Another Top 50 Films of the 2000s List: 25-21.

No. 25 - “Into the Wild” (2007)

Sean Penn can write and direct. If someone mentioned his name and asked me what I thought, that's what I would say. Yes, he's a good actor, but he often overplays the part. As a director, Penn has much more control, he knows when to hit hard, and he injects a subtle intensity into both of his full-length 2000s films, “The Pledge” and “Into the Wild.”

Penn's eye for tragedy evolved with “Into the Wild,” though. “The Pledge” was tragic, but it was also sort of a detached examination of chance. “Into the Wild” is personal. One can tell Penn has a strong admiration for the protagonist, Christopher McCandless. But as you see in the second half of the film, Penn is also willing to pinpoint the brutal irony in the story of McCandless, a man looking for meaning that was in front of him almost the whole time.

Emile Hirsch won't go down as one of my favorite actors, but he's fantastic as McCandless. Penn's script calls for a complex character, likable and intelligent yet disappointing and shortsighted, and Hirsch gets every bit of it right. I was also impressed by the supporting cast, particularly Hal Holbrook, whose late appearance is unforgettable and crushing.

As excellent as this film is, it doesn't go beyond the bottom of my top 25 for one reason: Eddie Vedder's contributions to the soundtrack. I can listen to Pearl Jam without laughing, but Vedder is hilariously inept here. What's worse, the music doesn't suit the imagery, either. I've been told Pearl Jam was McCandless' favorite band, so the soundtrack includes Vedder for that reason, but shitty music isn't what the film needed.

No. 24 - “The Hurt Locker” (2009)

I'm somewhat surprised this film captivated me. Lately I've been reevaluating my opinions on war movies. “Tropic Thunder” and “Inglourious Basterds” helped inspire these second thoughts. So even though I was very interested in “The Hurt Locker,” I was apprehensive. I didn't want to see any obvious pro-American nonsense with a soldier I could believe in.

“The Hurt Locker,” superbly directed by Kathryn Bigelow, is not your everyday war film, though. It's an honest character study that favors suspense over action, which tends to be mesmerizing when it's there. The first explosion is a religious experience if you worship Sam Peckinpah. But don't take that to mean the film is about spectacle. Ultimately, the film rests on nuanced acting from Jeremy Renner and Anthony Mackie, whose relationship in the film involves uncomfortable racial tension. I believe their roles also benefit from the fact that two veteran actors, Guy Pearce and Ralph Fiennes, aren’t allowed to take over the screen. Bigelow makes damn sure of that.

Frankly, the film's general visual style had to grow on me. It often subscribes to the Shake The Camera If You Have One philosophy, but Bigelow's execution is much better than what you would have seen from Michael Bay, Danny Boyle, Paul Greengrass, Marc Forster, or any other director who has recently utilized the style.

I haven't read too many reviews of “The Hurt Locker,” so I'm not sure if everyone has sucked off the sound effects enough, but I will anyway. The sound in this movie is the best since “WALL-E,” especially in scenes with fire and even for smaller details, like a knife cutting through a car seat.

No. 23 - “Sideways” (2004)

The script doesn't always work, but “Sideways” seems to improve the more I watch it, thanks to Alexander Payne's brilliant direction and great performances from Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, and Sandra Oh. Payne wisely keeps a comical tone for the most part, but the film contains several effective dramatic moments. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Payne established a two-movie streak of hefty nude people with “Sideways.” I am curious to see whether he maintains the streak in his next movie, if it ever comes out. (Honestly, I wish Payne would get off his ass and do something.)

No. 22 - “Downfall” (2004)

I stopped “Downfall” after about two hours into its running time to take a breather from disturbing content. Perhaps the film doesn’t affect everyone in the same manner, but director Oliver Hirschbiegel wanted the film to answer tough questions, particularly about Adolf Hitler’s humanity. Much has been said about Bruno Ganz’s three-dimensional portrayal of Hitler. For some people, it is not easy to accept the idea that Hitler was a charismatic man, but Ganz demonstrates how he was. Of course, Ganz’s frenzied breakdown, which is associated with a boring Internet joke thanks to a Depraved Scheme, is one of the decade’s finest moments in acting.

No. 21 - “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” (2003)

Not many actors in the world can match Russell Crowe's intensity, but Paul Bettany is one of them. Director/writer Peter Weir creates one of the most fascinating relationships in film history with Crowe and Bettany, who represent the conflict of politics vs. science. “Master and Commander” is a superb overall production, no slouch in terms of art direction, sound, visual effects, music, and cinematography. Weir's sly sense of humor—demonstrated throughout 1998's “The Truman Show”—is the key to the movie's brilliant ending. This choice is a benchmark for the list, in that every movie after this point must be great in almost every respect to warrant mentioning.