25th anniversary: 20 great movies from the year 2000

What movies were in theatres before the next 10 years saw them all become metaphors for post 9-11 America? Check out 20 films from the year 2000.

Mission: Impossible 2

Director: John Woo

Stars: Tom Cruise, Dougray Scott, and Thandie Newton

Agent Ethan Hunt is sent to Australia to destroy a bacterial weapon. Even in 2000, Tom Cruise was doing his own stunts.

Gladiator

Director: Ridley Scott

Stars: Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, and Connie Nielsen

Captured by a slave merchant, a Roman general becomes a gladiator while planning his revenge against those responsible for his predicament. Audiences are still waiting for the sequel announced in 2018.

X-Men

Director: Bryan Singer

Stars: Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, and Ian McKellen

Two groups of mutants with superpowers go head to head. One wants to rule humanity, while the other wants to protect it. Eight years before the first Marvel movie (Iron Man, in 2008), X-Men ushered in the era of superhero films that has marked the past two decades.

Cast Away

Director: Robert Zemeckis

Stars: Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, and Paul Sanchez

Following a plane crash, a man spends several years alone on a deserted island. Tom Hank’s performance is so good that we almost forget we’re watching a FedEx ad.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Director: Ang Lee

Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, and Zhang Ziyi

A woman goes in search of the stolen treasured sword her lover gave her before leaving. While the film received extensive praise and multiple awards, its sequel, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny (2016), was, shall we say, less well received.

Chicken Run

Director: Peter Lord and Nick Park

Stars: Mel Gibson, Julia Sawalha, and Phil Daniels

A farm-bound hen is convinced that a recently arrived rooster can teach all the hens to fly the coop before they end up as dinner. Today, Chicken Run remains the highest-grossing stop-motion film.

Erin Brockovich

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Stars: Julia Roberts, Albert Finney, and David Brisbin

A single mother confronts a powerful company accused of polluting a California town’s water supply. Julia Roberts was the first actress to be paid $20 million (CAD$26 million) for a role.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Stars: George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson

In the 1930s southern United States, three prison escapees go in search of treasure with the law on their heels. The soundtrack, featuring bluegrass and blues tunes, won the Grammy for album of the year and spent several weeks at the top of the charts.

Chocolat

Director: Lasse Hallström

Stars: Juliette Binoche, Judi Dench, and Johnny Depp

In 1959, a woman and her young daughter open a chocolate shop in a small French village. Their presence and tasty treats upset the town’s somewhat rigid middle-class residents.

Almost Famous

Director: Cameron Crowe

Stars: Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, and Kate Hudson

A teen trying to write an article for Rolling Stone magazine tags along with a touring rock band. Almost Famous is largely based on the teenage years of the film’s director and writer, Cameron Crowe.

High Fidelity

Director: Stephen Frears

Stars: John Cusack, Iben Hjejle, and Todd Louiso

The owner of a record store ranks his five “best” breakups, including the one currently underway. A television series based on the film was set to premiere in February 2020.

American Psycho

Director: Mary Harron

Stars: Christian Bale, Justin Theroux, and Josh Lucas

Patrick Bateman, a rich New York financier, plunges deeper and deeper into violent psychopathic delusions. To create the role of Bateman for the big screen, Christian Bale took inspiration from Tom Cruise’s appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman.

Coyote Ugly

Director: David McNally

Stars: Piper Perabo, Adam Garcia, and John Goodman

While working in a New York bar run by barmaids who tease their customers, a songwriter waiting for her career to take off comes out

of her shell. Although the film was generally greeted with unfavourable reviews, Coyote Ugly still made over $100 million (CAD$130 million) at the box office.

The Virgin Suicides

Director: Sofia Coppola

Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, and James Woods

A group of men become obsessed with five sisters protected from the outside world by their strict, religious parents. Critics, including the influential Roger Ebert, praised Sofia Coppola’s first feature film.

Dancer in the Dark

Director: Lars von Trier

Stars: Björk, Catherine Deneuve, and David Morse

A Czech immigrant working in a factory in the United States hides her increasing blindness from her co-workers. She escapes her sad reality through daydreams about musical comedies. Björk found her acting experience so challenging that she swore never to do it again.

Unbreakable

Director: M. Night Shyamalan

Stars: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, and Robin Wright

Following a train accident, a man suspects that he may be indestructible. Fans of this film had to wait 16 years for Shyamalan to deliver two sequels, Split and Glass.

Memento

Director: Christopher Nolan

Stars: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Joe Pantoliano

A man suffering from a form of amnesia that prevents him from remembering more than 15 minutes at a time tries to track down the man who raped and murdered his wife. Hollywood may have the same condition as Memento’s main character. A remake was planned for 2015, but seems to have been forgotten.

Requiem for a Dream

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Stars: Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, and Jennifer Connelly

Three friends use drugs to invent a better life, but fall deeper into anxiety and despair. Meanwhile, a woman becomes so obsessed with appearing in her favourite television show that she subjects herself to a radical diet to meet her self-imposed standards of beauty.

The Emperor’s New Groove

Director: Mark Dindal

Stars: David Spade, John Goodman, and Eartha Kitt

Emperor Kuzco is transformed into a llama by a woman who wants his throne. To become human again, Kuzco must get help from a peasant. While this film went rather unnoticed when released, it shows up regularly on lists of Disney’s most underrated movies.

In the Mood for Love

Director: Wong Kar-wai

Stars: Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, and Rebecca Pan

Two neighbours develop a strong connection after discovering that that their respective spouses are having a secret affair. In 2016, the BBC ranked this film second on its list of the 21st century’s 100 greatest films.