Best Movies Of The Decade

Every decade is filled with movies that I feel are an absolute waste of money and time and this decade that is just about to end was no different. I think films have moved away from being intriguing, thought provoking works of art to mindless pieces of drivel. It's all about who can make the biggest bangs and create the best special effects. The story has taken a back seat to the visual and audio onslaught of our senses.

That isn't to say that a big movie spectacle can't also have a good story but for the big budget blockbusters, most seem to focus on the effects and spend less time developing characters or an interesting plot and storyline.

Having said that, there are movies that I absolutely love that probably don't have the best story but were thoroughly entertaining, and when it comes right down to it...we go to the theatre to be entertained and enjoy ourselves. We use it as an escape from our daily lives.

I have compiled my list of movies that I think were the best or at the very least, my favourites over the last ten years (2000 - 2009).

Before I begin, there are some excellent films that you might think would be on my list but they just didn't make it. These include: The Pianist (2002), There Will Be Blood (2007), Traffic (2000), Mulholland Dr. (2001), 2012 (2009) Letters From Iwo Jima (2006) and Million Dollar Baby (2004) to name a few. All amazing films but from my personal tastes and opinions, they just don't crack my top fifteen.

So without any further ado, here are the movies that made my cut.

Bundy's Top 15 Movies of the Decade
(2000 - 2009)


Number 15 - Crash
(2005)
Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon

Number 14 - Apocalypto
(2006)
Rudy Youngblood, Dalia Hernandez

Number 13 - Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
(2005)
Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Hayden Christensen

Number 12 - The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(2002)
Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen

Number 11 - Mystic River
(2003)
Sean Penn, Kevin Bacon, Tim Robbins

Number 10 - Walk The Line
(2005)
Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon

Number 9 - Gladiator
(2000)
Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix

Number 8 - Almost Famous
(2000)
Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson

Number 7 - King Kong
(2005)
Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody

Number 6 - Casino Royale
(2006)
Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench

Number 5 - Seabiscuit
(2003)
Toby Maguire, Jeff Bridges, Chris Cooper

Number 4 - No Country For Old Men
(2007)
Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin

Number 3 - The Departed
(2006)
Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio

Number 2 - The Dark Knight
(2008)
Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Morgan Freeman

and my Number 1 movie of the Decade is...


The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
(2003)
Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen

So there you have it. Perhaps there are some surprises there but keep in mind that these are the movies that I liked. If there's a movie that you think was an obvious choice but didn't appear here, feel free to leave a comment. Here's hoping the movies in the next decade continue to entertain us and keep us going to the theatre.

1980's - Best Decade Fer Sure

The years 1980 to 1989 were by far the most radical years for almost everything gnarly. The decades that followed gagged me with a spoon. The 80's were bad (meaning good) while the 90's and 2000's were just plain groody.

OK, I'll cool it on the 80's speak for now since many of you would probably just be lost if I kept it up. The language of the 80's had a life of its own and was quite colourful to say the least. Words and sayings like "Tubular", "Bodacious", "Hoser", "Like, oh my God", "That's the Ticket","Psyche" and "Totally Awesome" were being used in every day conversations. I have to admit I used them all quite often back in the day.

I consider myself quite lucky to have been a teenager during the 80's as it was truly the greatest decade I've experienced so far for so many reasons.

NEWS
The 80's had its share of news events both good and bad as well. Among the most memorable for me were:
- Terry Fox and the Marathon of Hope and his passing - 1980
- Mount St. Helen's Volcano eruption - 1980
- John Lennon being killed - 1980
- Attempted Assasination of Ronald Reagan - 1981
- The death of John Belushi - 1982
- The Live Aid Concert - 1985
- Space Shuttle Challenger Explosion - 1986
- Nuclear Accident at Chernobyl - 1986
- The Berlin Wall falls - 1989
- Tanks in Tiananmen Square - 1989

There were countless other moments but these stand out to me. Here's video of the attempt on Ronald Reagan's life.


MUSIC
When it comes to music, your efforts to convince me otherwise will fail as the 80's were by far the best decade for tunes. I really don't even know where to start. Some of the best artists and groups that excelled in the 80's were around prior to then but their popularity soared during this time. Bands and artists like Pink Floyd, Queen, Van Halen, Bruce Springsteen, Journey, AC/DC, Billy Joel, Elton John, Michael Jackson and The Police were already established but flourished with huge hits.

The bands and individuals that came along in the 80's created the soundtrack for my youth. To this day I still love U2 and they are by far my favourite band of all time. Other great hit makers that I loved included Prince & The Revolution, Madonna, Phil Collins, The Cure, The Cult, The Smiths, Howard Jones, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard and Motley Crue

When it came to names of bands, they didn't come any better or stranger than a-ha, Alphaville, Bananarama, Flock of Seagulls, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Kajagoogoo, Men At Work, Psychedelic Furs, Scritti Politti, Sigue Sigue Sputnik, Spandau Ballet, Ultravox, Nik Kershaw, and Wang Chung. The 80's music is still as popular today as it was back then.

Of course one big change was how we listened to music. Today's it's mp3's, CD's and digital files. Back then I spent my money on records, 45's and cassettes to hear the songs I loved.

One of my favourite videos from the 80's came from the band a-ha and the song Take On Me. Here's that video.


MOVIES
When it comes to 80's cinema, I'm going to steer clear of the "Chick Flicks" and "Artsy Fartsy" type movies. For me, a trip to the theatre in the 80's was about seeing what I liked as a teen and being entertained. In later years I learned to like many other movies from the decade but at the time my favourite movies from the 80's included:
- Some Kind of Wonderful, Sixteen Candles, E.T., The Sure Thing, The Star Wars movies (Empire and Jedi), Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Cannonball Run, Goonies, Gremlins, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Better Off Dead, The Breakfast Club, The Karate Kid, Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop, Footloose, Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Batman, Ghostbusters and Back to the Future to name a few.

There were some great movie quotes from the 80's as well. Who can forget:
- "We're gonna need some new FBI guys I guess." - Die Hard
- "Wax on, wax off." - Karate Kid
- "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." - Apocolypse Now
- "Wait til they get a load of me." - Batman
- "I spent seven years in high school, I'm no dummy." - Better Off Dead
- "Listen...you smell something?" - Ghostbusters
- "Does Barry Manilow know you stole his wardrobe?" - Breakfast Club
- "I'll be back." - Terminator
- "They're here." - Poltergeist
- "Yippe-ki-yay Mother****er." - Die Hard

Here's an original movie trailer from 1985 for The Breakfast Club.


FADS / FASHIONS & GAMES
The 80's had it's own distinct style to match the awesomeness of the decade. Is that a word?

Who can forget the leg warmers the girls wore over their jeans, Swatch Watches, Rubik's Cube, Guys with one earring (guilty as charged), Neon everything, Spandex, Mullets and Rat tails, Dungeons and Dragons, Arcades with games like Pac-Man and Donkey Kong, Valley Girl Talk, wearing your collar up, feathered hair, 20-Minute Workout, Boat Shoes, Break Dancing, Atari video games, Rollerskating Rinks, Sleeveless Shirts, Sony Walkmans, Pop Rocks, Ghetto Blasters, Ghost Hunting at haunted houses and Moonwalking.

TELEVISION
Finally, I spent countless hours parked in front of the T.V. working on my couch potato physique and watching some of the best and worst sitcoms and shows the networks could produce. M*A*S*H was by far my favourite in the early years. Others that I never missed included WKRP in Cincinnati, Mork & Mindy, The A-Team, The Love Boat, WWF Wrestling, BJ and the Bear, Battlestar Galactica, The Cosby Show, CHiPs, Fantasy Island, Family Ties, Fame, Dukes of Hazzard, That's Incredible, Welcome Back Kotter, Wonder Years, Laverne & Shirley, Charlie's Angels and The Incredible Hulk. I'm sure there were many others but I can't list them all.

Here's the opening theme to The Love Boat. I love the guest stars.


The 80's were an awesome decade to grow up in and to experience and it was the perfect decade for me. I look back fondly on those 10 years and although I like to look ahead to the future, it's nice to have my memories to remember the past.