79. The Wrestler (2008) - From the moment Mickey Rourke appears on the screen as Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a self-described "broken down piece of meat," wrestler and estranged father, he immediately has our undivided attention. By film's end, it's a harrowing and haunting performance where Rourke, like The Ram, leaves everything - his love for the sport, and his life - in the ring. Rourke's performance is something you won't soon forget. The same goes with Darren Aronofsky's gritty and soul-bearing direction.78. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) - The best Potter movie since Alfonso Cuaron's Prisoner of Azkaban, the sixth installment of J.K. Rowing's masterful children's literature series, is also the most beautifully shot (cinematographer Bruno Debonnel deserves to have Academy voters singing his praises) and mature of the set. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson are all aces, but it's the supporting crew that shocks and wows you, particularly the dynamic Alan Rickman as Snape, who's mere scowls and expressions do more acting than the lines he sinks into; Helena Bonham Carter is sexiness villainy personified as the mad Bellatrix Lestrang; the suprising and haunting Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy, Harry's arch-rival given a job by the evil Lord Voldemort that could break his soul in two; and the magnificent Sir Michael Gambon as the clever and wise Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
77. A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) - Once a project that the late Stanley Kubrick passed on to Steven Speilberg a few years before his death, Kubrick's vision of a crumbling world in the near future and the story of a android child programmed to love comes to breathtakingly, vivid life in Speilberg's hands. Haley Joel Osmet's touching and haunting performance as David, the young android who wants to be a real boy, proved that his breakout hit as the kid who could see dead people in The Sixth Sense was no fluke.76. Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) - Controversial is an understatement. Michael Moore's blistering, mad-as-hell documentary slamming the Bush administration's actions after the wake of the 9/11 attacks, started a firestorm of debate about the War in Iraq, our approach to the War on Terrorism, and about the Commander-in-Chief himself. Moore fudged facts, divided audiences and made movie history as his documentary became the highest-grossing documentary of all time. A must watch for anyone who wants to capture the intensity of debate dealing with the Iraq War, and the Bush presidency.
75. Chocolat (2000) - Like Chicago, this one eventually grew on me over time. A comic fable about a mother (Juliette Binoche) and her daughter (Victoire Thivisol) who set up the chocolate shop in a small French village and causes a sensual commotion during the forty days of Lent. Maybe I was too young to feel giddy and warm about the film's humorous and sensual nature, but as I grew older, I've come to love this irresistible and delicious fable from director Lasse Hallstrom (The Cider House Rules).
74. Open Range (2003) - It's no Unforgiven, but this western is a classic nonetheless, thanks in part to someone who's made this kind of movie before: Kevin Costner shoots the vast, American West with a sweeping passion. Charley (Costner) and Boss Spearman (the great Robert Duvall) are two cowboys seeking justice as one of their on is murdered by a corrupt rancher (Sir Michael Gambon) and his cronies. Of course, there's a love interest (Annette Bening as the town nurse) and there's a climatic standoff (it's a perfectly shot action piece) but the driving force is between Costner and Duvall as two weary cowboys living in a country that has little need for cowboys.
73. Maria Full Of Grace (2004) - Knockout performances don't get any better than watching Catalina Sandino Moreno play Maria Alverz, a 17 year-old from Colombia leaving her job at a rose factory for a life as a drug mule. Watching Moreno's Maria swallow pellets of heroin is just as hard as watching an example of the consequences of what could happen if a pellet should leak out during the flight to New York. Give credit to first-time director Joshua Martson for the no-bull look at the human element of drug traffiking, and the lengths of which Maria - and many immigrants - are willing to undertake to pursue the American Dream.72. Crash (2005) - Between a film centering around race relations in America and two gay cowboys, Oscar voters went with the safer pick in Paul Haggis' multi-layered drama about the connections several people will share with one another in the span of 36 hrs, which isn't saying much. This movie and it's characters confront their racially-held stereotypes about others, and become victims themselves. All the actors excell, but the standouts are Matt Dillon as a racist cop tending to his ailing father; Sandra Bullock as the wife of a D.A. who's car was hijacked at gunpoint; rapper Ludacris as a car thief who ponders with his partner (Larenz Tate) about race, class and life; and Thandie Newton, the wife of a black TV director (Terrance Howard) who was sexually molested by Matt Dillon's character.
71. Juno (2007) - I can't remember the last time i've seen any actor or actress burst forth with as much biting wit and aching vulnerability than Ellen Page as Juno McGruff. It's a joy to watch Page sink into Juno - a high school student who winds up pregnant to her boyfriend Pauly Pleaker (Michael Cera) who decides to give the baby away to two hopeful parents (Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner) - and let her rip into some of the best lines i've heard in a while. Of course, the credit also goes into first-time screenwriter Diablo Cody for pouring sharp humor and unflinching honesty into Juno's world - a world that's all to familiar for anyone who remembers growing up in their teenage years.
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