Bill Simmons Stole My Idea! (sort of): What Is The Most Defining Moive Of This Decade?

On a recent podcast with Chris Connelly, Simmons asked Connelly what the most defining and best movie of this decade was. Simmons said the movie had to fulfill three qualifications: excellence, creativity, re-watchability. I recently had a post about which movies this decade we will remember. While it is not the same as what exactly Simmons asked, it is along similar lines. While on the spot, Connely gave probably the correct answer- The Dark Knight. Simmons, for his movie knowledge, gave a pretty stupid one- Almost Famous.

While Simmons may personally enjoy the movie, it is absolutely not the defining movie of this decade. This is not just opinion, it is fact, Almost Famous is NOT this decade's most defining movie. It is not even close. In fact, in my post, I put Almost Famous in the "maybe" pile. The movie is not shown often on TV, which is a sign that people don't really want to watch it, and it essentially disappeared from the Americana consciousness. All of the quotes Simmons writes in his article are not mainstream quotes and if they were spoofed on SNL or taken out of context, I guarantee you the average American would not understand the reference. Very similar to when my friends and I (essentially YOU reading this) say random quotes from The 40 Year Old Virgin and Home Movies. Myself and my generation will essentially determine what movies from the naughts will be remembered and if it weren't for Simmons, I'm sure very few people would even remember that Almost Famous existed. None of my friends or myself rant and rave about Almost Famous, nor do anyone who I met in high school or college, which is why I initially put Famous in the "maybe" column.

Bill Simmons has what he calls The Esgee Awards, a place where you can vote for what movie you think is this decade's most defining movie. You can choose between: The Dark Knight, The Departed, Gladiator, No Country For Old Men, Lord Of The Rings, Gladiator, Cast Away, Brokeback Mountain, and Almost Famous. It should be no surprise that TDK is has been voted first and Almost Famous had been voted fourth above: TCFOM, Cast Away, and Brokeback Mountain (probably more to do with Simmons' influence, the bi-polarity of NCFOM reviews, and the crapiness of Cast Away compared to the rest of the group).

I could go on and on saying just how terrible this decade is to begin with and just how poor essentially all of these choices are, but surprisingly, I do have a social life and time constraints, so I will just tell you why The Dark Knight is this decade's best movie. I will agree with Simmons initial assumption of the qualifications of what makes the best movie. I will now go on to explain how TDK fulfills the three qualifications. First of all, The Dark Knight, is one of the greatest action movies of all time or par with Indiana Jones and Terminator 2. Secondly, the fact that it was one of the biggest grossing movies ever shows it's excellence and rewatchability. In order for a movie to make that much money, many people have to go see it over and over again. I know I personally saw it opening weekend and twice after that. Plus, the reason people go see over and over again is BECAUSE of how good the movie is. I had a friend tell me that TDK should have been nominated for a Best Picture Oscar because it made so much money. I think there's missing causality links, but he's right. The reason it made SO MUCH money was BECAUSE the movie was so good- hence deserving at least an Oscar nod.

The movie also is certainly creative. The movie aired after Spiderman 2, the Tim Burton Batman's, and even Iron Man, and yet STILL managed to be creative. Superhero and action movies are a dime a dozen (cough cough X-Men cough cough) and yet TDK still manages to be different. There's so much depth to the movie, the characters, and the story itself that it's creativity leads to its excellence.

Simmons also uses quotes from Almost Famous to help state his case/ write a sports column and The Dark Knight certainly has its fair of quotable line, much more than Almost Famous. Not only are there the big ones the studio pushed like "Why So Serious?" and "Hellooooooo Commmm-issioner" but minor one my friends and I like to drop every so often like "I'm very good with calculation", "I'M NOT WEARING HOCKEY PADS", and "'Do you know how I got these scars?' 'No, but I know how you got these!'". While the movie really doesn't have that natural awesome line that people quoted like "I... drink... your... milkshake, I DRINK IT UP!" but I'm sure if you quoted TDK, the average American would understand the reference.

I think most people would understand the reference because of just how new the movie is, and I think that's the only detriment to the movie. I movie like Gladiator has proven it can stand the test of time- more so that The Dark Knight can, just because of how old Gladiator is and how recent TDK is. The only way to truly determine what the best movie from this decade is will be is to ask generation after generation after generation and see what their response is. Time is the best indicator and TDK hasn't really stood the test of it yet. But I think it's still safe to say that 1) The Dark Knight (so far) is the best movie of the decade and 2) Almost Famous should not even be in the conversation. Sorry Billy.