One Hundred Favorite Movies of the 21st Century
(This is a response to the recent New York Times list, with the same basic constraint—a preferential ranking of my favorite movies released since January 1, 2000. I’ve made no effort to be objective, of course, and have tried to find room for at least a few movies I don’t consider great art but find myself watching over and over again anyway. I had seen 91 of the NYT’s 100 when their list was published a few weeks ago and have since caught up with the ones I was missing. The movies here that also made their list are accompanied by brackets noting their position.)
A Serious Man (directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, 2009) [NYT #36]
The Eclipse (directed by Conor McPherson, 2009)
Our Little Sister (directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2015)
Pain and Glory (directed by Pedro Almodóvar, 2019)
3-Iron (directed by Ki-duk Kim, 2004)
My Winnipeg (directed by Guy Maddin, 2007)
You Can Count On Me (directed by Kenneth Lonergan, 2000)
Mister Lonely (directed by Harmony Korine, 2007)
Son of the Bride (directed by Juan José Campanella, 2001)
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (directed by Julian Schnabel, 2007)
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (directed by Mamoru Hosoda, 2006)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (directed by Michel Gondry, 2004) [NYT #7]
Petite Maman (directed by Céline Sciamma, 2021)
Yi Yi (directed by Edward Yang, 2000) [NYT #40]
World of Tomorrow (directed by Don Hertzfeldt, 2015)
Holy Motors (directed by Leos Carax, 2012)
Reprise (directed by Joachim Trier, 2006)
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (directed by Céline Sciamma, 2019) [NYT #38]
Shoplifters (directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2018)
A History of Violence (directed by David Cronenberg, 2005)
Children of Men (directed by Alfonso Cuarón, 2006) [NYT #13]
The Florida Project (directed by Sean Baker, 2017) [NYT #74]
The Mist (directed by Frank Darabont, 2007)
Aniara (directed by Pella Kågerman and Hugo Lilja, 2018)
Lost in Translation (directed by Sofia Coppola, 2003) [NYT #30]
Elling (directed by Petter Næss, 2001)
Happy Accidents (directed by Brad Anderson, 2000)
The Tree of Life (directed by Terrence Malick, 2011) [NYT #79]
World of Tomorrow Episode Two (directed by Don Hertzfeldt, 2017)
A Ghost Story (directed by David Lowery, 2017)
Talk to Her (directed by Pedro Almodóvar, 2002)
The Lives of Others (directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006) [NYT #48]
Amour (directed by Michael Haneke, 2012) [NYT # 75]
The Act of Killing (directed by Joshua Oppenheimer, 2012) [NYT #82]
All of Us Strangers (directed by Andrew Haigh, 2023)
Get Out (directed by Jordan Peele, 2017) [NYT #8]
25th Hour (directed by Spike Lee, 2002)
Robot Stories (directed by Greg Pak, 2003)
Phantom Thread (directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, 2017) [NYT #25]
Incendies (directed by Denis Villeneuve, 2010)
The Eye (directed by Danny and Oxide Chung Pang, 2002)
Wendy and Lucy (directed by Kelly Reichardt, 2008)
The Quiet Girl (directed by Colm Bairéad, 2022)
Like Father, Like Son (directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2013)
Moonlight (directed by Barry Jenkins, 2013) [NYT #5]
The Social Network (directed by David Fincher, 2010) [NYT #10]
We Are the Best! (directed by Lukas Moodysson, 2013)
Call Me By Your Name (directed by Luca Guadagnino, 2017) [NYT #37]
20th Century Women (directed by Mike Mills, 2016)
The Banshees of Inisherin (directed by Martin McDonagh, 2022)
Lie With Me (directed by Olivier Peyon, 2022)
Higher Ground (directed by Vera Farmiga, 2011)
John Wick (directed by Chad Stahelski, 2014)
Gone Baby Gone (directed by Ben Affleck, 2007)
Moon (directed by Duncan Jones, 2009)
Nobody Knows (directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2004)
Sexy Beast (directed by Jonathan Glazer, 2000)
Arrival (directed by Denis Villeneuve, 2016) [NYT #29]
Aftersun (directed by Charlotte Wells, 2022) [NYT #78]
Drive (directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, 2011)
Under the Skin (directed by Jonathan Glazer, 2013) [NYT #69]
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (directed by Ang Lee, 2000) [NYT #16]
Brooklyn (directed by John Crowley, 2015)
Cherry Blossoms (directed by Doris Dörrie, 2008)
What We Do in the Shadows (directed by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, 2014)
Donnie Darko (directed by Richard Kelly, 2001)
The Woodsman (directed by Nicole Kassell, 2004)
In America (directed by Jim Sheridan, 2002)
Michael Clayton (directed by Tony Gilroy, 2007) [NYT #93]
The Devil’s Backbone (directed by Guillermo del Toro, 2001)
Wolf Children (directed by Mamoru Hosoda, 2012)
Sing Street (directed by John Carney, 2016)
Taken (directed by Pierre Morel, 2008)
Mysterious Skin (directed by Gregg Araki, 2004)
Elephant (directed by Gus Van Sant, 2003)
The Look of Silence (directed by Joshua Oppenheimer, 2014)
No Country for Old Men (directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, 2007) [NYT #6]
Before Sunset (directed by Richard Linklater, 2004) [NYT #49]
Another Earth (directed by Mike Cahill, 2011)
The Beauty Inside (directed by Baek Jong-yul, 2015)
Brick (directed by Rian Johnson, 2005)
Me and You and Everyone We Know (directed by Miranda July, 2005)
Dick Johnson Is Dead (directed by Kirsten Johnson, 2020)
The Worst Person in the World (directed by Joachim Trier, 2021) [NYT #95]
Inception (directed by Christopher Nolan, 2010) [NYT #55]
Mistress America (directed by Noah Baumbach, 2015)
28 Days Later (directed by Danny Boyle, 2002)
After the Storm (directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2016)
City of God (directed by Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund, 2002) [NYT #15]
The Quiet American (directed by Phillip Noyce, 2002)
The Bourne Identity (directed by Doug Liman, 2002)
Edge of Tomorrow (directed by Doug Liman, 2014)
Safe (directed by Boaz Yakin, 2012)
What Maisie Knew (directed by Scott McGehee and David Siegel, 2012)
The Man from Earth (directed by Richard Schenkman, 2007)
Red Rocket (directed by Sean Baker, 2021)
Take Shelter (directed by Jeff Nichols, 2011)
Eighth Grade (directed by Bo Burnham, 2018)
Ghost World (directed by Terry Zwigoff, 2001)
Battle Royale (directed by Kinji Fukasaku, 2000)
— July 10, 2025