Happy birthday to me. I turn 24 today and I don’t know how to celebrate it better than by rattling off my favorite movies from each years I’ve been alive.
2001: Heist dir. David Mamet
Ah, 2001, the year I was born. All-in-all, a pretty solid year and one that included the release of some great films. From Mulholland Drive to The Royal Tenenbaums to Vanilla Sky, there’s some bangers. My favorite however is the tightly paced and well acted, tense crime film, Heist. Written and directed by the dialogue wizard, David Mamet, it includes my favorite performances from both Gene Hackman and Danny DeVito. From start to finish, it’s a banger with hype moment lines like “My motherfucker’s so cool when he goes to bed, sheep count him.” How can you not love that?
2002: Adaptation dir. Spike Jonze
2002, not a fantastic movie year. There are some gems like 28 Years Later and Insomnia, but as a whole, not much to look back fondly on. In the muddy mess of movies is Spike Jonze’s sophomore flick, Adaptation. It’s a true masterclass, again, in script writing like Heist is, but on a different level because it intertwines Nicolas Cage’s Charlie Kaufman character into the world of a Susan Orlean’s novel. Fantastic stuff. It should be added to the Criterion Collection.
2003: Oldboy dir. Park Chan-wook
Two years ago for the 20th anniversary of Oldboy, I caught it on the big screen in Boston. Unlike most films I catch on the big screen nowadays, I had little to no knowledge regarding what I now know as Park Chan-wook’s magnum opus. I knew there was a kick-ass scene in a hallway and a twisted ending, but nothing could’ve prepared me for what I was delivered for two hours at the Coolidge Corner Cinema when I witnessed top tier action led by Choi Min-sik and not one, but two twists that made me double over wanting to puke.
2004: Collateral dir. Michael Mann
The first time I watched Collateral, I saw it as this sort of run-of-the-mill mad man action flick. It wasn’t until nearly three years later when I sat down and rewatched Collateral that I realized it’s an epic picture that showcases a top three Tom Cruise performance. It’s a wild goose chase through the streets of LA in one night and when you think of wanting someone to direct the city of LA, you want Michael Mann. He’d be the number one pick in that draft. It’s like asking who you’d want as your number one pick to direct New York and why is your answer Sidney Lumet?
2005: Grizzly Man dir. Werner Herzog
Over his career, Werner Herzog has been known to stretch boundaries in film making, but no project captures the true essence of freedom and abrasion in Herzog’s catalog quite like Grizzly Man. About the life and later tragic death of Timothy Treadwell, we gaze into the psyche of a true drifter; the type of person that doesn’t exist anymore and also the reason why these types no longer exist. The world’s seemingly passed them by and their radical beliefs are what later lead to their demise. It’s a heartbreaking, but also liberating piece of media.
2006: Casino Royale dir. Martin Campbell
I’ve already named a few action movies on this list like Collateral and Oldboy, but the quintessential action film of the 2000s is Daniel Craigs introduction to the Bond franchise. While I do love Sam Mendes’ additions to the franchise, Martin Campbell just got it when it came to Bond movies. That’s probably because he also directed GoldenEye, but of all the Craig led Bond films, this one felt the most like a classic Bond film. It’s high octane with an evil foreign villain and a stacked cast surrounding Daniel Craig that consists of Mads Mikkelsen, Eva Green, Jeffrey Wright, and Giancarlo Giannini.
2007: Zodiac dir. David Fincher
There’s about nine movies I could’ve picked for 2007. I could have easily chosen No Country For Old Men, There Will Be Blood, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, even Hot Fuzz. But at the end of the day, it felt easy to chose Zodiac. Fincher is and will always be my favorite director, despite the disgusting content stranglehold that Netflix has on him, and I’d argue Zodiac is my favorite film from him. Then again, I’m going to also write for 2010 that The Social Network is arguably Fincher’s best.
2008: The Dark Knight dir. Christopher Nolan
It’s been debated time and time again, but can we all have a little levity and put down our facades to say that The Dark Knight is the best superhero film of the 21st century? It’s a crime action thriller with an all time villain performance from Heath Ledger and some of the best set pieces in modern cinema. Oh, and how about that opening scene, huh? That’s pretty fucking sweet.
2009: Watchmen dir. Zack Snyder
And let’s get a little more serious now. The Dark Knight is the clear cut number one superhero film of the 21st century and the one directly behind it in second place is a Zack Snyder picture. No, you Snyder geeks, it’s not his boring, gray rendition of Superman, it’s Watchmen. It feels like one of the first true anti-hero superhero films and while many have tried to replicate over the past decade, none of captured the magic of Snyder in his rewrite of history and portrayal of imperfect vigilantes.
2010: The Social Network dir. David Fincher
It’s been a few years since I started writing and over and over again I’ve fawned over The Social Network. I won’t do that today, even though I easily could. My main concern is the serious rumors about the sequel to The Social Network, which will reportedly be written by Aaron Sorkin. HELL YEAH! And will also be directed by Aaron Sorkin. FUCK NOOOOO! Truly devastating stuff if I’m being frank. Sorkin is one of the most talented screenwriters of the last thirty years, but when you put him behind the camera, it’s a dumpster fire.
2011: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo dir. David Fincher
Much like 2002, 2011 is a desolate year for movies. Fincher’s The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is the main highlight for me and it’s due to the truly depraved nature of it. In the modern Fincher era, I don’t think he ever hit this octave of pure sicko film making again. He also had two fantastic lead actors with outstanding chemistry in Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig and I very much enjoy those two as actors on their own, but when they come together, it’s an even bigger love fest for myself.
2012: End of Watch dir. David Ayer
What a picture. I rewatched End of Watch last night after everyone went to sleep in the house and once again I was blown away by the work of David Ayer. My main question is why can’t he do this more often? Or why did he never reach this level of film making ever again? Outside of End of Watch, the rest of his career is a turd. Fury and Street Kings are fine, but Bright, Suicide Squad, and Harsh Times are flaming piles of trash.
2013: Blue Ruin dir. Jeremy Saulnier
2024 was my introduction to Jeremy Saulnier’s world of film making and I’ll never forget it because it introduced me to many small scale, high stakes crime films with compelling characters and arousing hype moments of vindication. Of the films I deep dove upon, my favorite is Blue Ruin. Starring Macon Blair, an actor who I’ve become VERY fond of, we see a man scorned seeking revenge in warped ways that make you the viewer feel so invested in.
2014: Whiplash dir. Damien Chazelle
Kind of like with The Social Network, I don’t have much to say about Whiplash. If you’ve been reading my stuff for a while, which I assume a lot of you have because you’re close friends or family, you know it’s one of, if not my favorite movie ever made. No, I never drummed. No, I am not musically inclined. But I can appreciate a story about a success crazed student being pushed by their superior. And when it’s executed as well as Damien Chazelle executed Whiplash, it makes it so easy to love.
2015: The Revenant dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu
I was able to catch The Revenant in theaters last year and from the opening sequence where a group of natives massacre a gaggle of traders to the final credits, I felt entranced. Iñárritu created such a grand scale of snow and wilderness in this film that you almost feel like you’re a surviving trader in the group with Hugh Glass and Andrew Henry. My final note on The Revenant is that Leonardo DiCaprio, while good, shouldn’t have won Best Actor for his role here. Tom Hardy should have won Best Supporting Actor and it’s not particularly close.
2016: Everybody Wants Some!! dir. Richard Linklater
Since my first viewing of Everybody Wants Some!!, I fell in love with it. It wasn’t until a few rewatches later that I realized something Richard Linklater did. He screwed every ex-college athlete that wants to make movies because deep down, every ex-athlete that loves movies wants to make this movie. They want to make a movie that’s about the camaraderie of a locker room, but on a more philosophical level, and is also about chasing chicks and listening to The Knack and The Doors.
2017: Paddington II dir. Paul King
There are many film franchises that peak with their second film. Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy does, and so does Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy. Another film trilogy that peaks hard with its second movie is Paul King’s Paddington trilogy. Paddington II is as heartfelt as the first and third of the franchise, but what sets it apart is that it’s a pretty solid action film with
2018: Hereditary dir. Ari Aster
One of two horror movies that’s made this list is Ari Aster’s Hereditary, the horror movie that made me appreciate the genre even more. I used to avoid the genre like a plague, but watching this in a darkened living room and having Colin Stetson’s sharp score ring in my ear made the suspense grow. That and the performance from Toni Collette, which she should’ve won the Oscar for, made me fall in love with this sickening picture. Unfortunately, the two films that followed this from Aster, Midsommar and Beau Is Afraid, didn’t exactly click. Hopefully Eddington does.
2019: Uncut Gems dir. Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
When you look at the career of Adam Sandler, there’s a lot of stinkers. And in those stinkers are your typical Sandler performances where he throws on a funny voice and acts erratic. Past that through the rough is a late in the game, dynamite performance from Sandler in the tense, crime thriller Uncut Gems. The first time I saw it it felt like a revelation. I never knew Sandler had this type of manic performance in him and when he later went back to slop Sandler pictures, it was a tad disappointing.
2020: David Byrne’s American Utopia dir. Spike Lee
David Byrne’s spiritual legacy sequel to Stop Making Sense, David Byrne’s American Utopia is a different take on your typical concert film because Byrne and Spike Lee perfectly crafted it to exude articulate pings of positivity and acceptance. Byrne at 67 years old, put on a vibrant show, that translated greatly to film with Lee behind the camera capturing close ups of Byrnes spry face, the bare feet of the performers in their gray suits, and concluded with Byrne exiting the venue on his bike. If I had one opportunity to utilize a time machine, it’d be to see David Byrne’s American Utopia live on Broadway.
2021: The Card Counter dir. Paul Schrader
Aside from maybe Come and See, which is a brutal portrait of the damage war does, I can’t think of a more anti-war film than Paul Schrader’s The Card Counter. The second entry into Schrader’s unofficial lonely man trilogy, The Card Counter is a disturbing and honest look at a fictional soldier following punishment from their role at Abu Ghraib and their attempt at revenge. Oh yeah, and Oscar Isaac gambles his brains out in a militant fashion.
2022: Marcel The Shell With Shoes On dir. Dean Fleischer Camp
There have been a lot of brutal movies on this list thus far. Some involve the beheading of teens and some (two exactly) include individuals getting maimed by bears. I’d like to lighten the mood talking about Marcel The Shell With Shoes On. I remember seeing this in theaters and being so touched by many elements of Dean Fleischer Camp’s original film. Whether it was Marcels relationship with his nana, which reminded me of my time with my nana, or Marcels determination to find his family, I was wrapped.
2023: The Killer dir. David Fincher
With every viewing of The Killer, I continue to grow fonder of it. I can’t pin point if it’s the stoic performance from Michael Fassbender or maybe the Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross score, but something clicks that didn’t the time prior in every new viewing. While it’s been thrashed as a lower tier Fincher picture, I hold it in very high regard. It’s so tight and the usage of an unreliable narrator hasn’t been used much better in other films.
2024: Queer dir. Luca Guadagnino
Not to be that guy, but because I don’t read too often, I’m going to be that guy and note I did read the book that the film is an adaptation of. I have to say that Guadagnino did this psychedelic, gut wrenching William S. Burroughs novel justice, and that was in part due to the career defining performance from Daniel Craig. At times when you’re watching Queer, you feel like you’re on an acid trip, and at other times, it feels as if your heart was ripped from your chest, thrown on the floor, and jumped on a thousand times.
2025: Sinners dir. Ryan Coogler
While we’re only at the halfway mark of 2025, it feel like Sinners won’t be dethroned this year. It’s a grand display of film making from Coogler with a decade defining score from Ludwig Göransson and career best performances from Miles Caton and Delroy Lindo. It’s an evil, beautiful, poetic film that doubles as a bluesy Vampire gore fest. It just hit MAX so go watch it if you missed it in theaters.