Top 10 Drama Movies Of The Decade

This decade has brought a lot of cinematic masterpieces that have changed the way we view movies. With cinema constantly evolving, the movies we see today are simply held to higher standards than ever before. With special effects and CGI we’ve never seen before, we can make a fight in space or a mystical creature look as real as ever. In dramas, we look at the performance of the actor, the complexity of a scene or the intriguing plot, it has really changed the way we view movies.

With the end of the decade and the beginning of a new one, here are 10 of the best dramatic movies that have come out in this decade.

10 Birdman (2014)

Birdman is a great example of experimenting with camera movements and having a plot that few will understand and cherish. Birdman was made for the movie buffs who can truly appreciate a movie as a work of art and cherish what a director is trying to do in the name of cinema. The movie follows an aging superhero actor who attempts to revive his career by writing and starring in his own play. Every shot up until the last is made to look like a continuous shot, no cuts or transitions, just one two-hour shot throughout.

9 Social Network (2010)

A David Fincher classic, this movie is a telling of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his journey to starting one of the most prominent social media outlets. Played beautifully by Jesse Eisenberg, we got a small glimpse into the mind of the socially awkward Mark Zuckerberg and all the ups and downs of running a successful business while attending Harvard. The movie took place from the ideation to the first couple of years of Facebook and its quick growth. Although the movie wasn’t 100% accurate, it was still fun to watch the very creation of the outlet we all still use to this day.

8 Arrival (2016)

Arrival came as a surprise to everyone by how original and good it was. Although it had an Allstar cast of Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Forest Whitaker, many still had doubts. Fortunately, all those doubts were put to rest with the amazing execution of the movie and its plot.

Amy Adams plays a linguist who is called to the front lines when a mysterious Alien spaceship lands on earth and causes hysteria in the world. With hundreds of Alien movies before it, Arrival is among the most accurate depictions of how the world would handle the age-old question of what we do if Aliens crash-landed on earth.

7 Black Swan (2010)

Natalie Portman earned her first Oscar playing the struggling dancer who has a hard time keeping her sanity after landing the role of the “Black Swan” in the musical Swan Lake.  Like most who dance for a living, Portman’s character Nina, lives, eats, and breathes dancing and is easily consumed by her star role, practicing day in and day out. When she is threatened by a younger, more naturally skilled dancer (Mila Kunis), she goes into overdrive to keep up with her and keep her spot as the star of the show. The movie ends on a cliffhanger, leaving us wondering what the fate of Nina was and if it was the product of her insanity or if what he witnessed was true.

6 Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

A comedic telling of real stockbroker Jordan Belfort’s rise and fall, Wolf of Wall Street has everything people love in a movie and more. From comedy to drama, even action scenes, this Scorsese flick earned several Oscar nominations and is currently one of Martin Scorsese’s most successful films to date. With a solid cast, legendary director, and a huge budget, its no wonder this movie is still being talked about so highly. Although it’s not a movie to watch with the family, Wolf of Wall Street is a classic and considered one of the best movies to come out in the last 10 years.

5 Hacksaw Ridge (2016)

This Mel Gibson World War II film became an instant classic, gaining 2 Oscars and an Oscar-worthy performance from Andrew Garfield. This movie follows the true story of Army medic Desmond T Doss who became the first American soldier in history to receive a Medal of Honor without ever firing a shot, due to his refusal to carry a gun.

He fights adversity, ridicule, and even arrests before he is able to carry on without a weapon. He runs into the face of danger and is able to rescue his entire platoon despite being semi-injured and weaponless.

4 Drive (2011)

Drive follows the story of a mysterious Hollywood stuntman that takes his talents of driving to crime as a getaway driver. with Ryan Gosling as the star, this movie became an instant cult classic, with Gosling playing a calm, collected but the unpredictable protagonist. This movie is unlike any drama or action flick, but a slow-moving noir type story with an intriguing plot and a true test to Ryan Goslings acting chops. Coming off a romantic movie like The Notebook many doubted his ability to pull off the cold and brooding protagonists, but by the end, there wasn’t a doubt insight for Gosling, who has since become one of Hollywoods most sought out actors.

3 Inception (2010)

The movie that blew everyone’s mind. Inception was mind-boggling from start to finish, with most viewers needing to watch the movie a second time just to understand the plot. It was something that had never been done before. Add in the all-star cast of Leonardo Dicaprio, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon Levitt, and Ellen Paige, Inception quickly became a cult classic.

The movie follows a group of individuals who are experts in navigating through people’s dreams and manipulating them into giving up valuable information. When a powerful client hires the group to go into the mind of a certain client the crew must do something they’ve never done before. The movie ends on a cliffhanger leaving us wondering if they ever really made it out of the dream.

2 Interstellar (2014)

One of the few Christopher Nolan movies on this list, Interstellar takes us to space in this sci-fi thriller. Nolan has a habit of creating complex plots and leaving us wanting more even years after watching the movie. Interstellar takes place in a bleak future where humanity is on the brink of being destroyed. In a last attempt to save humanity, NASA sends a team of astronauts to travel via interstellar travel to find a habitable planet for humans. The team comes back much later than they thought, almost 60 years into the future and must deal with being gone for so long. A true tale of a real American hero.

1 Nightcrawler (2014)

This Dan Gilroy drama stars Jake Gyllenhall who plays a sleazy crime journalist who quickly rises to fame and finds himself fabricating stories to be the first on the scene. Gyllenhall is very used to playing the charming hero, helping the damsel in distress but this role has him playing a completely different part. Louis Bloom (Gyllenhall’s character) is socially awkward, eerily silent, and has an energy that makes one super uncomfortable. He starts as a con man down on his luck and ends as a successful small businessman, recruiting clueless small-time reporters to help him uncover the crime in the streets of LA.

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