The MoFo Top 100 of the 2000s Countdown

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Society ennobler, last seen in Medici's Florence
From the experience I have with polls like this, I somehow feel these four are going to be in top 5, in no particular order:
  • There Will Be Blood
  • No Country
  • Mulholland
  • one of the LOTRs

So, for #10 I'd say: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
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"Population don't imitate art, population imitate bad television." W.A.
"You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." M.T.



I'm still guessing back-to-back Nolans with Memento at #11 and The Dark Knight at #10.
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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra



A system of cells interlinked
TDK makes sense, and I think I heard Thief screaming about it all the way up here in Massachusetts. At some point today, he will force himself to hit post, and then, he will be through his trauma...
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Victim of The Night
By the way, for those irritated over The Life Aquatic, you can blame me, I had it as my 3rd best film of the decade.



Victim of The Night
I had The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou as my #12 film. It's my favorite Wes Anderson film. Maybe not by a ton, but definitively.

Second...

WARNING: "Life Aquatic" spoilers below
The climactic scene with the Jaguar Shark is wonderous and moving in a way I can't explain. It seems particularly strange that it would be so affecting given how simplistic and low-tech the effects are, and how it's viewed on this tiny little screen-within-a-screen, but it is breathtaking. My best guess for making rational sense of this emotional reaction is that it's all in the anticipation, and the tonally perfect choice in music. Whatever it is, I adore it.

The more I think back on Anderson's other films, the more it stands out as not just exceptional in terms of quality, but exceptional in that I can't think of many other moments of emotional climax he chooses to punctuate like this.
Yoda, I agree completely.





388 points, 27 lists
The Dark Knight
Director

Christopher Nolan, 2008

Starring

Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman

#10






I'm still guessing back-to-back Nolans with Memento at #11 and The Dark Knight at #10.
You, sir, are a master!

TDK makes sense, and I think I heard Thief screaming about it all the way up here in Massachusetts. At some point today, he will force himself to hit post, and then, he will be through his trauma...
I wanted to skip to #9



No vote from me, obviously.

No, I tend to joke with my "dislike" of this film, but the truth is that I'm not a huge fan. I saw this in theaters back in the day and remember being blown away by Ledger's performance; a performance that I still think is one of the best of the last 20 years, maybe. But even then, I could acknowledge some serious issues in terms of pacing and narrative. Further rewatches have cemented those issues. But although I have my gripes with some of the setpieces (the whole sonar thing, the execution of the boat scene), my main issue is with the last act and how rushed it is. Both the character of Two-Face and Aaron Eckhart deserved more than a half-baked, rushed closure to his arc. Maybe even the third film for him, but well... It is what it is.


Here we are...

Seen: 74/91

My ballot:  



TDK was the movie that absolutely smashed the comics countdown by a huge margine.
Made almost every list, and almost every vote it was in everyone's top 3.
Placed it 18th on my list.
---

1. Moon (2009) - 48th
.
6. Shaun of the Dead (2004) - 20th
.
8. Sin City (2005) - 47th
9. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) - 15th
.
11. Million Dollar Baby (2004) - 57th
.
13. Cast Away (2000) - 69th
14. WALL·E (2008) - 13th
.
18. The Dark Knight (2008) - 10th
.
20. Unbreakable (2000) - 62nd
21. Gladiator (2000) - 40th
.
22. Watchmen (2009) - 87th
23. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) - 63rd
.
25. Inglourious Basterds (2009) - 18th



The Dark Knight was never even in consideration for my ballot despite having initially loved it. Here’s what I wrote the last time I saw it:



The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008)
Imdb

Date Watched: 08/31/19
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: I'm excited for Joker
Rewatch: Yes.


The first time I watched this movie, I loved it. I loved it the second time, too. And the third, and the fourth. But somewhere along the line that stopped. Somewhere along the line, the bat voice began to bug me, the speeches about heroism had me rolling my eyes, and all the film's flash and "coolness" had me checking my watch. Somewhere along the line, I realized that it wasn't the movie I loved - it was really only Heath Ledger's performance.

Tonight's viewing served only to affirm that realization. Ledger's Joker was amazing (though I suspect I'm going to love Joaquin Phoenix's Joker more, but I'm just a little biased), but the film itself is really only a slightly above average experience for me.

-
Seen: 57/91



I still really enjoy Dark Knight but it wasn’t in contention for my list. Best superhero movie ever made though.
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With this film, Christopher Nolan becomes the first director so far to get four films in the countdown. He placed:

  • 2008: The Dark Knight (#10)
  • 2000: Memento (#11)
  • 2006: The Prestige (#38)
  • 2005: Batman Begins (#60)

If somehow he were to place 2002's Insomnia, he would go 5/5 and 100% for the decade. Do you believe in miracles?



Aha... found the post with the top entries on the Comics List...

As you'll see it smashed it...

04
The Avengers


“You Really Have Got A Lid On It, Haven't You? What's Your Secret? Mellow Jazz? Bongo Drums? Huge Bag Of Weed?”
2012
Points - 441
Voters - 27/35
Top 10 - 17/27
#1 - 3/27



03
Sin City


“I Love Hitmen. No Matter What You Do To Them, You Don’t Feel Bad”
2005
Points - 483
Voters - 30/35
Top 10 - 17/30
#1 - 3/30



02
Batman Begins


“Why Do We Fall, Sir? So We Can Learn To Pick Ourselves Up”
2005
Points - 487
Voters - 30/35
Top 10 - 17/30
#1 - 1/30



01
The Dark Knight


“I Believe Whatever Doesn’t Kill You, Simply Makes You… Stranger”
2008
Points - 626
Voters - 32/35
Top 10 - 23/32
#1 - 11/32



The Dark Knight is by far my favourite of the Nolan Batman films, however that's not saying much because I really dislike the other two entries in the series.

I hadn't planned to see it in theatres (or at all, really, after Batman Begins) but a group of friends all had tickets to the midnight screening, and one of them couldn't make it at the last minute. They asked if I wanted to take their ticket at no charge. Since I didn't have to pay, I said sure. It actually turned out to be a really enjoyable experience.

I had never been to a midnight screening before, and the theatre was absolutely packed with people who were all super excited to see the film. The energy was pretty contagious, especially with everyone reacting to the big moments on screen. I rewatched it a couple years later though, and just thought it was okay, so it didn't make my list.

Seen:
58/91

My List:
02. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) - #15
05. The Lives of Others (2006) - #41
06. Millennium Actress (2001) - DNP
08. Mother (2009) - #96
09. Shaun of the Dead (2004) - #20
10. Iron Man (2008) - #83
11. Paprika (2006) - #64
12. Memories of Murder (2003) - #27
16. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) - #76
17. Hot Fuzz (2007) - #30
20. Moon (2009) - #48
25. Bon Cop, Bad Cop (2006) - 1-pointer





The Dark Knight falls to #10 from #3 on the MoFo Top 100 of the Millennium List. It was also #46 on the original MoFo Top 100, completely missed the 2020 reboot of that list, and was top of the tops #1 on the list of MoFo Top 50 Comic Book Movies. It lands exactly fifty spots higher than Batman Begins. Will the third installment make the 2010-2019 list? Stay tuned. Same Bat Time. Same Bat MoFo.



A system of cells interlinked
Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight was on my list at #15. What sets this one apart for me, aside from the obvious stuff like Ledger's performance, is that superhero stuff aside, it is still an excellent crime thriller. The cast is mostly fantastic, the score excellent, and the themes are strong. If I had to complain about something, it's the casting of Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel - Nolan never got this character right.

2008 had both DC and Marvel serving up samples of what was to come in future years, with an absolute onslaught of comic book films - for better or for worse.




10. The Dark Knight (388 points)

Hmmm, The Dark Knight isn't a poor film. It's quite good, with a real menacing tone to the atmosphere, good performances and a really good score. But it's just good. It's a solid 7/10 good film. There is simply nothing remarkable about it whatsoever. So given all the lists it seems to do well in............ it really has to be considered as:

THE most overrated film of all time.

It has also dated a little with some of the scenes feeling a tad corny. This appeared on Twitter last week and made me laugh:



So no, it didn't get anywhere near my top 25.