That Was the Decade That Was Part One The Oxford Times
Everybody's doing it. So, for once, why not follow the herd - if only to demonstrate just how distinctive the Oxford Times's coverage of cinema has been for much of the last decade.
A back problem has prevented me from getting to London for press shows since March 2002. Consequently, mainstream Hollywood releases have largely been in the capable hands of the man from the Press Association. However, thanks to a much-appreciated supply of discs from a number of generous arthouse distributors, it has been possible to keep both the film and DVD columns going - in print until this time last year and online as Parky at the Pictures since January.
As will soon become apparent during the course of this three-part survey of the Noughties, there is precious little correlation between each year's box-office hits and the titles selected for my personal Top 10. But how dull it would be if we all liked the same films.
Besides, it has become increasingly obvious as the decade has progressed that nobody takes any notice of critical opinion where blockbusters are concerned, anyway. The studios have pretty much ensured that their pictures are now critic-proof. But, just to be on the safe side, they have corralled the eager denizens of the blogosphere into a fanboy claque that shouts down the voices of experience, taste and reason who dared to lament the fact that the vast majority of Hollywood's output is now being created and consumed by adolescent males who have either yet to grow up or who resolutely refuse to.
Released: August 30, 2002
