Why am I like this? My Obsession with the Guardian’s the 100 best films of the 21st century.

I’m one of those unlucky fucks who has to spend the pandemic working in an actual office, surrounded by people. At this point in time, I’m grateful to simply be employed. The state of the world at this time has given me nothing if it hasn’t given me perspective. 

There are now two states of being and you may find yourself, like me, swinging like a pendulum between these two states daily. The first is the obsessive news checker. I find myself repeatedly checking the Guardian’s main page. The flashing red lights for the live updates, the photos of people in masks standing meters apart, or worse, the huge crowds of people making their way out of now locked down cities are transfixing for all the wrong reasons. With more news every moment you can find yourself trapped in a spiral of the news media’s design. You are now their overwhelmed and frazzled victim.

Here enters our second player, his name is distraction. This is where the Youtube hole reigns supreme. You’re riding on the wave of wikipedia articles and the top ten things you never noticed about insert famous film/ film franchise here. This is where you watch the endless reviews of the film Cats (2019), always with the same tantalising conclusion, that Cats is bad.

Distraction is the need to heal and what better way to heal than to surrender, once again, to pop culture. The need for distraction has led me to an obsession with the Guardian’s top 100 films of 21st century.

This is what people do when they have nothing to do at work and most websites are blocked. They read Guardian articles, and this list brings endless delights. Whether I agree with this list or not, it never fails to be compelling on every visit.

This isn’t my first list I have become enamoured with, the first was a list of graphic novels by women writers. I read most of these graphic novels, barring only the comics not available at the Wellington Central library.

In these lists I don’t just see a ranking of media according to some journalists I’ve never heard of, I see a challenge. How many of these films have you watched? Oh, you haven’t seen some of them? Well, you reader, are a pleb, and this list was only created for the real film buffs of this world. You know, like that film guy you sit next to at work who never fails to let you know his opinions about films, unashamedly, like a newsletter you never signed up for with no ability to unsubscribe.

It’s true, according to this list of the best films of the 21st Century (which will henceforth be referred to as The List because I’m feeling lazy) I have been sleeping on some of the best movie output in recent years. But you know what? I will do what anyone with an amateur love of film would do and shit all over their rankings, because some of their picks are just subpar.

I just don’t understand why Ted (2012) gained pride of place at number 60 when it has no business being on the list at all. I understand that this list doesn’t want to appear biased toward dramas but still, there are better comedies in my humble opinion, which if you didn’t already know, doesn’t count for much. What about What We do in the Shadows (2014)? That would make sense to me. What about Bridesmaids (2011)?  I was also surprised to see Team America: World Police (2004) on The List, and coming in at the unfathomably high ranking of number 10 at that.

Of course there are no brainers on The List and films I absolutely adore. I will take this opportunity to shout out to Paddington 2 (2017), Moonlight (2016), The Handmaiden (2016), amongst others. Yet, half the fun of the list for me is being contrary about their picks. I personally don’t rate Burning (2018) (come at me, I’m ready for it), Fishtank (2009), and for reasons I won’t explore here I think Lost and Translation (2003), can quite frankly fuck right off.


As I said, the other fun of the list is the challenge it poses to me. With all this time inside, it’s time to mainline some great cinema. Here are my short reviews of some of the films I have watched since discovering The List.

Boyhood (2014)

Boyhood is a movie about a boy who grows into a man (well, almost) right before your very eyes. For a long time I put off watching this movie because I heard anecdotally that it was Oscar bait and also somewhat dull. What I didn’t realise was that the film’s director is Richard Linklater, who also directed the Before Sunrise series of films, which I adore. Much like those films, we get to follow the characters as they age. The story is somewhat slow and meandering but if you’re the type of viewer who enjoys watching more subtle storytelling rather than action packed plots you would enjoy this film. The boy is called Mason Jr. We follow Mason, his sister, Samantha, and their single mother through a series of snippets over 12 years of filming. We watch their family expand and shrink, and the complications of life deepen as the inevitability of adulthood gets closer for the young characters.

The performances elevate this film. It’s integral that we like these characters for the plot to function. I personally love how the film lingers on the moments between the kids and their estranged father, Mason played by Ethan Hawke. He has to fight to remain in their lives, which means that their scenes together are mostly shown to us in settings outside of homes, such as the bowling alley or on a camping trip. Their father could easily be played as the cheap villian of the film but he is rather portrayed as flawed but loving. This film is filled with problematic father figures but our young main characters’ biological father becomes an important constant in Mason Jr’s and Samantha’s lives.

It’s a bittersweet film that really hit hard for me, as it really made me muse on the transient nature of the family unit. As a viewer, you are never left to feel too comfortable in the stability of the present moment as you are quickly forced into the future and need to quickly catch up with the changes in the lives of these characters.

Boyhood is available on Apple TV and I would recommend it to anyone who likes slice of life stories. There are definitely parts of the story that are hard to watch, but overall I would describe the story as a heartwarming coming of age story and a nice distraction in the current climate.

45 Years (2015)

The best films unearth anxieties buried deep in your psyche. 45 Years explores the idea that you could spend most of your lifetime investing time and energy in your significant other, only to realise they are not who they appear to be.

We meet an older couple, living in the seemingly peaceful English countryside, who are planning for their 45th wedding anniversary party. A letter arrives for the husband, Geoff, informing him that the body of his long-dead former partner was found after a glacier melted in Switzerland. The arrival of this letter is followed by a tense unravelling of the couple’s bond. From what I can understand, the two actors in the film are British legends, but like I said, I’m too much of a pleb to know any better.
With that being said, I can appreciate these two actors from these performances alone. What’s most devastating about this film is the mere expression on the face of the wife, Kate, as she realises that her carefully orchestrated marriage is now forever tarnished. You can acutely see the inner anguish she must feel, wondering if she can cut her losses after 45 years of investment, or if she should just carry on because she stands to lose too much.

Following the arrival of this devastating letter, Geoff becomes obsessed with the past and it quickly begins to weigh on their relationship. Kate’s reaction is so true to life as she moves from being understanding and supportive to not being able to hear the name of his former partner, Katya. To say that Kate is jealous of Katya is too simplistic a reading of the film. Rather, she is grieving the loss of her husband as she previously knew him. Instead, Geoff has emotionally checked out of their present lives in an effort to recapture what could have been. The setting, once wonderfully cosy in an English cottage, becomes claustrophobic. As expected, Geoff’s unhealthy obsession with the past becomes Kate’s emotional burden. The emotional labour surrendered by women in relationships is a common occurrence in everyday life, but the familiarity of the couple’s suffering doesn’t make this story any less devastating.

I feel very naughty because I found this film on Youtube. I think I made it abundantly clear but this movie is very much a drama, so I would not recommend it for light entertainment. I would recommend this film to anyone who loves a twist as this film packs a real punch leading up to its final act.

Under the Skin (2013)

This film was made by Jonathan Glazer, the same director who thought it would be a good idea to stick Nicole Kidman in the bathtub with a ten year old. Birth (2004) follows a widow who is about to remarry until she meets the reincarnation of her former husband, which brings her upcoming nuptials into question. The thing is, the recipient of this magical reincarnation is the aforementioned 10 year old boy. Perhaps I’m being harsh, but the plot of Birth sounds potentially disastrous and to me it looks like it played out even worse. On the other hand, I have a lot of love for that kind of daring creativity. With that in mind, let me introduce to you the final movie I will discuss in this post, Under the Skin.

This film follows an alien dressed as a seductive Scarlett Johansson with one mission, eating unsuspecting horny strangers. This film sounded fantastic and it comes in at fourth place on The List. I watched the trailer and I found it to be a Lynchian looking delight, so I spent my hard earned money on some quality entertainment.

Put simply, this film didn’t disappoint me. Basically, ScarJo drives around trying to pick up men in her scary black van, but no one seems to find this unnerving because she’s a pretty lady. They also don’t find her stripping in a big black void unnerving for the same reason. These silly men just follow her in there, boners at the ready, trying to get at that alien pussy (ok, to be fair, they don’t know she is an alien). Despite the film mostly playing out like a thriller, there’s something funny about these average looking guys doing anything in their power to get a root, even at the risk of their own safety. It’s surreal watching them walking towards ScarJo, eyes focused on her, as they sink into the void.

This was a great seedling of an idea for a film, an alien tricking the men of Glasgow to willingly give themselves over as her dinner. I will say it’s never made explicit that she eats them but I can only assume her motivations are for sustenance. By comparison, the ethical minefield that is Birth seems to be the brainchild of an entirely different person. But isn’t this the cruel truth of being a creator, you mainly only strike gold after a failure or two. Ok, I promise the comparisons stop there. I’m just obsessed with the idea of this movie Birth, but I refuse to spend money on it.

With Under the Skin the cast and crew have created a film for film reviewers to wax lyrical, and with good reason. After our alien main character coldly engulfs a few victims in her void, she meets a man othered by human society who ironically helps her to gain some humanity. Like any good vegan, she starts to realise her food has feelings.

What follows is our alien turning from predator to victim. The predators of the film become, maybe you guessed it, men! Because if it looks like a woman, and it acts like a woman (kinda, there’s a scene where she spits out cake like no woman ever) then there will always be men around to fill her void. See what I did there?

This film is as harsh as it is stylish. It also moves at a somewhat slow pace, which I guess according to these reviews is the nature of arthouse cinema. It’s somewhat disturbing, so I would avoid it if you don’t like graphic content. However, if you have a taste for dark films like me, it’s right up your alley. I watched it on Apple TV.

Anyway, those are my unsolicited opinions on the Guardian’s 100 best films of the 21st century and some of the films therein. This post originally appear on The Indoor Crew, an email newsletter created by my friends. If you want to read hilarious takes on life and pop culture written by my fabulous friends, subscribe here- https://indoorcrew.substack.com/