Design of a Decade: The Best of the 00s
Because I can't get enough of listing shit, I give you four Top 25 lists. No eloquent critiques as backup. No wordy explanations behind each title. Just names of films, songs, books and television programs that have thoroughly entertained, moved and inspired me - and sent shockwaves throughout the known pop culture universe - during these last 10 years. The trickiest category to fill? Songs. How could I possibly select just 25 tracks from 62 volumes of mix CDs (that's over 1,300 tunes since Y2K)? I'm sure I'll be kicking myself for neglecting a couple of well-deserved tracks long after this is published. As for the films, after seeing over 550 flicks at the theater in 10 years (yes, I've kept track), only two of my top choices were viewed for the first time on DVD.
You see, there were no such things as blogs back in the 90s, so humor me...won't you?
25 IN FILM
1. Children of Men (2006)
2. About a Boy (2002)
3. Milk (2008)
4. Up in the Air (2009)
5. Traffic (2000)
6. The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-03)
7. Moulin Rouge (2001)
8. Camp (2003)
9. Little Children (2006)
10. Chicago (2002)
11. WALL-E (2008)
12. Heights (2005)
13. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
14. Donnie Darko (2001)
15. 500 Days of Summer (2009)
16. Crash (2005)
17. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 & 2 (2003-04)
18. Garden State (2004)
19. The Broken Hearts Club (2000)
20. Bride and Prejudice (2005)
21. A.I. (2001)
22. American Psycho (2000)
23. Atonement (2007)
24. Babel (2006)
25. Cloverfield (2008)
25 IN MUSIC
1. "Time to Pretend" by MGMT (2008)
2. "Black and Gold" by Sam Sparro (2008)
3. "Everybody's Changing" by Keane (2004)
4. "Beautiful" by Christina Aguilera (2003)
5. "Simply Being Loved" by BT (2003)
6. "Mama's Room" by Under the Influence of Giants (2006)
7. "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse (2007)
8. "SexyBack" by Justin Timberlake (2006)
9. "Mr. Brightside" by The Killers (2004)
10. "Chocolate" by Snow Patrol (2004)
11. "Trains to Brazil" by Guillemots (2006)
12. "In the End" by Linkin Park (2001)
13. "Umbrella" by Rihanna (2007)
14. "In My Place" by Coldplay (2002)
15. "Crazy in Love" by Beyonce (2003)
16. "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga (2009)
17. "The Way I Are" by Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson (2007)
18. "Everything's Just Wonderful" by Lily Allen (2007)
19. "Neon" by John Mayer (2002)
20. "Ashes" by Embrace (2005)
21. "Fill Me In" by Craig David (2001)
22. "Toxic" by Britney Spears (2004)
23. "God is a DJ" by Pink (2003)
24. "Hey Ya" by Outkast (2003)
25. "Bootylicious" by Destiny's Child (2001)
25 IN TV
1. Six Feet Under (2001-05)
2. The Sopranos (1999-2007)
3. Desperate Housewives (2004-present)
4. Lost (2004-2010)
5. Alias (2001-06)
6. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)
7. Sex and the City (1998-2004)
8. Mad Men (2007-present)
9. Angels in America (2003)
10. Battlestar Galactica (2003-09)
11. Will & Grace (1998-2006)
12. Veronica Mars (2004-2007)
13. American Idol (2002-present)
14. 30 Rock (2006-present)
15. Pushing Daisies (2007-2009)
16. Dexter (2006-present)
17. Nip/Tuck (2003-2010)
18. Arrested Development (2003-06)
19. Survivor (2000-present)
20. 24 (2001-present)
21. C.S.I. (2000-present)
22. House (2004-present)
23. Scrubs (2001-present)
24. The O.C. (2003-07)
25. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (2003-07)
25 IN BOOKS
1. "Dinner for Two" by Mike Gayle
2. "The DaVinci Code" by Dan Brown
3. "Odd Thomas" by Dean Koontz
4. "Turning Thirty" by Mike Gayle
5. "Be More Chill" by Ned Vizzini
6. "Little Children" by Tom Perrotta
7. "Running With Scissors" by Augusten Burroughs
8. "My Horizontal Life" by Chelsea Handler
9. "Jack and Lem" by David Pitts
10. "The Confessions of Max Tivoli" by Andrew Sean Greer
11. "The Year of Magical Thinking" by Joan Didion
12. "Wonderland" by Michael Bamberger
13. "King Dork" by Frank Portman
14. "The Day After Tomorrow" by Allan Folsom
15. "A Home at the End of the World" by Michael Cunningham
16. "Disquiet" by Julia Leigh
17. "It's Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini
18. "Michael Tolliver Lives" by Armistead Maupin
19. "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
20. "Twelve" by Nick McDonnell
21. "The Game On Diet" by Krista Vernoff and Az Ferguson
22. "Why The Long Face?" by Craig Chester
23. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" by J.K. Rowling
24. "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" by Graham Smith & Jane Austen
25. "I'm the One That I Want" by Margaret Cho
Naturally, I'm open to suggestions, feedback and healthy pop cultural debates. Send inquiries and comments to:
Hiko@IReallyCouldCareLessAboutYourOpinion.com.
Sincerely,
H.P.M.
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