Top Films of the Decades

A list of my top 10 films from every decade (1930s-2000s):

2000s
01. The Fountain (2006, Darren Aronofsky)
02. Requiem for a Dream (2000, Darren Aronofsky)
03. Lost in Translation (2003, Sofia Coppola)
04. The Departed (2006, Martin Scorsese)
05. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001, Peter Jackson)
06. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michael Gondry)
07. The Aviator (2004, Martin Scorsese)
08. Catch Me If You Can (2002, Steven Spielberg)
09. Donnie Darko (2001, Richard Kelly)
10. Punch-Drunk Love (2002, Paul Thomas Anderson)

1990s
01. Titanic (1997, James Cameron)
02. GoodFellas (1990, Martin Scorsese)
03. Heat (1995, Michael Mann)
04. American Beauty (1999, Sam Mendes)
05. Casino (1995, Martin Scorsese)
06. Pi (1998, Darren Aronofsky)
07. Fight Club (1999, David Fincher)
08. Eyes Wide Shut (1999, Stanley Kubrick)
09. Pulp Fiction (1994, Quentin Tarantino)
10. The Godfather Part III (1990, Francis Ford Coppola)

1980s
01. Raging Bull (1980, Martin Scorsese)
02. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981, Steven Spielberg)
03. Scarface (1983, Brian De Palma)
04. Once Upon a Time in America (1984, Sergio Leone)
05. Dead Poets Society (1989, Peter Weir)
06. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989, Steven Spielberg)
07. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986, Woody Allen)
08. Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986, John Hughes)
09. The Shining (1980, Stanley Kubrick)
10. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982, Steven Spielberg)

1970s
01. Taxi Driver (1976, Martin Scorsese)
02. The Godfather (1972, Francis Ford Coppola)
03. The Godfather Part II (1974, Francis Ford Coppola)
04. Apocalypse Now (1979, Francis Ford Coppola)
05. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975, Milos Forman)
06. The Deer Hunter (1978, Michael Cimino)
07. Manhattan (1979, Woody Allen)
08. Dog Day Afternoon (1975, Sidney Lumet)
09. The Exorcist (1973, William Friedkin)
10. The Last Picture Show (1971, Peter Bogdanovich)

1960s
01. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962, Robert Mulligan)
02. Psycho (1960, Alfred Hitchcock)
03. The Graduate (1967, Mike Nichol)
04. Lawrence of Arabia (1962, David Lean)
05. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, Stanley Kubrick)
06. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968, Sergio Leone)
07. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962, Robert Aldrich)
08. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964, Stanley Kubrick)
09. In the Heat of the Night (1967, Norman Jewison)
10. The Great Escape (1963, John Sturges)

1950s
01. On the Waterfront (1954, Elia Kazan)
02. 12 Angry Men (1957, Sidney Lumet)
03. East of Eden (1955, Elia Kazan)
04. Rebel without a Cause (1955, Nicholas Ray)
05. Dial M for Murder (1954, Alfred Hitchcock)
06. A Place in the Sun (1951, George Stevens)
07. Wild Strawberries (1957, Ingmar Bergman)
08. Strangers on a Train (1951, Alfred Hitchcock)
09. Touch of Evil (1958, Orson Welles)
10. From Here to Eternity (1953, Fred Zinnemann)

1940s
01. Citizen Kane (1941, Orson Welles)
02. Call Northside 777 (1948, Henry Hathaway)
03. Casablanca (1942, Michael Curtiz)
04. The Maltese Falcon (1941, John Huston)
05. It's a Wonderful Life (1946, Frank Capra)
06. Rope (1948, Alfred Hitchcock)
07. Scarlet Street (1945, Fritz Lang)
08. All the King's Men (1949, Robert Rossen)
09. The Lady from Shanghai (1948, Orson Welles)
10. The Grapes of Wrath (1940, John Ford)

1930s
01. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939, Frank Capra)
02. Gone with the Wind (1939, Victor Fleming)
03. M (1931, Fritz Lang)
04. Frankenstein (1931, James Whale)
05. Scarface: The Shame of the Nation (1932, Howard Hawks)
06. King Kong (1933, Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Schoedsack)
07. The 39 Steps (1935, Alfred Hitchcock)
08. The Lady Vanishes (1938, Alfred Hitchcock)
09. Sabotage (1936, Alfred Hitchcock)
10. The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934, Alfred Hitchcock)

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Yike!

You have set a high bar - except for a very few I haven't seen, I agree with almost all your choices.

Hmm, I must prepare some alternatives with arguments to support 'em. Watch this space.

Cool lists. I'll have to go update mine so I can put them up.

I have this question though: have you not seen a lot of movies from the 30s? Just asking because it seems a little odd for Hitchcock to so dominate the early years of your lists.

I have that problem with the 20s. I can easilly do a top ten for that decade but it'll be hard not to make it just a list of my favorite Buster Keaton films.

Great lists, for sure... We have very similar tastes...

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1930s

"You still think it's beautiful to die for your country? The first
bombardment taught us better. When it comes to dying
for country, it's better not to die at all."
1. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930 - Lewis Milestone)
2. Grand Illusion (1937 - Jean Renoir)
3. Bringing Up Baby (1938 - Howard Hawks)
4. The Roaring Twenties (1939 - Raoul Walsh)
5. Public Enemy (1931 - William Wellman)
6. The Rules of the Game (1939 - Jean Renoir)
7. Modern Times (1936 - Charlie Chaplin)
8. Bride of Frankenstein (1935 - James Whale)
9. The Informer (1935 - John Ford)
10. M (1931 - Fritz Lang)
11. Ninotchka (1939 - Ernst Lubitsch)
12. It Happened One Night (1934 - Frank Capra)


1940s

"I'd like to think you killed a man; it's the romantic in me."
1. Casablanca (1943 - Michael Curtiz)
2. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948 - John Huston)
3. His Girl Friday (1940 - Howard Hawks)
4. Notorious (1946 - Hitchcock)
5. Gaslight (1944 - George Cukor)
6. The Great Dictator (1940 - Charlie Chaplin)
7. Citizen Kane (1941 - Orson Welles)
8. Unfaithfully Yours (1948 - Preston Sturges)
9. Rebecca (1940 - Hitchcock)
10. The Third Man (1949 - Carol Reed)
11. The Ox-Bow Incident (1943 - William Wellman)
12. The Life & Death of Colonel Blimp (1943 - Powell & Pressburger)


1950s

"We all want to forget something, so we tell stories. It's
easier that way. "
1. Rashômon (1950 - Akira Kurosawa)
2. North by Northwest (1959 - Alfred Hictchcock)
3. Paths of Glory (1957 -Kubrick)
4. Singin' in the Rain (1952 - Stanley Donen & Gene Kelly)
5. The Seventh Seal (1957 - Ingmar Bergman)
6. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957 - David Lean)
7. The 400 Blows (1959 - François Truffaut)
8. In A Lonely Place (1950 - Nicholas Ray)
9. Sunset Blvd. (1950 - Billy Wilder)
10. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956 - Don Siegel)
11. The Killing (1956 - Kubrick)
12. All About Eve (1950 - Joseph L. Mankiewicz)


1960s

"I pray that I may never see the desert again.
Hear me, God."
1. Lawrence of Arabia (1962 - David Lean)
2. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964 - Stanley Kubrick)
3. Once Upon A Time in the West (1969 - Sergio Leone)
4. Jules & Jim (1961 - François Truffaut)
5. Psycho (1960 - Alfred Hitchcock)
6. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968 - Stanley Kubrick)
7. Chimes at Midnight (1966 - Orson Welles)
8. King of Hearts (1966 - Philippe de Broca)
9. The Wild Bunch (1969 - Sam Peckinpah)
10. The Graduate (1967 - Mike Nichols)
11. A Thousand Clowns (1965 - Fred Coe)
12. Rosemary's Baby (1968 - Roman Polanski)



Stay tuned for 1970-today...

__________________
"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

I'm sure you might have already considered this, but you've got these two the other way around in your Favorite Movies list.

Can't wait for the rest of your list, Holds. I'll do mine soon.

Yeah, I go back on forth on those two. Kind of depends which one I've seen more recently. I had just rewatched Strangelove a couple of days before I did that "top movies" thingie. Two and three or three and two: they're a couple of the very best movies ever made in the history of cinema, for me.

Holden's list is sick. I want to just sit down and watch all of those in order...

1970s

"Hold it there, Kitty-Cat!"
1. Chinatown (1974 - Roman Polanski)
2. Taxi Driver (1976 - Martin Scorsese)
3. Nashville (1975 - Robert Altman)
4. The Godfather (1972 - Francis Ford Coppola)
5. A Clockwork Orange (1971 - Stanley Kubrick)
6. Jaws (1975 - Steven Spielberg)
7. Little Big Man (1970 - Arthur Penn)
8. The Man Who Would Be King (1975 - John Huston)
9. Solaris (1972 - Adrei Tarkovsky)
10. The Long Goodbye (1973 - Robert Altman)
11. Aguirre: Wrath of God (1972 - Werner Herzog)
12. The Conformist (1971 - Bernardo Bertolucci)


1980s

"It's too bad she won't live! Then again, who does?"
1. BladeRunner (1982 - Ridley Scott)
2. Do the Right Thing (1989 - Spike Lee)
3. Raging Bull (1980 - Martin Scorsese)
4. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981 - Steven Spielberg)
5. The Last Temptation of Christ (1988 - Martin Scorsese)
6. Amadeus (1984 - Milos Forman)
7. RAN (1985 - Akira Kurosawa)
8. After Hours (1985 - Martin Scorsese)
9. Bird (1988 - Clint Eastwood)
10. Brazil (1985 - Terry Gilliam)
11. Once Upon A Time in America (1984 - Sergio Leone)
12. Paris, Texas (1984 - Wim Wenders)


1990s

"As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster."
1. GoodFellas (1990 - Martin Scorsese)
2. Unforgiven (1992 - Clint Eastwood)
3. Miller's Crossing (1990 - Joel & Ethan Coen)
4. Fearless (1993 - Peter Weir)
5. A Perfect World (1993 - Clint Eastwood)
6. Rushmore (1998 - Wes Anderson)
7. Eyes Wide Shut (1999 - Stanley Kubrick)
8. Hamlet (1996 - Kenneth Branagh)
9. The Thin Red Line (1998 - Terrence Malick)
10. SE7EN (1995 - David Fincher)
11. Short Cuts (1993 - Robert Altman)
12. 12 Monkeys (1995 - Terry Gilliam)


2000s (THUS FAR)

"You haven't seen elephants, kings or Peru!
I'm happy to say I had better to do
What about China? Have you seen the Great Wall?
All walls are great, if the roof doesn't fall!"
1. Dancer in the Dark (2000 - Lars von Trier)
2. Amélie (2001 - Jean-Pierre Jeunet)
3. The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2006 - Tommy Lee Jones)
4. Memento (2001 - Christopher Nolan)
5. Dogville (2003 - Lars von Trier)
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004 - Michel Gondry)
7. Wonder Boys (2000 - Curtis Hanson)
8. Talk to Her (2002 - Pedro Almodóvar)
9. Adaptation (2002 - Spike Jonze)
10. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001 - Wes Anderson)
11. O' Brother, Where Art Thou? (2001 - Coen Brothers)
12. Lost in Translation (2003 - Sofia Coppola)


Those last twelve are a lot more fluid, as I'll still have a few years to iron it out and hopefully there are many more masterpieces to come.

Yeah, I haven't seen a whole lot of 1930s films yet, but there are definitely more of them that I'd like to expose myself to.

Yeah man, I noticed.

Curious about some of your placement, Holden.

Knowing your dedication and admiration for Scorsese, I was surprised to see you place Lee's Do The Right Thing ahead of Raging Bull, which is, IMO, one of the best films ever made. Not my favorite Marty flick, but I do consider it his masterwork. Not bashing Lee's masterwork here, as I love it, too; I am just wondering about the placement.

Also, was quite surprised to see Se7en beat out Short Cuts, a film I have grown to love due to your recommendation. Again, just thinking of the dedication to some of Bob's work that you have, and I thought Short Cuts was one of your favs... Didn't realize you held Se7en so highly.

Now to the Sixties. I'm limiting the amount I can list the same director to twice overall, once per decade. Otherwise the lists would be a little different.

2000s
No Such Thing (Hal Hartley)
2046 (Kar Wai Wong)
The Pledge (Sean Penn)
The New World (Terrence Malick)
Heaven (Tom Tykwer)
The Claim (Michael Winterbottom)
Ratatouille (Brad Bird)
Gosford Park (Robert Altman)
Talk to Her (Pedro Almodovar)
Sex and Lucia (Julio Medem)

1990s
The Thin Red Line (Terrence Malick)
Prospero's Books (Peter Greenaway)
The Blade (Hark Tsui)
Arizona Dream (Emir Kusturica)
The Straight Story (David Lynch)
Limbo (John Sayles)
Sonatine (Takeshi Kitano)
The Limey (Stephen Soderbergh)
Henry Fool (Hal Hartley)
Sweet and Lowdown (Woody Allen)

1980s
Akira (Katsuhiro Otomo)
Black Rain (Shohei Imamura)
Blade Runner (Ridley Scott)
My Dinner With Andre (Louis Malle)
Repo Man (Alex Cox)
Tampopo (Juzo Itami)
The French Lieutenant's Woman (Karel Reisz)
Videodrome (David Cronenberg)
Ran (Akira Kurosawa)
Full Metal Jacket (Stanley Kubrick)

1970s
The Muppet Movie (James Frawley)
Aguirre (Werner Herzog)
Picnic at Hanging Rock (Peter Weir)
The Battle of Kerzhenets (Yuri Norstein)
Brewster McCloud (Robert Altman)
Annie Hall (Woody Allen)
A Walk Through H (Peter Greenaway)
Alien (Ridley Scott)
Taxi Driver (Martin Scorcese)
My Brilliant Career (Gillian Armstrong)

1960s
Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean)
Woman in the Dunes (Hiroshi Teshigahara)
2001 (Stanley Kubrick)
Profound Desire of the Gods (Shohei Imamura)
8 1/2 (Frederico Fellini)
The Trial (Orson Welles)
Branded to Kill (Seijun Suzuki)
Easy Rider (Dennis Hopper)
Andrei Rublev (Andrei Tarkovsky)
Rosemary's Baby (Roman Polanski)

Man, I love all of Terrence Malick's films. Glad to see another fan of The New World... it was one of the most mindblowing theater experiences I've ever had. And Taxi Driver, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Annie Hall are damn good choices too. I haven't seen a lot of the others.

Malik is the man. I like all his (rather small) catalog of films that I have seen. Still need to see Days of Heaven...

Days of Heaven is his best film (in my opinion), but my favorite is Badlands. The cinematography in Days of Heaven is signature Malick - breathtaking.

Ehhh. I dont think the 90's and 2000's arent what they should be on your list. But some of them are worthy I guess.

And your list is what, then?

1. The Rules of the Game (1939)
2. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
3. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
4. Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)
5. City Lights (1931)
6. The Grand Illusion (1937)
7. Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
8. Modern Times (1936)
9. Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
10. M (1931)

1. Casablanca (1942)
2. Citizen Kane (1941)
3. Double Indemnity (1944)
4. The Maltese Falcon (1941)
5. Fort Apache (1948)
6. Rebecca (1940)
7. The Bicycle Thief (1948)
8. The Bank Dick (1940)
9. Kiss of Death (1947)
10. Mark of Zorro (1940)

1. The Searchers (1956)
2. The Seven Samurai (1954)
3. Some Like it Hot (1959)
4. North by Northwest (1959)
5. Rashomon (1950)
6. Ugestsu (1953)
7. Rear Window (1954)
8. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
9. The Quiet Man (1952)
10. Vertigo (1958)

1. Dr. Strangelove or : How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
2. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
3. The Producers (1968)
4. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
5. The Wild Bunch (1969)
6. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
7. In the Heat of the Night (1967)
8. Le Samourai (1967)
9. La Dolce Vita (1960)
10. Shoot the Piano Player (1960)

1. Godfather (1972)
2. Godfather 2 (1974)
3. Chinatown (1974)
4. Jaws (1975)
5. Star Wars (1977)
6. The Conversation (1974)
7. All the President's Men (1976)
8. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
9. One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
10. Apocalypse Now (1979)

1. Jean de Florette (1986)
2. Blade Runner (1982)
3. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
4. Rain Man (1988)
5. Raging Bull (1980)
6. Do the Right Thing (1989)
7. Amadeus (1984)
8. Ran (1985)
9. Cinema Paradiso (1988)
10. Manon of the Spring (1986)

1. Unforgiven (1992)
2. Goodfellas (1990)
3. Last of the Mohicans(1992)
4. Malcolm X (1992)
5. Schindler's List (1993)
6. Fargo (1996)
7. L.A. Confidential (1997)
8. Dead Man (1995)
9. Miller's Crossing (1990)
10. Reservoir Dogs (1992)

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"Those are my principles. If you don't like them I have others."- Groucho Marx