…and because my best-of-the-decade list of 70 slighted (inevitably, I insist) at least two dozen other worthy works, if not more, I hereby consider my readers’ suggestions, and my own memory lapses, and give you thirty more outstanding motion pictures of the last decade.
Many of you might have intuited that, secreted somewhere within this list and the last, is my 10 best of 2009. You would be correct, but I will be posting that separately anyway.
Adventureland (Greg Mottola, 2009) Finally, an American coming-of-age comedy that wasn’t rote, smug, or evasive but rather finely detailed and artful. Reviewed here.
All The Real Girls (David Gordon Green, 2003) I’ve come to love this film for many reasons, not the least of which being that it appears to have scared the living shit out of Anthony Lane.
The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford (Andrew Dominik, 2007) A visionary immersion.
Autofocus (Paul Schrader, 2002) A beautifully detached perspective on deeply repellent behavior indulged by desperate characters who can never quite understand how emotionally underdeveloped they are. Funsy!
Children of Men (Alfonso Caurón, 2006) A convincingly imagined dystopia and filmmaking that’s both staggeringly virtuosic and emotionally involving. All this and early King Crimson on the soundtrack.
The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008) For its scale, its action, its convincing grafting of a noir (rather than a pop-surreal) sensibility onto a superhero picture. Best experienced in IMAX, I have to say.
The Death of Mr. Lazerescu (Critsti Puiu, 2005) My favorite of the new Romanian films, mordant and hilarious and then more mordant.
The Descent (Neil Marshall, 2005) Pretty much a perfectly calibrated scare-a-thon, something not to be deplored in this day and age.
Flags Of Our Fathers (Clint Eastwood, 2006) My preferred film in Eastwood’s ambitious World War II diptych.
Flight of the Red Balloon (Hou Hsiao-Hsien, 2007) Boy, were my expectations low for this. As a result, the film’s lyrical brilliance, coming in from an entirely unexpected angle, blew me away.
George Washington (David Gordon Green, 2000, pictured) Just beautiful. And troubling, and heartbreaking. But mostly beautiful—visionary widescreen imagery right outta the box, very impressive.
Gomorra (Matteo Garrone, 2008) This ultimate deglamorization of Mob rule gets stronger with every viewing.
Inland Empire (David Lynch, 2006) No, it doesn’t hold together in quite the same way as Mulholland does, but it’s incredibly vivid and disquieting and—there’s no other way of putting this—fucked up. Maybe his most despair-filled picture since Eraserhead.
Kill Bill 1 &2 (Quentin Tarantino, 2003/2004) Cheating, I know. Won’t be the last time.
Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Peter Jackson, 2001, 2002, 2003) See, told ya. Truth to tell, it took me a bit to warm up to this. I think at the time of the first one’s release, I cracked that it looked like a Powerpoint presentation of Led Zeppelin album covers. But it built in momentum and emotional impact and sheer epic storytelling/presentation. A real achievement.
Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World (Peter Weir, 2003) Virtuoso cinematic classicism.
Memento (Christopher Nolan, 2000) As fevered as it is convoluted.
Munich (Steven Spielberg, 2005) Not an exercise in moral equivalency or relativism, but a sober exploration of what killing does to a good man. Rather like a deep Anthony Mann Western in that respect… Reviewed here.
Pan’s Labyrinth (Guillermo del Toro, 2006) My favorite dis of this film from the late-coming nay-sayers was that it was unfair to fascists.
Paranoid Park (Gus van Sant, 2007) As taken as I was with the more putatively socially-conscious Elephant, I loved this enigmatic film more. Early review here.
Punch Drunk Love (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2002) Yes, this strange picture is more than an eccentricity, it’s a full-fledged…something great. Reviewed here.
Ratatouille (Brad Bird, 2007) Reviewed here.
Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2007) Or Hot Fuzz. Or Shaun. Or Hot Fuzz Or…
Spider (David Cronenberg, 2002) Literary language distilled into cinematic language with devastating, unique results.
Shotgun Stories (Jeff Nichols, 2007) A simple, moving tale, beautifully acted, and proof that the regional indie isn’t quite dead.
Sweeney Todd (Tim Burton, 2007) A very grand guignol. Nice tunes, too,
Traffic (Steven Soderbergh, 2000) A tour-de-force of narrative-juggling.
24 Hour Party People (Michael Winterbottom, 2002) A very witty slice of pop culture history and pop culture criticism. Also, its New York première party was the site of my first sort-of date with my future Lovely WIfe.
2046 (Wong Kar-Wai) Less dazzlingly tragic than In The Mood For Love, but even more visually beautiful, and full of its own unique intrigue. Reviewed here.
Werckmeister Harmonies (Bela Tarr, 2000) Tarr keeping it real. Real slow. Which is how I like it. Also: cosmic, beautiful, funny.
I know, I know…Black Book, Control, Rescue Dawn, Persepolis; so many more could legitimately make a “best of the decade” list, which means we had a pretty good decade. Movies today aren’t crap, after all!!!
Glad to see CHILDREN OF MEN here. It’s my favorite of the decade.
Wooo! Shotgun Stories!
My favourite discovery of 2008, made a somewhat disappointing year much more palatable.
Fun list, some titles I love (David Gordon Green! Twice!), some that didn’t do much for me (LOTR). And that’s the way lists should go!
Yay, I’m so glad you put in All the Real Girls!! I wasn’t going to stump for it, so I’m very happy it came up on its own.
Why were your expectations so low for FLIGHT OF THE RED BALLOON? Curious…
I know that maybe it’s too soon but… No “Wild Grass”?
Sorta random question, Glenn–have you seen Lynn Shelton’s “Humpday” yet? A list-worthy picture in my opinion, and it seems like something you’d enjoy…
Glad to see MASTER AND COMMANDER on here. It gets better on each viewing. Love plenty of your other choices, too, but Weir’s picture always seems to get ignored.
The Descent!
I’m amazed that you needed to be reminded or convinced of the supposed worth of Flags of Our Fathers, Glenn. A couple more passes on this list (115? 125?) and you’ll be making a case for Blood Work.
But hey, nice to see Adventureland (which should be reaping all the accolades 500 Days of Summer is getting) and the Gordon Greens.
Also, Sweeney Todd does have great songs; too bad it’s Johnny Depp that “sings” most of them.
Speaking of coming-of-age movies, I am a little shocked that Almost Famous (Untitled) didn’t make either list.
Still no NEW WORLD? I’d be curious to hear your take of that Malick offering, Glenn; depending on which day of the week you ask me, I’d pick either that or ZODIAC as my absolute favorite of the decade.
I like it a lot, but I’ll never understand why “Letters From Iwo Jima” gets more love than “Flags of Our Fathers”, which for my money is Eastwood’s most fluent, compassionate and beautiful film.
Seconding all the comments about Gordon Green, “Master and Commander”, “Children of Men” and “The Descent”.
This list is as good as the original, no?
Just read that our old friend Armond White included MICHAEL JACKSON: THIS IS IT in his top ten for the decade, a coup de grâce of contrarianism so thoroughly ridiculous that he should really hang up his spurs. He’ll never outdo himself now.
Glenn, I’m really glad to see MASTER AND COMMANDER and the vastly underrated SWEENEY TODD on your addendum list. And I’m also pleased, but kind of shocked, to see THE DARK KNIGHT on there. I thought your take was that it was perfectly solid, but nothing more. Personally, I’ve allowed the ruthless nitpicking of that film to make me disregard it when thinking about this sort of list-making, but I really do love it. Though I still think Nolan’s best film is THE PRESTIGE.
I’m surprised Mysterious Skin didn’t made it to your list even at 100. Your glowing review in Première. was what originally pointed me to one of my favorite films ever.
I must admit that despite all the praise for ‘Letters’ a recent revisit of ‘Flags of Our Fathers’ was a salutary reminder of just how impressive that movie was. I regard both films as a diptych but ‘Flags’ is intellectually & structurally ambitious in a way that the companion piece is not. It also boasts direction from Clint that for me is at least as good as anything he’s done in his career. The compassionate scenes between the survivors & the mothers of the dead flag-raisers, for example, are painfully well observed.
Nicely expanded, sir, and early Crimson certainly does give an already great flick a certain resonance. I’m counting on “Prince Rupert’s Lament” to turn up in whatever Raul Ruiz is working on now. Or “Groon.” The one from Earthbound.
But, much as Marsh wondered over on your first 70, I’m surprised Wendy and Lucy didn’t make the cut. Put a gun to my head and I’d swear it was easily among the top 5 of the naughty aughties. Actually, don’t put a gun to my head – I’ll say it anyway. Talk about your social realism (post-neo-realism?), and a relentless socio-economic undertow that drives nearly every scene, all the way through the abject, heartbreaking coda. Hats off to Michelle Williams and Kelly Reichardt for their indelible work in a film whose rigorous examination of a particular breed of late-capitalist alienation is sure to haunt us well after Depression 2.0 has passed…
What about Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution? Is that an conscious omission? I think it’s an terrific film but I haven’t really seen it on any best-of-the-decade lists. I’m just curious if it’s being forgotten or isn’t that highly regarded.
Cheers
Ps. Very interesting and helpful list.
Meant to post this yesterday, but I’m glad to see Chris Nolan get a little love this time around. For my money, no director has had a better decade: five movies, all of which were (at least) very good, and two of which were great. Not a bad ten years.
Was the decision not to include documentaries conscious? Are you not that big a fan, Glenn, or do you see them as so fundamentally different from narrative fiction so as to merit exclusion? That’s the big one, as I think the oversight of not simply some of the most interesting of recent years (Grizzly Man, Capturing the Friedmans, The White Diamond, Control Room, War Photographer, Forbidden Lie$, My Kid Could Paint That, Manufactured Landscapes, Big River Man, Man on Wire, October Country, etc.) but ALL of them would have to be based upon the decision to judge them as entities separate from narrative film. Is this the case?
Now for my personal preferences: Other qualms include the lack of South Korean auteurs Kim Ki-duk (3‑Iron in particular) and Jong Boon-ho (Memories of Murder in particular). Not sure how big you are into animé outside of Miyazaki but Satoshi Kon deserves consideration, especially over Ponyo. My personal top 25 would have made room for Let the Right One In and Hunger. And I may be taking the obvious critical stance here, but I would pick Kings and Queen over Christmas Tale, Oldboy over Lady Vengeance and Crimson Gold over The Circle.
Oh, forgot to include the part where I don’t just shit all over your selections. Of all the aughts lists I’ve seen, this is the one to which I can best relate, and I’m thankful for the movies included that I’ve not yet seen. The decade may be over, but, for me, it’ll yield new treasures for a long time to come.
Not diggin’ this list as much as last, but I’m very happy to see some of the movies included, such as Punch-Drunk, Jesse James, Red Balloon, Spider.
Again, though – where’s the New World? Taste is taste, but I feel like this is one that anybody who professes to be a serious cinephile has to answer for, regardless of his reaction.
Also, while I agree that Inland Empire is Lynch’s darkest film in decades, I think that, strangely enough, it finishes on a much more positive note than Mulholland – almost ecstatic, in fact. Just a thought. It’s as if Mulholland Dr. was a tragedy, and Inland Empire resolves as a farce. But a gloriously haunting and beautiful farce – something that only Lynch could offer.
Late to the comments I know, but I couldn’t post last week for some reason. Here are the titles I would have included:
American Splendor (2004)
Bamako (2006)
Boy A (2008)
Brand Upon The Brain! (2007)
Broken Flowers (2000)
Bubble (2006)
Bug (2007)
The Cat’s Meow (2001)
Control Room (2004)
Cowards Bend The Knee (2003)
Dracula: Pages From a Virgin’s Diary (2000)
Ghost Dog: The Way Of The Samurai (2000)
Ghost World (2001)
The Gleaners And I (2000)
Hamlet (2000)
The Heart Of The World (2000)
The Host (2007)
Lake Of Fire (2007)
Let The Right One In (2008)
Man On The Train (2003)
Moolaadé (2004)
Palindromes (2005)
Pistol Opera (2003)
Pola X (2000)
Sita Sings The Blues (2008)
Stevie (2002)
Sweet Sixteen (2003)
Terror’s Advocate (2007)
The Triplets Of Belleville (2003)
The Twilight Samurai (2004)
Waking Life (2001)
Y Tu Mamá También (2002)
The omissions of Brand Upon The Brain!, & Waking Life confound me I have to say.
Let me join in the chorus of voices that want to know why you left THE NEW WORLD out. Conscious decision or simply overlooked?
Kyle’s roster of docs reminds me that I haven’t seen a single list with The Fog of War on it. Odd.
I also was surprised to see you left out Let the Right One In, which was a far better horror film (better story, better characters, better acting) than The Descent.
Of course I was also surprised you gave Spielberg so much love, but then again I can’t expect to agree with you 100% of the time.
Too late, I know, but I finally figured out what’s missing – WALTZ WITH BASHIR. What’s up with that?