We've finally arrived at the top ten movies of the 2010s, and I couldn't be happier. If you've forgotten the other excellent films I've already placed on this list, check out the bottom 25 and then the middle 15 before plowing ahead to this one. After all that, you might be asking yourself: what do we even have left? Well, there are superheroes, serial killers, androids, actors, and even more in between. In my opinion, these are the ten best movies of the last decade, and some of the best ever made. Read and enjoy!
10.) The Avengers (series): Is it cheating to put this as my number 10 pick? I mean, technically this is a 4-film series occupying one slot on the list (it's maybe even a 5-film series if you also count Civil War - which I do), but who cares? These movies defined blockbuster entertainment in the 2010s, and I couldn't be happier. The first, 2012's The Avengers, is an exceptionally fun cinematic experiment. Do you remember how weirdly awesome it was to see all these different characters together in one film? The second, Age of Ultron, has aged better than you remember, with a charismatic villain and some sensational set pieces. The third entry, Captain America: Civil War, is a cunning and clever crowd pleaser with some weighty philosophical undertones (I'm a proud member of Team Cap, if anyone was wondering). The fourth and fifth films in the series - Infinity War and Endgame - each set the gold standard for superhero movies in the new decade. Digested together, these films create a potent cinematic speedball, and you'll spend the combined runtime laughing, sobbing, and pumping your fist in sheer elation. But this series is more than just fun action - with deeply felt characters, sensational special effects, and stunning art design, these are 5 of the best movies of the decade.
9.) Once Upon A Time in Hollywood: For the record, I am admittedly a Tarantino stan. He has yet to make a movie that I haven't liked, and I'm still smitten with his quirky dialogue and over-the-top gore. That being said, I think Once Upon A Time in Hollywood is an absolute stunner - nostalgic yet inventive, bleak yet hopeful, a true story yet a modern fairy tale. It's a cinematic oxymoron, and somehow every aspect of the film is a success. There are some complaints that it moves too slow, that there are a few too many scenes of people just driving around the valley listening to the radio, but I like all that. In an era when our attention spans are ever-shrinking and movie action is ever-intensifying, it's nice to see a film unfold like a novel. This is a sly, slinky flick, and with its hazy California vibe, you'll be hopelessly seduced. It might not be what you're expecting, but it's Tarantino, so that's par for the course. Just sit back, relax, and surrender to the experience. It's a great one.
8.) Snowpiercer: Truth be told, I really wanted to hate this movie. The ridiculous premise and cheesy title (so cheesy) made it all sound like...well, a train wreck. Thankfully, I couldn't have been more wrong. Snowpiercer is a sci-fi/action bolt of lightning, and you'll be sucked into its world from the first shot to the last. The symbolism is a little on-the-nose, but why celebrate subtlety all the time? With impeccable performances by an international cast (including Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, and Ed Harris, to name a few), and with maverick director Bong Joon-ho at the helm, what's not to love? The cinematography and blocking are all uniquely inventive, and give off a claustrophobic aura that you won't be able to shake for days. The script is lean and mean, giving viewers just enough political subtext without bludgeoning them to death with it (yes, I'm looking at you, Parasite), and everything is pulled off with substantive visual panache. Without question, this is an entertaining, intriguing sci-fi thriller. If you get a chance, you should definitely climb on board.
7.) Interstellar: This is a fantastic movie. Nay - it's a sublime movie. For my money, it is arguably the best Christopher Nolan has to offer - and yes, that means I rank it above Inception, Dunkirk, and even, (*gasp*), The Dark Knight. The special effects? Organic yet slick. The score, which is pure Hans Zimmer melodrama, is transcendent. The cinematography and production design compliment each other perfectly, and every scene simmers. Although the plot is a little convoluted, it's saturated with a whimsy that manages to stay in perfect harmony with its human drama. The latter is delivered flawlessly by Mathew McConaughey in the lead role, whose performance unearths layers of truth and vulnerability I thought impossible in a big-budget epic like this. Best of all, these components interlock with grace and nuance. Interstellar is a modern 2001, a grand visual circus with heart and intellect whirring within. It's a meditation on the human condition - examining what makes us whole, what drives us, and what propels us to survive. Simply put, it's a masterpiece.
6.) The Babadook: Some horror movies provide momentary jolts, the kind you laugh off nervously and forget as soon as you leave the theater. And then there are the truly scary horror films, the ones that you can't leave behind quite so easily - the ones that curdle your dreams into nightmares. For better and for worse, The Babadook certainly fits this description. It keeps you up at night while you question that mysterious creaking down the hall, your eyes scanning wildly in the dark as shadows give birth to monsters. This is Jennifer Kent's directorial debut, and it's definitely top-shelf stuff not just within the comfortable confines of horror, but beyond it. Great horror movies strike a balance between the head and the heart, while the best ones blend them together. Under the critical eye of Kent and brought to life by an electrifying script, no other horror movie in the last decade managed to pull this off with as much wonderful wickedness as this. The Babadook himself might be a boogie man of unimaginable cruelty, but he's also the personified grief of our protagonists, and the symbolism works surprisingly well. So if you have nerves of steel and can stomach the scares, then I urge you to dive into this jolting, jarring gem - easily the best horror movie of the 2010's.
5.) The World's End: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, and director Edgar Wright knocked it out of the park (and perhaps the planet?) with this hilarious sci-fi romp about a group of old friends squaring off against alien invaders in their hometown. Not only is this the best comedy of the decade, it's one of the best comedies of all time. The dialogue crackles, the cinematography is superb, the special effects are campy yet effective, and the acting is divine. What more can you ask for? The movie cruises at a swift pace, pausing whenever needed to let audiences chuckle at the jokes and marvel at the action. Like I mentioned in my 3 Flavours Cornetto trilogy review, the film also offers up plenty of emotional moments, and the overblown-yet-somehow-realistic characterization will have you laughing as well as crying. It's a super entertaining movie, one that epitomizes contemporary cinema and transcends genre conventions. The World's End shields its hefty philosophical musings behind pints of beer and hordes of alien-cyborgs, but you don't have to look hard to notice its intelligence and insights. Sometimes we all need to remember that good movies are allowed to be fun - and that fun movies can also be exceptionally good. Now, let's Boo-Boo and move on to the top four...
4.) Doctor Sleep: It's a bummer that no one saw this film, because it's absolutely perfect. Doctor Sleep, the sequel to 1980's The Shining (and based on the book of the same name by Stephen King), is an elegantly dreadful thriller - as lovely and lethal as Colorado snow. It somehow balances King's human touch with Kubrick's alien dread, finding in the middle a unique vision that is beautiful, emotional, and riveting. This is a little less like a horror movie and more like a dark fantasy epic - and a peerless one, at that. The visionary behind the camera is Michael Flanagan, the man responsible for Netflix's smash series The Haunting of Hill House. He brings a lot of the qualities of his show to this film, making it equal parts horrifying, tragic, and exciting.
Yet above all, this is a quiet film, and if you sit still and let it in, you'll find yourself magnetized to the screen. At the heart of the story is Ewan McGregor in one of his finest roles, embodying everything great about the movie in his performance. He is beaten down and unassuming, yet resilient and, above all, empathetic. This is a deeply felt film, one populated by real people in a cold, terrifying world. You feel every fallen tear drop, every twist of the knife. This is popcorn cinema as emotional and subtle as it can possibly be. It's way more than just a sequel or just a Stephen King movie. It is art. It is spectacular. It is one of the ten best films of the decade.
3.) Blade Runner 2049: As someone with an intense disdain for the original Blade Runner, I was surprised and impressed by the sequel. Honestly, about halfway through my first viewing, a thought occurred to me: Holy crap, this is incredible. Then, later: Holy crap, this might be the best sci-fi flick in years. And it is. The cinematography and production design are so glitteringly gorgeous that basically any given shot is worthy of being framed and hung in a gallery. Performances range from great to marvelous. The score, a droning and disorienting synth landscape, is distinctive and vivifying. The special effects are must-see, and are utilized in some really clever ways (there's a love scene that is simply unprecedented).
But really, it's not about the effects. Like all great stories, it's about characters and ideas. Here? Every character is compelling. Concepts of humanity are challenged. Our notions of personhood and humanity are called into question, daring us not only to empathize with a non-human, but to recognize him as well. It opens up a whole realm of personal and philosophical questions. This is a thinker's movie, one aglow with ideas, rendering everything else secondary. It's cerebral science-fiction made in the glorious tradition of 2001: A Space Odyssey, Silent Running, and most recently, Ex Machina and Interstellar. And yes, it is a peer to these classics. I seriously doubt another movie will surprise me so delightfully and overwhelmingly again anytime soon.
2.) Sicario: Wow. What a visceral, vicious film this is. Focusing on America's war on Mexican drug cartels, Sicario is bold and unapologetic. Within minutes of the opening shot, a palpable danger seeps out from the screen, and you'll feel it burrow its way beneath your skin like a tick. I found myself sweating and squirming through the whole thing. If you're hunting for an uncompromising, tooth-and-nail thriller, then this is it. Earlier in this list, I described The Avengers movies as a cinematic speedball. Well, if that's an apt analogy, then this is the equivalent of cinematic razor wire - utilitarian, seductively curlicued, and lethal.
Our three leads (Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, and Josh Brolin) give us some of the decade's best performances, particularly del Toro as a mysterious human shadow - why he wasn't up for an Oscar, I have no idea. Beyond the performances, there are plenty of other cinematic strengths on the table: sinister cinematography, cutthroat pacing, careful characterization, sharp dialogue, haunting visuals, and even a plot twist or two along the way. While the past decade had oodles of terrific thrillers to offer audiences (Hell or High Water, Green Room, Nightcrawler, and Black Mass, just to name a few that couldn't quite crack my top 50), none match the seductive artistry of Sicario. It is as politically potent as it is aesthetically polished, and if that ain't high praise, I don't know what is. And while this is a perfect film across the board, it is nonetheless my runner-up for the decade's best movie. Which is...
1.) Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance): Wow. Just...wow. Birdman is a film that defies all aesthetic, intellectual, and cultural conventions. Starting with a smattering of letters (one of which briefly reads "amor" - Spanish for "love") and ending with an impossible sunrise, this is a film of the highest quality and caliber. The story centers on a failing actor's attempts to write, direct, and star in a Broadway play, which means the film is a tightly paced visual nightmare - a claustrophobic, clamoring thing that claws away at your senses, placing you backstage alongside the characters, really feeling their dreams and dread. Digitally edited to give the illusion of one continuous shot (an effect used to equal effectiveness in the war drama 1917 a few years later), director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu spins the tale of actor Riggan Thomson with confidence and finesse. In the lead role is the grand Michael Keaton, who gives this character depth, clarity, and a relatable madness that you'll hate as much as you love. In fact, all the performances are superb, especially Emma Stone as Riggin's strung-out daughter and Edward Norton as a terrifyingly pretentious actor.
But this movie is more than a well-edited collection of performances. Teeming below is a contentious undercurrent of questions: Who or what differentiates entertainment from art? What is art, anyway? What makes a hero? Why are we here? By skillfully blending magical realism, nihilistic humor, ardent social commentary, and a truly unique style, Birdman is a cinematic lightning rod, the very explanation to why the 2010s was an amazing decade for cinema. From its production design to musical score to philosophical musings, Keaton and company have given us a new classic. It's an artistic epicenter, a new jumping-off point for film appreciation, filmmaking, and film criticism. To put it another way: I truly believe it is the best movie of the last ten years.
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