The 100 movies that most impacted me in the 2010's
Here are the basic rules: My cutoff date was what I’ve seen since Christmas. Which means films like Jojo Rabbit and The Lighthouse, which I desperately wanted to see but hadn’t had time for, didn’t make the list.
I originally wanted to go in depth into why these movies impacted me so, but time constraints have made it so now I’m just talking about a select few and why they stuck with me. This list is in descending order, with 1 at the top and 100 at the bottom. You can start at the bottom if you’d like a proper countdown. Here’s to another decade of incredible films!
- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was the most triumphant celebration of everything that made the 2010’s the great decade of nerd culture. It’s a stunning celebration of the writing of Lord and Miller, who gave us 21 Jump Street, The Lego Movie, and more. It’s Blue Sky finding their voice as an animation studio, putting together one of the most visually unique, stunning, and kinetic films ever produced. It’s a wholly unique, original spin on Spider-Man, who has had as many films as Batman at this point. It’s a message of empowerment, showing how anyone and everyone can be a hero. Miles Morales is a star already thanks to this film. It’s a bold vision for the future of visual storytelling, and I hope every film following Spider-Verse is as exciting for the future of storytelling as Spider-Verse.
2. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
3. Chico y Rita
A animated musical about the Cuban Jazz age, love, and race in both Cuba and America, no movie connected to me on a visceral, emotional level more this decade than Chico Y Rita.
4. Hereditary
5. Logan
6. John Wick
7. Inception
8. The Avengers
9. Avengers: Infinity War
Infinity War fulfilled the promise of the MCU with an event unlike any other. The dual battles of Titan and Wakanda showed what action is possible. And of course, the biggest audience shock of the decade when Thanos wins, and killed off many of our most beloved heroes.
10. Toy Story 3
11. Her
12. Frozen
Disney as post-modern. Elsa and Anna. Let it Go. Olaf. Disney made their best film in nearly 20 years with Frozen.
13. Sing Street
No film captured the bond between brothers, the world of a teenage boy, nor the transcendent power of music better than Sing Street. We all should drive it like we stole it.
14. The Witch
The film that took the horror world by storm, and a true American fable.
15. Django Unchained
16. Blade Runner 2049
A sci-fi film worthy of its’ pedigree, Blade Runner 2049 is one of the most stunning films of the decade.
17. Mad Max: Fury Road
The best pure action film of the decade, Watching Furiosa and Max tear through the desert was a masterclass in visual storytelling.
18. Star Wars: Rogue One
19. The Lego Movie
For a moment, everything WAS awesome. What a funny, funny movie. You’re lying if this movie didn’t elicit a chuckle out of you.
20. Guardians of The Galaxy
No one knew this film was going to work. But it did, and it opened up a whole new world for us. Easily the best original space world since Star Wars.
21. How To Train Your Dragon
22. The Shape of Water
23. Chef
No movie more perfectly captured the sights, sounds, and smells of the Cuban, Cajun, and Texan cultures I grew up in. It’s a very personal celebration of the world I am from for me.
24. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
25. Kubo and The Two Strings
Laika’s triumph commands your attention from the first frame. It is myth making and storytelling of the highest degree.
26. Wolf of Wall Street
27. Skyfall
28. Silver Linings Playbook
29. Pitch Perfect
This movie made Anna Kendrick a star and set off the decade’s Acapella craze that gave us Pentatonix. We also got Ben Platt in the process. What a ride.
30. Snowpiercer
31. Crazy Rich Asians
32. Dear White People
33. Booksmart
Olivia Wilde’s directorial debut is not to be missed, and isthe funniest buddy comedy since The Hangover.
34. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
35. The Greatest Showman
The musical that could, with the longest legs in box office history. Hugh Jackman finally gets a movie musical to call his own, and the results are an absolute spectacle worthy of the Barnum name.
36. The Muppets
Disney might have squandered the momentum generated by this movie, but there’s no denying what a triumph this reboot was. Give me a third movie NOW.
37. La La Land
38. How To Train Your Dragon 2
39. To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
Netflix made many incredible rom-coms this decade, but this is the cream of the crop, while also being a celebration of the bonds of sisterhood.
40. Avengers: Endgame
41. Sidewalls
42. The Master
A thinly veiled takedown of Scientology with at least 4 Oscar Worthy performances.
43. The Hateful Eight
44. Star Wars: The Force Awakens
45. X-Men: Days of Future Past
47: Captain America: Civil War
Watching Steve and Tony’s friendship crumble before our eyes proved the emotional highs and lows brought forth from an experiment like the MCU is worth it. And on top of a great thriller and that spectacular airport sequence, this also managed to be a Black Panther origin story AND the introduction of Spider-Man?!
48. The Dark Knight Rises
49. Moana
50. Deadpool
Say it with me one more time: X GON GIV IT TO YA!
51. Coco
52. Black Panther
Wakanda took America by storm in the way Afro-Futurists have been priming us for for decades. It was a true cultural moment for America, and one long overdue.
53: Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
54. Life of Pi
55. Pacific Rim
56. Inside Out
57. Thor: Ragnarok
58. A Simple Favor
59. X-Men: First Class
Michael Fassbender and James Macavoy are easily the equal of Ian Mckellen and Patrick Stewart as young and swaggering Charles Xavier and Erik Leshnerr.
60. The Adventures of Tintin
Getting to see Spielburg FINALLY bring Tintin to the big screen was a joy to behold. I’m still waiting on baited breath for the sequel.
61. Cabin in The Woods
62. 21 Jump Street
63. The Great Gatsby
The definite take on Gatsby, Baz Luhrmann is uniquely suited to portray the opulence and excess of this story, and yet the melancholy that surrounds the proceedings is never lost.
64. Jane Eyre
65. Get Out
Jordan Peele’s directoral debut cemented him as the next great Sci-Fi and Horror director in the tradition of Rod Sterling.
66. Ex Machina
67. Moonlight
67. Creed
68. The Babadook
69. I, Tonya
Has there ever been a more hilarious film about a uniquely talented woman having her life ruined by the incompetence of those around her? Margot Robbie had many great roles, but nothing touches her turn in I, Tonya.
70. Arrival
71. Atomic Blonde
72. Wonder Woman
The No-Man’s Land scene alone would have landed Wonder Woman on this list, but it’s also a smart love letter to the Richard Donner Superman films, a great origin story, and a touching romance all in one. Patty Jenkins nailed it.
73. LEGO Batman Movie
Easily the funniest superhero film of the decade, no film is a better love letter to the Caped Crusader.
74. Spider-Man: Homecoming
75. Oculus
76. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
77. Journey to The West
78. Us
79. The Edge of Seventeen
80. Your Name
One of the most spectacularly animated films of the decade, with one of the most ludicrous plots. Teenage romance has rarely been this emotionally impactful.
81. Crimson Peak
82. Shin Godzilla
It’s the guy who made Neon Genesis Evangelion making an old-school rubber suit Godzilla movie. There’s really nothing else I can add.
83. Hidden Figures
84. Blackkklansman
No movie had a bigger gut punch of an ending this decade, nor so easily exposed the absurdity of racism.
85. The Other Guys
86. Paddington 2
You did not see this movie, and as far as I’m concerned that was your loss. Paddington 2 is the single most delightful all-ages movie that’s come out in years. Every family should see this movie post-haste.
87. It
88. Ant-Man and The Wasp
If you don’t enjoy a good old fashioned heist movie starring Paul Rudd, do you enjoy fun?
89. Dunkirk
90. Ernest and Celestine
91. A Star is Born
92. The Little Prince
93. Okja
94. Man of Steel
We can’t blame Man of Steel for the sins of Batman vs Superman. Watching Henry Cavill take flight for the first time is still absolutely electric.
95. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
96. The Babysitter
97. Set it Up
Netflix revitalized the rom-com genre in the late 2010’s, and Set it Up is the film that made this possible.
98. Shazam!
99. Pokemon Detective Pikachu
Again, we’re playing into the fact that these are my FAVORITE movies of the decade, not necessarily the greatest. I am a ride or die Pokemaniac. I have caught them all. In every Pokemon game ever released. I own literally every Pokemon game ever made. I have watched just about all of the over 1000 episodes of the TV series. I play competitively. My Pokemon fanfic is the size of A Song of Fire and Ice in its length and scope. Seeing the Pokemon world fully realized in an urban environment, with Pokemon and humans seamlessly interwoven into the societal fabric, to tell a fun detective story, is the kind of movie and franchise rife with creative potential that I’ve longed for my entire life, since I first fell in love with Pokemon at the age of four. It’s also funny, and emotionally anchored by Justice Smith and Ryan Reynolds great buddy cop relationship. Here’s to a future filled with great Pokemon stories waiting to be told.
100. John Dies at The End
Let me be completely up front with you: John Dies At The End is a complete non-sequitur of a movie. The plot, as it is, is reminiscent of a Dali painting in it’s intricate absurdism. There’s evil frozen meat, parallel dimensions, time travel, mystical soy sauce, a dog named Bark Lee, a literal ghost hand, and possessed dildos, among other eccentricities. It’s essentially a feature length Dadaist project. The thing is, it made me laugh harder than just about any film I saw in the 2010’s. It’s also eminently rewatchable, to the horror of my fiance. John Dies at The End is the definition of a “you love it or you hate it movie”. If you don’t like scattershot dark comedy, there is very little chance you will enjoy this film. If you enjoy fake Jamaicans pushing interdimensional drugs to enact a paranormal new world order, however, This is the perfect late night movie.
There you have it! Comment with films that you loved this decade, or I didn’t have on here that SHOULD be on here. See you next time!
Christian Thrailkill is a graduate of Southern Methodist University, musician, and columnist. He lives in Dallas, Texas. Follow him on Twitter @Wolvie616
