For those of us born in the 20th century, the 2000s didn’t seem so far away. We were there when people freaked out about Y2K. (Not us, though. We, uh, we played it totally cool. Totally.) We all remember the nude midriff tops. We listened to all the sticky pop music and acted like we didn’t like it. We were obsessed with Donnie Darko. It was a wild time.
But the year 2000 was 20 years ago. The same goes for the days of Donnie Darko and the boy bands. Things have changed dramatically since then – something that is very clear when you go back and watch the movies of the 2000s. Despite all of our collective nostalgia for the turn of the century, some of the popular culture of that era has not. well aged at all. This includes big blockbusters, many popular comedies from the decade, and even an Oscar winner or two. (Not Donnie Darko though, this one is still cool.)
For proof, see the list of ten films below. They could have been hits 15 or 20 years ago. They might still be popular today. But none of them could be made today, at least not in a form that resembles the version that was made in the 2000s.
Movies from the 2000s that could never be shot today
These films include some of the greatest of the decade. But all would be difficult to do today.
