1. "Traffic"(2000)
Underachieving indie darling Steve Soderbergh finally lived up to the substantial promise of his 1989 breakthrough "Sex, Lies and Videotape", with this absorbing, documentary-style drama about America's largely fruitless and never-ending 'War on Drugs'. It's a war that can never really be won, a controversial stance that probably kept this superior film from claiming the Academy Award for Best Picture(more on that later) despite Soderbergh's well-deserved win in the Best Director category. SS assembled an impressive ensemble cast fronted by Michael Douglas and Best Supporting Actor winner Benicio Del Toro, and skillfully weaves multiple storylines ranging from Washington D.C. to the sun-drenched dangers of the Mexican cartels. Without a doubt, this is one of the strongest films of the 2000s.
2. "Cast Away"(2000)
Six years after their monumental first collaboration known as "Forrest Gump", Tom Hanks and Robert Zemeckis reunited on a deserted island for another life-affirming drama/box office bonanza. Sometimes, an actor is credited with carrying a particular film, and Hanks' astounding work as frenzied Fed-Ex executive-turned grizzled survivalist Chuck Noland is the ultimate example of that, with all due respect to that terrifying plane crash and his pal Wilson. Hanks literally holds your interest ALL by himself for over an hour, a feat that should have earned him another Best Actor Oscar(more on that a little later), but the Academy must have feared that he was becoming the acting equivalent of the NY Yankees. How many films force you to care deeply for a volleyball? An unquestionable triumph.
3. "Gladiator"(2000)
Was I not entertained? Of course not. Don't get me wrong, I like Ridley Scott's swords-n-sandals epic as much as the next guy, but I'm going against the grain and saying that "Traffic" should have taken Best Picture(let's not make a big thing of it). After rock-solid turns in "L.A. Confidential" and "The Insider", Russell Crowe cemented his leading man status as Maximus, the first larger-than-life movie hero of the new millennium. The Aussie hunk took home the Best Actor Oscar for being manly as hell and I don't think too many of the film's legions of cheering fans disapproved of the decision. For my money, the real standout in Ancient Rome is Joaquin Phoenix, setting the bar really high for 21st Century villainy, as the sniveling and cowardly Commodus, the son of Marcus Aurelius. "Gladiator" remains a great lazy-afternoon destination, historical accuracy be damned.
4. "Erin Brockovich"(2000)
A sexy and confidant Julia Roberts capped off her decade of dominance as the premier leading lady of the 1990s, with a Best Actress Oscar win that instantly made her struggling single mother/legal clerk/environmental activist title character a household name. With the red-hot Steven Soderbergh at the helm, Julia's inappropriate wardrobe choices and brassy demeanor while investigating a small town's contaminated water supply found her at the absolute height of her popularity(she would rejoin us mere mortals in the mid-'00s). Aaron Eckhart and Albert Finney are both fantastic as the wildly dissimilar men in her life.
5. "What Lies Beneath"(2000)
While Tom Hanks was dropping fifty pounds and growing unusual facial hair, Robert Zemeckis stayed busy during his "Cast Away" production break orchestrating a bathtub scene to rival "Psycho" in this high-class thriller. In her last starring role for a long while, Michelle Pfeiffer is terrific as a lonely Vermont housewife dealing with a supernatural presence in her big empty house. Harrison Ford's adulterous professor with a sinister secret was as close as he ever came to playing a villain, and I can't be alone in wishing he had tried it more than once. Bob Z said his goal was to make a 'Hitchcock movie' with contemporary film-making technology and techniques. I'd say he succeeded.
6. "Almost Famous"(2000)
Remember when everyone was so sure that Kate Hudson was destined to become the brightest and best young starlet of the new millennium? Things didn't quite work out that way(to put it mildly) despite her seriously good genes, but that's no reason to knock Cameron Crowe's love letter to the rock 'n' roll scene of the early '70s. Crowe's own experiences as a teenaged roadie-reporter provides the basis for a coming-of-age tale and a vibrant snapshot of this heavily romanticized, free-spirited era in music. Philip Seymour Hoffman shows up to do what Philip Seymour Hoffman does best, and that's improve every movie he's in with only a handful of scenes.
7. "Pollock"(2000)
Ed Harris has long been one of our most undervalued actors and his role as influential artist Jackson Pollock is the clearest illustration of his passion and talent. This low-budget biopic was a labor of love for Harris(who also directed) as he set out to chart the rise of the volatile painter in the 1940s and '50s, when his unique style made him the central figure of the abstract expressionist movement. Harris admirably captures Pollock's polarizing genius as well as the personal demons which led to his early demise in an alcohol-related car crash at age 44. Marcia Gay Harden won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar as his long-suffering wife/creative inspiration.
8. "Requiem for a Dream"(2000)
Forget the D.A.R.E. program. If I were trying to keep kids off drugs, I'd sit them in front of Darren Aronofsky's daring drama that hinted at the director's unflinching future greatness("The Wrestler", "Black Swan"). Easily one of the most disturbing films ever released by a major studio, viewers are spared nothing in the downward spiral of it's pathetic protagonists. Jared Leto seemed to have all the requirements for A-list entry in one of his earliest film roles, Ellen Burstyn is memorably tragic as his lonely, pilled-up mom and Jennifer Connelly has a moment that will linger in your psyche as his wayward girlfriend. Even Marlon Wayans makes a contribution. This is a feel-bad movie, which is just fine when that's clearly the intention.
9. "Meet the Parents"(2000)
Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller may have greedily swelled their bank accounts with an unwarranted "Fockers" franchise, but that doesn't change the fact that their original meeting way back in 2000 resulted in a genuinely funny movie. Hollywood tries these odd couple comedic pairings all the time, and it rarely turns out better than it does here. Stiller perfects his put-upon persona that was unleashed to great effect in "There's Something About Mary" while De Niro's quietly intimidating ex-CIA agent quickly rivaled "Midnight Run" as his finest work in the genre.
10(tie). "X-Men"(2000)
Speaking of franchises, this one doesn't seem to be going anywhere. It's hard to believe there was a time when Hollywood was reluctant to produce a superhero film. We have to credit Bryan Singer for breaking the ice in a post-"Batman & Robin" world and getting the ball rolling on a seven film(so far) series that energized the previously fledging folks at Marvel. Judging by the current summer movie climate, that has to be considered history in the making. Newcomer Hugh Jackson was universally embraced as the razor-clawed, de-facto leader Wolverine and he was joined by Halle Berry, Patrick Stewart, and Ian McKellan to kick off a fresh round of crowd-pleasing pyrotechnics.
10(tie). "Unbreakable"(2000)
M Night Shyamalan's quiet, contemplative take on superhero mythology was labeled a disappointment at the time of it's November release, yet recent reappraisals have seen it sharing similar stature to his masterpiece "The Sixth Sense". It's easy to beat up on Night these days, and the long takes and somber minimalism he employs here now serves as a melancholy reminder of what might have been. Bruce Willis delivers another one of his solidly subdued non-action roles and Sam Jackson's sinister Mr. Glass was one of the last times he did more than just collect a paycheck. Shyamalan has recently discussed a sequel, which would have to work out better than "The Last Airbender".
"You Can Count on Me"(2000) You can count on Laura Linney and Mark Ruffalo in Kenneth Lonergan's directorial debut. "Chocolat"(2000) Oscar bait with Juliet Binoche and Johnny Depp. "Quills"(2000) More Oscar bait with Geoffrey Rush and Kate Winslet. "The Contender"(2000) Joan Allen and Jeff Bridges both deliver in this political drama. "Coyote Ugly"(2000) The year's preeminent guilty pleasure. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"(2000) Ron Howard directs Jim Carrey in this live-action version of the venerable holiday tale. "Men of Honor"(2000) Cuba Gooding Jr. as the first black U.S. Navy diver. "Bounce"(2000) Ben Affleck loves Gwyneth Paltrow. He can join the club. "Miss Congeniality"(2000) Sandra Bullock goes undercover at a beauty pageant. "Vertical Limit"(2000) Rock climbing with Chris O'Donnell, Bill Paxton, and Scott Glenn. "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"(2000) Ang Lee's majestic martial arts epic. "What Women Want"(2000) They still wanted Mel Gibson in 2000. "Thirteen Days"(2000) Kevin Costner and the Cuban Missile Crisis. "The Family Man"(2000) Nic Cage becomes one in Brett Ratner's Christmas confection. "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"(2000) George Clooney clicked with the Coen brothers.
No comments:
Post a Comment