10 2010s Movies That Are Perfect from Start to Finish (2024)

Perfection. It’s the thing that’s always good to aim for, all the while being at peace with the fact that it’s nearly impossible to genuinely achieve, at least in the literal sense. Many of the best movies of all time, for example, have small issues or things that can be nitpicked here and there, but if the film being judged does almost everything excellently, those minor problems barely register.

Enter the following movies, all of which were released between 2010 and 2019, and already feel like they're modern classics and, with enough time passed, will simply be flat-out classics. These movies from the 2010s essentially achieve perfection, or close enough to it that they may as well be perfect. When looked at together, they present a compelling case for the fact that no, cinema is not dead, nor has it been dying for the past 10 to 15 years. Cinema will stay alive for as long as films as good as these continue to be made and released.

10 'The Social Network' (2010)

Director: David Fincher

The Social Network is a biographical movie, in a way, but not a stuffy and/or boring one. It dramatizes the story of Facebook’s creation in the 2000s, following a young Mark Zuckerberg forming the website and subsequently struggling with the way it reshapes his life. There’s irony in the way Facebook was created to bring people together, but it largely drove apart the people involved in making it.

Whether or not it’s entirely accurate doesn’t feel too important, because the thematic weight is what counts (calling it a 21st-century Citizen Kane isn't entirely inaccurate). Additionally, The Social Network showcases David Fincher at his peak, it's amazingly well-written, and the acting across the board is phenomenal. Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield have continued to give compelling performances post-2010, but both are arguably at their very best here.

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9 'Gangs of Wasseypur' (2012)

Director: Anurag Kashyap

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The two-part Gangs of Wasseypur admittedly isn't one of the most well-known movies of the 2010s, but it’s so epic in scope, ambitious in style, and daring in all the genres covered that it’s undoubtedly one of the most impressive movies of its decade. It takes a whole heap of influences – The Godfather saga, Scarface, and Martin Scorsese gangster flicks – and tosses them in a blender before rearranging the subsequent cinematic goo in a way that’s genuinely unique.

It's the kind of reference-heavy yet distinctive style of filmmaking Quentin Tarantino’s often celebrated for, but honestly, director Anurag Kashyap shows himself to be just as good at doing it here. Those after an epic gangster film with a thunderously fast pace and an unpredictable story that spans decades/generations should put aside five and a half hours, and use the time to take in Gangs of Wasseypur.

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8 'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse' (2018)

Directors: Rodney Rothman, Peter Ramsey, Bob Persichetti

There were a ton of superhero movies released in the 2010s; some might even say too many. But it wasn’t just a time of quantity, because quality-wise, some of the best comic book/superhero movies ever made came out during this decade. One such film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, could well be the greatest animated superhero movie ever made, and one of the best superhero films in general.

It's a different kind of origin story, showcasing Miles Morales and his early days as Spider-Man, making for a refreshing change of pace from the familiar Peter Parker narrative. Though Peter and various other Spider-People show up here, thanks to all the Multiverse-hopping that gets even wilder in Into the Spider-Verse’s almost as great 2023 sequel, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Into the Spider-Verse still feels like the purest and most complete of the still-young series it kicked off, and it’s a testament to its quality that it already feels like a classic.

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7 'One Cut of the Dead' (2017)

Director: Shinichiro Ueda

One Cut of the Dead is an initially strange but interestingly made zombie movie, focusing on a film crew making a zombie movie before they themselves get attacked by zombies. The director insists on using the undead in the film itself, danger to the cast and crew be damned, and the chaos all this causes is shown playing out in a single, unbroken take (hence the title).

At a point, though, it’s no longer just one cut anymore, and something is revealed that takes the film into a much more interesting, funny, and even oddly heartwarming direction. Seeing that shift take place, and then realizing how it recontextualizes what came before is the main thing that makes One Cut of the Dead so great, and revealing anything more – even though the film is quite a few years old at this point – would be wholly disrespectful. Just watch it!

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6 'Amy' (2015)

Director: Asif Kapadia

There was a more recent attempt to put Amy Winehouse’s tragic life story on screen, but that biopic pales in comparison to 2015’s Amy, which pulls no punches across the board. Winehouse is shown as someone who had personal demons, but she is shown to be a victim and someone who was unfortunately mocked and ridiculed when she really just needed help and more understanding. Amy condemns the behavior of those in her life and those who work in the media. It’s uncompromising.

It's the sort of powerfully made documentary that encourages introspection, too, making one wonder how they might've ignored or downplayed the suffering of another for whatever reason. The loss of Amy Winehouse was an undoubtedly tragic one, with this documentary successfully showing why she was such a big deal while also outlining what can be learned from the whole unfortunate story. If everyone was made to watch and fully engage with a documentary like Amy, the world could be an ever so slightly better place, and that's largely what makes it a masterpiece.

5 'Portrait of a Lady on Fire' (2019)

Director: Céline Sciamma

It’s possible to label Portrait of a Lady on Fire as a romance movie (and a great one), but it also feels like it’s so much more, albeit in ways that are hard to explain with mere words. It’s the sort of film you watch and are impressed by while it’s happening, but then it proves hard to forget. It lingers in the mind and grows more impressive, the more one thinks about it.

And that all feels intentional, because there is something haunting (more in a bittersweet/emotional way than a more generically scary way) about the story of love and loss being told here. Portrait of a Lady on Fire gives viewers a ton to think about, but make no mistake: the quality of the filmmaking and acting also leave a huge impression, as do the bold visuals throughout. Regarding the last of those, it might well be one of the very best-looking movies of the 21st century so far.

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4 'Uncut Gems' (2019)

Directors: Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie

Uncut Gems wasn’t released until the very end of 2019, and perhaps most didn’t see it until early 2020… but it nevertheless just manages to sneak in as a 2010s release. It’s one of the greatest distributed by A24 (which is really saying something), and feels like a borderline perfect cinematic panic attack, sustained for more than two thrilling, darkly funny, and exceedingly uncomfortable hours.

It's a film that follows one man’s descent. Just a descent in general. Everything that could go wrong, and every bad decision that could be made… it all happens, and everything has consequences. Uncut Gems is particularly loud and disorienting in its opening, but that’s by design, and in service of throwing viewers into the deep end. Trying to stay afloat is oddly exciting, and similarly memorable is the way Uncut Gems just never lets up.

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3 'Mad Max: Fury Road' (2015)

Director: George Miller

If Uncut Gems felt like one long panic attack, then Mad Max: Fury Road manages to feel like one feature-length action sequence. Emphasis on “feel like,” because Fury Road isn't just action. There’s a ton of it, sure, but the characters and story here are also interesting. On paper, the film’s narrative is simple, but it’s the way it unfolds without much dialogue or exposition that makes things extra interesting.

It all builds in intensity and spectacle, culminating in an ultimately satisfying and well-earned ending. Mad Max: Fury Road has been praised to hell and back, so thinking of anything new to say about it is almost impossible. But, to be a little repetitive: yes, it is fantastic, it lives up to all the hype surrounding it, and, in the years/decades to come, it’s likely to remain the go-to pick for many when picking what the greatest action movie of the 2010s was.

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2 'Parasite' (2019)

Director: Bong Joon-ho

Another 2019 release (alongside Uncut Gems and Portrait of a Lady on Fire) that helped the decade end with a bang, Parasite is, quite simply, one of the hardest-to-fault movies ever made. By that, it’s genuinely perfect in every conceivable way. You can try and nitpick this, watching it multiple times with a magnifying glass, in slow motion, whatever you want… there are simply no cracks in the armor here.

That’s all high praise, perhaps even of a reckless nature, but Parasite really is that good as a satirical thriller/comedy/drama movie. It’s about things that anyone living in the 21st century can relate to, and it’s a fascinating example of how to build conflict without clear heroes or villains. The drama in Parasite comes from people living in a horrific system that encourages division, hatred, and snobbishness, depending on where one’s situated. It’s a tragedy, but also oddly funny at times, and never anything but intense/captivating. It’s essential stuff (but you likely knew that already).

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1 'Whiplash' (2014)

Director: Damien Chazelle

Damien Chazelle has continued to thrive in the years since making Whiplash, as something like La La Land was even more popular, and then Babylon… well, that one was divisive, but can be easily admired for its sheer ambition. But it’s Whiplash that’s the filmmaker’s cleanest, leanest, and most impactful film, with a simple premise (a student being driven to perfection and/or madness by an aggressive teacher) executed flawlessly.

Whiplash is somehow one of the most suspenseful movies ever made, even if you're watching it for the 10th time and you know what’s going to happen in every given scene. It takes something small-scale and makes it all feel monumental, with amazing music, ferocious editing, an all-time great ending, and two undeniably great lead performances (from Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons) all combining to make Whiplash feel like a perfect movie.

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