The top 100 films of the 2010s

Published 12:32 pm Wednesday, January 1, 2020

The 2010s brought us a lot of great, memorable films. Of the more than 1500 that I saw in the decade here is my list of the best of the best – with comments on select entries (The breakdown of the entire Top 10 can be found in Thursday’s Daily News).

100. Arrival (2016)

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99. The Love Witch (2016)

Anna Biller’s insane ode to female empowerment was one of the decade’s most original – a strange throwback to 1960’s-70’s era B-movie horror flicks about a young witch determined to find a man to love her. With it’s eye-popping technicolor and almost archaic view of love, it was hard to find a film crazier, or more fun.

98. Minding the Gap (2018)

97. Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

96. American Honey (2016)

95. Bellflower (2011)

94. Wildlife (2018)

93. Bombshell (2019)

92. Shoplifters (2018)

91. Unrest (2017)

90. Life Itself (2014)

A beautiful documentary that served as a beautiful eulogy for late film critic Roger Ebert, who passed away earlier in the decade.

89. Amy (2015)

88. Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

87. The Dallas Buyers Club (2013)

86. Amazing Grace (2019)

85. Ida (2014)

This low-key, yet powerful Polish-Danish drama about a nun about to take her vows who returns to her home to learn about what happened to her family during World War II has stuck was an emotional powerhouse – beautifully shot in black and white.

84. Won’t You Be My Neighbor (2018)

83. Ex Machina (2015)

This sleek sci-fi thriller from writer/director Alex Garland felt like something Stanley Kubrick would have made – with surprises at every turn and featured a star-making performance from Alicia Vikander.

82. La La Land (2016)

81. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

The American adaptation of Steig Larsson’s best-selling novel delivered, thanks to keen direction from David Fincher and a star-making performance from Rooney Mara.

80. The Fighter (2010)

79. Selma (2014)

78. Foxcatcher (2014)

77. Sausage Party (2016)

76. Blackkklansman (2018)

75. Detroit (2017)

74. Hugo (2011)

73. Dolemite is My Name (2019)

72. Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)

I’m still not sure if this documentary about the artist Banksy was an elaborate hoax, but it remains very smart and funny.

71. CitzenFour (2014)

70. Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

69. The Disaster Artist (2017)

The adaptation of Greg Sestero’s book chronicling the turmoil on the set of one of the worst movies of all time – “The Room” – was a delightful tale of how one man followed his dreams at all costs

68. 1917 (2019)

67. A Star is Born (2018)

66. Fruitvale Station (2013)

Five years before “Black Panther” writer/director Ryan Coogler made an incredible debut with his film about a 22-year-old who was involved in an incident with Bay Area Rapid Transit officers Jan. 1, 2009.

“Fruitvale Station” drew comparisons to “Boyz n the Hood,” the 1991 directorial debut of John Singleton, with both films capturing the struggles of urban life and how one action can have serious consequences.

65. Inside Out

This Pixar entry was an absolute joy – a highly creative endeavor that plays to the youngest audience, while also managing to tug at the heartstrings of even the most jaded adults.

64. Young Adult (2011)

63. The Handmaiden (2016)

62. The Babadook (2014)

Writer/director Jennifer Kent’s first feature film is one of the most frightening of the decade – a film that uses the psychological scars that come from losing a loved one and ratchets it up to another level when it mixes in a pretty compelling ghost story about a mother who begins to suspect that some evil entity is stalking her and her six-year-old son.

61. Sicario (2015)

60. Django Unchained (2012)

59. Red Riding Trilogy (2010)

58. Vice (2018)

57. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)

Whether you are 14 or 40, this adaptation of the Stephen Chbosky novel about a shy 15-year-old named Charlie (Logan Lerman) struggling to fit in in his first year in an early 1990s Pittsburgh High School has something that you can relate to.

56. West of Memphis (2012)

55. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)

54. Toy Story 3 (2010)

53. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

52. Frances Ha (2013)

51. The King’s Speech (2010)

50. Booksmart (2019)

49. The Farewell (2019)

48. Hell or High Water (2016)

47. Manchester By the Sea (2016)

46. Get Out (2017)

Jordan Peele’s directorial debut was a highly original mixture of horror and comedy that was so meticulous in its detail it will took multiple viewings to truly appreciate.

45. Phantom Thread (2017)

44. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

43. Snowpiercer (2014)

Before “Parasite” director Joon-Ho Bong crafted this stylistically originally science-fiction tale a futuristic society trapped on a never-ending train after a botched climate change experiment. “Snowpiercer” managed to provide plenty of biting satire on social class and structures, making it a film with plenty of style and substance.

42. Drive (2011)

41. The Big Short (2015)

40. Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011)

39. The Spectacular Now (2013)

One of the joys of compiling this list is revisiting some hidden gems of the decade. This film – about a hard partying senior (Miles Teller) who begins a relationship with a shy classmate (Shailene Woodley) after he is dumped by the girl he thinks is the love of his life –understands what it is like to be a teen.

It then uses that knowledge to create a film that doesn’t have one single misstep, hitting all the right notes with a few surprises along the way.

38. The Skeleton Twins (2014)

37. Sing Street (2016)

Writer/director Jon Carney’s tale about a Dublin teen in the mid-80s who starts a band to impress a girl had the feel of a John Hughes movie, with a soundtrack just as memorable as the film itself.

36. Dunkirk (2017)

35. The Artist (2011)

Time has not been kind to this homage to the silent film era. Even with it’s detractors, I still contend this a magical, beautiful piece of cinema that leaps off the screen with vivid imagination and precise execution and deserves to be on this list.

34. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

33. Room (2015)

32. Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)

31. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Wes Anderson’s ode to first love is a joyous piece of cinema, with beautiful visuals and some great performances – especially from the two teenagers (Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward) at the center of the film.

30. Moneyball (2011)

29. Lady Bird (2017)

28. The Favourite (2018)

27. Short Term 12 (2013)

Brie Larson’s breakout performance in the story of a 20-something counselor at a foster care facility. It was the kind of film that could have easily been hokey and melodramatic in the wrong hands, but Larson and writer/director Destin Cretton handle it with perfection.

26. Brooklyn (2015)

25. The Irishman (2019)

Only Martin Scorsese could make this epic gangster film with a surprisingly poignant final kick. Working from a novel by Charles Brandt and spanning more than four decades, “The Irishman” feels both fresh and reflective.

24. Stories We Tell (2013)

Sarah Polley’s personal documentary explores her journey to find her real father after she learns she was the product of an extramarital affair.

The result is a movie that becomes much more than Polley discovering her real father. It’s a film that explores the very fabric of family and how perception isn’t always reality.

23. The Master (2012)

22. Whiplash (2014)

21. Gravity (2013)

20. The Descendants (2011)

Writer/director Alexander Payne’s first film since “Sideways” was s a beautifully complex character study full of rich performances – including some of the best work of George Clooney’s career – and sharp dialogue.

19. Birdman (2014)

18. Inception (2010)

Another entry from Christopher Nolan – a mind-bending thriller that was one of the most original of the decade and cemented Nolan’s status as one of this generation’s brightest filmmakers.

17. Black Panther (2018)

16. Argo (2012)

15. American Hustle (2013)

14. 12 Years a Slave (2013)

13. Spotlight (2015)

A superbly crafted drama that perfectly captures the day-to-day activity in the newsroom and how it can have a lasting effect on the community in which it covers.

12. Roma (2018)

11. Jojo Rabbit (2019)

10. Mudbound (2017)

Dee Rees’ sweeping epic of two families living on a Mississippi farm in the 1940s is old-school filmmaking – evoking memories of John Steinbeck.

9. The Florida Project (2017)

8. Parasite (2019)

7. Moonlight (2016)

6. The Social Network (2010)

5. Carol (2015)

4. Winter’s Bone (2010)

3. Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

2. Eighth Grade (2018)

1. Boyhood (2014)

The best film of the 2010s was more than just a gimmick. It was a unique coming-of-age story from director Richard Linklater filmed over 12 years for that once-in-a-generation experience.