Decade in Review Part 1

Happy new year everybody and with the new year it also brings a new decade. A fresh canvas to make your mark. With the 2000's officially in the books I decided to take a look back. I don't even know what this decade is called actually. Is it the two thousands, the 00's, I don't know. My vote is for James Bond years. How much cooler does 2007 sound when you refer to is as 007.

"Remember when you sang 'Born to Run' at kareoke and completely butchered it?
"When was that, 007? that was a great year."

So I've decided to break the decade down and remember some of the best and worsts of the 00's (that's double o's). There's plenty to cover so I've decided to make this a two part entry.

Best Comedy Movie of the Decade:

3. 40 Year Old Virgin- Launched Steve Carell into the comedic force that he is now. Absolutely hysterical and also began the whole Judd Apatow revolution. Great supporting roles from Paul Rudd and Seth Rogen.

2. Old School- This movie changed my entire understanding of comedy movies. Iconic movie, and some would probably put this at number 1 and I wouldn't argue if you did. Frank the Tank is born from Will Ferrell and Vince Vaughn returned to his Swingers days in a performance for the ages. Who hasn't yelled out "You're my boy blue!"

1. Wedding Crashers- The first 20 minutes of this movie are as good as any comedy movie ever. It does tail off a little at the end and become a quasi chick flick, but there are enough truly funny moments for this to be my number 1 comedy of the decade. Vince Vaughn is at his best in this movie and the chemistry between Owen Wilson and Vaughn is perfect. Solid supporting roles from Christopher Walken, Bradley Cooper, Will Ferrell and Todd.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: The Hangover, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Borat, Anchorman, Knocked Up, Superbad. - All are worthy contenders but have flaws compared with my top 3. I would put The Hangover in the top 5 but its only been a few months and it needs to hold up to the re-watchability factor. Borat is hilarious, but really falls off after the first viewing. Anchorman is one of my personal favorites but people either hate it or love it. Superbad would fall into the top 5, but just misses the top 3.

Best Movie of the Decade:

3. The Departed- Leo and Damon carry this gangster flick and make it one of the best of decade. Tremendous performances from Wahlberg, Nicholson, Baldwin and many others. It's intense, suspenseful and funny, yet doesn't lose its storyline. It won the Oscar for best picture and finally Scorsese won a best director award.

2. Lord of the Rings Trilogy- The visual world and effects created in these movies are amazing. Yes I'm slightly cheating by lumping 3 movies into 1 but as a continuous story it has to rank as one of the best of the decade. The 3rd installment, Return of the King won 11 Academy Awards, sweeping its nominations, something only 2 other films have ever done. It's the first and only fantasy movie to win a best picture oscar. Yes, it is a little out there and science fictiony but a great movie.

1. Gladiator- It's hard to believe that this movie was in the 2000s, but it was released exactly in 2000. Russell Crowe carries this movie and delivers an amazing performance as Maximus. Not only do I think this is the best movie of the decade, I think it is one of the best movies of all time. It's even good on TNT despite being edited.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Almost Famous, The Dark Knight, No Country For Old Men, Slumdog Millionaire, A Beautiful Mind, Michael Clayton, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind- These are all very enjoyable movies, but don't quite make the list. Almost Famous is very underrated and seems to get better the more I watch it. The Dark Knight is the most entertaining of the honorables, but Maggie Gyllenhall just doesn't cut it for me. Heath Ledger is simply amazing and the Joker will go down as one of the greatest characters of all time. Michael Clayton and Eternal Sunshine lose their luster after the first viewing, but still quality movies. No Country was nearly perfect, but it had a terrible ending which knocked it out of the top 3.

Best Comedy TV Show:

3. The Office- The minutiae of office life is perfectly summed up in this show. It's offbeat and irreverent but it is very funny. Single handily brought back the expression "that's what she said" and has solidified Steve Carell's career.

2. 30 Rock- The show about a show. Tina Fey is the creative force behind this show and her SNL humor has carried over to a great show. The best character is played by Alec Baldwin, as the wise cracking, whispering smart ass studio head.

1. Curb Your Enthusiasm- Can't get enough of Larry David and his almost unbearably uncomfortable show. Some might disagree with this, but this is the closest we get to Seinfeld. Leon Black has become one of my favorite characters on tv. What's most impressive is that this show is 90% improv.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Entourage, Arrested Development, Family Guy, Scrubs, How I Met Your Mother- These shows have there moments but either fell off or never lasted long enough. The first 3 seasons of Entourage are priceless but the last few haven't been as strong. The same can be said for Scrubs and How I Met Your Mother, they had strong starts, not nearly as good as Entourage, but severely fell off. Arrested Development is so strange its hysterical. But it only lasted for 2 seasons before it was cancelled.

Best Show of the Decade:

3. The West Wing- One of the best written shows I've ever seen. There were so many characters and problems yet you never felt it was moving away from its central story. At times a little too political, but very captivating.

2. Band of Brothers- I debated making this number 1, but it's technically a mini-series not a tv show. But again I'm blurring the lines. If you haven't seen this series I highly recommend you go rent this. Its from Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks as it follows the 101st Airborne Division during WWII.

1. The Sopranos- Despite its cop-out of an ending, its still the best show of the decade. At it's peak it was one of the best shows ever. Tony Soprano is such a great villian that despite being a vile human being, you were rooting for him. That's not an easy task. It was complex, intense, edgy and even at times very funny. Not to mention there were some great characters like Big Pussy, Ralphie, Paulie Walnuts and many others.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Freaks and Geeks, Ed, The Wire, Madmen : These shows all flew under the radar for the most part. The Wire was fantastic and cracks the top 5, and its best season can compete with any show I've seen. For some unexplainable reason it didn't grab my attention the way the top 3 did. Ed is probably my favorite show (non-comedy that is) that I've seen, but not many people agree with that. The bowling alley lawyer connected with me for reasons I don't really know. Freaks and Geeks is the best show that you haven't seen, and would compete for top honors if it wasn't cancelled way too early. I never got into Madmen, but I've only heard good things and it will be on my list to rent.


That's it for Part I of the decade in review. Stay tuned for Part II coming later this week. Some of the awesome topics that will be covered include the best sports team of the decade, the biggest celebrity scandal, as well as the best and worst trends of the decade. Until next time, as always.....STAY SWEET.