It’s hard to believe that another decade of movie history is coming to a close.
So, as film buffs love to do, it’s time to rank the best of everything we’ve seen.
What are the best movies of the past 10 years? To answer that, I compiled a Top 100, ranked with a special balance of听Blockbusters on the Fives and Auteurs In Between.听
That means every five entries, you’ll get a beloved blockbuster crowd-pleaser. In between, you’ll get a taste of master artists that have shaped the medium.
So, without further ado, here are the best movies of the 2010s.
Top 100 movies of the decade
100. The Force Awakens (2015) 鈥� J.J. Abrams
The decade’s domestic top-grosser passed the torch to a new generation of “Star Wars” fans, building on nostalgia while creating compelling new heroes.
99. Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) 鈥� Coen Brothers
The Coens put Oscar Isaac on the map as a struggling busker trying to make it in Bob Dylan’s Greenwich folk scene.
98.听Marriage Story (2019) 鈥� Noah Baumbach
Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver depict the most painful divorce since Bergman’s “Scenes from a Marriage.”
97.听Lady Bird (2017)听鈥� Greta Gerwig
Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf believably bicker in Gerwig’s semi-autobiographical coming-of-age indie.
96.听Ford v. Ferrari (2019) – James Mangold
Christian Bale and Matt Damon shine in this true story of Ford challenging Ferrari at the Le Mans race of 1966.
95. Bridesmaids (2011) 鈥� Paul Feig
Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, Rebel Wilson, Ellie Kemper and Jon Hamm delivered comedy gold.
94.听Manchester By the Sea (2016)听鈥� Kenneth Lonergan
Michelle WIlliams shined as Lonergan’s Oscar-winning script unraveled the most horrific family tragedy imaginable.
93.听Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) 鈥� Martin McDonagh
Frances McDormand won an Oscar as a grieving mother seeking revenge for the rape and murder of her daughter.
92.听BlacKkKlansman (2018) 鈥� Spike Lee
Spike Lee finally won his overdue Oscar for co-writing this true story as John David Washington infiltrates the Klan.
91.听The Farewell (2019) 鈥� Lulu Wang
After comedy in “Crazy Rich Asians,” Awkwafina turned introspective to hide her grandmother鈥檚 terminal diagnosis.
90.听Trainwreck (2015)听鈥� Judd Apatow
Amy Schumer and Bill Hader crack us up with surprise turns by the NBA鈥檚 LeBron James and WWE鈥檚 John Cena.
89. Dallas Buyers Club (2013) 鈥� Jean-Marc Vallee
Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto won Oscars running experimental HIV drugs for the director of 鈥淏ig Little Lies.鈥�
88.听The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) 鈥� Wes Anderson
Anderson won his Oscar after quirky comedies like 鈥淩ushmore,” “The Royal Tenenbaums” and “Moonrise Kingdom.”
87.听Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) – Benh Zeitlin
Child star Quvenzhan茅 Wallis听shines in this bayou coming-of-age fable that won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance.
86.听Creed (2015) 鈥� Ryan听Coogler
Michael B. Jordan resurrected the “Rocky” franchise across Sylvester Stallone in a tear-jerking comeback.
85.听Skyfall (2012) 鈥� Sam Mendes
Adele’s Oscar-winning song kicks off this 007 favorite as Daniel Craig battles Javier Bardem鈥檚 maniacal Bond villain.
84.听The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) 鈥� Martin Scorsese
Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill overdose in Scorsese’s ode to excess that put Margot Robbie on the map.
83.听The Big Short (2015) 鈥� Adam McKay
McKay’s Oscar-winning script breaks down the 2008 mortgage crisis using layman cutaways instead of jargon.
82.听Margin Call (2011) 鈥� J.C. Chandor
Jeremy Irons leads a deep cast in this gripping take on the 2008 financial collapse that remains Chandor’s best.
81.听The Way Way Back (2013) 鈥� Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
Allison Janney and Sam Rockwell are both at their comedic best in this star-studded coming-of-age family comedy.
80. Deadpool (2016) 鈥� Tim Miller
Ryan Reynolds’ raunchy superhero passion project hilariously broke the fourth wall like no X-Men film before.
79. The Greatest Showman (2017)听鈥� Michael Gracey
鈥淒ear Evan Hansen鈥� duo Pasek & Paul pen the songbook for Hugh Jackman鈥檚 dazzling circus biopic on P.T. Barnum.
78. Locke (2013) 鈥� Steven Knight
Tom Hardy rivets in this driving British mystery set entirely behind the steering wheel of a car using Bluetooth calls.
77. Drive (2011) 鈥� Nicolas Winding Refn
Ryan Gosling played a strong, silent type as a Hollywood stunt man turned getaway driver in this stylized art flick.
76.听American Sniper (2014) 鈥� Clint Eastwood
Bradley Cooper showed his dramatic potential as the deadliest sniper in U.S. history in this complex post-9/11 biopic.
75. Wonder Woman (2017) 鈥� Patty Jenkins
Gal Gadot charmed while Jenkins directed precision action to prove the viability of female-driven tentpoles.
74.听The Big Sick (2017) 鈥� Michael Showalter
Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Holly Hunter and Ray Romano yanked the rom-com genre right out of coma.
73. The Shape of Water (2017) 鈥� Guillermo del Toro
This bizarre Best Picture showcased Sally Hawkins as a mute janitor in an inter-species romance with a fish man.
72.听Lion (2016) 鈥� Garth Davis
Child star Sunny Pawar was adorable as a lost Indian boy in this inspiring film starring Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman.
71. Roma (2018) 鈥� Alfonso Cuaron
Cuaron’s love note to his own childhood in 1970s Mexico City features gorgeous black-and-white cinematography.
70.听Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) 鈥� James Gunn
Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana anchor this beloved superhero flick set to an awesome mixtape of classic rock tunes.
69. Silver Linings Playbook (2012) 鈥� David O. Russell
Jennifer Lawrence won her Oscar amid a dysfunctional football family the same year she played Katniss Everdeen.
68.听Ex Machina (2014) 鈥� Alex Garland
An Oscar-worthy Alicia Vikander plays the most believable A.I. robot since Michael Fassbender’s “Prometheus.”
67.听Carol听(2015) 鈥� Todd Haynes
Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara forge a forbidden romance in this richly-colored tapestry of 1950s Manhattan.
66.听Gone Girl (2014) 鈥� David Fincher
David Fincher cast Rosamund Pike as the most unforgettable femme fatale since Glenn Close in “Fatal Attraction.鈥�
65.听Joker (2019) 鈥� Todd Phillips
Joaquin Phoenix rivals Heath Ledger with a disturbingly realistic origin story that won the top prize at Venice.
64. Life of Pi (2012) 鈥� Ang Lee
Ang Lee deservedly won his second Best Director Oscar for this shipwreck adventure fantasy shown in magical 3D.
63. Son of Saul (2015) 鈥� Laszlo Nemes
Hungary’s Oscar-winning Holocaust drama uses its tight aspect ratio to hint at the horrors lurking just off screen.
62. Ida (2013) 鈥� Pawel Pawlikowski
Holocaust memories haunt this bleak black-and-white masterpiece by the stunning Polish director of “Cold War.”
61. Loving (2016) 鈥� Jeff Nichols
Joel Edgerton delivers his career-best role across Ruth Negga in a historic interracial marriage case in Virginia.
60. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) 鈥� Matt Reeves
Andy Serkis deserved an honorary Oscar for his motion-capture ape Caesar in this stunning sci-fi prequel.
59.听The Kids Are All Right (2010)听鈥� Lisa Cholodenko
Mark Ruffalo plays the biological father to Annette Bening and Julianne Moore’s children born via artificial insemination.
58. Blue is the Warmest Color (2013) 鈥� Abdellatif Kechiche
L茅a Seydoux and Ad猫le Exarchopoulos rip our hearts out in this Cannes’ Palme d’Or winner about young lesbian lovers.
57.听Love & Mercy (2015)听鈥� Bill Pohlad
John Cusack and Paul Dano portray Beach Boys genius Brian Wilson, loved听unconditionally by Elizabeth Banks.
56.听Snowpiercer (2013) 鈥� Bong Joon-ho
This South Korean sci-fi action flick comments on class divides as Chris Evans fights his way through train cars.
55.听The Martian (2015) 鈥� Ridley Scott
A stranded Matt Damon cultivated the surface of Mars in the most rousing space rescue flick since “Apollo 13.”
54.听Lincoln (2012) 鈥� Steven Spielberg
Daniel Day-Lewis won his third Best Actor Oscar teaching us Euclid lessons as the best president in U.S. history.
53.听Dunkirk (2017) 鈥� Christopher Nolan
Nolan recreated the harrowing Dunkirk rescue by intercutting a week on land, a day at sea and an hour in the sky.
52. The King鈥檚 Speech (2010)听鈥� Tom Hooper
Colin Firth deservedly won a Best Actor Oscar as a stuttering King George IV on the brink of WWII in this Best Picture.
51.听The听Imitation Game (2014)听鈥� Morten Tyldum
Benedict Cumberbatch shines as math genius Alan Turing, who cracked the German Enigma code to help win WWII.
50. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) 鈥� Joe & Anthony Russo
The villain shockingly won as Thanos’ snap set up “Endgame” to become the top-grossing global blockbuster ever.
49.听Short Term 12 (2013) 鈥� Destin Daniel Cretton
This SXSW champ launched Brie Larson, Rami Malek and Lakeith Stanfield in a center for troubled teens.
48.听Green Book (2018) 鈥� Peter Farrelly
Viggo Mortensen & Mahershala Ali make buddy-comedy magic in this controversial Best Picture champ.
47. The Help (2011) 鈥� Tate Taylor
Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer carry this star-studded drama about house servants in the segregated U.S. south.
46.听Hidden Figures (2016) 鈥� Theodore Melfi
Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monae and Octavia Spencer shine a light on the true story of unknown NASA heroes.
45.听Coco (2017) 鈥� Lee Unkirch, Adrian Molina
Pixar’s groundbreaking Latino-voiced animation boasts wonderful music and builds to a tear-jerking “Remember Me.”
44.听A Star is Born (2018) 鈥� Bradley Cooper
Lady Gaga belts the Oscar-winning 鈥淪hallow鈥� as Bradley Cooper directs with symbolic background fatalism.
43. 1917 (2019) 鈥� Sam Mendes
Mendes pays tribute to his grandfather by filming the World War I trenches to appear as one immersive long take.
42. Fruitvale Station (2013) 鈥� Ryan Coogler
There would be no 鈥淏lack Panther鈥� without this Sundance indie about the shooting of an unarmed black man.
41.听Hell or High Water (2016) 鈥� David Mackenzie
Jeff Bridges tracks Chris Pine and Ben Foster’s bank robbers with western echoes of “No Country for Old Men.”
40.听Moana (2016) 鈥� Ron Clements, John Musker
“Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda pens a songbook of “How Far I’ll Go” and The Rock’s “You’re Welcome.”
39.听Moneyball (2011) 鈥� Bennett Miller
Aaron Sorkin and Steve Zaillian adapt the hit baseball novel into a stat-crunching home run for Brad Pitt.
38.听Captain Phillips (2013) 鈥� Paul Greengrass
Tom Hanks improvised PTSD after Barkhad Abdi’s sympathetic Somali pirate insisted, “I am the captain now.”
37. Nightcrawler (2014) 鈥� Dan Gilroy
Jake Gyllenhaal is a creepy TV news cameraman who gradually loses his morality by altering crime scenes.
36.听Prisoners (2013) 鈥� Denis Villeneuve
Jake Gyllenhaal helps Hugh Jackman, Maria Bello, Viola Davis and Terrence Howard search for their abducted kids.听
35. A Quiet Place (2018) 鈥� John Krasinski
John Krasinski turns a creature feature into a silent horror masterpiece as wife Emily Blunt delivers a bathtub birth.
34.听Whiplash (2014) 鈥� Damien Chazelle
J.K. Simmons won an Oscar as a brutal drill instructor for Miles Teller’s hungry drummer in this Sundance champ.
33. Django: Unchained (2012)听鈥� Quentin Tarantino
Jamie Foxx leads a slave revolt against Leonardo DiCaprio’s plantation in Tarantino鈥檚 Oscar-winning script.
32.听Mudbound (2017) 鈥� Dee Rees
WWII buddies return to Mississippi to realize home is worse than the 鈥渨hy we fight鈥� ideals that we project overseas.
31. Force Majeure (2014) 鈥� Ruben Ostlund
This Swedish gem explores a moral dilemma after an avalanche interrupts a family vacation in the French Alps.
30.听Inside Out (2015) 鈥� Pete Docter, Ronnie Del Carmen
Amy Poehler leads a voice cast in Pixar’s Oscar-winning animation that creatively explores human emotions.
29.听Amour (2011)听鈥� Michael Haneke
Haneke casts a pair of aging French legends to epitomize the marriage vow of 鈥渋n sickness and in health.”
28.听Captain Fantastic (2016) 鈥� Matt Ross
Viggo Mortensen shines as a single father raising his six kids off the grid in the woods of the Pacific Northwest.
27.听The Descendants (2011) 鈥� Alexander Payne
George Clooney should have won an Oscar as a father raising daughters during his cheating wife’s coma.
26.听La La Land (2016) 鈥� Damien Chazelle
Chazelle won Best Director in Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling鈥檚 bittersweet musical ode to the fools who dream.
25.听Frozen (2013) 鈥� Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee
Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel flipped Disney princess conventions voicing independent sisters singing 鈥淟et It Go.”
24.听Parasite (2019) 鈥� Bong Joon-ho
Korean master juxtaposes two families of different economic means in this twisted Cannes听Palme d’Or winner.
23. The Artist (2011) 鈥� Michel Hazanavicius
Who would’ve thought that a French silent film could win Best Picture a full 84 years after the first talking picture?
22.听The Master (2012) 鈥� Paul Thomas Anderson
Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams brainwash Joaquin Phoenix in this daring critique of religious cults.
21. The Tree of Life (2011) 鈥� Terrence Malick
Malick鈥檚 lyrical mood piece is the most ambitious film since 鈥�2001,鈥� intercutting suburbia with the universe鈥檚 formation.
20.听Black Panther (2018) 鈥� Ryan Coogler
Chadwick Boseman leads Marvel鈥檚 only Best Picture nominee in a watershed Wakanda moment for people of color.
19.听Birdman (2014) 鈥� Alejandro G. Inarritu
Michael Keaton plays an ex-superhero star staging a Broadway play as Inarritu shoots in one continuous single-take.
18.听Her (2013) 鈥� Spike Jonze
Joaquin Phoenix falls for Scarlett Johansson’s Siri in this Oscar-winning script on our digital dating culture.
17.听Selma (2014) 鈥� Ava DuVernay
David Oyelowo brilliantly becomes Martin Luther King Jr. in his quest to pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
16.听Argo (2012) 鈥� Ben Affleck
Alan Arkin, Bryan Cranston and John Goodman bolster this underdog Best Picture on the Iran hostage crisis.
15.听Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) 鈥� George Miller
Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron lead a feminist uprising in the best chapter of Miller鈥檚 dystopian action franchise.
14.听Arrival (2016) 鈥� Denis Villeneuve
Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner communicate with aliens in this sci-fi gem that deserves repeat viewings.
13.听American Hustle (2013) 鈥� David O. Russell
Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence expose the artifice of the American Dream.
12.听Twelve Years a Slave (2013) 鈥� Steve McQueen
Chiwetel Ejiofor endured, Michael Fassbender terrified and Lupita Nyong鈥檕 earned an Oscar in this Best Picture.
11. A Separation (2011) 鈥� Asghar Farhadi
Few filmmakers have documented a crumbling marriage better than this Oscar winner by the Iranian master.
10.听Inception (2010) – Christopher Nolan
Nolan explores dreams within dreams in this visionary sci-fi action blockbuster that left our heads spinning like a top.
9.听Zero Dark Thirty (2012) 鈥� Kathryn Bigelow
Jessica Chastain hunts Osama bin Laden as Bigelow thrillingly directs a night-vision climax for听SEAL Team 6.
8.听Black Swan (2010) 鈥� Darren Aronofsky
Natalie Portman earned an Oscar in Aronofsky鈥檚 deadly duality thriller with the ballet backdrop of 鈥淪wan Lake.鈥�
7. The Social Network (2010) 鈥� David Fincher
Aaron Sorkin caught the social-media zeitgeist with Jesse Eisenberg perfectly cast as a fast-talking Mark Zuckerberg.
6.听Room (2015) 鈥� Lenny Abrahamson
Brie Larson won an Oscar as a captive woman raising her son with no concept of the outside world beyond their room.
5.听Gravity (2013) 鈥� Alfonso Cuaron
Cuaron won an Oscar directing Sandra Bullock in this 90-minute panic attack where 3D made sense in zero gravity.
4. Spotlight (2015)听鈥� Tom McCarthy
This journalism Best Picture recounts the Boston Globe鈥檚 investigation into child sex abuse by the Catholic Church.
3. Moonlight (2016) 鈥� Barry Jenkins
Jenkins鈥� upset Best Picture artfully presents three stages of life to shatter stereotypes of race and orientation.
2. Boyhood听(2014) 鈥� Richard Linklater
Linklater shot this longitudinal study in time-capsule snippets over 12 years to literally watch a boy grow up on screen.
1. Get Out (2017) 鈥� Jordan Peele
Suspenseful on first watch, this horror film reveals itself as a masterpiece of double meanings on repeat viewings.
Happy new year! Here鈥檚 to another decade of great movies.
