A DECADE IN MOVING PICTURES (2000 - 2009) Chapter I : The Essentials

Yes, yet another boring top movies list on the internet. And not only that, but is is a year late! Well, if you don't feel like reading this post, I am going to have to introduce you to my friend James and let him speak for me. So, there are two important reasons as to why I just bothered to make this list. One of them, and the most important, is that I just felt like it, and another one is that I really believe in letting art sink in before you totally judge it. That's the way I deal with music, movies and anything else that has to do with creation or creativity. Thus, I will probably not be a really good father in the first couple months of my kids' life, if that ever happens.

Enough with the blabbering. At first I did not know how to approach this topic, as I don't really believe in a specific amount of movies that you can like or love in a decade. This decade it might be only 12, the next decade it could be 287, who knows? That's why I decided to include all the movies that had a significant influence on my thoughts, feelings and points of view in life. Most of them had an impact on some people all over the world too, while others may have passed unnoticed by the majority of movie lovers. 

Now, to make this a little interesting, since a simple name-dropping list is worthless and utterly boring, I have classified my favourite films of the decade in categories. First and foremost, I will mention the movies which every person on this earth should treat as a little pet dog, thus watch frequently, love and respect.  These movies combined, provide a modern look on society, its principles and ethics and help you develop an inquiring mind about the future of everything in my opinion. Well, at least the future of some things, let's not be dramatic.

Learning to deal with the loss of the beloved in The Fountain (2006), Darren Aronofsky creates a delirium of images and sounds, causing one of the most intense movies I have ever seen to happen, using a modern biologist, a middle-ages explorer and a far future astrotraveller to unwrap a story of three people that are connected in the most peculiar way. V for Vendetta (2005) depicts the comic book of the same name, and along with that, screams towards mankind to follow and value its instincts and more specifically the ones that make us want to question authority and fight for our freedom, our presence, our existence in this society. An existence that is incomplete without love, and Jeux D'Enfantes (2003) shows us how the sick, perverted, obsessive, yet wonderful, strong and fulfilling love of the protagonists can be a game, following the rules of which one can live a wholesome life. And what a life did Ewan McGregor have in Big Fish (2003)! How can one appreciate life without having beautiful stories and memories to share? And why do we have to remember everything exactly the way it happened? Where's the fun in that? Well, a little science fiction amalgamated with more crazy stories about love and self sacrifice, set in a romantic and nostalgic 80's californian environment or by the easternmost Atlantic shore of the state of New York in a modern era, can definitely also make our lives more interesting while watching Donnie Darko (2001) or the Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004) respectively. A unique strange romantic story takes place in Wuppertal, Germany, when Bodo, who has never gotten over his wife's death, rescues Sissi from certain death when he helps her breathe through a straw, lying on the ground under a huge truck, in on of the best scenes of this decade in Tom Tykwer's Der Krieger Und Die Kaiserin (2000).

Unfortunately, besides happiness, love, good memories, some cheese and a bottle of wine, the society in which we live in, and consequently our lives, also contain injustice, illness, poverty, abuse and war. Lars Von Trier reproduces a modern Odyssey in Dogville (2003), including almost everything from the homeric epic, from the total devastation of Grace and her disgrace in the hands of other people, to the final catharsis and redemption. The only thing that's missing is vivid and complex environment full of colorful places and beings, as in Dogville all we see is a minimalistic theatrical set. On the other hand, David Cronenberg deals not only with the History Of Violence (2005) in the film of the same name, but also with issues like justification, forgiveness and acceptance. While In America (2002) by Jim Sheridan, the heartbreaking story about the difficulties of starting a new life and the battle with a terminal illness is as realistic as it can get, that's not the case with the South Korean masterpiece that shocked people a few years and goes by the name Oldboy (2003), a movie that follows the story of a guy who was locked for 15 years without having knowledge of the reasons behind that and experiences conspiracy, hate, violence and vengeance at their fullest. And to take it to the full extent, we also have a film about war that made an impression and it's no other than Black Hawk Down (2003), directed by Ridley Scott.

This decade was a decade of great film makers, both in script writing and directing. David Lynch proved why he is one of the best, if not the best, when he made people get out of the film theater and talk about what they had just seen for hours with the dreamy, surreal, psychological thriller that took part in Mulholland Drive (2001). Loss, sadness and vengeance are commonly used topics and usually a recipe for success if we have someone who knows what they're doing when they are making a movie. Clint Eastwood is certainly one of those guys and he showed us artfully how to wash sins in the Mystic River (2003). Alejandro González Iñárritu is another master of appealing to the human psyche as he makes it reveal the compassion, sympathy and pain that it contains in 21 Grams (2003). David Cronenberg has reserved two spots in my list, as he managed to exceed expectations again with Eastern Promises (2007), a movie about sex trafficking and how some people take advantage of other people in need, making us think if we would all act like animals under (extreme, I have to admit) circumstances.  Darren Aronofsky is being represented with three movies in total in this list, as besides The Fountain, I was also impressed (and I was not the only one) by The Wrestler (2008), a movie that focuses on making the right choices in life, on fatherhood and on how is happiness connected to all of the above. Before creating those movies though, Aronofsky had received a great deal of attention for Requiem For A Dream (2000), in which he explored human misery, dealing with substance abuse, obsession, addiction and nihilism.

But enough pain and misery for now. Optimism is greatly appreciated and always welcome, even if it comes a little late. Alexander Payne contributed to positive thinking with two movies in the previous decade, About Scmidt (2002) and Sideways (2004). The first one presents a story about a lonely old guy who has seemingly lost interest in everything and believes that his whole life was futile when just before he dies he realises that it wasn't so. The latter film describes the story of two friends who go on a wine tasting road trip and after they meet two women, they discover a lot about themselves, the relationship between them and the midlife crisis that dominates their lives. The first part of this list will end with the favourite movie of people who love making lists. Or at least a movie that's in the top 5 of all time movies with lists. Well, maybe top 10? It doesn't matter, because I am talking about High Fidelity (2000), a movie about relationships, music, love, music, human emotions and some more music, featuring John Cusack as Rob Gordon, a character all teenagers should fall in love with.

1. The Fountain (2006)
2. V for Vendetta (2005)
3. Jeux D'Enfants (2003)
4. Big Fish (2003)
5. Donnie Darko (2001)
6. Eternal Sunshine (2004)
7. Der Krieger Und Die Kaiserin (2000)
8. Dogville (2003)
9. A History Of Violence (2005)
10. In America (2002)
11. Oldboy (2003)
12. Black Hawk Down (2003)
13. Mulholland Drive (2001)
14. Mystic River (2003)
15. 21 Grams (2003)
16. Eastern Promises (2007)
17. The Wrestler (2008)
18. Requiem For A Dream (2000)
19. About Schmidt (2002)
20. Sideways (2004)
21. High Fidelity (2000)