I still remember when my dad told me, “They found a new Batman!” My eyes lit up. “It’s that guy from Reign of Fire, remember him?” And for the next year, I was possessed by round-the-clock hysteria leading up to this relatively unknown actor making his debut as Bruce Wayne. That was 20 years ago, and now I feel really old. 2005 was also the year the world was introduced to the Judd Apatow comedy, and his accompanying cast of slacker-yet-lovable actors, who would all go on to rule our laughter for the next five years.
Here are 8 classics that turn 20 in 2025, and deserve an immediate rewatch.
Batman Begins
Batman Begins set the unreachable precedent for every superhero movie that was to come and permanently redefined the genre as we know it. Christopher Nolan was relatively unknown at the time, and after 1997’s disastrous Batman & Robin, Warner Bros. axed the franchise indefinitely. In the new millennium, it took Nolan less than 20 minutes into his pitch meeting to get his Batman movie greenlit, and the rest is history. When watching it today, you can feel the studio bigwigs breathing down Nolan’s neck and hissing in his ear, “Don’t forget we have to sell action figures and happy meals!”, as is evident by some of the one-liners and sequences, all of which noticeably cater to a younger demographic. However, all of this would be removed when Nolan was given full freedom for the upcoming The Dark Knight (2008). And when looking back, it’s crazy to think how many Oscars the cast and crew would go on to win later on in their careers, most of whom didn’t yet have one at the time.
Wedding Crashers
A film that falls into the category of timeless buddy comedy insanity is Wedding Crashers. The quotability, Vince Vaughn’s fast-talking hilarity, and the introduction to Bradley Cooper as the most insufferable I-want-to-punch-him-in-the-face-dude perhaps ever put to the screen have kept this film atop the Mt. Olympus of noughties comedies. “Meatloaf!”
Sin City
My parents were very adamant that I was not allowed to see this film, which, predictably, only made me all the more eager. This resulted in me lying to them as my friend’s older brother took us to see it on a school night – at eleven years old, words can’t explain the hypnotic awe that overcame me in that theatre. Based on the legendary graphic novel series by comic book mastermind, Frank Miller, the film took ‘adaptation’ so literally that each frame is practically identical to the source material. From a hobbit-like adversary with yellow skin to Mickey Rourke beating the snot out of Elijah Wood, if Raymond Chandler were alive, my guess is he would’ve approved.
Walk the Line
Quentin Tarantino once said he detests biopics because it’s just an excuse for actors to win Oscars, and though that’s not untrue, if their life is as exciting, damning, and heartbreaking as Johnny Cash’s, then who cares? 19 years prior to making A Complete Unknown (which also features an actor playing Johnny Cash), James Mangold directed his first musical biopic about the man in black starring Joaquin Phoenix. Though Phoenix did not win an Oscar, Reese Witherspoon did for her portrayal of June Carter, and if you don’t know much about either musician, this film will change that and make you an immediate fan.
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
Much like Christian Bale, it’s crazy to think that Steve Carrell was once, like, pretty unknown. Same with Seth Rogen. Or Paul Rudd. Even Jonah Hill makes a surprise appearance. With the title alone, this film set the standard for what was come to be known as ‘the comedy with a heart’, a heart that had little to no pretension, and told universal stories about heartbreak, anxiety, and being an affably unaware yet lovable dude navigating romance in the early twentieth century.
Match Point
Although writer/director Woody Allen calls this one of the three films of which he is most proud (the other two are Stardust Memories and The Purple Rose of Cairo, neither of which are that groundbreaking in my opinion), this is undoubtedly one of the lesser known gems in his longstanding catalog. Although it is very similar to his earlier (and better) film, Crimes & Misdemeanors (1989), this film shies away from the standard Allen theme of neurotic-intellectual-falls-in-love-with-a-woman-who-is-probably-going-through-a-divorce and is rather a nail-biting thriller with none of his obvious tropes found across its canvas. It’s really not that funny either, but in this case, that’s a good thing.
Four Brothers
Hear me out. Marky Mark, Andre 3000, Tyrese ‘Family’ Gibson, and the guy from Tron are all adopted brothers and their adoptive mother is killed by soon-to-be-Oscar-winner Chiwetel Ejiofor; naturally, they are pissed. Directed by Boyz n the Hood’s John Singleton, the film has a scene where a leather-coat-clad Marky Mark magically appears out of an icy fog in the middle of nowhere on a frozen lake only to have a fistfight with Ejiofor while a bunch of gangsters cheers wildly. It also has Sofia Vergara, some wild gunfights, and a lot of corrupt cops. It’s, like, really awesome, dude.
Caché
Obviously, I had to include a ‘niche’ one. Directed by the tortured Austrian and cinematic genius, Michael Haneke, the film is about a family in Paris who receive videotapes containing surveillance footage of their house, with no accompanying explanation. What begins as a haunting thriller turns into a criticism of class, society, and family secrets, and it also contains one of the most unexpectedly shocking scenes I have ever seen in my life. Haneke’s ability to make your stomach fold from something as banal as watching a family eat dinner is something to marvel at, and I can’t recommend his entire catalog strongly enough.
Honourable mentions: Kicking & Screaming, Zathura, A History of Violence, King Kong, Capote, and Fantastic Four (yes, it’s not bad).
