A lot of movies were released in the past ten years with some making the best out of the cinematic world, some we watched and some we had no idea existed. This article is a rewind of the must watch cinematic movies released in the past decade (2010 – 2019). The list is in no particular order. Ratings speak volumes about a movie but we have the movies we loved best based on the categories we enjoyed the most.
1. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Released on 20th July, 2012 in the USA and 27th July, 2012 in Nigeria, based on characters from the DC comics series Batman with over 165 minutes of running time and IMDb ratings of 8.4/10, the dark Knight is an action-thriller movie with PG-13 ratings.
Movie Summary: Batman is pushed out of hiding after eight years of silence when a vicious mercenary called Bane takes over the city of Gotham, and aims to run the city with crime lords. With the help of the formidable Selina Kyle and his manservant Alfred, Bruce has to protect the citizens from their greatest threat yet.
Genres: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller.
2. 12 Years a slave (2013)
12 Years a Slave is a 2013 R-rated biography and historical movie based on Solomon Northup’s 1853 slave memoir, Twelve Years A Slave.
Movie Summary: Solomon Northup, a free African-American man in the mid-1800s, working as a violinist and living with his wife and two children in Saratoga Springs, New York. is kidnapped and sold into slavery in the deep south.
Genres: Drama, History, Biography.
3. My Name Is Khan (2010)
My Name Is Khan is a 2010 Indian film directed by Karan Johar, produced by Hiroo Johar and Gauri Khan, and starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in lead roles. The movie was released worldwide February 12, 2010 and has since gotten an IMDb rating of 8.0 with Box Office earnings of ₹2.23 billion. The movie was a huge success and is considered one of the best movies of the past decade.
Movie Summary: Rizwan Khan a Muslim man suffering from Asperger’s Syndrome goes to America (San Francisco), over there he meets Mandira an indian single mother. Rizwan marries her and they start their life as a couple, but following the 9/11 attacks in America, Muslims are seen as threats by Americans and as such Rizwan and Mandira’s lives are affected. To clear his name Rizwan goes on a journey to meet the President of the United States.
Genres: Drama, Romance
4. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
Edge of Tomorrow is a 2014 sci-fi action thriller which casts Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt in a film created by Hiroshi Sakurazaka from the 2004 Japanese light novel, All You Need do Is Kill.
Movie Summary: A soldier fighting aliens relives the same day over and over, restarting the day each time he dies. He sees it as an opportunity to end the aliens iminent threat to humanity.
Genres: Action, Sci-Fi.
5. Captain America: Civil War 2016
Captain America :Civil War is a movie rated PG-13 released May 6, 2016 with IMDb ratings of 7.8, directed by Joe Russo and which recorded worldwide success.
Movie Summary: Following another incident involving the Avengers which results in massive collateral damage, political pressure mounts to implement an accountability system led by a governing body(Hydra) to supervise and direct the force. The Avengers are divided into two, with one division led by Steve Rogers and his desire to keep the Avengers free to protect mankind without interference from the government, and the other division supporting government supervision and accountability.
Genres: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction, Thriller.
6. The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
The Fault In Our Stars is based on a novel written by John Green, a renowned author of Young Adult fiction. The story gives an account of Hazel, who hardly remembers life without cancer and has little to no hope left in life. She meets Augustus Waters, a fellow cancer survivor, and in between sharing books and hanging out they find love in eachother’s company.
Movie Summary: Hazel and Augustus, future star crossed lovers are both cancer survivors who meet in a support group. Hazel, terminally ill and carries around an oxygen tank, and Augustus who lost a leg to cancer, find love and hope in eachother.
Genres: Drama, Romance,Love
7. Silver Linings Playbook
Movie Summary: David O. Russell’s Silver Linings Playbook stars Bradley Cooper as Pat, a bipolar man from Philadelphia who has spent the last eight months in a mental hospital. He was committed after a violent incident involving his wife and another man. Pat moves in with his father (Robert De Niro), a lifelong Eagles fans with low-level OCD issues. Pat seeks to get back together with his wife, even though there is a restraining order keeping him from her. He soon befriends Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a depressed young woman who grieves the death of her husband by engaging in compulsive sex. Tiffany offers to deliver a letter of Pat’s to his wife in exchange for him acting as her partner in a local dance competition.
Genres: Drama, Comedy, Romance.
8. Skyfall (2012)
Movie Summary: When a mission to kill a fierce assassin goes wrong for James Bond(Daniel Craig), a hard drive containing names and whereabouts of several agents from MI6 is stolen. Following this M(Dame Judi Dench) is forced to relocate the agency underground and has her position challenged by Gareth Mallory(Ralph Fiennes) the new head of the intelligence and security committee. M’s past is ressurected when she is haunted by mysterious messages that threaten her. Bond is assigned to locate and retrieve the missing hard drive. Aided by Miss Eve Moneypenny (Naomie Harris) and the new Q (Ben Whishaw), Bond’s trail leads to a mysterious hacker named Tiago Rodriguez, a.k.a. Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem), whose intentions are unknown.
Genres: Action, Adventure, Thriller
9. Despicable Me (2010)
Movie Summary: With a flair for high-profile crimes and devising all sorts of nefarious schemes, mankind’s undisputed No. 1 public enemy and history’s most despicable super-villain, Gru, finds himself in a predicament when Vector, his cunning arch-rival manages to outshine him. Now, only an outrageously ambitious plan involving the snatching of the moon, three adorable cookie-selling orphaned sisters and most importantly the devastating Shrink-Ray gun can help Gru earn a place in the pantheon of mega-criminals. But is this going to be a walk in the park for the sweet scoundrel with a heart of gold?
Genres: Animation, Comedy, Family.
10. Drive (2010)
Movie Summary: This action drama follows a man who juggles being a garage mechanic, a hollywood stuntsman as well as a getaway driver with a past he desperately wants to stay hidden while at the same time falling for his single mother neighbour with a husband in prison. He gets roped into the schemes of his boss at the mechanic workshop who is involved in illegal car racing. Things take a turn for the worse when the imprisoned husband of his love interest is released and poses a threat to his life and happiness with the woman he loves.
Genres: Crime, Drama
11. World War Z (2013)
Movie Summary: When former U.N. investigator Gerry Lane and his family get stuck in an urban gridlock, it soon becomes clear that there is more to it than meets the eye. His suspicions are confirmed when chaos erupts in the city as a lethal virus, spread through a single bite, turns normal people into something vicious, unthinking and feral. As the pandemic threatens to consume humanity, Gerry leads a worldwide search to find the origin of the pandemic and with luck halt it’s spread.
Genres: Action, Adeventure, Horror.
12. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
Movie Summary: After seizing Erebor from Smaug, Smaug burns down Lake-town and the aftermath causes the people of Lake-town to take up refuge in the ruins of Dale, which is in the shadow of Erebor. Gandalf, imprisoned by the necromancer is eventually rescued and is shocked when the necromancer reveals himself as Sauron. Bilbo and Company must protect Erebor from the Elves of Mirkwood, the Gundabad and Moria Orcs, the Men of Lake-town.
Genres: Adventure, Fantasy.
13. Joker (2019)
Movie Summary: Arthur Fleck, a clown and an aspiring stand up comedian with mental health problems one of which results in sudden outbursts of uncontrollable laughter, is on the receiving end of the unjust actions of an evil ridden society. The movie shows how Arthur’s societal victimisation and hurtful discovery about his childhood pushes him over the edge and leads to him ultimately taking on the persona of the joker, a man who lives to cause mayhem in Gotham city.
Genres: Crime, Thriller, Drama
14. Inside Out (2015)
Movie Summary: Growing up is no doubt a bumpy phase, and it’s no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions,Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness. The emotions live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley’s mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley’s main and most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school.
Genres: Animation, Comedy, Family.
15. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Movie Summary: An apocalyptic story set in the furthest reaches of our planet, in a stark desert landscape where humanity is broken, and almost everyone is crazed whilst fighting for the necessities of life. Within this world exist two rebels on the run who just might be able to restore order. There’s Max, a man of action and few words, who seeks inner peace following the loss of his wife and child in the aftermath of the chaos. And Furiosa, a tough woman who believes her path to survival may be achieved if she can make it across the desert to her homeland.
Genres: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction, Thriller.