Tarantino Names ‘Black Hawk Down’ Best Movie of 21st Century

Los Angeles, CA – Quentin Tarantino has crowned Ridley Scott’s film ‘Black Hawk Down‘ as the best movie of the 21st century. The acclaimed director shared his top picks during an interview on ‘The Bret Easton Ellis‘ podcast on December 2, 2025.

Tarantino praised ‘Black Hawk Down’ as an extraordinary feat of direction, stating, “I liked it when I first saw it, but I actually think it was so intense that it stopped working for me… Since then, I’ve seen it a couple of times… I think it’s a masterwork.” He noted the film maintains its intensity for its entire runtime of 2 hours and 45 minutes, adding, “My heart was going through the entire runtime of the movie; it had me and never let me go.”

Following ‘Black Hawk Down,’ Tarantino listed ‘Toy Story 3‘ in second place. He described it as “almost perfect,” highlighting the emotional impact of its final moments. “That last five minutes ripped my heart out,” he said.

In a surprising turn, Tarantino admitted that he did not appreciate Christopher Nolan‘s ‘Dunkirk‘ upon his first viewing, ranking it fourth instead. “What I now love about it is that I feel there’s a real mastery to it,” Tarantino said, reflecting on how repeated viewings changed his perspective.

The full list of Tarantino’s top ten movies includes Sofia Coppola‘s ‘Lost in Translation‘ at third, followed by ‘Dunkirk,’ ‘There Will Be Blood,’ ‘Zodiac,’ ‘Unstoppable,’ ‘Mad Max: Fury Road,’ ‘Shaun of the Dead,’ and ‘Midnight in Paris.’

Tarantino has frequently updated his list of favorite films over the years. He previously named David Fincher‘s ‘The Social Network’ as the best movie of the 2010s, asserting it “crushes all the competition.”

Fans can listen to Tarantino’s full interview on ‘The Bret Easton Ellis’ podcast to learn more about his film preferences.