Special Merit:
In a banner year for French film, two equally deserving candidates were passed over in favor of “The Beat That My Heart Skipped.” The first honorable mention is Claire Denis‘ “The Intruder,” the venerable artist’s most lucid and expansive film to date. Said to be an adaptation of a 30-odd page short story by Jean-Luc Nancy, the film seems more a spiritual relative to that text, using its minimal plot (a man with a failing heart, searches for a replacement) as a jumping off point for rapturous, stinging imagery that leaves you more with an experience than a story. In contrast, Arnaud Desplechin‘s “Kings & Queen” has no shortage of plot, mapping a complex back-and-forth between the life of a single mother (Emanuelle Devos), her terminally ill father and her institutionalized ex-husband (a hilariousl Mathieu Amalric), who torments his nurse (Catherine Deneuve). One of our writers describes the Desplechin film as a “deft tonal tight-wire walk.”; only a filmmaker of Desplechin’s immense skill and dexterity could pull this off, balancing burlesque comedy and wrenching drama with occasional surreality, and filtered through a barrage of cinematic techniques. Both Denis and Desplechin share a penchant for adventurous, audacious filmmaking, and though neither “The Intruder” nor “Kings & Queen” are perfect, their flourishes of brilliance are more than enough to earn them spots here.
For Your Consideration:
“Me And You And Everyone We Know”
Miranda July‘s feature-film debut is one of the most polarizing films of the decade. Viewed by some as the ur-text of pretentious, whimsical indie cinema, this story about a lonely, single-father shoe salesman (John Hawkes), his precocious children (including a revelatory Brandon Ratcliff), the peculiar and fanciful performance artist (July herself) and the bus stop where their lives interrelate is an observant and contemplative consideration of daydreamers in search of a warm blanket of belonging. Offbeat to the point of irritation for some, the picture is so honest in its depiction of yearning that it produces awkwardness. But the calculatedly uncomfortable moments seeking connection and love (some of which are uproariously funny; others nakedly optimistic) are counterbalanced by a wondrously pillowy and buoyant atmosphere (thanks due large in part to Michael Andrews’ dreamy and illusory synth-lullabies), and keen sense of self-aware humor (July knows her character is part nitwit). Charming and effervescent. Back and forth forever (“))<>((“), indeed.
Very Honorable Mention:
One of our most hotly contested films that didn’t make this list (as if we didn’t extend it enough) was David Cronenberg‘s “A History of Violence.” It’s Cronenberg’s most powerful work in a long time and its first two acts are fantastically engaging, but something happens in that last third that curdles the whole a little bit and its uneven ending lends an episodic quality to the entire affair (not to mention that it devolves into generic action picture). Nonetheless, it houses amazing performances by Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris and Maria Bello and deserves recognition. Some were also highly in the tank for “Brokeback Mountain” and “Capote,” but others were vehemently against them both. Strong films that didn’t make the ultimate cut were Hirokazu Koreeda‘s “Nobody Knows” about a Japanese family of children abandoned by their mother and left to fend for themselves, Susanne Bier‘s “Brødre,” Danny Boyle‘s underrated and joyous kids film, “Millions,” Oliver Hirschbiegel‘s tale of the last days of Hitler and the Third Reich in “Downfall,” which features an amazing turn by Bruno Ganz as der Fuhrer, Marco Tullio Giordana‘s six-hour opus, “The Best of Youth“; Jim Jarmusch‘s low-key “Broken Flowers,” Nimrod Antal‘s excellent Hungarian fairy tale subway thriller “Kontroll,” Gus Van Sant‘s meditation on the death of Kurt Cobain in “Last Days,” Robinson Devor‘s languid South Afrikan drama, “Police Beat,” Lodge Kerrigan‘s mystery thriller, “Keane” and Lucrecia Martel’s haunting and disquieting, “La Niña Santa,” the list went on and on and on…
Other pictures worth mentioning, but not quite making the entirely-admirable grade are Wong Kar Wai‘s “2046” (which is surely sumptuous and beautiful, but narratively leaves lots to be desired, even for an auteur like him who rarely utilizes plot), Judd Apatow‘s breakthrough film, “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” and Pawel Pawlikowski‘s “My Summer Of Love” which introduced most of us to Emily Blunt. And no “Manderlay” here. Lars Von Trier‘s second-film in the scabrous American-set “Land of Opportunities” trilogy buckled under the weight of its dubious ideological conceits and he knows it; he basically gave up on the triptych after this unsuccessful effort. Oh yeah, and “Munich” which is Spielberg’s best (and least embarrassing) effort of the decade, even if that sex scene is laughable. For a guy that makes super engaging pictures that always seem to fall apart badly in the third act, “Munich” was able to respectfully hold it together far longer than any of his other aught-made films.
— Oli Lyttelton, Sam Mac, Rodrigo Perez, Kevin Jagernauth & Gabe Toro
ANY list which does not include \’The World\’s Fastest Indian\’ was obviously compiled by a completely moronic imbecile!
That not so subtle dig at Spielberg\’s recent filmography makes me think it might be time for one of your in depth filmography looks.
Memories Of Murder was a 2003 film right? and Oldboy was 2004.
I\’m with you on Cache. My first Hanake film. Man that was something
I remember the first time I watched Caché I hated. I didn\’t know who was Michael Haneke. As I finally understood who the director was I just got haunted by the film.
I\’d include 40 years old virgin which is the best comedy of the decade
The Dardennes did not win two Palme in the decade. The first one was in 1998, Rosetta
Why are "Oldboy" and "Memories of Murder" in 2005? Aren\’t they films of 2003?
2005 was an unforgettable year for me. The year i moved out.. my first year away from home. i went to see WALK THE LINE BATMAN BEGINS SIN CITY KINGDOM OF HEAVEN LORD OF WAR CINDERELLA MAN
2046 and Three Times may be better than the films on the bottom half of the list.
@Gustavo H Razera Dude. Calm down. I agree with you about Spielberg, but I disagree with how you respond to a ****in top ten list. Seriously dude. Calm the **** down.
The New World takes place at Jamestown, not Plymouth Rock . . .
This one is just about perfect. Really glad to see "The Beat That Skipped My Heart" on here and the Korean films were so important to the changing landscape of film at the time – so influencial. And "Cache" was the film that finally got me hooked on Haneke. Also, Totally agree with yer assessment on Miranda July\’s film. We always need whimsical films that get it right. And I won\’t get into "Munich". You know how I feel about that one and I don\’t want to get angry tonight.
Regarding \’The New World\’, you need to replace Plymouth Rock (Massachusetts/Pilgrims) with what you meant to say which was Jamestown (Virginia/John Smith, et al). Other than that, great list.
…nothing to complain about, just two things: "Munich" is in fact a remake of TV movie — and "Downfall" became a pop-culture phenomenon (that scene especially, you know what I mean)…
I think Pride and Prejudice deserves a mention. It was probably one of the best British period pieces in the last decade. I\’d have put Brokeback Mountain and History of Violence in the top ten.
I still don\’t understand the hype over Oldboy and the other two in that trilogy. Pretty terrible, in my opinion. Still haven\’t seen: Walk the Line (James Mangold)
Sin City (Frank Miller)
King Kong (Peter Jackson)
V for Vendetta (James McTeige)
Munich (Steven Spielberg)
Cache is terrible but interestingly so. Hanake is either interestingly terrible or amazing (see White Ribbon). Which means he is better than 95% of filmmakers around today. Yeah, I said that.
History of Violence, Brokeback Mountain, Grizzly Man, New World, Squid and the Whale, Good Night, and Good Luck, Three Times, Capote, Match Point, and Broken Flowers.
My top 10
10)Old Boy, Capote, Brick, Wedding Crashers, The Beat My Heart Skipped, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Nobody Knows, Match Point, Sin City, 1)Keane with an honorable mention for most disturbing going to Hard Candy
\’"Munich" which is Spielberg\’s best (and least embarrassing) effort of the decade,"
Let me guess: you\’re one of those idiots who think Spielberg ruined Kubrick\’s work in A.I. because of the ending, not realizing the ending was Kubrick\’s idea all along.
This site remains a non-entity when it comes to criticism. Stick to the news, the only thing you\’re good at.
I know Im going up the raging river of opinion on this (and I\’m sure someone will attempt to pop my raft) but I found The New World to be like being stuck at a cocktail party full of narcissistic camera operators. I have no ride home and almost everyone in the room is standing on there own pedestal. While I\’m cornered for three hours with another legendary opinion of there ability to shoot pretty landscapes. And at any moment I could fall into the abyss of a boredom coma without them ever noticing. Nobody Knows and Lodge Kerrigans Keane would have definately squeezed into my top 10. With Keane a masterwork of hazing the barriers between sanity and reality. My heartache for those with mental illness and the lines between there reality and my perception of it have been blurred with a new compassion forever.
\’Catch Me If You Can\’ was 2002. Also, \’The New World\’ was very good. Glad to see it get some love.
So glad to see the general reassessment of THE NEW WORLD. The moment I saw it, weeks before it came out, I said it was one of the great films of the decade. I was promptly laughed at by most of my friends, including one who worked at New Line and had run the screening I was at. Glad to be vindicated by the passing years. 🙂
You guys don\’t like Catch Me If You Can ?
Oh and \’Memories of Murder\’ is brilliant. It\’s Fincher\’s Zodiac 2 years early and even better at that.
I\’m so happy with the resurgence of The New World after the tepid initial reception it had. I remember it topping so many \’best of the decade\’ lists a few years ago. Glad to see it on here as well.
Jarhead was easily my favorite film of the year. American Sniper wishes it was half as good. Rest of my list, Cinderella Man, Grizzly Man, The Squid and the Whale, Match Point, Wedding Crashers, Munich, The Matador, Proof, Wallace and Gromit and the Were Rabbit
I love this lists, keep it coming
I have to say – this list is my least favorite of the bunch so far. Several great films made the list, but the year\’s two best (in my opinion) didn\’t and some of those that made the list (I thought) shouldn\’t have been on it. I\’d remove "Oldboy" (which is good, but overrated) as well as "Junebug" and "The Beat My Heart Skipped" (both good, not great). My picks: Brokeback Mountain, A History of Violence, Cache, Grizzly Man, Munich, Good Night and Good Luck, Mysterious Skin, Match Point, The Squid and the Whale, Syriana, Kings and Queen, Tropical Malady, Memories of Murder.
Brick