Top 100 Films...Ever?

As usual, this post is fashionably late. I meant to do it on New Years but I got way too tired…then I got a little distracted and forgot. But I’m doing it now, so woohoo!

It was quite a year for me when it came to watching movies. I saw SO MANY! (Okay like 250 and I know that in Filmstagram circles that’s not a lot, but considering I also ran almost 1,000 miles, learned how to box, blogged, and moved 4,000 miles, I’ll call it a win.) This project really did deepen my love and appreciation for film. I learned so much about the medium and took this blog/my Instagram to a new (hopefully deeper) level. So…this is it. This is the culminating point. I set out initially to make a Top 100 Films Ever and knew that I was going to need to explore all the major film decade (years 1920-2019) enough to understand which films best represented the cultures, politics, and ideas of each. Each Top 100 list is made up of films that embody their decade, are held in high esteem, and are technical achievements. I’m proud of those lists, even if they will change over time. I worked hard to make them (and enjoyed most minutes of it). Ultimately, though, they were just a starting point for this list.

Consider this my attempt at a one-woman Sight and Sound list. Most, but not all, of these films appeared SOMEWHERE on their respective decades’ lists. Order, star ratings, etc didn’t really matter though when it came to making this one; all bets were off. I’ve seen movies that I hadn’t seen when I did their decade (most notably El Norte) that deserve to be not only in the decade 100 but THIS 100. I tried to rank them based on a mix of personal preference, critical acclaim, notoriety, cultural significance, and lasting reputations. Obviously, this is still largely suggestive but personally, I don’t think my own bias got in the way TOO much. I felt I was still fair to films I don’t like (Lord of the Rings for example) and honest about films that I love that may not be that great (Clerks is pretty near the bottom). Anyway, the year is over and this is all I have left for this project, and you’re here for the list, not my meandering paragraphs so read on! (And click here for the Letterboxd version.)

100. Super Size Me

99. The Wizard of Oz

98. The Wind in the Willows (1995)

97. Clerks

96. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

95. 2001: A Space Odyssey

94. First Blood

93. Heathers

92. The Usual Suspects

91. The Player

90. Jurassic Park

89. Die Hard

88. They Live

87. Clueless

86. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

85. In Bruges

84. All Quiet on the Western Front

83. Brazil

82. Wall Street

81. The Human Condition I: No Greater Love

80. Thelma & Louise

79. The Great White Silence

78. The VVitch

77. A Separation

76. Bambi

75. Salt of the Earth

74. The Exorcist

73. Basic Instinct

72. Crash

71. Toy Story

70. Blank Panthers

69. The Battle of Chile: Part I

68. Close-Up

67. Daughter’s of the Dust

66. Mean Girls

65. Chungking Express

64. Modern Times

63. The Red Shoes

62. Tokyo Story

61. Rififi

60. The World of Apu

59. Spirited Away

58. Dogtooth

57. Children of Men

56. The Look of Silence

55. The Graduate

54. Pinocchio

53. Paris, Texas

52. Unforgiven

51. M

50. Grave of the Fireflies

49. Beauty and the Beast

48. Come and See

47. Badlands

46. Night of the Living Dead

45. Andrei Rublev

44. Midnight Cowboy

43. Dirty Dancing

42. This Is Not a Film

41. Mulholland Drive

40. The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover

39. Attica

38. Goodfellas

37. Cairo Station

36. The Rocky Horror Picture Show

35. Persona

34. El Norte

33. A Star is Born (1954)

32. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

31. Blade Runner

30. Rocky

29. The Panic in Needle Park

28. Battleship Potemkin

27. Rear Window

26. Portrait of a Lady on Fire

25. A Fish Called Wanda

24. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang

23. Parasite

22. Hoop Dreams

21. The Suspended Step of the Stork

20. The Silence of the Lambs

19. The Producers

18. Metropolis

17. Day of Wrath

16. Z

15. The Battle of Algiers

14. The Passion of Joan of Arc

13. Alien

12. The Phantom Carriage

11. The Lion King (1994)

10. Bicycle Thieves

9. Hunger (2008)

8. Citizen Kane

7. Glengarry Glen Ross

6. The Godfather

5. Landscape in the Mist

4. The Night of the Hunter

3. The Godfather: Part II

2. Harlan County USA

1. Eternity and a Day

See you all in December when I do this again!