25 movies for 2025

the best movies of the century (SO FAR) (IN MY OPINION)

Devoted GATM readers will recall that I am an avid listener of The Big Picture (#DobbMob). Recently, the show embarked on a new “25 for ‘25” series, where hosts Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins make their picks for the 25 best movies of the century so far.

In addition to introducing me to the wonders of Michael Clayton, the series got my gears turning on the movies that I would pick as the best of the century ****IN MY OPINION!!!**** Plus, I won’t be able to write a Superman review until later next week, and I needed something to work on in the meantime. So here we are!

Besides the fact that all of the movies must have been released this century, the only rule is that you can only pick one film per director. So yeah, I think Inglorious Basterds is one of the best movies of the century, and yeah, Death Proof is a cinematic masterpiece, but I could only pick one Tarantino film, so… Well, you’ll see.

A few final notes:

• This list is in chronological order, but Little Women is my number one.

• Obviously there are many more great 21st-century movies than the ones I listed, including some obvious ones that I still need to watch (Parasite, Phantom Thread, Moonlight, etc), which brings me to my final point. ⬇️

• By reading this post you sign away your legal right to get mad at me.

Ok, that’s it! Enjoy, and if not, you can reach my lawyer at (505) 842-5662.

Cecil B. Demented (2000)

I saw this on a whim on 35mm at my local rep theater, and holy shit — it’s actually insane how well Cecil B. Demented predicted the current state of mainstream cinema. Both an affectionate satire of independent filmmaking and a celebration of found film families, this is a must-watch for anyone who loves movies.

I FUCKING HATE FORREST GUMP!

Legally Blonde (2001)

In addition to burning the cardinal rule of perm maintenance in the minds of millions, Legally Blonde is, in my opinion, a perfect movie. Reese Witherspoon’s Elle Woods is a wonderful protagonist: an unapologetically positive girl’s girl who never lets her femininity count against her credibility and perseverance. Oz Perkins as David Kidney, you will always be famous!

If you're going to let one stupid prick ruin your life... you're not the girl I thought you were.

Ocean’s Eleven (2001)

Never forget that movies used to look like this. Movies used to have George Clooney robbing a casino alongside a motley crew of thieves, and they used to have Julia Roberts, and they used to look like this. (Actually, if you watch Black Bag, they still sorta look like this.)

Rusty: You scared?

Linus: You suicidal?

Rusty: Only in the morning.

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

I put off watching Brokeback Mountain for a long time, mostly because I was scared of how much it would emotionally devastate me — and it definitely delivered on that front. (Jack’s monologue to Ennis toward the end of the movie knocked the wind out of me.) But I was most surprised and struck by how much empathy this movie has for the women left in the wreckage of Ennis and Jack’s doomed love story. Anne Hathaway on that final phone call… woof.

Tell you what... the truth is... sometimes I miss you so much I can hardly stand it.

True Grit (2010)

I dream of a glorious future where we all wake up one day and recognize True Grit as the most underrated — and maybe even the best — Coen Brothers movie. I mean, my god, they nailed everything, even replicating the goof from the original film where Mattie and her horse stay completely dry despite crossing a river. The ending took my breath away when I first saw it on the big screen at age 12, and it still takes my breath away.

I do not entertain hypotheticals. The world as it is is vexing enough.

Frances Ha (2012)

A moment of radical honesty: I had pretty low expectations for Frances Ha just because I thought the name was weird. But when I finally watched it, I was blown away by a painfully relatable portrait of figuring yourself out in your late 20s. And what can I say? I’ll always love movies where New York City is a character.

It's that thing when you're with someone, and you love them and they know it, and they love you and you know it... but it's a party... and you're both talking to other people, and you're laughing and shining... and you look across the room and catch each other's eyes... but — but not because you're possessive, or it's precisely sexual... but because... that is your person in this life.

Nightcrawler (2014)

Tony Gilroy has been getting all of the hype lately for Andor, but Dan Gilroy was absolutely cooking with Nightcrawler — his debut feature! Not to mention the absolutely unhinged performance from Jake Gyllenhaal. Similar to NOPE, I think this one will only get more relevant as we descend further and further into the hellscape of sensationalized media and late-stage capitalism.

Who am I? I'm a hard worker. I set high goals and I've been told that I'm persistent.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

I’ve already written about my love for Wes Anderson’s more recent films, but The Grand Budapest Hotel is — in my opinion — his masterpiece. Visually stunning with a wistful, ultimately hopeful emotional core, I consider this a holy text for the nostalgic girlies.

You see, there are still faint glimmers of civilization left in this barbaric slaughterhouse that was once known as humanity. Indeed that's what we provide in our own modest, humble, insignificant... oh, fuck it.

Gone Girl (2014)

This was a close call with The Social Network and Zodiac also in contention as the Fincher entry, but I ultimately just enjoy Gone Girl a lot more. Obviously Rosamund Pike crushes it as our sociopathic mother Amy Dunne, but Ben Affleck using his inherent aloofness in the ultimate portrayal of Just Some Guy… that’s cinema.

I killed for you; who else can say that? You think you'd be happy with a nice Midwestern girl? No way, baby! I'm it.

The VVitch (2015)

I loved Nosferatu and The Lighthouse, but I still think Robert Eggers’ first movie is his best. The use of old English and purely natural lighting infuse The VVitch with eerie folk horror authenticity. And that ending? God, I wish that were me.

Black Phillip: What dost thou want?

Thomasin: What canst thou give?

Mad Max Fury Road (2015)

Duh. Everything about Mad Max Fury Road rocks, but I’ll take this opportunity to shout out editor (and wife of director George Miller) Margaret Sixel. It’s actually insane that this was her first time ever cutting an action movie, and she deserved the hell out of that Oscar for it.

(George, I’m sorry everyone let you down with Furiosa. I saw it twice, so don’t blame me.)

We are not things!

La La Land (2016)

Sometimes I lie and say that I understand why people dislike La La Land, but to be honest: I don’t get it. An ode to classic Hollywood musicals with stunning visuals, catchy songs, and two great lead performances? Don’t mind if I do! The ending of this movie emotionally pummeled me into crying in my local Amstar bathroom for 5 straight minutes.

I'm letting life hit me until it gets tired. Then I'll hit back. It's a classic rope-a-dope.

Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

With Roger Deakins behind the camera, it’s no surprise that Blade Runner 2049 looks godly. But what I find truly stunning about this movie is how it both honors and elevates the original. Ryan Gosling turns in an incredible performance as K, a replicant, and my favorite part of the film is his relationship with his AI holographic girlfriend, Joi (Ana de Armas). (Mark that as the only time I will speak of AI in a positive tone.)

Sometimes to love someone, you got to be a stranger.

Knives Out (2019)

Knives Out is a damn good time at the movies, in no small part thanks to Daniel Craig’s Foghorn Leghorn voice. It’s twisty and turny, beautifully shot, and boasts great performances to boot. And yeah, Rian Johnson lost the plot a little bit with The Glass Onion, but I really believe in the promise of Wake Up Dead Man. Save me, Josh O’Connor as a hot priest!

I spoke in the car about the hole at the center of this doughnut. And yes, what you and Harlan did that fateful night seems at first glance to fill that hole perfectly. A doughnut hole in the doughnut's hole. But we must look a little closer. And when we do, we see that the doughnut hole has a hole in its center — it is not a doughnut hole at all but a smaller doughnut with its own hole, and our doughnut is not whole at all!

Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (2019)

I agonized over which Tarantino movie to include on this list, and I can admit that I have a little extra love for Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood since it was the first of his films that I saw. But I truly adore this movie’s portrait of the Golden Age of Hollywood, and even more so, I love how it gives Sharon Tate the happy ending she was robbed of in real life.

When you come to the end of the line, with a buddy who is more than a brother and a little less than a wife, getting blind drunk together is really the only way to say farewell.

Little Women (2019)

It’s impossible for me to describe my love for Little Women in a single paragraph, but aside from my personal devotion, it’s undoubtedly one of the best literary adaptations ever put to film. Not to mention Greta Gerwig’s masterful redemption of Amy March! Still, even if I’m an Amy Sun, I’m a Jo Moon, and the attic scene will be etched into my brain until the day I die.

Women, they have minds, and they have souls, as well as just hearts. And they've got ambition, and they've got talent, as well as just beauty. I'm so sick of people saying that love is just all a woman is fit for. I'm so sick of it. But I’m so lonely.

Soul (2020)

Probably the last time Pixar had any sauce, Soul had the unfortunate fate of getting thrown on Disney+ during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. I think it should be required viewing for any artist or creative, and it deserved way better than it got.

Jerry: So what do you think you'll do? How are you gonna spend your life?

Joe: I'm not sure. But I do know... I'm going to live every minute of it.

Top Gun Maverick (2022)

Say what you will about Top Gun Maverick and the impractical form of football they play on the beach, but it’s a technical marvel — not to mention a total blast. Plus, it kinda saved movies. Everyone say thank you, Tom Cruise!

Iceman: One last thing, who's the better pilot, you or me?

Maverick: This is a nice moment, let's not ruin it.

NOPE (2022)

I humbly submit to you: NOPE as Jordan Peele’s neo-Western masterpiece. I’m sure someday I’ll write a whole post breaking down the themes: the danger of spectacle, the exploitation of nature and people for profit, the significance of cutie Brandon Perea, etc. For now, I’ll say that I couldn’t get this movie out of my head for weeks after I first saw it, and I still find myself thinking about it sometimes. (And no sound design Oscar nom? Ok.)

This dream you're chasing, where you end up at the top of the mountain, all eyes on you... it's the dream you never wake up from.

Perfect Days (2023)

I went into Perfect Days blind, not expecting this quiet, introspective film about appreciating the beauty in the mundane to affect me as much as it did. Grounded by a wonderful Kōji Yakusho performance, this one is destined for a bright future as a regular in my comfort watch rotation.

Next time is next time. Now is now.

The Holdovers (2023)

Lovingly crafted to look and feel like it was made in the 1970s, The Holdovers is an instant Christmas classic. (The detail of Mr. Hunham’s lazy eye changing eyes throughout the movie… chef’s kiss.) Paul Giamatti is characteristically wonderful, and I’m sure we’ll be seeing plenty of Dominic Sessa in the future, but Da’Vine Joy Randolph absolutely steals the show.

“Meditations'“ by Marcus Aurelius. For my money, it's like the Bible, the Koran, and the Bhagavad Gita all rolled up into one. And the best part is not one mention of God.

Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)

Man, 2023 really was a killer year for movies (pun obviously intended). Killers of the Flower Moon rocked my world — especially that ending scene — and I believe that as we continue to assess Martin Scorsese’s ongoing legacy of filmmaking, this will prove to be one of his great works. At the very least, we owe it a debt of gratitude for elevating Lily Gladstone (WHO DESERVED THE BEST ACTRESS OSCAR… I hate you Poor Things).

Ernest Burkhart: You know, you got, you got nice color skin. What color would you say that is?

Mollie Burkhart: My color.

Oppenheimer (2023)

At my core, I am a Tenet (2020) enjoyer. But if I’m only picking one Nolan movie for this list, I think it has to be Oppenheimer. A masterpiece both in terms of craft and message, I suspect this is a movie that will only get more and more disturbingly prescient in hindsight. I don’t think Paul Schrader was exaggerating when he called it “the best, most important film of this century.”¹

Amateurs seek the sun. Get eaten. Power stays in the shadows.

Past Lives (2023)

One of the great works of the Yearner Cinema genre, Past Lives is so good that it made everyone go insane when Materialists was just Fine. It’s beautifully shot, insightful, and equal parts aching and hopeful. This dialogue will be ringing in my ears — and sitting on my coffee table in the A24 screenplay book — forever:

But the truth I learned here is, you had to leave because you're you. And the reason I liked you is because you're you. And who you are is a person who leaves. But for him, you're the person who stays.

Civil War (2024)

It took me a long time to forgive Alex Garland for the absolute atrocity that is Men (2022), but war is over. Besides the civil war happening in this movie, anyway. I know Civil War wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but to me, it’s a harrowing and thought-provoking portrayal of combat journalism. (Highly recommend reading this breakdown of Garland’s streak as an anti-war filmmaker for more!)

Joel: There has to be some mistake. We're American, right?

Soldier: Okay. What kind of American are you?

1. ‘Oppenheimer’ Is the ‘Best’ and ‘Most Important Film of This Century,’ Raves Paul Schrader: ‘This One Blows the Door Off the Hinges’