Best year for movies in the last 20 years?

What year would you consider has been the best for movies over the last 20 years?

For reference, here are some notable movies to have come out in a particular year:
1994:
[ol]
[li]The Shawshank Redemption [/li][li]Pulp Fiction [/li][li]Forrest Gump [/li][li]Léon: The Professional [/li][li]The Lion King [/li][li]Dumb & Dumber [/li][li]Speed [/li][li]Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles [/li][li]True Lies [/li][li]Natural Born Killers [/li][li]Ed Wood [/li][li]Four Weddings and a Funeral [/li][li]The Hudsucker Proxy [/li][li]Clear and Present Danger [/li][li]Three Colors: Red [/li][li]Heavenly Creatures [/li][li]Three Colors: White [/li][li]Chungking Express [/li][li]The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert [/li][li]Muriel’s Wedding [/li][li]Eat Drink Man Woman [/li][/ol]

1995:
[ol]
[li] Se7en[/li][li]Braveheart [/li][li]Toy Story [/li][li]Casino [/li][li]Die Hard: With a Vengeance [/li][li]Apollo 13 [/li][li]GoldenEye [/li][li]Before Sunrise [/li][li]Desperado [/li][li]Mallrats [/li][li]Leaving Las Vegas [/li][li]Babe [/li][li]Ghost in the Shell [/li][li]Kids [/li][li]The Bridges of Madison County [/li][/ol]

1996:
[ol]
[li]Trainspotting [/li][li]Fargo [/li][li]Mission: Impossible [/li][li]The Rock [/li][li]From Dusk Till Dawn [/li][li]Jerry Maguire [/li][li]Sleepers [/li][li]Happy Gilmore [/li][li]The English Patient [/li][li]Primal Fear [/li][li]Star Trek: First Contact [/li][li]The People vs. Larry Flynt [/li][li]Shine [/li][li]Bound [/li][li]Waiting for Guffman [/li][li]Big Night [/li][/ol]

1997:
[ol]
[li]Titanic [/li][li]Good Will Hunting [/li][li]L.A. Confidential [/li][li]Men in Black [/li][li]The Fifth Element [/li][li]Face/Off [/li][li]The Devil’s Advocate [/li][li]The Game [/li][li]Starship Troopers [/li][li]Donnie Brasco [/li][li]Gattaca [/li][li]Contact [/li][li]Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery [/li][li]Princess Mononoke [/li][li]Boogie Nights [/li][li]Cube [/li][li]Chasing Amy [/li][li]Lost Highway [/li][li]The Full Monty [/li][li]Grosse Pointe Blank [/li][/ol]

1998:
[ol]
[li]Saving Private Ryan [/li][li]American History X [/li][li]The Truman Show [/li][li]The Big Lebowski [/li][li]Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels [/li][li]There’s Something About Mary [/li][li]Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas [/li][li]A Bug’s Life [/li][li]Enemy of the State [/li][li]Blade [/li][li]Shakespeare in Love [/li][li]Rush Hour [/li][li]Run Lola Run [/li][li]Meet Joe Black [/li][li]Dark City [/li][li]Ronin [/li][li]Mulan [/li][li]Rushmore [/li][li]Rounders [/li][/ol]

1999:
[ol]
[li]Fight Club [/li][li]The Matrix [/li][li]American Beauty [/li][li]The Sixth Sense [/li][li]The Green Mile [/li][li]Toy Story 2 [/li][li]American Pie [/li][li]The Mummy [/li][li]Sleepy Hollow [/li][li]Being John Malkovich [/li][li]Magnolia [/li][li]Eyes Wide Shut [/li][li]The Boondock Saints [/li][li]Office Space [/li][li]10 Things I Hate About You [/li][li]Dogma [/li][li]Notting Hill [/li][li]South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut [/li][li]Three Kings [/li][li]The Insider [/li][li]The Talented Mr. Ripley [/li][li]The Iron Giant [/li][li]The Cider House Rules [/li][li]Boys Don’t Cry [/li][li]Election [/li][/ol]

2000:
[ol]
[li]Gladiator [/li][li]Memento [/li][li]Snatch. [/li][li]Requiem for a Dream [/li][li]X-Men [/li][li]Cast Away [/li][li]American Psycho [/li][li]Meet the Parents [/li][li]Unbreakable [/li][li]Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon [/li][li]O Brother, Where Art Thou? [/li][li]Almost Famous [/li][li]The Patriot [/li][li]Pitch Black [/li][li]Amores Perros [/li][li]Remember the Titans [/li][li]Erin Brockovich [/li][li]Best in Show [/li][/ol]

2001:
[ol]
[li]The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring [/li][li]Donnie Darko [/li][li]Amélie [/li][li]Monsters, Inc. [/li][li]Shrek [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone [/li][li]Ocean’s Eleven [/li][li]Spirited Away [/li][li]Training Day [/li][li]The Others [/li][li]A.I. Artificial Intelligence [/li][li]Moulin Rouge! [/li][li]Mulholland Dr. [/li][li]Vanilla Sky [/li][li]The Royal Tenenbaums [/li][li]Enemy at the Gates [/li][li]Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back [/li][li]Spy Game [/li][li]I Am Sam [/li][li]Ghost World [/li][li]Y Tu Mamá También [/li][li]Monster’s Ball [/li][li]Gosford Park [/li][li]Shaolin Soccer [/li][/ol]

2002:
[ol]
[li]The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers [/li][li]Spider-Man [/li][li]City of God [/li][li]The Pianist [/li][li]Minority Report [/li][li]The Bourne Identity [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [/li][li]Gangs of New York [/li][li]28 Days Later… [/li][li]Ice Age [/li][li]Equilibrium [/li][li]The Ring [/li][li]Insomnia [/li][li]Road to Perdition [/li][li]Red Dragon [/li][li]Phone Booth [/li][li]Chicago [/li][li]Hero [/li][li]About a Boy [/li][li]Adaptation. [/li][li]About Schmidt [/li][li]Punch-Drunk Love [/li][li]Infernal Affairs [/li][li]Irreversible [/li][li]Secretary [/li][/ol]

2003:
[ol]
[li]The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King [/li][li]Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl [/li][li]Kill Bill: Vol. 1 [/li][li]Finding Nemo [/li][li]The Matrix Reloaded [/li][li]Big Fish [/li][li]X2 [/li][li]Mystic River [/li][li]Lost in Translation [/li][li]Love Actually [/li][li]The Last Samurai [/li][li]Oldboy [/li][li]The Italian Job [/li][li]Underworld [/li][li]Old School [/li][li]The School of Rock [/li][li]21 Grams [/li][li]Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World [/li][li]Identity [/li][li]Matchstick Men [/li][li]Good Bye Lenin! [/li][li]Bad Santa [/li][li]Seabiscuit [/li][/ol]

2004:
[ol]
[li]Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind [/li][li]Kill Bill: Vol. 2 [/li][li]The Incredibles [/li][li]Crash [/li][li]Shaun of the Dead [/li][li]The Notebook [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban [/li][li]Spider-Man 2 [/li][li]Troy [/li][li]I, Robot [/li][li]The Butterfly Effect [/li][li]Saw [/li][li]Shrek 2 [/li][li]The Terminal [/li][li]The Machinist [/li][li]Man on Fire [/li][li]Hotel Rwanda [/li][li]Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy [/li][li]Downfall [/li][li]Garden State [/li][li]Mean Girls [/li][li]Dawn of the Dead [/li][li]The Passion of the Christ [/li][li]Howl’s Moving Castle [/li][li]Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle [/li][li]Sideways [/li][li]Team America: World Police [/li][li]Before Sunset [/li][/ol]

2005:
[ol]
[li]Batman Begins [/li][li]V for Vendetta [/li][li]Sin City [/li][li]Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire [/li][li]King Kong [/li][li]The 40-Year-Old Virgin [/li][li]Wedding Crashers [/li][li]The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe [/li][li]Brokeback Mountain [/li][li]Lord of War [/li][li]Serenity [/li][li]Madagascar [/li][li]Kingdom of Heaven [/li][li]Thank You for Smoking [/li][li]Walk the Line [/li][li]A History of Violence [/li][li]Kiss Kiss Bang Bang [/li][li]Pride & Prejudice [/li][li]Corpse Bride [/li][li]Match Point [/li][li]Cinderella Man [/li][li]The Descent [/li][li]Jarhead [/li][li]Memoirs of a Geisha [/li][li]Syriana [/li][li]Good Night, and Good Luck. [/li][li]Capote [/li][/ol]

2006:
[ol]
[li]The Departed [/li][li]The Prestige [/li][li]300 [/li][li]Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest [/li][li]Casino Royale [/li][li]Pan’s Labyrinth [/li][li]Children of Men [/li][li]Blood Diamond [/li][li]Little Miss Sunshine [/li][li]Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan [/li][li]The Illusionist [/li][li]Inside Man [/li][li]Lucky Number Slevin [/li][li]Babel [/li][li]Apocalypto [/li][li]Cars [/li][li]Stranger Than Fiction [/li][li]Crank [/li][li]The Fountain [/li][li]Perfume: The Story of a Murderer [/li][li]A Scanner Darkly [/li][li]United 93 [/li][/ol]

2007:
[ol]
[li]No Country for Old Men [/li][li]Transformers [/li][li]I Am Legend [/li][li]The Bourne Ultimatum [/li][li]Ratatouille [/li][li]Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End [/li][li]Superbad [/li][li]Juno [/li][li]Into the Wild [/li][li]Live Free or Die Hard [/li][li]There Will Be Blood [/li][li]Hot Fuzz [/li][li]American Gangster [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix [/li][li]Knocked Up [/li][li]The Simpsons Movie [/li][li]Zodiac [/li][li]3:10 to Yuma [/li][li]Ocean’s Thirteen [/li][li]28 Weeks Later [/li][li]Death Proof [/li][li]Disturbia [/li][li]Sunshine [/li][li]Planet Terror [/li][li]Grindhouse [/li][/ol]

2008:
[ol]
[li]The Dark Knight [/li][li]WALL·E [/li][li]Iron Man [/li][li]Slumdog Millionaire [/li][li]Gran Torino [/li][li]Taken [/li][li]The Curious Case of Benjamin Button [/li][li]In Bruges [/li][li]Tropic Thunder [/li][li]Cloverfield [/li][li]The Incredible Hulk [/li][li]The Hurt Locker [/li][li]The Wrestler [/li][li]Kung Fu Panda [/li][li]Burn After Reading [/li][li]Pineapple Express [/li][li]Forgetting Sarah Marshall [/li][li]Rambo [/li][li]Vicky Cristina Barcelona [/li][li]Milk [/li][li]Ip Man [/li][li]Frost/Nixon [/li][li]Felon [/li][li]Ponyo [/li][/ol]

2009:
[ol]
[li]Avatar [/li][li]Inglourious Basterds [/li][li]The Hangover [/li][li]District 9 [/li][li]Up [/li][li]Star Trek [/li][li]Watchmen [/li][li]Zombieland [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince [/li][li]Up in the Air [/li][li]Moon [/li][li]Public Enemies [/li][li]Law Abiding Citizen [/li][li]The Blind Side [/li][li]The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo [/li][li]The Road [/li][li]I Love You, Man [/li][li]Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs [/li][li]Coraline [/li][li]The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus [/li][li]Fantastic Mr. Fox [/li][li]The Time Traveler’s Wife [/li][li]A Serious Man [/li][/ol]

2010:
[ol]
[li]Inception [/li][li]Shutter Island [/li][li]Black Swan [/li][li]Toy Story 3 [/li][li]The Social Network [/li][li]Iron Man 2 [/li][li]Kick-Ass [/li][li]The King’s Speech [/li][li]How to Train Your Dragon [/li][li]Despicable Me [/li][li]Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 [/li][li]The Town [/li][li]127 Hours [/li][li]Scott Pilgrim vs. the World [/li][li]The Fighter [/li][li]Tangled [/li][li]Buried [/li][li]Tucker & Dale vs. Evil [/li][li]The Kids Are All Right [/li][li]Winter’s Bone [/li][/ol]

2011:
[ol]
[li]Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 [/li][li]X-Men: First Class [/li][li]Thor [/li][li]Drive [/li][li]Limitless [/li][li]Rise of the Planet of the Apes [/li][li]Crazy, Stupid, Love. [/li][li]Source Code [/li][li]The Intouchables [/li][li]Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol [/li][li]Horrible Bosses [/li][li]The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo [/li][li]Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows [/li][li]Super 8 [/li][li]Midnight in Paris [/li][li]Moneyball [/li][li]Hugo [/li][li]The Adjustment Bureau [/li][li]The Descendants [/li][li]Unknown [/li][li]The Ides of March [/li][li]Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy [/li][/ol]

2012:
[ol]
[li]The Dark Knight Rises [/li][li]The Avengers [/li][li]The Hunger Games [/li][li]The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey [/li][li]Skyfall [/li][li]Prometheus [/li][li]Silver Linings Playbook [/li][li]Ted [/li][li]Looper [/li][li]Argo [/li][li]The Amazing Spider-Man [/li][li]Life of Pi [/li][li]21 Jump Street [/li][li]The Perks of Being a Wallflower [/li][li]Cloud Atlas [/li][li]The Cabin in the Woods [/li][li]Men in Black 3 [/li][li]Flight [/li][li]Les Misérables [/li][li]Brave [/li][li]Wreck-It Ralph [/li][li]Moonrise Kingdom [/li][li]Chronicle [/li][li]Dredd [/li][/ol]

2013:
[ol]
[li]Man of Steel [/li][li]Iron Man 3 [/li][li]World War Z [/li][li]Star Trek Into Darkness [/li][li]Now You See Me [/li][li]Oblivion [/li][li]Gravity [/li][li]Pacific Rim [/li][li]The Great Gatsby [/li][li]Fast & Furious 6 [/li][li]This Is the End [/li][li]The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug [/li][li]The Hunger Games: Catching Fire [/li][li]The Conjuring [/li][li]Despicable Me 2 [/li][li]We’re the Millers [/li][li]Prisoners [/li][li]Warm Bodies [/li][li]Thor: The Dark World [/li][li]Monsters University [/li][li]The World’s End [/li][li]Captain Phillips [/li][li]Before Midnight [/li][li]42 [/li][li]American Hustle [/li][li]Ender’s Game [/li][/ol]

For me, 1999 stands out as a great year for amazingly unique comedies (American Pie, Being John Malkovich, Office Space, Dogma, South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut, Three Kings, Election) as well as a collection of amazing movies that were indelibly of that era (Fight Club, The Matrix, American Beauty, Magnolia).

2004 had a great slate of movies with Eternal Sunshine, Kill Bill, The Incredibles, Howl’s Moving Castle, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, Sideways, Team America: World Police & Before Sunset

and 2008 also stood out to me with The Dark Knight, WALL·E, Slumdog Millionaire, In Bruges, Tropic Thunder, The Hurt Locker, Burn After Reading & Pineapple Express

I have to say, I used to be a big 1999 fan but after looking at this list, I might have to give it to 2004.

(looks at thread title, “Best year for movies in the last 10 years?”)

(counts on fingers)

(runs out of fingers)

(takes off socks)

(thinks awhile)

(raises hand) "Ummm. . . "

I’ll get back to you on the best year, but 1994 was pretty good.

Unfortunately, I can’t edit titles but I’ve reported it to the mods so it should be fixed shortly.

Every year’s a good year for movies, but yeah, I agree with you, 1999 was truly something extraordinary. I remember that year I couldn’t even make a Top 50! list without agonizing and leaving out movies I loved. 1997 and 2004 are chasing close behind.

(Nitpick, but not directed toward you)
It’s odd, although Crash is indeed listed on IMDB as being a 2004 movie, you can’t always trust IMDB. It has to be a 2005 movie. It won Best Picture over 2005’s Brokeback Mountain at the Oscars.

I don’t watch enough movies to judge, but shouldn’t Wolf of Wall Street be added to the 2013 list?

The IMDb and the Motion Picture Academy have different standards on what year a film is. The IMDb considers Crash to be a 2004 film because it was shown at a film festival in 2004. The Motion Picture Academy considers it to be a 2005 film because it didn’t show at a Los Angeles County theater until 2005. The same difference in years applies to the movie The Hurt Locker.

For me, it’s a close call between 1999 and 2007, although judging from the above lists, I’d go with 1999, because a lot of my 2007 favorites aren’t actually listed.

1994 was an amazing year for movies but I don’t think it had the depth of '99. I’m sure some of that was due to being in High School in '99 and being the right age to love every movie I saw. 2008 was a distant 3rd.

ETA: I think it’s funny that you had a bunch of the other Kevin Smith Movies but you left out Clerks in 94. Which really helps with the depth. Still comes in second in my opinion.

If you tell me The Movies From One Of These Years Will No Longer Exist, I pretty much have to save the one with Pulp Fiction and The Lion King if you’re throwing in perfectly-crafted popcorn flicks like True Lies and Speed along with every crowd-pleaser from Ace Ventura to The Shawshank Redemption to Forrest Gump.

Reading the thread title, my brain said “1989” and then clicking it I realized that was 25 years ago and now I am sad.

I chose 1994, though 1999 gave it a run for its money. But 1994 had Pulp Fiction, one of those “before and after” films for me, so what can I say?

When they announced the nominees for the 2008 Oscars (which were 2007 movies) I was surprised that Gone Baby Gone wasn’t nominated. In a normal year, it would have been a good enough movie to deserve to win for Best Picture. But when I looked at the actual nominees - Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, and There Will Be Blood - I realized all of them were also plausible Best Pictures. 2007 was a year which didn’t have just one or two great movies but a whole array of them.

1994 starts out so very strong, with Shawshank and Pulp Fiction, but kind of drops off for me after that. I liked Hudsucker, Speed and Ed Wood, and True Lies was OK, but uneven for me. Gump was the sort of movie that was great once, then I couldn’t watch it again, which is a rarity for me.

1995 had great movies, but some of the stronger ones were of the type that I really didn’t want or need to see twice. Se7en, Casino, Leaving Las Vegas, Braveheart. Several I didn’t/won’t see (Ghost/Shell, Bridges, Kids, Babe) Apollo 13, Desperado, and Mallrats weren’t enough to get me to vote for this year.

Looking through the list, it’s clear that most years have strong candidates that don’t deserve to be dismissed. In the end, I guess it’s about personal preference.

1999 is my pick. I’ve seen the Matrix many times, and despite the sequels, I still enjoy the original. Fight Club and the Green Mile aren’t something I want to watch every day, but they still avoid the fate of the “nice to see ONCE” movies, which American Beauty & Sixth Sense do not. I’ve seen The Mummy, Office Space, & Dogma many times, while Three Kings and Sleepy Hollow have had repeat viewings. Round it out with Toy Story 2 and The Iron Giant, and it’s a very good year. I haven’t even seen Election, Cider House, Mr Ripley, Malkovich, Magnolia, Eyes Wide Shut, and Boys Don’t Cry, but have heard good things about them all.

I wonder why there’s a nonstandard number of movies listed, and if this doesn’t change the outcome. 1994, for example, only has 21 listed to 1999’s 25, whereas 1995 has a paltry 15.

I voted for 1999; several of my all-time favorites came out that year, and many of them are game changers. 1994 and 2008 are the runners-up, probably in that order. Looking forward, as I see it right now, 2015 is shaping up to be one hell of a year in cinema too; could even be the best ever if even half of the films slated for that year live up to the hype.

Also, for the OP, nice lists, but some curious films are missing. I see Star Wars III in 2005, but don’t see I or II in 1999 or 2002 respectively. They may not be so well looked on now, but both are definitely among the most notable in their years. Hell, Phantom Menace, for all of it’s faults, was one hell of an experience and absolutely ground breaking visuals, so it is part of why I voted for 1999.

The list is merely meant to serve as a guide, not a canonical reference. it’s hard to generate a list that will contain every noteworthy movie for a year.

What I did was looked at IMDB for all movies from that year which received a 7.0+ rating and sorted them by most number of votes received. I took the first 15 or so pretty much as is and then picked notable selections from the next 35. Looking back, there’s some glaringly obvious films missing from the list like Blair Witch Project from 1999 (rated 6.3).

I’ve got to agree with 1999, but man, there never is a BAD year for movies. Every year had movies I loved.

1994 beats out 1999 by a hair. Like the tiniest hair imaginable.

I have to give a nod to 2001.

Amelie, Ocean’s Eleven, Spirited Away, Mulholland Drive and the Royal Tenenbaums are my all-time favorites from each respective director.
2007 was a special year as well, with the best mainstream movie of the decade (No Country for Old Men) as well as one of the strongest character interpretations of the decade with Daniel Day Lewis in There Will Be Blood.