30. City of Hope (1991) d: John Sayles
Sayles delivers expert writing and editing (he did both) in a multiple character movie which serves as a portrayal of urban decay from many angles.
29. Up In The Air (2009) d: Jason Reitman
George Clooney's career best work as a man who travels constantly and tries to convince to audience how little he needs human connection as he starts to realize how much he needs human connection.
28. Minority Report (2002) d: Steven Spielberg
It's full of great action yet thought provoking on the issue of freedom vs security. Based on a Phillip K. Dick story, its tone is more dark than I expect from Spielberg until the ending. (Although I subscribe to a revisionist theory that the ending is not actually what it seems and is actually much darker.)
27. Avatar (2009) d: James Cameron
The biggest film of all time showed us that 3D did not have to be a gimmick.
26. Adventureland (2009) d: Greg Mottola
A recent college graduate finds summer work at an amusement park. Sounds simple. The beauty is in the details, and how even the smallest characters are drawn with love. One example: the character of Lisa, who would in a typical comedy would just be the sex object. This film gives her a touching monologue of watching her father's medical struggles.
25. Inside Job (2010) d: Charles Ferguson
This Oscar winning documentary which examines how Wall Street screwed up the economy in the 2000s made me as angry as any movie I've ever seen. This is film journalism of the highest order.
24. Pan's Labyrinth (2006) d: Guillermo del Toro
A celebration of using imagination to get through the hell of war, with an inventiveness well past most films and an extraordinary visual palette.
23. Goodfellas (1990) d: Martin Scorsese
The surprise to many is not that this is on the list but that it is this low. It is bravura filmmaking, showing both the highs and lows of organized crime. This is my list, and I have a more personal connection with the films I rate higher. It's definitely a masterpiece, as I rate Scorsese's three master works as this, Raging Bull, and Taxi Driver.
22. Fearless (1993) d: Peter Weir
Here's another great Jeff Bridges performance, as the film takes us into his manic reaction to surviving a plane crash which is at once thrilling and unnerving.
21. A History of Violence (2005) d: David Cronenberg
Are some men born to violence? Are they just good at it and cannot truly get away from it? Leave it to Cronenberg to provide some unsettling answers.
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