100 Favorites of the ‘00s: 50-26

Welcome back to my 100 Favorites of the ‘00s! If you haven’t already, be sure to check out 100-76 and 75-51 and come back! Because the list is so long, brevity is key here. So, I have broken it up into four posts with brief comments on each film. This is Part 3.

Let’s not waste any more time. Let’s get back into it.

50. Up (2009)

Pixar’s Up was another great creation by the CG animation studio. The film is most-famous for its life partner montage a few minutes into the film. On its own it is a devastating piece of animation that nudges the bar higher for what American animation is capable of (foreign animators have proven for decades what animation is actually capable of, but American animation studios have always lagged behind). The rest of the film is a mix of humor and adventure and a little more conventional. But the film communicates that seniors shouldn’t necessarily give up on life at that point in their lives and should try to live life to the fullest and that they don’t have to be emotionally closed off to the world. There’s a lot of beauty under the surface of Up. And Ed Asner gave one of his last great performances as Carl Frederickson.

49. The Ring (2002)

While The Others started the PG-13 horror craze, The Ring kicked it up a notch and a flood followed. The first of several adaptations of J-horror movies, The Ring is the most effective. It’s a tale about a mysterious VHS tape that, after being viewed, the viewer receives a cryptic phone call announcing their death in 7 days. Naomi Watts got a huge career boost by starring as the lead in this story set in the Seattle area. It’s really effective, chilling, and fun. I don’t know that it needed a couple of sequels (reputation dictates it didn’t). But this remains one of my favorite horror films of the decade.

48. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

This was one of the most heart-warming movies of the decade and one of the best about a group of misfits and an untraditional family. There’s the parents (Greg Kinnear and Toni Collette), the emotionally-damaged teenage son who refuses to speak (Paul Dano), the drug-addicted grandfather (Alan Arkin), the suicidal homosexual uncle (Steve Carrell), and the little daughter who is trying out for the titular pageant. The movie is about the family taking a road trip to get the little girl to the pageant and compete. It features several heart-warming moments and great performances across the board. It’s a classic case of creating several different personalities and forcing them to interact in a small environment (in this case a VW bus) and it works really well and is often funny as a result.

47. Up in the Air (2009)

This is one of several great films from 2009, although it doesn’t get remembered as well as others anymore. Jason Reitman directed this film about a third-party termination firm (yes, that’s apparently a thing) and the employee (George Clooney) whose lifestyle is threatened by an upstart (Anna Kendrick) with the great idea of video calling terminations. On one level the film is about the impersonal direction business practices are heading. On another level it’s about the loss of connection we’re creating in our lives. Vera Farmiga plays a woman Clooney’s Ryan connects with due to their penchant for elitism. That relationship keeps the film from feeling superficial. But Anna Kendrick was very clearly about to become a star here and earned a lot of deserved critical attention for her performance. Overall, the film may be Reitman’s best work to date. But you’ll notice Juno is not on this list.

46. Children of Men (2006)

Alfonso Cuaron’s dystopian drama is a masterpiece. There are a couple of incredible sequences from a technical perspective that still astound today. Beyond that, the film eases us into the story with a pre-title sequence that features a crowd staring at the news at a coffee shop. The news story tells us the youngest person alive died at the age of 18. That tells us everything we need to know about the world. Then a bomb goes off that jolts us and we’re in. The story follows a loner who would rather stay out of everyone’s business, but is sucked into escorting a pregnant woman to a research group dedicated to curing humanity’s infertility. The film offers a bleak future where humanity has completely destroyed the environment and natural resources, there’s a global depression, most civilizations have collapsed with only a few functioning governments remaining and operating as police states that imprison and execute immigrants. This future is the year 2027. I feel like we’ve moved ourselves closer to this dystopia than further since this film was released. But what’s incredible, aside from Cuaron’s undeniable craftsmanship, is the hope and possibility that exists within it all in the form of the pregnant Kee (Clare-Hope Ashitey) and the quest to smuggle her to scientists for safety and restoring humanity’s future. Those things are in constant danger throughout the film and could be snuffed out in an instant. But they manage to survive. It’s really quite wonderful.

45. Monsters Inc. (2001)

In the early days of Pixar, the studio’s animators set out to challenge themselves technically to push the medium further - and to tell great stories while doing so. The challenge that sparked Monsters Inc. was to make fur believable. There are a few furry monsters throughout this tale of monsters-in-the-closet-as-alternate-energy-providers, but Sully (John Goodman) takes center stage and was the big challenge. Pixar succeeded, as Sully was wonderfully furry with thousands of follicles that moved with him and the breeze. More importantly, this was a hilarious and creative film that serves as an allegory for alternative energy, but subverts the “monster in the dark” concept by telling it from the monsters’ perspectives. Billy Crystal and Goodman make great buddies. Steve Buscemi plays a scheming baddie. James Coburn is perfect as the factory’s boss. And, of course, Bob Peterson’s Roz endures as a fan favorite (he was also a standout in Up as Dug the dog).

44. King Kong (2005)

I was incredibly skeptical about 1933’s King Kong being remade, regardless of Peter Jackson being behind it. What’s unique about Jackson’s vision is it’s the rare remake that doesn’t attempt to replace or improve on the original film or even just cynically cash in on the name recognition; it lovingly honors the original and expounds on it. What I mean is Jackson went back to Merian C. Cooper’s original concepts and scripts to bring to the screen what Cooper couldn’t and turn the 100-minute adventure spectacle into a 3-act experience. Those acts are largely structured as: 1) introductions and the voyage, 2) Skull Island, 3) New York City. The film took the story from 100 minutes to 201 minutes. That is very dangerous, because doing so can make a film feel bloated or self-important. But it doesn’t. Credit must also go to Andy Serkis and his incredible motion-capture performance. Kong was a transitional character for him from Gollum of Lord of the Rings to Caesar of Rise of the Planet of the Apes. His work pushed the form further. Naomi Watts is magnificent as Ann Darrow. The rest of the cast all fail to disappoint: Adrien Brody, Jack Black, Colin Hanks, Jamie Bell, and Kyle Chandler. Keep an eye out for cameos by Jackson, Rick Baker, and Frank Darabont.

43. The Incredibles (2004)

One of my favorite Pixar movies of the decade quickly jumped on to the superhero bandwagon and ended up being better than most superhero movies. The Incredibles is about two retired superheroes who are raising a family. Their kids have superpowers, but they’re trying to blend in with society and live normal lives. Well, Mr. Incredible can’t resist reliving his glory days and that eventually sucks his family into a villain plot. Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Lee, Wallace Shawn, and John Ratzenberger all provide excellent voice work and help shape some of the most beloved characters Pixar created. Director Brad Bird (The Iron Giant) follows in Bob Peterson’s footsteps by creating a memorable female supporting character, Edna “E” Mode. Some consider this the best Fantastic Four movie so far.

42. Tropic Thunder (2008)

This comedy was incendiary at the time. It was a fantastic movie about movies. It skewered self-important actors and their dramatic work so effectively. And it also provided the best parody of Harvey Weinstein ever in the form of Tom Cruise’s Les Grossman. Ben Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr. (who experienced an incredible comeback with this and Iron Man that year), Jack Black, Jay Baruchel, Steve Coogan, Matthew McConaughey, Nick Nolte, Danny McBride, Bill Hader, and Brandon T. Jackson - that’s an unbelievable cast list! Some people miss the point of the comedy these days, but there are few films as daring and brilliant as a joke on Hollywood as this film.

41. Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

The comedies of the ‘00s are among the best comedies in a long time. This Judd Apatow production was Nicholas Stoller’s directorial debut. He would go on to direct the spin-off Get Him to the Greek, Neighbors, and Bros and write what I think are several other great comedies like The Muppets and Dora and the Lost City of Gold. There is a brilliance in the subversive sensibilities Stoller brings to his comedies and this one about a man (Jason Segel) going through a rough break-up and going on vacation to get away for a while is no exception. Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Russell Brand, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, and Jack McBrayer star with appearances from a few other great comedic actors. It’s an incredible mix of rom-com and sex comedy. It also includes a puppet musical, which is bizarre, but also served as a perfect segue to Segel and Stoller’s Muppet movie.

40. Watchmen (2009)

I used to be all about this movie directed by Zack Snyder. I admired it as a big swing - and I tended to champion movies that took big swings rather than play it safe. And I thought it was mostly successful. I still do. BUT I recognize its relentless sincerity for over 2 and a half hours is taxing for some. My biggest issue with the movie is the ‘Hallelujah’ queue in a crucial scene between two characters, which strikes a laughable note, which is tonally inconsistent with the rest of the movie to a cringey degree. And those are the reasons why this film has fallen this far down the list. That said, I do think there’s a lot of great stuff in this film like the opening title sequence. I do think Snyder smartly altered the climax from the source material. And I do appreciate Snyder’s faithfulness to the Alan Moore and Dan Gibbons story by planning on creating three different versions of the film: one for theatrical distribution, a 3-hour 6-minute director’s cut that included more from the novel, and a 3-hour 35-minute ultimate cut that spliced in two supplemental pieces as they appear in the source novel. The director’s cut is the superior version to seek out. It wasn’t embraced as one of the greatest films of its kind. But it came close to deserving that accolade.

39. Iron Man (2008)

It’s the film that started the experiment that became the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I think this is 2/3 of an excellent movie and 1/3 of a really good movie. The third act becomes a little typical of comic book movies at the time and that’s the only reason it’s this low on the list. BUT this MIGHT still be among the 10 best of the 33 movies currently in the MCU. It hit every note perfectly and was much more exciting than most superhero movies that came out the previous 2 years. X-Men, Superman, Fantastic Four, and Spider-Man had all run out of steam or failed to raise the bar. Iron Man came in hot and helped make 2008 one of the best years of comic book movies ever. The first challenge for Marvel Studios was to see if they could successfully pull off introducing 4 heroes in separate movies and unite them in one movie. That had never happened before. Ever. Iron Man got them off to an excellent start.

38. Paranormal Activity (2009)

This found footage horror movie got me on two levels: 1) it’s not a ghost movie, it’s a demon movie and the film conveys how much more dangerous that is. 2) in a way it’s a home invasion movie in that it’s about someone or something that DOESN’T belong in the home stomping up stairs and terrorizing a couple at night. So, both of those elements combined really got under my skin and terrified me. Each night in the film when that low base sound kicks in, knowing the basic screenwriting rule that each scene escalates to the next, I am on the edge of my seat. Micah, of course, is a real douche and responsible for everything that happens. As for Katie Featherstone, this is one of those movies that an actress finds difficult to escape. She’s almost exclusively played this character her entire career. In a way, I think that’s a bummer, because I really wanted this film to catapult her career into other things. There are apparently 7 of these movies. I’ve only seen the first two and I love them both. But I do think the idea wasn’t one that could sustain 7 quality films. Reputation suggests I’m mostly right as all but the first three were poorly received and the seventh film went directly to streaming.

37. Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing (2006)

The former country trio now known as The Chicks were once one of country’s top acts. In 2003, after President Bush decided to invade Iraq under pretense of looking for nuclear warheads, lead singer Natalie Maines said in a concert they were embarrassed the president was from their home state of Texas. That statement was all it took for fans all over the country, but especially in the south, mid-west, and rural areas to lose their shit. Country radio either loudly disowned the band or were afraid to play their music. Crowds gathered to burn or crush their CDs in protest. Basically, a large percentage of their fanbase that claimed to love them suddenly decided they hated the band. This documentary explores those events as a means to explore censorship in America and the politics and blind patriotism of the decade. It questions if we’re a country that embraces free speech then why is questioning our leaders unpatriotic? In hindsight it depicts when our country started to be about loyalty to a person rather than country, which would become a bigger issue a decade later.

36. Ghost World (2001)

Scarlett Johansson was fricken 16 years old when she starred in this art house comic book movie! It’s based on the indie comic by Dan Clowes, who co-wrote the script. Scarlett co-stars with Thora Birch and Steve Buscemi, but the film is focused on Birch’s character Enid. I think it’s a fascinating film that reads differently over time. But a big part of it has to do with the relationship between Enid and Scarlett’s Rebecca and how the latter wants to grow up and mature while the former doesn’t want anything to change. It’s also about Enid’s relationship with Buscemi’s Seymour. It’s always been a favorite of mine and it’s probably Terry Zwigoff’s best movie.

35. Lost in Translation (2003)

Coincidentally, this Sofia Coppola critical darling stars Scarlett at the age of 18. At this point, Scarlett was becoming an indie ingenue, having starred in The Man Who Wasn’t There, Ghost World, and The Girl with the Pearl Earring, which released later that year. She would later put an end to this image by working with Michael Bay and starring in the MCU. But this film is peak early Scarlett. It also may be Coppola’s best film to this day. And it was a significant film in Bill Murray’s late period, as he was taking more dramatic indie work during this time. It’s a beautiful film about two people in different places in their lives, yet connected by just how lost and alone they are. It’s subtle. And it remains my favorite of Coppola’s career.

34. Sunshine (2007)

This is one of my favorite Danny Boyle films, but, like Iron Man, I think it’s 2/3 an excellent film and 1/3 a really good movie. The third act has been understandably criticized for shifting the tone of the film to a slasher movie. It is a little disjointed from the tone of the rest of the film. But the rest of the film is quite remarkable and beautiful. And look at the cast: Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Michelle Yeoh, Rose Byrne, Benedict Wong, Hiroyuki Sanada, and Cliff Curtis! I feel like this was the first movie to really show that Chris Evans could do more than look cool and it took a few years of me championing his performance in this movie before people believed me.

33. Waitress (2007)

This is Adrienne Shelly’s third film she directed. But I think it would’ve been her breakout hit. Unfortunately, she was murdered shortly before the film’s release, so she didn’t get to see the film’s success and what it became, nor did we get to see what she would’ve created afterwards. Keri Russell stars as an unhappy diner waitress who is stuck in an abusive marriage and pregnant. Her only happiness is her pie creations, which are sometimes inspired by her moods or daily events. She meets the new town doctor (Nathan Fillion) and reluctantly begins an affair with him. Shelly co-stars, along with Cheryl Hines, Andy Griffith, and Eddie Jemison. Griffith is the owner of the diner and a highlight. But so is Jemison, who plays Shelly’s unwavering courter. But Russell is absolutely fantastic as the woman who is so cynical she resents her unborn baby; she’s unapologetically unpleasant and bitter and it’s great. I think it’s odd that this little indie film became a Broadway hit musical. But I guess it’s kinda wonderful that Shelly’s creation blossomed into something big and beautiful.

32. Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

Fahrenheit 9/11 is just short of being one of Michael Moore’s greatest documentaries. It suffers from a touch of smugness and a definite agenda. But when the documentary is showing and not telling or leading it’s incredibly powerful and conclusive. It accurately illustrated how the Bush administration manipulated the public into distractions and scapegoats in response to the terrorist attacks of 2001. I’m reminded of the Penguin’s quote in Batman Returns: “You gotta admit I played this stinkin' city like a harp from hell!”. That sums up the Bush administration’s (and maybe Dick Cheney, in particular) behavior during that time. And Moore was exposing it pretty quickly. And he received immediate backlash for it: no less than 3 conservative documentaries were released within months after this film. I think one of the more powerful pieces of the film is when Moore lets soldiers or the families of dead soldiers speak. I think it’s an important document of U.S. history in the ‘00s.

31. In the Loop (2009)

Towards the end of the decade this UK/US comedy by Armando Iannucci was released based on his UK series, The Thick of It. A handful of cast members of that show appear here, as well as Tom Hollander, Steve Coogan, James Gandolfini, and Anna Chlumsky. Peter Capaldi is the absolute standout as the bile-spewing, hot-tempered Malcolm Tucker. His insults are endlessly creative and hilarious. In the Loop is one of the great political satires that is also criminally underrated.

30. Wedding Crashers (2005)

Wedding Crashers was one of the hit comedies that unfortunately don’t happen these days. But it was hilarious! Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn regularly crash weddings to pick up women and get laid. They have a long list of rules and codes to follow, but I think their charisma and charm get them by most of the time. Wilson and Rachel McAdams are the primary love interests - and they’re great and McAdams couldn’t be lovelier. But Vaughn and Isla Fisher are side-splittingly hilarious! Literally. There’s a scene at a dinner table that had me laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe. Christopher Walken and a young Bradley Cooper also star.

29. Love Actually (2003)

This film celebrated its 20th anniversary last year, which makes me feel really old. But it’s the ultimate rom-com AND the ultimate Christmas movie. It’s one of those movies with a huge cast that end up intersecting or being related somehow. The two sex scene stand-ins (Martin Freeman and Joanna Page) were always the odd ones out to me. And Colin Firth’s story with Lucia Moniz is probably the weakest. BUT everyone else is fantastic! Bill Nighy is fricken hilarious! Hugh Grant as the Prime Minister (of Rom-Coms?) is great! And the Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson story add weight to the whole affair. I know the Andrew Lincoln and Keira Knightley story is considered problematic these days, but even at, like 19, Knightley is irresistible, so I can’t complain too much. The soundtrack is great. The tone is sweet and endearing. I just love this film so much. It’s one of my all-time favorite romantic comedies and Christmas movies.

28. Bend It Like Beckham (2002)

Speaking of Keira Knightley… This film by Gurinder Chadha became an instant favorite. It’s about an Indian Punjabi teen (Parminder Nagra) who wants to play football, but is expected by her parents to follow traditional gender norms of her culture. Knightley (who’s only 18 here) plays her best friend whose mom also expects her to be lady-like and stereotypically feminine. It’s a fantastic teen movie about girls and for girls with excellent feminist messages that the States were just not ready to pick up on, so it’s not as well known here. But it’s fun and has a great purpose behind it and Nagra and Knightley are fantastic.

27. Erin Brockovich (2000)

Julia Roberts gives her career best in this quasi-biopic about a real-life paralegal who broke a case wide open regarding an energy company’s fatal effects on low-income locals. There’s a couple of moments with great dramatic weight like when the mom runs outside to stop her kids from playing in the water. But there’s also a lot of great comedic moments like when Erin (Roberts) dares a member of the defense counsel to drink a glass of water. There’s a lot of great comedic beats between Roberts and Albert Finney, who plays her boss. But I think one of the strengths of this film is it shows Brockovich’s personal struggles as a single mom trying to research while raising and feeding her kids. Aaron Eckhart plays a neighbor who offers to help and becomes a love interest and he’s great, too. I think Brockovich might be my favorite Steven Soderbergh movie overall.

26. Serenity (2005)

Okay, so the story behind the beleaguered Firefly TV show is well-documented, so if you aren’t familiar you can easily read up on it elsewhere. This film was Joss Whedon’s summation of where he was going with the short-lived TV series and how it would’ve ended. It’s pretty great. It’s even better if you’ve actually watched the 14-episode TV show first. But it remains one of the best movies based on TV shows. For those who aren’t familiar the film exists in a future that combines western with science fiction and Chinese culture. It’s about an evil intergalactic government that wants to capture one of the residents (Summer Glau) of a cargo ship called Serenity. She has psychic powers and knows government secrets. Sci-fi action ensues. Plus, there’s terrifying cannibals! What more could you want?

So, that ends Part 3 of this 4-part entry in my Film Faves series through time. Be sure to check back soon for Part 4: 25-1.

In the meantime, which are your favorites so far? Do you share some of my experiences or thoughts? Leave a comment.