Defining Era
THE 2000S
PRESTIGE AND THE PIXEL
DV brought the camera to every kid with a dream. Studios bet bigger, longer, louder, and the prestige era began.
2000 — 2009
13,264
Films Catalogued
64.3
Avg Master Score
6.0
Avg IMDb
TAKASHI MIIKE
Top Director
117
Oscar-Winning
The Defining Three
ESSENTIAL VIEWING
Top-ranked by master score. If you only saw three films from this decade, these are the three.
Filter the List
13,264/13,264 films
Master Score
Awards
Showing 60 of 13,264
01
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2003 · Peter Jackson · 11 Oscars
93.8
02Like Stars on Earth
2007 · Aamir Khan
92.8
03The Best of Youth
2003 · Marco Tullio Giordana
92.4
04Slumdog Millionaire
2008 · Danny Boyle, Loveleen Tandan · 8 Oscars
92.4
05Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father
2008 · Kurt Kuenne
92.3
06Memories of Murder
2003 · Bong Joon Ho
92.0
07Howl's Moving Castle
2004 · Hayao Miyazaki · 1 nom
91.1
08The Station Agent
2003 · Tom McCarthy
90.9
09A Dog's Will
2000 · Guel Arraes
90.8
10The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
2007 · Seth Gordon
90.7
11C.R.A.Z.Y.
2005 · Jean-Marc Vallée
90.5
12The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
2001 · Peter Jackson · 4 Oscars
90.5
13Catch Me If You Can
2002 · Steven Spielberg · 2 noms
90.3
14The Wrestler
2008 · Darren Aronofsky · 2 noms
90.0
15The Orphanage
2007 · J.A. Bayona
89.9
163-Iron
2004 · Kim Ki-duk
89.9
173 Idiots
2009 · Rajkumar Hirani
89.9
18Downfall
2004 · Oliver Hirschbiegel · 1 nom
89.7
19Shaun of the Dead
2004 · Edgar Wright
89.7
20Before Sunset
2004 · Richard Linklater · 1 nom
89.7
21Touching the Void
2003 · Kevin Macdonald
89.7
22Tokyo Godfathers
2003 · Satoshi Kon, Shôgo Furuya
89.6
23Head-On
2004 · Fatih Akin
89.6
24Gran Torino
2008 · Clint Eastwood
89.6
25Lage Raho Munna Bhai
2006 · Rajkumar Hirani
89.6
26Garden State
2004 · Zach Braff
89.5
27Tupac: Resurrection
2003 · Lauren Lazin · 1 nom
89.4
28REC
2007 · Jaume Balagueró, Paco Plaza
89.4
29Mind Game
2004 · Masaaki Yuasa, Kôji Morimoto
89.2
30Chak De! India
2007 · Shimit Amin
89.1
31Turtles Can Fly
2004 · Bahman Ghobadi
89.0
32Hot Fuzz
2007 · Edgar Wright
89.0
33Memento
2000 · Christopher Nolan · 2 noms
89.0
34The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
2002 · Peter Jackson · 2 Oscars
89.0
35The Man Without a Past
2002 · Aki Kaurismäki · 1 nom
88.9
36Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
2000 · Ang Lee · 4 Oscars
88.9
37Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War
2004 · Kang Je-kyu
88.8
38Superbad
2007 · Greg Mottola
88.8
39Nine Queens
2000 · Fabián Bielinsky
88.8
40Joint Security Area
2000 · Park Chan-wook
88.7
41The Lizard
2004 · Kamal Tabrizi
88.7
42A Time for Drunken Horses
2000 · Bahman Ghobadi
88.7
43The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
2009 · Niels Arden Oplev
88.6
44Oldboy
2003 · Park Chan-wook
88.6
45Earthlings
2005 · Shaun Monson
88.6
46Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
2004 · Alfonso Cuarón · 2 noms
88.5
47Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.
2003 · Rajkumar Hirani
88.3
48The Corporation
2003 · Mark Achbar, Jennifer Abbott
88.2
49Taken
2008 · Pierre Morel
88.2
5028 Days Later
2002 · Danny Boyle
88.1
51Bloody Sunday
2002 · Paul Greengrass
88.1
52Capturing the Friedmans
2003 · Andrew Jarecki · 1 nom
88.1
53Battle Royale
2000 · Kinji Fukasaku
88.1
54Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior
2003 · Prachya Pinkaew
88.0
55Rang De Basanti
2006 · Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
88.0
56District 9
2009 · Neill Blomkamp · 4 noms
88.0
57The Others
2001 · Alejandro Amenábar
87.9
58The Descent
2005 · Neil Marshall
87.9
59Conspiracy
2001 · Frank Pierson
87.9
60Super Size Me
2004 · Morgan Spurlock · 1 nom
87.9
Continue the Timeline
THE NEXT CHAPTER
A hundred years of cinema in eleven decade-shaped chunks. Step forward, step back, or jump straight to the era you want.
Step Back
THE 1990S
INDIE GOES MAINSTREAM
Tarantino at Cannes, Miramax at the Oscars, Sundance in every agent's calendar. The decade indie became its own industry.
Step Forward
THE 2010S
STREAMING EATS THEATRICAL
Netflix and Marvel ate the schedule. Cinemas held the line with auteurs, festivals, and the longest tail in history.