Ten Most Important Films of the Decade (Part One of Three)

With it being the end of the decade, I feel I have an obligation of sorts to create some form of “best of…” list. Hell, everyone seems to be doing it, so why can’t I? As much as I’d like to do a “best of…” for every film genre, I really don’t have the patience for that. So, due to my lack of patience, I have settled on one over reaching category to tackle and that category is the “Ten Most Important Films of this Decade”. Now, I must begin this with a few caveats. This list doesn’t represent my favorite films of the decade entirely. Certainly some of my favorites of this decade (and in many respects all time) make the list, but most of the films listed are films that I feel defined or will define the next decade in film making. Most importantly though, we must keep in mind such a list of this magnitude is subjective to my tastes and my own understanding of said films. So, I ask you not to get defensive over my selections. After all, it is a matter of opinion. Without further ado here is part one of my list:

-Memento: Christopher Nolan's first real break, "Memento" is a film that defied narrative expectations and in many respects, paved the path for other screenwriters to create a non-traditional screenplay that played with time and uses of memory. Instead of working with a basic narrative which propels the viewers and characters from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’, “Memento” works its way backward. The film focuses on a man (Guy Pierce) who is searching for his wife’s killer. Such a quest would seem easy if it wasn’t for Pierce’s character’s amnesia and short term memory loss, which forces him to keep track of information through notes, tattoos, etc. Because his loss of memory, he has to continually trek through his notes to understand the present. So, the ending of the film isn’t as important as is the trek Guy Pierce’s character takes. Having a narrative playback such as this is not only a clever gimmick, but it creates a film where the viewer themselves can seemingly experience the main character’s struggles with the ‘unknown’. With a rubrics cube like script, Nolan creates a rough around the edges film that plays like a detective film, but instead of merely having the character piece together the puzzle, the audience is actively engaging side by side with said character trying to understand how they got to where they are.

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbTMAffb0CA
Clip:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FdPYc2efxw

-Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind: This film is in a similar boat as “Memento” in the sense that it’s a film that constantly manipulates time. Yet, “Memento” is rather easier in the sense that it’s linear in its ‘playback’, where “Eternal…” is quite disjointed as its plot pertains to the erasing of memories. With many of the scenes switching back and forth between the “dream/memory” world and the real world, it’s a film that many viewers will have to see multiple times to fully understand. Such attentiveness from viewers should be expected for a film written by Charlie Kaufman, but I feel if anyone hasn’t seen this film, they’re missing out. Personally I feel this is the one of the best screenplays written in the history of film, let alone the decade. It truly reinvents the “boy meets girl” scenario; a scenario that has recently been hard to swallow because of how formulaic it has become in the realm of film. Even more so, the film’s understanding of a real relationship and their possible hiccups is very rewarding, especially considering the superficiality that can be see in many films that try to capture the many characteristics of a loving relationship. To match Kaufman's labyrinth dream-esque script, director Michel Gondry is able to create a beautifully stunning film, while still pulling out great performances and chemistry from his leads, Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet. Now, even though “Eternal…” is deeply rooted in a sci-fi like premise, it has an extreme amount of heart and soul that grounds it in reality, as well as offers a fresh look at love that many films before it simply failed to do.

Trailer1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GiLxkDK8sI
Trailer2: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x15asx_eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mi_blog
Clip:http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3z1co_eternal-sunshine-row-row-row-your-b_shortfilms

-There Will Be Blood: In my mind this is the nearly perfect film. Even though I feel it’s a very misunderstood film, ultimately it will find its place in the film history books (if they exist haha) from not only a production standpoint, but from a thematic standpoint. Through the direction and writing of Paul Thomas Anderson, the film creates layer upon layer of not only characterization, but also thematic elements that viewers can debate about till their heart is content. The film itself is also rather daring in many of its exploits. One such exploit is the protagonist Daniel Plainview, who is by no means a good human being. Most films are based around one protagonist whom we can connect with and ultimately cheer for, but that’s not the case with Mr. Plainview. He is an extremely cunning and deviant man who is slowly losing a battle with his own personal demons and in essence, comes to represent the very things we hate and try not to be. Having such a despicable character as your lead is a tough sell, but PTA pulls it off as he creates a character that is just as interesting and complex as he is dislikeable. Accompanying such a polarizing character is an astounding and rather groundbreaking score by Jonny Greenwood, which more than adequately captures the inner demons brewing within Plainview. Now when you take the aforementioned components above and match them with extremely beautiful cinematography, a controversial ending and a chameleon like performance by Daniel Day-Lewis, “There Will Be Blood” becomes a visceral and intense character study that captures the pitfalls of a man whose capitalistic ideals consume his soul. It is truly an American classic; one that redefines how we not only look at a period piece, but how we look at how a protagonist is defined.

Trailer:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8q3TVQeVdM
Clip:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwkP7Gnp7ek
Score: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HjWIr80ln4 and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSNGOpyWWOs