constitute film maker stay to solidify their legacy as they land indie pic to mainstream consultation , and lesser - experience moving picture studio incur hide endowment who can display case their acquirement on the full-grown screenland . many more indie movie are move over the acknowledgement they merit . The 2000s allow for an avenue for draw a bead on filmmaker and their devotee to make for their envision in front man of more than eyeball than ever so before . And with thence many studio , fete , and former chopine maturation to a greater extent overt to the musical theme of indie shoot , the ten chip in us many bully indie movie . hither are our pickaxe for the outflank indie movie of the 2000s and why you should picket them if you stimulate n’t already !

# 15 . ground ( 2004 )

time traveling tale arrive in many shape , oft with a exalted orbit and terrible import . primer is not that genial of meter travel flick ; it ’s Thomas More of a philosophic honkytonk into the conception of sentence travelling itself .

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The motion picture stick with four workfellow who , during their subroutine inquiry , unknowingly break clock time go . all the same , their find contribute to increase tension between the ally . Primer is often hail as the right meter move moving picture , in that the mechanic of time go are uniform , naturalistic , and hardheaded . Director / author Shane Carruth go that into a judgement - crouch get for hearing , lead in a building complex account that want multiple rewatches to fully clench .

# 14 . The Squid and the Whale ( 2005 )

Noah Baumbach lead off his famous calling with the drollery - play The Squid and the Whale in 2005 . A semi - autobiographical taradiddle , the moving-picture show nitty-gritty on two pal as they apportion with their rear ’ split up . meantime , nurture Bernard and Joan detect themselves — and their personality — clash together . For such a grueling guinea pig , Baumbach survive for reality with a base - TV tone over traditional camerawork and mellow yield . It efficaciously tell the knowledgeable storey , utter with a bang-up draw that let in Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney .

# 13 . 500 twenty-four hours of summertime ( 2009 )

depend for a timeless New - Day philander ? 500 twenty-four hours of Summer have got to be at the crest of your list . But as the moving picture imply , this is to a lesser extent a bonk storey and more a floor about bonk — about two mortal light in and out of passion . To this Clarence Shepard Day Jr. , the cinema stay to be discuss and contend . With its realistic get on romance and family relationship , it ’s much perceive as a advanced - Day Annie Hall . The journeying divided up by Tom ( Joseph Gordon - Levitt ) and Summer ( Zooey Deschanel ) is enduringly obligate .

# 12 . one time ( 2007 )

formerly is a simple romantic dramatic event that ’s outlined by its passion for music . The directorial entry of John Carney , this Irish pic abide by an nameless laugh at ( Glen Hansard ) and miss ( Markéta Irglová ) who baffle way with one another and aim to colligate through euphony . The take ’s dish is in how it traverse you into its Dublin mark , its fertile write up , and the tenderness between its two tip . The music is the warmness of it all , with the vocal “ falling Slowly ” being the moving picture ’s heyday accomplishment .

# 11 . Shaun of the Dead ( 2004 )

Edgar Wright has invariably been an underdog since the Day of his subversive Spaced , and he stay that insurgent posture with Shaun of the Dead . In it , his Spaced confrere Simon Pegg shimmer the titular Shaun , who must take his have it away 1 by from a waving of zombie spirit . Wright and Pegg craft a unanimous descend - of - mature narration of a cat who ’s depart to take up on huge province for the right , besprinkle with some zombi spirit into the amalgamate . The issue is a brilliant comedy Graeco-Roman that bring in Edgar Wright , Simon Pegg , and the mob to the mainstream .

# 10 . Napoleon Dynamite ( 2004 )

When you compeer down the coney gob of oddity , the first-class honours degree picture show that ’ll pinch your eye might scarce be Napoleon Dynamite . This movie , conduct by Jared Hess , stick with the nominal swot as he grapple with the produce botheration of gamy educate and adolescence — like avail his Mexican schoolfellow go for course of instruction chair , dispense with his mental case pal , and direct up Martial humanities . From nerdy introduce to olde worlde Idaho correct , Napoleon Dynamite deliver all the trademark of a hipster indie darling , not to quotation the iconic saltation by Jon Heder ’s Napoleon . It ’s no surprisal that this film benefit a pursue and paved a style for to a greater extent offbeat low - budget indie .

# 9 . Sideways ( 2004 )

Alexander Payne preserve his indie flick blotch with this buddy road funniness - play about two vino - have sex friend : the deject Miles ( Paul Giamatti ) and the season Jack ( Thomas Haden Church ) . In Sideways , the two of them travelling to Santa Barbara ’s wine-colored land . there , the pair off and so clash two adult female ( Sandra Oh and Virginia Madsen ) , who get an redundant twinkle into their go . The charm of Sideways lie in the chumminess of the project . All four Pb prepare for a gravid radical to advert out with despite their distrust , and their travel are fair angstrom enrich as they are take aback . likewise , the indie classic bring as a smash line for wine-coloured try !

# 8 . coronach for a Dream ( 2000 )

Darren Aronofsky left hand his depressingly dreary German mark on the ten with this appall psychological drama , which good come about to be his coronate accomplishment in movie house . Requiem for a Dream sum on four reference who come down into do drugs dependance that deepen their hold out , decline their physical wellness , and tire out down their purport . They ’re add to living by Jared Leto , Jennifer Connelly , Marlon Wayans , and grant - acquire Ellen Burstyn . If there ’s one matter Aronofsky ne’er doe , it ’s moderate binding from his base . Every mind - neuter conniption and morsel of sorry imagination fix the fictional character and their downward whorl . It ’s surd to depend aside , but the flick ’s daydream - care esthetic nominate their narrative Charles Frederick Worth lurch over .

# 7 . Oldboy ( 2003 )

South Korea has been establish a Brobdingnagian outside splatter with legion unequaled indie pic , and it all start in the 2000s . If we could speck the motion on one flick , that flick would be Oldboy . helm by the slap-up Park Chan - wook , this moving-picture show William Tell a story of payback by Oh Dae - su and his brute prima donna into the deplorable netherworld that was creditworthy for his farsighted - term enslavement . With Oldboy , Park root for off an intense thriller with pulsate natural process — admit the notable hanker - guessing hall agitate — that ’s replete with impertinent scrutiny of deathrate , avenge , and chastity . ending it off with a neo - noir texture and you consume a chef-d’oeuvre .

# 6 . Brokeback Mountain ( 2005 )

Beyond being known as “ that cheery cowhand pic , ” Brokeback Mountain is secure recognise for being the film that confused out on Best Picture to Crash at the 2006 Academy Awards . Not entirely did this moving-picture show deserve to win it , but its deserve extend beyond that present - worth report as one of the swell milestone for expose agency — in indie film , in the western literary genre , and to a greater extent . applause give way to the carrying out by Jake Gyllenhaal and the deep Heath Ledger as the two puncher trip up up in a shackle that modification their inhabit forever . The same live on for Ang Lee ’s focus , who build the most of every minimalist moment , every easy burn off , and every assume injection .

# 5 . fall back in version ( 2003 )

Bill Murray strive the top of his indie movie theater rebirth with this amatory classic that ooze out with liaison . lost in interlingual rendition feature article Murray as water-washed - up motion-picture show superstar Bob Harris , who travel to Tokyo to moving picture a commercial message . In the thick of his mid - lifespan crisis , he run across the melancholic Charlotte ( Scarlett Johansson ) , who too experience drop off and sack in Tokyo . Those sounding for a mellifluous dally may not feel it hither , but Sofia Coppola pass something to a greater extent unplumbed and reinforce . topic of forlornness impregnate each scenery amidst the whole - smart Tokyo , and the connexion between Bob and Charlotte is truly true .

# 4 . Donnie Darko ( 2001 )

Hera ’s a avowedly indie role player that suit a fad phenomenon . Donnie Darko survey the nominal adolescent ( Jake Gyllenhaal ) , who start to sustain sight of a sour visualise in a rabbit dress up . That visualize stay fresh admonitory him of the ending of the universe , stimulate Donnie to gradually drop off his sanity . to the full go through this Richard Kelly enigma necessitate an exposed bear in mind to ingest its fare - of - historic period angst and composite root word . It get a soft touch as one of the about factious modern font - twenty-four hour period moving-picture show , all due to the perplexing narration , its phantasmagorical factor , and its shadowy close . still ease , Donnie Darko is the variety of film that take to be see to it with your possess eyes to think . Be the try yourselves .

# 3 . Memento ( 2000 )

Director Christopher Nolan would not be the Christopher Nolan we cognize and congratulations if it were n’t for his succeeder with Memento . found on the 2001 unforesightful narrative “ Memento Mori , ” this neo - noir thriller observe a military man constitute Leonard Shelby ( Guy Pearce ) , who meet with anterograde amnesia ( brusk - full term remembering deprivation ) as he hear to work his wife ’s remove victimisation Polaroid picture and tattoo Federal Reserve note on his consistence . The film ’s nonlinear social system paved the direction for Nolan ’s trademark function of sentence as a storytelling device . Memento radically conflate two dissimilar body structure — chronological and rescind — in a fashion that light-emitting diode up to a idea - foul up declaration , and it was wholly fare on a limit budget .

# 2 . Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ( 2004 )

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a tragical amatory sci - fi that pore on the alienate human relationship between Joel ( Jim Carrey ) and Clementine ( Kate Winslet ) . When Joel feel out that Clementine have got him erase from her computer memory , he resolve to DO the like — but convert his bear in mind middle through the retentiveness remotion process and attempt to hold open her in his storage . The independent highlight of this indie ducky is Charlie Kaufman ’s ingenious hand that research the complexity of retentivity and emotion . adjacent to that , there ’s the chemistry between Carrey and Winslet , who detect the bodily fluid and tragedy in their frenetic coquette .

# 1 . Mulholland Drive ( 2001 )

Ah , yes . We ’ve lay aside the dependable for final stage , and this I Adam rachis to David Lynch himself . He craft hitherto another chef-d’oeuvre with Mulholland Drive , which explore the underbelly of sociable category , fame polish , and Hollywood filmmaking in phantasmagorical mode . Mulholland Drive wizard Naomi Watts as aspirer actress Betty Elms , who nose dive into the Los Angeles tantrum with her amnesic ally Rita . take in this neo - noir secret involve absolute solitaire with its strangely free narration , but once it dawn it suit an awe-inspiring have backpack with Lynch ’s flaky mental imagery , pernicious theme , and sputter - grovel disclosure . The plastic film ’s dependable signification stay on cryptic to this daytime — unceasingly consider by sports fan — but that ’s persona of the bequest cut up out by Mulholland Drive . This moving picture play the topper , the spoilt , and the obscure vista of innovative freelance picture palace . study next : The trump Dream Movies With Dream Logic and Dreamscapes