“Mulholland Drive” – Dir. David Lynch (2001)
A perfect movie with my favorite sequence ever (the scene outside the diner with the homeless person) Mullholland Drive has haunted my dreams for years. I can’t see it as parts, just the whole, like it was gilded rather than made.

“Bully”/”Ken Park”/”Wassup Rockers” – Dir. Larry Clark (2001, 2002, 2005)
The man is a bit disturbed, but Larry Clark knows how to frame an image and capture details of doomed youth like no other. These three films show very different, but interconnected views of modern youth culture.

“Fat Girl”/ “Sex Is Comedy” – Dir. Catherine Breillat (2001, 2002)
Best viewed as a trilogy with “Romance” (which doesn’t make this list, technically, since Breillat directed it in 1999). Another trilogy of films about doomed youths, These youths somehow even more doomed than Clark’s apocalyptic hipsters.

“Up” – Dir. Peter Docter and Bob Peterson (2009)
No movie made me feel a broader range of emotions than this one. The first 15 minutes alone would qualify the film for this list; the other 81 are just icing on the cake.

“Sympathy of Mr. Vengeance”/”Oldboy”/”Sympathy for Lady Vengeance” – Dir. Chan-Wook Park (2002, 2003, 2005)
These films actually DO comprise a trilogy. Park’s films are visually stunning, told with nuance and are kickass action movies, too. They’re certainly not for the faint of heart, but they are three classics for those who like their movies rough.

“Storytelling”/”Palindromes” – Dir. Todd Solondz (2001, 2004)
Todd Solondz sees deeply into the human condition and he often finds things within it that are painful, and painfully funny.

“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”/”Adaptation”/”Synecdoche, New York” – Written by Charlie Kaufman (2002, 2004, 2008)
Kaufman’s films are not really a trilogy so much as an exploration of a theme. “Eternal Sunshine” is the most emotionally satisfying, “Adaptation” is the most interestingly written and “Synecdoche” is the most challenging. I appreciate all of them in equal measure.

“The Fountain” – Dir. Darren Aronofsky (2006)
In 15 years, this will be the defining movie of Aronofsky’s early career. Daring, bold and not afraid to get a little sappy, this movie is a great labor of love for the whole cast and the writer/director. Also, the film contains Clint Mansell’s best score.

“Hedwig and the Angry Inch” – Dir. John Cameron Mitchell (2001)
I’m a sucker for pretentious philosophical crap, so of course a “Rocky Horror Picture Show”-style musical about a transgendered singer reenacting elements from Plato’s Symposium would make my list. But seriously, this is a wonderful, wonderful movie. Great to look at, and with way-above-average musical numbers.

“Let the Right One In” – Dir. Tomas Alfredson (2008)
Alfredson’s film is probably the best horror film of the decade, and is certainly the best vampire film. I’ve seen it four times, and I get something completely new from it with each viewing.