The Best of the Decade - #1

Sideways (2004)
Directed by: Alexander Payne

Of all the movies I valued while compiling this list of the 25 best from the past ten years, none of them had to one thing Sideways has. Call it the desert island game if you'd like but there is only one movie in the bunch that I could watch anytime and would rather watch than any other movie. Sideways, interestingly enough, is it. Despite the fact that its a character piece with characters I can't really relate to, I'm so swept away by the performances, the story and the tone and feel of this movie. Its a road trip, buddy movie with a twist and the relationships are so solid that I can just watch them exist. Not much has to happen at any one point to satisfy me, much like nothing much has to happen to Miles to satisfy him. A glass of fine wine and a fast food burger is all he needs. Sometimes the beauty of films is in their simplicity. The same can be said for a performance and Paul Giamatti's portrayal of such a complex character comes across as simple. In other words, on the outside, Miles is simple but the complexities of his life are what put him in the situations that make this movie so great. When all is said and done however, this movie wins the desert island game over every other movie of the past decade. It joins a class of films like Goodfellas of the 90s, Raging Bull in the 80s, Jaws, The Apartment, Rear Window, Casablanca and I can't believe I can name my likely favorite from every decade. Sideways. The best movie of the decade.

The End.

The Best of the Decade - #2

Memento (2000)
Directed by: Christopher Nolan

When I first went into this movie, I had no expectations. Ever since, its been one of my favorite movies of all time. Today, I might not marvel so much at its originality, but ten years ago, I was so taken with what this movie did that I couldn't get enough of it. I still can't. Its a movie that never gets worse no matter how many times I see it. Memento is the masterpiece from a director who gave us The Dark Knight. The strength of this film is not that its told backwards, its not the great performances or the brilliant direction. Its strength is in its simplicity. The story is simply a murder mystery, but like Hitchcock before him, Nolan surrounds a simple story with so many fascinating elements to make an original, compelling, and entertaining movie. Second only to a single movie this decade, Memento is one of the best movies ever.