Top Ten Films of 2003
2003 is a year when Yugoslavia was no longer the name of a country or region. A 100 million dollar jewelry heist happens in Italy. The Iraq war begins. Many other things. You know how years work.
It is a year for film where the top ten is once again full of sequels and franchises along with one comedy (Bruce Almighty). Arnold Schwarzenegger is the governor of California. It’s a weird time. The weirdest really. It continued to get more normal and okay for everyone from here on.
It’s not a great year for movies. It is good, but not great. I recommend every movie in this top 25 though.
11-25
American Splendor (Directed by Shari Springer Berman & Robert Pulcini)
Big Fish (Directed by Tim Burton)
Bruce Almighty (Directed by Tom Shadyac)
Coffee and Cigarettes (Directed by Jim Jarmusch)
Elf (Directed by Jon Favreau)
Finding Nemo (Directed by Andrew Stanton)
Intolerable Cruelty (Coen Brothers) - HBO
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (Directed by Peter Weir) - Hulu
Matchstick Men (Directed by Ridley Scott)
Owning Mahoney (Directed by Richard Kwietniowski)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (Directed by Gore Verbinski)
Scary Movie 3 (Directed by David Zucker) - HBO
The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Directed by Peter Jackson) - HBO
Time of the Wolf (Directed by Michael Haneke)
Under the Tuscan Sun (Directed by Audrey Wells)
top ten
10. Elephant (Directed by Gus Van Sant)
A movie that gets more relevant as time goes on. A slow cinema classic of uneasy tension created by the fact of what you know going in. Gus Van Sant is a filmmaker of incredible highs, and for some, very shallow lows. He is always interesting to me and I love having him here to start.
9. Capturing the Friedmans (Directed by Andrew Jarecki) - HBO
A documentary that does make you wonder about the facts and how we are presented with the news. It is clear to me what is happening, but even asking the question feels necessary and maybe dangerous for those who can’t handle it. While not something anyone needs to run out and see, any true crime lovers should check it out. One of the original fascinating true life documentaries about a hard subject to talk about.
8. A Mighty Wind (Directed by Christopher Guest) - Hulu
This will probably be the last one of these on my lists. Guest had an incredible run from Guffman to this. I love these people and this one is slightly more earnest and sweet than his others. It reminds me of my family in good and bad ways. It is also hilarious and you should watch all these you can.
7. Mystic River (Directed Clint Eastwood)
Sean Penn is always ACTING but it works for me in this. Tim Robbins is my weak link, as usual, and Kevin Bacon, Lawrence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, Laura Linney, and the rest keep it going. Clint is a director I usually like and just makes solid movies.
6. Open Range (Directed Kevin Costner) - HBO
I don’t like Costner very much but this is my favorite of his work. Just an old fashioned slow western about living in the west and making choices. He probably felt like this was his Lonesome Dove. I watch at least 30 minutes of it anytime it’s on. Robert Duvall and Annette Bening are the standouts.
5. Oldboy (Directed by Park Chan-wook) - Shudder
One of the first really messed up movies I saw when I started getting into movies a little more. I wish everyone could see it and just appreciate how glorious the filmmaking and plot is. Spike Lee remade it and it might be his worst movie, but it’s worth it for Samuel L. Jackson’s performance alone pretty much. There is a fight scene in this that is one of the best of all time and it’s not even a fight movie.
4. The Hunted (Directed by William Friedkin)
Not a movie that would be on any other lists I would assume. It is a Major Classic and that’s about it. I love it. Benicio Del Toro and Tommy Lee Jones as student and mentor in a PTSD movie about close knife combat. It has elements of The Fugitive with the “war is hell but the real challenge is coming home” stuff. I love it. I’ve seen it more than most movies.
3. School of Rock (Directed by Richard Linklater) - HBO
A movie I underestimate and then watch again and remember it is a pure joy with so much depth. Great kid performances, which is rare, and the supporting cast is so fun. I really like Mike White scripts and I think the name Ned Schneebly is one of the great comedy names of all time.
2. Lost in Translation (Directed by Sofia Coppola)
Her most famous and beloved movie for a reason. Scar Jo and Bill Murray are so quiet and fantastic in a movie about loneliness and finding your person in a sea of confusion. Sofia is one of the best at showing how privilege can distort reality and create skeletons of a life for people. You don’t need to feel bad for them, but hey! rich people, just like us. A genre I don’t like, but she nails it in a way that transcends my misgivings.
1. Kill Bill Vol. 1 (Directed by Quentin Tarantino)
Not much to say here. One of the best filmmakers borrowing and ripping off all his old favorites and making it his own. Incredible fight sequences centered on women, his great dialogue, and a story that you can actually care about. The cast is great from Uma to the smallest supporting role. I would’ve loved to have seen his 3+ hour epic he originally had but getting two parts is even better. He may consider it one film, but for the sake of my lists we will do 2.