1980 THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (Kershner) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Not my favorite Star War (that would be "The Last Jedi," which—spoilers—isn't my favorite movie of 2017) but still this is the one that sets down the blueprint that all following Star Wars (and all other big tentpole movies for that matter) would chase, and which TLJ movie would so lovingly subvert. Nothing's out of place here; 77's Star Wars laid down the blueprint; this first sequel expands it to epic scope.

Also Notable: The Shining, Airplane

1981 MY DINNER WITH ANDRE (Malle) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐
Couldn't have a more dramatic shift from Star Wars to this; a tribute to human engagement. Even a single conversation over a single meal can be epic if the topics are epic. I will show you fear in cailles aux raisins, existential ennui in terrine de poisson, and exponentially expanding hope for the human spirit in three sprigs of asparagus. Those who know Wallace Shawn only as Toy Story's T-Rex and "inconceivable!" should seek this out.

Also notable: Thief

1982 KOYAANISQATSI (Reggio) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Phillip Glass music is
Phillip Glass music is
Phillip Glass music is
Phillip Glass music is
Phillip Glass music is
Phillip Glass music is
almost trance inducing stuff
almost trance inducing stuff
almost trance inducing stuff
almost trance inducing stuff
almost trance inducing stuff
almost trance inducing stuff

Joking aside, this movie elevates montage into an essay of growing power. See it.

Also notable: The Thing

1983 TRADING PLACES (Landis) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My favorite Eddie Murphy comedy, I think, and a genuinely sharp political satire. It's been a minute since I gave it a look but it feels like it will age very well, especially by 1980s standards. Lookin' good, Billy Ray.

(Fun fact: I watched this on an airplane age 10 on the way back to the U.S. from Africa, and if it hadn't been the edited version, it would have probably changed my life forever.)

Also Notable: Strange Brew (yes, that's right eh?)

1984 STOP MAKING SENSE (Demme) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
My favorite concert movie is this Talking Heads number, which starts with a single man mic and guitar, and expands into an event of pure coordinated perfection communal musical joy. Jonathan Demme captures the live wire energy in cinematic fashion, making sure to put the *movie* into "concert movie."

Also notable: Paris, Texas; Blood Simple

1985 BRAZIL (Gilliam) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
Terry Gilliam's pitch-black absurdist comedy released a year after the title date of Orwell's famed dystopia, reimagining that vision with an authoritarian capitalist state, beset by a manufactured fear of terrorists, violently opposed to repair, committed to the benefit of a shrinking minority of elites (a mystery why this resonates with me). Because reality runs on irony, he was forced to add a happy ending; avoid this at all costs.

Also notable: A Room With A View

1986 SOMETHING WILD (Demme) ️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
Something of a high water mark for the director (depending on how you feel about "The Silence of the Lambs") and most of his principles ("Goodfellas" arguably aside). With the sharp dialogue and the breezy tone, almost plays like modern screwball until it performs one of cinema's defter 3rd act left turns. Griffith avoids manic pixie dream girl tropes by finding some femme fatale.

Also notable: Stand By Me; The Color of Money; Ferris Bueller's Day Off

1987 RAISING ARIZONA (Coen & Coen) ⭐️⭐️⭐⭐⭐
Seeing this gonzo masterpiece at age 12 kicked off my movie obsession. The pre-credits scene is one of the great short films of all time, and the hilarious and deceptively emotionally resonant feature that follows pays it off. I don't know what else to say; it's my favorite film from my favorite active filmmakers, and I'm imprinted on it like a baby bird. Awful good cereal flakes, Mrs. McDunnough.

Also notable: The Princess Bride; Moonstruck

1988 BULL DURHAM (Shelton) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
One of the best modern-era romantic comedies doubles as the best sports movie, full stop. I've never spent a day playing baseball at any level but something about every moment on the field, dugout, and locker room feels authentic (Tim Robbins' apparently atrocious throwing mechanics aside) without scrimping on the laughs. Not only funny, but wistful without being mawkish; Susan Sarandon's Annie Savoy might call it "elegiac."

Also notable: My Neighbor Totoro

1989 DO THE RIGHT THING (Lee)⭐️⭐️⭐⭐⭐
Still vital, still challenging, and more relevant than ever. A movie designed to expose its audience's priorities—which is not to suggest that it's merely a polemic. Filled with vibrant characters and dialogue, gorgeously shot, brilliantly acted; scene by scene a neighborhood is built ... which makes the slow build to its seemingly avoidable and yet somehow inevitable tragedy all the more terrible. (Quick: name the tragedy.)

Also notable: Henry V

1990 MILLER'S CROSSING ⭐️⭐️⭐⭐⭐(Coen & Coen)
The Coens return! This gangland tale is a pastiche but manages to achieve escape velocity from its many influences. The pleasures of the triple-hardboiled script are obvious, but there's a bleeding heart beneath. Follow the twisty plot of a peacetime consigliere playing two sides against the middle and you'll find Yojimbo on the surface, but if you watch closely enough you'll learn that its been The Remains of the Day all along.

Also notable: Goodfellas

1991 BARTON FINK ⭐️⭐️⭐⭐⭐ (Coen & Coen)
When the Coens are in masterpiece mode there's no stopping them. This hate letter to Old Hollywood is as funny as it is weird—and it is *deeply* weird. One writer's descent into the hell of the life of his own mind? A genius in a town that eats its genius and boxes its heads? Keep guessing. Miller's Crossing's script fit together like clockwork, but this surreal wonder keeps its mysteries to itself.

Also notable: Thelma & Louise, The Fisher King

1992 GLENGARY GLEN ROSS (Foley) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ Mamet's goofy-profound tough guy pattershtick has an apotheosis with this spikey dramatic comedy about a bunch of Men Doing Man Work who just so happen to work at the heart of a capitalistic tumor. Each actor has a ball stealing scenes (exception: Arkin hilariously underplays his own signature underplaying). You want, want. Want, what? Screen time? A close up? Monologue? Earn it. Speaking roles are for closers only.

Also notable: Reservoir Dogs, Unforgiven

1993 SCHINDLER'S LIST (Spielberg) ⭐️⭐️⭐⭐⭐
Well overdue for a rewatch (haven't seen since the mid 90s) but at a relatively young age Spielberg's holocaust drama seared my brain. The director tamps down his blockbuster sensibilities and puts his talents for delivering cinematic immediacy at the service of bringing audiences into contemplation of realities that are almost too grim to contemplate, but which must be faced all the same.

Also notable: Groundhog Day; The Piano; Menace II Society

1994 PULP FICTION (Tarantino) ⭐️⭐️⭐⭐⭐
Accept no copycats. This movie crafted the style that defined the 90s, and ushered in a raft of time-fractured narratives and pop culture talking gangsters taboot, but what makes this entry stand out beyond the style and wickedly funny dialogue is the way the narrative is in service of deeper questions: of choices, of culpability, of responsibility and second chances. Are you a bad motherfucker? Or are you the tyranny of evil men?

Also notable: Nobody's Fool

1995 TOY STORY (Lasseter) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Felt like a quantum leap in animation and still does, and while it represented the launch of the launch of a new creative IP powerhouse that challenged and ultimately swallowed Disney animation, on the creative side this *movie* remains one of Pixar's most lovingly crafted, funny, heartfelt and pure, with inarguably its most indelible characters. Creating brand new archetypes isn't easy—try it sometime.

Also notable: Before Sunrise

1996 HAMLET (Branagh) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
My favorite filmed Shakespeare from my favorite maker of Shakespeare films. His performance might be his finest (though serious consideration must be given to his Henry), yet it's as director that Branagh most impresses. A masterclass in framing and interpretation; to give just one example, look to his use of previously-established hidden passages, mirrors, and a stray noise to add depth and complexity to the "to be or not to be" scene.

Also notable: Fargo

1997 BOOGIE NIGHTS (Anderson) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
A sort of miracle fusion of the sensibilities of Altman and Scorsese, maybe a little shaggy in the back half, but this chronicle of the 70s/80s LA porn scene never stops being one of the most exuberant directorial "debuts" in recent decades (I know, Hard Eight was first, but this was the big splash). A celebration of, and warning about, found families. A glorious stew. A big bright shining star.

Also notable: The Sweet Hereafter; Henry Fool; LA Confidential

1998 THE THIN RED LINE (Malick) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
It's my (I think idiosyncratic?) belief that Malick's dreamy VO-heavy meditative style works best here, where it's juxtaposed against a massive world historical event—in this case, the Pacific theater of World War 2. His camera remains present but distant as always, his point of view almost alien, not so much disinterested in a battle as equally interested in everything else in a way I find hugely moving and truly anti-war.

Also notable: Out of Sight

1999 MAGNOLIA (Anderson)⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
PT Anderson scores again in a loaded year with another sprawling clockwork, this one following a single day of a couple dozen characters' lives, pondering the intentional and unintentional ways we harm each other, and the unlikely chances at grace, forgiveness, and other miracles. One of the more loaded casts of all time, and not one disposable character—everyone matters. Aimee Mann's songs crush me.

Also notable: Audition; The Iron Giant; The Talented Mr. Ripley

2000 CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON (Lee)⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
This one was really hard. I *love* "In the Mood For Love," but if I have to pick just one (and I guess I do), my heart is still with Ang Lee's gorgeous and heartbreaking wuxia, which now that I think of it also a story of unrequited love made impossible by social pressures and misplaced sense of duty. And also it has badass action sequences and sly feminist theory. By a needle's width, CTHD holds the crown.

Also notable: Memento; Dancer In The Dark

2001 MULHOLLAND DRIVE (Lynch) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐ If 2000's choice was hard, this one is downright cruel, forcing me to choose between 2 films in my all-time top 10. In the end, I'll choose the one whose dreamlike mysteries seem least resolvable; David Lynch's finest (and most representative) film. And also—identity becomes confused and porous in an increasingly symbiotic relationship between two women, part 3 (see 1966 and 1977)—I can't not complete the tryptic. Silencio.

But also my favorite: Spirited Away

2002 MORVERN CALLAR (Ramsay) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
This mystery (of sorts) casts the audience as detective and the acts of one of cinema's most inscrutable protagonists as the mystery. Samantha Morton's titular grocery clerk takes her chances to change her life, and maybe even succeeds—but is changing your circumstance the same as changing your life, or is this a proof of the old adage "wherever you go, there you are"? Either way, tell people this is your favorite Christmas movie.

Also notable: 25th Hour

2003 LORD OF THE RINGS (Jackson) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
I consider this a single movie whose unbroken production was split into 3 releases by practical realities; however there's no considering this as anything but the unbroken narrative it is, and while its not without the occasional stumble, it's a miracle how much of it is just perfect; it's a pinnacle of genre filmmaking adaptation and a cinematic treasure in its own right.

Also notable: Dogville; Elf (now *there's* a double feature for you)

2004 HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE (Miyazaki) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Was worried that we'd never see a Ghibli in the winner's circle and relieved it's not the case. This is a most worthy entry; if anything, it builds on Spirited Away's "anything might happen" dreamy sense of the fantastical, though it may not quite plumb the same emotional depths it's a gorgeously crafted film that effortlessly establishes a sense of place. Endlessly rewatchable and joyful.

Also notable: Birth; Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

2005 CACHÉ (Haneke) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
A meditative film about suppressed trauma and inherited accountability that lures you in with long static shots (and rewards you if you accept the invitation to focus on every part of the screen), before pulling the rug out from under you with genuine moments of shock. What do we owe the past? What are the sins we inherit, and what are the sins we deny? Haneke as always draws blood in pursuit of a rigorous modern morality.

Also notable: A History Of Violence; Brick

2006 CHILDREN OF MEN (Cuarón) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
The most immediate dystopia; builds almost unbearable suspense with its famous long and immersive tracking shots, but never loses the human stakes. Clive Owen plays the least powerful and most admirable action hero of all time, a bureaucrat who lost his hope years ago who nevertheless finds a hope to keep alive in a world gone mad, just by putting one foot in front of the other for as long as he can.

Also notable: The Prestige; A Prairie Home Companion

2007 MICHAEL CLAYTON (Gilroy)⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
I could have gone with a lot of movies in this rather loaded year, but today I'm sort of feeling it's this corporate espionage thriller cut from the Lumet cloth, to give it the highest praise I can think of. A man without conscience meets a corruption so immense even he cannot stand by. "I am Shiva, the God of Death!" The screenplay should be studied—preferably over fresh baguettes.

Also notable: Zodiac; No Country For Old Men; 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days

2008 SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK (Kaufman) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
Phillip Seymour Hoffman gives his most affecting performance in Charlie Kaufman's movie about life, the universe, and everything—and also death, and also art, and also sadness, and loneliness, and regret, and absurdity, and love and loss and forgiveness, and reality and time, and the lies we tell ourselves to forget the truth we all know. There's nothing else quite like it, nor does there need to be.

Also notable: WALL-E; In Bruges

2009 INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS (Tarantino) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
I'd cooled a bit on QT in the years after Jackie Brown (and have cooled a bit since), so I was pleased to discover that what had been marketed as a goofy gloss on The Dirty Dozen was actually something far more audacious; a sharp deconstruction of war film, of propaganda, the audiences that consume it, and of crimes that demand redress. Tarantino usually throws out the rulebook and swings big; this time he swings huge—and connects.

Also notable: n/a

2010 MEEK'S CUTOFF (Reichardt) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Can it be a "subversive Western" if it feels more authentic than the genre it subverts? This story of a wagon train following a fool further and further into danger stings—especially as if you come to the slow realization you're watching the (spoilers). Men who can't admit they're lost, women who know it but can't risk saying so, and a wilderness that's indifferent either way. A film that ends perfectly; exactly when it ought to.

Also notable: Certified Copy

2011 MELANCHOLIA (von Trier) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
von Trier earns comparisons to Tarkovsky with this film's gorgeous opening montage, which recaps the entire film via painterly slo-mo surrealist dioramas, ends with one of the most devastating images in cinema, and then spends the ensuing runtime paying it off. All von Trier films are disaster movies in a way; this one simply makes the internal overt. Sometimes the end of the world truly is the end of the world.

Also notable: The Loneliest Planet; Take Shelter

2012 HOLY MOTORS (Carax) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
*Benoit Blanc voice* Sheer lunacy, absolutely random acts of madness, tied together by a single bravura performer using their considerable craft to convey a seemingly endless array of human experience, but with little if any context provided to the viewer to indicate any sort of pattern at all. It makes. No. Sense.

[pause]

Compels me, though ...

Also Notable: It's Such A Beautiful Day

2013 UNDER THE SKIN (Glazer) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
This spare, enigmatic sci-fi horror places us almost entirely within the point of view of a predatory alien whose motives and perception are ultimately unknowable—making "her" actions at times frightening and at others deeply upsetting. Her attempts to understand her assumed form and assigned environment are fraught in ways she can't perceive. Other predators are already in that environment; other dangers attend that form.

Also notable: The Wolf of Wall Street

2014 THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL (Anderson) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
"They killed him of course."
Wes Anderson's most ambitious work to date and the one with the most bite—an elegy to a time of elegance (perhaps more than a little idealized by memory), and of the fascist urge to demolish elegance. Fiennes gives the performance of his career as the ur-Andersonian Gustave—a cad of quality, an utterly selfish bounder with a code of taste and decorum, which the harsh world cannot abide.

Also notable: Boyhood; Phoenix

2015 MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (Miller) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A bugfuck action movie phantasmagoria that sticks every single landing. You might not even notice the incisiveness of its politics on first watch; between the relentless practical action sequence and the gorgeous cinematography it barely pauses to let you breathe. At least once every minute or so you're forced to stop and ask "wait how did they DO that?" A truly unique achievement.

Also notable: World of Tomorrow; The Lobster

2016 ARRIVAL (Villeneuve) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Gorgeous and heartbreaking first contact movie; a meditation on time, perception, communication, and language, with the most emotionally resonant and thematically appropriate use of misdirection I can think of (it does it a disservice to call it a "twist"). I dare not say more. It's otherworldly.

Also notable: Paterson; Moonlight

2017 FIRST REFORMED (Schrader) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐
My favorite movie of the last decade follows a haunted pastor (an absolutely brilliant Ethan Hawke) through a crisis of faith and radicalization in the face of climate disaster and the vast impenetrable corporate indifference of his beloved church. With this, Schrader delivers a Taxi Driver that truly spoke to me, and an ending sequence that left me almost unable to breathe.

Also notable: mother!; The Last Jedi; The Florida Project

2018 SPIDERMAN: INTO THE SPIDERVERSE (Rothman, Ramsey, Persichetti) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
What's up danger? It's the best Spider-Man movie ever made, the best super hero movie ever made, the best comic book movie ever made, and the greatest multiple universe theory movie made to date (stay tuned). The use of various overlapping distinctive artistic styles is inspired. Stan Lee passing the torch to Miles makes me emotional. Anyone can wear the mask.

Also notable: Sorry to Bother You; Blackkklansman; Burning