John Connor's Top 250 of All Time

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Welcome to John Connor's favorite / best films of all time top 250 countdown.

This list has been in development for a long time, ever since imdb first introduced the listing option.
To make it easier on myself I made separate lists for animated movies, documentaries and musicals so they won't be included here.
The write ups on the selected films will vary from no comment to very short to full review.
English is my third language so please excuse any mistakes.


Some criteria I based my selections on:

Cultural, Historical and Aesthetic significance
Acting / Casting / Directing
Soundtrack / Score / Sound FX
Re-watch-ability / Replay value
Title sequence design / opening and end credit typography
Nostalgia
Story





Now, get some refreshments, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.







__________________
“Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!” ~ Rocky Balboa



#250

Smoke 1995

1h 52min | Comedy | Drama
Director: Wayne Wang
Writer: Paul Auster
Stars: Harvey Keitel, William Hurt, Giancarlo Esposito, Ashley Judd, Stockard Channing, Forest Whitaker, Victor Argo and Jared Harris.


tagline: "Where there’s smoke…There’s laughter!"
Cool, unique and laid back. Set in New York with a great diverse cast of stars.
To my surprise this film is not rated yet on movieforums.
So, maybe this post leads to some members discovering this chill and fun 90's Miramax flick.


(Stockard Channing with eye-patch)



I've watched Smoke once a long time ago. Can't remember much of it. I remember it being a more mature version of Clerks, which is a much better film.



28 days...6 hours...42 minutes...12 seconds
First one up, never heard of it. I'm liking the list already.
__________________
"A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it's the only weapon we have."

Suspect's Reviews



#249

Major League 1989

1h 47min | Comedy | Sport
Director: David S. Ward
Stars: Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen, Wesley Snipes, James Gammon, Dennis Haysbert

Re-watched Major League recently for the sports film tournament, and it's still as FUN as it was back in '89. Classic story of a baseball team on a major losing streak. Now the club relies on a few almost retired old-timers and some young talented but hard to handle baseball bad boys to save the day. #Winning.



# 248

Minority Report 2002

2h 25min | Action | Crime | Mystery
Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Max von Sydow



Recently reviewed for the
The 2nd Science Fiction Hall of Fame


# 247

Contact 1997

2h 30min | Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Stars: Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Skerritt, James Woods, John Hurt, Angela Bassett, Rob Lowe


# 246

12 Monkeys 1995

2h 9min | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller
Director: Terry Gilliam
Stars: Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt



# 245
Romeo and Juliet 1968

2h 18min | Drama | Romance
Director: Franco Zeffirelli
Stars: Leonard Whiting, Olivia Hussey, John McEnery

Saw Romeo and Juliet on TV for the first time back in the eighties when I was still a young n.
It was my first introduction to Shakespeare, the concept of romance and Olivia Husseys cleavage




It was my first introduction to Shakespeare, the concept of romance and Olivia Husseys cleavage
One doesn’t usually see Shakespeare & cleavage in the same sentence.
__________________
I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.



# 244
The Leopard, Il Gattopardo 1963

3h 6min | Drama | History
Director: Luchino Visconti
Stars: Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon, Claudia Cardinale

Style-isimo..!
Great scenery, locations, set design, costume design, and steamy love affairs.
Burt Lancaster, with a baws performance!
Some overacting by Cardinale, but who cares?, it's Claudia Cardinale




I applaud this ambitious project - wow 250 movies ! I also liked the introductory dancing popcorns - nice touch.

So I will sit back in my reserved seat - and enjoy the countdown. Glad to see Contact on the list.



# 243
Spotlight 2015

2h 9min Biography | Crime| Drama
Director: Tom McCarthy
Stars: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, John Slattery

# 242
Wag the Dog 1997

1h 37min | Comedy | Drama
Director: Barry Levinson
Stars: Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Anne Heche, Woody Harrelson, Denis Leary, Willie Nelson


# 241
The Green Mile 1999

3h 9min | Crime | Drama | Fantasy
Director: Frank Darabont
Stars: Tom Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan, David Morse, Sam Rockwell



Of the ones you put so far, the only one I've seen is Minority Report, which is great.



# 240
JFK 1991

12 | 3h 9min | Drama | History | Thriller
Director: Oliver Stone
Stars: Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Jack Lemmon, Tommy Lee Jones, Kevin Bacon, Michael Rooker, Laurie Metcalf, Sissy Spacek, Joe Pesci, John Candy, Walter Matthau, Sally Kirkland, Donald Sutherland, Ed Asner, Vincent D'Onofrio


"It's a mystery wrapped in a riddle inside an enigma."
~Joe Pesci paraphrasing Winston Churchill

One of the biggest murder mystery stories internationally, with an absolutely huge all star cast.

# 239
The Ghost Writer 2010

2h 8min | Drama | Mystery | Thriller
Director: Roman Polanski
Stars: Ewan McGregor, Rambond, Kim Cattrall, Olivia Williams, Tom Wilkinson, Timothy Hutton, Jon Bernthal, Eli Wallach, James Belushi

Clever political thriller, (seemingly inspired by British Prime Minister Blair).
If you enjoy suspense, this is your movie.

# 238
Hotel Rwanda 2004

2h 1min | Biography | Drama | History
Director: Terry George
Stars: Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Nick Nolte, Fana Mokoena, Joaquin Phoenix, Jean Reno

Based on true events. Was expecting a really sad, gloomy, slow and dramatic film. But the way the story unfolds and the way it was presented made it a very exciting, action packed and strong film.
The process of a common person who turns into a hero when humanity cries for help is always a beautiful thing to see. Excellent performance by Don Cheadle.



I need to see Hotel Rwanda after watching the terrific Hotel Mumbai.



I need to see Hotel Rwanda after watching the terrific Hotel Mumbai.
Haven't seen it yet, heard good things about it.
Reading the review, there are quite some similarities with Hotel Rwanda.





# 237

Saturday Night Fever 1977

1h 58min | Drama | Dance |
Director: John Badham
Stars: John Travolta, Karen Lynn Gorney, Barry Miller

#SWAG



# 236
Chocolat 2000

2h 1min | Drama | Romance
Director: Lasse Hallström
Stars: Juliette Binoche Alfred Molina, Johnny Depp, Judi Dench, Carrie-Anne Moss, Peter Stormare



# 235
The Goonies1985

1h 54min | Adventure | Comedy | Family
Director: Richard Donner
Stars: Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen