requiem for a Dream is conspicuous by its absence.
Y tu Mama Tambien or Amores Perros?
Station Agent? Doubt?
It is a shame there aren't more to choose from, but the creative bankruptcy continues.
Even though like Rob, my personal list doesn't look too much like what we have here, I'm pretty content with how things turned out (even though I have a hard time even finishing Amelie ...).
I think Josh summed up why in his summary. The sheer variety of what's there makes me happy. Here's to another decade of great art
Where's "Crash" ?
The lack of WALL-E on this list makes it an instant failure.
A total lack of WALL-E makes this list a total failure.
Hilarious. You should probably put a little more thought into these lists aside from what gets a high rating on IMDB and the last few Sight & Sound polls. Otherwise, I suggest your rag stop covering film entirely.
i cant believe "the fall" didnt make this list...
Tarsem's The Fall is certainly visually ravishing, and I like the way the fantastic story is filtered by the head of a little girl (kind of like Pan's Labyrinth in that way), but it's dramatically inert. I'd need to see it again, but my first reaction was that it was a clever construction but hard to warm up to because the color-coded characters are not only thinly drawn but keep changing every time the story resets. It's a little like Hero in that way, and I have similar reservations about Zhang Yimou's film.
I was a little disappointed to see a lack of Chinese and Korean films on here. With contenders like Oldboy (2003, Chanwook Park), 2046 (2004, Kar Wai Wong), Se, Jie/Lust, Caution (2007, Ang Lee), In the Mood for Love (2000, Kar Wai Wong) and Ying ziong/Hero (2002, Yimou Zhang), it's sad to see a very large market of films completely overlooked. The list is fairly solid, and you did a great job of recognizing many excellent foreign films as well as American films, but it feels strange to see you overlook one of the most respected suspense movies of the decade (Oldboy).
I was a little disappointed to see a lack of Chinese and Korean films on here. With contenders like Oldboy (2003, Chanwook Park), 2046 (2004, Kar Wai Wong), Se, Jie/Lust, Caution (2007, Ang Lee), In the Mood for Love (2000, Kar Wai Wong) and Ying ziong/Hero (2002, Yimou Zhang), it's sad to see a very large market of films completely overlooked. The list is fairly solid, and you did a great job of recognizing many excellent foreign films as well as American films, but it feels strange to see you overlook one of the most respected suspense movies of the decade (Oldboy).
Not even one Harry Potter movie?
http://www.ifeelyaophelia.com
E. Kaplan, I think you're probably right about that. In some ways, the list reflects the reality of movie watching in the United States. A list with a heavier weighting toward films from mainland China, Hong Kong, or South Korea might match the world's cinematic output, but it wouldn't match the movies seen in America. No matter how strong the films of Jia Zhang-Ke (my pick for the decade would be Still Life) or Wong Kar-Wai (I'd pick In the Mood for Love), they're little-seen in the US relative to the English-language films in the list. Jia is almost exclusively a festival phenomenon in this country. Not surprisingly the "best albums" list here (and elsewhere, like Pitchfork) have the same Western slant. You could see these biases as limitations, or you could see them as properly reflective of the people who made the lists and the people who read them.
But ignoring all that, my favorite South Korean filmmaker is probably Hong Sang-soo, even though his films aren't as conventionally satisfying as Park's Oldboy and Sympathy for Mr/Lady Vengeance. This list includes a film by Hou Hsiao-hsien at #48 (another personal fave), but Flight of the Red Balloon is his most Western film to date, and we could almost as easily have included films by his contemporaries Tsai Ming-liang (either What Time is it There? or The Wayward Cloud) or Edward Yang (his swan song, Yi-Yi).
The list does swing to the adventurous in spots, though. You'd be hard-pressed to find a film more foreign, in every sense of the word, than Syndromes and a Century, proudly sitting at #18, or a film more aware of the very state of foreignness than Beau Travail at #6 or even, in its own way, Lost in Translation at #7. I love that about all three.
no slumdog millionaire ?
i can't believe diving bell and the butterfly didn't make it on there at all. big miss there.
Some good suggestions on here. I haven't heard of Beau Travail and am looking forward to it. But the list strikes me as odd. Royal Tenenbaums? Almost Famous? Why do people like Almost Famous, by the way? I found it mediocre on first viewing and haven't the slightest interest in seeing it again. I saw Revanche last night and think it blows away those two movies and a good many others on this list.
No "Broken Flowers?"
Your exclusion of "In the Mood for Love" and its loose sequel "2046" are in-freaking-excusable.
Great Top 10, but any list that includes Juno should be dismissed. That movie was AWFUL!
mumble mumble 'Lost In Translation' mumble mumble 'Before Sunset' mumble mumble 'Primer' mumble mumble '25th Hour'
Glad to see I wasn't the only one who was shocked to find The Lives of Others left off. As I was reading through, I thought of it, but simply expected to see it at number one.
Great list, guys and a really fun game to play.
Here's mine:
http://twynne105.wordpress.com/2009/11/04/everyone-loves-lists/
Some of our favorites from the decade that didn't make your list (that you weren't already called out for):
Children of Men
Lars and the Real Girl
You Can Count on Me
House of Sand and Fog
Stranger Than Fiction
There are loads more, these are just off the tops of our heads. We're not complaining, though. There's no way to please everyone.
Then again, we loathed Lost in Translation and City of God, which most likely makes us traitors to our generation.
too politically correct...
films missed:
la pianiste /michael haneke/ 2001
requiem for a dream /darren aronofsky/ 2000
stellet licht /carlos reygadas/ 2007
and the best of all:
into the wild / sean penn/ 2007
Two glaring omissions:
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (easily a top 3-5 film of the decade)
The Lives of Others (eh, maybe top 20 at worst)
I see lots of faves here, but the most glaring omission is my pick for number one: Before Sunset.
Man this decade started out so well, but it kinda petered out. I remember circa 2001 there was a lot of talk about a new golden era of cinema with the likes of Mulholland Drive, Y Tu Mama Tambines, LOTR.
Enough good stuff made it through to put this naughties over the crummy 80's and 90's.
This list is odd. Any list that puts Beau Travail and the Dardennes top 10 has rather committed itself to art cinema. But how can it then include the middlebrow preciousness of the Royal Tennebaums and (wince) Amelie. Also inexplicable: Mulholland Drive is not No. 1. I realize opinions vary about exactly how genius this film is, but not among people who, you know, care about art.
Lack of Aronofsky is a bit disappointing to me also. Where is Requiem for a Dream? Visually both shocking and stunning, a bit like watching Trainspotting but with a punch in the stomach instead of a pseudo-happy ending. Or The Wrestler with it's heart breaking portrayal of the ultimate broken man.
Not convinced by this list in many respects...didn't spot any Michael Haneke (correct me if I'm wrong) either. Also, where were Gladiator, Nemo and The Pianist?
Good list. I haven't watched about a third of the movies. I have a hard time believing anybody considers Ratatouille and Up better than Finding Nemo and Wall-E. I was also hoping Shaun of The Dead would make it.
Good list. I haven't watched about a third of the movies. I have a hard time believing anybody considers Ratatouille and Up better than Finding Nemo and Wall-E. I was also hoping Shaun of The Dead would make it.
Wow, aside from a few solid picks, apparently a lot of the criteria for best of the decade was split between "Of the moment" films and cliche standard indie fair. Juno is 15? Groundbreaking!
Correction: "The 50 Best Art (House) Films of the Decade" (with the exception of LotR and maybe a couple of others). Do bear in mind that not everyone is into this kind of movies and claiming that these are the best movies of the decade without even considering mainstream Hollywood blockbusters/movies (that many more people enjoy, regardless of whether you agree) is - in fact - quite pretentious and arrogant (sadly enough, being pretentious and arrogant is what part of the Art Film scene is often all about).
Interesting collection, well put together.
Just not sure about 'Elephant'.
UP over WALL-E? One's a 10 the other's a 9.5, but you got them wrong.
did someone seriously suggest Crash? that movie is elementary at best. i still struggle to find what people find so interesting about its limited approach to exploring racial tensions.
Altogether a fairly tight list. My major gripe is, I fail to see how "The Dark Knight" ranks at 11 and worst still higher than "There Will Be Blood".
The former is a decent action movie with a stand out performance from Heath Ledger, it does however have some serious flaws. The plot was too bloated and sprawling. The two ships sub-plot was ridiculous. Christian Bale's performance and fight scenes were boring and wooden.
The latter is monumental and almost perfect. Definitely should be in the top three.
i seen pretty much all the movies on this list for free and completely legal at http://www.doesthatwork.co.uk
i seen pretty much all the movies on this list for free and completely legal at http://www.doesthatwork.co.uk
WHERE IS V FOR VENDETTA???
This list is terrible. I hope you die.
No Wall-E? Really? C'mon, Paste.
No Country for Old Men is the most overrated movie of the decade. Theme "the futility of being good and just in the face of abject evil"... Really? Reviewer is way too impressed with himself and the setting of the movie...
And for the commenter who thought that pi should be included in the list, what are you smoking? Can I have some?
Almost Famous before LOTR......you're an idiot.