4-3.

Ok Ok, I lied. But I will finish up the list today regardless, starting with...

4. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)- This movie is the reason why Guillermo Del Toro is booked up until at least 2017. He had shown flashes of brilliance in the few years leading up to "Pan's Labyrinth", directing "Blade 2" and "Hellboy". Not particularly great movies, but his crazy, fantastical vision began to come through (be it the demon-vampire creatures in "Blade 2" or the assortment of ridiculous monsters in "Hellboy"). When he wrote and directed "Pan's Labyrinth", Del Toro combined his knack for creating amazing science fiction/fantasy images with an engaging story grounded in reality. I've mentioned many times on this blog that my favorite story genre is magical realism, and this movie so beautifully combines fantasy and realism; the result is one of the most gorgeous, engaging movies of the decade. From the trailers and the talk, one might get the impression that the movie was worth watching just for the little girl Ofelia's fantastic "imagination sequences"; on top of that, I have heard people say that they were disappointed that the fantasy aspect of the movie was simply her imagination. However, for me, this is what made the movie so great: the two stories intertwined perfectly and created a harmony not often found in similar films. The fantastic aspects comlimented and strengthened the main plot, and that central plot similarly gave the fantasy story so much more life--making it profound on top of it being beautiful in itself. That being said, I cannot write about "Pan's Labyrinth" with at least once mentioning the Academy Award-winning cinematography of Guillermo Navarro. If you need evidence, just think of this: remember I mentioned how great the cinematography was in "Children of Men"? Well this movie was the same year, and "Pan's Labyrinth" was completely deserving of that Oscar. Amazing, amazing movie.

3. City of God (2002)- I remember hearing all the acclaim about this movie before I was even really that into film. I had never heard of a foreign film getting as much hype as "City of God" did the year after its release. So I watched it. Few films that receive incredible hype as "City of God" did are completely deserving of it, but this movie deserved all the hype--and more. Yes, the film is quite long; however, the plot is so incredibly engaging that it doesn't seem to drag at all--the pacing is so quick and snappy and the story so fresh and epic that length was never really an issue for me. Now that I think about it, a good comparison would be to the recent Best Picture winner, "Slumdog Millionaire". Not a bad movie by any stretch but hardly deserving of the insane amount of hype it received. That film was made for more money, with legit actors, a legit Hollywood director, and a similar storyline in many aspects. Both stories encompass a unique cultural center and both follow young brothers who take very different paths in life. Aside from those congruities though, "City of God" exceeds "Slumdog Millionaire"--the universally critically-acclaimed winner for Best Picture at the Academy Awards--in almost every aspect. It is beautiful beautiful beautiful. EVERY actor in the film was a non-actor from the slums of Rio (some even from the Ciudade de Deus slum itself). The film was shot on location in Rio--a very dangerous undertaking, even if not shot directly in the City of God itself. While embellished to an extent (it is a film after all), the story is remarkably true, and the depiction of Rio and the City of God slums is eerily accurate. If you buy/rent the film, there is also an hour-long documentary about the real Ciudade de Deus, and you will shiver at some of the imagery. "City of God" does not romanticize the story or place by any means, but because it is a film and an interpretation, there is an excitement and a lightness to the story; this becomes apparent when you watch the documentary. However, this does not dimish the incredible story, amazing acting (the best use of non-actors in a film I have ever seen--some performances were better even than the best of the decade by career, Hollywood actors) and breath-taking visuals from the slums of Rio. No, this movie is not overrated or overhyped: "City of God" is simply put one of the best films of the decade--and the acclaim really shouldn't stop there.