The Best Films of the 2000s and more.
Posts tagged Dystopian Future
1001 Movie Club: A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001)
May 13th
Steven Spielberg and Stanley Kubrick’s friendship spanned decades and despite their vastly different directorial styles maintained the utmost respect for each other’s work. So when it came time to make A.I. Kubrick decided to bring in Spielberg as a creative force. Unfortunately before any solid pre-production had started on the feature, Stanley Kubrick passed away leaving Spielberg to make a movie to honor the great director.
This backstory is important in understanding the fundamental tone of Artificial Intelligence. It’s constantly being pulled in two directions at once: toward the sterile and alienating sensibilities of Kubrick and toward the sentimental family oriented sensibilities of Spielberg. No doubt this is an entirely internal struggle within Spielberg who sat down and wrote the official screenplay off of Kubrick’s 90-page treatment. It’s hard to tell if he’s struggling trying to find a balance between honoring Kubrick’s story while holding onto some semblance of his own trademarks.
War of the Worlds (2005)
May 6th
SCIENCE FICTION PICK:
Starring: Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, Justin Chatwin
Director: Steven Spielberg
Country: USA
Genre: Science Fiction
We really are quite a helpless species.
Say what you will about Spielberg in the 00s, but one thing that cannot be denied is his fascination with science fiction. Beginning the decade out with A.I. Artificial Intelligence, he then moved onto Minority Report, followed by this adaptation of the classic H.G. Wells novel,(not a remake.) It’s definitely not without its faults, (there’s really no reason we needed to see the aliens, the narration is entirely unneeded, etc.) but it definitely delivers on a unique sci-fi adventure. It’s a bit more harrowing than most alien stories, focusing a lot on the human condition simultaneously with the destruction. Spielberg once again uses quite a gray color palate, as he did in Minority Report to really enhance the grisly circumstances. Like him or hate him, Tom Cruise brings his A game carrying the entire film on his shoulders. War of the Worlds is a lot of fun, albeit a little overlong.
Moon (2009)
Apr 16th
SCIENCE FICTION PICK:
Starring: Sam Rockwell, Sam Rockwell, Sam Rockwell
Director: Duncan Jones
Country: UK
Genre: Science Fiction
The final frontier.
If 2001: A Space Odyssey is too alienating, and Solaris (the original) is too rooted in human emotion, Moon finds an odd balance right smack between the two. At the same time, it carves out its own niche as an exploration into the human psyche. To talk about this film almost feels taboo as its an experience that shouldn’t be ruined for the yet-to-see audience. But in general terms, being a film centered solely on one character (kind of,) Sam Rockwell absorbs his character (or maybe vice versa) like Spider-man‘s alien suit. It’s a film that keeps you guessing, but doesn’t rely on its [un]predictability. It puts on a guise of mystery to mask the harrowing experiences of its character allowing the audience to decide how in-depth they want to experience the pangs of realization he goes through. As a science fiction film, you won’t find much better as it is a great commentary on technology and society, good and evil, and ultimately human choices.
28 Days Later (2003)
Oct 11th
Starring: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Danny Boyle
Country: UK
Genre: Horror
Top notch gory suspense.
Zombies had taken a bit of a backseat in the horror genre for awhile just before the 21st century. Their slow antics and lack of personality eventually made them silly, which is why my guess is there are more zombie-comedies than any other horror creature. But around the turn of the century, the infection evolved into humans instilled with rage, ready to not only eat your flesh, but tear it off your body before beating your skull to a bloody pulp. How appropriate that 28 Days Later begins with angry monkeys, as that’s what zombies have become. When this film came out, it scared me senseless. I still get chills when I think about the church scene. Not only did it make zombies hip again, it raised the standards to which all other zombie films would then be compared. Top notch gory suspense.
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Oct 8th
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Lucy Davis, Kate Ashfield
Director: Edgar Wright
Country: UK
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Sometimes the only thing that brings balance is the zombie apocalypse.
Shaun of the Dead isn’t the first to mix movie genres, but it certainly is one of the most successful in recent years, especially the horror realm. It’s first and foremost a comedy, setting up jokes rather than scares but it shouldn’t be discredited as a horror film as it has a conclusion equal to that of any of its many influences (Romero obviously and especially.) It brings together a quaint love story, but also a tale of friendship and finding a balance in life. There’s no question why this has reached such high levels of cult status as it’s got more than a handful of hilarious and memorable scenes, including one with a brilliant use of “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen.
Zombieland (2009)
Oct 4th
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Country: USA
Genre: Comedy, Horror
It’s official. Zombies are funny.
Somebody’s zombie-loving dreams came true. Somewhere out there, a writer so in love with the zombie genre just had a wet dream. Someone beat Left 4 Dead one too many times, got bored, wrote a movie, and it’s called Zombieland. And it’s fuuuuuuun. Not everyone’s zombie fantasies can be fulfilled in one film, but this comes close. While it will be compared greatly to Shaun of the Dead, it shouldn’t be. It has its own quick-paced pseudo-grindhouse style that it sets up at the beginning of its short runtime and doesn’t stop with the action or the laughs until the credits roll… and not even then (if you’re someone who stays for all of the credits.) While there is just a hint of something missing to make this film ‘amazing’, it doesn’t leave you time to really consider it because you’ll be too busy cheering the fun zombie killing or laughing your ass off. The entire cast is perfect, and this is partly due to them all feeling like they are slightly miscast… two wrongs making a right.
Wall-E (2008)
Sep 28th
Starring: The cutest robot ever.
Director: Andrew Stanton
Country: USA
Genre: Animation, Sci-Fi, Romance
I’m not even going to preface this film. I don’t like ranking films, but without a doubt, this is the best of the decade. You want a perfect animated film? Done. Here it is. You want a heart-melting romance? Perfect. Wall-E is it. Do you love science fiction? Easy. This film is the best the decade has to offer. Comedy? As good as any Chaplin film. Family friendly? Bingo. Action? It’s here. Drama? Yes. Tear-jerking moments? Many. A moral message? It’s got that too. And at no point does having all of these things interfere with one another. It’s perfectly balanced. On top of everything else, it is the ballsiest film I have ever had the pleasure to watch. Wall-E is the reason that cinema exists.
