Before I go into the first half of my Favorite Ten, I should explain something first. I make no claims that any of the movies on this list are the "best" anything. For the most part, I have no quantitative way of explaining why some movies made it and why others didn't. This is simply a list of favorites... meaning the number one deciding factor for each film's inclusion was my personal reaction to it. There are many films not on this list I found worthy or exceptional for one reason or another. All's I'm really saying is that these are the 50 films I guarantee I will watch again - either once or ten more times - in the decade ahead. This is why, I think, I made such a point of repeating that most of the films on the list are not placed in specific order. But obviously the top ten are presented this way for a reason. And seriously, don't gripe that there are actually seven films in the list below. It's my list, my blog and I'll put as many "ties" in as I want. Actually, on second thought: go ahead and gripe. It'll be fun to read. I have another essay in store that will attempt to put this list into greater personal context... I'm sure you can't wait for that baby. But for now, here are numbers 10 through 6, again in somewhat of a thematic order...
10. Infernal Affairs II (2003) / Triad Election (2006) - I’ve always loved gangster films. Even though I realize most are over-romanticized to the level of implausibility, I find them to be unendingly compelling as moral fables. That said, I thought the two best gangster films I saw this decade came from Hong Kong; one from a directorial duo intent on bringing the stylish thriller aspect back to the genre and the other, from one of my favorite directors working anywhere in the world today.
It’d be easy to make the comparison between Alan Mak and Andrew Lau’s prequel to “Infernal Affairs” and “The Godfather II.” I’m sure that film was the model by which Mak and Lau based their film’s foundation; much more sprawling, complex and thematically rich than its predecessor. But the thing the duo does here that I think warrants immense praise is: they fashion an entirely new perspective on the world they’ve already created by completely expanding their canvas; thereby crafting a standalone film that really needs no anchoring from its antecedent. They even cast two different (and lesser) actors to play the two lead characters from the first film! Whereas “The Godfather II” was a logical evolution, basing its foundational sturdiness on the continuity established by the first film, “Infernal Affairs II” has no such advantage. The first film felt claustrophobic and confined; perfect for the story. The sequel looks and feels as if it is being played out on a much larger stage, with wide master shots in various exterior locations and the expansion of every single returning character’s backstory. And sure, the supporting actors in this film are the same (and excellent), but even their storylines are so elaborated beyond the breadth of the first film that anyone could watch this - without contextual help from the first - and walk away thoroughly and utterly satisfied.
Johnnie To is the man. Simple as that. I’m not sure I can think of another filmmaker working today - perhaps Chris Nolan - that can milk as much tension from silence and expertly-paced scenes quite like him. His gangster films are a departure from the previous decade’s treatment on the genre because in his films, the violence is either implied (and unseen), or used so sparingly, the impact of actually seeing it is usually extra shocking and abrupt. And effective. Like “Infernal Affairs II," “Triad Election” is also a sequel to an already excellent film with one of the best endings from the genre. But what I like better about “Triad Election” than its precursor is its ability to, once again, expand on the moral themes of the first film. We come to see just how fucked the life of a gangster truly is; how the choice to hoard wealth and power on one side leads to a life trapped in an unending personal hell from which there is no escape on the other side. And the soundtrack's main theme? The absolute shit. I really wanted to put more of To’s films on my favorite 50 because he is one of my top five directors of the decade, but I’m totally consoled with “Triad Election,” my favorite of all his films, locking in a spot in my Top 10.
9. Man On Fire (2004) - I’m convinced there will be a Criterion Edition of this movie one day. Look, I know many people either hate this film or feel complete apathy toward it. Some will dismiss it as a less interesting visual knock off of my #7 film. I’m just not one of them. I realize the film is hyper-stylized to the point of being conceptually drug-addled. I also realize that the notion of one guy tromping around Mexico City killing cops and politicians in a flurry of gunfire and explosions streches the suspension of disbelief just a tiny bit. But you know what? I totally buy it. I am in. Tony Scott may very well be a complete lunatic whose films rely on the visual stimulation of hand-cranked cameras and stylish subtitles to disguise the lack of substance in them, but in this film? A tale of furious wrath unleashed in the name of a kidnapped child? It works. At least for me. And the reason? Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning and Chris Walken. Look, the script by Brian Helgeland is flat out, stone cold awesome. You can’t write a line like “Creasy’s art is death. He’s about to paint his masterpiece.” or “Forgiveness is between them and God. It’s my job to arrange the meeting.” and not hook me. And Dakota Fanning is so wonderfully charming and believable in the first half of this film that I absolutely believe Denzel would turn Mexico City into Beirut in order to exact vengeance on her behalf. Call me unsophisticated if you like, but chances are I won’t be paying attention because I’ll be busy watching this movie for the 50th time.
8. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) - I don’t really understand why this movie wasn’t a bigger hit. It’s funny. It’s a thriller. It’s a mystery movie. It’s neo-noir at it’s most bleakly comedic. What happened here? I mean sure it re-launched Robert Downey Jr.’s career and deservedly so. But what about Val Kilmer as Gay Perry? How did he not immediately start doing more mainstream comedies after this film?! He’s utterly fantastic in this movie. And Michelle Monaghan - whom I have a slightly larger than minor crush on - straddles the line between adorable and sexy like few other can manage here. Was it too weird and offbeat for mainstream audiences? Was the conclusion not happy enough? Too pessimistic to catch on?
I have somewhere between 50 and 100 hundred questions about this film so perhaps I should focus on the things I already know. Modern day Los Angeles has rarely looked this cool on film. From a guy who deems it necessary to make fun of LA’s lack of aesthetic virtue on a regular basis, I think this film (along with “Collateral” and “(500) Days of Summer”) did one of the best jobs of the decade portraying LA as a real, living, breathing city. Not a sprawling stretch of towns separated by one freeway after another, but a city. I may be biased because I've met the cinematographer and he was a super cool dude who ended up sending me a photo he took of me and the woman, but hey, such are my reasons. And there are writers out there who can give you the context of Shane Black’s, the film’s writer/director, return to Hollywood with this film better than I can. And it’s all pretty fascinating stuff. But I’m not going to do it. I’ll only say that I think Black scored the equivalent of an NBA triple double with this movie... only he did so after being drafted #1 overall by the Knicks and blowing out his knee for a couple years before eventually being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies.
7. City Of God (2002) - Fernando Mereilles - and the less credited Katia Lund - took the cinematic world by storm with this movie in the early half of the decade. But many critics have cooled on it in the intervening years; with some citing its inability to hold up over time. I suppose I can understand why someone might find it difficult to go back to this film over and over again like the most beloved of movies require you to do effortlessly. How dark this movie is... how depressing and infuriating. And perhaps after eight years of commercial copycats and imitators (*cough “Slumdog Millionaire” *cough), audiences have tired of the cinematic flourishes the directors unleashed. To be honest, I don’t feel as strongly about this film today as I did six years ago when I first saw it either.
But I still remember that initial impact. I’m still moved by Rocket’s childhood and attempt to escape the gang life around him. And I’m still wowed by the innovative and original way the film unfolds thanks to the creativity of its makers. I’m often annoyed by film critics who are quick to dismiss their original perceptions of a film, years after the fact. I understand why they do it... after all I’d be the first to say that re-watchability is a key factor in any movie’s candidacy for “classic” or “favorite” status. But I think it’s important to weigh how we feel about a movie the first time we see it as well. It’s the reason I defend “E.T.” or “Jurassic Park” so many years later and why I’ll more than likely be doing the same with “Avatar” five years from now. “City of God” requires no such defense... because whatever it might’ve lost in freshness (which I’d quantify unscientifically at no more than 8%), it makes up for in vitality of story, uniqueness of setting and ingenuity of perspective; which is a long way of saying I think it’s the “Mean Streets” of the decade.
6. Y Tu Mama Tambien / Millennium Mambo (2001) - Two of the best films to showcase disaffected youth as a metaphor for the uncertainty of the coming decade came, interestingly enough, from Mexico and Taiwan in 2001. Both Alfonso Cuaron and Hou Hsiao Hsien’s films are, in essence, coming of age stories; one in the form of a buddy road film through the Mexican countryside, the other in the form of an Ozu-esque urban drama set in Taipei. They both feature frustratingly immature characters... kids whose obnoxious selfishness would set the tone for a decade of technology-enabled, “I am the universe,” hipster, self-absorbption to come. Hello kettle, I'm pot.
And yet, it is entirely easy to empathize with the plight of these dickhead kids... on the cusp of adulthood, struggling to figure out themselves and their contextual place in a rapidly changing world. Their uncertainty about their future expressed a collective cultural hesitancy about the future at large. At least that was my feeling. I saw “Y Tu Mama” at the age of 23 and “Mambo” maybe a couple years later. While I won’t go so far as to claim that the two films perfectly reflected my own doubts at the time, they did speak loudly to the apprehensive aspects of my personality grappling with insecurity about my life’s direction.
Then there’s the filmmaking. Beautifully sun-washed, New Wave-styled handheld work from Cuaron, Halogen-saturated colors and precisely composed long takes from Hou. I’ve already written about how much I adore the opening shot of “Mambo” so I won’t go over it again here, but the long take handheld (really, no pun intended here) scene from “Y Tu Mama” where Tenoch comes into Luisa’s hotel room looking for shampoo? Yikes. Oh and by the way, I’m pretty sure this is obvious but Maribel Verdu and Shu Qi turned in two of the hottest-in-completely-different-ways performances from actresses this decade in these two films. Holy smokes.
Up next, the "Almost" List and a bunch of other reasons why movies were hugely important to me this past decade. Feel the excitement!
Ken Cheng
Los Angeles, CA
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