Movies of the Decade
Taking the top movies of my 2010-2019 lists, here's my definitive top movies of the decade (with the exception of any '19 movies I see between now and the end)
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- DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsRyan GoslingCarey MulliganBryan CranstonA mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.This is the closest any movie has come to knocking my favorite movie of all time, "Lost In Translation", off it's top spot. It's minimalistic, it's frenetic, it's moody, atmospheric, moving, beautiful. This is my favorite movie I've experienced in a theater EVER. It was meant to be soaked in on a big screen with the speakers blazing the soundtrack and score into your soul. There have been few movies within the decade that mesmerized me from start to end (Her is a close 2nd and also 2nd on this list). I get the tingles when I remember how I felt from the first moment that the title sequence started. It makes me miss how I was nearly 10 years ago and how fleeting life feels. Gosling is amazing when it comes to quite yet deep leading loners. The violence and action is sparse, but when it happens it is just that much more effective. Hands down my favorite of the 2010's.
- DirectorSpike JonzeStarsJoaquin PhoenixAmy AdamsScarlett JohanssonIn a near future, a lonely writer develops an unlikely relationship with an operating system designed to meet his every need.I like Her for almost all the same reasons I love Drive. The music, the atmosphere, the characters, the cinematography. The mood of this one is more in tune with "Lost In Translation" and the two have more in common than just their Directors being formerly wed. Hoyte Van Hoytema is easily on of my favorite DP's now after seeing this. The projects he picks might not be as good, but his work is always solid. Spike Jonze directs a movie like once every 8 years and with the exception of "Wild Things", they end up being phenomenal. Who thought a movie about a man and AI falling in love would be more touching than any romantic movie made in the last 20 years? Arcade Fire kills it with the score too and really adds to the mood. The realistic future tech was also really neat. It's stuff that felt grounded and actually tech we'd have in the next 20 years. I could watch this movie any time just get lost in it's beauty. Lost in Translation, Drive, and Her are my top movie of all time, so that should show you what kind of movies will get to me usually!
- DirectorChristopher NolanStarsLeonardo DiCaprioJoseph Gordon-LevittElliot PageA thief who steals corporate secrets through the use of dream-sharing technology is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a C.E.O., but his tragic past may doom the project and his team to disaster.The quintessential Christopher Nolan movie. TDK is amazing, but this is a fully original movie that came from his mind. Memento is also somewhat original, but this one is Nolan at his finest. Such amazing world building and great effects. He is great at making action movies that go so much further than just those action moments. The cinematography is stellar here and Wally Pfister is equal to Nolan in my mind in what makes his movie so great. It's cool to see that Hotye Van Hoytema is now Nolan's DP man, but Pfister's work is definitely going to be missed. This movie just works on every level. Sure, it does get a bit exposition heavy to explain how everything works, but it has to. This and David Lynch's "Mulholland Drive" are the only two movies that get dreaming in movies right. Personally I think Nolan has hit a bit of a lull with Dark Knight Rises, Interstellar and Dunkirk, but his work is still solid overall. I'm excited for Tenet just because it's Nolan back to his originality with no prior property or based on real events.
- DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsHarrison FordRyan GoslingAna de ArmasYoung Blade Runner K's discovery of a long-buried secret leads him to track down former Blade Runner Rick Deckard, who's been missing for thirty years.The original Blade Runner is a movie that I did not like the first 2 viewings of it. I thought it was slow and boring and not what I expected. Once I saw it again those expectations were gone and I was able to really see it for the classic it was. I was skeptical when 2049 was announced. It was good to see that Scott wasn't directing as he's been on auto-mediocre movie mode for the past 20 years. Experiencing this in theaters was a mindblowing experience. This came really close to knocking Drive off it's spot as my favorite theater experience. I wish so much that I saw it a 2nd time in theaters to experience it. At home it's still stellar and one of my top movies, but man that experience of hearing the score blaring from theater speakers is also another one I'd love to re-experience. This is a slow-ass sci-fi movie and I love every moment of it. Just like the original, there's barely any action, but it's not that kind of movie. It's meant to be an atmospheric experience.
- DirectorWes AndersonStarsJared GilmanKara HaywardBruce WillisTwo 12-year-olds, who live on an island, fall in love with each other and elope into the wilderness. While people set out on a search mission, a violent storm approaching them catches their attention.I'm a sucker for Wes Anderson, seeing as each of his movies from the 2010's topped each year they came out. MK is probably his best work and most emotionally deep one. I'd love to take a trip to New Penzance island and just explore and wander it. Robert Yeoman is one of the most unsung DP's around. Even though the movies are all oozing with Wes Anderson, it wouldn't be the same without Yeoman. This is probably his best looking movie yet. After Darjeeling was disappointing, he came back with the wonderful Mr. Fox. But seeing as he faltered with Darjeeling I was unsure how much more he could keep his shtick going, but damn if he didn't have another career peak starting with this round of movies. MK needed more Oscar love, but at this point who gives a shit about the Oscars anymore. Next up, Wes Anderson's continuation of awesomeness with Grand Budapest.
- DirectorWes AndersonStarsRalph FiennesF. Murray AbrahamMathieu AmalricA writer encounters the owner of an aging high-class hotel, who tells him of his early years serving as a lobby boy in the hotel's glorious years under an exceptional concierge.Usually Wes Anderson had a 4+ year gap between movies, but it was with extreme delight that GBH came out a mere 2 years after Moonrise! Even Wes working within a 2 year production window is still able to pull out a fantastic movie! This one was so much damn fun to watch and yet another setting I'd love to live in. My only issue with it is the ending with the exposition on what happened to M Gustave and Zero's love. It just felt like version of those bad post movie text explaining what happened to the characters afterwards. Besides that this movie is just as good as Anderson's best. That man must keep making movies until the day he dies!
- DirectorAlex GarlandStarsAlicia VikanderDomhnall GleesonOscar IsaacA young programmer is selected to participate in a ground-breaking experiment in synthetic intelligence by evaluating the human qualities of a highly advanced humanoid A.I.One of the most thrilling and chilling sci-fi movies to come out in a long long time. I love everything from the atmosphere, to the sets and their design. Oscar Isaac is at his strongest here as the first person to create a fully self aware AI. He's a tech giant, who has been isolated by himself for so long creating Eva. He's gone a little crazy and his performance is spot on. There's a scene in this that nearly gave me a panic attack with the combination of the music and what was happening on screen, it was that crazy that it made be feel the paranoia of the character in it. The ending is the weakest part of it, but the movie leading up to it is amazing.
- DirectorByron HowardRich MooreJared BushStarsGinnifer GoodwinJason BatemanIdris ElbaIn a city of anthropomorphic animals, a rookie bunny cop and a cynical con artist fox must work together to uncover a conspiracy.Easily the best movie modern Disney Animation has done ever. I consider this even better than a lot of Pixar's work. Wow, oh wow...this is an adult movie posing as a kids movie with fluffy animals. It's about racism, it's about drugs, it's about not stereotyping people based off of looks. It's deep. I only hope that it effected the kids watching it, as we could need some people inspired by this message in the times we live in now.
- DirectorWes AndersonStarsBryan CranstonKoyu RankinEdward NortonSet in Japan, Isle of Dogs follows a boy's odyssey in search of his lost dog.This was a tough one to decide over Into the Spiderverse. I do feel bad picking it over SV as this will be the 3rd Wes Anderson movie on this list, but I just had to as it's that damn good. The controversy about it is overblown and stupid. Born out of an era where even a little minor thing can get overblown and deemed racist. This movie is just so damn charming and the cast is fucking fantastic. I'm not sure if I like this over Mr. Fox, but the animation in this is similar to it, but so much more detailed. Who knew Wes Anderson could rock in traditional film and also animation!
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsLeonardo DiCaprioBrad PittMargot RobbieA faded television actor and his stunt double strive to achieve fame and success in the final years of Hollywood's Golden Age in 1969 Los Angeles.Just saw this a few months ago, but it's still a movie I think about a lot. I wish I'd seen it again, but just didn't get a chance to. This is easily one of my top Tarantino movies ever. It's simple and honestly doesn't have much of a story, but that's what makes it so great. It's a snapshot of the movie industry just at the end of the golden age of cinema, just before the counter-culture revolution of the 70's. Cliff is such an awesome character and his carefree lifestyle is one that many people wish to achieve. Everyone is fantastic top to bottom. It's just a really awesome portrait of the entertainment industry just before it changed forever.