Top 100 Films of The Decade: 50-41

50. The Saddest Music In The World
(2004) Guy Maddin -Canada

When one of your major characters has prosthetic legs filled with beer, there's not much to dislike, as far as I'm concerned. Absurdly funny story about a beer baroness who starts a contest in Winnipeg to find out which country's music is truly the saddest in the world. Weirdly surreal and while Maddin is somewhat of a taste I've yet to totally acquire, I had a lot of fun with this. And did I mention beer legs?

49. The Dark Knight

(2008) Christopher Nolan - USA

I've never been too fond of comic book movies, even as a kid. I don't know why, but it was just never really my thing. Even with months of hype leading into this, I just really didn't have any sense of excitement about it and the only reason I ended up seeing it was because I attended a critics' screening. So, I was pleasantly caught off guard by how much I liked this, how well it was made. While a film like this is certainly prone to fanboyism and hyperbolic statements, if anyone were to call this the greatest comic book movie ever made, I certainly wouldn't onject to such a claim.

48. Milk
(2008) Gus Van Sant - USA

I thought this one did a great job of telling Milk's story, or at least the story I knew of based on the '84 documentary The Times of Harvey Milk. While Anita Bryant's crusade to ban gay teachers was sweeping America, it was heartening to see a leader like Harvey Milk stand up and get people to action against ballot initiatives like that, even his stands ultimately cost him his life. The film is problematic at times, but even those problems were easily overlooked when compared to how much it got right.

47. Everlasting Moments

(2009) Jan Troell - Sweden

I can’t help but to feel Ingmar Bergman’s presence lingering over this story of the Larsson family, a struggling family at the turn of the century in Malmo, Sweden. While the Larssons are often faced with grim circumstances, usually resulting from the boorish, abusive alcoholic father’s actions, the film still manages to charm, mostly due to a pitch-perfect performance by Maria Heiskanen, as the matriarch who finds an outlet for expression through photography.

46. Riding Giants
(2004) Stace Peralta - USA

I really enjoyed this one a lot when it came out, and purchased it on DVD not long after, but it mostly sat on my shelf and collected dust. It was only when I went looking for age-appropriate movies for my friends kids to watch that I rediscovered this one and how immensely watchable and rewatchable it was, and how much all of us, adults and kids alike enjoyed it. It's a documentary about the history of surfing: it's beginnings, it's culture, and it's evolution as a sport elevated with fantastic visuals and a pretty killer soundtrack.

45. Waltz With Bashir
(2008) Ari Folman - Israel

Probably the most interesting foreign-language animated documentary you're likely to see. The story concerns a group of soldier's recollections about the Palestine War in the early 80's and their various recollections. But the film's focus is just as much on the very elusive nature of memory as it is about the war itself. Fascinatingly told and wonderfully animated, it's one of those films where I needed a second viewing because I was so entranced by the visuals that I'd occasionally ignore the subtitles at the bottom of the screen.

44. C.R.A.Z.Y.
(2005) Jean-Marc Vallée - Canada

It's too bad that this epic family saga about five brothers and their parents, which spans the late sixties through the eighties never got theatrical distribution in the United States. While it swept Canada's equivalent of the Oscars, my understanding is that acquiring the licensing rights to the film's amazing soundtrack (The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, among others) was going to cost far more than a French-Canadian release would likely ever gross in the U.S., making it cost prohibitive to distribute. Luckily, it is available on DVD and it's one definitely one worth seeing if you have the chance.

43. In America

(2003) Jim Sheridan - UK

Great little film about a family of Irish immigrants who move to America following the death of their little boy. While the two young daughters revel in everything new and different America has to offer, the parents find that changing their surroundings won't necessarily help them fix what's broken in their family. Both sweetly charming and heartbreaking at the same time, this is one of the few films that left me sitting in my seat at the in the theater while the credits rolled trying to not let a tear come out. It may just be a guy thing to not want to shed a tear in a movie, but I'll be man enough to admit that this one nearly did me in.

42. Children of Men
(2006) Alfonso Cuarón - UK

Another post-apocalyptic tale here, this time in a world where women are no longer able to conceive and with grim prospects of survival, the world has become increasingly violent and militaristic. But when a young girl is discovered to be pregnant, it becomes a race to get her out of the country in order to ensure the species' survival. Easily Cuarón's best film to date (and he's got several good ones).

41. Traffic

(2000) Steven Soderbergh - USA

As has often been the case, we've attempted to solve complex problems with simple solutions, and Traffic kind of depicts just some of the reasons why the war on drugs was destined to be a battle we'd lose. It only really hits the tip of the iceberg, but makes an effective case all the same. Great ensemble cast and well written look at the challenges we face in a war without a clearly visible enemy.

Top 100 Films Of The Decade: 40-31

40. About A Boy
(2002) Chris and Paul Weitz - UK

When this one came out, like many people I know, I thought "great, another lame ass romantic comedy with Hugh Grant" and decided to dismiss it as something I had no interest in seeing. A few months later though, I found myself on a transatlantic flight, it was the movie option, so I figured what the hell.... I have nothing better to do for the next 8 hours. And I was shocked out how much I liked it. Hugh Grant was much better in the film than he's been in most everything else I've seen him in, Toni Collette is always a welcome presence, and the film is quite entertaining. If you dislike Hugh Grant (and I know many who do), don't let that dissuade you.

39. Shaun Of The Dead
(2004) Edgar Wright - UK


In the realm of zombie movies, this decade brought two new developments, one of which was the intentionally funny zombie comedy film (or at least bringing that subgenre to the forefront... I'm not an expert on all the straight-to-video B-movies). And this one is still the funniest. Mixing deadpan British humor with the old school zombies made for a great mix, with these two dolts who don't even seem to notice that the people around them are turning into the flesh eating undead ("Oh my god, she's so.... drunk!"). Great fun!

38. The Devil Came On Horseback
(2007) Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg - USA

While I think most people are aware of the genocide taking place in Darfur, I think this documentary does an excellent job of explaining its roots and what's really happening over there. The film doesn't spare you images that will shock and appall you, but there's no way to sit through this one unaffected. Essential viewing for those who care about what's going on in the world around you.

37. Mister Lonely
(2008) Harmony Korine - USA

This story about celebrity impersonators is likely to inspire as much loathing in some and admiration by others. I'm not typically a fan of Korine's work, but found myself fascinated by the characters and what it says about celebrity obsession. Between the main story of the impersonators and the side story involving Werner Herzog as a missionary priest and a group of nuns who discover that miracles can happen in the strangest of ways, you'll either buy into the absurdity or dismiss it, but it's one that certainly seems to inspire strong feelings one way or another.

36. Closer

(2004) Mike Nichols - UK

Sexual politics have rarely been depicted so brutally on screen. Two couples, meet, fall in love, cheat and spend much of the movie tearing each other to shreds with barbs so foul they'd make a sailor blush. It may have been jarring for many to see two of America's sweethearts (Julia Roberts and Natalie Portman) so foul mouthed and cruel, yet I admired the risk. And since I think it's Roberts' finest work to date, I wish she'd take more risks like this one.

35. The Woodsman

(2004) Nicole Kassell - USA

It's not easy to humanize a monster, but I think Kassell did a fine job here depicting the life of a pedophile following his release from prison. The film doesn't excuse his past deeds or make you feel sorry for him. It depicts a man who wants to change and fights very hard to do so, but is persistently beaten down from being able to get on with his life. We often say that if you do the crime, you should pay the time, but at what point do you stop paying? I don't think there is anyone on Earth more demonized than someone who molests a child, and justifiably so. And while it's absolutely a concern to make sure a pedophile doesn't strike again, the film made me put knee-jerk emotional responses aside for a moment and try to think a little more rational way to handling the situation.

34. A MightyWind

(2003) Christopher Guest - USA

With his earlier films, Waiting For Guffman and Best In Show, Guest's previous mockumentaries lampoon their subjects in a fairly mean spirited manner. Not that I'm complaining about that - they make me laugh my ass off. But I think what distinguishes A Mighty Wind from the others is that it has more of a sweetly nostalgic approach in mind. This one follows a group of folk musicians being reunited for a benefit concert following the death of the man who long ago discovered and signed all of these groups. While it gently pokes fun, it also has a kinder tone to the jokes. And Catherine O'Hara and Eugene Levy getting to perform "A Kiss At The End Of The Rainbow" at the Oscars was one of my favorite moments of this decade's ceremonies.

33. Once

(2007) John Carney - Ireland

Speaking of great musical performances at the Oscars, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova are outstanding in this small film about two musicians who meet and feel a connection that isn't meant to be. But the music they play throughout the film suggests what could have been. A little film that left a big impression and one of the best soundtracks of the decade. The win for "Falling Slowly" is among my favorites.

32. (tie)

Infernal Affairs (2004) Wai-keung Lau and Alan Mak - Hong Kong

The Departed (2006) Martin Scorsese - USA

It's rare, but every so often a remake works. And in this case, I like both the original and Scorsese's remake on about equal footing, so I felt it appropriate to lump them together for the purposes of this list. I'll credit the original with the story and coming up with a thrilling tale about the police and the mafia, their informants and rampant double crossings. But I have to give Scorsese some credit as well, even for as simple a task as "not screwing it up." (while that hardly seems a reason for praise, it's just so incredibly rare for the remake to get it right). But, I also like the way he incorporated in and made it feel like an authentically Bostonian tale. I can't honestly say that I have a preference between the two films.

31. Adaptation
(2002) Spike Jonze - USA

When tasked with adapting The Orchid Thief into a screenplay, Charlie Kaufmann (one of the most interesting screenwriters going) was stuck. His solution? Turn the film into a story about the impossible task of adapting this novel about a lunatic (brilliantly played by Chris Cooper) who poaches orchids from the Everglades. And in doing so, he crafted yet another brilliant tale that ends in him playing fast and loose with the story and inventing a completely different story that ends up being pretty much everything he didn't want the film to be. But thank god for it... there's such a perverse joy in watching Meryl Streep (playing the book's author) transforming from a straight laced and dignified Manhattanite into a drug sniffing criminal, in what would easily go down as my favorite comedic performance she's ever done.

Top 100 Films of The Decade 30-21

30. 28 Days Later
(2003) Danny Boyle - UK

This one revitalized an entire genre of horror. Instead of the lethargic, slow moving zombies we've come to know, the "infected" are much more like ferocious animals. But beyond that, I liked the way the story starts out with Cillian Murphy's character having awoken to a vastly changed world and having no idea about what's going on until he meets other survivors. Unquestionably my favorite horror film of the past 10 years.


29. Ratcatcher
(2000) Lynne Ramsay - Scotland

Set in Glasgow during the garbage strike in the early 70's, Ratcatcher is a very quiet film about a young boy both coming of age in seemingly hopeless surroundings and coping with the grief of having lost a young playmate. While it has a dingy squalid look to the film, there are moments of strange beauty to be found. There isn't a tremendous amount of dialogue, so it's often left up to the young actor at he center of the film to convey feelings through subtlety, and it's rare to see a child actor pull that off like William Eadie does here.


28. The Hurt Locker
(2009) Kathryn Bigelow - USA

With so many war films, it seems like the attitude is "we've got a $150 million budget, and damn it, we're gonna show you $150 million worth of crap blowing up," I think The Hurt Locker was smart to instead opt for keeping your attention by escalating tension. In showing the complexities of diffusing the IEDs hidden in the ground and amongst the rubble, the explosive experts at the heart of this story have to carefully watch their every movement while also keeping a keen eye peeled on every little thing happening around them. While I can't say how realistically it depicts taking on these tasks in war torn Iraq, it felt authentic every step of the way.


27. Moolaadé
(2004) Ousmane Sembene - Senegal

This was the final film from Ousmane Sembene, Africa's most noted filmmaker, and I think it might have been his best. Moolaadé, or "Sanctuary," is a damning look at the African practice of female circumcision and woman's fight to prevent it. When a group of girls runs away from the ceremony, a woman named Collé, who has had to live with the devastating effects of her own circumcision, places a spell of protection over the girls, and instigating a huge rift amongst her clan. I found it a really fascinating film and one that gave me some insights into a world I'm not likely to ever see and a great call to stop a barbaric practice that still goes on in Africa.


26. City of God
(2003) Fernando Meirelles - Brazil

A brutal look at the crime and turf wars taking place in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. Told over the course of three decades (man, I feel like I've used that phrase a lot over the course of this little project) this one follows a group of kids into adulthood and their descent into a violent life of crime. Lil' Dice may be the youngest villain on this list, but in no way does his lack of size equate to a lack of ruthlessness.

25. The Pianist
(2002) Roman Polanski - France/Poland/Germany

While I may have lamented earlier about WWII films and how they rarely feel unique anymore, this is just one of those times where a traditionally told story about the era works because it's made so exceedingly well. I think part of why it worked so well is Polanski had his own experiences to draw from and incorporate into the story and it shows that it's a deeply personal one he's telling. And while I can't say that I've been particularly impressed with him since this film, I love that Adrien Brody picked up the Oscar (along with Polanski) for his turn here. Two well deserved Oscars.


24. United 93
(2006) Paul Greengrass - USA

I think this among the most memorable experiences I've had in a movie theater over the past decade. I recall playing hookie from work and catching a daytime screening in a mostly empty there in those rows of cheap movie theater seats, nestled amongst strangers, it enhanced the fly-on-the-wall feeling Greengrass creates. And even though you know how it's all going to end before you walk in, the entire theater sat in stunned silence long after the plane has gone down and the credits were rolling. 9/11 obviously taps into some deep emotions for everyone, even if we merely sat glued to their television that day, and I think Greengrass was the right director to helm the first film about it: it's not manipulative or exploitational in any way, but instead shows a realistic hypothetical for what those passengers endured in their final moments.


23 No Country For Old Men
(2007) Joel and Ethan Coen - USA

While the Coens be hit or miss for me, I think a lot of what I love about this is because of the chances it took. It's hard to articulate exactly what I mean by that since citing examples would reveal some crucial plot points. But suffice it to say that I like that things don't play out as you've come to expect with a lot of films. I really loved Tommy Lee Jones in this film, and as evil incarnate, Javier Bardem made for an unbelievably creepy villain, and not just because of his Dorothy Hamill haircut.


22. Yi Yi
(2000) Edward Yang - Taiwan

I couldn't find a trailer for this one, but I was able to find a clip of Ebert & Roeper reviewing it, which may be better anyhow. An epic tale about a Taiwanese family, I loved the way the stories of the parents connected with the stories of the children. It kind of reminded me of all the advice my parents tried to give me as a kid that I just wouldn't take and in retrospect, wished I had. And little Yang-Yang was the heart and soul of this movie, and I want to adopt about 10 of him.


21. Lilya 4-Ever
(2003) Lukas Moodysson - Sweden

A pretty brutal film about a young Russian girl who is abandoned by her mother. Left to her own devices, Lilya goes out partying all night and when she's not hosting glue-sniffing parties, she's spending her days with the young neighbor boy, Volodya, who has his own set of problems at home and becomes sort of her adopted little brother. She gets the promise of a way out and to have a better life in Sweden, but her naivete blinds her to the fact that true hell is just beginning. A devastatingly bleak story, and sadly, not too far removed for many youngsters in poverty stricken areas of the world.

Coming soon... The Top 20!

Top 100 Films Of The Decade: 20-11

20. An Education
(2009) Lone Sherfig - UK

This is one of those films where the beauty is in the details. The story itself isn't particularly new, but it's the way it's told that matters. It's about Jenny, a young British girl who, for the most part, is a model student and preparing to go on to Oxford. Along the way though, she meets a man who seduces her by showing her the world outside of what she's learned about in textbooks.

As Jenny, Carey Mulligan is absolutely charming and effortlessly believable in the role.She exudes such a natural charisma and likability, and in her hands, Jenny is an easy character to relate to. And as her suitor, Peter Sarsgaard nails a deceptively tricky role, and the rest of the ensemble cast is pretty damn terrific too. And much credit also goes to Nick Hornsby (who wrote About A Boy and High Fidelity) for taking a story that might have seemed run-of-the-mill and making it feel fresh through incredible wit (the film is unexpectedly quite funny at times). Though I though 2009 was a fairly disappointing year for film, this one was the one I kept thinking back to the most and was a pretty easy choice for my favorite film of the year.

19. Persepolis
(2007) Marjane Satrapi - France

Based on her graphic novels, Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical tale about her childhood in Iran during the fall of the Shah, her school years in Europe and subsequent return to Iran is funny and stylish while not shying away from the horrors of what took place during those years.

While you may see more impressive animation from a technical standpoint, the simple hand drawn black and white animation employed here is no less striking. The film is incredibly faithful to the novels, retelling key moments in her formative years, which can be awfully disturbing at times while proving remarkably relatable at others. It's animation that's aimed squarely at adults and it was probably the most fulfilling animated film of the decade. And of special note for the subtitle averse... on the DVD, you can watch it either in French with English subtitles or you can watch it with English dubbing. While I'm not typically a fan of dubbing, it works just fine for this film.

18. Dear Zachary: A Letter To A Son About His Father
(2008) Kurt Kuenne - USA

I mentioned earlier how some of the decade's best documentaries weren't exactly the most well-made films and that would certainly apply here. Kuenne is a novice filmmaker and it shows. It felt as though he didn't trust his audience enough to recall earlier details of the story, and he goes back time and time again as if to say "See! I used foreshadowing there!" and these amateurish tricks are the sole reason this one doesn't rank higher for me.

However, few films tell a story as genuinely affecting as Dear Zachary. Kuenne's childhood best friend, Andrew Bagby, is found dead in a county park as the result of multiple gunshot wounds and all fingers point to the woman he recently left, Dr. Shirley Turner. She flees to Canada but is eventually charged with the crime and it comes out that Shirley is pregnant with Andrew's child.

So, Kuenne begins the film as a tribute to his friend, interviewing Andrew's friends and family, so that when Zachary is older he has some way of getting to know the father he never met. The focus of the film changes though as circumstances with the case evolve. I hate to say much more than that, as I think you really need to see it for yourself. But by the time the credits rolled, I was so seething with rage I couldn't see straight. As far as I'm concerned, Mr. and Mrs. Bagby, Andrew's parents, are worthy of sainthood. As for Shirley Turner... think of all the horrible words you could use to describe a woman and finding that none of them adequately reflect the hatred you feel. It almost begs you to invent a new word. You might find that harsh, but once you see the film.... trust me, you'll understand.

17. Bloody Sunday

(2002) Paul Greengrass - UK

While I think many of us grew up seeing the violence in Northern Ireland on television and singing along with U2 ("broken bottles under children's feet, bodies strewn across the dead end streets"), I don't know how many of us were acquainted with the events of January 30, 1972, when the English military opened fire on a peaceful rights protest, leaving 14 unarmed protesters dead, and drastically changing the atmosphere in Northern Ireland for decades to come.

While the Irish Republican Army was certainly in existence beforehand, the event served as a catalyst for the bloodshed that would later occur, driving many to enlist since a peaceful resolution seemed impossible. Greengrass films the story in a way that almost makes it feel like it was a documentary, and his interest in depicting momentous historical turning points without a heavy hand has made him one of the more fascinating filmmakers of the decade.

16. Kill Bill

(2003-2004) Quentin Tarantino - USA

I think this one, for me, is hands down the coolest film of the decade )they might have been separated out into Volume 1 and Volume 2 for theatrical release, but I consider it all one movie). Tarantino's love of 70's schlock has never been incorporated into one of his films more effectively and his ability to pair music to images works perfectly here.

From the knife fight at Vernita's house to the showdown with O-Ren Ishii and the Crazy 88's in Japan all the way through to the Daryl Hannah beatdown in Budd's trailer, this one's three and a half hours of pure joy from beginning to end, complete with memorable villains and over-the-top violence. A very, very bloody good time.

15. A Lion In The House

(2006) Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert - USA

In a complete gear shift, A Lion In The House is likely to be among the most grueling experiences you can imagine, but so incredibly rewarding for those who seek it out. It's not easy material: it's a documentary that follows five families coping with pediatric cancer over a six-year period.

While I think we can all imagine how horrible of an experience this would be for a family, The Lion In The House is pretty remarkable for how detailed and expansive the stories are. You learn about the experience from every angle: the children themselves and the pain they endure, the parents who are forced to make incredibly difficult choices about their child's treatment plan, the siblings who are shuffled to the back burner while the parents' attention is devoted to their sick child, the medical providers who come to know these children, bond with them, watch them suffer, and sometimes lose them. It gives you tremendous insight into what these families live through, and while it wasn't be the easiest way to spend four hours, I feel like a much better and more empathic for having learned about these families and their struggles.

14. Lost In Transalation

(2003) Sofia Coppola - USA

What I think I love about this film and why I identify with it is that it really spoke to those situations in life where I've felt a little bit like the outsider. And in Coppola's film, Charlotte, who's left alone in her Tokyo hotel most of the time while her husband is working very much feels like an outsider. She's immersed in a city she doesn't know, a culture she doesn't belong to, a language she doesn't understand.

And then she meets Bill Murray's character, Bob, and things click. While I've heard some feel it's a romantic spark or about a deep friendship, I think it's more about the kinship you feel when you discover someone else stuck in the same boat. You may not have a lot of things in common, but in that fleeting instant, you finally have someone who can relate to you in some way. I got the sense that Bob and Charlotte wouldn't likely ever meet again or keep in touch after the part ways. But for that brief moment in time, it's just great to have someone. And I don't think I've seen that sort of relationship really portrayed on screen so well. It's not about love, lust, or deep friendship. Sometimes, it's just about the comfort of not being alone.

13. The Secret Life of Words

(2006) Isabel Coixet - Spain

Like the film itself, the main character, Hanna, is very guarded. We know right off the bat that there is a story there, but she's slow to reveal it. We know few details about her outside of the fact that she is an immigrant who wears a hearing aid and she selectively turns it off when she wants to ignore the world around her.

She takes a volunteer nursing job and is flown out to an offshore oil rig where we learn there has been a tragic accident that has essentially stopped the rig from functioning. One man perished and another man, Josef, is severely injured and he is the man Hanna is brought in to care for. The two could not be any more different: he's talkative and borderline obnoxious, while she's very sparing with her words and distrustful. But they both share a painful past and secrets they carry that they're ashamed of.

When we finally learn Hanna's story, it's one of the most devastating monologues I've seen delivered in any decade. And in delivering this 12-minute speech, Sarah Polley is tremendous. In most films when an actress is given a scene like this, it's fodder for screeching and wailing in hopes of getting their Oscar clip. Here though, Polley plays Hanna as a woman who is swearing she's going to keep it together and that she will not let her resolve crumble, and it was a remarkable scene, especially considering how absolutely horrific the details of her story are. And in that scene, Tim Robbins (an actor I've never much cared for) quietly reacts to her story perfectly.

It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea, but I thought it was incredibly moving and thought-provoking.

12. Time To Leave

(2006) François Ozon - France

It's interesting that I have a difficult time summing up all the reasons I like this film in just a few short paragraphs despite the fact that it's a fairly simple story with a running time of about 1:25. I think it's in part because it brings a fresh perspective to a film about terminal illness. The main character, Romain is a bit of an ass, and learning of his impending fate doesn't really change that. Instead of finding a heart of gold and finding redemption, he only further isolates himself from those around him, tells no one but his grandmother of his diagnosis, and opts to spend most of his remaining time alone.

It's also partly because I think it's impeccably acted by everyone involved. As Romain, Melvil Poupaud turns in one of my favorite performances of the decade. Jeanne Moreau has always been a treasure in French cinema, and she continues to prove why here. And Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi is one of those actresses who can say more with a quick shift of her eyes than most can say with two pages of script in front of them. The final scene at the beach is one of the most perfect endings of the decade for me. Like the film, it's rather simple, but I thought it was quite brilliant.

11. Mysterious Skin

(2005) Gregg Araki - USA

I've never been a fan of Araki's films. They've always come off as trashy, amateurish, and just sort of ridiculous to me. So, despite positive reviews, I went into this one expecting very little, and was shocked at how resonant and thoughtful it was.

It focuses on two young men, both severely damaged, but with a shared past: back when they were 8 years old, the two boys were molested by their baseball coach. Now on the brink of adulthood, one of the guys, Neil, can't forget what happened to him; the other, Brian, has blocked the memory but knows that something very, very wrong happened and in time convinces himself that all of these things are the result of an alien abduction. It's a fascinating look at how one horrific shared event can destroy two lives and yet send them on such wildly divergent paths. While Araki's Smiley Face left me with little hope that he'd continue to make great films, I'll take the fluke, since one great film is more than I'm ever likely to make.

Top 100 Films Of The Decade: 10-1

10. The Wrestler
(2008) Darren Aronofsky - USA

When the film opens, director Darren Aronofsky opts an interesting approach to introducing you to his film’s protagonist, Randy “The Ram” Robinson. It begins in the ring, and follows him through the drab corridors of the third-rate arena in which the fight took place, all the while focused on the back of The Ram’s head and the mane of long, wavy, dyed blonde hair that cascades down his back. It’s a good five minutes before you see The Ram’s face. But, when you finally see The Ram’s face, it tells a story, and you see what the years of abusing his body has done to him.

And while the opening credit sequence suggests what The Ram once was, you see the man as he is now. Long gone are the days of superstardom, and now he lives out of a trailer park, or at least when he can afford to pay the rent. Other nights are spent sleeping in his van during the chilly New Jersey winters. And the man you see now, is a washed up shell of a man who has few real skills who has nothing left to offer the world. He toils away as a stocker at a grocery store (and endures the constant mockery from his boss) while spending his weekends on the wrestling circuit desperately trying to hold on to the only thing he knows. And rather than focusing on priorities like rent, much of his time and money is spent on keeping up appearances with tanning sessions, salon appointments, and a regimen of performance enhancing drugs.

The Ram is a fascinatingly flawed character, but at the same time, incredibly human. And once you see Mickey Rourke in this role, it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing the part (especially since Nicholas Cage was the rumored replacement). And while it may be tempting to think that Rourke is simply playing a variation of himself, it’s more that Rourke has a history where he can bring something to this character that someone lacking that life experience could never hope to bring. In my opinion, everything you’ve heard about Rourke is true, and then some. For me, I found this to be a perfect marriage between an actor and a role that I’ve not seen since Hillary Swank in Boys Don’t Cry or Emily Watson in Breaking The Waves.

I also found Marisa Tomei's character to be just as fascinating, and I think her stripper Cassidy is essential to the film's success. While she's resistant to be close, in her The Ram finds a kindred spirit who is also in the business of selling her body under a stage persona. The characters are both what society might describe as losers, but you can't help but to root for these two incredibly endearing losers the whole time.


9. Bad Education
(2004) Pedro Almodóvar - Spain


Kind of amusing, and probably only to me, but I've started writing about this movie a few times, deleted it, started over, and deleted it again. So, I figured I'd try to see what Roger Ebert wrote. I don't always agree with his opinions, but I like how he writes. And, here's how he opened his review:

I've just thrown out the first 500 words of my review and am starting again with a sense of joy and release. I was attempting to describe the plot of "Bad Education." It was quicksand, and I was sinking fast. You and I have less than 1,000 words to spend together discussing this fascinating film, and not only would the plot take up half of that, but if I were by some miracle to succeed in making it clear, that would only diminish your pleasure. (You can click on the title for Ebert's far more expertly written piece)

So, it seems I'm not alone in feeling that trying to explain the plot would be a largely fruitless endeavor. But I'll try to give you the vaguest of outlines, Almodóvar goes Hitchcock here in a story about two men who once had the beginnings of a young relationship as children, but were driven apart by a child-molesting priest. Years later, they're reunited in attempting to retell their childhood story. But there's some interesting secrets about what happened in the years between. There's a story within a story that causes a third one to unravel and all sorts of secrets come spewing out.

Trying to juggle dueling storylines in a thriller like this one seems to be more than some directors can manage (and hell, some can barely manage one), but to pull off three different stories in a labyrinth like this one turns out to be seems to come with ease for Almodóvar. And in pulling off three different roles, Gael García Bernal proves to be the real deal.

8. Requiem For A Dream
(2000) Darren Aronofsky - USA

While the title makes reference to dreams, what goes down in this one can only be equated to nightmares. But nightmares have never looked as stylish as they do here. A compelling look at addiction, the film follows four characters in their descent into hell. Harry, his best friend and his girlfriend slowly sink into the throes of heroin addiction until they're unable to escape its grasp.

Meanwhile, Harry's mother becomes addicted to diet pills, and her descent may be even more heartbreaking. While she has dreams of being on television, she disintegrates by subjecting herself to the extremes of what her body and her psyche can handle by ingesting a steady mix of uppers and downers.

The film is an assault on the senses - the visuals are hallucinogenic, the sound, thanks to a score by the Kronos Quartet is foreboding and crushing, and it's a completely devastating overload on the brain.


7. The Lives of Others
(2006) Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck - Germany

Appropriately set in 1984, the cultural elite of East Germany are, unbeknownst to them, subject to constant surveillance, with the government looking to seek out those who are deemed disloyal to the government.

And a playwright, Dreyman, and his girlfriend, Christa-Marie, are no different. Their home is bugged and their wires are tapped. The man listening in on them is a head investigator who is so well regarded at what he does that he's also an instructor on interrogation techniques. But there is a danger in getting too close to the subjects you're investigating.

Back in 2006, I saw this one down at the film festival I attend each year in Sarasota. Based on what was available, it looked like a pretty disappointing lineup, but not long before the tickets went on sale, the Oscars released the list of films that each country had submitted as their official selection for the foreign film Oscar, and I noticed there were quite a few playing at the festival, so I pretty much based my schedule around that, since there weren't a great number of films I was excited about in advance. I saw quite a few and they were okay, but it was shaping up to be a rather lackluster festival for me, and then this blew me away. I had no expectations going into it, and immediately after seeing it, I knew it would win the Oscar. It just felt like a film that had to (even though most prognostications were saying it would go to Pan's Labyrinth).

And while the foreign language branch of the Oscars lets me down time and time again and have proven to pretty much have their heads firmly implanted up their asses, this is the one time this decade that they got the absolute right choice.

6. Dancer In The Dark
(2000) Lars Von Trier - Denmark

I should start out by saying that I'm not particularly fond of musicals. I find them mostly corny and goofy, and utterly lacking in any sense of realism I tend to gravitate toward with my film preferences. So, even if the very notion of watching a musical makes you cringe, keep reading.

You're unlikely to see a musical that's so damn gritty. Icelandic singer Björk stars as Selma Jezkova, an immigrant (I want to say Czech, but I'm not 100% certain about that all these years later) who, because of a genetic disorder, is going blind. She realizes that there is little hope for saving her eyesight, but she's working to save up money to get her son a crucial operation to spare him from the same fate. Unlike me, Selma has a love for musicals, and in her blindness, her daydreams lead her to hear music in the mundane noises around her... the rhythmic noise of factory machinery, the bustling of a nearby train, etc. It's the fantasy world that she escapes to when things get difficult. As a side note, remember the infamous swan dress? That's when she showed up at the Oscars to perform the film's most memorable number, "I've Seen It All."

I don't think I'd be giving anything away here (since it's in the trailer I linked above), that she kills a cop out of mercy and is then put on trial for it. What follows is an absolutely damning condemnation on the justice system, that's absolutely heartwrenching.

One issue I'd also like to address here is about the perception of misogyny with Von Trier's films. His films often feature women as the protagonists who endure great hardship, abuse, and dire circumstances, often painting the women in his stories as victims. I can certainly understand the perception, but I also think that a case can be made for the fact that Von Trier identifies with these women and begs you too as well. I happen to fall on the latter side of that debate, but I think, as is the case with most great filmmaking, that the debate itself is half of what makes films like this so vital.

Even though it's been ten years, I remember everything about seeing this one. My friend Trevor and I saw it at the Tampa Theater, balcony seats,right in the center. We saw it, and sat in stunned silence a the credits rolled and in the car leaving the theater. We went to Bennigan's afterward and just endlessly discussed it. It's a draining film, but how many film experiences in a lifetime can you recall that vividly ten years afterward? That's the sort of film Dancer In the Dark was for me.




5. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
(2007) Cristian Mungiu - Romania

While most reviews or synopses you might read include the basic premise in the description, I'm going to follow the trailer's lead and not reveal what it is that the girls here are up to. I knew going into it, but I think that with the way the film plays out, there would have been an added level of mystery had I not been aware ahead of time. If you want to know ahead of time, a quick Google search on the title will satisfy that itch, but for what it's worth, I think it's a film that's best approached with as little foreknowledge as possible.

At the outset, we learn that in 1987, two Romanian college girls living under Ceauşescu's regime are about to do something dangerous and illegal. We don't know quite what that is, but we do know that it thrusts them into the world of shady characters and potential peril. What ensues is an enthrallingly tense film about these girls and their criminal act.

The tension really kicks off once the two girls have their hotel room with "Mr. Bebe," played with icy brilliance with Vlad Ivanov (Romania is one of the most fascinating outlets for film in the modern era, and he seems to be emerging as the best actor to come out of it). From there, the film is utterly genius in how intense it became and how it escalates with each frame. Even though I know what happens in the film, I've watched it a few times since, and that tension is still very much alive on subsequent viewings. And I've not seen many films be able to pull off that achievement. If you want to see why Romania is at the forefront of world cinema these days, watch this one. It's friggin' amazing.



4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
(2004) Michel Gondry - USA

A fascinatingly original film. Joel and Clementine have broken up and it's bitter and nasty and then Joel learns that Clementine underwent a procedure to permanently erase Joel from her memory. Out of spite, Joel goes to the clinic to undergo the same procedure and to eliminate any trace of Clementine. And the film takes us backwards through their relationship (the procedure works best, we're told, if the freshest memories are erased first). We see the fighting and the pettiness eventually give way to the times when everything was perfect and Joel decides that he doesn't want to let go of those memories. Physically, he's unconscious and unable to stop the procedure, but subconsciously, Joel fights to keep his memories of Clementine alive.

I actually loved the casting here. Not only were Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet an interesting match, it was interesting to see Carrey cast as someone so serious, while Winslet, who at the time was mostly known for period pieces, playing the free-spirit wild child with blue hair. It was almost as though the traits we associated with each actor were switched for these parts.

The film finds a wildly inventive way to tell a universal story and I can't imagine anyone not adoring the crap out of this movie.

3. Capturing The Friedmans

(2003) Andrew Jarecki - USA

The best documentary of the decade, without question. And interestingly enough, it started out with the director having an innocuous documentary in mind, focusing on children's birthday clowns in New York City. That is, until he learned of one clown's backstory, and the sweet little film about clowns was out the window.

The Friedmans were a seemingly average Jewish family living in the suburbs of Long Island and they were a particularly tight-knit group. That is until the image of the perfect family got shattered to pieces when the father and the youngest son are arrested on allegations that they were molesting the children who attended the computer tutoring sessions Mr. Friedman gave in the family basement. And what ensues tears the family apart.

Once we learn of the allegations, we get varying accounts... former students describing what happened and other students contradicting those stories. Investigators who worked the case detailing the evidence they uncovered and accounts that the investigators badgered the students with leading questions and accusing the children of hiding things. And one part of what makes this film interesting is that it doesn't try to lead you in any particular direction. You've quite likely to have an opinion, but then again, apply the standard to which jurors are held.. can you say for certain that Arnold and Jesse Friedman are guilty without a shadow of a doubt? And even if you feel that the father is guilty, is the son guilty by association?

But what makes this film really compelling is that one of the family's hobbies was making home movies, and they recorded practically everything that happened during that time. And when the mother (who's more just hopelessly naive, than anything else) expresses a feeling that she doesn't quite know what to believe, the sons all turn on her for not sticking up for her husband and her son. And the bitter arguments you witness as you slowly watch this family self-implode are so unbearably uncomfortable to watch because they feel like private moments that you shouldn't be watching. Have you ever been at a couple's home and it's just you and them, and then they get into a huge argument, and it's just you standing there, not knowing what to say and wanting to slink away unnoticed? I felt that way when I watched these moments that I shouldn't be watching.

Now, I can understand why people would sit back and wonder why I'd find this to be a good thing. It's because I think cinema, at its most powerful, should provoke you. It should make you question. And it should make you react. I like films that engage me as a viewer, no matter how it manages to do it. And this one managed to provoke me like few others.

2. Caché

(2005) Michael Haneke - France

As I mentioned before, Haneke is an interesting director. I find his films challenging, interesting, and unconventional in the sense that he knows what you, as a moviegoer, have come to expect, and he withholds it. He's the master at taking audience expectations for clean resolutions and disregarding that. If you want your films wrapped up at the end with a pretty little bow, you're barking up the wrong tree with his films.

The story here involves a couple who begin to receive mysterious deliveries. Vieotapes of their house under surveillance. Primitive, cryptic drawings. Any way you slice it, it would just be unnerving to have stuff like this show up at our door without explanation. Paranoia soon sets in, and wreaks havoc. Haneke's films prove difficult to write about when you don't want to say too much, so I'll stop at the basic premise here.

As for why this particular film lands so far up the ladder, I'd say that it's because of all his films, it's the one that seems the most tightly focused, the one that delivers the amongst the biggest jolts I encountered over the past decade, and the one that delivers the most concentrated dread.

1. Talk To Her

(2002) Pedro Almodóvar - Spain

I'm not always the best at translating my gut feeling about why I like something so strongly into words (and trust me, taking on this project was kind of overwhelming in that regard). I just figured that it would be less interesting if I threw 100 titles out there that were arbitrarily ranked. So, I guess it comes time for me to articulate why this one, more than the other 977 films I saw from the past decade stood out for me the most. So, here is my best attempt.

I missed this one back when it opened in early 2003, so I caught it on DVD, and had you told me immediately after watching it that it end up being my favorite movie of the decade, I probably would have thought you were high. Not that I didn't like it, but it wasn't one that necessarily had an immediate impact. I thought it was an interesting story about two men who were both coping with the women in their lives being braindead. I appreciated the fact that the impressions I had of the characters at the beginning were turned on it's head by the end of the film. I was certainly impressed with it.

But, it lingered for me. So, I checked it back out from Netflix again, and I uncovered new layers. I started seeing Benigno and Marco as representing the spectrum of the way in which men cope with tragedy: one extremely emotional, the other putting on the brave face. I ended up buying the DVD, and reading into it in yet a different way: seeing how having faith in miracles and holding onto hope just might make a difference, and it made me think of it in a much more spiritual way. The next time, I focused on how that spectrum of emotion I saw earlier doesn't mean that the emotions men show or hide make them any stronger or weaker.

I've watched it at least a dozen times now, and some new perspective reveals itself each time I've tackled it. The reason why I want to call this the best film of the decade it because now I see all these things. With each time I watched the film, a new layer revealed itself, and with so many layers on display now, I see such a multifacted story that I just can't compare it to anything else I've seen this past decade. I honestly can't recall a film that has compelled me to revisit it so many times, or a film that allowed me to take something new away from it with so many viewings. I can only hope that the decade that lies ahead brings at least one film so fulfilling.