Top Movies of the Decade

I know...technically the decade doesn't end until next year. Whatever. The first 10 years of the 20th Century, as it was, was a great era for great movies. In my mind, we saw a true resurgence of innovation and imagination...with some routine Hollywood nonsense thrown in.

Now, I took some editorial leeway on some of these, as you will see. For what it is worth, here is my top 10 list:

10. Once

A love story that is not quite a normal love story, and a musical that is not quite a musical. This simple movie has such deep reverberating emotional context on so many levels. And the movie, set in the streets of Dublin, make for a perfect background for the melancholy story. I don't know if I consider this a love story or not...but it simply a beautiful film.

9. Children of Men

A pure, unadulterated dystopian view of the future, with cinematography that places it among the best of the decade. Somehow, this movie was not the cult hit I thought it would be...and the ending is, in my mind, along the great question marks in movie history (echoing Bridge on the River Kwai...).

88. Little Miss Sunshine

My favorite comedy of the decade. Something about this dysfunctional family that grows together during a road trip hits me personally. Steve Carrell had his first real breakout performance in this movie, and the cast is terrific. And the final dance scene is one of the great surreal moments in movie history.

7. Spiderman 2

I know, as you go down my list, it is a little superhero heavy. That said...when was the last good decade for superhero movies? And wasn't this decade the best of all time for the genre? Spiderman led the pack. And although the first one was a fantastic origin story, it was the second one, with Doc Oct as a villain, that fully captured the spirit of the comics.

6. The Incredibles

I could have picked any of the great Pixar movies of the decade (and Up came very, very close to taking this spot, and probably could be in my top 10), but this seems to be the one I enjoy the most on revisiting. The story of a superhero family and the dynamics of such a relationship are wonderful. And if it weren't for my number 2 movie on this list, this could be the best superhero movie ever, ironically.

5. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

The final two installments of this trilogy were subpar. But go back and watch the first one...and I dare you not to laugh at Johnny Depp. This was a great example of bringing back a dead genre (another example, look below), and making it fun for a new generation of viewers. It also made stars of Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom (who had a great decade along with Lord of the Rings). But it was Depp's Captain Jack Black that steals the show, and is now a universal icon.

4. Gladiator

The amazing spectacle of making a long dead genre (the Roman based film) into the winner of Best Picture in 2001 is a remarkable feat. Russell Crowe's crowning achievement, directed by film great Ridley Scott, is one of the movies of the decade that appears to be able to stand the test of time.

3. The Bourne Trilogy (The Bourne Identity/Supremacy/Ultimatum)

Again, a series, that in many ways is one story. But in this series, Paul Greengrass (who is now doing the Bond films) has brought a level of excitement and logic to the spy thriller that had been lacking for decades. Matt Damon, as a quiet and reserved Jason Bourne, is perfect in the role. The cinematography is one of the best of the decade, and left viewers wanting more.

2. The Dark Knight

Is this the best superhero movie of all time? In my mind it is. This was the perfect Batman movie...dark, brooding, with major deaths. And the best villain in years in Heath Ledger's final Oscar winning performance as the Joker. And although this is a Batman movie...it was the Joker who stole the show. A masterpiece.

1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (The Fellowship of the Rings, The Two Towers, Return of the King)

This was, by far, the most audacious process this decade, and one of the largest ever. To take J.R. Tolkien's epic tome and bring it to the big screen was a massive undertaking. Peter Jackson and his team truly built a world in which Tolkien would have fit right in. With fantastic special effects, a beautiful (in not unavoidably drawn out) script spread over 3 films and approximately 12 hours (in the extended version) make this epic journey one for ages. Return of the King won the Oscar for Best Picture in 2004.

Honorable Mentions: No Country for Old Men, Wedding Crashers, Avatar, Up, Monsters, Inc., Wall-E, Finding Nemo, 28 Days Later/28 Weeks Later, Lost in Translation, Knocked Up, The Harry Potter Series, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Let the Right One In, There Will Be Blood, Waltz with Bashir, Spirited Away, Shaun of the Dead, Casino Royale, Pan's Labyrinth, Persepolis, Memento, Hotel Rwanda, The Departed, Mulholland Drive, District 9, The 40 Year Old Virgin, The Passion of the Christ, Juno, Downfall, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Almost Famous, The New World, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy (Episodes I, II, III), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Illusionist, Iron Man, Shrek, Zombieland, Adventureland, X-Men, Man on Wire, The Royal Tenenbaums, Sin City, City of God, Donnie Darko, Superbad, Slumdog Millionaire, Lagaan, Master and Commander

Most overrated: Crash, Traffic, Brokeback Mountain, Kill Bill Vols 1 and 2, Fahrenheit 9/11, An Inconvenient Truth, Twilight, No Country for Old Men, Slumdog Millionaire (these last two, among a lot of these, I enjoyed, but thought they did not live up to their hype...).

Worst Movies: There are so many! I will limit it to these: Battlefield Earth, The Adventures of Pluto Nash, Superbabies, Daddy Day Camp...but the all-time winner must be From Justin to Kelly...a movie that should be used to torture Gitmo prisoners.

Most Disappointing: The Star Wars Prequel Trilogy. Don't get me wrong, I am still a Star Wars fanatic, and unlike most of the world I enjoyed Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. But this series could have been so much more. And every fan that group up in the seventies was disappointed by the overall result: just compare Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings trilogies...and you clearly see the difference.

Most Surprising: Star Trek. I really thought this series was dead. I had no interest in seeing it. And somehow, J.J. Abrams has me wanting more.

Final Thoughts: I really think, looking back, that this was a fantastic decade for movies. The Eighties and Nineties certainly had good movies, but I think there was a real resurgence in the movie making over the past decade. Partially, this is technological. Starting with the Star Wars Prequels and Lord of the Rings, movie directors now have an infinite palate to place their imagination on. And with Avatar coming out this month, you see the future in 3-D. I just hope the next decade can be even better.