Micah's "Top 10" Films of The Decade

-It is 9:23 on Wednesday morning, and I am sitting in the living room of Claire's apartment in Chicago. It's gorgeous! So far, I've been in this city less than 24 hours, and I kinda love it here... then again it MAY have something to do with the people who are here :) However, my Chicago-Claire-Ryan love fest can wait for another post...

-I decided to compile a list of my Top 10 films of the decade. It was NOT easy let me tell you. Now, a few caveats. It is by no means a perfect list. I'm sure that I'm forgetting something. In addition, I'm sure that as time goes on, some of these might fade. I think that I may be premature in putting a few on the list, simply because they are very much in my recent memory. That being said, please feel free to argue with me. Post your own top 10. Give me suggestions and replacements! Also, in the true Charlie Brown, wishy-washy fashion that is Micah, each entry pretty much includes a secondary choice with it. However in the end the first 10 movies are ultimately my top 10. These are also in NO particular order. Okay here goes:

1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King

I count this one film, because in many ways it was. They shot the whole thing in one swoop, and it tells the same continuous story. Second to the BBC's miniseries version of Pride and Prejudice, this is quite possibly the best adaptation of a book, or books that I have ever seen. Everything is so completely realized. Acting is not compromised for effects. And an effect gives one of the strongest acting performances in the film. Sure, there are some missteps (Remember how Aragorn falls off a cliff and they have a dream sequence, so that they can keep Liv Tyler in The Two Towers ?), but ultimately this is one of the best pieces of film making, bar none. If you asked me to compile a list of my 10 films of all time, this would still be number one.

2. The Pixar Movies of the 2000's

Now, I know what you're thinking: that's not a movie! That's a cop out. Yes, perhaps. However when I list:

Monster's Inc.

Finding Nemo

The Incredibles

Ratatouille

Wall-E

Up

for me, it conjures images of some of the strongest story telling of the decade. Their stories and characters seem as real as they come. There's a reason that many of the scripts for their movies are nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars. They are just that. Original. Both Up and Wall-E made me cry. When a studio like Pixar has such a strong showing as all of these (Let's forget that Cars was in there too...), how can I pick one over the other?

3. Moulin Rouge

I had fantastically interesting experience when I first saw this movie. I didn't know what to think. I left the theatre feeling confused. However, when I spent the next couple days, consumed with thoughts of it, I realized that I loved it. Good movies should do that. We should walk out of the theatre and continue to think about it. Baz Luhrmann created an insane world. Full of color, ridiculous singing, and elements that often bordered on the campy. But the very real, passionate love story kept everything about this movie rooted in reality. The reason I chose this above all of the other movie musicals of the decade? Because with out its moderate initial success, and subsequent cult success, the movie musical probably would not exist in the 2000's. Chicago, Dreamgirls, Mamma Mia, The Producers, Glee, Sweeney Todd, RENT, Reefer Madness, Nine they all owe the fact that they exist, in film form, in part, to Moulin Rouge

4. The Dark Knight

Finally. A "comic book movie," that wasn't thought of as such. It was such a dark and gritty film, that we finally forgot that we were watching a superhero and his archnemesis do battle with each other. They were real people. We were invested in them. In someways, I'm using The Dark Knight to stand in for many of the great comic book movies that were made this decade. But when it comes right down to it... it's the best.

5. Little Children

I don't quite know what it is about this film that enthralls me so much. Part of it, I'm sure, is because of Kate Winslet who I feel is a consummate actress for our time. I also read and loved the book, and I felt as though the film really captured what the book had that I loved about it. I also hemmed and hawed about whether I should include this or Closer on my list. In the end, if for no other reason than the fact that it showed us the human side of a monster, and monstrous side of what is considered "normal human life", Little Children won out. Oh, and did I mention the sex on top of the washing machine scene??

6. Milk

Milk won out, over sheer cry factor. I was so ridiculously moved by this film. When it had reached its conclusion, it took me 5 minutes to stop crying. Sean Penn is a revelation in this film! In some ways it shares this slot with Brokeback Mountain, since again, I had a hard time choosing between the two. And while in someways I felt as though I was choosing between the two token gay films of the decade, in the end they are both about love and the human spirit. But I cried more during Milk...

7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind/ (500) Days of Summer

I know that this might feel like a cop out, but I literally couldn't choose. Both movies are similar in tone, and both share unique ways of telling a story on film. I also feel as though they both give a window into a modern relationship. Also, in traditional rom-coms, It's the female protagonist who is hurt and wants to take action regarding their broken relationship. In both of these movies, it's the male. They both also were made with extreme craftsmanship, again something not typically said of the genre. In the end, these two movies both made me examine love and the idea of it, as well as just made me feel good!

8. Pan's Labyrinth

This movie moved me in an incredible way. It's ability to weave fantasy and reality SO seamlessly took my breath away. With it Guillermo Del Toro proved himself as a storytelling force to be reckoned with. So many aspects of this film just sucked me in: its haunting score, one of the most horrific villains I've seen captured on film, stunning visuals... it just really took my breath away.

9. Juno

Talk about something with immense re-watch value. In some ways I suppose I could lump this up with (500) Days of Summer and Eternal Sunshine, but while I think it's a "modern take" I also think it's completely different. While the first conversation between Juno and Leah, is almost unbearable at time, I feel like this is one of the most quote worthy films of the decade. It's smart and funny, and doesn't shy away from pulling out the dramatic stops at times. I think that director Jason Reitman proved with this film (and Up In The Air for that matter) that he is a popular artist for our time. He understands we "crazy modern folk" , maybe almost better than we do ourselves. Now who knows if Juno will stand up to the test of time, but I think that if I had to pick one movie that represented America in the late 00's it would have to be the one. Man, I love this movie. Oh, and I can watch it OVER and OVER with out really getting sick of it... that's gotta be worth something right?

10. Avatar

I feel a little premature putting this on here. I don't know if I have enough perspective on it yet... though if I don't have the perspective on this, I certainly don't have it for (500) Days... This movie is a game changer, and I think that's how it will be represented in years to come, just as Star Wars is today. I mean, a movie that has moviegoers diagnosed with Avatar Syndrome, because they realize that Pandora isn't real? That's gotta be worth something right? Now, say what you want: the dialogue is hokey, the story is old and well tread, the acting... blah, blah blah, the fact of the matter is this movie is an experience. The whole 3-D aspect of it just adds another layer! I also feel as though I have to include this here because of James Cameron. I really had seen none of his movies until this past decade. I've liked every single one of them. I would put the first two Terminator films on my list of favorites of all time. Cameron just had a ridiculously inventive and crazy imagination. The fact that two stories like Avatar and The Terminator can come out of the mind of the same guy who brought teenage girls everywhere Titanic... to me that's pretty impressive.

Bonus: 11. Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

I didn't feel right putting this on the list proper, since it wasn't released in theatres, and it's only 45 minutes long aka not "feature length"... but MAN I LOVE this movie! Neil Patrick Harris is genius, hilarious and heartbreaking. Plus something that can make me laugh so hard, and then turn on a dime and depress the hell out of me... well I'd say that, that's pretty impressive

Other Things That I Left Off The List:

Zodiac, Kill Bill 1&2, Into The Wild, Pirates of the Caribbean : The Curse of the Black Pearl, Sin City, The Squid and the Whale, The Royal Tennenbaums, The Princess and the Frog, Up in the Air, Brokeback Mountain, Closer, Batman Begins, Iron Man, Star Trek, Capote, No Country For Old Men, 28 Days Later, Gone Baby Gone, Love Actually, Children of Men, Dreamgirls, Chicago, Mamma Mia, Frost/Nixon, The Queen, The Harry Potter Series.

I'm sure there are more... so let me know what you think... what are your top 10?