16. ATANARJUAT (THE FAST RUNNER)
 
Canada
dir. Zacharias Kunuk
world premiere 2001
U.S. release 2002
 

 
Because this movie embodies a consummation of something new, the kind of high-quality and portable digital equipment that makes a film like this even possible in this environment, and something believably if not actually old: a heroic tale that the film asks us to invest with mythic grandeur. Kunuk's craftsmanship has made that an easy call to answer.