Top 25 Mumblecore 2005-2012 (of all time)

It all really started in 2005 (with exception of Bujalki’s Funny Ha Ha (2002)), the ‘more indie than Sundance’ filmfestival South By Southwest in Austin, Texas screened three seemingly similar low budget films. Bujalski, aka the “Godfather of Mumblecore”, stood out with Mutual Appreciation, Swanberg with Kissing on the Mouth and the Duplass brothers with their The Puffy Chair. All three follow a couple of graduated twenty-somethings, trying to communicate with each other and the world. These movies announced a new movement, named by the press as Micro-indie New Talkies, Generation DIY, Cine Slackavetes, MySpace Neo-Realism, Bedhead Cinema but mostly Mumblecore. New York Times reporter Dennis Lim (2007) described it as “the sole significant American indie film wave of the last 20 years to have emerged outside the ecosystem of the Sundance Film Festival”. Influences of independent authors of cinema like Bresson, Cassavetes, Akerman, Jarmusch, Linklater, Green and the Dogma 95 movement united a group of lost youngsters in search of authenticity. Their attempt is to analyse human relationships through existential and naturalistic dialogues in the style of Rohmer and Woody Allen. Which resulted in wonderful films – here are the best Mumblecore films of the last 10 years, a best Mumblecore list of all time if you like:

(A special mention for Susan Buice’s & Arin Crumley’s amazing web series/podcasts (2008), accompanying their film Four Eyed Monsters (2005)

25. Creative Nonfiction (Lena Dunham, 2009)

24. Registered Sex Offender (Bob Byington, 2008)

23. Lonesome Jim (Steve Buscemi, 2005)

22. The Freebie (Katie Aselton, 2010)

21. Daddy Longlegs [Lenny & The Kids] (Ben & Joshua Safdie, 2009)

20. Mutual Appreciation (Andrew Bujalski, 2005)

19. Half Nelson (Ryan Fleck, 2006)

18. Open Five 2 (Kentucker Audley, 2012)

17. Funny Ha Ha (Andrew Bujalski, 2002)

16. Humpday (Lynn Shelton, 2009)

15. Frownland (Ronald Bronstein, 2007)

14. Quiet City (Aaron Katz, 2007)

13. Marriage Material (Joe Swanberg, 2012)

12. Your Sister’s Sister (Lynn Shelton, 2011)

11. Uncle Kent (Joe Swanberg, 2011)

10. Wendy and Lucy (Kelly Reichardt, 2008)

9. The Puffy Chair (Jay & Mark Duplass, 2006)

8. My Effortless Brilliance (Lynn Shelton, 2008)

7. Joe Swanberg’s Full Moon Trilogy (2011): Silver Bullets/Art History/The Zone

6. 2 Days in Paris (Julie Delpy, 2007)

5. Nights and Weekends (Joe Swanberg, 2008)

4. In Search of a Midnight Kiss (Alex Holdridge, 2007)

3. Greenberg (Noah Baumbach, 2010)

2. The Color Wheel (Alex Ross Perry, 2011)

1. The Comedy (Rick Alverson, 2012)