The 2000s Saw the Rise of Franchise Films, For Better or Worse
My favorite films from every year I’ve been alive (2001–2011)
This is part 3 in a 4-part series, for which my friend Paul Combs is entirely to blame. The other parts, in case you are jumping in medias res:
I want to make a blanket statement before we dive in. This list, and the next one, will have a conspicuous lack of films set in the Wizarding World. Not because I didn’t enjoy them — I quite like them, in fact, and make a point of rewatching all the Harry Potter films, front-to-back, every 2–3 years. At least one of them should probably be represented. The issue is that I sort of see them as parts of a cohesive whole, and I don’t really differentiate between one film and the next. In fact, I can’t differentiate — I don’t really remember which ones I liked and which ones are just okay. I think The Prisoner of Azkaban may be my favorite, but they just kind of blend one into the others.
This is doubly embarrassing since I’ve also read the novels a couple of times.
The same statement applies to the Mission Impossible films. They have gotten better with each iteration, and are great fun, but they are all sort of samey in my memory. Honestly, the only thing that stands out is Henry Cavill reloading his fists. Am I alone in this?
I noticed in the course of writing this that a ton of the films in consideration were sequels and parts of series, the first time that has happened. This isn’t a new phenomenon. However, the sheer mass of franchise films was notable for the first time, hence the title of this piece. It’s a trend that has only accelerated in recent years. I’m not against it — it was just interesting to see the trend as it was happening.
Anyway, onto the list. Once again, these are my personal favorites, which often aren’t critical darlings, but somehow everyone seems to forget.
2001: The Fellowship of the Ring
Much like the Academy did when The Return of the King swept up most of the awards in 2004, I’m using this one film to recognize the magnificence of the entire The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It remains the finest cinematic trilogy, bar none. Yes, even over Star Wars.
That said, The Fellowship of the Ring is also my favorite film of the trilogy. I simply enjoy the fellowship storyline the most; once the group splinters, some of the narrative simply isn’t as interesting (the Ents in particular, though Aragorn’s ghost army renders the battle for Minas Tirith rather anti-climatic). Plus Gandalf the Grey is eminently more interesting than his snow-white counterpart.
2002: The Bourne Identity
The plots got more and more byzantine the longer the franchise went on, but the first film is as baby-faced as its star, an incredibly young-looking Matt Damon. (According to film dates and basic math, Damon was 30 during filming, which seems really hard to believe as it looks like he could be delivering my newspaper.)
Everything that you loved from the franchise is here in the first iteration: frenetic, close-quarters hand-to-hand combat; hair-raising chase sequences in exotic locales; beautiful people being really good at what they do. And, too, the first film handles the franchise’s overarching theme the best: what is our identity when we don’t remember who we are? It’s a question the sequels were obsessed with but never came as close to answering.
2003: Pirates of the Caribbean
Yes I know the actual title is Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, but I wanted the heading to fit on one line. Sorry Simon Dillon, I know you are a stickler about proper titles. Please forgive this bit of brevity.
It’s sort of hard to remember now, after a slew of increasingly-unnecessary sequels — and an actor that can’t stay out of the news for all the wrong reasons — but once upon a time, Captain Jack Sparrow was a revelation. A pirate captain without a ship, a lecherous scallawag with a good heart, a clumsy buffoon with a drunken master’s impeccable timing: Captain Jack was a mystery that you could never quite unravel. You wanted him to be good but secretly loved it when he was bad.
He’s never better than in the first go-around, which also is the best Pirates film by a long shot. Rousing cinematics, a stirring and often beautiful score, and a love story that actually has a heart, Pirates of the Caribbean is simply a joy to watch. Which is pretty remarkable considering it was inspired by one of the lamest rides at Disney World.
2004: Spider-Man 2
I recently ranked the top superhero films — those being, my favorite ones — and the second iteration of the Sam Raimi trilogy placed quite high in the standings. In order to encourage conservation, and not at all a sign of my inherent laziness, allow me to reuse a bit of text from that story:
Spider-Man vs Doc Ock is a classic hero-villain pairing right from the comics, up there with Superman and Lex Luthor or Batman and the Joker. Unlike those other supervillains, who are mostly just villainous, Alfred Molina’s Doctor Otto Octavious is a man of principle. He is a good man who only goes bad from a freak accident, but even in his fallen state, a glimmer of his former self still shines through.
Spider-Man 2 is a tragedy as much as it is a comic book movie.
2005: Wedding Crashers
A not insignificant part of me wanted to put a certain sci-fi space opera here.
No, not Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. I actually think that’s just a middling movie, and is only “good” compared to the rest of the Prequels. Some good moments, but mostly meh.
I am talking about Serenity, the film that continued — and ended, unfortunately — the story that began with the TV show Firefly. Serenity is honestly only decent sci-fi. The best thing going for it is that it’s more Firefly, which is almost enough. But there was one thing from 2005 that I loved more. Or, rather, one person.
Late 90s/early 00s Vince Vaughn is basically my favorite. I just can’t get enough of his manic, motormouth energy. There is no finer display of his charms than in Wedding Crashers. Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Christoper Walken, Bradley Cooper, and Will Ferrell are also in the movie, but you would be forgiven for overlooking them, such is the degree of Vaughn’s brilliance.
I’m stretching a bit to make a point, but also I just love Vaughn in this movie. His rambling, semi-coherent monologues are a thing of beauty.
Here are a selection of Wedding Crashers quotes that I employ to this day:
- You better lock it up! (Full points if the other person responds in kind.)
- You motorboatin son of a bitch!
- Just for a second, just to see how it feels.
2006: The Departed
Another Scorsese-helmed, star-studded drama involving the mafia. While it doesn’t quite approach the level of Goodfellas, The Departed has more twists and turns and is a more exciting film. Much of the thrill comes from watching Leonardo DiCaprio’s undercover cop scramble to keep his cover, while simultaneously trying to find the rat hiding within the police ranks.
No matter how many times I see it, I still am never quite ready for the elevator scene.
2007: No Country for Old Men
I am something of a Cormac McCarthy fanboy. He’s a brilliant writer, his distaste for punctuation aside. No Country for Old Men is one of his best books. But, somehow, impossibly, the film is actually better.
That’s thanks entirely to the Coen brothers. And, of course, Javier Bardem’s riveting performance as remorseless hitman Anton Chigurh. He’s a full-on psychopath. We hate him, and fear him, but we can’t take our eyes off of him.
Great stories put resourceful people in difficult situations and then sit back to see what happens. That’s where true tension comes from. This film has it in spades.
2008: The Dark Knight
When I recently ranked my top 10 superhero films, The Dark Knight came out on top. Allow me to quote myself, and in the process, explain why it’s also the best film of 2008.
The Dark Knight is not a perfect film. For one, the Joker is a bit too force-of-nature at times. Some of the plot is a bit convenient, and some of the storytelling is a bit muddled (the mafia and their money specifically). But of this entire list, The Dark Knight is the only one that is a capital ‘F’ Film. It is staggering piece of filmmaking that belongs alongside the best the medium can produce, and it is therefore atop my list of superhero films. The 10 Greatest Superhero Films
2009: Star Trek
I had District 9 here for the longest time, but in the end I swapped it out for what has become one of my favorite science fiction films in recent memory. Is it sacrilegious to say that 2009’s Star Trek is better than most the recent Star Wars films?
The modern Star Trek movies ain’t your daddy’s Star Trek. I never really got onboard with the older Treks — TV or film. Star Wars was always better. Or, at least, a better match to my sensibilities. The new films though, those I like. JJ Abrams basically took a page from George Lucas’ playbook, and made them faster and more intense.
Naturally, I loved them.
2010: Toy Story 3
I’ve found that it was really hard to pick an animated movie over live action options in any of these lists. The Incredibles and Toy Story came closest, but in the end were edged out in favor of something else. Inception nearly took this spot, but in the end my heart won out.
The Toy Story films have never shied away from tackling adult themes. That’s part of what makes them universally-loved and timeless. The concluding film of the trilogy — and what should've been the final film of the franchise — stared down the most adult theme of all: death.
But it was the conclusion of Andy’s adventure with Woody, Buzz, and all the other toys that gives this film resonance, and why it is my favorite. Growing up and moving on is a fact of life, as inexorable as death. Once they grow up and move on, all we have left are bittersweet memories.
2011: Moneyball
On paper, this had to be one of the worst film ideas of all-time. Based on the book of the same name, Moneyball is a film about spreadsheets. It shouldn’t work. Not even with Brad Pitt doing Brad Pitt things. But somehow it is a great movie.
Moneyball is about underdogs being scrappy and winning against all odds. It’s uplifting and hopeful. I love it.
I actually wrote a piece analyzing the film from a writing perspective, if that sort of thing interests you.
Other stories that were in consideration:
Black Hawk Down, Training Day, Catch Me If You Can, Spider-Man, The Last Samurai, Batman Begins, Children of Men, The Prestige, 300, Superbad, Ratatouille, 3:10 to Yuma, Iron Man, Inglourious Basterds, Up, Inception, True Grit, Fast Five
Coming soon: the concluding part, covering 2012–2022. Expect a lot of Marvel.
Eric writes about pop culture. Not a Medium member? Join today to access Fanfare’s entire story catalog, plus every other story hosted on Medium.