My top films of 2002
by larsonlo | created - 03 Mar 2011 | updated - 31 Dec 2014 | PublicMy top films of 2002. Includes features, miniseries and docs. All films 7/10 or higher. Note: I have not seen all films released in 2002. If you have any suggestions I would love to hear them.
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1. The Twilight Samurai (2002)
129 min | Drama, Romance
As the feudal Japan era draws to a close, a widower samurai experiences difficulty balancing clan loyalties, 2 young daughters, an aged mother, and the sudden reappearance of his childhood sweetheart.
Director: Yôji Yamada | Stars: Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa, Nenji Kobayashi, Ren Ôsugi
Votes: 25,377
2. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
PG-13 | 179 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
While Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.
Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom
Votes: 1,776,859 | Gross: $342.55M
3. The Pianist (2002)
R | 150 min | Biography, Drama, Music
During WWII, acclaimed Polish musician Wladyslaw faces various struggles as he loses contact with his family. As the situation worsens, he hides in the ruins of Warsaw in order to survive.
Director: Roman Polanski | Stars: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Emilia Fox
Votes: 907,634 | Gross: $32.57M
4. Adaptation. (2002)
R | 115 min | Comedy, Drama
A lovelorn screenwriter becomes desperate as he tries and fails to adapt 'The Orchid Thief' by Susan Orlean for the screen.
Director: Spike Jonze | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, Tilda Swinton
Votes: 202,514 | Gross: $22.25M
5. Ice Age (2002)
PG | 81 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
The story revolves around sub-zero heroes: a woolly mammoth, a saber-toothed tiger, a sloth and a prehistoric combination of a squirrel and rat, known as Scrat.
Directors: Chris Wedge, Carlos Saldanha | Stars: Denis Leary, John Leguizamo, Ray Romano, Goran Visnjic
Votes: 517,109 | Gross: $176.39M
6. One Hour Photo (2002)
R | 96 min | Drama, Thriller
A mentally unstable photo developer targets an upper middle-class family after his obsession with them becomes more sick and disturbing than any of them could imagine.
Director: Mark Romanek | Stars: Robin Williams, Connie Nielsen, Michael Vartan, Dylan Smith
Votes: 131,444 | Gross: $31.60M
7. Road to Perdition (2002)
R | 117 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A mob enforcer's son in 1930s Illinois witnesses a murder, forcing him and his father to take to the road, and his father down a path of redemption and revenge.
Director: Sam Mendes | Stars: Tom Hanks, Tyler Hoechlin, Paul Newman
Votes: 283,830 | Gross: $104.45M
8. Robin Williams Live on Broadway (2002 TV Special)
TV-MA | 99 min | Documentary, Comedy
The fourth HBO stand-up special by Robin Williams.
Director: Marty Callner | Star: Robin Williams
Votes: 6,284
9. Insomnia (2002)
R | 118 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Two Los Angeles homicide detectives are dispatched to a northern town where the sun doesn't set to investigate the methodical murder of a local teen.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Hilary Swank, Martin Donovan
Votes: 317,965 | Gross: $67.36M
10. Infernal Affairs (2002)
R | 101 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A story between a mole in the police department and an undercover cop. Their objectives are the same: to find out who is the mole, and who is the cop.
Directors: Andrew Lau, Alan Mak | Stars: Andy Lau, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Anthony Chau-Sang Wong, Eric Tsang
Votes: 130,956 | Gross: $0.17M
11. City of God (2002)
R | 130 min | Crime, Drama
In the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
Directors: Fernando Meirelles, Kátia Lund | Stars: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Matheus Nachtergaele, Phellipe Haagensen
Votes: 798,261 | Gross: $7.56M
12. In America (2002)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama
A family of Irish immigrants adjust to life on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen while also grieving the death of a child.
Director: Jim Sheridan | Stars: Paddy Considine, Samantha Morton, Djimon Hounsou, Sarah Bolger
Votes: 44,216 | Gross: $15.54M
13. 8 Mile (2002)
R | 110 min | Drama, Music
Follows a young rapper in the Detroit area, struggling with every aspect of his life, wants to make it big but his friends and foes make this odyssey of rap harder than it may seem.
Director: Curtis Hanson | Stars: Eminem, Brittany Murphy, Kim Basinger, Mekhi Phifer
Votes: 319,499 | Gross: $116.72M
14. The Bourne Identity (2002)
PG-13 | 119 min | Action, Mystery, Thriller
A man is picked up by a fishing boat, bullet-riddled and suffering from amnesia, before racing to elude assassins and attempting to regain his memory.
Director: Doug Liman | Stars: Franka Potente, Matt Damon, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen
Votes: 574,776 | Gross: $121.66M
15. Whale Rider (2002)
PG-13 | 101 min | Drama, Family
A contemporary story of love, rejection and triumph as a young Maori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.
Director: Niki Caro | Stars: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis
Votes: 43,982 | Gross: $20.78M
16. He ni zai yi qi (2002)
PG | 116 min | Drama, Music
A violin prodigy and his father travel to Beijing, where the father seeks the means to his son's success while the son struggles to accept the path laid before him.
Director: Kaige Chen | Stars: Yun Tang, Peiqi Liu, Hong Chen, Zhiwen Wang
Votes: 4,470 | Gross: $0.60M
17. Catch Me If You Can (2002)
PG-13 | 141 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Barely 17 yet, Frank is a skilled forger who has passed as a doctor, lawyer and pilot. FBI agent Carl becomes obsessed with tracking down the con man, who only revels in the pursuit.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen
Votes: 1,089,648 | Gross: $164.62M
18. Gangs of New York (2002)
R | 167 min | Crime, Drama
In 1862, Amsterdam Vallon returns to the Five Points area of New York City seeking revenge against Bill the Butcher, his father's killer.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz, Daniel Day-Lewis, Jim Broadbent
Votes: 471,569 | Gross: $77.81M
19. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A recently laid off factory worker kidnaps his former boss' friend's daughter, hoping to use the ransom money to pay for his sister's kidney transplant.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Shin Ha-kyun, Bae Doona, Lim Ji-eun
Votes: 74,855 | Gross: $0.05M
20. Antwone Fisher (2002)
PG-13 | 120 min | Biography, Drama
Antwone Fisher, a young navy man, is forced to see a psychiatrist after a violent outburst against a fellow crewman. During the course of treatment a painful past is revealed and a new hope begins.
Director: Denzel Washington | Stars: Denzel Washington, Derek Luke, Joy Bryant, Malcolm David Kelley
Votes: 38,318 | Gross: $21.08M
21. Mike's New Car (2002 Video)
Not Rated | 4 min | Animation, Short, Comedy
Mike's bought a new 6-wheel-drive car, and he can't wait to show it off to Sulley. Only problem is, Mike hasn't exactly mastered the controls yet, and they're pretty complicated.
Directors: Pete Docter, Roger Gould | Stars: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Susskind
Votes: 14,930
22. Hero (2002)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A defense officer, Nameless, was summoned by the King of Qin regarding his success of terminating three warriors.
Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang
Votes: 187,384 | Gross: $53.71M
23. We Were Soldiers (2002)
R | 138 min | Action, Drama, History
The story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War, and the soldiers on both sides that fought it, while their wives wait nervously and anxiously at home for the good news or the bad news.
Director: Randall Wallace | Stars: Mel Gibson, Madeleine Stowe, Greg Kinnear, Sam Elliott
Votes: 150,823 | Gross: $78.12M
24. Far from Heaven (2002)
PG-13 | 107 min | Drama, Romance
In 1950s Connecticut, a flustered housewife faces a marital crisis and mounting racial tensions in the outside world.
Director: Todd Haynes | Stars: Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, Patricia Clarkson
Votes: 49,217 | Gross: $15.85M
25. Lilo & Stitch (2002)
PG | 85 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A young and parentless girl adopts a 'dog' from the local pound, completely unaware that it's supposedly a dangerous scientific experiment that's taken refuge on Earth and is now hiding from its creator and those who see it as a menace.
Directors: Dean DeBlois, Chris Sanders | Stars: Daveigh Chase, Chris Sanders, Tia Carrere, David Ogden Stiers
Votes: 210,685 | Gross: $145.79M
26. Minority Report (2002)
PG-13 | 145 min | Action, Crime, Mystery
John works with the PreCrime police which stop crimes before they take place, with the help of three 'PreCogs' who can foresee crimes. Events ensue when John finds himself framed for a future murder.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Max von Sydow
Votes: 582,745 | Gross: $132.07M
27. Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion (2002)
Unrated | 104 min | Documentary, History
A film about the state of Chinese occupied Tibet and its history of oppression and resistance.
Director: Tom Piozet | Stars: Edward Edwards, Ed Harris, Shirley Knight, Tim Robbins
Votes: 688 | Gross: $0.58M
28. Bloody Sunday (2002)
R | 111 min | Drama, History, War
A dramatization of the Irish civil rights protest march and subsequent massacre by British troops on January 30, 1972.
Director: Paul Greengrass | Stars: James Nesbitt, Tim Pigott-Smith, Nicholas Farrell, Allan Gildea
Votes: 25,710 | Gross: $0.77M
29. Narc (2002)
R | 105 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
When the trail goes cold on a murder investigation of a policeman, an undercover narcotics officer is lured back to the force to help solve the case.
Director: Joe Carnahan | Stars: Ray Liotta, Jason Patric, Chi McBride, Dan Leis
Votes: 43,020 | Gross: $10.46M
30. About Schmidt (2002)
R | 125 min | Drama
A recently retired man embarks on a journey to his estranged daughter's wedding, only to discover more about himself and life than he ever expected.
Director: Alexander Payne | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, Kathy Bates
Votes: 133,348 | Gross: $65.02M
31. Door to Door (2002 TV Movie)
PG | 90 min | Biography, Drama
A man with cerebral palsy is determined to become a salesman.
Director: Steven Schachter | Stars: William H. Macy, Kyra Sedgwick, Kathy Baker, Joel Brooks
Votes: 4,433
32. Love Liza (2002)
R | 90 min | Comedy, Drama
Following the unexplained suicide of his wife Liza, a web designer turns to gasoline fumes and remote-control airplanes while avoiding an inevitable conflict with his mother-in-law.
Director: Todd Louiso | Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Annie Morgan, Kathy Bates, J.D. Walsh
Votes: 8,565 | Gross: $0.21M
33. Gone Nutty (2002 Video)
5 min | Animation, Short, Adventure
Only one sweet, shiny little acorn prevents Scrat, the tireless prehistoric sabre-toothed squirrel, from stashing away the perfect pile of nuts. However, when is enough, enough?
Director: Carlos Saldanha | Star: Chris Wedge
Votes: 4,370
34. Great Natural Wonders of the World (2002 TV Movie)
TV-G | 57 min | Documentary
David Attenborough sets out on an intrepid quest across seven continents to create a unique television event to celebrate the wealth of natural features that makes Planet Earth so varied, so distinctive and so spectacularly beautiful.
Star: David Attenborough
Votes: 129
35. Phone Booth (2002)
R | 81 min | Crime, Thriller
Publicist Stuart Shepard finds himself trapped in a phone booth, pinned down by an extortionist's sniper rifle. Unable to leave or receive outside help, Stuart's negotiation with the caller leads to a jaw-dropping climax.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Colin Farrell, Kiefer Sutherland, Forest Whitaker, Radha Mitchell
Votes: 285,016 | Gross: $46.57M
36. Spider-Man (2002)
PG-13 | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
After being bitten by a genetically-modified spider, a shy teenager gains spider-like abilities that he uses to fight injustice as a masked superhero and face a vengeful enemy.
Director: Sam Raimi | Stars: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, James Franco
Votes: 875,909 | Gross: $403.71M
37. Talk to Her (2002)
R | 112 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
Two men share an odd friendship while they care for two women who are both in deep comas.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar | Stars: Rosario Flores, Javier Cámara, Darío Grandinetti, Leonor Watling
Votes: 117,298 | Gross: $9.36M
38. K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
PG-13 | 138 min | Drama, History, Thriller
When Russia's first nuclear submarine malfunctions on its maiden voyage, the crew must race to save the ship and prevent a nuclear disaster.
Director: Kathryn Bigelow | Stars: Harrison Ford, Sam Spruell, Peter Stebbings, Christian Camargo
Votes: 67,193 | Gross: $35.17M
39. John Q (2002)
PG-13 | 116 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
John Quincy Archibald takes a hospital emergency room hostage when his insurance won't cover his son's heart transplant.
Director: Nick Cassavetes | Stars: Denzel Washington, Robert Duvall, Gabriela Oltean, Kimberly Elise
Votes: 143,297 | Gross: $71.76M
40. The Rookie (2002)
G | 127 min | Drama, Family, Sport
A Texas baseball coach makes the major league after agreeing to try out if his high school team made the playoffs.
Director: John Lee Hancock | Stars: Dennis Quaid, JD Evermore, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez
Votes: 37,043 | Gross: $75.60M
41. Oasis (2002)
133 min | Drama, Romance
An irresponsible and childish ex-con befriends a girl with cerebral palsy and develops a progressively stronger bond with her.
Director: Lee Chang-dong | Stars: Sol Kyung-gu, Moon So-ri, Ahn Nae-sang, Ryu Seung-wan
Votes: 10,349
42. To Be and to Have (2002)
Not Rated | 104 min | Documentary, Family
A documentary portrait of a one-room school in rural France, where the students (ranging in age from 4 to 11) are educated by a single dedicated teacher.
Director: Nicolas Philibert | Stars: Georges Lopez, Alizé, Axel Thouvenin, Guillaume
Votes: 8,400 | Gross: $0.78M
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