Films of the Decade - Part VI

Gus van Sant and Charlie Kaufman make second appearances as the quest for the best films of the decade continues.

To get up to speed: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV and Part V.

As always, comments and suggestions are welcomed as the quest progresses, and will be taken into consideration upon tallying the results.

Gerry – Gus van Sant
2002, USA

Two guys named Gerry wander out into the desert in search of “the thing”, only to abandon the trek midway through unaware that they are lost and without food, water, or any sign of civilization.

The second Gus van Sant film nominated in this quest, Gerry speaks to the seismic power of isolation.



Yi yi – Edward Yang
2000, Taiwan, Japan

The opening sequence of this epic, multi-layered, multi-generational Taiwanese fable resurrected a familiar movie-going experience of watching a First Act wedding sequence from decades past: that of The Godfather. The films, naturally, plot much different courses, but that distinct feeling that we are witnessing something special hit a similar note in both opening sequences.

Yi yi was the earliest candidate I can remember for film of the decade when it was released in the first year of the aughts (though Memento had a similar vibe surrounding it).

If ever a film felt like a doctoral thesis in sociological psychology here it is (Can’t wait to see it now I bet!). The film follows the adventures and misadventures of one Taipei family as they struggle to understand their place in a modern world, and to discover some kind of meaning from it.



Adaptation – Spike Jonze
2002, USA

Oh Charlie Kaufman, to be you for a day, and experience the unbelievable chagrin juxtaposed with sublime creative genius that battle tooth and nail for supremacy within the confines of your mighty noggin.

Adaptation, his second collaboration with Spike Jonze, places Charlie Kaufman, the writer, on screen in front of us, as we painstakingly observe the author’s creative process as he attempts to translate a Susan Orlean novel about rare orchids to the screen.

Nicholas Cage plays the dual role of Kaufman, as well as his light-hearted, roll-with-the-punches brother Donald, who seems to be able to slam through screenplays with a veracity equivalent to Charlie’s writer's block.



L’enfant – Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
2005, Belgium, France

Since the mid-90s the Dardenne brothers have been quietly notching up awards and cementing a legacy for themselves as two of Europe’s premiere filmmakers.

L’enfant equals the very best of their output. When Sonia brings home her newborn baby, Bruno, her albatross of a boyfriend, sees an opportunity for quick cash, and a lot of it. He sells the baby on the black market without her consent or knowledge. When Sonia reports the theft, Bruno must recover the baby, and replace the 5000 euros he received for the transaction.

L’enfant matches the time-tested formula of a race against the clock with the best stuff of European cinema: gritty realism and first-rate performances from actors who seem more like real people walking across the screen for the first and only time. Their 15-minutes of fame being the excruciating journey of loss and redemption the majority of us only envision in our worst nightmares.



The Royal Tenenbaums – Wes Anderson
2001, USA

In an all too rare comic turn, Gene Hackman shines as patriarch Royal Tenenbaum, a man who has ostracized anyone who was once even remotely close to him. In an attempt to rekindle the familial love of the past, Royal feigns an illness in the hopes of reuniting his unusual, disenfranchised and fractured clan.

A great example of the magic possessed when a great script is paired perfectly with the absolute ideal cast.