Summary
Certain titles that may have once been counted among thebest action movies of the 2000sdo not hold up today due to changing tastes in storytelling. The staples of the 2000s action genre feature a lot of classic espionage and fantasy vibes. However, when rewatching them today,it becomes apparent that many of these movies from the 2000s are all aesthetics and no substance,if not problematic in retrospect.
The longevity of some of these movies has been hurt byreboots that are better than the original, or their franchises having too many unnecessary sequels. With manyupcoming, unwanted remakes and sequels, the original movies are degraded when they become a part of the blur of endless, meaningless action. On the other hand,certain 2000s action movies have simply fallen victim to timewhen the cultural moment that enabled their success is long gone.
10 Classic 2000s Movies That Don’t Hold Up On A Rewatch
From Shallow Hal to Pearl Harbor, many 2000s movies that were staples of the decade have aged poorly. Here are the worst offenders.
10Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)
Mr. & Mrs. Smithhas a lot of obvious weaknesses that critics have never failed to notice, namely lackluster writing due to a superficial conflict and underdeveloped characters. What made the whole thing work was the undeniable chemistry between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.The Hollywood power couple also played a huge role inMr. & Mrs. Smithbecoming a rom-com/action classic despite mediocre reviews,as their ultimate collaboration, playing out a story where professional and personal priorities clash.
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Then the TV show reboot came around and achieved much better reviews, highlighting all the problems with the first movie.Fans being forced to reckon with theMr. & Mrs. Smithshow just being betteris coupled with the obvious point that Pitt and Jolie are no longer together. A movie that was mostly working because of enjoyability and the meta nature of the plot falls apart when there is a stronger version of it that isn’t dependent upon the lead actors' marriage.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a romantic comedy action film that follows a married couple who discover that they’re both assassins after years of maintaining a false relationship for cover when John and Jane discover on a hit job that they both have the same target, the failed mission results in the discovery that they’re both assigned to different agencies. Now tasked with eliminating one another, the two engage in a darkly comedic battle where they soon begin to fall in love - for real, this time.
9Troy (2004)
Troy Is A Boring Depiction Of The Trojan War
Troy is the most basic version of this story, filled with unlikable characters and forced subplots.
On paper,Troywas a perfect action movie with substance and marketability,which did turn it into a box office hit. The cast, including Pitt as Achilles, Eric Bana as Hector, and Orlando Bloom as Paris drew in fans, while the promise of exploring this legendary conflict seemingly equated to something profound. However,Troyis the most basic version of this story, filled with unlikable characters and forced subplots. It doesn’t do its one job of imparting the tragedy of the Trojan War when pretty much all the main characters except for Achilles and Hector get away safely.
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Madeline Miller reinvented the Trojan War in the cultural zeitgeist withThe Song of Achilles, aBookTok book that actually deserves its hype. The bestseller delves into the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus and emphasizes the carnage outside and inside the walls of Troy. In comparison,Troyis a generic would-beGladiatorthat acts like it is doing something meaningfulbut makes none of the hard narrative decisions needed to make its point.
Troy
Troy, directed by Wolfgang Petersen and released in 2004, is a historical epic based on Homer’s Iliad. The film chronicles the legendary Trojan War, focusing on the conflict between Achilles, played by Brad Pitt, and Hector, portrayed by Eric Bana. Starring Orlando Bloom as Paris and Diane Kruger as Helen, it explores themes of honor, betrayal, and the fates of the warriors involved in the siege of Troy.
8The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008)
The Spiderwick Chronicles Movie Doesn’t Do Justice To The Books
The Spiderwick Chroniclesis a fantasy book series that was always better suited to TV; with some other books that are being rebooted, there possibly was a way to make a good movie franchise out of it. However,Spiderwickis tricky because the books are very short, making for an odd series of short adventuresthat aren’t really enough to each be their own movie. However, when the movie adaptation tries to cover everything in one go, some of the best parts are left out.
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The result is a movie that is a serviceable fantasy adventure but isn’t as deep or entertaining as some of its contemporaries. Its ratings reflect that it is a standard feature of this genre with great visuals and a strong cast that can’t truly be called bad. However, with fantasy gaining a stronger foothold in pop culture, it’s clear that it could have been much better. Fans are now eager to seeThe Spiderwick Chroniclesseason 2because the new TV show has handled the source material better.
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black’s fantasy series springs from page ot the big screen with the 2008 release of The Spiderwick Chronicles, directed by Mark Waters. A recent divorcee named Helen moves into an abandoned estate with her three children intent on starting over. However her children discover a book left behind by their uncle, Arthur Spiderwick, and the secrets of a fantasy realm that set them up on an unforgettable adventure into the realm of creatures and faeries.
7V For Vendetta (2006)
V For Vendetta Shows A Very Simplified Dystopia
V for Vendettacould never compare to1984orThe Handmaid’s Tale, its unofficial ancestors in the dystopia genre. It has the grand moments that will sweep up viewers when watching it for the first time, explaining its success.V is a charismatic revolutionary who can mobilize a population with a few well-planned words and schemes;Evey is an everywoman who is transformed into his greatest ally. However, these are the better parts of a story that doesn’t make a ton of sense when revisited.
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V for Vendettaseems to have been intentionally adapted this way, with the specifics of the dystopia being less important than how people are motivated to fight against it. It glosses over the fact that V did imprison and torture Evey when she sides with him quickly in the aftermath. WithThe Hunger Gamescompletely overturning the dystopia genre in the 2010s and changes in the way such stories engage with real-world discourses,V for Vendettais a relic of a completely different cultural and political landscape.
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300 Has Come To Be Highly Critiqued For Its Inaccuracy
LikeTroy,300is a war movie set in the ancient world that seems like it is trying to replicateGladitor’s success.Gladiatoris not historically accurate but includes enough well-researched historical details for the relevance of its theme to come across. On the other hand,300was a huge success that launched the careers of Gerard Butler and Lena Headey. However,it is almost universally recognized that300is not really a historical epic,taking too many creative liberties and highly romanticizing certain aspects of Spartan culture.
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The ratings suggest that while strict historical accuracy has done nothing to hurt300’s popularity,it has prevented it from achieving true critical acclaim. However, now that the moment has passed, the question of what significance it holds if it is imparting a fictionalized version of history remains. Some argue that this is a problematic depiction of this history (viaCBR), which only serves as a vehicle for nearly two hours of gore.
Loosely based on Frank Miller’s comic series of the same name, Zack Snyder’s 300 tells the legend of the historical battle of Thermopylae. It follows King Leonidas of Sparta (Gerard Butler) as he leads a small force of 300 Spartans against the amassed Persian army of 300,000. Meanwhile, his wife Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) remains in Sparta to negotiate reinforcements against political resistance.
7 War Movies That Were Shockingly, Extremely Inaccurate
While many movies give accurate perspectives on the horrors of war, many others have shocked audiences with their inaccuracies and poor storylines.
5X-Men (2000)
Fox’s First X-Men Movie Isn’t True To The Characters
Fox’s biggest mistake from the beginning was making Wolverine the franchise’s protagonist instead of focusing on the original leaders of the X-Men.2000’sX-Mendid well enough at the time as a decent superhero movie with a roster of A-listersand interesting conflict. However, the subsequent two sequels showed how the story’s foundation was weak. All the semi-reboots and sequels after that tried to correct these problems, giving rise to repetitive stories that are even less faithful to the characters.
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The coinciding rise of the MCU was the final straw for Fox’s X-Men universe, as a much better adaptation of Marvel’s superheroes, implicitly posing the question of why they weren’t the ones adapting the X-Men. Indeed,X-Men ‘97has shown that Disney at least understands that the X-Men are a team,not Wolverine and a supporting cast. The weak points in the average firstX-Menmovie increased in severity with time, when each new movie only compounded those problems.
X-Men
X-Men, released in 2000, introduces Wolverine and Rogue as they join Professor Xavier’s private academy for mutants. The resident superhero team, the X-Men, led by Xavier, confronts a terrorist organization of mutants with similar abilities, highlighting the ongoing conflict between humans and mutants.
4Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith (2005)
The prequel era was lucrative if not critically successful when the fandom’s goodwill and nostalgic fondness arguably did not run out until The Rise of Skywalker.
Revenge of the Sithis decidedly not thebestStar Warsmovie, but typically regarded as the best of the prequel trilogy. For the most part,the history ofStar Warsmovie premieres shows that people will turn up in masses for the biggest franchise of all time,regardless of how good the movie actually is upon scrutiny. The prequel era was lucrative if not critically successful when the fandom’s goodwill and nostalgic fondness arguably did not run out untilThe Rise of Skywalker.
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Revenge of the Sithshowcases a better characterization of Anakin; there are some great dynamics between him, Obi-Wan, and Palpatine and amazing action for the first third of the movie. However,the prequels’ typical bad writing and hand-waved politics catch up toRevenge of the Sithas the movie progresses. With the Disney era of Star Warsbeing mostly a downturn in quality, it has only further evidenced that few of the new properties can compare to the original trilogy.
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith details the fall of the Jedi Order and Anakin Skywalker’s transformation under the influence of Darth Sidious. Released in 2005, the film explores Anakin’s internal conflict and the shifting political landscape, leading to the rise of the Galactic Empire.
3Charlie’s Angels (2000)
Charlie’s Angels Isn’t Much Better Than Full Throttle
Most of the hate is directed towards the 2003 sequelCharlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. However, the first movie was received well but doesn’t hold up.How theCharlie’s Angelsfranchise depicts its female cast is a contentious subject,as they are always fully capable agents but are heavily sexualized. They answer to an anonymous male employer; the one woman (in the movies) who questions his authority and why they listen to him is the villain, characterized as a"fallen angel."
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While it is a basic, but popular action movie led by deserving stars,Charlie’s Angels’jokes haven’t aged well and the rest of the story isn’t interesting enough to maintain viewers' praise.The 2019 remake ofCharlie’s Angelsalso complicates the franchise’s legacy,as this movie failed to attract both longtime fans and a younger demographic. TheCharlie’s Angels’reboot’s failuresuggests that pop culture has largely moved on from the story.
Charlie’s Angels
Charlie’s Angels is the first movie in the Charlie’s Angels franchise that began in 1976. The film was released in 2000 and starred Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu as the titular “Charlie’s Angels.” The film received a sequel in 2003 titled Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. Charlie’s Angels was a box office success and received mixed to positive reviews upon release.
2King Kong (2005)
Peter Jackson’s King Kong Is Way Too Long
Scott Mendelson aptly argues (viaForbes) thatKing Kong’s pre-release glowing reviews set it up for failure when people’s expectations were way too high.King Kongbenefited a lot from Peter Jackson’s name, the star-studded cast, and the special effectsthat made for good trailers. Even if the reviews guaranteed some disappointment, with Jackson riding on the success ofLord of the Rings,King Kongwas a safe success.
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WhileKing Kongis not generally considered a bad movie, and definitely one of the betterKing Kongmovies overall, its problem is very simple: It’s way too long.Jackson pads the runtime with too many unnecessary action sequences featuring one monster after another,before finally getting the main characters off Kong’s island for the final act to actually start. Watching this movie for the first time might have been impactful due to the spectacle and its release at the height of Jackson’s career, but it is not the best rewatch.
King Kong
Peter Jackson’s King Kong is a remake of the 1933 film of the same name. When enterprising filmmaker Carl Denham (Jack Black) decides to travel to the mysterious skull island, he hires naive young actress Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) to star in the film he intends to make. Denham’s crew of actors discovers the island’s big secret: Kong, a 25-foot-tall giant ape. Denham’s ambition gets the better of him, and he exploits Darrow’s bond with Kong to kidnap him, bringing him back to New York to exploit him for profit.
King Kong: 5 Ways Peter Jackson’s Movie Is Best (& 5 Ways Kong: Skull Island Is Better)
King Kong is one of the most famous movie characters of all time. Here’s how these two movies about the character compare.
1Transformers (2007)
Michael Bay’s First Transformers Demonstrates The Same Problems As Its Sequels
Transformers Oneis hopefully setting out to rectify all the mistakes made by more than a decade of Michael BayTransformersmovies. The new animated movie seems to focus more on the Transformers than human characters with a promising blend of serious and funny elements. A franchise that started out as a toy line probably doesn’t need to be completely dark and gritty. However,when Bay’sTransformersfirst came out, this seemed like a solid premisefor a new movie franchise.
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The Autobots and Decepticons alike are flashy and intimidating when rendered in live-actionand set against real humans. However, with each additional movie, it became more apparent that there wasn’t much more to the series than this. Every storyline is essentially the same, with a new conflict on the rise among the Transformers while the humans' personal lives are mixed in. In essence, this is all the firstTransformersis too, which is why it is another 2000s action movie that doesn’t hold up.
Transformers
Transformers, directed by Michael Bay, introduces audiences to a world where two factions of alien robots, the Autobots and Decepticons, bring their battle to Earth. Shia LaBeouf stars as Sam Witwicky, a teenager who becomes an unwitting participant in their conflict. The film showcases the heroic Autobots, led by Optimus Prime, as they strive to protect humanity from the malevolent Megatron and his Decepticon forces.
