Favorite Movies
by stickbob123 | created - 06 Sep 2013 | updated - 1 week ago | PublicDeciding on one movie over another is extremely difficult because of all the little things that go into making a movie good and the uniqueness of each individual film. However, I have tried my hardest to compile a list that orders my favorite movies and gives a (sometimes brief, sometimes rather long) explanation as to why I chose them.
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1. Pulp Fiction (1994)
R | 154 min | Crime, Drama
The lives of two mob hitmen, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.
Director: Quentin Tarantino | Stars: John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis
Votes: 2,221,577 | Gross: $107.93M
Insanely well written. The characters and dialogue are the most compelling in any film, but if you gave the same screenplay and the same actors to any director that isn't Tarantino, it would be awful and deathly boring. Somehow he makes a movie that's almost about nothing more entertaining than anything.
2. The Shining (1980)
R | 146 min | Drama, Horror
A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where a sinister presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from both past and future.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers
Votes: 1,107,361 | Gross: $44.02M
Disturbing, confusing, and chilling. It's also beautifully shot and so well acted you'll worry for your life every time Nicholson is on the screen.
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
G | 149 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
After uncovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, a spacecraft is sent to Jupiter to find its origins: a spacecraft manned by two men and the supercomputer HAL 9000.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter
Votes: 719,941 | Gross: $56.95M
This film shook me to the core. The reaction I had to this film was one of the most powerful out of any movie I've ever seen, but I can't quite place my finger on why. And I'm sure that's just how Kubrick would want it. It raises questions I can't even put into words and shrouds the answers in its beautiful, but unsettling imagery. Oh, and the cinematography and use of practical effects are insanely well done. I don't even understand how something like this could be made in the 60s. I previously believed "Blade Runner" to be miles ahead of any other sci-fi movie, but after seeing this I realized the movies are at the very least equals and I now personally believe this to be superior. This is just further evidence that Kubrick was a master director--if not the best. This is the movie that made him my all time favorite director.
4. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)
R | 111 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
After awakening from a four-year coma, a former assassin wreaks vengeance on the team of assassins who betrayed her.
Director: Quentin Tarantino | Stars: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah, Michael Madsen
Votes: 1,194,650 | Gross: $70.10M
Insanely stylish revenge flick that is more about the beauty of cinema (particularly samurai and spaghetti western cinema) than anything else.
5. Lost in Translation (2003)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama
A faded movie star and a neglected young woman form an unlikely bond after crossing paths in Tokyo.
Director: Sofia Coppola | Stars: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris
Votes: 489,371 | Gross: $44.59M
The master-level performances from Murray and Johansson elevate this minimalist romance to dizzying heights. It's quiet, sad, and sometimes very funny and it gets its viewers to think hard about love and life. Like many relationships, this movie thrives because of what isn't said. It's not a melodrama, it's more of a snapshot from two peoples' lives as they cross paths to wonder together about what love is supposed to look like and how it's supposed to work. You can see the sadness of the world in both of their eyes even as they make snappy little jokes to one another or sing their heart out during karaoke night. Apparently the only thing the romance genre needed was some metaphysics. It's so simple and so perfect. One of the most emotionally impactful movies I've ever seen.
6. Apocalypse Now (1979)
R | 147 min | Drama, Mystery, War
A U.S. Army officer serving in Vietnam is tasked with assassinating a renegade Special Forces Colonel who sees himself as a god.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Frederic Forrest
Votes: 710,619 | Gross: $83.47M
The cinematography is ridiculously good and the super-imposed shots are probably the best in any movie. Bothersome because of its ambiguity, but that's what makes it shine.
7. Blade Runner (1982)
R | 117 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
A blade runner must pursue and terminate four replicants who stole a ship in space and have returned to Earth to find their creator.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos
Votes: 823,436 | Gross: $32.87M
Possibly the most thought provoking sci-fi film ever created. And most definitely one of the best, alongside "2001: A Space Odyssey".
8. Mulholland Drive (2001)
R | 147 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
After a car wreck on Mulholland Drive renders a woman amnesiac, she and a Hollywood-hopeful search for clues and answers across Los Angeles in a twisting venture beyond dreams and reality.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Naomi Watts, Laura Harring, Justin Theroux, Jeanne Bates
Votes: 384,036 | Gross: $7.22M
I remember when I though "Inception" was confusing and ambiguous. This is the "Citizen Kane" of the sub-genre that has recently been coined mind-F. I personally believe it to be about the slow decay of dreams and a painful loss of innocence, but it could be taken so many different ways. It's a dark, mysterious, perverse world of secret societies, murder, and maybe even black magic. This is possibly the most confusing movie I've ever seen, but it makes the imagination run wild and it's so easy to willingly soak up every second of it even though it's rarely interpretable. Impossible to fully understand and impossible to dismiss--this just might be Lynch's masterpiece.
9. Fanny and Alexander (1982)
R | 188 min | Drama
Two young Swedish children in the 1900s experience the many comedies and tragedies of their lively and affectionate theatrical family, the Ekdahls.
Director: Ingmar Bergman | Stars: Bertil Guve, Pernilla Allwin, Kristina Adolphson, Börje Ahlstedt
Votes: 67,516 | Gross: $4.97M
Another masterpiece by Ingmar Bergman. After watching the 5 hour cut, I'm most impressed by Ingmar Bergman's seemingly infinite grasp of the human condition. The dialogue and scenes play out not only as imitations of real life, but artful replications. This is life viewed through an artistic lens. It explores most of what a person will go through in their lifetime--childhood, adulthood, old age, death, sex, sorrow, joy, belonging, alienation, isolation, confusion, oppression, freedom, family, art, business, religion and everything in between. It's a five hour journey through life seen mostly through the eyes of Alexander, a little boy, and it can be sweetly heartwarming or gut-wrenchingly sorrowful. There was one hard to watch scene in particular that was the most raw depiction of grief I've seen in a movie. Some of the events and imagery are mysterious, particularly towards the end, but this only serves to further catalyze intense thought and reflection on the viewer's part. Also the cinematography was absolutely enthralling. Ingmar Bergman shoots the interior of cluttered houses like Francis Ford Coppola shoots the lush jungle in "Apocalypse Now." There's so much in the shot that it should most definitely be too busy to be aesthetically pleasing, and yet Bergman finds the perfect way to show it to the audience. Beautiful. And his use of lighting only accentuates his mastering of the camera, especially when windows are around. And the acting is also magnificent. I can't even think of a performance to point out since they were all air-tight, and a large portion of the Ekdahl family is given even screen time. I'll probably be thinking about this movie for the rest of my life. True, blissful cinema.
10. In Bruges (2008)
R | 107 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
After a job gone wrong, hitman Ray and his partner await orders from their ruthless boss in Bruges, Belgium, the last place in the world Ray wants to be.
Director: Martin McDonagh | Stars: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Ciarán Hinds, Elizabeth Berrington
Votes: 461,676 | Gross: $7.76M
This movie is incredible. It's marketed as a sort of buddy film comedy to draw in an audience, but the actual film is shockingly deep and emotional--I loved it. The action and witty comedy is really just a front for a beautiful philosophical film heavily centered around morality and suicide. And Colin Farrell's performance is just incredible and surprisingly touching.
11. Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
R | 229 min | Crime, Drama
A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan 35 years later, where he must once again confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern, Treat Williams
Votes: 377,911 | Gross: $5.32M
This movie is on par with "Goodfellas" and "The Godfather," debatabely better. This is the most complex, epic movie I've seen that remains feeling cohesive and purposeful. Almost without fail, when a movie of this sheer magnitude will fall apart by the end and will leave its viewers unsatisfied, but that is definitely not the case in this film. Within it is the king of all anti-heroes. A despicable bastard that commits cruel acts for which exist no excuse and yet, by the end of the film, he succeeds in winning profound sympathy. The film is a myriad of images that span from his childhood as a poor boy who's looking for sex and money, to his days as an elderly man who's looking for closure and maybe even forgiveness. The scenes of his childhood play out like "The Sandlot" if group of boys went around killing, robbing, and screwing people instead of playing baseball. Thanks to very impressive writing, the film manages to show this tight-knit group of five childhood friends grow up together and develop very believable relationships that are filled with jealousy and resentment, but also a deep sense of loyalty and belonging. These are complex characters in very VERY complex situations. The crimes and diabolical plans that play out in the movie involve details and characters that span fifty years, and every bit of dialogue matters. In fact, some of the mysteries are never solved, and there are questions that linger in my mind still that are almost as bothersome as the ending of "The Shining." I mean that in the best possible way, though. The unanswered questions--and they're actually relatively few--only add to the semi-surreal ambiance of the entire movie. There are very hard to watch scenes in this movie. Like I said, the protagonist can be a true scoundrel, but his heinous acts always serve to add to his character, who's probably just as complex as DeNiro's Travis Bickle. As he looks back on his life in remorse the audience is forced to wonder if he's simply a product of his environment; if he's only a result of his absent-parented upbringing in a city that thrived on crime. It parallels the boys' swift corruption with that of America itself and this adds an entirely new layer to the story. This is a thorough exploration of crime and its many faces and what it can do to a person. It's a non-chronological misadventure through time and its loaded with familiar faces and impactful events. I love "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly," but this may well be Sergio Leone's masterpiece. Also, it contains my favorite last words from a movie character; "Noodles, I slipped!" Haunting. It's shocking, disgusting, and disturbing, but also thought-provoking, constantly interesting, and totally immersive. A close to perfect movie about a far from perfect man.
12. Natural Born Killers (1994)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Romance
Two victims of traumatized childhoods become lovers and psychopathic serial murderers irresponsibly glorified by the mass media.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, Rodney Dangerfield
Votes: 251,887 | Gross: $50.28M
One of the most powerful films I have ever seen and my favorite satire. This movie is profoundly disturbing and explicit in almost every way. Does that make it pornographic? No. It only pushes the envelope just a bit past what popular television allows in order to expose the hypocritical, human-suffering-exploiting, violence peddling, soft-core porn, industry that is modern television. People are entertained by murders everyday, the news is basically a compilation of snuff films with Coke ads in-between, and there's entire shows dedicated to glorifying serial killers. This movie takes that TV violence model that skirts around censorship laws and ramps it up in order to show what modern TV audiences have become--sadists. And this wasn't something I felt strongly about before I saw the movie, but for months after I saw it, the message really ate away at me. That's the mark of a good satire.
And strictly in terms of cinematic quality, this movie is revolutionary. The insane, schizophrenic quick cutting and subliminal shots force you into the world of the film and the subconscious of multiple characters at once. The layers build and build and by the finale, it's intoxicating. Its use of various film formats and styles to fit the tone of what's on screen totally works and it serves to drive the themes home even further. (The mock sitcom segment is one of the most dangerous scenes in cinema history. And art should always be dangerous.) Frankly put, it's a masterpiece and one of the most comprehensive and well articulated analyses of modern culture ever made. It's a miracle of cinema.
13. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
R | 136 min | Crime, Sci-Fi
In the future, a sadistic gang leader is imprisoned and volunteers for a conduct-aversion experiment, but it doesn't go as planned.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Michael Bates, Warren Clarke
Votes: 881,613 | Gross: $6.21M
14. Fight Club (1999)
R | 139 min | Drama
An insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soap maker form an underground fight club that evolves into much more.
Director: David Fincher | Stars: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Meat Loaf, Zach Grenier
Votes: 2,325,469 | Gross: $37.03M
Thoroughly entertaining and thought provoking at the same time. Very relevant message about American consumerism that is worth reflecting on.
15. Taxi Driver (1976)
R | 114 min | Crime, Drama
A mentally unstable veteran works as a nighttime taxi driver in New York City, where the perceived decadence and sleaze fuels his urge for violent action.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Albert Brooks
Votes: 921,243 | Gross: $28.26M
De Niro's character, Travis Bickle, is the most interesting character in a movie to date. The entire movie revolves around him and since he delivers such a stunning performance, that makes it one of the best movies of all time.
16. Sunrise (1927)
Passed | 94 min | Drama, Romance
A sophisticated city woman seduces a farmer and convinces him to murder his wife and join her in the city, but he ends up rekindling his romance with his wife when he changes his mind at the last moment.
Director: F.W. Murnau | Stars: George O'Brien, Janet Gaynor, Margaret Livingston, Bodil Rosing
Votes: 53,860 | Gross: $0.54M
This is the best romance ever made and one of the best films in general. Before I saw this movie, I thought it was ridiculous that some people truly believed "talkies" were just a fad and that silent films would be the norm forever. Now I can see why they thought that. This film delivers such a wide array of emotions that it's overwhelming. When it's sad it's devastating, when it's happy it's joy-inspiring, and when it's tense it's unbearably stressful. Also, the cinematography is surprisingly good. Filming some of the movement-filled scenes must have been so extremely complex without the use of a Steadicam, but it was worth it--it's beautiful. It also utilizes double exposure shots about as well as "Apocalypse Now." If you're one of those people that normally doesn't watch "old movies," get over yourself and give this a go--it will either change your opinion or you're not human.
17. Wild Strawberries (1957)
Not Rated | 91 min | Drama, Romance
After living a life marked by coldness, an aging professor is forced to confront the emptiness of his existence.
Director: Ingmar Bergman | Stars: Victor Sjöström, Bibi Andersson, Ingrid Thulin, Gunnar Björnstrand
Votes: 115,030
It's a fairly different film, focusing on the optimistic view of life instead of Persona's dark and disorienting lens, but Ingrid Bergman handles them both with equal expertise. It's simply an emotional journey--literally and metaphorically--through an aging man's memories and the different philosophies people use to explain life. It's basically perfect. There isn't a single shot that isn't visually stunning and not a single word of dialogue goes to waste.
18. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
PG-13 | 179 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
While Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.
Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom
Votes: 1,784,762 | Gross: $342.55M
A solid film all around. It's precious.
19. Boogie Nights (1997)
R | 155 min | Drama
Back when sex was safe, pleasure was a business and business was booming, an idealistic porn producer aspires to elevate his craft to an art when he discovers a hot young talent.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson | Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Moore, Burt Reynolds, Luis Guzmán
Votes: 282,174 | Gross: $26.40M
20. Goodfellas (1990)
R | 145 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The story of Henry Hill and his life in the mafia, covering his relationship with his wife Karen and his mob partners Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco
Votes: 1,258,047 | Gross: $46.84M
It's like a louder, funnier, and more brutal version of "The Godfather". Seriously entertaining.
21. Chinatown (1974)
R | 130 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A private detective hired to expose an adulterer in 1930s Los Angeles finds himself caught up in a web of deceit, corruption, and murder.
Director: Roman Polanski | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez
Votes: 350,006
This is on par with "The Third Man" and debatabley better. My favorite film noir. The screenplay is air tight--basically perfect--and the actors do a great job of bringing it to life, especially Nicholson who proves here that he can do a good job acting characters that aren't completely insane. The visuals in this movie are also very unique. It has the purposeful and pronounced lighting of a black and white noir movie, but the addition of color is also effectively used to catch the viewers eye. The mystery of the movie's plot unravels at just the right pace and isn't too ridiculous. It's never unbelievable and it keeps you guessing until the last second. And that last second is one of the best movie endings of all time.
22. Inception (2010)
PG-13 | 148 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
A thief who steals corporate secrets through the use of dream-sharing technology is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a C.E.O., but his tragic past may doom the project and his team to disaster.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Elliot Page, Ken Watanabe
Votes: 2,552,296 | Gross: $292.58M
A fantastic journey through a dream world. So consistently engaging that you want to watch it again the second it's over.
23. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
R | 99 min | Adventure, Comedy, Crime
A writer encounters the owner of an aging high-class hotel, who tells him of his early years serving as a lobby boy in the hotel's glorious years under an exceptional concierge.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Mathieu Amalric, Adrien Brody
Votes: 887,221 | Gross: $59.10M
The best Wes Anderson movie out there and that's saying a whole lot. This movie is exaggerative cinematic ecstasy and it's tremendously enjoyable from start to finish. First off, the cinematography is preposterously good. Watching the characters move across the screen is like watching a beautiful painting come to life. It is filmed with so much precision, that even if this movie were 2 hours of still images, it would still be worth seeing. Luckily for us, though, that's not the case. The story is rather complex and the characters are larger than life. Events like these could never exist in the real world, but that's the glory of this movie. It knows it's a movie and it uses everything in the cinematic arsenal to deliver a thoroughly enjoyable experience to its views--aesthetic beauty, a star studded cast, mystery, romance, humor, shock, and a few scenes of impressive tension. I'm writing this review after the third time seeing it in theaters and, despite the ridiculous cost of movie tickets and popcorn, repeated viewings were absolutely worth it. I'll probably see it a few more times before it comes to DVD. A masterpiece by Wes Anderson that sets his status as a genius of cinema in stone.
24. Fargo (1996)
R | 98 min | Crime, Thriller
Minnesota car salesman Jerry Lundegaard's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of the quite pregnant Marge Gunderson.
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare
Votes: 727,020 | Gross: $24.61M
The best dark comedy I've ever seen. It sort of just pulls from different genres as it sees fit and it always seems natural. The cinematography is also jarringly beautiful at times and it only reaffirms that the Coen brothers know what they're doing. It's my personal favorite movie made by them.
25. Persona (1966)
Not Rated | 83 min | Drama, Thriller
A nurse is put in charge of a mute actress and finds that their personae are melding together.
Director: Ingmar Bergman | Stars: Bibi Andersson, Liv Ullmann, Margaretha Krook, Gunnar Björnstrand
Votes: 130,993
One of the strangest movies I've ever seen, but also one of the most effective. This one lingered with me for a long time and much of that is due to the questions it raises. Not only about life itself, but about what really happened in the film. This level of film-making is on par with Kubrick, maybe even better in some aspects (and that's saying a tremendous amount). Both actresses do a perfect job portraying their troubled characters, and the director includes many shots that focus solely on their faces and their emotions. The whole thing works quite perfectly. I might never fully understand it, but I love it nonetheless.
26. The Godfather (1972)
R | 175 min | Crime, Drama
The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Diane Keaton
Votes: 2,013,699 | Gross: $134.97M
Ridiculously far ahead of its time.
27. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
R | 153 min | Adventure, Drama, War
In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.
Director: Quentin Tarantino | Stars: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Eli Roth, Mélanie Laurent
Votes: 1,585,232 | Gross: $120.54M
When I first saw this movie I honestly didn't like it, but for some reason it just gets better every time I see it. By now I love it. Maybe it's because I was initially too distracted by the ultra-violence (it is quite graphic) to realize that the characters were beautifully written and that its message is profound and unique. Not Tarantino's best, but still better than most movies made in the last ten years.
28. Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)
R | 119 min | Comedy, Drama
A washed-up superhero actor attempts to revive his fading career by writing, directing, and starring in a Broadway production.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu | Stars: Michael Keaton, Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton, Andrea Riseborough
Votes: 666,715 | Gross: $42.34M
29. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Approved | 178 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
A bounty hunting scam joins two men in an uneasy alliance against a third in a race to find a fortune in gold buried in a remote cemetery.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, Lee Van Cleef, Aldo Giuffrè
Votes: 811,628 | Gross: $6.10M
The best spaghetti western out there. Clint Eastwood's sneer just doesn't get old and the way the story is told through the eyes of three different characters makes it very interesting and entertaining. Also solid writing. It's a Tarantino movie before there was Tarantino.
30. Calvary (2014)
R | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
After he is threatened during a confession, a good-natured priest must battle the dark forces closing in around him.
Director: John Michael McDonagh | Stars: Brendan Gleeson, Chris O'Dowd, Kelly Reilly, Aidan Gillen
Votes: 64,362 | Gross: $3.59M
31. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
R | 118 min | Drama, Fantasy, War
In the Falangist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Ivana Baquero, Ariadna Gil, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú
Votes: 703,253 | Gross: $37.63M
A movie about the importance of storytelling and imagination. It's extremely unique and visually captivating-watch it.
32. Adaptation. (2002)
R | 115 min | Comedy, Drama
A lovelorn screenwriter becomes desperate as he tries and fails to adapt 'The Orchid Thief' by Susan Orlean for the screen.
Director: Spike Jonze | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, Tilda Swinton
Votes: 203,114 | Gross: $22.25M
An amazingly original movie about trying to write an amazingly original movie. It gets inside the head of the screenwriter himself to offer a very personal commentary on the writing process, the adaptation process, and how artists mirror and influence each other. It also has a lot to say about art films versus mainstream cinema and it handles that in a way that's entertaining while being really insightful. On top of all of that, there's a few scenes that are extremely emotionally touching scattered throughout. It's the work of a mad genius. If you like movies in any capacity, you owe it to yourself to watch this. You may not see something more unique for a long while.
33. No Country for Old Men (2007)
R | 122 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Violence and mayhem ensue after a hunter stumbles upon the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong and over two million dollars in cash near the Rio Grande.
Directors: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen | Stars: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Woody Harrelson
Votes: 1,060,820 | Gross: $74.28M
Imagine any monster horror movie and replace the monster with a huge pissed off Mexican with a shotgun. And then add masterful tension, cinematography, and exploration of deeper themes and you've got No Country for Old Men.
34. The Fall (I) (2006)
R | 117 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
In 1920s Los Angeles, a bedridden patient in a hospital captivates a young girl with a fantastic tale of heroes, myths, and villains on a desert island.
Director: Tarsem Singh | Stars: Lee Pace, Catinca Untaru, Justine Waddell, Kim Uylenbroek
Votes: 116,719 | Gross: $2.28M
35. Drive (I) (2011)
R | 100 min | Action, Drama
A mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks
Votes: 704,792 | Gross: $35.06M
This is quite a unique movie that's definitely worth seeing. Many people don't like this movie because the director seconds dialogue to visuals, but this is not at all a fault, it even enhances the experience in multiple scenes which rely completely on actors' expressions instead of words.
36. The Red Shoes (1948)
Not Rated | 135 min | Drama, Music, Romance
A young ballet dancer is torn between the man she loves and her pursuit to become a prima ballerina.
Directors: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger | Stars: Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring, Moira Shearer, Robert Helpmann
Votes: 39,183 | Gross: $10.90M
An incredible film about how total dedication to art can take away from a person's life, and the sacrifices individuals are willing to make for it. The whole film plays out as an intense study of that theme--every main character shares that common struggle as they navigate the art scene, constantly being watched by massive audiences expecting more. A few times the point of view switches to being subjective and that's when the camerawork, practical effects, and beautiful use of technicolor really shine.
37. Psycho (1960)
R | 109 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A Phoenix secretary embezzles $40,000 from her employer's client, goes on the run and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother.
Director: Alfred Hitchcock | Stars: Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, John Gavin
Votes: 718,647 | Gross: $32.00M
It's truly remarkable that this movie was made in 1960. Hitchcock really is the master of suspense.
38. Boyhood (I) (2014)
R | 165 min | Drama
The life of Mason, from early childhood to his arrival at college.
Director: Richard Linklater | Stars: Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Elijah Smith
Votes: 367,245 | Gross: $25.38M
Every once in a while, a movie will come along that simply tries to capture the experience of life without trying to explain it. And when you get down to it, that's what art is all about--imitating life. This is that kind of movie and it does it flawlessly. It follows the life of Mason as he grows up in this modern world and it depicts a smattering of events--some obviously monumental and some seemingly insignificant--that will combine to form a young man with his own personality and ideas about the world by the end of the movie. Ellar Coltrane (Mason) is actually the same age as me and so the mastery of Richard Linklater's snapshot of growing up in the 2000s was made even more obvious. This is simply life--the good and the bad--and it's shot beautifully, filled with extremely well written, realistic, memorable characters, and hugely emotionally impactful. It's one of the only movies of the 2000s so far that I can say for sure is a masterpiece and will be remembered as a classic.
39. Oldboy (2003)
R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 636,250 | Gross: $0.71M
The writer is a Korean Shakespeare reincarnate. Incredible. The only movie that has made me feel physically ill. Possibly the most disturbing film I've ever seen, but also one of the best and it's my personal favorite film about revenge and there are a heck of a lot of those.
40. Whiplash (2014)
R | 106 min | Drama, Music
A promising young drummer enrolls at a cut-throat music conservatory where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will stop at nothing to realize a student's potential.
Director: Damien Chazelle | Stars: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Melissa Benoist, Paul Reiser
Votes: 990,306 | Gross: $13.09M
41. Alien (1979)
R | 117 min | Horror, Sci-Fi
The crew of a commercial spacecraft encounters a deadly lifeform after investigating a mysterious transmission of unknown origin.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt, Veronica Cartwright
Votes: 951,484 | Gross: $78.90M
What makes this movie stand out is Ridley Scott's ability to make his audience feel completely isolated and vulnerable. Even if you watch it with friends, those extended sequences of the lifeless ship will make you feel completely alone. Also, the Xenomorph is possibly the greatest movie monster in existence.
42. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
PG | 95 min | Comedy, War
An unhinged American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn
Votes: 518,477 | Gross: $0.28M
One of the best comedies I've seen, maybe the best. It utilizes stupid humor without compromising the flow of its intelligent plot-line.
43. The Tree of Life (2011)
PG-13 | 139 min | Drama, Fantasy
The story of a family in Waco, Texas in 1956. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence and struggles with his parents' conflicting teachings.
Director: Terrence Malick | Stars: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain, Hunter McCracken
Votes: 184,165 | Gross: $13.30M
This is a love it or hate it movie and I definitely loved it. It's similar to "2001: A Space Odyssey" in a lot of ways, but it's more hyper-focused. Instead of raising questions about existence and the universe it focuses more on family life.
44. City of God (2002)
R | 130 min | Crime, Drama
In the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
Directors: Fernando Meirelles, Kátia Lund | Stars: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Matheus Nachtergaele, Phellipe Haagensen
Votes: 801,465 | Gross: $7.56M
Amazing true story about the irrational violence in the City of God. It borrows countless cinematography techniques from other movies and seamlessly blends them together to stay constantly visually interesting. The story is also ingeniously told out of chronological order.
45. Amour (2012)
PG-13 | 127 min | Drama
Georges and Anne are an octogenarian couple. They are cultivated, retired music teachers. Their daughter, also a musician, lives in Britain with her family. One day, Anne has a stroke, and the couple's bond of love is severely tested.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Jean-Louis Trintignant, Emmanuelle Riva, Isabelle Huppert, Alexandre Tharaud
Votes: 105,719 | Gross: $6.74M
46. The Dark Knight (2008)
PG-13 | 152 min | Action, Crime, Drama
When the menace known as the Joker wreaks havoc and chaos on the people of Gotham, Batman must accept one of the greatest psychological and physical tests of his ability to fight injustice.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine
Votes: 2,872,288 | Gross: $534.86M
The best superhero movie of all time.
47. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
PG-13 | 94 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Two 12-year-olds, who live on an island, fall in love with each other and elope into the wilderness. While people set out on a search mission, a violent storm approaching them catches their attention.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward, Bruce Willis, Bill Murray
Votes: 366,816 | Gross: $45.51M
the cinematography looks like it was done by God himself.
48. Synecdoche, New York (2008)
R | 124 min | Drama
A theatre director struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he creates a life-size replica of New York City inside a warehouse as part of his new play.
Director: Charlie Kaufman | Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams, Catherine Keener
Votes: 98,263 | Gross: $3.08M
49. Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
PG-13 | 93 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Faced with both her hot-tempered father's fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must learn the ways of courage and love.
Director: Benh Zeitlin | Stars: Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry, Levy Easterly, Lowell Landes
Votes: 85,081 | Gross: $12.80M
This is a movie that speaks to the heart instead of the brain. Seriously, it made no sense half the time, but the emotional impact was still substantial, more so than any movie I've ever seen I think. To me it was about a small girl learning to cope with the inevitability of death, but it could mean different things to different people. Just watch it and figure that out for yourself.
50. Pink Floyd: The Wall (1982)
R | 95 min | Drama, Fantasy, Music
A confined but troubled rock star descends into madness in the midst of his physical and social isolation from everyone.
Director: Alan Parker | Stars: Bob Geldof, Christine Hargreaves, James Laurenson, Eleanor David
Votes: 85,407 | Gross: $22.24M
It's incredibly difficult to discuss what makes this film good since it's so incredibly unique that it's impossible to judge against other movies. I'll start off with a quality that's easily perceivable--the music. I'm not the biggest Pink Floyd fan in the world, but the music is perfectly used and it increases the impact of the scenes on screen ten-fold. It's also shot extremely well and it mixes in psychedelic animation every once in a while to keep things fresh. It's about isolation, insanity, fascism, the confines of society, innocence, corruption, and insanity again. This movie is freaking crazy. It delivers a message about society and the human condition that is decently understandable, but it does it using almost no spoken dialogue, only lyrics and intense, confusing, and disturbing imagery. If you watch it, you won't regret it (in the long run at least).
Edit: It's funny to look back at where I wrote "I'm not the biggest Pink Floyd fan in the world..." because at this point, they're my favorite band. This movie served as a great introduction to they're music and now I can't get enough of it. I would debate that Roger Waters is the greatest musical artist of the last century.
51. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
G | 103 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his delusionally jealous screen partner are trying to make the difficult transition to talking pictures in 1920s Hollywood.
Directors: Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly | Stars: Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Jean Hagen
Votes: 260,777 | Gross: $8.82M
The best example of old-school, optimistic, adventurous, happy-go-lucky Hollywood. Usually I'm not the biggest fan of these kinds of movies (this is the kind of movie that "Mulholland Drive" swallows whole), but its charms are irresistible and it never misses a beat. It's my personal favorite musical--it just never stops being fun watch. Even though you know none of the main characters are ever in any kind of real physical or emotional danger because of the nature of the film, it's a great ride and that's part of its magic. It also has one scene that takes place in the wildly ambitious mind of its protagonist that's bordering on surreal and is visually enchanting. That sequence alone makes it worth the watch.
52. Peeping Tom (1960)
Not Rated | 101 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A young man murders women, using a movie camera to film their dying expressions of terror.
Director: Michael Powell | Stars: Karlheinz Böhm, Anna Massey, Moira Shearer, Maxine Audley
Votes: 39,289 | Gross: $0.08M
53. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
PG | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
A surreal, virtually plotless series of dreams centered around six middle-class people and their consistently interrupted attempts to have a meal together.
Director: Luis Buñuel | Stars: Fernando Rey, Delphine Seyrig, Paul Frankeur, Bulle Ogier
Votes: 46,854 | Gross: $0.20M
Personally, I think this is Bunuel's best film. It follows a group of bourgeoisie-class citizens and their various get togethers. It utilizes the liquid-reality of surrealism in order to reinforce its themes visually and that is its greatest accomplishment. The main focus of the film is to dissect and quite harshly analyze the worth of its characters and their choices. It's simultaneously humorous and depressing, and always thought provoking. If you want to try surrealism out, but you don't think you can handle "Mulholland Drive" (who could blame you?) then definitely give this a shot.
54. There Will Be Blood (2007)
R | 158 min | Drama
A story of family, religion, hatred, oil and madness, focusing on a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson | Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Dano, Ciarán Hinds, Martin Stringer
Votes: 641,432 | Gross: $40.22M
Another depressing one, but it's also a masterpiece. A movie about the destruction of greed and obsession that's visually engaging and so are its characters.
55. The Third Man (1949)
Approved | 93 min | Film-Noir, Mystery, Thriller
Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.
Director: Carol Reed | Stars: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Trevor Howard
Votes: 181,888 | Gross: $0.45M
Very simplistic, expert storytelling with characters defined by their interesting dialog and the cinematography used to film them in the already beautiful city of Vienna.
56. Cries & Whispers (1972)
R | 91 min | Drama
When a woman dying of cancer in early twentieth-century Sweden is visited by her two sisters, long-repressed feelings between the siblings rise to the surface.
Director: Ingmar Bergman | Stars: Harriet Andersson, Liv Ullmann, Kari Sylwan, Ingrid Thulin
Votes: 37,010 | Gross: $1.74M
This movie is miles of bleakness with a few feet of hope sprinkled throughout. It's a bummer on a visceral level, but it also has so much to say about life, death, and what it really means to be family during times of need. If you're looking for a feel-good film, keep looking, but for those who can tolerate a healthy dose of Bergman depression, this is perfect.
57. Her (2013)
R | 126 min | Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
In a near future, a lonely writer develops an unlikely relationship with an operating system designed to meet his every need.
Director: Spike Jonze | Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Scarlett Johansson, Rooney Mara
Votes: 669,957 | Gross: $25.57M
This movie always jumps between being funny, depressing, weird, and enlightening. Probably my favorite film of 2013. The cinematography was simply ridiculous. Almost every shot was amazing, and the director's use of colors was also superb.
58. Interstellar (2014)
PG-13 | 169 min | Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
When Earth becomes uninhabitable in the future, a farmer and ex-NASA pilot, Joseph Cooper, is tasked to pilot a spacecraft, along with a team of researchers, to find a new planet for humans.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Mackenzie Foy
Votes: 2,101,991 | Gross: $188.02M
59. Children of Men (2006)
R | 109 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
In 2027, in a chaotic world in which women have somehow become infertile, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea.
Director: Alfonso Cuarón | Stars: Julianne Moore, Clive Owen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Caine
Votes: 529,580 | Gross: $35.55M
Simple, raw, and beautiful. "Children of Men" is easily one of the most interesting action movies I have ever seen.
60. For a Few Dollars More (1965)
R | 132 min | Drama, Western
Two bounty hunters with the same intentions team up to track down a gang of outlaws led by a psychotic Mexican bandit, who is plotting an audacious bank robbery.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volontè, Mara Krupp
Votes: 274,809 | Gross: $15.00M
Movies have been trying to copy the action and epic moments from Sergio Leone's films ever since and not a single one can match them.
61. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
R | 142 min | Drama
Over the course of several years, two convicts form a friendship, seeking consolation and, eventually, redemption through basic compassion.
Director: Frank Darabont | Stars: Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Bob Gunton, William Sadler
Votes: 2,890,343 | Gross: $28.34M
Is this movie overrated? Yes. But that doesn't mean it's not an incredible film. I really don't have to write anything about this--you probably know it already.
62. Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
R | 159 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A Manhattan doctor embarks on a bizarre, night-long odyssey after his wife's admission of unfulfilled longing.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Todd Field, Sydney Pollack
Votes: 375,349 | Gross: $55.69M
Stanley Kubrick's last movie and last masterpiece. I almost never enjoy or even watch movies that have sex as the focal point, but this is an exception. The subject matter is definitely lurid, but it's handled maturely. There aren't scenes designed solely to arouse--that's called porn and porn isn't art. Instead, Kubrick strips away all the glamour and fun that society and the media usually associate with sex and presents it like a dangerous predator. It's an intense and in-depth look into the idea of cheating on a spouse and what the ramifications of even thinking of that are. It's incredible. And, aside from its story and characters, the way it looks makes it worth watching alone. The film techniques are totally old-school even though it was made in the same year that "Fight Club" was released. It's almost surreal to watch Tom Cruise navigate his way through the landscape Kubrick paints with excellent dolly shots, exagerative old fashioned lighting, and strict color scheme. The streets of the lust-filled labyrinth are brought to life with soft yellows, deep, velvety reds, and neon blues. Every once in a while I think Kubrick adheres to these old fashioned techniques a bit too much--particularly in a few cheesy feeling quick-zoom shots for added dramatic effect--but that's really only a personal preference. If you're not big on R ratings, this movie might not be for you, but otherwise, it's a must watch. All hail Kubrick.
63. The Babadook (2014)
Not Rated | 94 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A single mother and her child fall into a deep well of paranoia when an eerie children's book titled "Mister Babadook" manifests in their home.
Director: Jennifer Kent | Stars: Essie Davis, Noah Wiseman, Daniel Henshall, Hayley McElhinney
Votes: 247,408 | Gross: $0.92M
In my opinion, horror films have taken a serious dive in quality in the last couple of decades. And the ones that are good don't do much to forward the genre, they simply imitate films of the 70s very well (i.e., "The Conjuring"--which, don't get me wrong, I love, but I'm just saying the style isn't original at all). "The Babadook" is different. Essie Davis plays Amelia, a woman struggling with the absence of her husband, who was killed in a car accident. Now she's left alone to raise her troubled son, Samuel. When Samuel finds an ominous children's book titled "Mr. Babadook," they begin to be stalked by a supernatural force. Not exactly a hugely original concept, but the terror it delivers feels totally fresh and Essie Davis' performance is Oscar worthy--her character is whipped back and forth from grief, anger, insanity, hopelessness and it's terrifying to watch. Noah Wiseman also does a very good job of playing her son, which is an equally challenging role, especially for a boy so young.
For me, most of the best horror films take something that is found commonly scary--like isolation, death, or loss of sanity--and it portrays it in an uncommon way. And that is what the Babadook does. He's this terrifying, supernatural force that represents so much to both Amelia and Samuel and he's made visible to them, taking the fears they hold in the back of their minds and putting them in front of both of them in an aggressive, physical form. There's plenty of symbolism throughout the movie, but it's pretty hard to think about while watching it since you'll be too busy being scared out of your wits. If you're a horror fan, this one is for you.
64. M (1931)
Passed | 99 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
When the police in a German city are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the manhunt.
Director: Fritz Lang | Stars: Peter Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke
Votes: 168,534 | Gross: $0.03M
This movie is outstanding and an I believe it's an improvement on Lang's better known film "Metropolis." To start, the cinematography gets better and more daring as the film goes on and it is exceedingly impressive considering the steadicam was still forty years away when this was made. The "beggar society" shot is the most impressive. Secondly, the movie is either tense or enthralling or both for the entire manhunt and then the ending becomes an extremely thought provoking battle between philosophies. The whole movie is amazing, but it's sort of like a Trojan horse for making its audience think hard about what's right and wrong when a people must punish a sick minded citizen. And the ending is truly perfect.
65. The Raid 2 (2014)
R | 150 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Only a short time after the first raid, Rama goes undercover with the thugs of Jakarta and plans to bring down the syndicate and uncover the corruption within his police force.
Director: Gareth Evans | Stars: Iko Uwais, Yayan Ruhian, Arifin Putra, Oka Antara
Votes: 131,312 | Gross: $2.63M
Is this the best action movie ever made? Yes. It starts up only an hour after its predecessor, "The Raid: Redemption" ends and it takes everything that's great about that movie and then multiplies it by 10. It makes me ashamed of modern American action movies, and honestly it even makes "Die Hard" look low budget and quaint. Many many people will hate it because of its shocking, in your face violence. It's the most violent movie I've ever seen, true, but it's an action masterpiece. This movie is a beautiful painting, Gareth Evans is the painter, and the paint is blood and broken bones. The action steadily rises and by the end it's almost overwhelming. Like the first, the action is choreographed magnificentally and it looks completely flawless. Unlike the first, however, the cinematography is crisp and clean. Beautiful shots and action movies don't normally go together, but this movie gets it just right. When you're not seeing someone's head explode or their leg get bent the wrong way, you're watching beautifully framed interior shots that are lit masterfully. I can't stress enough that this is quite literally the greatest action film ever. Ever. After seeing this, you'll either be too repulsed by the violence, or you'll forever look down on other action films. It's not for the squeamish, but if you can handle it, it's as rewarding as hitting a cinematic jackpot.
66. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
The solitary life of an artificial man - who was incompletely constructed and has scissors for hands - is upended when he is taken in by a suburban family.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall
Votes: 524,058 | Gross: $56.36M
67. 12 Years a Slave (2013)
R | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
In the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup, a free Black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Kenneth Williams, Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt
Votes: 741,540 | Gross: $56.67M
There are so many movies centered around the cruelties of slavery, but this trumps them all. It has a simple enough plot that's established early on--a free, happy African American from the North is kidnapped and sold into slavery. What the movie becomes is a sampling of overwhelmingly emotionally powerful episodes that show the harsh reality of 1800s America. It holds almost nothing back. This is definitely one of the toughest films to watch that I have ever seen, but it brings past evils that are talked about so numbingly frequently to life in front of its viewers. I think this film will allow a lot of people to view slavery with proper horror instead of the usual detached semi-indifference. There are brief respites from the emotional onslaught, though, in the form of beautiful landscape cinematography that proves the director knows exactly what he's doing. So yes, it's Oscar worthy. Also, the tip-toe hanging scene is one of the most effectively stressful of any movie I've ever watched.
68. Eraserhead (1977)
Not Rated | 89 min | Fantasy, Horror
Henry Spencer tries to survive his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend, and the unbearable screams of his newly born mutant child.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Jack Nance, Charlotte Stewart, Allen Joseph, Jeanne Bates
Votes: 127,547 | Gross: $7.00M
This is the only film I've seen that made me dry-heave. Doesn't sound like fun to you? In it's own way, it's extremely enjoyable actually. It's pure horror shrouded in a trippy surrealistic landscape and so consistently unsettling that it's almost unbearable. Oh and it's also shot quite well--the strange industrial landscape and dirty, peeling walls of the apartment buildings look so rich in black and white that it's almost worth watching for the visuals alone. But seriously, this is not for the woozy. David Lynch's hideous creation--the deformed baby in this movie--has haunted me ever since I saw it for the first time.
69. Foxcatcher (2014)
R | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
U.S. Olympic wrestling champions and brothers Mark Schultz and Dave Schultz join "Team Foxcatcher", led by eccentric multi-millionaire John du Pont, as they train for the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, but John's self-destructive behavior threatens to consume them all.
Director: Bennett Miller | Stars: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Vanessa Redgrave
Votes: 149,321 | Gross: $12.10M
70. The Conversation (1974)
PG | 113 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A paranoid, secretive surveillance expert has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Allen Garfield, Frederic Forrest
Votes: 121,928 | Gross: $4.42M
Since Francis Ford Coppola is responsible for "Apocalypse Now" and "The Godfather," this masterpiece of a movie is often overlooked. It's about a man who works in surveillance who is hired by a large company to record a young couple's seemingly innocent conversation and hand it in to them. As he questions the motives of the company and the true nature of his assignment, paranoia creeps in and the situation begins spiraling out of control. For a movie about a man who is hired to hand in simple, objective recordings, I was amazed by how subjective this movie is--even going so far as to include a dream sequence. At first that seems a little out of place in a thriller, but that's just it--it's so much more than a thriller. It doubles as an extremely interesting character study of a man whose motives and emotions are often obscured. The audience has to work to catch glimpses of his true self and it's wonderfully enjoyable. It's one of those movies that keeps you on the edge of your seat while working on an intellectual level as well. It's brilliant.
71. The Raid: Redemption (2011)
R | 101 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A S.W.A.T. team becomes trapped in a tenement run by a ruthless mobster and his army of killers and thugs.
Director: Gareth Evans | Stars: Iko Uwais, Ananda George, Ray Sahetapy, Donny Alamsyah
Votes: 217,140 | Gross: $4.11M
This is pure, unadulterated action and it is in a class of its own. Movies like "Die Hard" or "Hard Boiled"--both of which I love by the way--simply don't come close to the adrenaline rush that this movie delivers on a budget barely over $1 million. This is one of the best martial arts movies ever made, and one of the best action movies in general. The fight choreography is as close to perfect as a movie can get. Sure, there's plenty of times when you might think "no one can get punched in the face that many times and keep fighting," but you'll never think "that punch didn't look real." They all look real. Every punch, kick, stab, and shot to the head. The action is tense, overwhelming, and practically flawless, delivering some of the best large scale fistfights, and my personal favorite three person fight scene towards the end. I said earlier that this action is unadulterated, and that also means it's unadulterated by plot. There's enough plot to give an excuse and some kind of a coherent intro to all the madness that ensues, and that's all it needs. This is an action lover's movie, and it's wildly rewarding. Gareth Evans makes typical AAA budget action movies look like trash. He's the most important name in action right now, and he could be the dying, muddled genre's savior.
72. Gone Girl (2014)
R | 149 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
With his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent.
Director: David Fincher | Stars: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry
Votes: 1,067,922 | Gross: $167.77M
At first glance this might look like just another who-dun-it mystery, thriller with a star-studded cast, but this film stands out proudly from the rest in that typically clichéd genre. The mystery unravels slowly and meticulously, forcing the audience to spend time with characters that they can rarely be sure of. Sympathies shift uneasily from one character to another and from time to time, everyone on-screen seems repulsive, but it's impossible to look away. It plays out like Hitchcock's "Psycho" or Clouzot's "Diabolique." Like these two films, it starts with a catchy little plot that lets you ease into the world of the film as you prepare to watch a fun little mystery, but then it plunges into depths that you never could have expected. The first hour could have been pulled out into a full-length movie, but it's not content to stop there--it drags its audience into some dark, twisted places, but it never stops being completely immersive and exciting. It pulls all of that off through some subtly beautiful cinematography (as can be expected from Fincher and Jeff Cronenweth, the cinematographer), and very quiet, but intense performances. Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike both do an incredible job at giving the audience brief glimpses at powerful, but buried emotions. Maybe not the best date movie ever made, but most certainly one of the most effective mysteries of the last few years--"Gone Girl" delivers like you can't believe. My advice is to stop reading reviews and just go experience it for yourself.
73. Under the Skin (I) (2013)
R | 108 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A mysterious young woman seduces lonely men in the evening hours in Scotland. However, events lead her to begin a process of self-discovery.
Director: Jonathan Glazer | Stars: Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy McWilliams, Lynsey Taylor Mackay, Dougie McConnell
Votes: 158,303 | Gross: $2.61M
One of the best sci-fi, art-house films of the last decade. Seriously weird, but very powerful. It uses aliens, mutants, organ harvesting, kidnapping, and death to deliver an actually quite easily recognizable message about the way society views sex. It accomplishes this using barely any dialogue and really not that much noise at all. Ever. It's quiet yet terrifying like the film's main character.
74. The Big Sleep (1946)
Passed | 114 min | Crime, Film-Noir, Mystery
Private detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a wealthy family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail and what might be love.
Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely, Martha Vickers
Votes: 90,541 | Gross: $6.54M
Yet another masterful film noir. I preferred this to Humphrey Bogart's better known noir role, "The Maltese Falcon." This movie is all about the characters and the filming style of noir. Plot is present, yes, but it's hardly viewed as the most important element by the director. And for this movie, that totally works. There were some sequences where I had no idea what was going through the main character's head, but I enjoyed watching him weave his way through the corrupt labyrinth the film constructs. The movie continuously builds and keeps getting more complicated, but more enjoyable and the finale is cinematic bliss.
75. City Lights (1931)
G | 87 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
With the aid of a wealthy erratic tippler, a dewy-eyed tramp who has fallen in love with a sightless flower girl accumulates money to be able to help her medically.
Director: Charles Chaplin | Stars: Charles Chaplin, Virginia Cherrill, Florence Lee, Harry Myers
Votes: 196,118 | Gross: $0.02M
Probably the best rom-com I've ever seen. This is only the second silent film I've ever watched--the first being "Metropolis"--and it was amazing how much Charlie Chaplin could convey to the audience without words. It simultaneously surprisingly funny and touching. I've never really enjoyed slapstick, but this movie was a different experience. Some scenes are so ridiculous and over the top that you can't help but laugh. These humorous scenes are dispersed throughout a more serious feeling tale of a very poor man risking it all to help a blind woman whom he loves. Charlie Chaplin's fame makes perfect sense after seeing this movie.
76. The Princess Bride (1987)
PG | 98 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
A bedridden boy's grandfather reads him the story of a farmboy-turned-pirate who encounters numerous obstacles, enemies and allies in his quest to be reunited with his true love.
Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon
Votes: 451,097 | Gross: $30.86M
This movie is pretty much impossible to describe. Everyone should see it.
77. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
R | 133 min | Drama
In the Fall of 1963, a Korean War veteran and criminal pleads insanity and is admitted to a mental institution, where he rallies up the scared patients against the tyrannical nurse.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, Michael Berryman, Peter Brocco
Votes: 1,072,820 | Gross: $112.00M
Jack Nicholson's acting in this film is outstanding.
78. Rear Window (1954)
PG | 112 min | Mystery, Thriller
A wheelchair-bound photographer spies on his neighbors from his Greenwich Village courtyard apartment window and, despite the skepticism of his fashion-model girlfriend, becomes convinced one of them has committed murder.
Director: Alfred Hitchcock | Stars: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, Thelma Ritter
Votes: 522,307 | Gross: $36.76M
an overwhelmingly well-written mystery that also deals with the simple struggles and joys of being human.
79. The Godfather Part II (1974)
R | 202 min | Crime, Drama
The early life and career of Vito Corleone in 1920s New York City is portrayed, while his son, Michael, expands and tightens his grip on the family crime syndicate.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton
Votes: 1,364,883 | Gross: $57.30M
80. The White Ribbon (2009)
R | 144 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Strange events happen in a small village in the north of Germany during the years before World War I, which seem to be ritual punishment. Who is responsible?
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Christian Friedel, Ernst Jacobi, Leonie Benesch, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 77,678 | Gross: $2.22M
Such a great movie. It centers around the lives of citizens in a German town just before the start of WWI and it presents itself as genuinely as possible. It's their lives, problems, flaws, fears, hopes, connections, relationships, and everything in-between.
81. Caché (2005)
R | 117 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A married couple is terrorized by a series of surveillance videotapes left on their front porch.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Binoche, Maurice Bénichou, Annie Girardot
Votes: 85,261 | Gross: $3.63M
Wow. A real downer. This movie is so unsettling, disturbing, and depressing, yet there's barely any violence, no music, and no moments of heart pounding tension. It's a slow, painful journey that's extremely profound and has a lot to say about privilege and life in general, but it's not "entertaining" in a traditional sense. This, of course, isn't a bad thing, though, it's just very different from other thrillers. To watch a character be psychologically tormented on screen is usually presented as something "intense" and "exciting," but this movie does away with that and simply delivers raw mental suffering.
82. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
R | 118 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A young F.B.I. cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.
Director: Jonathan Demme | Stars: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine
Votes: 1,549,032 | Gross: $130.74M
Solid thriller. Anthony Hopkins does such an amazing job in this movie. If I saw him in real life I'm pretty sure I'd be terrified of him.
83. Rushmore (1998)
R | 93 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A teenager at Rushmore Academy falls for a much older teacher and befriends a middle-aged industrialist. Later, he finds out that his love interest and his friend are having an affair, which prompts him to begin a vendetta.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams, Seymour Cassel
Votes: 198,043 | Gross: $17.11M
84. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
R | 99 min | Crime, Thriller
When a simple jewelry heist goes horribly wrong, the surviving criminals begin to suspect that one of them is a police informant.
Director: Quentin Tarantino | Stars: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn
Votes: 1,088,707 | Gross: $2.83M
Tarantino's first movie proved that he was bound for greatness. So engaging. The character's are so well written that they feel like real people. Not as good as Pulp Fiction, but an incredible start to a legendary career.
85. Black Swan (2010)
R | 108 min | Drama, Thriller
Nina is a talented but unstable ballerina on the verge of stardom. Pushed to the breaking point by her artistic director and a seductive rival, Nina's grip on reality slips, plunging her into a waking nightmare.
Director: Darren Aronofsky | Stars: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder
Votes: 825,194 | Gross: $106.95M
86. L.A. Confidential (1997)
R | 138 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
As corruption grows in 1950s Los Angeles, three policemen - one strait-laced, one brutal, and one sleazy - investigate a series of murders with their own brand of justice.
Director: Curtis Hanson | Stars: Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, Kim Basinger
Votes: 618,096 | Gross: $64.62M
An air-tight neo-noir that has a very involving mystery that runs miles deep and is so entertaining to watch as the protagonists unravel it.
87. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Approved | 218 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
The story of T.E. Lawrence, the English officer who successfully united and led the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes during World War I in order to fight the Turks.
Director: David Lean | Stars: Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Jack Hawkins
Votes: 314,507 | Gross: $44.82M
Like Shawshank, this film is overrated. Again, it's a wonderful movie and an incredible achievement in film, but it's not perfect. Its main character is a very intriguing man, its intro is outstanding, and it conveys this unique, palpable sense of adventure. But alas, it begins to drag on as you get deeper into its running time and there are parts that simply seem extraneous. I don't want to bad-mouth it too much, though, it's fantastic, just not untouchable as some critics seem to think.
88. Paths of Glory (1957)
Approved | 88 min | Drama, War
After a failed attack on a German position, a general orders three soldiers, chosen at random, court-martialed for cowardice and their commanding officer must defend them.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meeker, Adolphe Menjou, George Macready
Votes: 212,371
One of the most depressing movies I have ever seen. This film had such an oppressive sense of injustice that it was hard to watch, even when the visuals were stunning and the shots were perfectly framed, one of the many things Kubrick mastered in his lifetime. The performances were all stellar, even the minor characters. It's short, sweet, and to the point. It's sort of like a filmic persuasive essay against war and it's extremely effective.
89. Rebecca (1940)
Approved | 130 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A self-conscious woman juggles adjusting to her new role as an aristocrat's wife and avoiding being intimidated by his first wife's spectral presence.
Director: Alfred Hitchcock | Stars: Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders, Judith Anderson
Votes: 146,816 | Gross: $4.36M
Yet again, an amazing film by Hitchcock. It starts as a love story and then morphs into something else entirely as the history of the man's ex-wife begins to be revealed. It could almost be called a character study, but of a character that the audience never sees. And that is why it's amazing. It's like Rebecca is always there, always watching, but only the viewer's imagination can tell what she really looks like.
90. Blue Velvet (1986)
R | 120 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Isabella Rossellini, Kyle MacLachlan, Dennis Hopper, Laura Dern
Votes: 215,815 | Gross: $8.55M
A masterful film that plays with genre cliches to create a false sense of security before tearing them apart and revealing its viscous underbelly and insane depravity. To some it's a commentary on how different human evil is in film than in real life. That's how I took it for the most part, but like almost all Lynch films, it's like watching someone else's nightmare and an objective interpretation simply doesn't exist. It's a bit excessive in its depiction of sexual violence, but I suppose that's the point. Regardless, it's a masterwork and an extremely unique and interesting take on neo-noir, one of my favorite sub-genres.
91. Moon (2009)
R | 97 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Astronaut Sam Bell has a quintessentially personal encounter toward the end of his three-year stint on the Moon, where he, working alongside his computer, GERTY, sends back to Earth parcels of a resource that has helped diminish our planet's power problems.
Director: Duncan Jones | Stars: Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey, Dominique McElligott, Rosie Shaw
Votes: 376,808 | Gross: $5.01M
Amazing. Truly old school sci-fi .
92. Sin City (2005)
R | 124 min | Crime, Thriller
An exploration of the dark and miserable Basin City and three of its residents, all of whom are caught up in violent corruption.
Directors: Frank Miller, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez | Stars: Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba
Votes: 793,966 | Gross: $74.10M
Probably as unique as any movie can get while retaining a cohesive plot and characters. Seriously weird and seriously entertaining. Also seriously messed up. Skip this one if you have a weak stomach, but it's worth viewing for the beautiful and incredibly different imagery alone. The intoxicating plot lines are just a bonus.
93. Citizen Kane (1941)
PG | 119 min | Drama, Mystery
Following the death of publishing tycoon Charles Foster Kane, reporters scramble to uncover the meaning of his final utterance: 'Rosebud.'
Director: Orson Welles | Stars: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore, Agnes Moorehead
Votes: 466,128 | Gross: $1.59M
A movie about life in its entirety and what really matters. A timeless message with shockingly advanced film techniques for such an old film.
94. Sunset Blvd. (1950)
Passed | 110 min | Drama, Film-Noir
A screenwriter develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star determined to make a triumphant return.
Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson
Votes: 236,539
95. Scarface (1983)
R | 170 min | Crime, Drama
In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed.
Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
Votes: 916,992 | Gross: $45.60M
This is a surprising movie. Everyone's heard the line "Say hello to my lil' friend!" and probably seen the scene that accompanies it, but to see it in context is something completely different. This isn't an Arnold Schwarzenegger-esque action shooter, it's a rather depressing descent into darkness and a slow warping of the main character's morale compass until it is irreversibly broken. It's a bummer, but it's also a great character study and a thoroughly entertaining film.
96. Double Indemnity (1944)
Passed | 107 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
A Los Angeles insurance representative lets an alluring housewife seduce him into a scheme of insurance fraud and murder that arouses the suspicion of his colleague, an insurance investigator.
Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, Edward G. Robinson, Byron Barr
Votes: 167,523 | Gross: $5.72M
Really good movie, one of my favorite noirs. The femme fatale in this is one of the best in any movies and all the other characters have some kind of depth and they play off each other really well. I preferred this movie to Wilder's other noir, "Sunset Blvd." because the pacing in this one is perfect and the writing for the narration always benefited the events on screen. Since noir is usually heavy on narration, many films end up using this as fancily worded background noise, but this film doesn't fall into that trap.
97. Winter Light (1963)
Not Rated | 81 min | Drama
A small-town priest struggles with his faith.
Director: Ingmar Bergman | Stars: Ingrid Thulin, Gunnar Björnstrand, Gunnel Lindblom, Max von Sydow
Votes: 27,107
This one's quite the downer, but it's also debatabley flawless. It's about a priest struggling hard with his faith and most of the movie is between him and various members of his church or people he's close to as he's trying to find meaning to his life. The film offers no answers. Bergman takes the audience on a short, but very tough, barren journey through hard questions that he himself struggled with. His exasperation at trying to find answers is presented clearly and mercilessly. It's a tough watch, but it's classic soul-searching Bergman and it's not to be missed.
98. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)
PG | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a Wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire's world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the mysterious Darth Vader.
Director: George Lucas | Stars: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guinness
Votes: 1,450,308 | Gross: $322.74M
The first 3 movies are simply fantastic.
99. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
R | 116 min | Drama, War
A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Matthew Modine, R. Lee Ermey, Vincent D'Onofrio, Adam Baldwin
Votes: 790,773 | Gross: $46.36M
Highly disturbing portrayal of a highly disturbing war.
100. Nightcrawler (2014)
R | 117 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
When Louis Bloom, a con man desperate for work, muscles into the world of L.A. crime journalism, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story.
Director: Dan Gilroy | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Bill Paxton, Riz Ahmed
Votes: 604,883 | Gross: $32.38M
I was lucky enough to see an early screening of this movie in Boston that Jake Gyllenhaal made a brief appearance at to introduce it. I got some pictures with Jake (he's a really cool guy in person) and then sat back for what I expected to be a simple, entertaining movie and was very pleasantly surprised by a film that delivered so much more.
Simply based on entertainment value, the movie is fantastic. The acting across the board is fantastic. Jake Gyllenhaal's performance is like Jack Nicholson's in "The Shining"--so terrifying that it puts a grin on your face. The tension is built masterfully and it explodes onto screen in the form of car-chases, shootouts, and heart-pounding, breath-holding scenes of lurking danger. And visually it's pleasing as well. The city streets of LA look fantastic at night, especially when they're scattered with fiery wrecks, and the eerie glow that comes from the protagonist's camera-mounted light makes some of the more gruesome scenes really shine.
All of this I expected. What surprised me was its ability as a satire. GYllenhaal's character basically embodies the sociopathic tendencies of modern news production, so as the movie delves more and more into his disturbingly twisted mind it also establishes a very interesting social commentary. It's highly entertaining and thought-provoking at the same time and isn't that what we go to the movies to see?
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