We’ve come to the end of the decade. It’s been a decade full of a great many developments in the movie world. Streaming asserted its dominance. Physical media began dying a slow death. Superheroes took over the worldwide box office and Hollywood became more franchise obsessed than ever. Some of that was for the better. Some of it, not so much. But we’re here to look at some of the highlights in that arena from 2010 to 2019, as we’re counting down the 21 best popcorn movies of the decade.
But what is a popcorn movie, exactly?Popcorn moviesexist to entertain above all else. Plain and simple. They can span many genres and vary greatly in scope, from the small indie flicks to the big studio offerings. To be clear, the following list is just the opinion of one man. But as a movie lover, this is what I live for. I value cinema primarily as entertainment and make no apologies about it. Some of your favorites probably didn’t make the cut. I did attempt to use objectivity here, but at the end of the day this is my list and I’m just hoping to shine a light on some of the many cinematic endeavors that brought me joy over the last ten years.
From slashers to superheroes, and from aging action stars to revamped franchises, the 2010’s had it all. But what made the cut? What rose above the noise to become the cream of the crop? The butteriest popcorn on the top of the bucket. While there is sure to be much debate about these movies (and many others that didn’t make the list) for years to come, here is our list of the 21 bestpopcornmovies of the decade.
2121Magic Mike(2012)
Starting off, it’s not so much that this is one I feel personally passionate about, in terms of including it on this list, but I think it’s a movie that was brilliantly marketed and surprised a lot of people, myself included, by being so much more than a male stripper movie. This marked Steven Soderbergh’s very welcome return to the world of directing features, as well as something of a major starring turn for Channing Tatum. But the surface level entertainment value here for many moviegoers is hard to deny. 2012’sMagic Mikebecame athing. It was a true moment in pop culture. It’s quite unique and has earned its place as a memorable blockbuster moment in a decade that was otherwise dominated by large-scale movies, of one sort or another.
2020Captain America: The Winter Soldier(2014)
2011’sCaptain America: The First Avenger, in my eyes, remains the single most underrated movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Even when taking that into account, it was hard to imagine that Chris Evans' second solo outing as Steve Rogers, 2014’sCaptain America: The Winter Soldier, would turn into something so unexpectedly spectacular. I’ve always described it as a James Bond movie wrapped in a comic book. While the movie certainly deals with the larger MCU, part of the reasonThe Winter Soldieris so great is that stands on its own two feet so well. But, most importantly, man oh man does this deliver in the action department. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo seemed like an unlikely duo to bring us one of the better action movies of the 2010’s comic book adaptation or otherwise, but as they’d prove withCaptain America: Civil War, and a couple of other Marvel movies we may be talking about in a bit, they were just getting started. Quite a few people still put this at the very top of the Marvel Cinematic Universe rankings, and it’s tough to argue against.
1919Deadpool(2016)
Sometimes, the third time really is the charm. Ryan Reynolds had two cracks at the superhero genre previously withGreen Lanternand, more importantly,X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which is where the actor made his unceremonious debut asDeadpool. In 2016, he got another crack at it in the character’s first solo movie and, not to overstate things, but this was a game-changer. Conventional wisdom was that superhero movies needed to be PG-13 to attract large audiences.Deadpoolwas R-rated through and through. Between Reynolds, director Tim Miller and writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, they crafted a bloody, unbelievably entertaining and hilarious, faithful adaptation of Marvel’s Merc With a Mouth that resonated with audiences worldwide. This is not only one of the best blockbusters of the decade, it’s also one of the most important.
1818Guardians of the Galaxy(2014)
2014 felt like the year that Marvel really turned a corner creatively. That’s the year that brought usGuardians of the Galaxywhich, at the time, felt like something truly special. Wholly unique within the comic book movie landscape. And, at that point in time, quite risky. Few people outside ofveryhardcore comic book fans had ever even heard of this property, let alone had the desire to see it turned into a movie. A talking tree paling around with a raccoon? Really? Yet, director James Gunn made it work to a truly admirable degree. What we get is funny, action-packed, visually impressive and downright memorable. Even outside of the realm of Marvel movies, this is just a truly great sci-fi flick all on its own.
1717Pacific Rim(2013)
Guillermo del Toro has done a lot to cement himself as one of our finest filmmakers over the course of the last decade.The Shape of Waterwon Best Picture at the Oscars, for example. But this is the decade that also brought us 2013’sPacific Rim, a gigantic robots vs monsters sci-fi spectacle that felt like a true auteur playing in a gigantic, expensive sandbox and having an absolute blast while doing it. A true ode to Kaiju movies,Pacific Rimis exactly as advertised; two hours of massive (in every sense of the word) action. Admittedly, this isn’t for everyone, but for those who enjoy a cup of tea such as this, it was a very fun moment and an excellent theatrical experience. The ridiculously indulgent (and I mean that in the best way possible) fight scene in Hong Kong is worth the price of admission alone.
1616Hell or High Water(2016)
This is one of few “prestige” movies that crossed over onto this list. I’d also wager that it’s the one the fewest people have seen, which is, for my money, a travesty. For those who haven’t seen 2016’sHell or High Water, director David Mackenzie’s modern western sees a pair of brothers, played by Chris Pine and Ben Foster, robbing banks to prevent their family ranch from being foreclosed on. It’s part heist flick, part cat-and-mouse chase and all pure, classic cinematic entertainment. With a terrific supporting performance by Jeff Bridges, there is an argument to made that this is one of the most underseen movies of the decade. Be that as it may, it’s remarkable, timely and deeply satisfying on every level.
1515Mission: Impossible - Fallout(2018)
I found myself in a tough spot here. Tom Cruise starred in three truly awesomeMission: Impossiblemovies during the last decade.Ghost Protocol,Rogue NationandFalloutall have their merits. Though, in narrowing it down to one to single out for this list, I couldn’t stop myself from singling out 2018’sMission: Impossible - Fallout. What director Christopher McQuarrie and Cruise accomplished was nothing shy of a minor miracle. How is it more than two decades into this franchise’s run they managed to deliver something so stylish, massive and truly thrilling? I’d argue that putting the epic bathroom fight, perhaps one of my favorite single action sequences of the decade, right after the insane halo jump scene is evidence enough that this movie deserves recognition is high-value popcorn entertainment. Also, not for nothing, this is the movie that gave us Henry Cavill’s legendary mustache.
1414Edge of Tomorrow(2014)
Speaking of Tom Cruise, it turns out that his greatest contribution to movie-going during the 2010s was not as Ethan Hunt. Rather, that honor goes to his turn in Doug Liman’s delightfully inventive time-bending 2014 sci-fi flickEdge of Tomorrow. At a time when video game movies simply weren’t working (and one could argue they still aren’t), Liman and Cruise made a movie that feels more like a video game brought to life than anything we had seen before or since. Emily Blunt shines here as well, and we get a memorable performance from the late, great Bill Paxton to ice the cake. Unfortunately,Edge of Tomorrowwas stifled by a botched marketing campaign at the time of its release. But cream rises to the top and the cinematic ride that this movie ended up being couldn’t be ignored. It’s a blast, plain and simple.
1313The Raid: Redemption/The Raid 2(2011 / 2014)
Here’s my first real cheat on this list. Anyone who has seen director Gareth Evans’The Raid: RedemptionandThe Raid 2will surely attest that there are few better options in cinema when it comes to watching people just beat the ever-living crap out of one another with style. The movies feel like two parts of a whole and picking just one over the other feels like a sin to me. So view it as a cop-out if you will, as if I’m saying “pick which cake you like best.” That having been said,The Raid: Redemptionis a blistering, brilliantly simple, impeccably executed action extravaganza that defies comparison.The Raid 2is a continuation of that same story, but takes the action outside of a single location and proceeds to deliver some of the most memorable fight scenes ever. The mud fight, for example, is what martial arts movie lovers dream of. Few movies that make the action and combat feel so real. So visceral. Evans has a gift and Iko Uwais deserves to be a global action star on par with the greatest.
1212Baby Driver(2017)
Director Edgar Wright, the filmmaker behind comedies such asShaun of the DeadandHot Fuzz, made his true crossover into mainstream Hollywood with 2017’sBaby Driver. Heist movies have always made for good entertainment, but something about Wright’s distinctive style meshed so well with the genre and it delivered something that felt truly original in an industry dominated by not-so-original content. An A-list cast led by Ansel Elgort in a star-making turn as Baby, a great soundtrack and several pulse-pounding chase sequences make for nothing shy of a pure, smile-inducing joyride.
