Filmotomy’s Best Films of the Decade – Susanne Gottlieb’s List

Members of the Filmotomy team agonize over their top ten for the decade (2010-19).

Leave No Trace (2018)

One of the best-received films the past few years, at least when you go by Rotten Tomatoes, that, however, didn’t make that much of an impact outside the festival circus, is Debra Granik’s wonderful story about a father and a daughter living in the wild. With thrilling performances by Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie, Granik again takes an observational, realistic approach to the matter at hand and portrays the American life at its outer skirts.

Foster plays Iraq War veteran Will, who has turned his back on civilization and lives in the woods of Oregon together with his teenage daughter Tom. When the government forces them to reintegrate, cracks between Will’s and Tom’s idea of life begin to form. The crossroads at which Tom and Will ultimately arrive is shattering and bittersweet and unlike many other films that have dealt with similar topics.

Arrival (2016)

This is one of those Sci-Fi movies that show you a completely different spin of what is possible within the genre. Instead of far off planet and space exploration and warfare, it centers on a linguistics professor that is tasked with studying the language of an alien race that has arrived on Earth. So pretty much the one disbelief, a universal language, that one has to usually uphold about the whole genre becomes a deep-rooted tale about identity, communication, and free will.

Amy Adams shines once again in the role of Louise Banks, proving that she is one of the most versatile actresses of her generation. Equally gripping is the amazing score by (the now deceased) Jóhann Jóhannsson.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

With superheroes being the big thing at theatres over the last decade, it was only a matter of time for some of them to strike a chord and appear in the best-of lists. This is the case with Sony’s big-screen debut for Miles Morales, who becomes the new Spiderman after the passing of Peter Parker. With the Kingpin being a threat to his existence, Miles must enlist the help of several different Spideys from multiple universes.

The movie manages to be hilarious and emotionally powerful. All the while spicing it up with references to decade-long Spiderman lore and the animated feel of a comic book. Truly a winner.

Get Out (2017)

The last few years have revived the horror genre from its somewhat cheesy reputation to a genre full of possibilities and artistic and creative imagination. This is partly thanks to Jordan Peele’s breakout movie about African-American Chris, who visits his white girlfriend Rose’s family, only to find out that these wealthy, self-proclaimed left-wing liberals might pose the greatest danger to him yet.

Fresh off a comedy career, which amongst others included the show “Key and Peele”, it is fascinating to think how Peele totally turned the tables on expectations for his future career and managed to fuse modern world issues like racism with conventions of the genre. This birthed a scenario that is bent on the tropes but very much rooted in everyday fear.

Marriage Story (2019)

The past decades have had their share of great dramatic divorce dramas. Noah Baumbach has added his take to this growing list. Inspired most likely by his own divorce to Jennifer Jason Leigh, the director has produced a movie that is not only witty and insightful, hilarious and emotional but actually often painful to watch, without ever picking sides with its characters.

Helmed by great performances by Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, it is a heartfelt study of how people may love each other but can’t be in love anymore. And how society and the divorce business are eagerly snipping away these precious bonds. It is impossible not to recognize oneself in these characters and suffer with them.

Moonlight (2016)

Apart from making Oscar history with one of the biggest fuck-ups on the live broadcast of the Awards show, this film by Barry Jenkins was also one of the best works of the decade. The touching story of little Chiron, who grows up in a poor neighborhood with a drug-addict mother while also being stigmatized for his gay identity touched people around the world.

Split into three parts of early youth, high school and adult life, Jenkins’ beautifully composed, often transcendent storytelling shows a young man standing up to his hardships. And finding his place and love in the world.

The Favourite (2018)

A personal favorite is the highly entertaining, female-driven story about Queen Anne and her two ladies in waiting, Lady Sarah and overachiever Abigail. This film thrives on its three leads, Olivia Colman (Oscar!), Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone, the sharp script by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara, the outlandish costumes, the precise direction by Yorgos Lanthimos, and the exceptional camera work.

The plot reeks of scheming and sex, and shows how a female story can be told within the limits of history’s conventions. And without the (male) need of women needing to be “nice”.

Mad Max: Fury Road” (2015)

For all its history of production mess, nobody expected another Mad Max movie to be remotely interesting. And then George Miller roared back into our life, this time with Tom Hardy in the titular role, to prove us all wrong. Make no mistake, the plot is thin. Max helps a group of women warriors, helmed by Charlize Theron, escape the clutches of men in a post-apocalyptic world. But this is not what this movie is about.

This liberation is done by a two-hour car chase in which Miller returns to the greatness of his prior outings. Creating thrills and meaning through the speed of the motors and the clashing and flipping of cars along the desert sands. It is a deeply feminist tale, one in which all sides are vulnerable and must figure out how to survive in a cruel dead world.

Parasite (2019)

One of the biggest movies of 2019 and probably heading strong into award season in 2020. Bong Joon Ho’s smart critique of capitalism and society has not only been one of the big ones of 2019, but of the whole decade. His blend of genres, ranging from the absurd to the tragic, always stringing along with its real-life undertones, is the story of a poor South Korean family who tricks their way into the service of a rich family.

This unleashes a merry-go-round of class warfare, guilt and ignorance. Diving into the modern issues of the societal divide with a sharp blade, this is a movie that will stick with viewers for a long time, addressing issues they usually tend to turn away from.

Burning (2018)

The film that stuck with me for the longest time recently. Chang-dong Lee again reflects on societal developments in his native South Korea. This time telling the story of young Jon-su, who meets the mysterious Hae-mi, a girl supposedly from his past. She asks him to take care of her cat during her trip abroad and the love-struck man does so.

However, she returns with a snobbish, uneasy seeming boyfriend and soon after disappears. Chang-dong adapts the short story by Haruki Murakami into a thoroughly layered drama about humans, their desires and spiced with one of his favorite motives, the air of mystery. A truly unnerving experience, captivating until that very last shot.