Quentin Tarantino’s Best Films of the 21st Century |

Quentin Tarantino’s Best Films of the 21st Century

This has been widely reported in the last week.

And it is a diverse and crazy list.

The rules? Tarantino picks twenty movies that he thinks are the best since the year 2000 AD …

But, he can only pick a director once.

His list is wild and eclectic, pretty much just like Mr. Tarantino himself.

The full list is below; I have indicated the director and a few thoughts where I was familiar with the film. If I haven’t seen it (yet), or if I am ambivalent about the choice, I left it blank. I’ll search them out for sure. The first one I would have included in my own list would be Number 8.

One note before we begin; QT’s own films from this century include: Kill Bill, Death Proof, Inglorious Basterds, Django Unchained, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and The Hateful Eight. I would have included Basterds or Hateful Eight on my own list.

Quentin Tarantino’s Top 20 Films of the 21st Century (So Far)

20. West Side Story, dir. Steven Spielberg

This is an interesting choice, right off the bat. Personally, I feel Spielberg’s best film of the 21st Century would be either Munich or Catch Me If You Can.

19. Cabin Fever, dir. Eli Roth

Another interesting selection. There are so many other films that come to mind before this one, that I’m unsure why he loves this movie so much.

18. Moneyball, dir. Bennett Miller

This was an extremely well-made film. Sports pictures are always fun, they usually feature underdogs, and everyone loves this type of story. Brad Pitt is always compelling to watch.

17. Chocolate

16. The Devil’s Rejects

15. The Passion of the Christ

14. School of Rock, dir. Richard Linklater

I have children, so I know how great this movie is. I’ve watched it countless times. It really was an introduction to Jack Black for so many moviegoers. This was a showcase for him. That being said, it wouldn’t be in my Top 20.

13. Jackass: The Movie, dir. Jeff Tremaine

Hmmm … I mean, I enjoyed it, sure. But one of the best of the last twenty-five years?

12. Big Bad Wolves

11. Battle Royale, dir. Kinji Fukasaku

I understand why Tarantino enjoys this movie. It inspired so many others, like The Hunger Games, but others came before Battle Royale as well.

10. Midnight in Paris, dir. Woody Allen

This is a charming film with a sharp message concealed behind Owen Wilson’s lethargic and laid-back wit.

9. Shaun of the Dead, dir. Edgar Wright

8. Mad Max: Fury Road, dir. George Miller

This is an epic masterpiece. It’s likely the first one on this list that I would also have included.

7. Unstoppable, dir. Tony Scott

Denzel Washington and Chris Pine, on a runaway train. I really enjoyed it … but one of the best?

6. Zodiac, dir. David Fincher

This is only the second film I would have included. It’s one of the greatest procedurals ever, and a masterclass by so many great actors and Fincher himself.

5. There Will Be Blood, dir. Paul Thomas Anderson

No. Just, no.

4. Dunkirk, dir. Christopher Nolan

I will continue to tell anyone I meet that The Prestige is Nolan’s greatest film. It would be on my list.

3. Lost in Translation, dir. Sofia Coppola

Once again, charming.

2. Toy Story 3

I enjoyed the film. It captured the haunting truth of parenthood.

1. Black Hawk Down, dir. Ridley Scott

I like the idea of honouring Ridley, but I think The Martian was a near-perfect film, and Gladiator as well.

———

And that’s the list. What do you think? Do you agree or disagree with any of these? What films would you have included that are not here?

As with everyone’s “Best Of” list, people will inevitably say, “But what about … ?” I am guilty of the same. Here are some films that came to mind when I thought about this same exercise — films that QT neglected:

From this year: Weapons, Sinners, Nuremberg

From previous years:

The Pianist
Prisoners
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
The Prestige
The King’s Speech
Ex Machina
Inception
Sunshine
Gladiator
Rogue One
Coherence
Star Trek (2009)
Parasite
Memento
Dune
Inglourious Basterds
The Hateful Eight
The Lives of Others
Spotlight
Rush
Dredd
World War Z
Catch Me If You Can
Munich
Mad Max: Fury Road
Downfall
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
Unbreakable
Blade Runner 2049
The Martian
Moon
The X-Files: I Want To Believe
Edge of Tomorrow

———

Each day, I post one carefully curated news item from the Science Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Horror, and Suspense genres. Follow or subscribe to my blog and start your days dialed in to the exciting worlds of Timothy S. Johnston!

———

Follow TSJ on Facebook.
Follow TSJ on X.
Follow TSJ on Instagram.
Follow TSJ’s Blog Life After Gateway, featuring one carefully curated news item from the world of Science Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Horror, and Suspense each day. Enter your email in the “Subscribe to Blog via Email” widget on the right.

———

A Blanket of Steel by Timothy S. Johnston and from Fitzhenry & Whiteside, LTD. is the recipient of the 2024 GLOBAL Thriller Award GRAND PRIZE and the 2024 CYGNUS Award First in Category.

— Timothy S. Johnston, 9 December 2025

———

Praise for Timothy S. Johnston’s A Blanket of Steel

“Fans of Clive Cussler’s NUMA Files will be delighted with Timothy S. Johnston’s undersea novels. Truman McClusky and Dirk Pitt are cut from the same adventurer’s cloth.” — Nick Cutter, author of The Deep and The Troop

“Action that ranges from close range combat to torpedo-fueled attacks. The result is a thriller that keeps moving from confrontation to confrontation … with constant danger and the vast depths of the ocean as a setting, there is always reason to keep reading.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Read the book and prepare to be blown away by one of the best writers I have ever had the pleasure to read. Timothy S. Johnston is simply amazing.” — FIVE Stars from Readers’ Favorite

“A Blanket of Steel is not simply a ‘daring do’ thriller … It’s prescient.” — Amazing Stories

“A priority selection. An action-packed story that is hard to put down. A Blanket of Steel is outstanding.” — D. Donovan, Sr. Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

“Innovative technology, Mac taking risks no one else would dare and thinking his way through to brilliant solutions … But the stakes are higher than they’ve ever been before. This is it. The countdown to the final battle … Johnston does an excellent job of keeping the tension taut as he plays with the reader’s perceptions of characters we thought we knew and trusted …” — SFcrowsnest

“Expect to be left breathless. Trust me here. Please. I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN.” — Michael Libling, author of The Serial Killer’s Son Takes A Wife and Hollywood North: A Novel in Six Reels

———

A BLANKET OF STEEL is out now!

WATCH THE GRIPPING BOOK TRAILER HERE.

FOR PURCHASE OPTIONS CLICK HERE

———

A Blanket of Steel from Timothy S. Johnston and Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd.

Book Cover & Jacket Copy:

AN UNSTOPPABLE THREAT!

A mysterious assassin has murdered Cliff Sim, Chief Security Officer of the underwater colony, Trieste. Cliff was a mountain of a man, highly trained, and impossible to defeat in combat. And yet …

Someone brutally beat him and left his broken body in a secret Chinese facility at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.

And included a calling card for Truman McClusky, Mayor of Trieste.

Taunting him.

Mac has led the underwater colonies in their fight against the world’s superpowers. Climate change has devastated the surface; nations suffer famine, drought, rebellion, rising waters, and apocalyptic coastal flooding. But now, as Mac leads the underwater colonies to freedom and independence, he’s faced with the gravest threat of his life: a Russian assassin, hellbent on killing Mac and everyone he cares for. Now Mac must uncover the identity of the killer, face him in combat, and at the same time lead people in battle against the largest underwater force ever assembled. It’s Mac’s final test, and to win the war, he must use every tool at his disposal, including the most surprising and devastating underwater weapons ever invented.

If Mac fails, all hope is lost for the future of human colonization on the ocean floors.

But the assassin could be anyone …

Watch your back, Mac.

A Blanket of Steel is the most gripping thriller yet in The Rise of Oceania.

FOR PURCHASE OPTIONS CLICK HERE

The other books in The Rise of Oceania series by Timothy S Johnston:

The War Beneath 9781771484718
The Savage Deeps 9781771485067
Fatal Depth 9781554555574
An Island of Light 9781554555819
The Shadow of War 9781554556007