Note: Like my sibling’s list, mine is made up of representatives of genre, mainly to avoid one genre taking up the whole list. My eye also tends to center on technical breakthroughs and life-changing event films. I’ve also tried to stay away from films that everyone has on their lists, and I’ve succeeded for the most part.
10.
Wet Hot American Summer (David Wain, 2001)
David Wain’s first feature, is, at first glance, a normal comedy. But on second (and third, fourth, and fifth), it’s actually the best comedy of the decade and up there on the all-time list. Wall-to-wall wackyness is all there is to be found, with new jokes and gags to be discovered on every viewing. Unlike many many other comedies, there’s no relationship B-story drama or anything else getting in the way of the funny. There’s also not much motivation behind the jokes other than they’re funny. What this movie did for me on a personal level was negate everything I learned in film school (everything in movies has meaning), and inspire me to make movies in the same vain. This concept, only-there-for-funny, unfortunately went over the heads of my film professors.
