The 100 Project: Top 10 Movies of 2003

Cinema in 2003 had some very serious things going on as 9/11 became a wider spread theme. Truth told, I skipped most of it. Escapism was the name of my game. I saw some movies with heavy topics, but by and large, I was all about getting away from reality, and it shows.

My Top 10 Movies of 2003

• According to my Letterboxd account I've seen 87 movies released during 2003.
• I saw 8 movies in theaters. 4 make the top 10. 
• I've seen 3 of the 5 nominees for Best Picture. None make the top 10. 1 is an honorable mention.
• 2 foreign language movies and 2 Christmas movies make the top 10.
• 4 movies in the top 10 have a female protagonist.

10. X2: X-Men United

After watching the first X-Men I thought some of the other members of the team needed to shine. In particular, I was thinking of Nightcrawler. Just my son and I went to see X2 and were in heaven when the opening scene played out and it was Nightcrawler in all his glory. I was giddy. Then the rest of the movie happened and it was great, too. This, I thought, is how an X-Men movie should be done.

9. Bad Boys II

I don’t like Michael Bay. However, by this time, I hadn’t developed that feeling yet. And honestly, aside from the dreadful Armageddon, I hadn’t disliked anything he had done. I was a pretty big fan of the first Bad Boys, mostly because the chemistry between stars Will Smith and Martin Lawrence is insane. For the sequel, Bay cranked everything up to a thousand and it worked. I had a complete blast the first time I saw this and with every one of at least a dozen more viewings.

8. Underworld

Imagine if, instead of hackers battling a massive computer program, the Matrix was home for a war between vampires and werewolves. That’s pretty much what Underworld gave me, and I loved all of it. I haven’t thought much of Kate Beckinsale, one way or the other, in anything else she’s done. But in this movie, and even in the crappy sequels, she oozes cool. Combining her with the aesthetics of the film put a hold on me I can’t shake.

7. Elf

It took me a few years to see this one, but when I did, it became an instant Christmas classic in my household. Funny story, I watched it alone the first time around Thanksgiving of either ’07 or ’08. I loved it so much I showed it to the rest of my family, including my sister-in-law and her kids a few weeks later during our Christmas gathering. They were all skeptical, at first. Soon enough, we were all giggling our little hearts out.

6. Monster

I was vaguely familiar with the story of Aileen Wuornos before seeing this film. By that, I mean I knew she was considered a female serial killer, but that was about it. I knew there was a documentary about her, but I never got around to it. All I knew is that from the picture on the box of that doc and the poster for this movie, Charlize Theron was made to look remarkably like her. Then I watched it. Theron’s performance is so much more than a similar appearance. It’s frightening how she makes Wuornos somewhat sympathetic. She’s so good, she overshadows co-star Christine Ricci, who is nearly as excellent.

5. Finding Nemo

So yeah, I have a soft spot for movies about fathers and their sons. This one grabbed me by the throat right at the beginning and never let me go. I was pensive throughout Marlin’s journey to find Nemo and was exhausted in all the best ways when it ended. To this day, I enjoy it more than my kids, and I rank it among Pixar’s best. To me, that’s saying something.

4. A Tale of Two Sisters

I did this backwards. I saw the crappy American remake, The Uninvited, first. I was so pissed off by that movie I sought this one out to see what it was supposed to be. What it was supposed to be was an inventive, creepy, and disturbing ghost story dealing with themes of separation, loss, and mental illness. The American version just has Elizabeth Banks glaring at the camera for an hour and a half trying to make up for a useless cast and neutered script.

3. Bad Santa

This is an odd year for me in that it gave me two pieces of cinema that are among my all-time favorite Christmas movies. It manages to pull off the difficult trick of being irreverent, crass, darkly funny, and filled with heart all at once. It’s Christmas spirit filled with f-bombs. The result is I laugh at all the crudeness on display while still getting the warm and fuzzies. If you don’t agree, then @#!$%^*(#!!!

2. Kill Bill, Vol. 1

I can’t say that I had more fun watching any movie from 2003 than this one. It’s pedal-to-the-metal right from the start, never lets up, and rips off pays homage to a genre I love with undying affection. Uma Thurman is beyond fantastic as The Bride and the cast around her is hitting on all cylinders, especially Lucy Liu. Her battle with Thurman is one for the ages. Then again, so are all the battles in this movie.

1. Oldboy

I was working at Blockbuster in ’05 when I decided to give this one a shot without having ever heard of it. It came into the store during a slow week for new releases. Since we got five free rentals every week I figured why not? As it went on, I realized it was becoming one of the most unique revenge flicks ever made. Each plot twist threw me for a loop. The performance of Min Sik-choi was devastating me. Then that ending happened. Yeah, that ending. Let’s just say Oldboy sucked me in, swished me around, spit me out, and left me in a corner covered in its slime and quivering. I’ll be forever disturbed and forever grateful for it.


Honorable Mentions (alphabetically): American Splendor, Baadasssss!, Big Fish, Final Destination 2, High Tension, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Mystic River, Old School, Ong Bak: Muay Thai Warrior, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Willard