The Best Movie Moments of the 2010s

With the decade coming to a close, I felt compelled to reflect on some of the great cinematic moments of the 2010s. A two-hour film should be more than the sum of its parts, but that doesn’t mean that certain parts don’t make an even greater impression that clings to you for hours, days, or years after viewing.

What this list is: a loosely ranked collection of a few of these extraordinary movie moments that have stayed with me—moments of tremendous excitement, staggering craft, and/or emotional and thematic resonance. What this list is not: an all-encompassing overview of every great scene, nor a reflection of all of this decade’s greatest films. Not every great film is reducible to a singular moment worthy of playing over and over again (e.g., Dunkirk’s intricately woven timeline and spectacle largely escapes this kind of summary).

Nonetheless, here are 20 of my favorites.

(Warner Bros.)

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) – Motorcycles

Perhaps the greatest action film of the decade, Mad Max: Fury Road is wall-to-wall insanity. It is therefore tough to point to just one sequence to celebrate (both because the entire film is essentially one giant chase and because all of it is so sensational) but the motorcycle attack that sees Max and Furiosa fighting together for the first time might be it. George Miller’s film is a stupendous feat of staging, editing, and collective momentum and this scene perfectly encapsulates that.

(Fox Searchlight)

The Shape of Water (2017) – Underwater Kiss

Guillermo del Toro’s stirring romantic fairy tale will go down in film history as a staple of its period. For those who can see past the juvenile “fish sex” comments, the sequence where Eliza floods her apartment bathroom to share a fleeting moment of storybook romance with her amphibian man partner is delightful. The smile she flashes Giles (and us) has a soul-piercing authenticity.

(Marvel Studios)

Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – Snap

It is not the cliffhanger shock value of Avengers: Infinity War that makes its ending great—the moment T’Challa turned to dust was a dead giveaway that the death of half the universe would be a temporary inconvenience. Instead, it is the execution of this quasi-religious event that makes it so memorable. Members of the Marvel universe don’t just turn to dust, they cease to exist entirely, silently fading into the unknown. There is an alarming and disturbing peacefulness to the staging (the choice to forgo music in favor of distant thunder was a simple but inspired move) that serves as a final twist of the knife as the Avengers begin to recognize the depth of their failure.

(NEON)

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) – Orchestra

As Portrait of a Lady on Fire has yet to be seen by the larger public (outside of the festival circuit, it saw a brief one-week run in NYC and LA but will see a wider release in February), I will avoid divulging any specific information here. Put simply, there is a sequence of brilliant orchestral staging that, despite its simplicity, achieves a profound emotional impact. It has left me listening to this Vivaldi movement on repeat, a movement the film takes and effectively imbues with the entirety of a romance.

(Annapurna)

Her (2013) – Photograph

Speaking of communicating the entirety of a romance through song, Her makes a similar effort, though where Portrait of a Lady on Fire uses a single take, it relies on montage. The gorgeous piano piece (composed in the film by the immaterial AI character Samantha and in real life by Arcade Fire) serves as a “photograph” to encompass a relationship. Paired with a series of dreamy images, the scene is a lingering reminder of some of life’s simplest and most radiant moments.

(Warner Bros.)

Blade Runner 2049 (2017) – Nightclub

There is no shortage of incredible filmmaking on display in Blade Runner 2049, a film with the kind of deliberate pacing and atmospheric stillness that legendary films are made of. When K finally tracks down Deckard, the original film’s protagonist, he is treated to a gripping chase through a long-abandoned Las Vegas nightclub. The malfunctioning automated performance (of holographic recreations of Marilyn Monroe and Frank Sinatra) occasionally but violently pierces the tense silence, an effect that’s difficult to put a finger on but undoubtedly leaves a mark.

(Warner Bros.)

Interstellar (2014) – No Time for Caution

Christopher Nolan as a knack for grand feats of staging and he knows he can rely on composer Hans Zimmer to give them an extra punch. Following a spectacular jump scare (something else Nolan is quietly adept at). Interstellar’s desperate docking attempt was the scene that elevated a good space odyssey to a great one which, warts and all, contained some truly sublime moments of intensity and cosmic awe.

(Lionsgate)

La La Land (2016) – Epilogue

Though not Damien Chazelle’s most impressive musical setpiece (more on that later), the epilogue in La La Land takes full advantage of Justin Hurwitz’s memorable score and takes us on a dialogue-free romantic fantasy of what could have been. Though the sequence was essentially lifted from the 1951 film An American in Paris (check it out, it’s quite good), it still feels lively and original. Hollywood musicals are a rare breed these days but here is a compelling argument for their resurrection.

(Paramount)

The Avengers (2012) – Assembly

This side of Avengers: Endgame (2019), it’s easy to forget that there was a time when the cinematic universe seemed like an unlikely concept. However, this climactic moment of unity in The Avengers proved the idea was not just possible, but also exhilarating. Following a terrific character revelation in Bruce Banner’s “I’m always angry” line, Alan Silvestri’s score swells as the camera circles around the assembled Avengers, the defining moment of a film that would change Hollywood, for better and for worse.

(Focus)

BlacKkKlansman (2018) – Charlottesville

Though some have called the sequence exploitative (a claim that is not without its merit), the final documentary montage of Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman ensures that viewers are unable to walk away thinking that the battle against white supremacy is a thing of the past. Collecting news footage of the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, this is an angry and terrifying scene to end on. Lee’s final image of a colorless, upside-down American flag is a confrontation: this is America and you cannot pretend otherwise.

(Disney)

Toy Story 3 (2010) – Goodbye

The conclusion to the third entry of the Toy Story franchise was so perfect that it (at least in my book) preemptively sabotaged the impact of the fourth. As Andy prepares to leave for college, he gifts his childhood toy collection to the young and adorable Bonnie before saying one final goodbye. It is a staggeringly emotional ending that has never once failed to bring me to tears, for it happens upon some very human and very universal truths: the inevitability of farewells, of growing older, of change, but also of gratitude for the countless memories and experiences that make us who we are and that we always keep with us, even as we enter new chapters in our lives.

(Lucasfilm)

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) – Let It Burn

Rian Johnson’s subversive entry in Hollywood’s largest franchise (that also happens to be the best Star Wars film) has no shortage of incredible sequences to choose from—to name a few, a glossy red throne room showdown, a shockingly silent lightspeed collision, and a tender reunion between siblings that takes on new emotional gravitas after Carrie Fisher’s passing. However, I’ve chosen the film’s moral and thematic centerpiece as the highlight, a scene that may as well be the moral and thematic centerpiece of a decade of sequels, reboots, and remakes. A posthumous appearance from Yoda (an inclusion that demonstrates how fan service can be powerful when a story necessitates it) encourages us to learn from the past rather than hide from it or erase it altogether. In a decade of generational tensions, there is a powerful message here to let go of old ways when they have lost their relevance and to put that energy and experience towards something new. Johnson lingers on the indelible image of two faded masters watching an embodiment of their legacy burn, confident that something better will grow from its remains.

(Warner Bros.)

Gravity (2013) – Rebirth

Alfonso Cuarón’s masterful space thriller is packed full of sweeping and visually breathtaking moments (Cuarón’s regularly achieves immense camera fluidity through the extended tracking shots in his films). This is a quieter scene that was especially significant to me as a growing cinephile, for it teased the possibilities of visual storytelling. The fetal position Sandra Bullock’s character peacefully adopts is not exactly subtle, but it is charged with symbolic meaning that gave Gravity a deep thematic resonance that undercut any criticisms that the film was slight on story.

(A24)

Moonlight (2016) – You're the Only One

Though it may not be obvious in something so quiet and tender, Moonlight functions as a feature-length buildup of tension in service of the ultimate release of a lifelong burden. While watching Chiron conjure the strength to finally reveal the vulnerability that he has destructively suppressed, one is reminded of all the moments in our own lives when, butterflies in our stomach, we finally take the leap of translating thought into words. The final scene of Barry Jenkin’s masterpiece is nothing short of one of cinema’s greatest beats of catharsis.

(Warner Bros.)

Wonder Woman (2017) – No Man’s Land

Deliberate setup leads to great payoff. By bombarding Diana with repeated (and typically sexist) denials of her ability and her desire to do good, the moment she finally says “enough” becomes all the more impactful. Stepping out into No Man’s Land and revealing her iconic costume, Diana’s heroic feat is underscored by the raw emotional impact of finally seeing a woman superhero take control of a screen almost exclusively dominated by men. Wonder Woman is a film with a simple, crowd-pleasing kind of feminism, but even if it is not radical it is still undeniably powerful.

(Sony Pictures Classics)

Whiplash (2014) – Solo

The film that put Damien Chazelle on the map remains one of the most heart-racing thrillers out there. A cutthroat tale of obsession and abuse, Whiplash culminates in a magnificent final solo that will leave you wondering how a man playing the drums can be one of the most intense, suspenseful, and ultimately euphoric showcases of cinematic craftsmanship this decade. Though the scene naturally owes a lot to the music itself, its real centerpiece is Tom Cross’s Oscar-winning editing, a kinetic but controlled feat of assembly that reminds you just how thrilling a seemingly simple cut can be.

(Netflix)

Roma (2018) – Miscarriage

There’s no way around it—Roma’s delivery scene is absolutely devastating. A well-earned emotional payoff to all that preceded it, it punches you in the gut and stabs you in the heart. But beyond the sheer impact of the revelation, it is the brutal (but brilliant) execution that makes it all the more effective. Cuarón’s signature long take prevents you from looking away, but it is the separation of action in background and foreground (the former where doctors attempt CPR on the newborn, the latter where Cleo looks on in panicked terror) that brings it to the next level. Your eyes must constantly dart between the two planes, a challenge that lends itself to the disorienting chaos that Cuarón was aiming for. Like the rest of Roma, this is cinema of the highest order, cinema that uses its unique properties to monumental effect.

(Warner Bros.)

Inception (2010) – Corridor

Perhaps the sole remaining auteur who can sell a blockbuster on name recognition alone, Christopher Nolan makes high concept action thrillers that are nothing short of sensational. Known for his stubborn (and more than welcome) commitment to practical effects, the height of Nolan’s cinema may well be Inception’s rotating corridor. An action setpiece that remains unrivaled 10 years later, the immediate “how did they do that?” response is quickly surpassed by the implicit spectacle of seeing the impossible brought to life in front of you. The phrase “movie magic” has been deeply ingrained in our cultural vocabulary but it is not often that we get to see its truest realizations.

(A24)

Ex Machina (2015) – Skin

Ex Machina’s brilliance is thanks in part to just how many things it is simultaneously (that is, how many ways it can be read thematically), a quality that consistently gives new life to each rewatch. However, at its core Alex Garland has described the film as the story of a girl. This girl—Ava—is human even though the men around her debate that fact. She spends the film discreetly, masterfully, finding her way to freedom. In a scene of quiet symbolic enormity, she takes for herself that which she was deprived of by her (male) creator, captor, and abuser: skin. She stands naked before a set of mirrors, yet in a sense she is fully clothed for the first time, fully formed on her own terms. The cover of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (a story that looms large over Ex Machina, as well as all tales of artificial intelligence) is adorned with a quote from Milton’s Paradise Lost: “Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay to mold me man? Did I solicit thee from darkness to promote me?” In the ultimate act of defiance, Ava molds herself.

(Lucasfilm)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) – Saber

Nestled nicely at the decade’s midpoint, Star Wars: The Force Awakens ostensibly marked one of the most prominent talking points that Hollywood faced this decade: on-screen representation in mainstream cinema. One of the most affecting, invigorating, and transcendent movie moments of the 2010s (it produced immediate cheers at my opening night screening) is the one in which the saga’s storied lightsaber launches past Kylo Ren (standing in for all the men whose entitlement was finally being challenged) into the hand of Rey, the film’s instantly iconic heroine. More than just a terrific character beat, it is a scene of a woman effectively seizing a signifier of masculine power for herself, an object synonymous with unequivocal heroism and narrative centrality. Ignore the regressive, Reddit-catering changes to the character in The Rise of Skywalker—in a moment of mythic cinematic import, a new, long overdue hero was born and it was beautiful.