Top Ten of the '10s

Another decade is ticking down.  Time for another Top Ten list.  As you may have read, I don't see anywhere nearly as many films as I once did, though this year I did take in quite a few.  But not necessarily new ones.  Outings to the theater are less and less frequent.  Even for ones I want to see on the big screen.  This goes against my very mantra for the medium, but life is more than cinema.  Er, right?

This decade was largely disheartening and forgettable for film appreciation, yet there were many that have earned a place in history.  Many more than I'm aware of, I'm sure.  I have lists to get to.  Mainly compiled with foreign and indie, which is where many of the interesting films are anymore.  I'll spare you a rant on the Hollywood studios and their products.

Anyhow, here is my top ten, by year.  My favorites, not necessarily the best.  All but one has been previously reviewed on this blog.  That will be corrected in the coming year.

2010: THE SOCIAL NETWORK.  David Fincher's talky, sharp, and austere drama about the origins of Facebook, and its rather cunning founder, Mark Zuckerberg.  The closest thing, stylistically at least, I've seen to ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN.

2011: THE TREE OF LIFE.  Malick begins his period of aggressively non-linear dreamscapes. Staggering ethereal beauty.  Theological musings.  Nostalgia and latter day lament.  A very wide scope.  Possibly the director's finest.

2012: FRANCES HA. Noah Baumbuch's bittersweet poem to NYC and feminimity. And youth.  And the French New Wave. And....

2013: HER. Spike Jonze peers a few years into the future. We're there now, more or less. A mesmerizing, trippy examination of technology and relationships.  And much more.

2014: BIRDMAN. Inarritu's stunning, stressful, and seemingly one shot audaciousness that aggressively examines celebrity, relevance, aging, etc.  Pretentious for many, a reinvention of cinema for me.

2015: CAROL.  Todd Haynes' surefooted 1950s romance between two women that pays homage to Sirk and respects its characters.  Appears as if really shot in that decade.  The lead actresses are so perfect I (almost) just couldn't see this movie working otherwise.

2016: PATERSON. A truly rare motion picture that is about finding beauty in the mundane, loving your spouse, and appreciating your environment.  Noticing it too, carefully.  Jim Jarmusch doesn't contrive portent or drama.  This is a pleasing slice of life.  A fantasy maybe, but lovely all the same.

2017: BLADE RUNNER 2049. The sequel I was most nervous for, but instead it knocked me out.  Astonishing visually and thematically.  Too long? Not for me.  Denis Villeneuve respects the past, but carves out his own memorable dystopia.

2018: FIRST REFORMED. Paul Schrader's jaw dropping theological drama far exceeded expectations, though it is not flawless.  Faith and spiritual crises have not been captured better in any contemporary drama I've seen.

2019: THE IRISHMAN. Scorsese finally completed another Hall of Fame picture.  I was wary since its announcement (and Netflix financing), but this sprawling detail of a life of crime entails the best of Marty's old electric style and a more patient, meditative approach.  All the goombahs came back, and didn't disappoint.  And the de-aging tech was not a distraction.

The 2020s? Not encouraged, but fugitive greatness will always find its way out of the gate, even in Hollywood.  But will most of it be seen on your iPhone?