The gang from “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” {thanks, New Line}

In the vibrant, eclectic 2000s, movies reached a new high-point of influence. This isn’t a top 10 list; these are the movies that defined the decade, for better or worse. Here’s what we’ll remember the most:

1. The “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, 2001-2003
Peter Jackson did the impossible: filming three classic films back-to-back that seamlessly transported viewers into a world that was thought to be unfilmable. A true testament to artistic guts.

2. “Brokeback Mountain,” 2005
Released at a time when the majority of gay characters on film were still drug/disease-addled or The Sassy Best Friend, “Brokeback” broke the rules. A haunting, elegant, important film, with tremendous performances by Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, “Brokeback” is an unforgettable look at what happens when love is stifled beyond belief.

3. “Fahrenheit 9/11,” 2004
No one ever accused director Michael Moore of being subtle. His no-holds-barred — and oddly entertaining — examination of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, governmental response and the effect on America is searing. It’s not Moore’s best work (that’s still “Roger and Me”), but it’s perhaps his most influential.

4. “Spider-Man,” 2002
In a time when America was looking for a hero (or, well, anything happy), 2002’s “Spider-Man” filled the void. A blockbuster smash that yielded two sequels, this was a hero for the 2000s (a normal dude, insecure, who Discovers Himself and his ass-kicking ability). The film also whetted our appetite for anything — and everything — comic-book-based at the movies.

5. “Lost in Translation,” 2003
The perfect rom-dramedy for the 2000s: moody, melancholy, odd, randomly funny. There’s no glittery romance here: just realness.

6. “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” 2002
In many ways (OK, every way) the opposite of “Lost In Translation,” this little indie that could was one of the biggest movie stories of the decade, raking in hundreds of millions on a shoestring budget, and promising happy, family-friendly romance. It became the template of every small romance film wanting to become the Next Big Thing. Nothing really came close.

7. “March of the Penguins,” 2005
Penguins were big this decade (”Happy Feet,” “Surf’s Up”), but they truly reigned supreme in this documentary … about penguins … marching. The surprise hit ushered in a flurry of nature documentaries, a genre that has no sign of slowing down.

8. “Pan’s Labyrinth,” 2006
Sure, it’s an artistic marvel. But Guillermo del Toro’s entrancing fairy tale proved once and for all that the most exciting directors weren’t American. Foreign films always had their niche market. In the 2000s, they became increasingly mainstream.

9. “Passion of the Christ,” 2004
Echoing religious epics of the 1940s and ’50s, Mel Gibson’s awfully violent, hard-to-watch look at the last days of Jesus proved there was an audience out there for the predominantly non-secular movie business.

10. “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” 2005
Ushering in the age of Judd Apatowian humor, “Virgin” was a rush of freshly funny air. Here was a new kid of comedy in the 2000s: equal parts raunchy and heartfelt, random and awkward and bromantically inclined. Its influence still looms large to varying degrees of success: see “Knocked Up,” “Year One,” “I Love You, Man,” etc.

honorable mentions: “Kill Bill”; “WALL*E”; “Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl”; “Little Miss Sunshine”; “28 Days Later”/”Shaun of the Dead”; The “Bourne” trilogy.

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