22-20.

22. Brick (2005)- Initially, the idea of a "high school film noir" sounds a bit cheesy, but "Brick" is anything but. Well written, well acted and well shot, "Brick" is--in complete truthfulness--the best true noir since "Chinatown"...which was made more than 30 years previous. I say true noir, but really "Brick" is a fresh take on the genre. The film is set in the culture of a California high school; the characters are all students (with the main exception being the school's principal), and the world is focused as if the high school was its own little society. However, this film is far from high-school corny--the characters and situations are ripped straight from the darkest and grittiest of 40's/50's noir, and the plot itself is quite bleak and very intricate. Each character steps into the shoes of a classic noir role: there's the loner detective with the dark past (portrayed by the excellent Joseph Gordon Levitt), the femme fatale, the crime lord and many others. But the thing that makes "Brick" so great is how it takes the classic noir and twists it, making it modern and casting it in a fresh light. Every so often, little comical moments pop up that remind the audience that this is all taking place in a high school society (which is surprisingly easy to forget). Rian Johnson even creates a unique set of lingo that gives the film a wit and makes the diaglog really snap (and even hard to follow sometimes). This is a noir set in a high school society, not a high school noir. And that's why this one makes the list.

21. High Fidelity (2000)- I'm not sure most people would qualify this as such, but this is probably my favorite "chick flick" ever. It's smart, witty, well-acted and not completely pretentious. I've never read the book and I have heard Nick Hornsby exudes pretention, but in my opinion High Fidelity avoids this distinction wonderfully. This is John Cusack in a role he was probably born to play, Jack Black adds great personality without completely overtaking the film or making it ridiculous. Really, though, it's the little bit roles and situations that make the film. Lisa Bonet as the super sexy Marie De Salle, Catherine Zeta Jones as the equally sexual wanna-be intellectual Charlie Nicholson, and Tim Robbins in one of the more hilarious comic cameos of the decade. Iben Hjejle provides the finishing punch, bringing the film back to earth with her portrayal of Laura, Cusack's ex/girlfriend in the film. All in all, a brilliantly executed, smart and consistant film.

20. 28 Days Later (2002)- I don't care what fans of the genre say: this is a fucking zombie movie. And easily the best of the decade (although this year's Zombieland and Shaun of the Dead are very close). Cillian Murphy is one of my favorite actors of the decade, and "28 Days Later" is a showcase of his talent (and super crazy eyes). The film is equally gritty and stylish, creating a tension throughout the film that a lot of recent horror/zombie films have failed to do. "28 Days Later" successfully creates a sense of dread, isolation and fear with a minimum of over-top-top special effects or intense action sequences. And the zombies themselves are made much the more horrifying by having the ability to run (why can't they do in other zombie movies again?). The ending(s) will certainly not satifsy everyone, but it is the film's next-to-last sequence that really cements the movie's placement here. By successfully integrating film into a digitally shot movie, this 15-20 minute sequence is heightened to levels I don't think would be otherwise attainable. Cillian Murphy morphs into a persona as creepy as any zombie in the film, and the soundtrack only adds to this brilliant 20 minutes of filmmaking. A digital zombie movie has never looked so good.

***P.S. In writing about "28 Days Later" I realized I forgot to consider "Sunshine" (another Danny Boyle film starring Cillian Murphy) for the top 25 films. "Sunshine" is easily one of my fav sci-fi/thriller films of the decade and could quite possibly have made the list. Just another little asterisk for the final list.