All-Time Greatest Movies
by stephanieericsson | created - 09 Feb 2016 | updated - 21 May 2016 | PublicGreat works of art change you. They crawl inside of you so that, years later, you still remember them clearly. I don't claim these are 'THE definitive list'. This list says more about me, personally, which is always true with these lists. I include only films that I believe deserve 10 stars. And, as always, it is ever in progress.
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1. Out of Africa (1985)
PG | 161 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
In 20th-century colonial Kenya, a Danish baroness/plantation owner has a passionate love affair with a free-spirited big-game hunter.
Director: Sydney Pollack | Stars: Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Michael Kitchen
Votes: 86,260 | Gross: $87.10M
Few movies get it right on multiple levels, and rarer still is the movie that is perfect pitch. From Streep's and Redford's performances, to the stunning cinematography, to the brilliant script of Kurt Luedtke, the masterful direction of Sydney Pollack and finally, to the themes it explores, Out of Africa is a true American magnum opus.
2. The Intouchables (2011)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama
After he becomes a quadriplegic from a paragliding accident, an aristocrat hires a young man from the projects to be his caregiver.
Directors: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano | Stars: François Cluzet, Omar Sy, Anne Le Ny, Audrey Fleurot
Votes: 928,119 | Gross: $13.18M
Friendship can come from the most unlikely matches. In the face of grief, no pity is most humane, particularly when served up with humor.
3. Snatch (2000)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Crime
Unscrupulous boxing promoters, violent bookmakers, a Russian gangster, incompetent amateur robbers and supposedly Jewish jewelers fight to track down a priceless stolen diamond.
Director: Guy Ritchie | Stars: Jason Statham, Brad Pitt, Stephen Graham, Vinnie Jones
Votes: 909,919 | Gross: $30.33M
Likely the most irreverent, funniest movie I ever seen.
4. The Mission (1986)
PG | 125 min | Adventure, Drama, History
Eighteenth-century Spanish Jesuits try to protect a remote South American tribe in danger of falling under the rule of pro-slavery Portugal.
Director: Roland Joffé | Stars: Robert De Niro, Jeremy Irons, Ray McAnally, Aidan Quinn
Votes: 65,640 | Gross: $17.22M
Achingly beautiful film about sins, corruption, innocence and redemption. With perhaps the most beautiful soundtrack, tour de force performances, genius direction by Roland Joffé and a sterling script by writer Robert Bolt, The Mission is a rare masterpiece.
5. Monsters, Inc. (2001)
G | 92 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
In order to power the city, monsters have to scare children so that they scream. However, the children are toxic to the monsters, and after a child gets through, two monsters realize things may not be what they think.
Directors: Pete Docter, David Silverman, Lee Unkrich | Stars: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Mary Gibbs, Steve Buscemi
Votes: 977,876 | Gross: $289.92M
I can truthfully say that I have seen this movie more than any other in my life by virtue of being a mother and grandmother, so I can say, as an expert, that this movie never gets old. It is funny, sweet, brilliantly animated with the cleverest plot in children's stories.
6. The Revenant (I) (2015)
R | 156 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A frontiersman on a fur trading expedition in the 1820s fights for survival after being mauled by a bear and left for dead by members of his own hunting team.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Will Poulter, Domhnall Gleeson
Votes: 873,422 | Gross: $183.64M
Took away my breath.
7. Chariots of Fire (1981)
PG | 125 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
Two British track athletes, one a determined Jew and the other a devout Christian, are driven to win in the 1924 Olympics as they wrestle with issues of pride and conscience.
Director: Hugh Hudson | Stars: Ben Cross, Ian Charleson, Nicholas Farrell, Nigel Havers
Votes: 65,823 | Gross: $58.97M
Life's purpose is found in the talent God gave us.
8. Swept Away (1974)
R | 114 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A trip into the Mediterranean sea becomes a trip into the discovery of how society's frameworks of the rich and poor are delicate and temporary.
Director: Lina Wertmüller | Stars: Giancarlo Giannini, Mariangela Melato, Riccardo Salvino, Isa Danieli
Votes: 6,775
If you have not experienced Italian director, Lina Wertmuller, I highly recommend you remedy that. This one is my favorite. Resist the urge to judge its political correctness for it will transcend that. What I think Wertmuller is saying here is, if we all could exist in a bubble, free from our roles as men & women, rich or poor, bourgeoisie or proletariat, what is our most natural relationship with each other?
9. The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)
R | 129 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A retired legal counselor writes a novel hoping to find closure for one of his past unresolved homicide cases and for his unreciprocated love with his superior - both of which still haunt him decades later.
Director: Juan José Campanella | Stars: Ricardo Darín, Soledad Villamil, Pablo Rago, Carla Quevedo
Votes: 222,185 | Gross: $6.39M
I do not understand why anyone would re-make a masterpiece. Don't bother with the new remake just out.
10. The Killing Fields (1984)
R | 141 min | Biography, Drama, History
A journalist is trapped in Cambodia during tyrant Pol Pot's bloody 'Year Zero' cleansing campaign, which claimed the lives of two million 'undesirable' civilians.
Director: Roland Joffé | Stars: Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor, John Malkovich, Julian Sands
Votes: 59,066 | Gross: $34.70M
I cried every time I thought of this film for weeks after seeing it. Even 32 years later, I can instantly recall how this movie changed me.
11. 1900 (1976)
Unrated | 317 min | Drama, History
The epic tale of a class struggle in twentieth-century Italy as seen through the eyes of two childhood friends on opposing sides.
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci | Stars: Robert De Niro, Gérard Depardieu, Dominique Sanda, Francesca Bertini
Votes: 27,269
Amazing performances by Burt Lancaster, Donald Sutherland, Sterling Hayden, Gérard Depardieu, Robert De Niro under the brilliant direction of Bertolucci, cinematography by Vittorio Storaro, Music by Ennio Morricone. This is a classic that stands up today as powerfully as it did when it was released in 1976
12. The New World (2005)
PG-13 | 135 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of the English exploration of Virginia, and of the changing world and loves of Pocahontas.
Director: Terrence Malick | Stars: Colin Farrell, Q'orianka Kilcher, Christopher Plummer, Christian Bale
Votes: 89,760 | Gross: $12.71M
Joy and innocence as never depicted before. For days afterward, I felt this film, even as I slept.
13. The Thin Red Line (1998)
R | 170 min | Drama, History, War
Adaptation of James Jones' autobiographical 1962 novel, focusing on the conflict at Guadalcanal during the second World War.
Director: Terrence Malick | Stars: Jim Caviezel, Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Kirk Acevedo
Votes: 199,444 | Gross: $36.40M
14. Dead Poets Society (1989)
PG | 128 min | Comedy, Drama
Maverick teacher John Keating returns in 1959 to the prestigious New England boys' boarding school where he was once a star student, using poetry to embolden his pupils to new heights of self-expression.
Director: Peter Weir | Stars: Robin Williams, Robert Sean Leonard, Ethan Hawke, Josh Charles
Votes: 544,978 | Gross: $95.86M
There are some people and some ideas which will change you forever.
15. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
G | 149 min | Adventure, Sci-Fi
After uncovering a mysterious artifact buried beneath the Lunar surface, a spacecraft is sent to Jupiter to find its origins: a spacecraft manned by two men and the supercomputer HAL 9000.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter
Votes: 718,716 | Gross: $56.95M
Eerily presaged what is happening now as artificial intelligence catches up to human intelligence and then surpasses us. Visually and musically spectacular. Kubrick's magnum opus.
16. As Good as It Gets (1997)
PG-13 | 139 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A single mother and waitress, a misanthropic author, and a gay artist form an unlikely friendship after the artist is assaulted in a robbery.
Director: James L. Brooks | Stars: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, Cuba Gooding Jr.
Votes: 318,150 | Gross: $148.48M
Nicholson's best performance. Every character was more genuine than most real people I've met in my long life. A perfect film on every level.
17. The Dresser (2015 TV Movie)
TV-14 | 105 min | Drama
A drama, based on a successful play, about an aging actor (Sir Anthony Hopkins) and his personal assistant (Sir Ian McKellen).
Director: Richard Eyre | Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Ian McKellen, Emily Watson, Sarah Lancashire
Votes: 3,750
Although I gave the 1983 version 10 stars, this version touched me more. Every actor delivers a tour de force performance. I laughed and wept.
18. Gran Torino (2008)
R | 116 min | Drama
After a Hmong teenager tries to steal his prized 1972 Gran Torino, a disgruntled, prejudiced Korean War veteran seeks to redeem both the boy and himself.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Bee Vang, Christopher Carley, Ahney Her
Votes: 814,353 | Gross: $148.10M
Eastwood's best movie ever. Although it's listed as a drama, Eastwood is hilarious. Funny movies are seldom taken 'seriously' because most people don't realize how subversive humor can be. But Eastwood does...
19. Cry Freedom (1987)
PG | 157 min | Biography, Drama, History
South African journalist Donald Woods is forced to flee the country after attempting to investigate the death in custody of his friend, the Black anti-Apartheid activist Steve Biko.
Director: Richard Attenborough | Stars: Denzel Washington, Kevin Kline, Josette Simon, Wabei Siyolwe
Votes: 14,451 | Gross: $5.90M
Powerful, accurate and exceptional film about history that we cannot afford to forget. Superb writing, direction and acting, this film is without peer.
20. The Crying Game (1992)
R | 112 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A British soldier kidnapped by the IRA soon befriends one of his captors, who then becomes drawn into the soldier's world.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Stephen Rea, Jaye Davidson, Forest Whitaker, Miranda Richardson
Votes: 60,024 | Gross: $62.55M
Exquisite, tender, terrifying and original masterpiece.
21. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)
PG | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a Wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire's world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the mysterious Darth Vader.
Director: George Lucas | Stars: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guinness
Votes: 1,448,269 | Gross: $322.74M
Iconic. A masterpiece.
22. Hook (1991)
PG | 142 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
When Captain James Hook kidnaps his children, an adult Peter Pan must return to Neverland and reclaim his youthful spirit in order to challenge his old enemy.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, Julia Roberts, Bob Hoskins
Votes: 273,065 | Gross: $119.65M
Simply wonderful. Williams is the perfect Peter Pan. Restores your belief in magic.
23. The NeverEnding Story (1984)
PG | 102 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
A troubled boy dives into a wondrous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Noah Hathaway, Barret Oliver, Tami Stronach, Gerald McRaney
Votes: 156,766 | Gross: $20.16M
My second favorite children's movie. The symbolism is subversive and powerful. This film characterizes the fight to conquer depression for me. Both personal and collective. It leaves you with hope. And by the way, simply as a kid's flick, it full of princesses, dragons and magic.
24. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
PG | 102 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Young Dorothy Gale and her dog Toto are swept away by a tornado from their Kansas farm to the magical Land of Oz, and embark on a quest with three new friends to see the Wizard, who can return her to her home and fulfill the others' wishes.
Directors: Victor Fleming, King Vidor | Stars: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr
Votes: 428,251 | Gross: $2.08M
I grew up waiting for Thanksgiving because WoO was always broadcast. The whole family would gather around the TV after turkey to watch and sing all the songs together. Judy Garland was put her on earth to sing Over the Rainbow to the world.
25. Casablanca (1942)
PG | 102 min | Drama, Romance, War
A cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains
Votes: 605,488 | Gross: $1.02M
26. Roman Holiday (1953)
Passed | 118 min | Comedy, Romance
A bored and sheltered princess escapes her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome.
Director: William Wyler | Stars: Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Eddie Albert, Hartley Power
Votes: 147,523
Timeless and in a league of its own. Peck and Hepburn have a chemistry that's rare and unforgettable.
27. The Passion of the Christ (2004)
R | 127 min | Drama
Depicts the final twelve hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, on the day of his crucifixion in Jerusalem.
Director: Mel Gibson | Stars: Jim Caviezel, Monica Bellucci, Maia Morgenstern, Christo Jivkov
Votes: 250,893 | Gross: $370.78M
28. Modern Times (1936)
G | 87 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
The Tramp struggles to live in modern industrial society with the help of a young homeless woman.
Director: Charles Chaplin | Stars: Charles Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman, Tiny Sandford
Votes: 259,207 | Gross: $0.16M
29. The Great Dictator (1940)
G | 125 min | Comedy, Drama, War
Dictator Adenoid Hynkel tries to expand his empire while a poor Jewish barber tries to avoid persecution from Hynkel's regime.
Director: Charles Chaplin | Stars: Charles Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Jack Oakie, Reginald Gardiner
Votes: 237,173 | Gross: $0.29M
30. Amistad (1997)
R | 155 min | Biography, Drama, History
In 1839, the revolt of Mende captives aboard a Spanish owned ship causes a major controversy in the United States when the ship is captured off the coast of Long Island. The courts must decide whether the Mende are slaves or legally free.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Djimon Hounsou, Matthew McConaughey, Anthony Hopkins, Morgan Freeman
Votes: 82,705 | Gross: $44.18M
31. Goodfellas (1990)
R | 145 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The story of Henry Hill and his life in the mafia, covering his relationship with his wife Karen and his mob partners Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco
Votes: 1,255,823 | Gross: $46.84M
32. The Godfather (1972)
R | 175 min | Crime, Drama
The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Diane Keaton
Votes: 2,009,509 | Gross: $134.97M
33. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
PG-13 | 201 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring.
Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom
Votes: 1,976,971 | Gross: $377.85M
34. Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
R | 229 min | Crime, Drama
A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan 35 years later, where he must once again confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern, Treat Williams
Votes: 377,313 | Gross: $5.32M
35. Man on Fire (2004)
R | 146 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In Mexico City, a former CIA operative swears vengeance on those who committed an unspeakable act against the family he was hired to protect.
Director: Tony Scott | Stars: Denzel Washington, Christopher Walken, Dakota Fanning, Radha Mitchell
Votes: 389,202 | Gross: $77.91M
Even with its flaws, this is still a masterpiece. The chemistry between Fanning and Washington is so singular & magical that their scenes will be seared into your memory for days and weeks afterward. The suicidal assassin and the innocent little girl who gives him his life back--the dark and the light. They both should have won Oscars. Chris Walken is devastatingly brilliant in scenes that are quietly revealing. But the real genius is in the direction. I became a Tony Scott fan back in '83 after seeing The Hunger, and if that was his mastepiece, Man on Fire is his magnum opus.
36. The Hunger (1983)
R | 97 min | Drama, Horror
A love triangle develops between a beautiful yet dangerous vampire (Catherine Deneuve), her cellist companion (David Bowie), and a gerontologist (Susan Sarandon).
Director: Tony Scott | Stars: Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, Susan Sarandon, Cliff De Young
Votes: 29,014 | Gross: $5.98M
I'm not a vampire film fan, but Tony Scott took this film beyond the obvious, which is probably why the critics hated it. But forget vampires, forget Goths, forget the sex, even. Watch it for the emotions. This is Tony Scott BEFORE he became an action film director when he milks brilliance out of Sarandon, Deneuve and Bowie. The soundtrack alone is one of the all-time greatest ever made and 30 years later is still as achingly beautiful as it was when it first came out.
37. Blade Runner (1982)
R | 117 min | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
A blade runner must pursue and terminate four replicants who stole a ship in space and have returned to Earth to find their creator.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos
Votes: 822,315 | Gross: $32.87M
One of the most visually stunning in the history of film. Stark, almost empty, dystopian but timeless, Ridley Scott elevates science fiction to a new level that defies being limited to that genre. With shades of the dark side of Nazism, Vietnam and Philip Marlowe, Scott brings to life the abiding & immutable love story. The music is haunting, sexy, unforgettable and utterly brilliant. One of Harrison Ford's best performances. See the 2007 "The Final Cut" version if you can because it's the only one Ridley Scott had full control over.
38. Seven Pounds (2008)
PG-13 | 123 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A man with a fateful secret embarks on an extraordinary journey of redemption by forever changing the lives of seven strangers.
Director: Gabriele Muccino | Stars: Will Smith, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson, Michael Ealy
Votes: 315,066 | Gross: $69.95M
Will Smith is one of the most under-rated actors in film (but one of the highest grossing!). This is a truly a remarkable movie about redemption and grief and genuine decency--all difficult things to portray without straying into sentimentality or self-indulgence. And he is brilliant at it. Hats off too to Rosario Dawson and Woody Harrelson too.
39. Titanic (1997)
PG-13 | 194 min | Drama, Romance
A seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.
Director: James Cameron | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates
Votes: 1,278,811 | Gross: $659.33M
Maybe the quintessential chick flick but that doesn't denigrate it one iota. In fact, it only speaks to the natural ability of the female of our species to spot timeless excellence.
40. Finding Neverland (2004)
PG | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Family
The story of Sir J.M. Barrie's friendship with a family who inspired him to create Peter Pan.
Director: Marc Forster | Stars: Johnny Depp, Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, Radha Mitchell
Votes: 211,975 | Gross: $51.68M
I loved how understated this film was. For the high tissue-quota, it still manages to avoid being mawkish or sentimental. Freddie Highmore brings out the best in Johnny Depp, developing a magical chemistry.
41. Cast Away (2000)
PG-13 | 143 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
A FedEx executive undergoes a physical and emotional transformation after crash landing on a deserted island.
Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, Paul Sanchez, Lari White
Votes: 637,982 | Gross: $233.63M
A masterpiece that left a resounding silence inside of me at the end. Not emptiness, but a rich and thoughtful quiet. Hanks is absolutely brilliant. All alone he captivated me every second on screen. What other actor could make me cry with him when he lost Wilson?
42. The Legend of 1900 (1998)
R | 169 min | Drama, Music, Romance
A baby boy discovered on an ocean liner in 1900 grows into a musical prodigy, never setting foot on land.
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore | Stars: Tim Roth, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Mélanie Thierry, Bill Nunn
Votes: 69,081 | Gross: $0.26M
43. What Dreams May Come (1998)
PG-13 | 113 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Chris Nielsen dies in an accident, and enters Heaven. But when he discovers that his beloved wife Annie has killed herself out of grief over the loss, he embarks on an afterlife adventure to reunite with her.
Director: Vincent Ward | Stars: Robin Williams, Cuba Gooding Jr., Annabella Sciorra, Max von Sydow
Votes: 114,315 | Gross: $55.49M
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