90. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006) - Director: Larry Charles - United States/United Kingdom
Say what you want about Sascha Baron Cohen, he is fearless. He will put his life in certain danger to get a laugh from the audience. His best character from his HBO series, Da Ali G Show, is the title character in this film, Borat, a Kazakh reporter in America making a documentary. Cohen really pushes the boundaries on his journey to find Pamela Anderson. He takes shots at everyone imaginable and takes no prisoners. It doesn't quite hold up after multiple viewings since the majority of the film is purely shock value, but it's well worth your time.
89. Slumdog Millionaire (2008) - Director: Danny Boyle - United Kingdom
No film in this decade benefited from word of mouth more than Slumdog Millionaire. It was the little indie film that could. The Bollywood-inspired movie is Danny Boyle's best film of the decade. A young Indian man wins the grand prize on India's version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Although the film doesn't really have a plausible plot, Boyle's visual style is enough of a reason to make the list.
88. The Orphanage (2007) - Director: Juan Antonio Bayona - Spain/Mexico
One of the best horror films of the decade was The Orphanage; a spooky Spanish import about a couple whose adoptive son disappears. Laura (Belén Rueda) believes that he was taken by a ghost of the orphanage that the house used to be. Bayona craftily builds suspense while scaring the audience along the way. He doesn't go for cheap tricks or pull from the bag of horror movie cliches. It's a smart thriller that will have you guessing until the very end.
87. Into the Wild (2007) - Director: Sean Penn - United States
Based on the critically acclaimed novel by John Krakauer, Into the Wild is the tale of Chris McCandless, a young college graduate who embarked on a journey into the American west. He travels across the desert and eventually makes it to Alaska where he attempts to live on the land. Emile Hirsch plays McCandless as a charismatic figure whose disillusion with society and idealism of the natural world drive him on his journey. He plays the character in an often maddening way, if not perverse. Along the way he meets characters played by Catherine Keener, Kristen Stewart, Vince Vaughn, and Hal Holbrook who gives the best supporting performance of the bunch. His parents and sister are played nicely by William Hurt, Marcia Gay Harden, and Jena Malone respectively. My only complaint is that director Penn paints him as a Messianic figure rather than as a disillusioned, yet foolish youth. But Penn's cinematography is beautiful; using the natural canvas of the American wilderness.
86. The Class (2008) - Director: Laurent Cantet - France
François Bégaudeau plays himself in this semi-autobiographical film about his experience as an inner-city teacher in Paris, an often difficult job. Bégaudeau is extremely convincing as a teacher having to deal with problem children in contemporary France. The film touches on the issue of race relations in post-colonial France. Many people of former French colonies now inhabit the country while trying to maintain their own heritage, which often causes conflicts with native French citizens and immigrants from other countries. All of the child actors are spot on as students of the class. The Class is extraordinarily authentic in its portrayal of modern education; something rarely seen.
85. Burn After Reading (2008) - Director: Joel and Ethan Coen - United States
After their dark thriller, No Country for Old Men, the Coen brothers went in a 180 with Burn After Reading. Featuring an ensemble cast of John Malkovich, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, Richard Jenkins, and Tilda Swinton, the film is a darkly comedic look into the world of espionage. The absurdity of the characters is what drive the film. Each is played in a peculiar characature. Although not the best effort of the Coens, or the funniest for that matter, this is still far funnier than the majority of comedies in this decade.
84. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - Director: Michael Gondry - United States
Jim Carey gives one of his best performances in this complex tale of love in a world where people can erase memories. Carey plays Joel, a man in love with Clementine--as in O' My Darlin'--portrayed in an equally impressive role by Kate Winslet. Slowly is their relationship dissected in a series of occurrences and flashbacks that continue to gather meaning. Clementine's memory is erased so Joel decides to so as well. It's an interesting look into the complexities of the brain and our ideas of love.
83. Inland Empire (2006) - Director: David Lynch - United States/Poland
As David Lynch has progressed as a filmmaker, his films have become increasingly bizarre to the point where you ask the question: Does he care about making a coherent plot anymore? Maybe he never did. His latest adventure into the surreal is Inland Empire. Laura Dern stars as an aging actress trying to land a roll in a film. The rest of the plot is almost indescribable, but yet somehow I was fascinated while watching it. Unlike a train wreck film, this is just to well made to be bad, but not concrete enough to be Lynch's best film. Still, it's just too damn fascinating not to recommend.
82. Waltz With Bashir (2008) - Director: Ari Folman - Israel
Animated films are typically in the same realm of children's' films, but Ari Folman's pseudo-documentary is anything but. Waltz With Bashir is based on interviews with people associated to Folman in his attempt to remember the Israeli-Lebanon Conflict. Slowly he pieces back repressed memories of the war. Although it's an anti-war film, it's refreshing coming from people closely associated with war that Americans aren't accustomed to. Israel has perpetually been involved with some sort of conflict since its birth. The animation is perfectly crafted to suit the story.
81. Tell No One (2006) - Director: Guillaume Canet - France
A French pediatrician receives an email showing video footage that his wife, who is presumed dead, is still alive. The email warns him to "tell no one." Simultaneously he is implicated in several murders, including that of his wife. He attempts to clear his name and solve the shrouded mystery of his wife's death. Tell No One is a taut thriller that evokes memories of the underrated The Fugitive. François Cluzet gives a strong performance in the lead role. Director Canet keeps the film within as certain plausibility even though it has several plot twists. He keeps you hooked until the very last detail is unraveled leaving myself unable to figure out the ending before it happened. This is one murder mystery worth seeing.
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