Top 5 this decade to earn cult status

To many average filmgoers, or especially film connoisseurs, it was impossible to go to any… To many average filmgoers, or especially film connoisseurs, it was impossible to go to any movie-related Web site without reading a fresh wave of buzz about “Snakes on a Plane.” The film achieved a unique type of phenomenon: If success were measured by hype, “Snakes” could easily be the most successful movie in recent memory.

And while it only had moderate success in the box office — although the possibility of breaking records was often whispered — “Snakes” garnered so much attention as a cult film that a dedicated group of fans will always take pleasure in shouting along with a fed-up Samuel L. Jackson.

“Snakes on a Plane,” a film now seen as a movie so bad it’s terrific, brings to mind some of the best cult films of this decade.

5. “Memento”

By establishing a mode of storytelling that breaks new ground for many viewers, “Memento” achieved a well-deserved cult status. The story, told from end to beginning, was basically unknown in theaters, but gained more and more attention when it came to DVD. We already know what happens at the end, but we itch to find out what happened days before that. Guy Pearce embodies the awkwardness and determination of a man who has no recollection of what happened to him just moments before. Director Christopher Nolan’s psychological thriller is bound to please just about anyone who picks it up.

4. “The Boondock Saints”

Although this film was released in 1999, it gained much of its popularity in the early years of this decade and became a favorite of most people who bothered to pick it up. The direct-to-video action drama about two brothers who attempt to get rid of crime via mass slaughter is a compelling story filled with plenty of action, comedy and suspense. Willem Dafoe delivers a memorable, albeit bizarre, performance as the head detective, and the courtroom monologue given by the avenging brothers is worth downloading to the iPod.

3. “Super Troopers”

Although Broken Lizard has come out with films since, none are more memorable and funny than “Super Troopers.” With an angle that’s hilarious from the start, “Super Troopers” follows a group of Vermont State Troopers and what they do with their spare time. Featuring what is probably the funniest opening scene in film history, the movie gained a diehard group of Broken Lizard fans eagerly awaiting a piece of the same caliber.

2. “Napoleon Dynamite”

If you managed to go an entire week without hearing a single quote from this movie, then consider yourself lucky. The fact is, “Napoleon Dynamite,” once on rental store shelves, was the only movie talked about for about a month. Even people who hated it couldn’t help but find that certain lines or scenes were amusing, and eventually everything about this film, especially its title character, made a mark in pop culture.

1. “Donnie Darko”

The most well-known cult film of the decade delivers the perfect combination of a strange story with even stranger characters. In 2001’s “Donnie Darko,” Jake Gyllenhaal plays the disturbed, perhaps crazy Donnie, a high school student who is ordered to do disastrous things by a 6-foot-tall rabbit. The film delves into mind-twisting themes, including time travel, sex and philosophy, but by the end it’s tough to realize exactly what you just watched. The group of fans that clings to this movie either praises it for its take on these issues or for simply keeping us so confused. Either way, watching “Donnie Darko” gives you an experience you won’t find elsewhere.