The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) directed by Wes Andersen
This is favorite movie of this decade. The ultimate disfunctional family, lots of colorful and outrageous characters (played by some great actors) come together as the Tenenbaums, a once great family that has fallen on hard times. Not only does this include lots of laughs, it includes a really heartfelt story of a father trying to make up for not being there for his family in the past. This movie will make you laugh, will make you sad, will break some film cliches and by the end you will feel really satisfied as the characters walk off stage. This is really what a movie would be like if it were a play or a book (and the story is treated as a novel).
Memento (2000) Directed by Christopher Nolan
One of those movies you really need to follow closely to catch everything. A man with short term memory loss uses notes and tattoos to tell him who is friend and who is foe. Two different chronological orders make this a film that doesn't literally hold you by the hand throughout to undestand what's happening.
Big Fish (2003) Directed by Tim Burton
This is a treat for the whole family. Tim Burton has created one of the most entertaining movies I have ever seen. The movie follows a small town youth who leaves to explore the world and finds some really enchanting characters and side adventures along the way. This is a fairy tale come to life, but has a backstory in the real and timely.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) Directed by Terry Gilliam
The craziest psychadelic trip you will experience in a movie, follows the exploits of Dr. Gonzo (Thompson) and his attorney/drug dealer/crazy person in the city of Sin. This is a barrel of laughs, but only for some. Others might find it over the top and ridiculous.
No Country for Old Men (2007) Directed by the Coen Brothers
The newest movie on my list, if you follow oscar buzz you've probably already seen this, if you haven't then you are in for one of the best paced and directed movies out there. This movie is what happens when big time Hollywood directors drop the sharade and crappy 'atmosphere' that usually plagues big releases to fill that space with the raw determination of the two main characters. It's a classic cat and mouse scenario, a man finds a bag money at the scene of a massive shootout, a drug deal went wrong. Now he's trying to get away from a man who knows no remorse or limits and is as cold and empty as a coin toss.
Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Directed by Stanley Kubrick
This will probably be the second most controversial choice in this list. Stanley Kubrick's last film that many believe is marred and incomplete. Even so, I do think this is a movie to watch. Kubrick might be the best director of all time and he really created an especially bleak and chilling experience in this movie. A husband, like many others, falls for temptation. In this case his curiosity will be his slow undoing.
Rumble Fish (1983) Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
The Godfather movies and Apocalypse Now might get the most attention out of Coppola's movies, but this is his most artistic one from what I've seen. Did black and white with few distinctly colored things long before Schindler's list. Mickey Rourke is the embodiment of disillusioned youth who has returned to his home town to the respect of his kid brother and other street thugs as the legendary Motorcycle Boy. But the boy has changed since he left, he's come back to free his brother from a dangerous frame of mind that will lead him to a dead end and to open his horizons beyond the street life.
Being John Malkovich (1999) Directed by Spike Jonze
This movie will mess with your head quite a bit. The premise is literally unique as an unhappy and boring couple find a doorway into the mind of the actor John Malkovich and soon begin to abuse it leading to a series of events culminating in a struggle for control over Malkovich's thoughts and a love triangle that leaves the main character beaten down and pushed aside.
Broken Flowers (2005) Directed by Jim Jarmusch
Many people thought Bill Murray's comeback was Lost In Translation, but to me this movie really indicated that he was not a one dimensional actor. An old timer who's seen more than his fair share of women's company recieves an anonymous letter telling him that he has a young son who is now heading to find his father. With some convincing from his wannabe detective neighbor he embarks on a journey that will take him to a few of his exes and put him in different predicaments.
Stranger Than Fiction (2006) Directed by Marc Forster
Some people might assume that a Will Farrel movie would be a shallow comedy, but this is the story of a man who's life is literally being written and narrated for him. A very boring and narrow minded guy suddenly finds himself on an adventure that will teach him some lessons about himself and life and taking chances and the difference between coasting by and actually living.
Thanks to Blacksaber for the sig!
