I’ve recently come across a few blog posts where the author shares a list of the top ten grossing films and Academy Award Best Picture nominees over the past 15 years and then indicates whether or not he’s seen the film.
It looked like fun so I thought I’d do the same thing. I’m adding one more caveat. If I haven’t seen it, I will indicate if I want to see it by including and asterisk (∗) next to the title.
Key: Seen it / Haven’t Seen it
2000
Gladiator
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Traffic (∗)
What Women Want
Meet the Parents
Chocolat
Erin Brockovich
Mission: Impossible II
Cast Away
Dinosaur
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
The Perfect Storm
X-Men
What Lies Beneath
2001
A Beautiful Mind
Monsters, Inc.
Ocean’s Eleven
Gosford Park
In the Bedroom
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Moulin Rouge
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
Shrek
Pearl Harbor
The Mummy Returns
Jurassic Park III
Planet of the Apes
Hannibal
2002
Spider-Man
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Men in Black II
Die Another Day
Minority Report
Chicago
Gangs of New York (∗)
The Hours
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
The Pianist
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Signs
Ice Age
My Big Fat Greek Wedding
2003
Finding Nemo
The Matrix Reloaded
The Matrix Revolutions
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Lost in Translation (∗)
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Mystic River
Seabiscuit
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Bruce Almighty
The Last Samurai (∗)
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
X2
Bad Boys II
2004
The Incredibles
Ocean’s Twelve
Million Dollar Baby
The Aviator
Finding Neverland
Ray
Sideways
Shrek 2
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Spider-Man 2
The Passion of the Christ
The Day After Tomorrow
Meet the Fockers
Troy
Shark Tale
2005
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Crash
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Good Night, and Good Luck
Munich (∗)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the – Wardrobe
War of the Worlds
King Kong
Madagascar
Mr. and Mrs. Smith (∗)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Batman Begins
Hitch
2006
Little Miss Sunshine (∗)
Casino Royale
Cars
The Departed
Babel
Letters from Iwo Jima (∗)
The Queen
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
The Da Vinci Code
Ice Age: The Meltdown
Night at the Museum
X-Men: The Last Stand
Mission: Impossible III
Superman Returns
Happy Feet
2007
No Country for Old Men (∗)
Juno
Ratatouille
I Am Legend
Atonement
Michael Clayton
There Will Be Blood (∗)
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Spider-Man 3
Shrek the Third
Transformers
The Simpsons Movie
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
300
2008
The Dark Knight
Quantum of Solace
WALL-E
Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Kung Fu Panda
Hancock
Mamma Mia!
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
Iron Man
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
2009
The Hurt Locker (∗)
Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
Inglourious Basterds (∗)
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
2012
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Sherlock Holmes
Angels & Demons
The Hangover
2010
The Social Network (∗)
Toy Story 3
The Kings’ Speech
127 Hours (∗)
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception (∗)
The Kids Are All Right
True Grit
Winter’s Bone
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Shrek Forever After
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
Iron Man 2
Tangled
Despicable Me
How to Train Your Dragon
2011
The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1
Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol
Kung Fu Panda 2
Fast Five
The Hangover Part II
The Smurfs
Cars 2
2012
Skyfall (∗)
Argo
Amour
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Misérables
Life of Pi (∗)
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty
The Avengers
The Dark Knight Rises
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Ice Age: Continental Drift
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2
The Amazing Spider-Man
Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted
The Hunger Games
Men in Black 3 (∗)
2013
Monsters University
12 Years a Slave (∗)
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street
Frozen
Iron Man 3
Despicable Me 2
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Fast & Furious 6
Man of Steel
Thor: The Dark World
2014
Birdman (∗)
American Sniper (∗)
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel (∗)
The Imitation Game
Selma (∗)
The Theory of Everything
Whiplash
Transformers: Age of Extinction
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Guardians of the Galaxy
Maleficent
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Interstellar (∗)
Final Thoughts
I’ve seen 123 out of 241 of these films. Of the ones I haven’t seen I’m only interested in seeing 24. Last year I saw only five of the top-grossing and Best Picture nominated films. I tend to watch movies after they’ve been released to DVD or Netflix so that’s to be expected.
I’ll continue to update this list as I watch movies and with the new films released every year. It will be an interesting exercise to see how my movie viewing habits change.
How many of these films have you seen? Which films that I haven’t seen would you recommend?
I see some patterns emerging. You don’t like Ice Age or Pirates of the Caribbean.
You nailed it!