Since the 1990s, indie films have been on a roll. And now that you can shoot films on an iPhone, more and more artists are trying their hand at independent cinema, competing in film festivals all over the world and often tackling topics that Hollywood tends to shy away from.
And while certain indie films have gone on to become box office hits or cult classics and are as popular as mainstream movies, some of them, despite being quite well-made never reach that level of popularity.
Here are some of the most underrated and overrated indie films from the 2000s.
Overrated: Juno (2007)
Back when it was released, Juno was quite a hit and attracted a fair bit of attention, as it dealt with the topic of teenage pregnancy. A comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman, the film follows Juno, a sixteen year old girl, who gets pregnant and has to decide if she will keep the baby or get an abortion.Although it is now considered as an anti-choice film, Juno received critical acclaim, being nominated for 3 Oscars and winning one for Best Original Screenplay.
Underrated: Rachel Getting Married (2008)
A drama film starring Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married is a powerful film that explores family angst and dysfunction. Hathaway plays Kym Buchman, an ex-model who is released from drug rehab for a few days so that she can attend the wedding of her sister.
Directed by Jonathan Demme, the film premiered at the 65th Venice International Film Festival and even landed Hathaway a Oscar nomination for Best Actress.
Overrated: Memento (2001)
An excellent crime-thriller-mystery, Memento follows Leonard Shelby (who suffers from anterograde amnesia and as such, has short term memory loss) as he struggles to hunt down his wife’s killer. The film has been crafted like a puzzle, with both color and black-and-white sequences and even a story-within-a-story that must be pieced together in order to appreciate it fully.
In fact, it foreshadows some of the techniques that Nolan would go on to use in his future films such as Inception, especially in terms of ambivalence and the way it demands repeat viewings, in order to find some sense of closure.
Underrated: Brick (2005)
Brick is neo-noir mystery film that goes back to the tradition of hard boiled detective stories, such as those by Dashiell Hammett. High school student Brendan discovers the dead body of his ex-girlfriend in a ditch and consequently has to find out who the murderer is.
Mixing the aesthetics of classic detective and film noir movies within a high-school setting, Brick makes for an engaging watch, setting up Rian Johnson as a director to watch out for.
Yes, he’s the same person who later went on to make Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017).
Overrated: 500 Days Of Summer (2009)
500 Days Of Summer frequently makes its way into several best “romantic” or “romantic comedy” films lists, even though at its heart, it challenges the expectations of a typical Hollywood romantic comedy.
Presented in a non-linear narrative, the film deals with unrequited love, where the guy (Tom, a writer of greetings cards) meets the love of his life, but is suddenly dumped. Zooey Deschanel plays Summer, the quintessential manic pixie dream girl, except she refuses to fulfill the guy’s romantic fantasies and seeks a life for herself, on her own terms.
Underrated: Margot At The Wedding (2007)
Directed by Noah Baumbach, this Nicole Kidman-starrer is a family drama, where the protagonist is a writer with borderline personalty disorder. Although the characters aren’t exactly likable, it’s a slice-of-life portrait of estranged family members as they reunite at a marriage function.
The movie premiered at the 34th Telluride Film Festival and was shot in New York.
Overrated: Mulholland Drive (2001)
Another neo noir mystery, this David Lynch film is regarded as one of the greatest films of this century. Starring Naomi Watts, Laura Harring and Justin Theroux, among others, the film is expertly-crafted and told in the form of vignettes.
At 146 minutes, it’s pretty long for a standard film, but manages to be powerfully gripping and profound.
Underrated: The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001)
Of course, Mulholland Drive is a brilliant film, and deserved all the accolades that it got, but there are other well-made films that too deserve some praise. In fact, the same year saw the release of another crime film The Man Who Wasn’t There. In it, a barber’s plan of blackmailing the man cheating on his wife goes horribly wrong.
A Coen Brothers film, The Man Who Wasn’t There was noted for its stellar performances especially by Billy Bob Thornton and Frances McDormand. In fact, Joel Cohen even won the Best Director at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, sharing the award with guess who, David Lynch for Mulholland Drive.
Overrated: Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)
Imagine meeting and falling in love with the perfect person, except to have your memories wiped forever. That’s a theme that this films tackles, where an estranged couple, despite losing their memories, meet once again and begin dating.
With a cast that includes Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood and Mark Ruffalo, the film is now regarded as a cult classic.
Underrated: Lars And The Real Girl (2007)
Lars And The Real Girl is about an introverted guy and his relationship with a life-sized doll (Bianca) that he has ordered off an adult website. Lars is somewhat delusional and his therapist advises his family and neighbors to go along with him when he begins to treat Bianca as his girlfriend.
A romantic-comedy, the film was a commercial failure, even though it received praise from its critics, and was even nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
Oh, and it stars Ryan Gosling in the lead!
Which is your favorite indie flick from this list?
