A lot of people consider the 2000's to be sort of a deadzone, the golden age of cinema is over and we've entered an age of mediocrity. To this I say nay. Fact of the matter is a lot of classic films came out of the 2000's that people will and have looked back on to say are brilliant and considering most of these films are over a decade old, they clearly stand the test of time. You'd be surprised how many films critics get wrong, just google Top 10 Films of 2000 and see what films no one remembers like Before Night Falls or Best In Show. I'm going to talk about the best films of the 2000's and thing is, I was originally going to do this all in one big post, but there are so many classic films per year that it's just not possible. So I'll be doing this year by year starting at the most obvious point. The 2000s. Also I should point out i'm not including any blockbuster franchises in this list...because obviously they'd become well known.
Before we get to the big contenders, let's start with the light-classics, these are the films that aren't necessarily that great but for one reason or another have become part of pop-culture.
How The Grinch Stole Christmas
Being perfectly honest I can't stand this movie, I think it's an ugly poorly written mess that completely misunderstood the message of the original source material and doesn't deserve to be remembered as a classic. But hey, that didn't stop it from becoming a new Christmas classic that people love and rewatch year after year. And while I dislike the film I can't deny Jim Carrey is really good as The Grinch, it's just weird to think that Ron Howard, the guy responsible for Apollo 13, Rush and Frost/Nixon would be most remembered for making a stupid christmas film...that and being the narrator for Arrested Development.
Dude Where's My Car
Actually i don't know that many people who have actually seen this film, nor does anyone reference it on a regular basis, but everyone knows the title and for a while there almost every TV Sitcom would have an episode titled "Dude Where's My ____" so technically this film achieved pop-culture status.
Now let's move on from pop-culture classics to the cult classics.
Battle Royale
This film especially has been achieving cult status over the past few years mostly due to The Hunger Games, apparently a bunch of Japanese kids slaughtering each other makes for quality film entertainment. Actually being honest I have no reason why this film is a cult hit because i've never seen it.
Unbreakable
Even though this film was forgotten about back when it first came out, it has seen a lot of success in the limelight recently, my theory behind this is one: Everyone wants to go back to a time when M Night Shyamalan made good movies and this is one of the ones that was good, thus in comparison to the pieces of shit he makes now it's brilliant. Also the rise and boom of superhero movies dominating the box-office making this film more culturally relevant as well as being a smart analysis of the genre being exactly what superhero films needed.
The Emperor's New Groove & The Road To El Dorado
I put these two together because they have a lot in common. The early 2000's is considered a deadzone for animation especially, even though I personally love a lot of the films that came out in that time period, but i can't include them because this is supposed to be an analysis on what society picked to be remembered. Fact is out of all the films in that time period, these are the two that are getting a lot more attention these days, my guess would be that the kids that grew up on them are now adults themselves and thus because they're the demographic that decides what's popular, they remembered loving these films as kids and felt they weren't getting enough attention. So yeah, if you've never seen either of these films, give em a try, they're hilarious.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Again I won't have that much to say because I haven't seen this film, but I would actually say this film's reputation has actually stepped down since it came out. It was one of the films that was featured in everybody's top 10 list and now it's mostly considered a cult film. Like I said, i don't know why, i haven't seen it so there would be no point in speculating.
And now we get to the nitty gritty, the big films that have stood the test of time and are now considered by most people to be great films.
Gladiator
I am not a fan of this movie, i do not know why people like this film so much, i find it generic, boring and predictable...but hey, it stars Russell Crowe and is directed by Ridley Scott, so of course it was gonna be a big hit. But seriously, i have no idea why this movie is a beloved classic, let alone Best Picture Winner, but hey, i ain't here to argue, just address.
Cast Away
Now here's a movie i can talk about, starring Tom Hanks in a time where he could do no wrong and Robert Zemeckis who could...also do no wrong and you've got a winning combo. Actually as far as i'm concerned this movie is remembered for one thing: Wilson. I remember as a kid turning on the TV and this movie was on and it was the Wilson scene. I had no context behind this scene, i didn't even know what movie I was watching, but i was balling my eyes out when Tom Hanks started screaming for his pet volleyball. Seriously, how does a freaking volleyball have the power to create such raw emotion out of everyone who watches it? That is master filmmaking right there.
American Psycho
Even though this film was appreciated in its time, over the years its become a lot more popular, what with Christian Bale becoming a more famous actor so people go back and see some of his earlier works. Not to mention we live in an age of anti-heroes and psychopaths ruling our airwaves (Dexter comes to mind) so obviously a guy like Patrick Batemen would fit right in, combine that with a unique style and analytical splendor and you've got a modern classic on your hands. Also it stars Jared Leto so technically Batman kills The Joker in this film.
Almost Famous
Why exactly this film caught onto the masses is something unclear to me, don't get me wrong it's a fantastic film and i know why i love it, i just don't know why everyone else does. To the best of my reasoning I would say it's one of those transferable films of passion, by that i mean even if you're not a lover of music, if you're a lover of anything then you understand this film. You see why someone would go this far to follow a dream and how much it means to them to achieve it, why they would dedicate their time and even their life to the passion. If you love music or movies or games or fashion or science or inventing or books or poetry or people, this film gets it, just replace the term music with whatever applies to you and this film shows why you and anyone will love that thing.
Requim For A Dream
Haven't seen this film either, i have no idea why it's considered one of the best out there. Darren Aranofsky is a fantastic director, it has great actors and from what i'm told it portrays the affects and lifestyle of a drug user fairly accuratley while also being a distrubing watch, also it has a damn good score.
So those were some films of the year 2000 that 15 years on are still seen as amazing films and are now beloved classics. At some point down the line i'll talk about films of 2001 and onwards and i'll see you then.
-Danny
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