Warner Bros.
The year 2021 has become a symbol of hope for folks around the world. After all that we went through last year, we are desperate for exciting, novel moments to look forward to.
But when it comes to cinema, 2021 is also a great time for reflecting on the past. Some of the most iconic films of all time will reach their 20th birthdays this year, and you might be surprised to see which!
Can you believe it’s been twenty years since these films first graced the silver screen?
It’s hard to believe that one of the staple film franchises of the 2000s and 2010s debuted twenty years ago! Young Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint had barely hit double-digits in age when they starred in this film.
The film cost $125 million to make, and raked in $1,008,529,658 at the box office. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was the highest-grossing film of 2001.
By now, we’re all familiar with the Ocean’s Trilogy, but remember when it all began in 2001? It’s hard to forget the all-star cast of George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Julia Roberts, Bernie Mac and Don Cheadle that helped make this movie one of the highest-grossing films of 2001.
Twenty years later, this heist comedy still holds up. Plus, there’s now even the all-female spin-off from 2018, Ocean’s 8, that starred Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Awkwafina, Helena Bonham Carter, Rihanna, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson and Anne Hathaway.
No one expected that Shrek would turn into the cultural icon of a film that it is today. This glorious movie’s cast, script and even soundtrack permeated the brains of children and adults everywhere – to this day, Shrek the ogre is still a mainstay in deep-fried memes and other internet tom foolery such as the infamous Shrek is love, Shrek is life video.
If you don’t watch this movie at least once a year and feel your heart skip a beat when you hear Smash Mouth’s Steve Harwell sing that first “SomeBODY!” leading into the song “All Star,” what are you doing with your life?
One of the funniest films of the 2000s was Wet Hot American Summer, which starred comedy icons such as Janeane Garofalo, Molly Shannon, Paul Rudd, Christopher Meloni, David Hyde Pierce, Michael Showalter, Ken Marino, Elizabeth Banks, Joe Lo Truglio, Judah Friedlander, Michael Ian Black, Amy Poehler and H. Jon Benhamin. While this film was actually a commercial and critical failure, its cult following has helped it stand the test of time.
One of the craziest facts about this film (besides the fact that it came out twenty years ago) is that this was Bradley Cooper’s film debut. Yes, the Bradley Cooper with two Grammys, a BAFTA Award, and eight Oscar nominations. I still think WHAS is some of his best work!
I think the strange, irregular sense of time that dominates Donnie Darko transcended the film’s universe and entered our own, because it feels near-impossible that it’s been two decades since we saw Jake Gyllenhaal in one of his first starring roles.
The film’s writer, Richard Kelly, announced this year that a Donnie Darko sequel is in the works.
