Ranked roundup
The best films of the 2000s
25 ranked · updated June 2026
The 2000s defined a transformative era of cinema where grand epic storytelling, moral complexity, and groundbreaking animation converged. From the sprawling depths of Middle-earth to the gritty, psychological tension of modern noir, these fifteen films represent the decade’s most enduring achievements in visual narrative and thematic ambition.
How this ranking works
Ranked by a Bayesian-weighted score combining each title's average rating and rating count (minimum 200 ratings to qualify, weighted toward titles with more votes), filtered to films released in the 2000s.
The Dark Knight
Christopher Nolan
The Dark Knight earns its top spot for redefining the superhero genre through a haunting exploration of chaos and the heavy cost of heroism.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Peter Jackson
The Return of the King serves as the emotional pinnacle of the decade, masterfully balancing epic scale with intimate themes of sacrifice and friendship.
Spirited Away
Hayao Miyazaki
Spirited Away remains a masterpiece of animation that uses surreal, dreamlike imagery to capture the universal melancholy of losing one's childhood innocence.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Peter Jackson
The Two Towers is essential for its relentless pacing and its profound examination of hope persisting even when faced with overwhelming darkness.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Peter Jackson
The Fellowship of the Ring expertly establishes the decade's gold standard for world-building, grounding its fantasy stakes in the burden of individual responsibility.
City of God
Fernando Meirelles
City of God earns its place through a visceral, unflinching depiction of the cycle of poverty and violence within the favelas of Rio.
Howl's Moving Castle
Hayao Miyazaki
Howl’s Moving Castle is a triumph of imagination that uses steampunk aesthetics to deliver a powerful, pacifist message about inner beauty and self-acceptance.
The Pianist
Roman Polanski
The Pianist stands out as a harrowing, deeply personal survival drama that captures the dehumanizing reality of war through a singular, focused perspective.
Gladiator
Gladiator revitalized the historical epic genre by focusing on the timeless, high-stakes battle between personal honor and systemic political corruption.
Inglourious Basterds
Quentin Tarantino
Inglourious Basterds showcases a brilliant revisionist approach to history, utilizing sharp dialogue and moral ambiguity to subvert traditional war film tropes.
Oldboy
Park Chan-wook
Oldboy is a landmark of South Korean cinema, renowned for its shocking narrative structure and its intense, visceral exploration of long-term revenge.
The Prestige
Christopher Nolan
The Prestige excels as a psychological thriller, meticulously crafting a narrative about obsession that mirrors the deceptive, layered nature of magic itself.
Memento
Christopher Nolan
Memento is a structural marvel that forces the audience to experience the protagonist's disorientation, effectively turning the film into a complex, unreliable puzzle.
The Departed
Martin Scorsese
The Departed remains a masterclass in tension, highlighting the fluid morality and existential identity crises inherent in deep-cover infiltration thrillers.
WALL·E
WALL·E is a profound achievement in visual storytelling, using minimal dialogue to address urgent themes of environmentalism, isolation, and the persistence of love.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Michel Gondry
A standout among the best films of the 2000s.
There Will Be Blood
Paul Thomas Anderson
A standout among the best films of the 2000s.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
A standout among the best films of the 2000s.
Common questions
What are the best fantasy movies from the 2000s?
The Lord of the Rings trilogy, including The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King, leads the genre, alongside Hayao Miyazaki’s animated masterpieces, Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle, which define the decade's excellence in fantasy.
Which Christopher Nolan films from the 2000s are considered the best?
Christopher Nolan’s most acclaimed films from this decade include The Dark Knight, which explores the cost of heroism, The Prestige, a thriller about obsessive rivalry, and Memento, a landmark film known for its innovative use of an unreliable narrator and non-linear memory.
Are there any highly rated war films released between 2000 and 2009?
Yes, the decade produced several significant war films, notably The Pianist for its survival narrative, Inglourious Basterds for its revisionist history, and Gladiator, which captures the brutal nature of combat and political corruption within the historical context of the Roman Empire.