As we approach 2025 and the end of the 21st century’s first quarter, we wanted to look back to see which actors, actresses, directors, and movies have stood the test of time. With that in mind, for the rest of the year, the Bitesize Top Five will be giving a consensus view on what we think are the Bests of everything since 2000. We are only looking at work released since January 1, 2000, so don’t get mad because your favourites of the 90s didn’t make it.
Over the next four months we will do Top Five Dramas, Comedies, Horrors, and Action Films of this century. For our purposes, we worked with the idea that every movie falls under one of those broad umbrellas. It’s imperfect, but it felt like the best course of action.
As always, each writer ranks his or her top 15 in the category. Those lists are then weighted on a reverse point system. After all the points are tallied up, the entries with the most total points make up the Bitesize Top Five.
5. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
One cannot discuss the greatest dramas of the 21st century without mentioning the gem Inglourious Basterds. Even writer-director Quentin Tarantino ends his amazing film with the final line "I think this just might be my masterpiece," which is 100% him talking about his work on the movie. For all movie lovers, Inglourious Basterds is essential viewing because it's incredibly engaging with shock value, dramatic moments, suspense, and humorous beats. Plus, the screenplay is razor-sharp, Tarantino's directing is superb, and its ensemble pulls off fantastic performances. As a die-hard Tarantino fan, I not only think this is his best movie to date, but one of the best films ever. - Paige
4. WHIPLASH
Whiplash is a film that, regardless of someone’s taste or preferences, I’ll always recommend. Damien Chazelle’s intense, ambitious, and riotously entertaining film explores the limits an artist is willing to push themselves to achieve greatness, and infuses it with an adrenaline-fuelled nervous energy that simultaneously paralyses you while keeping your heart racing. Chazelle uses drum solos as nerve-shredding dramatic set pieces and riveting dialogue to keep you on the edge of your seat, completely immersing you in the volatile relationship between student and mentor. The cast also is faultless, and J.K. Simmons’ pitch-perfect performance as the formidable Terence Fletcher is one of my favourites in any film. - Katie
3. PARASITE
Recency bias is looking less and less likely with every passing year for director Bong Joon Ho’s thrilling epic Parasite. Even before the massive twist that slapped everyone in the face, this tense game of class warfare had you at the edge of your seat wondering how the Kim family might pull off their long con. But that twist does happen, and the seat to which you were grasping onto is now a thing of the past. The Oscars confirmed that everything from the writing, directing, and pacing were best of 2019, but the ensemble (especially Song Kang-ho’s harrowing patriarchal turn) also matches that greatness. This is an instant classic whose hype as one of the best of this century is more than warranted. - Amarú
2. ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is the kind of film that you watch while just being grateful that it exists. A romance mixed with science fiction, not to mention some psychological thriller thrown in, it is a breathtaking, brilliant, and thought-provoking masterwork about our perception of love and connection to others. Everything from Jim Carrey’s and Kate Winslet's heartbreaking performances to Michel Gondry's direction that elicits incredible shots and demonstrates nuance to the Oscar-winning script that is still analyzed and talked about today, everything about Eternal Sunshine is iconic. While some have tried to varying degrees of success to replicate this lightning in a bottle, it will forever be one of a kind. - Adriano
1. THE DEPARTED
The Departed is almost hard to classify as a drama because of the intensity within each scene and the heart-racing anxiety it induces. Director Martin Scorsese uses an absolute all-star cast to wind up a plot that is teaming with twists, turns, and tension. The best films coax the viewer into the situation playing out in front of them, and The Departed is the epitome of such a temptress. Who can you trust? Who am I rooting for? What the hell just happened?! These are exactly the kinds of questions you yearn to be asking during a great film of this ilk. Throw in some Boston accents, gang play, complicated romance, humor, undercover police work, murder, Jack Nicholson’s special kind of crazy, with a sprinkle of American patriotism, and you have a recipe for something truly fantastic. - Preston
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