Some of my friends over on Facebook in recent days have tried to break pandemic boredom by choosing their 100 Greatest Movies of All-Time, and launched several terrific (overall) lists. Of course, I disagreed with many of the selections. I usually don't like to join in these things (ditto for best songs or musical artists), as many deteriorate into mere "favorites" as opposed to some kind of aesthetic judgement on "greatest."
Still, I am offering below, for your approval or confusion or condemnation, a quick list of 45 or so “greatest” with caveats that 1) I've ruled out any from the past ten years (too soon) 2) my taste tends to be more serious/political than the norm and 3) this was done spur of the moment so it’s far from definitive.
Note further that even in my yearly Ten Bests, I make distinctions between the very entertaining (I like Bull Durham and Groundhog Day as much as anyone but not as cinematic art) and what I consider elevated artistry and writing. Also note: some classic films I have not seen in so long I have lost the ability to peg them as "great" or "greatest." Missing, for example, are Rules of the Game, Serpico and so much in-between (Truffaut, Bergman, Fellini etc.)
First, a few eclectic songs from movies…and PLEASE in comments add your own picks or disagree with mine. Also, subscribe, it’s still free…
Glen Hansard, from Once.
Jerry Lee Lewis from High School Confidential.
Beethoven’s Ninth, A Clockwork Orange.
“As Time Goes By,” from Casablanca.
The Beatles, from Help!
Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday, New Orleans.
The Byrds doing Carole King’s “Wasn’t Born to Follow” in Easy Rider.
And Now the Envelope….
Here’s my tentative list, in no particular order. By the time you read this I will want to add and subtract (how could I pick THAT), but here goes….
Paths of Glory
Ikiru
The Third Man
Night of the Hunter
Battle of Algiers
Schindler's List
The Godfather
Dr. Strangelove
The Lives of Others
All the President's Men
Army of Shadows (Melville)
Ran
Bloody Sunday (Greengrass)
Chinatown
On The Waterfront
Streetcar Named Desire
A Separation (Farhadi)
Dog Day Afternoon
Napoleon (Gance)
Casablanca
The Life of Oharu
Grapes of Wrath
Hud
Treasure of Sierra Madre
The Quiet American (Michael Caine version)
From Here to Eternity
Seven Samurai
Julius Caesar (Brando, Gielgud etc.)
Burn
Badlands
Citizen Kane
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Human Condition
Taxi Driver
Battleship Potemkin
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Vengeance is Mine (Imamura)
North By Northwest
The Rules of the Game
Stray Dog
The Killing Fields
Waltz With Bashir
Don’t Look Back
They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
The General
Silence of the Lambs
Wag the Dog
Not on the list, but recognizing just a few comedies here: The Life of Brian, Modern Times, Spinal Tap, Groundhog Day, Philadelphia Story, Duck Soup, The Producers, Women on the Verge, In the Loop, Bob Roberts, A Fish Called Wanda, etc.
Great list. Here are my additions:
Boogie Nights
Pixote
Breathless (Goddard)
Y tu mama tambien
Out of the Past
McCabe and Mrs Miller