Since we’re about to plunge headfirst into the cool waters of 2009, we thought it apt to set the wayback machine to 1999 and look at some of the gems from that vintage cinematic period.

It was the year of The Matrix. The year that American History X brutalized us all and we talked a lot about Fight Club (sorry, Tyler). It’s tough to pick just none films, but here are some of our favourites, along with reviews from the mag, in date order…

A Bug’s Life
Compared to some of Pixar’s future successes, it now seems a minor achievement in the company’s canon. But it remains a fun take on The Seven Samurai and leagues ahead of DreamWorks’ wanna-bug Antz.

We said: “A fun, often astonishing bug movie”

The Thin Red Line
Terrence Malick returns after 20 years with an audience-dividing, free form meditation on war and nature. Endlessly engrossing, it swaps OTT battle violence for carefully crafted characters.

We said: “Malick's return to movie-making will go down as one of the finest films of the year”