The Best Films of the Decade - #24

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

Directed by: Peter Weir

Master and Commander is an epic in the truest sense of the genre. It commands the screen (no pun intended) throughout every frame and that is a credit to the direction, the performances and the brilliant cinematography.

In 2003, this film didn't have the impact on me the way it does now. Over the years, I've seen it repeatedly, often times because of the brilliant endorsement it received from a fellow film fan, and with each viewing I grow fonder of what an acheivement it is. The fact that this film didn't make enough money to warrent what would have been an equally brilliant sequal is a shame... perhaps a tragedy considering what we are left with. That being a brilliant cliffhanger of an ending and the 24th best film of the past decade.