6. True Grit (2010)
I'm sure there are going to be people who are upset that this entry isn't acknowledging the original 1969 version of the story, and it's a fair argument. John Wayne's performance as Rooster Cogburn is a career highlight and the film does hold up fairly well, but the reason that the Coen brothers' 2010 remake is a better film are almost incalculable. The gorgeous photography, the almost too-realistic production design, the unflaggingly sharp dialogue and the performances that are all award-worthy. But, it's newcomer Hailee Steinfeld that steals the show as young Mattie Ross, playing scenes beside titans like Jeff Bridges and Josh Brolin like she was a thirty year veteran of the screen rather than a debut actress. The other weapon in this film's arsenal is a surprising one: humor.
True Grit is brimming with more laughs than you'd expect from a story involving a young girl hiring an crotchety old U.S. Marshal to find the murderer of her father. One of the best movies of 2010 and easily one of the most surprisingly great remakes in the last decade,
True Grit proves that a good story can be retold in a new and interesting way without diminishing the value of its source material.