AMF Top 250 Films of All Time (2016 edition)

[BleuPanda]

That's it for the day. I need to try to get done tomorrow, but I might just do the next 20 tomorrow and save the last 10 for Saturday.

[Nick]

Three Kubrick films in the top 30 as well as three Coppola films. We sure do love our auteurs!

[BleuPanda]

And two David Lynch! Chaplin, Hitchcock, and Leone as well.

[Petri]

Here are the AMF 2012 ranks of top 100 movies that weren't in top 100 in the 2012 poll. (The ones that are marked as new.)

100. The General (1926) AMF 2012 rank: 114 (up 14)
97. The Thing (1982) AMF 2012 rank: 625 (up 528)!!!!!
96. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) AMF 2012 rank: 142 (up 46)
94. The Lives of Others (2006) AMF 2012 rank: 367 (up 273) !!
93. Gone With the Wind (1939) AMF 2012 rank: 651 (up 558)!!!!
91. Ordet (1955) AMF 2012 rank: 105 (up 14)
90. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) AMF 2012 rank: 225 (up 135)
89. Naked (1993) AMF 2012 rank: 242 (up 153)
88. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) AMF 2012 rank: 174 (up 86)
85. Double Indemnity (1944) AMF 2012 rank: 165 (up 80)
84. The Wizard of Oz (1939) AMF 2012 rank: 148 (up 64)
79. The Elephant Man (1980) AMF 2012 rank: 202 (up 123)
78. The 400 Blows (1959) AMF 2012 rank: 229 (up 151)
75. Back to the Future (1985) AMF 2012 rank: 109 (up 34)
74. The Red Shoes (1948) AMF 2012 rank: NOT A SINGLE VOTE!!!!!
73. Boogie Nights (1997) AMF 2012 rank: 136 (up 63)
71. Rashomon (1950) AMF 2012 rank: 224 (up 153)
61. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) AMF 2012 rank: 112 (up 51)
60. Breathless (1960) AMF 2012 rank: 177 (up 117)
58. The Gold Rush (1925) AMF 2012 rank: 215 (up 157)
57. Come and See (1985) AMF 2012 rank: 141 (up 84)
56. Freaks (1932) AMF 2012 rank: 117 (up 61)
52. Tokyo Story (1953) AMF 2012 rank: 167 (115)
51. There Will Be Blood (2007) AMF 2012 rank: 214 (up 163)
48. Boyhood (2014) AMF 2012 rank: Not released
47. Metropolis (1927) AMF 2012 rank: 146 (up 99)
40. The Great Dictator (1940) AMF 2012 rank: 362 (up 322)

By the way BleuPanda I also commented M (and Boogie Nights).

[Dexter]

Really not a single vote for 'The Red Shoes' in 2012?! Many film masterpieces were left out in the final list so I'm not surprised by the big jumps by the new films in the Top 100. I haven't watched 'Naked' but the rest of the new entries deserve to be in the Top 100 except for 'The Thing' ('Halloween' is better IMHO).

[BleuPanda]

I'm definitely liking the new entrants more, on average. Feels like a more diverse selection.

Also, Petri, I'll try and find your comments when I get a chance. Sorry about that.

[Nick]

And two David Lynch! Chaplin, Hitchcock, and Leone as well.

14 of our top 30 movies came from just 6 directors. Whoa.

[Gillingham]

Really not a single vote for 'The Red Shoes' in 2012?!

Yes, that's rather surprising indeed, even a bit unnerving. I wonder why I didn't vote for it? Or did I only submit a top 100? Because that about the position it would rank now, and probably back then as well.

[BleuPanda]

I added Petri's comment on M...I can't find the Boogie Nights one...

[BleuPanda]

There is no arrow. We just imagine the arrows because we fear them.

30. Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972) - Directed by Werner Herzog

Decade Rank: 7
TSPDT rank: 94
AMF 2012 rank: 18 (down 12)
Score: 961.48
Votes: 11

Individual Votes:
whuntva: 2/170
Greg: 4/237
Petri: 7/247
luney6: 4/69
Michel: 81/242
BleuPanda: 76/222
Dexter: 87/236
---
Gillingham: 119/229
Midaso: 116/184
bonnielaurel: 194/233
Nick: 123/125

The most macho foreign film. It shows the dark descent in a way few other films have. It is visceral and haunting, but also beautiful. - whuntva

It’s hard to put my finger on why exactly I don’t like this movie. As a character study it’s decent, but the only character really worth studying is Aguirre, and since the movie only devotes half its runtime to the study, the other half of the movie is left as dead weight. Ultimately my biggest complaint is that the movie just comes off as shot very amateurishly and very low budget, which directly conflicts with the grandiose nature of the film’s subject. In a couple years Francis Ford Coppola would release the much, much better Apocalypse Now, rendering Aguirre, the Wrath of God, as a totally redundant movie. - Nick

At times, it seems like amateurish film making (werner Herzvog was only 27 while making this). But upon watching more closely, each scene is sprawling with depth. And Klaus Kinski is perhaps one of the greatest actors to ever have existed, with Aguirre being of the greatest characters ever created. - luney6

One of two definitive films based on Heart of Darkness, Aguirre stands apart from Apocalypse Now in the way it frames the ensuing madness. The characters are never cast in a sympathetic light, instead mad with power from the beginning of their journey. This quest overwhelms their senses as the Amazon gets more and more dangerous. Herzog creates imagery that leaves a real mark, from a ship stuck in a tree to a mass of monkeys overtaking the ship. What is and isn’t real is rarely defined. Aguirre works because it turns the voyage into a religious journey that’s truly a power struggle. – BleuPanda


29. City Lights (1931) - Directed by Charles Chaplin

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 29
AMF 2012 rank: 41 (up 12)
Score: 963.9
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
Greg: 18/237
Michel: 19/242
Dexter: 21/236
Petri: 33/247
BleuPanda: 31/222
whuntva: 39/170
Nassim: 21/87
MrMooney: 58/195
bonnielaurel: 71/233
Chilton: 50/133
Nick: 61/125
luney6: 34/69
---
OtisRedding: 78/136
MaschineMan: 108/165
Live in Phoenix: 96/145
Midaso: 130/184
Gillingham: 206/229

This is one of the few films that can ever make me cry consistently upon repeat viewings. It has all of the typical comedic genius of Charlie and his Tramp, of course, but is also fused with a certain emotionality that, while often present in all of his works, is more explicit and well-formed than he ever would achieve later. Chaplin often gets flack from some critics for not being as formally daring in his filmmaking as his main rival of silent comedy, Buster Keaton, and while this may indeed be true to an extent, he still was a master at mise-en-scene, especially in terms of great sight gags. Most of all, however, it shows how he was particularly accomplished in understanding the power of the editing of certain shots together to elicit a particular response. The incredibly moving ending of the film is the ultimate example of this. The great critic James Agee once stated that this scene was the “greatest single piece of acting ever committed to celluloid”, and within the context of the editing and Chaplin’s amazing pantomime, I don’t think anyone can sum up the impact of the ending in a more perfect way than that. – JimmyJazz

Once you do something, you never forget. Even if you can't remember.

28. Spirited Away (2001) - Directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Decade Rank: 3
TSPDT rank: 216
AMF 2012 rank: 83 (up 55)
Score: 968.16
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
BleuPanda: 3/222
MaschineMan: 4/165
Chilton: 4/133
Nick: 5/125
whuntva: 9/170
acroamor: 34/98
Greg: 85/237
Petri: 119/247
MrMooney: 96/195
---
bonnielaurel: 125/233
Dexter: 139/236
Live in Phoenix: 100/145
luney6: 52/69
Michel: 217/242
Midaso: 168/184
Gillingham: 221/229
Nassim: 85/87

So unlike anything I've seen before. Simple storytelling with great imagery. - whuntva

Oh, what a pretty name! Be sure to take good care of it, dear! - Fantasy, animation and coming-of-age story at its finest. - MaschineMan

Spirited Away is the film that awoke my love for cinema. In a way, each new film I journey into is a search to find that moment of ecstasy once again. The films of Hayao Miyazaki create a sense of wonder, and Spirited Away stands as his true masterpiece due to how intricate its world is. A typical portal fantasy, Spirited Away is a film of pure beauty. The character design is flawless, the world is magnificent. It is a bildungsroman of the highest level, with Chihiro growing up at the perfect pace. She is purely a child when the film begins, longing for her old town and unwilling to cope. As the film continues, she becomes effectively more reliable than those who surround her, in large part due to her honesty and determination to go home. The scene I always go back to is Chihiro on the train to visit Zeniba. Without words we can see the depth of her evolution, all in a single look. Perhaps what I love best about Miyazaki (and what has been the single largest influence on myself as an artist) is how he refuses to paint his antagonists in a negative light. Instead, Noh Face is lonely, Yubaba is greedy yet ultimately well-intentioned. This is a story convinced entirely of the goodness of humanity, yet it’s never once sentimental. By refusing to view the world in black and white, Miyazaki creates a truly vibrant world. The last shot of Chihiro turning back to face the gateway sends a chill down my spine every single time. It’s one of those rare moments I feel totally connected with a fictional character; from here on out, everything has changed. – BleuPanda

Well, I think testimony that can put a boy into the electric chair should be that accurate.

27. 12 Angry Men (1957) - Directed by Sidney Lumet

Decade Rank: 4
TSPDT rank: 559
AMF 2012 rank: 90 (up 63)
Score: 969.17
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
Chilton: 6/133
MaschineMan: 9/165
bootsy: 7/87
Gillingham: 33/229
bonnielaurel: 42/233
whuntva: 31/170
Midaso: 47/184
Nick: 38/125
Petri: 99/247
Live in Phoenix: 59/145
MrMooney: 80/195
acroamor: 49/98
---
Nassim: 49/87
BleuPanda: 142/222
Dexter: 159/236
Michel: 166/242
Greg: 193/237

I never thought a film about twelve guys locked in a room yelling at each other could be so interesting! - whuntva

He was an old man! Half the time he was confused! How could he be positive about anything? - ...MaschineMan

On the opposite end of where I usually write from, 12 Angry Men is one of the finest examples of cinematic minimalism. The visual design is as functional as possible; there are twelve men in suits stuck in a single room for a few hours. But that is all a film like this would ever need. At this level, a film needs as tight of a narrative as possible, and 12 Angry Men delivers on all fronts. The story is carried by a universal element, the search for truth in even the most impossible places. A 12-man jury becomes stuck when a single juror wants to look a little closer. Over the course of the story, tons of heavy subjects are discussed. What makes such a simple film speak to us is how much it makes us question both our own perception and the ideology of society. Things that sound absurd are proven not to be, while underlying social prejudices are exposed. It’s enough to make you question how a jury could ever work. – BleuPanda

People scare better when they're dying.

26. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) - Directed by Sergio Leone

Decade Rank: 7
TSPDT rank: 62
AMF 2012 rank: 6 (down 20)
Score: 969.56
Votes: 16

Individual Votes:
Greg: 2/237
Gillingham: 12/229
bootsy: 13/87
Petri: 47/247
Dexter: 46/236
Michel: 51/242
OtisRedding: 42/136
BleuPanda: 84/222
Chilton: 56/133
Emilien: 12/28
bonnielaurel: 112/233
Midaso: 89/184
---
whuntva: 87/170
Nick: 67/125
MrMooney: 114/195
MaschineMan: 98/165

I literally last watched this movie half of my life ago, but here we go. Once Upon a Time in the West stands out among Leone’s Westerns by having the most intricate narrative. It’s the work of someone who grew an increasing self-awareness as his films gained scope, and it calls back on what it means to be a Western. Ennio Morricone delivers perhaps the best score of his career. Henry Fonda breaks his typical role and plays a truly sadistic villain. It’s a film that plays to all the tropes of the genre, but they are either twisted or reinforced to Leone’s whim. – BleuPanda

[Jackson]

I didn't vote but have really enjoyed following the thread. Looking forward to the top 20 as there are still plenty of genuine surprises this high up the list.

[Jackson]

And two David Lynch! Chaplin, Hitchcock, and Leone as well.

14 of our top 30 movies came from just 6 directors. Whoa.

12 of our top 30 albums in our last all time albums poll were from 4 artists (Beatles, Stones, Dylan, Radiohead).

[babydoll]

And two David Lynch! Chaplin, Hitchcock, and Leone as well.

14 of our top 30 movies came from just 6 directors. Whoa.

12 of our top 30 albums in our last all time albums poll were from 4 artists (Beatles, Stones, Dylan, Radiohead).

Sadly though I'd probably scream hell if those artists didn't make it in the top 30. Minds work strangely. Just like I would if Alfred Hitchcock didn't have multiple placings in the top 100.

[Dexter]

Nothing wrong with multiple entries. They're called cinematic and musical geniuses for a reason.
However, I feel some directors or some of their films were left out: D.W. Griffith, Bernardo Bertolluci, Spielberg's E.T. & Saving Private Ryan, Luis Bunuel's Un Chien Andalou & The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, to name some.

[BleuPanda]

Yeah, I really feel like Bunuel got the shaft. I skipped adding in Un chien andalou as one of my additional entrants after how badly it performed in the decade poll. Which, now that I'm seeing these results, realize was a bad idea, since Duck Soup and The Wizard of Oz also didn't so well. The early 20th century just simply didn't have enough voters to actually match the general site.

[BleuPanda]

Just as a note: getting through this single post took around an hour, which is part of why this project has taken what feels like ages to be revealed. Writing a response to each of these films takes a fair chunk of time, but sorting through the individual rankings also takes a fair chunk, along with finding images and getting them ready to be a consistent size.

I'm not Elisabet Vogler. You are Elisabet Vogler.

25. Persona (1966) - Directed by Ingmar Bergman

Decade Rank: 6
TSPDT rank: 21
AMF 2012 rank: 32 (up 7)
Score: 975.15
Votes: 14

Individual Votes:
BleuPanda: 2/222
Michel: 3/242
bonnielaurel: 13/233
Greg: 22/237
Dexter: 36/236
Gillingham: 82/229
Chilton: 53/133
Midaso: 76/184
Petri: 111/247
---
whuntva: 91/170
MrMooney: 112/195
MaschineMan: 122/165
Nick: 97/125
Nassim: 86/87

The associative images in the beginning symbolize major themes of Ingmar Bergman: lust, religion and death. One woman talking and another listening doesn't have to be as boring as it seems. It's inspired by Carl Jung's analytical psychology, in which free association and speech therapy play a central role. Alma (Bibi Andersson) represents the persona, the mask someone shows to the outside world. Elisabet (Liv Ullman) represents the shadow, someone's hidden side. To reach self-realization persona and shadow have to become one. - bonnielaurel

Throughout the sixties, Bergman’s films transformed from generally straightforward narratives with some surrealistic imagery sprinkled on to full-on mind-bogglers. Persona is the masterwork of this period, the tale of two women who seemingly feed off of each other’s energy. An actress stops speaking and is taken care of by a nurse. Liv Ullmann gives one of the best performances in cinema history without a word. So much is said with a look, a slight frown. The nurse Alma reads into everything Elisabet Vogler ‘says,’ at first reading the actress as a friend and then as a parasite when she discovers through a letter that she is essentially being studied. Their personalities and roles are flipped on their heads; who is really the one in charge? Who is taking care of whom? The film takes a lot from Brechtian thought, opening itself with a montage of unrelated imagery, and literally tearing itself in half when the two women catch on to each other. Most famous is the climactic scene where Alma confronts Elisabet about their children, which plays two times focusing on both character’s faces, ultimately finishing with their faces edited together. Bergman leaves it wide open to interpretation while consistently reminding us it’s just a story anyway. – BleuPanda

Fuck you, you fucking fuck!

24. Blue Velvet (1986) - Directed by David Lynch

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 75
AMF 2012 rank: 73 (up 49)
Score: 980.91
Votes: 19

Individual Votes:
OtisRedding: 6/136
Midaso: 10/184
Gillingham: 24/229
Emilien: 3/28
MrMooney: 22/195
Michel: 31/242
BleuPanda: 29/222
Live in Phoenix: 23/145
bonnielaurel: 69/233
Dexter: 88/236
Greg: 93/237
---
luney6: 35/69
Petri: 139/247
MaschineMan: 115/165
Nick: 91/125
bootsy: 70/87
acroamor: 79/98
Nassim: 76/87
whuntva: 157/170

After a rather aimless series of films (as good as Eraserhead and The Elephant Man are, it’s hard to see a unified artistic statement developing between them and Dune), David Lynch created the film that would define the rest of his career. Blue Velvet is a true American classic, one of the most biting takes on the idealization of 1950s society. Where Reagan era America liked to look at the 1950s with rose-colored glasses (see Back to the Future), David Lynch explores the darkness that has existed through human history. The opening shot is one of the most iconic of his career: white picket fences and green yards, but underneath it is crawling disgusting critters. Blue Velvet was also the first of many Lynch films following a protagonist as they delve headfirst into a conspiracy, and Blue Velvet has remained one of his finest works simply through how seedy this underworld is. Frank Booth is a frankly horrifying villain. – BleuPanda

Teacher says, every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.

23. It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - Directed by Frank Capra

Decade Rank: 3
TSPDT rank: 85
AMF 2012 rank: 71 (up 48)
Score: 989.38
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
MrMooney: 2/195
Live in Phoenix: 5/145
Michel: 14/242
Chilton: 20/133
Dexter: 39/236
whuntva: 38/170
luney6: 19/69
bootsy: 26/87
Nassim: 26/87
bonnielaurel: 78/233
---
Greg: 123/237
Midaso: 98/184
OtisRedding: 73/136
BleuPanda: 147/222
Gillingham: 165/229
acroamor: 72/98
Petri: 199/247
MaschineMan: 150/165

Greatest Christmas film ever, a masterpiece. - MrMooney

This used to be as pervasive during the holiday season as A Christmas Story is now, except all over the TV instead of just one channel. This was because the movie was Public Domain, but in a way it signified how much it had taken over the imagination at Christmas time. It's a Wonderful Life is quite the rarity, in that thinking of it in terms of a film diminishes it for me. Not that the film is substandard on any front, but there's no grand experiment in moviemaking taking place; no bonanza of killer one-liners; no camera shot that only a genius could have thought of, and took forever to get right -- in other words, a lot of the things that I praise other films for. My mind wandered toCitizen Kane during this write-up, and the two films both feature a life extensively covered, and share a couple of themes, such as the present irrevocably shaped by the past, and the elusive nature of a picture-perfect life. Yet next to Orson Welles’s relentless techniques and wizardry, Capra tells his story without using much of anything special. This is the power of a fable. – Live in Phoenix

Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room.

22. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) - Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Decade Rank: 5
TSPDT rank: 52
AMF 2012 rank: 26 (up 4)
Score: 993.03
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
Michel: 11/242
acroamor: 6/98
BleuPanda: 15/222
Gillingham: 20/229
Dexter: 28/236
luney6: 14/69
Petri: 71/247
Chilton: 40/133
MrMooney: 60/195
bonnielaurel: 83/233
whuntva: 65/170
Nick: 56/125
---
Greg: 128/237
Live in Phoenix: 88/145
MaschineMan: 104/165
Nassim: 60/87
Midaso: 136/184
OtisRedding: 112/136

Dr. Strangelove is a rare film I would describe as having a flawless script. Though the initial build-up is rather slow, I respect that as it frames the narrative as something almost legitimate. Kubrick made a satire about the arms race during the most intense moments of the Cold War, so what happens in the war room here at least doesn’t feel too far off from the reality of the situation. What’s different is how extravagantly cartoonish every important character is. General Buck Turgidson is a personal favorite, with George G. Scott’s scenery chewing performance a classic of the genre. Dr. Strangelove becomes a survey of incompetency; throughout the narrative, a dozen of solutions are put on the table, and absolutely none of them work out, some even directly interfering with one another. The government on both sides of the conflict are absolutely buffoonish, and even as the bombs begin to fall, everyone sticks to the goals that benefit them most. - BleuPanda

This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-violence.

21. A Clockwork Orange (1971) - Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Decade Rank: 6
TSPDT rank: 76
AMF 2012 rank: 29 (up 8)
Score: 993.43
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
BleuPanda: 13/222
Midaso: 15/184
Michel: 34/242
bonnielaurel: 35/233
Live in Phoenix: 27/145
MaschineMan: 31/165
Dexter: 55/236
Nick: 34/125
Petri: 81/247
whuntva: 57/170
Gillingham: 78/229
luney6: 25/69
MrMooney: 79/195
---
Greg: 127/237
Nassim: 48/87
acroamor: 56/98
Chilton: 97/133

Along with Blue Velvet, this is one of the bad boys of cinema. It’s rare for a work to commit itself to the viewpoint of a truly malicious character, and what makes A Clockwork Orange work so well is how it twists our emotions in response to Alex’s actions. The film is set up like a mirror; in the first half, Alex torments dozens of people. After the Ludovico treatment ‘cures’ him of his violence, the second half becomes a revenge sequence against Alex. There are plenty of stories about evil men that you aren’t expected to sympathize with, but Kubrick would never be satisfied with this easy route. By convincing us of Alex’s suffering, A Clockwork Orange begins to question how we view the treatment of basically anyone. A Clockwork Orange is also one of Kubrick’s most stylish films, from high speed sex scenes set to classical music to the rather colorful fashion statements. – BleuPanda

[Nick]

At number 23, "It's a Wonderful Life" is the highest ranked movie I haven't seen.

It's also probably my ultimate spit-take movie, the one movie where, when you announce that you haven't seen it, everyone around you spits out their drink in incredulity.

Looking forward to the top 20!

[bootsy]

Nothing wrong with multiple entries. They're called cinematic and musical geniuses for a reason.
However, I feel some directors or some of their films were left out: D.W. Griffith, Bernardo Bertolluci, Spielberg's E.T. & Saving Private Ryan, Luis Bunuel's Un Chien Andalou & The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, to name some.

This is a big omission for me. I can't believe it didn't make the list.

[Jackson]

I'm surprised people prefer A Clockwork Orange to The Shining among Kubrick movies. The Shining in my view is a much easier film to love and rewatch.

[luney6]

I'm disappointed that Satantango and Sans Soleil didn't make it in. Also, kind of surprised that Terminator 2 didn't either. I thought that movie was popular as well.

Edit: Oh, and the Spirit of the Beehive. Definitely that. I now feel like I really should have nominated that.

[babydoll]

I'm disappointed that Satantango and Sans Soleil didn't make it in. Also, kind of surprised that Terminator 2 didn't either. I thought that movie was popular as well.

Edit: Oh, and the Spirit of the Beehive. Definitely that. I now feel like I really should have nominated that.

But that movie is seven hours long! There also hasn't been a stunningly great DVD/Blu-ray release anywhere in the world that I'm aware of. There are factors that would therefore make this improbable to rank high. Needless to say, this film is high on my to-watch list. Maybe someday.

[Midaso]

I'm surprised people prefer A Clockwork Orange to The Shining among Kubrick movies. The Shining in my view is a much easier film to love and rewatch.

I'm more surprised that Paths Of Glory isn't even there,I thought it was generally considered one of his best films

[luney6]

I'm disappointed that Satantango and Sans Soleil didn't make it in. Also, kind of surprised that Terminator 2 didn't either. I thought that movie was popular as well.

Edit: Oh, and the Spirit of the Beehive. Definitely that. I now feel like I really should have nominated that.

But that movie is seven hours long! There also hasn't been a stunningly great DVD/Blu-ray release anywhere in the world that I'm aware of. There are factors that would therefore make this improbable to rank high. Needless to say, this film is high on my to-watch list. Maybe someday.

That's true. But I thought it would be nominated because Petri mentioned it in the nominations thread (That's why I saw it actually. So thanks Petri). And because of how high it is ranked. Very good film, though.

[BleuPanda]

I am big. It's the pictures that got small.

20. Sunset Blvd. (1950) - Directed by Billy Wilder

Decade Rank: 3
TSPDT rank: 33
AMF 2012 rank: new
Score: 1005.85
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
MaschineMan: 2/165
MrMooney: 4/195
BleuPanda: 5/222
bonnielaurel: 22/233
Dexter: 26/236
Michel: 43/242
OtisRedding: 25/136
Midaso: 66/184
Gillingham: 106/229
---
Petri: 125/247
Live in Phoenix: 84/145
Greg: 140/237
Nassim: 52/87
acroamor: 80/98
whuntva: 140/170
Nick: 104/125
Chilton: 111/133

It's the pictures that got small - Hollywood loves a good film about itself, but this stands head and shoulders over the rest of them. - MaschineMan

Dark and deeply satisfying. Witty, savage and brilliantly original. Cinematic masterpiece. - MrMooney

Billy Wilder’s best work largely centers around the creation of a single phenomenal character. 66 years later, I can’t think of a more striking character than Norma Desmond, with an equally unforgettable performance by Gloria Swanson. Sunset Boulevard takes about as cynical of a view of Hollywood as possible, framing the lives of silent stars as total wrecks in the sound era of cinema. Norma Desmond is suicidally delusional, believing every new person could be her ticket back to the screen, a screen she has grown to hate as much as she longs for it. The film’s narrative truly centers around Joe Gillis, a wannabe screenwriter who just so happens to stumble upon Norma’s mansion. The two characters end up as parasites off one another, Joe using her mansion as a living space while she gets him to work on her comeback script. All future narratives about the underbelly of Hollywood owe something to this film. – BleuPanda

What do you mean I'm funny?

19. Goodfellas (1990) - Directed by Martin Scorsese

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 74
AMF 2012 rank: 57 (up 38)
Score: 1023.72
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
MaschineMan: 8/165
Nick: 7/125
OtisRedding: 10/136
BleuPanda: 23/222
MrMooney: 25/195
Midaso: 24/184
Dexter: 58/236
Emilien: 8/28
Live in Phoenix: 48/145
luney6: 23/69
Michel: 86/242
Greg: 96/237
whuntva: 72/170
---
bootsy: 51/87
Gillingham: 144/229
bonnielaurel: 162/233
Petri: 187/247

To be a gangster was to own the world. - Scorsese has arguably one of the best filmography of any director (and it's still getting longer). There are so many of his to choose as his masterpiece, and this is my pick. - MaschineMan

Goodfellas is Martin Scorsese’s gangster masterpiece. Compared to The Godfather films, the other bona fide classics of the genre, Goodfellas is a lot less regal. Where The Godfather finds a familial approach to the subject, framing the issue as a matter of honor, Goodfellas focuses on the pure adrenaline of joining such a violent organization. Henry Hill simply wants to be a gangster, and he does what he can to climb up the ladders as an outsider. These aren’t gangsters that silently calculate whatever works best for the Family, but rather those who lash out at anyone who dares to cross their path. It is also an outright epic, spanning a couple decades as Hill makes buddies with the local bigshots. A film by Martin Scorsese, Goodfellas is also a technical marvel, including a famous long take through a crowded restaurant. – BleuPanda

I really have nothing to say, but I want to say it all the same.

18. 8 1/2 (1963) - Directed by Federico Fellini

Decade Rank: 4
TSPDT rank: 7
AMF 2012 rank: 52 (up 34)
Score: 1031.65
Votes: 15

Individual Votes:
Gillingham: 5/229
Dexter: 6/236
bonnielaurel: 7/233
Greg: 9/237
BleuPanda: 14/222
Chilton: 18/133
Michel: 64/242
whuntva: 64/170
---
MrMooney: 107/195
Midaso: 114/184
Petri: 163/247
Live in Phoenix: 106/145
Nick: 96/125
OtisRedding: 115/136
MaschineMan: 143/165

Had the pleasure of watching Fellini's pinnacle in cinema a couple of years ago. All his talent and creativity poured into one film and leaving most of his lesser filmic choices out. - Gillingham

I love me some Fellini, but this one was not quite my cuppa. - MaschineMan

When Guido daydreams of flying away from a traffic congestion that shows his wish to escape from everyday's stress and routine. Fellini explores the mind of a character struggling with fundamental questions: finding inspiration for a new film, the women in his life, the hypocrisy of the Church. Guido's aspiration is to be a truth revealing artist, but instead he feels like the ringmaster in a circus. - bonnielaurel

The very first time I saw Otto e Mezzo I was slightly confused as to why it was considered the masterpiece it is. It was the first Fellini I saw and I wasn't very accustomed to art films. I was definitely interested in them, but only a couple of real auteurs grabbed me like they grabbed other movie fanatics. But after I had seen a couple of more Fellini's, I felt the urge to re watch Otto e Mezzo. It may sound strange, but this time I saw much more than I saw the first time. The dreamy, hallucinatory scenes had seemed fascinating, but somewhat random the first time. Now they were art in every sense of the word. Later on, I even had the pleasure of watching Otto e Mezzo on the big screen. I do think it's Fellini's most realised, arty and beautiful film. A film about film by a filmer for film goers. A great example of a film without a plot and without a story, because film doesn't need to tell a story to succeed in every possible way. Film incarnate.
ASA NISI MASA – Gillingham

Constantly talking isn't necessarily communicating.

17. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - Directed by Michel Gondry

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 382
AMF 2012 rank: 48 (up 31)
Score: 1039.9
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
acroamor: 1/98
Nassim: 6/87
BleuPanda: 27/222
Gillingham: 34/229
Nick: 22/125
Live in Phoenix: 28/145
OtisRedding: 28/136
MaschineMan: 39/165
Michel: 58/242
Chilton: 32/133
whuntva: 43/170
Midaso: 57/184
bootsy: 38/87
bonnielaurel: 105/233
MrMooney: 88/195
---
Petri: 129/247
Dexter: 148/236
Greg: 212/237

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is the best movie that I've ever seen, and I believe the best movie that has been made by anyone, at any time. It's difficult to even know where to begin. Much attention must be made to the dual efforts of Charlie Kaufman's incredible script and its realization through Gondry's idiosyncratic direction. Kaufman attempts no smaller task than to rip open the human mind, in all its sadness and beauty, to explore the creature that lives inside. While Kaufman's sci-fi high concept could be garish and unrelatable (what does it feel like to see your memories leave you behind?), Gondry makes it accessible by putting it in that most accessible of human languages, dreaming. Indeed, much of the film takes place inside the protagonist's mind, dancing playfully between recent memories and early childhood. By revisiting the earliest definite memories of this character, we can see what experiences led him to be the person that he currently is. And it poses the question: can he change from that person? Can anyone? Much criticism of the film stems from the fact that the Clementine we see throughout isn't the real person, but rather the mental projection of Joel's perspective of her. But do humans ever really witness the true human behind the people we interact with? Or are we at some level always projecting, imagining, hoping, wishing? And that criticism ignores the fact that for Clementine to meet Joel at Montauk at the film's start, she too must have had an equal mental experience as Joel's dream state. Of course, no matter how perfect the script or imaginative the direction, the film would falter without good performances. Thankfully, it possesses them. Jim Carrey, in a rare dramatic turn, gives an understated, dour performance as the shy, self-negating Joel. In an utter contrast, Kate Winslet gives her own self-described favorite performance as the wildly-passionate-on-the-outside and woefully-insecure-on-the-inside Clementine. The character of Clem deconstructs the "manic pixie dream girl" archetype that many of this era's films (Garden State, Elizabethtown) depends on, showing her not as a tool for the male protagonist's transformation but a fully realized character with her own wants, needs, and feelings. Working in tandem with these two leads comes a unique set of supporting characters, most of whom never meet the leads, or only do in passing. But their stories are just as important to the film as a whole, equal in emotional resonance. Each feeds into the other, the actions of Carrey inside his own mind complicating the drama for Dunst and Ruffalo and their own mistakes allowing for Carrey's explorations of himself. Visually, the film's incredible, Gondry working with (female, rare for cinematographers) Ellen Kuras, constructing intricate moving shots and tight compositions of dreamlike, surreal imagery. And Jon Brion delivers perhaps my favorite film score, mixing in digital sounds with acoustic to create brief but marvelous passages, "Row", "Bookstore", "Elephant Parade", "Peer Pressure", and ahh, "Phone Call". I heartily recommend this film to anyone, having seen it a dozen plus times and preparing to see it again and again. – acroamor


16. Modern Times (1936) - Directed by Charles Chaplin

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 42
AMF 2012 rank: 21 (up 5)
Score: 1043.17
Votes: 15

Individual Votes:
bonnielaurel: 3/233
Greg: 8/237
Michel: 22/242
Petri: 36/247
MrMooney: 32/195
Dexter: 42/236
Chilton: 27/133
MaschineMan: 40/165
OtisRedding: 40/136
whuntva: 55/170
BleuPanda: 93/222
Nick: 57/125
---
Live in Phoenix: 73/145
luney6: 40/69
Gillingham: 183/229

There’s not much more that can be said about Chaplin’s comedies; they all largely succeed on the same points. This is where I would argue why Modern Times is higher than the others, but as my votes between the four would show, I’m not one who would know. - BleuPanda

Charlie Chaplin's tramp is a poor man who's pursuing happiness. He's often in conflict with his superiors, but protecting towards other unlucky people. Chaplin uses two kinds of humor. The first level are the slapstick scenes, taking place at his successive workplaces. The second level is the way he approaches the social issues during the Great Depression and the struggle of two individuals to survive. The music uses recurring motives for the main characters and switches from mechanical to comical to romantic when necessary. - bonnielaurel

[BleuPanda]

Here's looking at you kid.

15. Casablanca (1942) - Directed by Michael Curtiz

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 37
AMF 2012 rank: 7 (down 8)
Score: 1057.25
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
whuntva: 5/170
bonnielaurel: 14/233
Dexter: 15/236
Greg: 28/237
MrMooney: 31/195
Michel: 40/242
Nassim: 15/87
BleuPanda: 39/222
Gillingham: 50/229
Chilton: 33/133
Petri: 85/247
Nick: 47/125
Live in Phoenix: 55/145
---
OtisRedding: 69/136
acroamor: 53/98
luney6: 43/69
MaschineMan: 131/165
bootsy: 81/87

Smartest screenplay and greatest cast ever assembled. Works on all levels. - whuntva

Brilliant performances, a timeless love story and gripping war thriller. Director Michael Curtiz brings it all together masterfully. - MrMooney

The first time I saw this classic I was surprised it wasn't bigger, longer and more epic, but I did like it. It gets better if you see it more than once. Rick (Humphrey Bogart) is introduced as a cynic who sticks his neck out for nobody. Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) is shown as an impenetrable beauty, filmed with a gauze filter in close-up. The flashback to Paris reveals what drives the main characters. The story revolves around Rick's dilemma between love and patriotism. Hollywood was very international in those days, which resulted in a great cast with strong supporting roles, especially Claude Rains as the French captain. No other film is parodied, quoted and misquoted so often, or the subject of a quiz. – bonnielaurel

I don't want to move to a city where the only cultural advantage is being able to make a right turn on a red light.

14. Annie Hall (1977) - Directed by Woody Allen

Decade Rank: 5
TSPDT rank: 83
AMF 2012 rank: new
Score: 1066.05
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
OtisRedding: 1/136
bonnielaurel: 2/233
acroamor: 2/98
Nick: 18/125
Chilton: 24/133
Michel: 45/242
Dexter: 63/236
Greg: 77/237
Nassim: 29/87
BleuPanda: 75/222
MaschineMan: 56/165
Midaso: 65/184
Petri: 105/247
luney6: 31/69
Gillingham: 112/229
Live in Phoenix: 71/145
---
whuntva: 86/170

The highest placed film that didn't make the 2012 list...how? - BleuPanda

The story of an on-off relationship is made exciting by the way it's told. Unreliable memories, fantasy scenes, subtitles showing the character's real thoughts, asides to the camera or passers-by are part of Alvy Singer's subjective point of view. Diane Keaton used wide, masculine clothes for Annie Hall. Woody Allen created his first big drama, influenced by his favorite European directors Bergman and Fellini, but without losing his sense of humor or his gift for witty one-liners. It's the most fun I ever had without laughing. - bonnielaurel

The record for “least amount of time it took for me to know I would love a movie” would go to Annie Hall, with a record of about ten seconds, right smack dab in the middle of the second sentence of Woody Allen’s first monologue. The dialogue here is what drives this movie, and without it Annie Hall would be extraordinarily ordinary (in fact, you could say this about most of Allen’s movies). In Annie Hall Woody Allen gives the best portrayal of his signature character that I’ve ever seen, and his affable schmuck attitude, his nervousness and neuroticism, his lack of success with women, and his New York Jew-isms are at once relatable, hilarious, a little heartbreaking, and ultimately endearing. Annie Hall is a romantic comedy in the sense that it’s a funny movie that concerns itself with a romance, but it’s also a movie that touches on issues of existentialism, psychotherapy, Jewish identity, class disparity, and a whole lot more. In the end you wish you could go to Manhattan and meet these characters, get to know them better, live with them, party with them, maybe even date them. Fortunately for you, Woody Allen would make another 1,000 of these movies that feature his signature character. But as good as some of these movies may be (and many of them are great), he never made another one as good as Annie Hall. – Nick

It's strange calling yourself.

13. Mulholland Drive (2001) - Directed by David Lynch

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 66
AMF 2012 rank: 13 (same)
Score: 1081.95
Votes: 19

Individual Votes:
BleuPanda: 1/222
Petri: 3/247
Gillingham: 3/229
Midaso: 11/184
Chilton: 14/133
Live in Phoenix: 17/145
Michel: 38/242
bonnielaurel: 50/233
bootsy: 24/87
MaschineMan: 47/165
acroamor: 44/98
Dexter: 117/236
---
OtisRedding: 77/136
MrMooney: 132/195
Emilien: 22/28
whuntva: 136/170
Greg: 198/237
Nick: 117/125
luney6: 67/69

Appreciated more on a directorial level than a story level. The story wasn't bad, just didn't fit the film's style. Liked, but didn't love as much as many on here seem to. - whuntva

Acting is reacting. - I saw Lynch in conversation once, and endlessly fascinating person with such interesting ideas. - MaschineMan

As Roger Ebert once said about an entirely different movie- to the extent that I understand, I don’t care. - Nick

Among the many films I have watched, nothing else has felt as transcendent as Mulholland Drive. In a way, it is a film without an ending; each new viewing is like an entirely different take. It is a film without a set of limits. On first viewing, it’s a strikingly bizarre mystery; Rita is almost murdered but is saved by a fateful car accident, and we spend the rest of the experience investigating why she was a target in the first place. At the same time, it’s the story of Betty, an aspiring actress who just moved to Hollywood. In many ways, this first viewing is the classic Hollywood adventure, with Betty playing the traditionally male hero who is the only person capable of solving her eventual love interest’s mystery. This first run is delightfully quirky for the most part, with Lynch’s comedic surrealist style overtaking many scenes, and Naomi Watts’ performance is conspicuously over-the-top. Yet, a few shining moments glare through. Betty gives a performance at an audition that is legitimately outstanding, a suggestion that Naomi Watts’ airy performance has been entirely constructed throughout. Little threads appear without any sense of importance, and the lack of a return is in many ways unsettling (this is a remnant of Mulholland Drive starting as a television pilot as a spiritual sequel to Twin Peaks, meaning most of these unrelated scenes were likely introductions to sideplots). In many ways, the film appears directionless, and then the whole thing pulls itself apart in a moment of chaos, as Naomi Watts wakes up as an entirely separate character, as if everything up to that point had been this new character’s dream.

Though often compared to Ingmar Bergman’s Persona, I find it surprising how little Mulholland Drive is viewed as an adult-oriented version of The Wizard of Oz; the narrative similarities offer a perfect frame. On the second viewing, you will inevitably view the first half through a different lens; the narrative can no longer masquerade as the truth of the events. One of the most popular interpretations is that this is all a dream. Much like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, Diane (the ‘real’ Betty) takes the people and events from her real life and place them in an idealistic, colorful dream world. Unlike Dorothy, Diane has no promise of a better future; her life, by the time we join her in the present, has all but ended. Through more and more viewings, this transforms from a quirky David Lynch film to a rather intimate portrayal of the deepest form of depression. The ‘dream’ sequence becomes a point of dark dramatic irony; we are fully aware this is the longing of a woman who will soon kill herself over guilt.

Mulholland Drive works in large parts due to motifs; the blue key, the cowboy, the bag of money. Every part of the ‘dream’ and ‘reality’ has a matching counterpart, yet their meaning is flipped. The most devilish realization is the “This is the girl” line. This is the phrase that seals her fate in both worlds. In the dream, Betty will never get the role, as the director has been forced to choose someone else. In reality, it is the line that locks her into the path that leads to her suicide.

But while it’s clear there are two separate worlds in this film, one good and one bad, how they truly relate is the mystery. Perhaps we only choose to believe that Betty is Diane’s dream because only one of their stories has a concrete ending. But why can’t Diane be Betty’s nightmare, her fear that her story will never truly be complete? After all, isn’t this the mindset one would take when adding a sudden ending to a narrative that should have taken place over a few seasons? Perhaps Mulholland Drive’s existence as a film instead of a television show is itself its grandest statement on the failure of the Hollywood dream, with Betty’s evolution into Diane a statement on Lynch’s disappointment in a failed project. After about 10 viewings, all I can say is, yes; all of these possibilities are valid. Like any unshakable dream, Mulholland Drive means everything and nothing. – BleuPanda

I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time... like tears in rain... Time to die.

12. Blade Runner (1982) - Directed by Ridley Scott

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 34
AMF 2012 rank: 4 (down 8)
Score: 1095.99
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
Greg: 1/237
MrMooney: 1/195
Gillingham: 14/229
BleuPanda: 28/222
whuntva: 22/170
Dexter: 34/236
bootsy: 15/87
Michel: 49/242
Nick: 30/125
Chilton: 36/133
Live in Phoenix: 40/145
Petri: 84/247
Midaso: 64/184
---
bonnielaurel: 153/233
Nassim: 65/87
MaschineMan: 148/165
OtisRedding: 134/136

Another I should probably re-watch at some point. - MaschineMan

Ridley Scott’s sci-fi film noir is a true masterwork of both genres. Blade Runner is the story of Deckard, a man whose job it is to hunt down rogue androids. At the heart of the film is a question of the value of life, both organic and artificial. The world of Blade Runner has already formed an answer; the replicants are such lesser beings that they are coded with an end date. The film shows something very different; though ultimately violent criminals, the rogue androids are recognizably human in their desires, with their reason for being so dangerous in large parts due to their anger over the unfairness of the world. Ridley Scott creates a truly magnificent landscape, a futuristic city as visually delightful as it is seedy. Though this is perhaps Harrison Ford’s greatest role, Rutger Hauer steals the show as the leader of the rogues. His final speech is one of cinema’s finest. – BleuPanda

When you have to shoot, shoot. Don't talk.

11. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966) - Directed by Sergio Leone

Decade Rank: 3
TSPDT rank: 144
AMF 2012 rank: 8 (down 3)
Score: 1104.31
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
Chilton: 3/133
Gillingham: 6/229
BleuPanda: 7/222
Emilien: 4/28
OtisRedding: 21/136
Midaso: 33/184
bootsy: 16/87
MrMooney: 36/195
whuntva: 33/170
MaschineMan: 35/165
Nick: 31/125
Live in Phoenix: 45/145
luney6: 22/69
Greg: 97/237
Dexter: 100/236
---
Petri: 183/247
Michel: 184/242
bonnielaurel: 226/233

The third film in the Man with No Name trilogy, Sergio Leone crafted what might be the most technically impressive film to date. Three men are after a large treasure in the middle of the American Civil War. It’s a tale as old as human history, a greedy struggle that will inevitably end with someone’s death. Like any story with such a classically orchestrated backbone, The Good the Bad and the Ugly supports itself through unique framing (which is both figurative and literal in regards to this film). The images Leone captures are breathtaking. Morricone’s score is in top shape. But perhaps most impressive is the chaotic editing, which is at its greatest moment during the climactic standoff. Leone shows himself to know exactly how to frame a stare. Against all odds, when it comes to telling stories of the American Wild West, Sergio Leone proves that Italians do it better. - BleuPanda

[Nick]

Although I gave a very flippant comment for Mulholland Drive, it's not a movie I hated. Just a movie I didn't understand...at all. Definitely need to re-watch it at some point.

[luney6]

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly at 11! At 8 in the 2012 poll. Wow. I didn't expect it doing this well, for some reason, but am glad that it did.

[whuntva]

On the edge of my seat for the Top 10!

As for my Mulholland Drive comment, I saw the film and several analyses of it. I like all the interpretations and Lynch's style (my favorite interpretation is the shared Twin Peaks universe, and by extension Lost Highway), but I still don't feel the film resonates with me as it should. Perhaps a rewatch would help. It is worth noting after all that, I still gave the film a 9 after all was said and done. I gave about 133 of these films 10's, and I think this would have been a higher 9.

ADD-ON: I have evaluated my guesses for the Top 10, and based on what's left, I gave all of them 10's. I'd be content with whatever won.

[Petri]

Naked
89. Naked (1993) - Directed by Mike Leigh
Dexter: 170/236

I haven't watched 'Naked' ).

??

Really not a single vote for 'The Red Shoes' in 2012?! Many film masterpieces were left out in the final list so I'm not surprised by the big jumps by the new films in the Top 100.

Annie Hall (1977)
The highest placed film that didn't make the 2012 list...how? - BleuPanda

Everybody submitted list of their top 100 favorite movies at the 2012 poll. I'm pretty sure that movies like The Red Shoes and Annie Hall would have got many (more) votes if it was top 250. (No one of the biggest fans of Annie Hall voted for in 2012 though).

I agree that there are zillions of movies that could or even should have been in our top 250 list. Satantango was the closest one those that have been mentioned (it was #28 of our 90s poll and would have been higher if I had seen it then (I finally wathced it in 2011 after the poll).) I'm pretty sure that stuff like Princess Mononoke will do much better in the future 90s poll (will be held later this year) than it did last time.
Spirit of Beehive (very good movie indeed) wasn't even close to get into top 100 of 70s poll (it got 66 points in 1973 poll when #10 (Amarcord) had 145 points (followed by Papillon with 144 points and Paper Moon with 128 points etc.).

So don't forget to vote for in yearly polls and affect what movies goes to the decade final (and maybe after that to the next all-time final).

Three Coppola movies in top 10. (just like in 2012 poll)

[Petri]

20. Sunset Blvd. (1950) AMF 2012 rank: 113 (up 93)
14. Annie Hall (1977) AMF 2012 rank: 154 (up 140)

[Dexter]

Naked
89. Naked (1993) - Directed by Mike Leigh
Dexter: 170/236

I haven't watched 'Naked' ).

??

Mea culpa. I was thinking of another film at the time of writing (Naked Lunch).
I found the film hard to watch (the violence and the treatment of women), thus, my relatively low rank (and low awareness) but I appreciate the message the film was trying to convey and it was well-acted. I personally would have preferred 'Secret & Lies' as Mike Leigh's only entry, as it is representative of his body of work but that's just me.

Yey!Top 10 next! Citizen Kane, the 2 Godfather films, Seven Samurai, Psycho, Vertigo, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Pulp Fiction, Apocalypse Now, Taxi Driver. They all deserve to be in the top 10 (well maybe 3 Coppola films are too much, Apocalypse Now being the weakest of the 3), the real excitement is their respective rankings.

[BleuPanda]

The farmers have won. Not us.

10. Seven Samurai (1954) - Directed by Akira Kurosawa

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 9
AMF 2012 rank: 20 (up 10)
Score: 1108.88
Votes: 15

Individual Votes:
Dexter: 9/236
BleuPanda: 10/222
OtisRedding: 8/136
Gillingham: 18/229
Live in Phoenix: 12/145
whuntva: 18/170
MaschineMan: 21/165
bootsy: 18/87
Chilton: 31/133
MrMooney: 64/195
Nick: 42/125
Greg: 99/237
---
Michel: 129/242
Petri: 152/247
bonnielaurel: 147/233

The farmers have won. Not us. - Fantastic film, shame it's so long otherwise I would be tempted to watch it more often. - MaschineMan

Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai is the epic to end all epics. Where many epics tend to lose me (impatient person I am…), Seven Samurai absolutely perfects pacing. The narrative structure works by truly creating a sense of a quest; the film can pretty easily be divided into three distinct parts, between the gathering of the samurai to their time waiting in the village to the invasion of bandits. There’s never a moment where the film loses sense of its ultimate goal; this is a slow build toward a final showdown that will logically end in the death of many of the characters we have grown to know. Instead of a twisting plot, Seven Samurai serves as a form of character study. Most notable is Kikuchiyo, Mifune’s bumbling non-samurai who simply wants to prove himself, and one of cinema’s greatest examples of a comedic character turning heroic. Though the film is centered on the preparation for an epic battle, the scene that has truly stuck with me is a confrontation the samurai have with the villagers over old sets of armors, a suggestion the villagers have stolen from dying samurai. This conflict of interest frames the final battle in a cold light, drawing a line between the villagers and samurai nearly as thick as the one between them and the bandits. All in all, Seven Samurai set up a narrative structure that just works; so many stories have followed in its footsteps, but few have the key visual style of Kurosawa. – BleuPanda

Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.

9. The Godfather: Part II (1974) - Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Decade Rank: 4
TSPDT rank: 22
AMF 2012 rank: 10 (up 1)
Score: 1144.95
Votes: 16

Individual Votes:
Dexter: 1/236
OtisRedding: 3/136
Gillingham: 13/229
Michel: 18/242
BleuPanda: 21/222
Midaso: 19/184
whuntva: 37/170
bootsy: 20/87
MrMooney: 48/195
luney6: 17/69
Live in Phoenix: 39/145
Petri: 67/247
Nick: 48/125
Greg: 108/237
bonnielaurel: 116/233
---
MaschineMan: 119/165

Truly standout sequels are few and far between, and those that stand on a similar level to their precursor tend to frame themselves in an entirely new light (whether it be Empire Strikes Back casting itself in darkness after Star Wars was brimming with hope or Aliens flipping the horror of the first film into an action setup). Even rarer than a successful genre film sequel is a dramatic one, but The Godfather: Part II hits all the right notes. What makes it a truly worthy sequel is how it narrows its focus; where the first Godfather was a rather expansive look at a family in crime, Part II offers parallel stories of the father establishing the family we see in the first film and Michael in the present tearing it brutally apart. It is a beautiful study of a rise to power and subsequent moral downfall, as Michael becomes the man he so clearly feared turning into when the series began. – BleuPanda

Only one is a wanderer; two together are always going somewhere.

8. Vertigo (1958) - Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 2
AMF 2012 rank: 14 (up 6)
Score: 1168.83
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
bonnielaurel: 1/233
Dexter: 3/236
whuntva: 3/170
MrMooney: 14/195
Nick: 10/125
Petri: 20/247
OtisRedding: 14/136
BleuPanda: 36/222
Greg: 43/237
Michel: 72/242
Live in Phoenix: 47/145
Midaso: 73/184
Gillingham: 102/229
Chilton: 61/133
---
MaschineMan: 95/165
luney6: 45/69
Nassim: 78/87

Hitchcock's finest film shows a complex character study as well as a compelling mystery. The cinematography and traditional Hitchcockian flair kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. The soundtrack by Bernard Hermann isn't bad, either. - whuntva

I loved it, but I need to re-watch to before I could confirm it to a higher position. I must have been distracted during my viewing. - MaschineMan

A mediocre film. - luney6

This is everything cinema can and should be capable of. Rivets an audience from the opening scene to the grisly end. - MrMooney

A suspense story works best if you feel sympathy for the characters. Hitchcock uses visual techniques like the dolby zoom and color filters to show what's going on in someone's head. Partly the story is told by the recurring motives in Bernard Herrmann's music. James Stewart plays an ordinary guy who struggles with guilt feelings and acrophobia. Kim Novak unites three women inside her: Judy, Madeleine and Carlotta. Make-up and clothes, designed by Edith Head, help to achieve the necessary transformations. - bonnielaurel

Vertigo is the work of a master filmmaker, an auteur, who, not unlike Welles, consistently wrestled with the themes of his own body of work, and on a broader scale the very nature of the cinema itself. It is the ultimate symbol, just like Kane and John Ford’s The Searchers, of how a deeply personal film can be made even within the confines of an extremely commercial and anti-artist system like Hollywood during its Golden Age (and even today in many respects). From the incredible color cinematography to Hitchcock’s expert sense of mise-en-scene to Bernard Herrmann’s haunting score, which invokes no less than Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde, Hitchcock lures us in the first half of the film into a sort of trance, just like Scottie himself, a feeling rarely captured in other films, and then proceeds to shatter our illusions, just like Scottie’s own relationship with his seemingly eternal love comes to a cruel realization. In a way, Hitchcock is trying to suggest the lies, the falsities of the dreams we invest in at the movies. A masterwork of the cinema on all counts. – JimmyJazz

You talkin' to me?

7. Taxi Driver (1976) - Directed by Martin Scorsese

Decade Rank: 3
TSPDT rank: 15
AMF 2012 rank: 11 (up 4)
Score: 1179.51
Votes: 19

Individual Votes:
Midaso: 1/184
Michel: 6/242
luney6: 2/69
bonnielaurel: 8/233
BleuPanda: 18/222
Dexter: 22/236
Greg: 26/237
MrMooney: 26/195
OtisRedding: 22/136
Live in Phoenix: 34/145
Nick: 33/125
Chilton: 38/133
Gillingham: 79/229
---
MaschineMan: 91/165
acroamor: 55/98
bootsy: 52/87
Petri: 164/247
Emilien: 20/28
whuntva: 122/170

Fantastically acted by Robert DeNiro. - luney6

Travis Bickle is an unreliable narrator. We see New York through his eyes. This isolated, unstable person dreams away at the sight of an effervescent tablet. During the famous mirror scene we see his reflection - his pimple is at the wrong side of his face. After the climax a tracking shot moves back to show the track of destruction he has left behind him. Travis Bickle, coincidence or not, is an anagram of "visible track". - bonnielaurel

I once had to write a five page paper purely on the stylistic and technical elements of the final shootout, my first essay in college (apparently a big problem in film studies is people try to write about the narrative and nothing more, so they hit us upfront as hard as they could). It was with this paper that I began to truly understand what makes so many of the best films work. Any director could film the story contained in this scene, but it's Scorsese who uses the right mixture of shadows and light, Scorsese who plays with the saturation. The plot is strong, but it's Scorsese's direction that morphs this moment into one of the most visceral climaxes in cinema; and this is only one scene. - BleuPanda

Taxi Driver is perhaps the best film Scorsese ever made. While I agree that films like Raging Bull, Goodfellas and After Hours, to name a few, could be argued to boast this title, but Taxi Driver simply fits the bill perfectly. At the very least though, Taxi Driver is definitely my favorite Scorsese film, because it was the first film I saw during which I realized how much film as a medium can convey, and how difficult it is to create a perfectly great film.

Taxi Driver is also perhaps one of the greatest character portraits to ever be captured on film (a lot of superlatives, but I promise this is the last one). Robert DeNiro gives the performance of a lifetime once again, as he teams up with Martin Scorsese and Paul Schrader to give us a character who is as unstable as he is calm, as earnest as he is misguided, and scary as he is friendly. It is hard to believe that such a character could actually be crafted, without making him seem inconsistent or resorting to stereotypes, let alone be made to seem so realistic. And yet, this is how people actually often are, and I wouldn't be surprised to find out if I actually knew someone like him, and I feel like a lot of others won't be either.

Now, of course, as stated before, DeNiro's performance is top notch, and a lot of the characterization stems from his actions, facial expressions, and eyes, but equal, and perhaps even more credit goes to the screenplay. I once read somewhere in a review, that here, instead of developing the character by what is visible to us of him, the character is developed by what he sees, and how he sees it to be. This approach leads to us looking at the character as we would at a past version of ourselves, as we know what he is thinking. His interactions with the world are thus thrust into a completely different light.

Also something I would like to comment upon is the cinematography by Michael Chapman, which is also an integral part of creating the character. Notice how the camera wanders away from the character, giving us glimpses of the world as he sees, before going back to him. Notice how it is mostly shot at night. We get the hell that he sees, and where he is coming from, allowing us to sympathize with him a lot more.

There are a lot more things that I would like to talk about. But instead of pushing it, I'll give to you this review by Roger Ebert: http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great ... river-1976.
Makes for some interesting light reading at least.

Edit: Oh, and I now remember where I read the part about the screenplay being inside out and not outside in. Here is what I find to be the greatest review (well this is the last time) online of Taxi Driver: http://www.cosmoetica.com/B928-DES721.htm. – luney6

I don't think there's one word that can describe a man's life.

6. Citizen Kane (1941) - Directed by Orson Welles

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 1
AMF 2012 rank: 19 (up 13)
Score: 1198.74
Votes: 17

Individual Votes:
Dexter: 2/236
BleuPanda: 6/222
OtisRedding: 5/136
Michel: 10/242
Live in Phoenix: 14/145
bonnielaurel: 23/233
whuntva: 17/170
MaschineMan: 20/165
Nassim: 11/87
Greg: 38/237
Petri: 78/247
Nick: 46/125
luney6: 26/69
Gillingham: 98/229
---
MrMooney: 109/195
Midaso: 119/184
Chilton: 110/133

Is only this low on my list because I saw years ago, in a time where I had no idea what real cinema was. I should rewatch it soon. - Chilton

I don't think there's one word that can describe a man's life. - A wonderful film. You can see why it is considered to be the greatest of them all. - MaschineMan

It hasn't dated very well, especially the acting. Unlike, say Bicycle Thieves. - luney6

My local newspaper's movie critic once had a moment of brilliance and stated, Citizen Kane is not the greatest film ever made, because no film is the greatest film ever made -- the Great Films are all great in their own way. Point taken (though God knows I try to rank this stuff anyway). Whether or not it has its Best Movie Ever glow, the film is amazing for its characters’ attempts at putting together a whole person out of various recollections; and of course for its technique, which prompted Orson Welles to share screen credits alongside cinematographer Gregg Toland. I don’t want to give the impression that a film self-consciously concerned with technique is the highest form of filmmaking. But such results are usually at least intriguing, or humorous (like with Kane's famous opening night opera shot). And they can have emotional resonance, too, such as when Kane’s face goes completely dark during his Declaration of Principles speech, or when the boy Kane is playing outside and is suddenly moved to the background in a shot while his fate is decided indoors. Rosebud, ruined for me before I ever saw the film, is still a powerful symbol, as is the idea that fame and power are possibly more of a drug than a cure for dealing with life. – Live in Phoenix

[babydoll]

BleuPanda, just out of curiosity, did you get a good grade on that paper on Taxi Driver? What were some of the highlights you pointed out?

[BleuPanda]

A boy's best friend is his mother.

5. Psycho (1960) - Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 27
AMF 2012 rank: 12 (up 7)
Score: 1215.69
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
bonnielaurel: 9/233
Petri: 12/247
MrMooney: 12/195
whuntva: 13/170
Midaso: 16/184
Dexter: 24/236
MaschineMan: 17/165
Chilton: 15/133
Live in Phoenix: 18/145
OtisRedding: 20/136
BleuPanda: 48/222
Nick: 29/125
Gillingham: 59/229
bootsy: 32/87
Nassim: 32/87
Michel: 120/242
---
Greg: 133/237
Emilien: 25/28

A boy's best friend is his mother. - I have noticed a few high ranking mother-son films on my list. It took me so long to watch this film that by the time I had seen it, I had already watched it several times through homage, pastiche and appropriation. This didn't lessen its impact though. - MaschineMan

This most intensive thriller by Hitchcock is closer to modern horror than many horror films. Even though 99 % of the first time viewers know at least the first spoiler it doesn't diminish the effect of the scene. And the movie isn't even halfway then. During the second viewing the twist in the mood of the film felt even fiercer when in the first third of the movie you pay attention to other things besides waiting for the notorious shower scene. – Petri

The first act is told from the point of view of Marion Crane (Janet Leigh). Her interior monologue in the car goes from memories to imagining what they will say after finding out what she's done. Water is a recurring motive: the rain, the toilet, the shower scene - a brilliant piece of editing combined with the screeching strings of Bernard Herrmann. Anthony Perkins plays motel owner Norman Bates, whose hobby is stuffing birds. It's a psychological thriller, but at the same time it was the basis of a new subgenre of horror: the slasher movie. - bonnielaurel

I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse.

4. The Godfather (1972) - Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Decade Rank: 2
TSPDT rank: 6
AMF 2012 rank: 5 (up 1)
Score: 1227.19
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
OtisRedding: 2/136
bonnielaurel: 5/233
Dexter: 7/236
Michel: 17/242
Gillingham: 19/229
Midaso: 18/184
BleuPanda: 22/222
Live in Phoenix: 16/145
Emilien: 6/28
luney6: 15/69
bootsy: 19/87
Nick: 28/125
MrMooney: 56/195
whuntva: 51/170
Greg: 107/237
acroamor: 45/98
Petri: 114/247
---
MaschineMan: 103/165

The mafia is portrayed as a state with its own hierarchy within the United States . Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) has to choose between the American and the Sicilian ideology. During Gatto's liquidation the Statue of Liberty is standing in the background. Coppola cross-cuts between scenes taking place simultaneously. In the beginning he contrasts the negotiations in a dark room with the wedding party full of light. The most impressive montage is in the end, when the word "godfather" takes on a double meaning. - bonnielaurel

The Godfather is to the Mafia what 2001 is to outer space -- if it's not real, then that's reality's f'ing problem. There have been several presentations of the Mob over the years, but it’s hard to ever shake this one, coming to you from the golden years. I admit that my first viewing, back in high school, did not bowl me over, feeling that it had been consumed by the frenzy of its high praise. Watching it again in recent years, there are things that I notice now that wouldn’t have even been on my mind in high school: the corruptibility of man (starting with the very first character, the man who “believes in America,” one of my favorite performances); a release from powerlessness at all costs, exemplified by Michael’s conversion while keeping his father alive at the hospital; the curious entertainment in viewing two sets of bad people battle it out, a recurrent motif; the strains of nobility, sometimes achieved through moral relativism, with the occasional flash of tremendous cunning -- “What’s the matter with you? … Never tell anyone outside the Family what you are thinking again.” – Live in Phoenix

Open the pod bay doors, HAL.

3. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 3
AMF 2012 rank: 3 (same)
Score: 1312.02
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
Petri: 2/247
Gillingham: 2/229
Chilton: 2/133
Dexter: 5/236
luney6: 3/69
Nick: 12/125
Live in Phoenix: 15/145
Michel: 30/242
MaschineMan: 24/165
acroamor: 16/98
whuntva: 29/170
bonnielaurel: 45/233
BleuPanda: 43/222
Greg: 51/237
bootsy: 22/87
Midaso: 83/184
---
MrMooney: 106/195
Emilien: 21/28

Just what do you think you're doing, Dave? - A film so universal, well researched, and perfectly executed it's pretty much ruined any chance of a space sci-fi being able to top it. - MaschineMan

2001: "This is the work of an artist so sublimely confident that he doesn't include a single shot simply to keep our attention." Roger Ebert

2001 is simply one of the greatest films of the last century. Nearly every single aspect of the film is perfectly designed to complement Kubrick's vision. I'll start with the screenplay and the acting, two of the most important aspects in a movie, yet ones that are not very often talked about (at least to my knowledge) with relation to this film. That is perhaps because the cinematography is, as I find it to be, the most remarked part of the film, and rightly so. But without taking anything away from cinematography, I'd still like to say that the screenplay by Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke (who basically wrote the novel with inputs from the Kubrick) is simply one of the greatest ever penned. Actively dodging cliches, it simply aims to do the most with the least, getting rid of all fluff while thriving with nuances and details that make the events of the film and the characters seem more relatable, while also adding depth. Then you have the acting....oh what a performance every single actor in the film gave. Take as an example a scene which I saw pointed out in another review of the film I read: the scene where Dave asks HAL to open the pod bay doors and to allow him to enter. Watch his face only, where you can see him swallow slowly, before he asks HAL where he got the idea. And this simply one moment in the film. With his eyes alone the actors give a performance that is dripping with sincere realism.
Then , of course, you have in the film, the score, handpicked classical pieces by Kubrick that blend seamlessly with the images, while not detracting, which after all, is, in a few words, the purpose of any film score. Here is a film that is full to the brim with details, each shot so meticulously choreographed by Kubrick to convey his vision. And it is these details that make the film so great. Oh, and it is worth mentioning how futuristic the arrangements seem even today. A critic I know called this film an example of a bottleneck art, which is basically a film that takes all influences before it and changes them in a way that it has an impact on virtually every single art form made post it. Like Walt Whitman in poetry, or movies like Citizen Kane before.

And finally, here is an interesting bonus. Definitely worth reading. http://www.collativelearning.com/2001%2 ... r%202.html – luney6

[BleuPanda]

BleuPanda, just out of curiosity, did you get a good grade on that paper on Taxi Driver? What were some of the highlights you pointed out?

I generally did pretty well on all my papers throughout college, but this specific paper was over four years ago now. I would try to go through the details, but I also haven't watched Taxi Driver since then and recalling specific elements enough to speak in details is a bit difficult after so much time (especially since this predates me paying that much attention).

[Nick]

Well we're down to the sane final two as our 2012 poll. And I think I know which of the two all the voters have seen...

[BleuPanda]

Zed's dead, baby. Zed's dead.

2. Pulp Fiction (1994) - Directed by Quentin Tarantino

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 88
AMF 2012 rank: 1 (down 1)
Score: 1341.22
Votes: 20

Individual Votes:
Nick: 1/125
bootsy: 3/87
MrMooney: 7/195
Petri: 9/247
Gillingham: 10/229
OtisRedding: 9/136
bonnielaurel: 16/233
BleuPanda: 17/222
Michel: 20/242
Chilton: 11/133
MaschineMan: 14/165
Live in Phoenix: 13/145
Midaso: 21/184
whuntva: 48/170
Dexter: 67/236
---
Emilien: 17/28
acroamor: 61/98
luney6: 51/69
Greg: 188/237
Nassim: 79/87

It's the one that says Bad Motherfucker. - A fantastic film that I think the internet is quick to over-rate. - MaschineMan

It tries to have depth, but does't whole heartedly succeed, unfortunately. Far too silly at times, if you may. But still quite entertaining. - luney6

The non-chronological narrative has two advantages: it gives the spectators a puzzle and it makes them understand things after learning what happened before. The title refers to popular books that used to be printed on cheap paper. There are numerous references to old spy stories, comics, TV shows and films. The careless way in which Vince (John Travolta) handles firearms makes you think he fancies himself a hero in one of those old pulp stories. The violence and rude language are part of this shallow, meaningless culture. - bonnielaurel

It’s hard to say why Pulp Fiction is my all-time favorite movie. You want an explanation on why Revolver is my all-time favorite album? Well get ready for a 6,000 word essay. But when it comes to describing my adoration for Pulp Fiction, I’m usually left without any words to say. So here I’ll attempt to touch on the “big reasons” as to why this movie, out of every single movie I’ve ever seen in my lifetime, is my favorite. One: The dialogue is superb. Roger Ebert has an excellent essay on the dialogue in Pulp Fiction, and in it he claims that the reason the dialogue in the movie is so great is because of how economical it is. The dialogue almost always functions on more than one level. Consider the “royale with cheese” piece of dialogue in the movie’s beginning. On one hand it’s a funny, easily quotable piece of dialogue, but it also establishes the fact that Travolta and Jackson’s characters are immensely at ease with what they’re doing. Although they may be hitmen, they aren’t nervous or scared or talking about what’s going to happen when they reach their destination. Instead, they’re so calm about their line of work that they fill their time with talking about what you call hamburgers overseas. The rest of the movie’s dialogue exists in Seinfeldian conversations with an incredibly high level of quotability (“would you ever give a man a foot massage?”), putting Pulp Fiction as one of the top dialogue movies ever in my mind. Two: The use of the non-linear narrative never feels hackneyed or forced, it feels entirely natural. Despite the fact that the movie’s chronology is jumbled up, the viewer never feels lost or confused, they always feel like they know exactly where in the story they are. This use of non-linear narrative could’ve come across as a masturbatory act of filmmaking, but there really are some great reasons why the movie uses it, reasons that enhance the movie and elevate it over a cut with the pieces in the right order. The changes in mood when a certain dead character “comes back to life” when the plot is jumbled up speak for themselves, not to mention the suspense when the end of the movie comes around and you see a couple from the movie’s beginning. The viewer knows, as soon as they see this couple, that something is going to happen between them and the characters of Travolta and Jackson, and as time passes, the suspense is amplified. Three: The atmosphere of the movie is a perfect embodiment of Tarantino’s cartoonified world, a world that seemingly exists parallel to ours, but also somewhat out of sync (trying to establish when exactly Pulp Fiction takes place is always interesting, and the movie’s blend of 50s, 70s, and 90s culture is superb). Pulp Fiction takes its stylistic elements from, well, actual pulp fiction, and combines them with some seriously adroit filmmaking, blurring the line between the “high-brow” and the “low-brow”. It’s a movie that is acutely aware of how much popular culture influences our lives, from the Jack Rabbit Slims scene full of 1950s icons, to the references to Uma Thurman’s character’s failed television pilot, to the small references, like when Jackson’s character says another character has a “Flock of Seagulls” haircut. Tarantino would continue making movies in this cartoonified, pop culture saturated world of his for years to come. But it’s with Pulp Fiction that he perfected the world. Four: Finally, there’s the stuff that you only really catch on repeated viewings. Did you notice how every time Travolta’s character uses the bathroom, something bad happens in the meantime? Did you notice the constant theme of redemption throughout the movie, and the consequences to those who fail to achieve redemption when they’re able to? Did you notice the importance of the weapon Willis chose in the pawn shop as he’s about to descend back into the basement? All these reasons and more are why Pulp Fiction is the greatest movie I’ve seen, and why it’s probably going to win this poll. What a masterpiece. - Nick

The horror… the horror…

1. Apocalypse Now (1979) - Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Decade Rank: 1
TSPDT rank: 11
AMF 2012 rank: 2 (up 1)
Score: 1345.34
Votes: 18

Individual Votes:
Michel: 1/242
Gillingham: 1/229
Chilton: 1/133
bootsy: 1/87
Petri: 6/247
MrMooney: 13/195
luney6: 5/69
Greg: 25/237
Dexter: 30/236
OtisRedding: 18/136
BleuPanda: 32/222
Nick: 27/125
Live in Phoenix: 32/145
whuntva: 46/170
Emilien: 9/28
Midaso: 69/184
MaschineMan: 79/165
---
bonnielaurel: 144/233

The horror of war and the agony of cinema caught on film. The documentary about the making-of, “Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse” is also worth your time. - Chilton

More than any other film, Apocalypse Now shows what war is capable of, for participants, victims, the home front and onlookers. The making of the film itself could be called a war without much exaggeration: the lead actor almost dying of a heart attack, the director suffering a nervous breakdown, the budget running out of control, typhoons destroying entire sets and actual fighting interrupting the shooting [no pun intended]. It's a miracle that the film was actually produced at all, let alone one that is lauded and loved as much as Apocalypse Now is. It's acclaim is even still rising today.

Then why do I think it is such a good film, besides from it being an impressive feat in general. It ticks all the boxes and more with great cinematography (the use of light and darkness), great editing (the opening scene), great acting (Duvall as Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore), great music (Wagner anyone?) and contains a lot of different elements like humour, entertainment, horror, drama, surrealism, philosophy, psychology, history etc. etc. But the real reason I personally like it as much as I do is that I think every second of the film is worth watching and I can watch over again and still be mesmerized. More than that, it shows more of the human condition than practically any other film, while still being utterly cinematic in nature. - Gillingham

[bootsy]

YEAHH!!! That's what I'm talking about.

[whuntva]

I was honestly in shock at seeing Apocalypse Now win. And equally as shocked that it was so close after two runnings of the poll had Pulp Fiction winning by a country mile!

I know the system was different so we were bound for some shakeups. But i was floored nonetheless.

Certainly not complaining. As I said earlier, both those films--as well as seventeen of the Top 20, including all the Top 10--were 10/10 movies. Both Apocalypse Now and Pulp Fiction would be on my ballot if we were doing this the old fashioned way.

Great rollout as usual, BleuPanda. Thank you!

[bootsy]

Thanks Bleu Panda. Great job and very fun.

[bonnielaurel]

Thanks, BleuPanda,

The number 1 is an anticlimax to me, especially because I like the numbers 2 to 8 very much, but that's how it goes in a poll.

It was a great project. You were after us to write these comments, which led to some lively discussion. Your own views on film were very interesting to read.

[Midaso]

Cheers bleupanda,nice presentation.

The final 2 were a bit surprising,I was expecting 2001 to be #1. Pulp Fiction is an interesting one,it scores highly on lists like these,but I don't know where it will end up in the film canon. Right now,it is not even in the top 100 of the prestigious Sight & Sound list,will be interesting to see where it ends up in the next one...

[Dexter]

...and I have to open my big mouth and state, before the roll-out, that Apocalypse Now should have been stricken out of the top 10, c'est la vie haha. As I've said, all are masterpieces and no complaints here. Superb work BluePanda! great pictures and I know you were working hard on the comments. Again, Splendid job!

[Otisredding]

Thank you very much BleuPanda.


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[Gillingham]

Great work BleuPanda! Really nice roll-out and I can easily see all the work you put in it.
I'm also very happy with the top three, great taste AMF!

[luney6]

Yes, thanks for hosting, really good presentation!

I too am (pleasantly) surprised to see Apocalypse Now at 1. That was most definitely unexpected. I agree with Midaso about Pulp Fiction, but Nick, your defense of it was also pretty good. The dialogues, the camera-work, and basically the style overall in that film is top notch.

[BleuPanda]

Apocalypse Now was so exciting to see, especially since it didn't happen until the very last list was added (just look at how close the scores are).

[Nick]

I'm surprised (and a little let down) that Pulp Fiction didn't win, but second place is still fantastic and Apocalypse Now is such a great movie.

A million thanks to you, BleuPanda for hosting the poll! Your hard work and level of care are extraordinarily evident here.

[Petri]

Thanks a lot BleuPanda. Great presentation and great comments (you really put your time to write them (thanks for the all others too who wrote comments)). I liked a lot of the very well chosen quotes and pictures. They reminded how many great movies we had in this list. Thanks again.

In the straight poll Pulp Fiction would have won but Apocalypse Now had only one bottom half voter (and four (!!) #1 voters) when Pulp Fiction had two bottom quarter voters. The top 3 were in a league of their own (just like last time) (and top 2 were very close to each other (not like last time)).

1. Apocalypse Now 1345.34
2. Pulp Fiction 1341.22
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey 1312.02
4. The Godfather 1227.19

[Nick]

Well with the list all presented, I think it's time for a couple top tens...

Top ten movies I haven't seen...

23. It's a Wonderful Life
38. Magnolia
40. The Great Dictator
42. The Rules of the Game
45. Wings of Desire
50. Bicycle Thieves
52. Tokyo Story
56. Freaks
57. Come and See
58. The Gold Rush

Top ten movies that didn't make the list (numbers on the left corresponding to the film's placement on my all-time list)...

13. The Truman Show
23. The Dark Knight
25. Toy Story
26. The Incredibles
29. American Psycho
31. Princess Mononoke
35. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
36. Hot Fuzz
49. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
50. Blazing Saddles