25 Best Movies of the Decade: 2

"I could die right now, Clem. I'm just... happy. I've never felt that before. I'm just exactly where I want to be."


2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind(2004)

A strange and fantastical journey through the mind of Joel Barrish, a man trying to erase the memory of his relationship with Clementine Kruczynski after finding out she erased her memory of the relationship, Eternal Sunshine is a wonderfully bizarre film from a wonderfully bizarre team: writer Charlie Kaufman and Lego music video auteur Michel Gondry.

As Joel's mind goes, we see the relationship from the breakup and backwards until they meet, telling a unique love story. It's a brilliant deconstruction on the classic love story and just one element of why Eternal Sunshine is so great.

Other things: the direction is fantastic, as is the writing, Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet are at the top of their game, etc. etc. etc.

Suffice it to say Eternal Sunshine is an unbelivable film and one of my favorites.

25 Best Movies of the Decade: 3

"Computer, define 'dancing'"


3. WALL-E(2008)

Let's just face it right now. If the second half of WALL-E was like the first half of WALL-E, it might be the greatest animated film ever made. Instead it just has to deal with being a film with breathtaking visuals and the most adorable first act of any film.

When the opening of a movie is a camera zooming through space set to music from "Hello, Dolly!," it's apparent that this is not like any other Pixar flick. And sure enough, we spend about 45 minutes seeing a relationship blossom between two characters who do not officially have real dialogue. It's hard not to find the growing love between the old, broken-down WALL-E and the sleek EVE an utterly precious love story.

It's debatable whether this is Pixar's best work or not, but you'd be hard pressed to actually hate it.

25 Best Movies of the Decade: 4

"I like to look for things no one else catches. I hate the way drivers never look at the road in old American movies."


4. Amélie(2001)


Girl is quirky; helps people. Rarely is there more a simplistic story to a film. Yet Jean-Pierre Jeunet's most well-known film is so wonderfully told that it charms its way into your heart.

And of course there's Audrey Tautou, the beautifully adorable face of Amélie Poulain, the whimsical Montmarte resident. It's hard not to fall in love with her goofy demeanor and friendly altruism.

Amélie is frankly the most endearing film on this list. C'est la vie.

25 Best Movies of the Decade: 5

"We're gonna see a brave new world where they run everybody a wire and hook us all up to a grid. Yes, sir, a veritable age of reason. Like the one they had in France. Not a moment too soon."


5. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

Ulysses Everett McGill and the two guys hooked to his legs are in a tight spot. On the run from the law, looking for treasure in Depression-era Mississippi and trapped in a modern day Odyssey on the run from the law, but along the way they meet everyone from a one-eyed con man to real life Depression personalities like Tommy Johnson.

It's not as widely regarded as The Big Lebowski or No Country For Old Men, but this is probably the Coen Brothers finest work. A delightfully original take on the classic "hero's journey" style of storytelling. Every character is genuinely likable(even bipolar crazy gangster George Nelson) and the music. Good lord, the music. Imagine if Now That's What I Call Music was around in the early 1900s and that's what you'd have. It's a who's who of old-timey folk songs. Man of Constant Sorrow is one of my favorite songs. And it's all because of this film.

25 Best Movies of the Decade: 6

"For 20 years, you've had this fuckin' thing hidden down here? This is, this is very illegal. I mean, this is... this is a fine — if they catch you with it"


6. District 9(2009)

It's rare to see a mockumentary taken out of its own style, but District 9 is one of the few to pull it off. What starts off as a somewhat goofy sci-fi doc about a mild-mannered manager in charge of alien affairs(with just a hand of not so subtle social commentary).

Very quickly, the film devolves into a chase film as Wikus van der Merwe, the former MNU manager, is slowly transformed into a "prawn"(the human-sized, bipedal shrimp-like residents of District 9). He's subjected to torturous experiments before making his way to the shantytown to search for a cure. Halfway through the film, it transforms from a chase film to an action film, and you never really question it. For the most part, it seems like a natural progression and it just fits. It's the writing.

Also, lightning guns? Never get old.