It often takes a while before a movie can be considered a classic, but some movies from the 2010s should already be treated as such. The phrase"instant classic"often gets bandied about, but this is merely a prediction. To count as a classic, a movie has to withstand the test of time. Plenty of movies receive critical acclaim upon release. Only a few of these movies are still watched and discussed decades later.
Somemovies from the 2010s have influenced cinemaalready, pushing the boundaries of their genres and pioneering new styles. Directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan and Wes Anderson all created some of their best work in the 2010s. However, a classic movie is measured by more than just its impact. It also needs to be extremely popular, even years after release. For some movies from the 2010s, it’s too soon to tell how time will treat them, but others have already achieved iconic status.
BeforeGet Out,Jordan Peele was best known as a sketch comedian and an impressionist. Not many people could have anticipated that he would soon revolutionize the horror genre with one of the most original and confident directorial debuts of the 21st century.Get Outwas an instant hit, and it joined the exclusive club of horror movies to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Peele’s clear reverence for the horror genre goes hand-in-hand with his razor-sharp satire of the American sociopolitical landscape.
Get Outheralded a new dawn for the social horror movie, with Peele’s clear reverence for the horror genre going hand-in-hand with his razor-sharp satire of the American sociopolitical landscape.Get Out’s original concept is fascinating from the very beginning, but Peele’s script has enough momentum to keep delivering twists and turns until the end.Get Outalso has enough hidden detailsand layers to make multiple rewatches worthwhile.
Ted Chiang’sStory of Your Lifeis a fascinating meditation on the way that language shapes our experience of the world around us, andArrivalproves to be a worthy film adaptation, released 18 years after the story’s initial publication. Screenwriter Eric Heisserer does an outstanding job of translating the story’s essence onto the screen, with an intriguing non-linear timeline that facilitates a hugely satisfying twist.
It takes a lot to create truly jaw-dropping imagery in an era where CGI has allowed filmmakers to conjure whatever comes into their minds.
Denis Villeneuve is a director with an eye for sci-fi spectacle, as he has also shown inBlade Runner 2049and theDunemovies. InArrival,he makes the aliens and their spacecraft look both foreboding and strangely inviting. It takes a lot to create truly jaw-dropping imagery in an era where CGI has allowed filmmakers to conjure whatever comes into their minds, but Villeneuve has a special talent.
It took far longer than it should have for a non-English language movie to win Best Picture, butParasitewas an undoubtedly worthy winner. Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece is a dark comedy and a psychological thriller rolled into one, with a gripping story and some heavy subject matter that somehow makes its jokes even funnier. AlthoughParasiteis about social inequality in Korea, it’s relevant to audiences all over the world.
Parasite’s social commentary is keyed into the most important socioeconomic debates of the 21st century, and yet it feels vital and entertaining in a way that art films about social issues often fail to achieve.
Parasitehas earned its place in film history with its Oscar win, but it should be remembered for much more than this record. The movie’s social commentary is keyed into the most important socioeconomic debates of the 21st century, and yet it feels vital and entertaining in a way that art films about social issues often fail to achieve. Thanks toParasite’s outstanding cast, led by frequent Bong collaborator Song Kang-ho, the story can balance humor with deeply unsettling horror.
Darren Aronofsky’s movieshave been rather polarizing since the remarkable success ofBlack Swan. Noah, MotherandThe Whalehave each earned just as much criticism as praise, butBlack Swanmanaged to combine commercial success with critical acclaim. The psychological drama has a superb script, but it is buoyed by Natalie Portman’s career-defining performance as a ballerina who sacrifices her health and her sanity for greatness.
Just as Nina leaps and pirouettes herself into a state of intense anxiety,Black Swanseeks to carry its audience into a state of perplexing psychological unrest.
It’s hard not to get swept away in the breathless haze ofBlack Swan.Just as Nina leaps and pirouettes herself into a state of intense anxiety,Black Swanseeks to carry its audience into a state of perplexing psychological unrest. The result is an intoxicating atmosphere that perfectly conveys Nina’s troubled psyche, and the audience becomes an active participant in questioning her reality.
As his career has developed, Wes Anderson has become known for his huge ensemble casts, his complex comedic plots, and his idiosyncratic visual style. All three of these elements reached their artistic peak inThe Grand Budapest Hotel,Wes Anderson’s best movieboth commercially and critically. The story follows the tussle over a priceless painting just as the storm clouds of war start to gather in a fictional European nation.
Anderson’s dialogue is just the tip of the iceberg. He can also get a laugh from a camera movement, a needle drop, or an astutely timed silence.
Anderson’s movies are usually classified by a sense of whimsy, but they inevitably hide a much more serious and impactful story just below the surface.The Grand Budapest Hoteloffers more than just its picture book charms. The story focuses on the ways that optimism and grace can be ripped away from a person, but it does so in a way that is consistently hilarious. Anderson’s dialogue is just the tip of the iceberg. He can also get a laugh from a camera movement, a needle drop, or an astutely timed silence.
In the 30 years betweenMad Max: Beyond ThunderdomeandFury Road,George Miller produced twoHappy Feetmovies and twoBabemovies. He quickly showed that he hadn’t missed a step in the action genre, delivering an instant classic that arguably surpassed his originalMad Maxtrilogy. Tom Hardy takes on the role of Max Rockatansky, and he delivers an intense performance without much dialogue.
Mad Max: Fury Roadis one of the most exciting action movies of the 2010s, thanks to a masterful blend of practical effects and flawless CGI.
Mad Max: Fury Roadis one of the most exciting action movies of the 2010s, thanks to a masterful blend of practical effects and flawless CGI.The stunts carry a shocking, gut-punch impact, but they’re also incredibly inventive. Some of the details inFury Roadare never explained, like the stilted figures stalking the wasteland, but they all flesh out the world of theMad Maxfranchise.
La La Landis a throwback to the classic musicals of Old Hollywood, but its story is firmly rooted in the modern age, as two lovers find themselves pulled in opposite directions by their conflicting career goals. Damien Chazelle’s script examines the sacrifices that people make for love, and it questions whether romance still holds the same weight in a world where people are taught to focus on themselves.
AlthoughLa La Landhas some great musical numbers, it is just as captivating in its quiet moments.
Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone have worked together a few times, and their delightful chemistry makesLa La Landsing. Although the movie has some great musical numbers, aided by the exquisite choreography, it is just as captivating in its quiet moments.La La Land’s emotional endingis only as heartbreaking as it is thanks to the believable relationship between Gosling and Stone.
After a string of hits in the 2000s includingFinding Nemo, The IncrediblesandRatatouille, Pixar started the next decade in equally impressive form. By returning to the franchise which started it all for the studio, Pixar generated a lot of hype forToy Story 3.Somehow, Buzz and Woody’s third adventure lived up to these high expectations. It has since been recognized as one ofPixar’s best movies, andone of the best animated movies of the decade.
Toy Story 3immediately benefited from its iconic characters, but it also gave them a story which was worthwhile.
Toy Story 3immediately benefited from its iconic characters, but it also gave them a story which was worthwhile. At the time, it seemed as though theToy Storyfranchise would end as a trilogy, andToy Story 3sent the characters off in the best way possible. It provides a bittersweet finale after one last grand adventure, packed with laughs and some memorable new characters.
Six years before the Oscar-winning success ofOppenheimer, Christopher Nolan directed another Second World War story. The retreat from Dunkirk holds a special place in the British cultural memory, and it is held up as an example of the nation’s pluck and unity. Nolan’s movie presents the story with the full weight of his prowess for cinematic spectacle, combining a tense score with some stunning imagery.
Nolan’s movies are known for their experimental story structures, butDunkirkkeeps things more simple.
Nolan’s movies are known for their experimental story structures, butDunkirkkeeps things more simple. It tells the story of Operation Dynamo from land, sea and sky, providing a few glimpses into some of the incredible personal stories which add up to the historic event.Dunkirkis breathlessly tense and choreographed with expert precision, making it feel like a new and exciting take on the war genre.
The Western genre has always had its eyes on the past, but Quentin Tarantino’sDjango Unchainedtells a period story through a modern lens. While other Western directors may have been inspired by tales of the Old West, Tarantino makes no secret of his passion for the genre. He is inspired by Western movies, rather than the real stories or the history that inspired them.Django Unchainedis a remix of classic Westerns, in the same way thatInglourious Basterdspresents a fantasy war movie with barely any real-life context.
Tarantino revels in the gruff style and gunslinging action of the setting, but the story is an anti-racist revenge fantasy.
Django Unchainedis historically inaccurate, and proudly so. It’s a classic Western seen through the lens of 21st century sensibilities. Tarantino revels in the gruff style and gunslinging action of the setting, but the story is an anti-racist revenge fantasy. Django’s odyssey is a violent rebuttal of the way that Westerns often brush over the absence of Black characters, ignoring the gruesome history that brought them to America. WithinDjango Unchained’s racial allegory, there are plenty of fine performances, including an Oscar-winning turn from Christoph Waltz.
