Let’s take a trip back to the noughties as we check out the best movies from 2002!
Picture the scene. Millennium by Robbie Williams was still ringing in our ears, and people were still laughing about the fact that we all thought a Millennium Bug was going to destroy all of our tech.
Popper pants were slowly on their way out, Pokemon was on the rise, and it was truly a glorious time for the movie industry.
It was also a great time for the nerds amongst us too, with some serious wizardry and even a bit of web-crawling action for us to sink our teeth into.
Not a good year if you’re afraid of spiders or orcs though…
So, let’s not waste any more time and jump straight into the best movies of 2002, the films that we still can’t get enough of and that we wish we could go back and watch for the first time all over again!
Table of Contents
10. Gangs Of New York
Gangs Of New York takes the 10th spot in this list of the best films from 2002!
Anything Martin Scorsese puts his mind to becomes an instant classic, and with a cast like Dicaprio, Diaz, and Day-Lewis, it’s not surprising that this was one of the best selling and best films of 2002.
Did you know that it took Scorsese 20 years to make this film, writing and developing it from 1979 to 1999? That’s what I call a perfectionist at work!
No wonder it made over $193 million and was nominated for tonnes of awards!
9. Men in Black II
I liked the first Men in Black film, but Men in Black II kept the ball rolling at full speed and provided us with even more epic action with Mr Jones and Mr Smith.
The reviews of the sequel weren’t as good as the original on the whole, but for fans of the comics and the sci-fi perfection created by Barry Sonnenfeld, I loved every second of it.
The visual effects are also superb too, as is every scene with the Worm Guys in it.
They should have won an Oscar just for their parts, but I don’t know whether they have mantlepieces to put them on back on their home planet…
8. About A Boy
About A Boy takes the 8th spot in our list of the best films from 2002, arguably one of Hugh Grant’s best works and a seminal film from the noughties.
I still can’t believe that the boy in the film is Nicholas Hoult too. It’s making me feel really old now as I write this!
A romantic comedy, it’s based on the book of the same name that many of you might have already read in the past. If not, as a writer, I urge you to go check it out as it’s a fantastic piece of work!
The concept of hearing the characters thoughts was one of the main elements that made this film so interesting, but also the connection between the characters and the fact that it just has all the right feels without falling into the trap of being too sickly sweet.
7. Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones
Less Jar Jar Binks was always going to be a good thing, and while films 1-3 aren’t as great as the original 3, Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones is a blooming’ good film and one of the best movies of 2002 without a doubt.
Anakin starts to lose his way in this film, fully stepping onto the path that will eventually lead to him becoming Darth Vader. It’s the first time we see grown up Ani too, with Hayden Christensen stepping up to the plate.
Obi Wan really has his hands cut out for him in this one (bit of a poor taste comment there as so many people seem to get their hands cut off in these movies).
6. Signs
I’ve always been a big M. Night Shyamalan film, and Signs is still one of his best works. Mel Gibson and Joaquin Phoenix are fantastic in this movie. and Shyamalan uses all the tricks of the trade to make a gripping movie from start to finish.
This chilling tale of the supernatural boasts aliens, crop circles, a fight for survival, and a race against time to believe.
As you might expect from Shyamalan production, the cinematography is second to none. you can usually spot one of his films a mile off, and Signs is no exception.
This film would have had Mark Ruffalo in it, but Joaquin stepped in when Mark was diagnosed with a brain tumour, thankfully benign.
The Hulk in Signs would have been epic though, but I’m more than happy with the version we ended up with.
5. Minority Report
Minority Report takes the 5th slot in our best movies from 2002 list!
Imagine how amazing it would be if you could stop a crime before it was even committed. That’s the premise here, and it’s murders that the force Tom Cruise heads up are preventing.
Things go awry when Tom’s character is charged with the murder of a man he’s never even met; it’s like of VAR turned against you, except the penalty is a serious one and not just hitting a ball into a net.
Action packed and filled with tension, Minority Report is definitely up there with The Last Samurai as one of Cruise’s greatest works. Give it a watch if you haven’t seen it and let us know what you think over on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
4. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets
The Wizarding World will always have a special place in my heart, and Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets remains one of my favourite adventures from Harry’s younger years.
The story is great, and while they miss out key elements from the book like Mr Weasley and Lucius Malfoy and take a little artistic license on other parts, it sticks much more closely to the book than Prisoner of Azkaban!
Daniel Radcliffe will always be a bit wooden in these films, but he does a pretty good job in Chamber of Secrets. Plus, it’s the last film that we see Richard Harris in, aka ‘the best Dumbledore’.
Michael Gambon made a right pig’s ear of it!
Follo Harry, Ron, and Hermione as they discover who has opened the Chamber of Secrets and save Hogwarts!
3. Spider-Man
Spider-Man takes the 3rd spot in our best movies from 2002 list. It’s still the best Spider-Man movie of all time, and Toby Maguire is still the best Spider-Man.
I’m probably going to get a lot of hate mail for saying that, but it’s the truth!
This first movie outing for Spider-Man was fantastic, and for guys in their 30s like me, the original Spidey is always going to be the best.
Plus, you know that scene where Peter Parker catches all of the items on the lunch tray… well Maguire actually did that. It took him over 100 attempts, but he got there in the end!
2. The Bourne Identity
Jason Bourne will always be better than James Bond. There, I said it, and I stand by it, and The Bourne Identity is one of the best action movies from the noughties.
I think it’s because Bourne’s outings feels less ‘far fetched’ then the Bond stories. Ok, there’s lots of spies and amnesia and killing, but it all feels a lot more plausible.
The action in this film is great too, as it is in the other films in the series, and Matt Damon does a great job of portraying the titular hero.
Will Jason Bourne discover why he has loads of different passports and why someone is trying to track him down? I hope so, otherwise the other films are going to become a little repetitive!
1. The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers
It just had to bet didn’t it. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is the best movie from 2002, and it won’t ever be beaten.
Anyone who reads my articles will probably know how obsessed I am with Lord of the Rings. I named my dog Bilbo and have 5 LOTR tattoos, for crying out loud.
The Two Towers is the first time in the trilogy that we see the disbanded Fellowship going about their business, with Pippin and Merry heading to Isengard, Frodo and Sam meeting Gollum and travelling through the Dead Marshes, and Aragorn’s company heading to Helms Deep and the battle that ensues there.
The film is perfect from start to finish and stays largely true to the plot of the book; bar a few differences with the exchanges between Faramir and Gollum, it’s pretty spot on!
Any fantasy fans that haven’t seen this film, what are you playing at? And don’t even think about buying the normal version – it’s extended versions all the way!
Seb Santabarbara has bought every Nintendo console that has ever been released in his 33 years on Planet Earth. His favourite game franchise is Zelda, and he’s patiently waiting for Banjo-Kazooie to come back to the fold. When he’s not playing games, he’s travelling the world in his self-converted camper van.
