I’ve been having such a fun time going through these start-of-the-century movie lists, like the one from the New York Times. It really shows you how cool it is to be alive while this art is being made, and gives you such anticipation for what is to come.
Well, Rolling Stone has entered the ring with their picks for the best movies of the 21st Century.
Here’s how they explained their list:
“The following 100 movies represent what a handful of Rolling Stone contributors who still believe in the movies, still obsess over them, still find thrills and chills and salvation in them, have dubbed the best of this relatively still-young century. It’s a living document, to be sure; we’ll undoubtedly go back and add to this list as the years go by. But every single entry here has reminded us of the way that the movies can reflect our humanity back at us, spark our imaginations, inspire us to laugh or cry or gasp or take action, and why we fell in love with the moving pictures in the first place. From comedies to tragedies, biopics to superhero epics, stop-motion foxes to milkshake-drinking tycoons — our picks for the high points of this moviegoing century to date.”
So let’s dive in and see what they picked.
The Best Movies of the 21st Century According to Rolling Stone
There Will Be Blood (2007)In The Mood for Love (2000)Moonlight (2016)Parasite (2019)Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001)4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days (2007)Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)Yi Yi (2000)Mulholland Drive (2001)Boyhood (2014)OJ: Made in America (2016)A Separation (2011)The Social Network (2010)Carol (2015)Spirited Away (2001)Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)Zodiac (2007)The Act of Killing (2012)Roma (2018)Get Out (2017)Faces PlacesThe 25th Hour (2002)The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)Before Sunset (2004)Children of Men (2006)Drive My Car (2021)Lady Bird (2017)The Irishman (2019)No Country for Old Men (2007)Uncle Boonmee who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)A History of Violence (2005)The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003)Phantom Thread (2017)Manchester by the Sea (2016)Pain and Glory (2019)12 Years a Slave (2013)First Reformed (2017)Burning (2018)Spring Breakers (2012)The Dark Knight (2008)Tar (2022)The Master (2012)Under the Skin (2013)Selma (2014)Wall-E (2008)Nickel Boys (2024)Anchorman (2004)Hunger (2008)Meek’s Cutoff (2010)Black Panther (2018)28 Days Later (2002)Memento (2000)Past Lives (2023)Call Me By Your Name (2017)A Prophet (2009)The Tree of Life (2011)Inglourious Basterds (2009)Dogville (2003)A.I. (2001)The 40 Year Old Virgin (2004)The Florida Project (2017)I Am Not Your Negro (2016)The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)Leviathan (2012)Her (2013)The Souvenir (2019)Grizzly Man (2005)Lost in Translation (2003)The Host (2006)Gosford Park (2001)Michael Clayton (2007)John Wick (2014)Uncut Gems (2019)35 Shots of Rum (2008)The Zone of Interest (2023)Punch-Drunk Love (2002)Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)Best in Show (2000)The White Ribbon (2009)Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)Hereditary (2018)Dogtooth (2009)Lincoln (2012)Oppenheimer (2023)The Assassination of Jesse James (2007)Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)Decision to Leave (2022)La Commune (Paris 1871) (2000)Certified Copy (2010)Offside (2006)Lingui, the Sacred Bonds (2021)The Hurt Locker (2008)Toni Erdmann (2016)City of God (2002)No (2012)Norte, the End of History (2013)Winter’s Bone (2010)Margaret (2011)
Examining the List
One of the big reasons I like lists like these is that they have so much variety. This one spans the globe and has ,movies from lots of different countries.
While there is a ton of overlap from the New York Timers, there’s also a lot of new titles on here that I think are equally fun to celebrate.
None of these were on the NYT list:
The 25th Hour (2002)28 Days Later (2002)35 Shots of Rum (2008)4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days (2007)40 Year Old Virgin, The (2004)A.I. (2001)The Assassination of Jesse James (2007)Burning (2018)Certified Copy (2010)Decision to Leave (2022)Dogtooth (2009)Dogville (2003)Drive My Car (2021)Faces PlacesFantastic Mr. Fox (2009)First Reformed (2017)Gosford Park (2001)Hereditary (2018)A History of Violence (2005)Host, The (2006)Hunger (2008)I Am Not Your Negro (2016)Irishman, The (2019)John Wick (2014)La Commune (Paris 1871) (2000)Leviathan (2012)Lincoln (2012)Lingui, the Sacred Bonds (2021)Lord of the Rings, The (2001-2003)Manchester by the Sea (2016)Margaret (2011)Meek’s Cutoff (2010)Nickel Boys (2024)No (2012)Norte, the End of History (2013)Offside (2006)OJ: Made in America (2016)Pain and Glory (2019)Selma (2014)The Souvenir (2019)Spring Breakers (2012)Uncle Boonmee who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)White Ribbon, The (2009)Winter’s Bone (2010)
I do think the OJ inclusion is hard for me, because I have only ever seen it on TV and separated into like a 5 episode series, I always have a problem with people calling it a movie, even though it’s one of the most important docs ever made.
The rest of these are movies I really like and I do think deserve to be heralded. It gave me a lot to think about when we make our list here, or if we do.
Summing It all Up
these are really fun to pick apart and to make independently. I’d love to know which movies are not on this that you think should be or what your lists are at home.
Let me know what you think in the comments.
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