The Best Films Ever Made: According to a MovieFanFare Reader

Robert Voss

Declaring a movie the best ever made makes all kinds of presumptions. I marvel every time I try struggling through "Citizen Kane" at the claims made for its excellence.
I won't make that claim for "Appaloosa", only to say that it is very possibly one of the most under-rated movies of all time.The total effort to recapture in every detail---dialogue,characterization,costuming and sets (the courtroom depiction and the judge make disbelief an impossibility)re-establishes the genre as an art form.

Blair Kramer.

There is so much motion picture history, about 120 years, I doubt it's possible to say which film may be the best ever made. However, it's always fun to discuss your personal favorites. But, talking about the Western film "Appaloosa," as well as Westerns in general, I recently learned an interesting fact. Even though Westerns haven't been the most popular genre for at least the past 30 years, they certainly were the most popular films throughout most of the history of motion pictures. To this day, by a huge margin, many more Western films have been made than any other genre.

Jackie

It is a long movie,however I have to agree with my late mom... "Best Years of Our Lives" has to be the one...especially,since it is a true story and the actor who really was missing his hands played one of the lead roles. Who else has seen this film? The acting was superb!

Ron

The Best Years of Our Lives was certainly a great movie. One of THE best in my opinion. But I find it difficult to pick out THE best because there are so many films that cover such a wide range of themes. So my favorites would be ----Western - Red River, War - Patton, Sci-Fi - Forbidden Planet, Horror - Exorcist/Jaws, Romance - GWTW, Adventure - Indiana Jones, Religeous - The Robe, Life/Experience - Forrest Gump, Musical - Oklahoma, Historical - Sergeant York/Spartacus.

tony

I agree with Jackie but have to say that I find it almost impossible to name my favourite film of the last 60 years, maybe I could list my best 50. When you look at the classics dished out by the likes of Capra, Curtiz (my favourite director), Ford and Wyler it's very difficult. The great thing about building a film library is that you can see a film to suit your every mood. I watched for the umteenth time on Saturday 'The Sea Hawk' with Errol Flynn and 'Casablanca' with Bogart and Bergman. I never get tired of watching these films and they have the quality to stay in the memory long after the final credits roll off.

Johnny

I feel one of the Best Films of all time is "To Kill a Mockingbird" it's also an important and socially relevant Film,It is My all time favorite Movie that I never ever tire from watching.I love it so much that I'm actually listening to the Movie soundtrack on CD as I type this!!

Joseph

For many years the typical "best movies" list began with 'Citizen Kane', 'Gone with the Wind' and 'Casablanca'. But every time I tried to see 'Citizen Kane' again it has been increasingly difficult to bear it; in contrast, I would never stop watching 'Casablanca' again, every time it's a new movie (sometimes a war movie, or a political one, or romance, or adventure... with unbelievable rhythm and dialogues). GWTW may deserve a further consideration.
I would add, as historical-political movie, above all 'The Leopard'; as for a comedy, 'The apartment'; a musical, 'My Fair Lady'. All unforgettable but worthy to see again and again.

Martin Stumacher

Without a doubt, the best film Hollywood ever produced was "The Best Years of Our Lives. The best has to be one's own opinion. My second favorite is "How Green Was My Valley". I could go on and on. Let us just say that films released from the 1930's through the 1950's as a group in the Golden Age of Films, were the best the studios provided for the public.

G Darrell Russell Jr

A Man for All Seasons was a terrific morality play with an underrated score. It's visuals, such as King Henry descending on More's estate together with More's retinue was spellbinding. The words of the movie, adapted from Robert Bolt's book literally sang out.

Lynn

'How Green Was My Valley' by John Ford and the classic John Ford westerns with John Wayne are so wonderful.
Also, I think 'Mr. Smith Goes to Washington', 'Judgement at Nuremberg' and Robert Altman's NASHVILLE are must see films too.
If you love the movies than there can never be just one. The first time I saw 'Rear Window' by Alfred Hitchcock I was blown away.

George Matusek

Several commenters have expressed boredom and/or bewilderment with "Citizen Kane," a dazzling film I've watched with great pleasure at least 25 times. On the other hand, the third time I saw "Casablanca," I was bored. Some who make lists of the greatest movies want to put "The Godfather" at the top, displacing the spot usually occupied by "Citizen Kane" --- but a third viewing of "Godfather" was more than enough for me. Few great films stand up to repeated viewing as well as "Citizen Kane," "The Magnificent Ambersons," "Vertigo," and the comedies written and directed by Preston Sturges (such as "The Lady Eve" and "The Miracle of Morgan's Creek").

Hersh L Adlerstein

It's tricky. I once was asked which I thought was the best movie I had ever seen and which was the worst. My answer was that the same film fit both categories: The Birth of a Nation was the worst (racist, ugly content, etc) but it was also the best (technically, acting, production values, etc) I had seen. My choices for the best films ever made are Citizen Kane, A Streetcar Named Desire, and any early Hitchcock or Marx Brothers film. But who cares?

ed

most people i know never liked citizen kain but always seem to watch to kill a mockingbird gone with the wind cassablanca and ten commandments.

Hyman Rolov

Star Wars not only didn't save the movies, it nearly destroyed them. The low budget film was destroyed forever. Today all but the top few films are booted out of the multiplex in a week so that the dumb teenage kids can see the same Jack Black masterpiece eight times. The rest of us stay home. If you consider that saved, you're welcome to it. A movie made for anyone with an IQ over 65 will never get into a theater!

bob

THE JERK, was the best all time movie

Ellen Badders

I agree with other posters that it is difficult to pick just one favorite and my list changes almost daily. There are always consistently a few at the top that never change:GWTW, Casablanca,
Rear Window, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Best Years of our Lives. Hon. mention goes to: Rebecca, A Tree grows in Brooklyn, My Fair Lady, Rio Bravo and The Outlaw Josey Wales.

Hyman Rolov

It's proof how illiterate today's moviegoers are, that they are still bewildered by Citizen Kane, the greatest movie ever made and now 70 years old. To Mock a Killingbird has become an institutionalized "masterpiece" although it is aimed at a seven year old mind and is rather hackneyed and pretentious. Ten Commandments is one of the great unintentionally funny classics. And a special note to the ignoramus who thinks Man For All Seasons is based on a BOOK! Robert Bolt was a playwright. Ever heard of the ancient dramatic form known as theatre? We see here the results of reduced funding for the Arts and Education!

mike

I agree with Lynn: "If you love the movies than there can never be just one."
I own more than 200 video tapes & DVDs that get watched over & over.

Classic Movie Lover

I agree that there is not such movie. However, if pick them by categories, "The Women (1939)" is the best. The script is witty and the actions are comical.

For drama I choose "To Kill a Mockingbird"

Best Epic - Tie between "The Egyptian"; "Quo Vadis"; "Ben Hur"; "Spartacus" and "Ten Commandments"

Musical - Carousel or The Music Man

Horror - Original Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Gary

The best film, humm, Listen, Elizabeth Taylor merlts the screen in "Cat on a Hoot Tin Roof." As Maggie the cat, her efforts to bring Brick to his senses, and keep them others in their places is a work of Art. Most anything Elizabeth did, "Butterfield 8, Cleopatra (ranks among the top) on and on ..

Max Martin

I like too The long gray line, Rio Bravo The Searchers

wayne fowble

Best epic- Lawrence of Arabia, Best Sci-fi- The Day the Earth Stood Still, Best film noir- Chinatown, Best drama- To Kill a Mockingbird, Best comedy- City Lights, Best musical- Singing in the Rain, Best western- Tombstone.

Gil

Oh my...I don't believe there is any such thing as "the best" movie ever made. I have several favorites I never tire of: "My Man Godfrey", Vertigo", "Seven Year Itch", "My Fair Lady"...the list goes on.

To Hyman - You've told us what you don't like. Please tell us what you do like.

Debbie

I think Citizen Kane is a bore but the filming, camera shots, optical illusions are terrific.

My favorites are not usually what the public would call great but I love them.

Horror: Dracula, The Uninvited

Sci-Fi: The Thing 1953

Drama: Lost Horizon 1937

Musical: All That Jazz

Western: Don't have one

Adventure: King Solomon's Mines

Epic: Ben Hur

Comedy: Charlie Chan in Egypt (most people wouldn't call it a comedy)

Crime: D.O.A.

Silent: Metropolis

War: Sink the Bismarck, Battle of the Bulge

Eddie Stair

I maintain that it is impossible to name the best ever motion picture. There are too many criteria that must be evaluated. I agree with many of the selections of other readers but each picture has it's own merits. "Citizen Kane" for instance set the mark for camera work and uses of shadows and such. "Star Wars" and "2001 A Space Odyssey" for the leap in special effects and CG expertise for it's time. As someone mentioned, the theme that affects society's values and behaviour must also be taken into consideration. How can we REALLY name one movie that fulfills all the things we look for as movie goers? The stars that we idolize and the themes that we are most fond of. I'm happy to make my own judgment and enjoy what others have to say about their favorites. My only wish is that Hollywood would evaluate their productions and attempt to raise all their output back to the levels of the golden years of film. That way, we all will have our "best movie" at the theatres.

Bob

I liked all of the movies mentioned and had a few of my favorites to add. Master and Commander, Shawshank Redemption and The Quiet Man.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1675676852 Jerry Hightower

I would class The Grapes Of Wrath as one of THE best films of all time. It shows a period of America when times were really hard. I had family that toughed out the rough conditions and traveled from Texas to the orchards of California and Arizona for their fame and fortune. There are so many good films that it's really hard to say that just one is the best. I rate Giant, To Kill A Mockingbird, Rio Bravo, Hud, Cool Hand Luke, How The West Was Won, Red River, North By Northwest, High Noon, The Last Picture Show and many more equally.

richard finn

So many wonderful films mentioned here. Casablanca was a great film, but it was so because of the time period, WW II. We did not know in 1943 how things would turn out. The number of casualties were not reported daily, but they make our present wars look more like a school yard fight in comparison. The movie gave us hope. Also Inherit the Wind with Tracy and March has to be right up there with To Kill a Mocking Bird. For Comedy, I have to pick Some Like It Hot and The Odd Couple, And I could also add As Good As It Gets with Nicholson. For westerns, take your pick, Some of us still enjoy Roy Rogers and Randolph Scott. To me the best Epic Movie was Ben Hur, Even with today's special effects, nothing compares to the chariot race! There have been any number of great war films, but Saving Private Ryan is my choice. Musicals, it's a toss up between My Fair Lady and The Sound of Music, with Singing in the Rain close behind. Other all time favorites are Lancaster in Elmer Gantry, Holden in Stalag 17, and the boys in Stand By Me. There's more but I've rambled long enough.

Prof

For what it's worth, as a former professor of film history, I have shown many of the films mentioned, and many more, from the very early pioneers ("Great Train Robbery," "Birth of a Nation," "Battleship Potemkin," Dziga Vertov's "Man With a Movie Camera"), through the Silent Era (Chaplin, Keaton, "Phantom of the Opera," "The Big Parade," "Passion of Joan of Arc"), the Big Studio Sound era, foreign films ("M," "Grand Illusion," Kurosawa, Bergman, Fellini) throgh the New Hollywood of the '60s, down to the CGI-driven comic-book potboilers that fill the cineplexes of today. And I was never bored with any of the films I showed, no matter how many times I sat through them. As for "Citizen Kane," I think the problem for moviegoers of today is that they watch a film for story and special effects only. The bigger the better. To watch Welles's masterful development of the imagery of "the lost boy in the window" (how many times do we see Kane cut off from his fellow human beings by a window, a doorway or a mirror?), his use of darkness and shadow and depth-of-field, to see how each character's story is presented in a different visual style and POV, to enter the emotional arc of the film, to appreciate Bernard Hermann's score, demands an entirely different kind of viewer involvement than does "Transformers" or "Conan the Barbarian." We're losing that ability. When our choices of film types are reduced to only 3 or 4, we stop being able to "read" more complex material. Would "Citizen Kane" find an audience if it were released today? Highly doubtful. Too bad. Sorry to bore you with a lecture.

John

Best film ever made? IMO it is Kurosawa's 'Ikiru'. It is also one of my favorites.
And Takashi Shimura is the best actor ever, also IMO.

Another of my favorites, that is also one of the best ever: Casablanca.

From there the best ever list, and my favorite list, go their
separate ways (for the most part)

'In Harm's Way' is the only film in my IPhone, but I wouldn't
put in on a 'best ever made' list. It's just one of my all-time favorites.

I could see 'Citizen Kane', 'The Godfather', or 'The French Connection' being on a 'Best Ever' list, but they would not be on my favorite list.

Joseph Imhoff

The concept of the best film ever made is ludicrous.

Kai Ferano

The one that automatically jumps into my mind is "A Christmas Carol" with Alistair Sim. My very personal choice would be "Charlie Bubbles" with Albert Finney. The best blockbuster might be, "West Side Story."

Joescarp

"Casablanca" by far. I have watched it many times and still get teary-eyed during the singing of the Marseillaise. And I'm not even French! Next would be "The Best Years of Our Lives."
The Golden Age of Hollywood died shortly after the 1940's with the death of the studio system (which had its problems, but turned out the best movies).

elsando

Enjoyed all the postings. Prof, as a management trainer, I too sat through multiple viewings of films that were part of a training program. I guess my favorite was "Twelve Angry Men". I must have watched it a hundred times and never slipped out of the room to take a break. I didn't want to miss a moment - then too, you never knew when the 16mm projector would start eating up the film.

maxfabien

Horror: The Exorcist
Classic Horror: The Mummy (1933)
Sci-Fi: Star Wars
Drama: Sunset Boulevard
Musical: Singin' in the Rain
Western: Unforgiven
Adventure: Deliverence
Epic: Gone With the Wind
Comedy: What's Up Doc?
Classic Comedy: A Night at the Opera
Crime: The Godfather
Silent: Greed
War: Saving Private Ryan

Helen Bennett

Best American films: It's a Wonderful Life, High Noon, A Face in the Crowd. My personal favorites: Cinema Paradiso, A Passage to India, My Family/Mi Familia, Tiger Bay.

williamgee

I put Gone with the Wind as Best Picture (as well as for emotional impact when I first saw it). Others in my top 10: North by Northwest, Paths of Glory, The Third Man, Singin' in the Rain, Shane, Casablanca, High Noon, How Green Was my Valley (beat out Citizen Kane for Best Picture Oscar in 1941).
Given, as Blair Kramer says, that westerna have been so popular throughout cinema history, it is amazing that only two have ever won Oscars as Best Picture (Cimarron and Unforgiven).

Omar Soliman

I don't think that it has even been mentioned yet. Personally I think the Wizard of Oz is probably the overall best movie ever made. But it affects me that way, on a personal level. I would have to agree with Prof on Citizen Kane. The camera work, the framing devices, the compositions of each scene,... it is brilliant and audacious all at the same time (Seven Samurai has those elements too). I am surprised that people are saying it is boring. I find so many of Welles films to be riveting. They dare you to take your eyes off of them. Touch of Evil, Girl from Shanghai,.. when these films come on I am riveted to them. The stories, the acting the filmmaking are riveting. You do not see movies like Casablanca that immediately involve you so completely any more. There is so much going on in them that modern audiences miss. It may be the curse of the blockbuster, loud, destructive, action and violence movies. All of the favorites mentioned show what the media is capable of doing. Man with a Camera, Battleship Potemkin, Birth of a Nation,.. they showed what a film could be. I also would like to praise films that maintain a propulsive pace. films like Some Like it Hot, Great Race, Mad Mad Mad World, Adv. of Robin Hood, What's Up Doc?, Run Lola Run have a rollicking pace to them that is very difficult to maintain. I would praise comedies and musicals as well. They get so little credit and are so very difficult to make successfully. Wizard of Oz, Singin in the Rain, My Fair Lady,..even Robin Hood and Casablanca... when the music and story fit together so brilliantly,.. that is screen magic.

Omar Soliman

Sorry that was Lady from Shanghai.

Bill Dunphy

My favorite movie is the one I watch to completion, til I watch another, and then that is my favorite ! I watch films for a myriad of reasons, story, musical score, photography, locale, stars, characters, time frame, it all depends on my mood/temperment at that time. Most of the time i choose a movie to watch for one of these reasons, as opposed to a specific movie. The movie fits a specific need for me at that particular time. A little down - pop in a comedy, a little reminiscent - pop in I never sang for my Father or On Golden Pond, a cold winters day - pop in Jaws, or the Summer of 42. Mmmmmm, I wonder what movie I should watch for carpal tunnle ? Have a nice day !

tim kenneally

the best movie ever made is "the bridge on the river kwai" I love movies with large doses of irony and the this film delivers. from the british col. forced to build a bridge that would aid the enemy and then it's demise thanks to the same man without him knowing of it to the american sailor who escapes from the priosn camp only to return when his knowledge of the terrain is needed but never used, this film is tops!

Annette

No way to name a best movie ever but in all these lists of Hitchcock titles how could you leave out To Catch a Thief? Maybe not the best but the most fun.
One of the best movies that I had never heard of when I ran across it on a movie channel a few years ago was Beat the Devil. It was wickedly delightful. Humphrey Bogart was in it and I can't remember who else. Have you ever done a list of "best movies you've never heard of"?

Publius

It is difficult to list the ten best movies ever made because everyone has different tastes and insights. Yet, for the money, here are my top ten:
1.) Citizen Kane
2.) Gone With the Wind
3.) Breaking Away
4.) Frankenstein
5.) Way Out West/Sons of the Desert
6.) She Wore A Yellow Ribbon
7.) Young Mr. Lincoln
8.) Modern Times/The Gold Rush
9.) The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
10.) Gigo

Joyce

I don't believe I saw Dances With Wolves mentioned. It is one of my all time favorites but there are so many good movies it's impossible to name one as the best.

Jim

Too difficult to name the best movie of all time, but Citizen Kane isn't it.
I think the best filmed movie ever released is West Side Story. Every scene is a work of art.

Designer

I would never deign to choose the "best movie ever made" but I can say which is my favorite movie, which is Ivanhoe starring Robert Taylor. It's not a great movie but it thrilled me as a kid. I saw it with my grandmother at its East Coast premiere at Radio City Music Hall in New York and as a little kid it was awe inspiring. My friends and I played out the Ivanhoe attack on a castle over and over again on some local rocks and it's a miracle nobody was badly hurt.

Ivanhoe was the fires movie I ever bought when they first started coming out in VHS back in the 80's and I saw it again as an adult, on a much smaller screen. I could see the flaws but the film evokes memories that go far beyond the movie experience and so it remains my favorite.

cbtrivia

The Third Man has to be up there as one of the best.Along with High Noon, Singin' in the Rain, The Day the Earth Stood Still and A Night at the Opera.
The best film ever is really to your own tastes. Nobody can decide on "the best film ever" because it's only their opinion.

Joe Menicola

My 10 Best Film ever made:
1. It's a Wonderful Life
2. The Mummy (1933)
3. Twelve Angry Men
4. The Egyptian
5. Cleopatra
6. Casablanca
7. Key Largo
8. How Green Was My Valley
9. War of the Worlds
10. Tora Tora Tora

Papa Bob

I can't name a single favorite, but I can name the best movie hardly anyone saw. namely, Lawrence Olivier's 1953 "The Beggars Opera". It has everything: glorious music. gorgeous color, action, satire, humor, great acting, even Sir Lawrence doing his own singing (and quite well). It's finally available on DVD. I'm surprised nobody mentioned Jean Renoir's "Grand Ilusion", a great anti-war movie that never preaches.

John mulrenin

does anyone remember "All About Eve" ?
Also,"Vertigo" has got to be the most overrated movie of all time! Stewart at his most overwrought and Novak couldn't act her way out of a paper bag!

llsee

There is no such animal... or movie. Best how? Best acting? Best story? Best production values? Best money-maker? Best impact on society? The question is too subjective, and too presumptive. To be able to say that "X" is the best movie ever made must mean you have SEEN EVERY MOVIE ever made. The AFI came up with a list of the best 100 movies ever made and even that resulted in heated, acrimonious debate. So don't give me that best movie ever made line. Your subjective judgement is no more valid than mine or any other person's.

John mulrenin

IIsee is absolutely correct.

Lenny Hecht

My favorites are:
Godfather I and 2
One Eyed Jacks
Scarface
Goodfellas
A Few Good Men

I don't know about best but I can watch these over and over (which I have done many times).

Schar Saxe

Wow! Quite a selection listed, and some favorites of mine (Best Years of Our Lives, The Searchers)mentioned here. While it is impossible to identify the "greatest movie ever made," it's fun to compare our very most favorite movies. I don't see my very favorite mentioned..On The Waterfront. Acting, directing, writing and Leonard Bernstein's incomparable musical score. My husband and I have seen it so often we can quote most every line by heart! It never grows old.

version

so many to chose. I agree with everyone that you have to break them down by genre or you can't pick just one or two. Debbie - you didn;t have a western - I'd recommend Silverado - it has everything. Horror and Comedy are most subjective - I coudl only pick about 100 of each.

Cynthia Bender

Loved everyone's answers. I enjoy British movies for wit and dry comedy. See the movie "Kind Hearts and Coronets; I could watch it over and over. Also, "Stairway to Heaven," with David Niven. "The Lady Vanishes," Alfred Hitchcock,"Howard's End," and "The Remains of the Day." Could name many more British films, especially those with Peter Sellers--one where he plays an Anglican priest who stirs up a hornet's nest because he actually lives by Christ's teachings. Can't remember its name, though. Another where he's a union leader. Love the British sense of humor.

richard finn

This has been a great posting. It seems people watch and enjoy movies for many different reasons. Mine reason was always just for enjoyment. I guess that's why I fell asleep during Dr Zhivago. Or maybe it was because I'd been up all the nighht before while taking call. At any rate, this has been one of the more enjoyable segments you've had.

Andrew

Horror: The Shinning
Classic Horror: King Kong (1933)
Sci-Fi: Aliens and 2001: A Space Oddesy
Drama: The Lost Weekend
Musical: West Side Story
Western: The Magnificent Seven
Adventure: Raiders of the Lost Arch
Epic: Ben Hurr
Comedy: Airplane
Classic Comedy: Duck Soup
Crime: Goddfellas
Silent: Phantom of the Opera
War: Saving Private Ryan and Born on the Fourth
of July

NAT COHEN

MY FAVORITE...THE MALTSE FALCON...WE HAVE WATCHED IT EVERY NEW YEARS FOR TWENTY ODD YEARS.
OTHER GOODIES...MY MAN GODFREY, THIRD MAN, CITIZEN KANE, STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN, KISS ME KATE, OKLAHOMA, INTOLERANCE AND ROBIN HOOD

Roger MacEvoy

I don't believe you can really make a best film ever make statement because there are too many in the moment issues of technology and culture we simply cannot understand.

Also, films like Birth of a Nation and Gone With the Wind should automatically be disqualified for presenting a completely false view of history that in one case led to a resurgence of the clan and in another glorification of slavery.

ed cohen

The best movie ever made does not exist, but what may possibly exist is the best movie ever made within a genre, as some of you have pointed out. I have so many favorites, but the only one I can say is the best movie ever made in the thriller(or suspense) genre is PSYCHO, for the simple reason that once Janet Leigh gets killed, anything goes, i.e., anyone can get killed at anytime anywhere. Afterall, isn't that what suspense is all about. North by Northwest is one of my favorite films, but was there any doubt that Cary Grant would come to the rescue of Eva Marie Saint, or Jimmy Stewart would rescue Grace Kelly in Rear Window. These pictures had artificial suspense. PSYCHO was a truly suspenseful film in which the suspense was at times unbearable to take.

ed cohen

I agree with John Mulrenin. Vertigo is terribly overrated. Here's one that may suprise you: Gone with the Wind. Clark Gable is hardly in the movie. The film became a vehicle for Vivian Leigh. The camera panning over the wounded would have been much more effective if there were close-ups of the wounded with quick cuts to show the bloody rampage that war entails. The quick pan of the camera gives nothing but a crude overview of the horrors of war.

Carl Dunn

Great movies, like all forms of artist endeavor tend to be subjective, and relying on the pedestrian taste of the unwashed masses is probably the least scientific approach in determining a "best of" list, but the box office does have a pretty loud voice. I should think that the barometer by which some standard can be applied is the standard of "time". It is obvious that some of the above mentioned movies are no doubt great in the way that make "great" movies and that is the time test, but very few share another essential component of this greatness and that is the ability to change the way things are done, not only from the technical side of movie making but from the actors, directors and the production itself. These things along with the fact that a piece of art has been created that will have influence for generations over film makers and actors to come might also come nearer the mark than just some capricious remarks by those who lack artist expression, and are driven simply by emotion.

roger lynn

I agree A Man For All Seasons is a great film,,about number 13 on my list...My Top 10 are
1)To Kill A Mockingbird
2)Gone With The Wind
3)The Towering Inferno
4)Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
5)Don't Just Stand there
6)The Poseidon Adventure
7)The Sound Of Music
8)The Guns Of Navorone
9)The Lion In Winter
10)True Grit(John Wayne)===honorabable mention It Happened On Fifth Avenue--The Grapes Of Wrath--A Man For All Seasons....

fred buschbaum

Another opinion. being pretty close to fitting in with the pedistrian unwashed masses, I find most of us watch and rate films by our personal standards. comedy one day, droll and dry, another day, outrageous over the top. Horror, one mans Jaws is anothers Psycho. I'd put most of Welles stuff on the list. The expertise and attention to detail opened the door to quality. Same with ford, or Hichcock. Throw in Kurosawa and the keystone cops. My criteria is can I watch it often and not tire of it.
some of my favorites.
Casablanca
Seven Samurai
Sailor of the king
In harms way
How the west was won
Westside Story
To kill a mockingbird
Master and Commander
Things to come
The odd couple
What a way to go
The Yellow Rolls Royce
and on and on.
Watch what picks you up, or puts you to sleep or gives you and friends something to debate about.
I think that in many ways, detail and quality has given way to techie stuff just like in my generation color eclipsed B&W. bye the way, I'm enjoying the new cowboy flick where the indians win......you know, with the blue people.....

Jhong Dhu

The greatest film ever made? HAVE ROCKET WILL TRAVEL without a doubt. It's a story that touches the human spirit on so many levels. Painful interaction with friends, adapting to new environments, resourcefulness amidst stressful challenges, laughter, suspense - well, it's all there for the viewer to drink in and ponder with wonder long after the film's conclusion. "Citizen Kane", "Casablanca", "Gone With The Wind", "The Godfather", "Star Wars" HAH! Get real! HAVE ROCKET WILL TRAVEL transcends them all and will be justified as the greatest film ever made by the diligent study of future film historians. AFI get busy.

Prof

Johng Du: you may have something. HAVE ROCKET WILL TRAVEL is certainly in a class by itself! Right up there with ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN. But seriously, there were some great slapstick mystery comedies in the '40s that I loved watching on late-night TV: FULLER BRUSH GIRL, YELLOW CAB MAN, GOOD HUMOR MAN, A SOUTHERN YANKEE, MURDER HE SAYS. And to add another wonderful film that is worth re-discovering: RUGGLES OF RED GAP with Charles Laughton and Za-Su Pitts.

But now, back to our previously scheduled programming...

Jack

What about USED CARS and the original The IN-Laws?

John Stanaway

One classification that is missing from the above comments is the anti-war film. From my point of view the only real anti-war films were the original ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT and DR. STRANGELOVE. Every time I see All Quiet I get the shakes and wonder how anybody can have a positive view of warfare. Milestone even managed one of the few objective camera angles in film history by positioning the view of a savage battle scene astride the trench line. Dr. Strangelove made the whole process of nuclear war absurd by making it a laughing outburst at a funeral. The preaching FAILSAFE was less effective with its, "Good heavens man, this means the end of civilization as we know it!" hyper-seriousness.

John Marsh

There is no criteria for a "Best Movie". The opinions expressed are only based on one's "favorites". Carl Dunn has perfectly explained (above) why there is no "best".

helen pischera

WOW---ALL OF YOU REMINDED ME OF THE MOVIES THAT I HAD SEEN THROUGHOUT MY LIFE, BUT NONE OF YOU MENTIONED "ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS", "AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER". YOU DID MENTION "MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION". IT IS JUST IMPOSSIBLE TO MENTION ALL THE MOVIES THAT HAVE ADDED SO MUCH TO WHAT WE FELT---WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THEM.I STILL LOVE TO VIEW THEM, OVER AND OVER.

Mike R

At the end of the day it does not matter. It comes down to; Were you entertained? Did it fulfill a sense of wonder or strike a nerve? Did it make you sad or happy or even think about something in a different way? I watched the new "Conan" and Robert REdfords, "The Conspirator" on the same day. On one hand I was entertained and the on the other, I had to find out more about the characters and events in our history. Nothing compares to the movies I watched as a child and I am constantly going back to them now, 30 years later but that does not mean todays films will not make have effect on me. My list of bests change daily but not what I consider my favorites. That list just grows.

Gil

This has been a great post. Thanks for so many great suggestions! I have a lot of movies to catch up on! I'm espeically looking forward to seeing "Have Rocket Will Travel" for the first time!

Gordon

Comedies are my favorites. Billy Wilder’s work is tops. Avanti is my most watched.

masterofoneinchpunch

Of course it is impossible to state a "Best Movie Ever" because the movies mean so many different ideas to different people as well as the definition of the aesthetics in quality can difer among individuals as well. That being said here is my top 25 (out of a list of 300 I have):

1. Sherlock Jr. (1924: Buster Keaton)
2. Ikiru (1952: Akira Kurosawa)
3. Lawrence of Arabia (1962: David Lean)
4. Taxi Driver (1976: Martin Scorsese)
5. Yojimbo (1961: Akira Kurosawa)
6. Citizen Kane (1941: Orson Welles)
7. The Third Man (1949: Carol Reed)
8. Seventh Seal (1957: Ingmar Bergman)
9. Tokyo Story (1953: Yasujiro Ozu)
10. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968: Stanley Kubrick)
11. Seven Samurai (1954: Akira Kurosawa)
12. City Lights (1931: Charles Chaplin)
13. Ordet (1955: Carl Dreyer)
14. Ran (1985: Akira Kurosawa)
15. Stalag 17 (1953: Billy Wilder)
16. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (1966: Sergio Leone)
17. Being There (1979: Hal Ashby)
18. Le Samourai (1967: Jean-Pierre Melville)
19. Pickpocket (1959: Robert Bresson)
20. Hoop Dreams (1994: Steve James)
21. Rear Window (1954: Alfred Hitchcock)
22. Vertigo (1958: Alfred Hitchcock)
23. Umberto D. (1952: Vittorio De Sica)
24. The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976: Blake Edwards)
25. Police Story (1985: Jackie Chan)

hiram grant

Lots of wonderful movies mentioned here. But I don't see "Jules and Jim" (always my personal favorite, because if you're a romantic soul and saw this at the age of 19, you would never forget it; watched it a year ago -- first time in 30 years -- and it still had the magic) or "The Seven Samurai." There is, after all, a WORLD of movies out there.

S. R. Orsulak

I have so many great movies in my collection that I have lost count of the # of Oscars they won. My all time #1 favorite is BEN HUR, a magnificent example of Hollywood at it's best. Who can ever forget the scope of the chariot race!! I have a great collection of war movies my favorites are: THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, TORA, TORA, TORA, THE LONGEST DAY, and DECISION BEFORE DAWN. CASABLANCA, THE UNFORGIVEN (BURT LANCASTER-1960)etc. Like I said so many great movies today's film makers can't measure up to.

richard finn

J. Stanaway mentioned the anti-War movie, and that the only two successful in this genre were ALL QUIET ON THE WESRERN FRONT and DR. STRNGELOVE. I agree both were very successful, but John did you not see ON THE BEACH with Gregory Peck, or PATHS OF GLORY with Kirk Douglas? Both were very anti-War and quite effective.

Victor Brown

Who can say what is the best film ever made? Of course any rational film lover would pick her or his favorites. Mine are: (1) Defending Your Life (1991), which is both an enormously entertaining film but it also has a powerful message; (2) The Barefoot Contessa (1954), which has a great story and a great plot. There has never been a more entertaining film; (3) Dr. Strangelove (1964), which is the ultimate "black" comedy, and (4) The Godfather, Pts. I & II (1972/1974), taken as one film. It was not only superbly crafted but it has a great story which details recent American history. It is the saga of an American "family." Of course there are many others. However, these are the ones which immediately come to mind.

Paul Cammisa

1.Ciizen Kane 2.Shindlers List 3. Meet me in St Louis.4. Doctor Shivago. 5.Its a Wondeful Life.

R. P. Robles

To me, the best and most informative movie ever made was, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Even back then, in the forties era, the movie had a very important message about Washington D.C., and the CROOKS running our government. It's a shame the American public chose to ignore the warning the movie had to offer. It's still going on to this day, a bunch of CROOKS in Washington. If government classes are ever reinstated in our High School curriculum's, I think this movie should be shown in every government class clear across the United States. The warning has more meaning now days.

Dave Manning

This is a fool's errand for all the obvious reasons, many of which have been listed. Ive heard some say that GWTW is a piece of racist trash because of the stereotypes of blacks, and yet, true as that is, the film was a pioneer in many ways. Same for a thousand other films, so why even try? Individual tastes always govern these sort of questions.

version

A world of movies someone mentioned, you bet. A Shot in the dark; The Wrong Box, Jaques Tati films, Bergmans, Dursu Uzala with Toshiro Mufune. Gallipoli, And another poster hit the point about generational & technical evolution that not only requires genre it demands era break-outs too.

MBSchwietz

First off - Thanks for some great recommendations. I will be adding them to my "must see" list.

Movies that I have quite enjoyed over the years: Ben Hur (1959), Some Like it Hot (I like most of Marilyn's stuff), The Shawshank Redemption, Silence of the Lambs (as intense as anything on film), Amelie, 8 1/2, It Happened One Night, You Can't Take it With You, Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, West Side Story, Say Anything (love that era of teen romantic feel goods), and Braveheart.

Movies that would not make this list and yet, I will drop everything I am doing to watch them repeatedly: Any of the Bourne series, The Fugitive, most Audrey Hepburn movies, most Hitchcock movies, and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

The amount of "comparative truth" I see on this list (No you're wrong, I'm right) is a bit disturbing. People like what people like. My mood changes from day to day depending on what is going on with me. Sometimes I just want to sit and watch an epic film or a foreign classic. Crouching Tiger got me through some rough patches 14 years ago so it holds a special place in my heart. In short, I like different movies for different reasons AND I get that was not the intent of this thread. Thanks again for the recommendations. I am looking forward to watching some more classic movies.

Donna

I am a retired Science Teacher; but I also taught an elective class (Film Appreciation) at a small Middle School for a number of years. I showed them films that I remembered loving as a child around their age.. Mostly from TV viewing; but a number in the theatre as well. Here are the ones that the students enjoyed very much and enjoyed discussing as well as doing projects for the movie after viewing.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers
To Kill a Mockingbird
Rebel Without a Cause
12 Angry Men
Witness for the Prosecution
Grapes of Wrath
Strangers on a Train
Suspicion
East of Eden
Arsenic and Old Lace
Dark Passage
and more...

At Back to School nights, I always enjoyed parents telling me that when they went to the video store with their kids, they would be excited to share movies they had seen and even suggested renting a Cary Grant or Henry Fonda or other star's film that they thought might be good too!

Diane

Here's my list of the top 10 best movies ever made (in my humble opinion):

1. To Kill A Mockingbird
2. Funny Girl
3. Random Harvest
4. King's Row
5. The Searchers
6. Rio Bravo
7. Schindler's List
8. I Remember Mama
9. Ryan's Daughter
10. The Spy Who Came In From The Cold

Charles R.L. Power

I guess I'm biased against "A Man for All Seasons" like its companion about the other English St. Thomas "Beckett" because they present two wretches who got exactly what they deserved as martyrs worthy of our admiration. Thomas More gloried in the agonizing executions of men who tried to make the Bible available in English. Thomas Beckett defended the Church's perogatives in judging its own, an attitude which did much to prolong the pattern of priestly pedophilia. To hell with both these saints.

John Small

I agree wholeheartedly about the "Star Wars" films. Nice to see someone appreciates these films for what they represent for moviemaking in general, rather than getting caught up in the constant "fanboy" debates that really mean nothing when push comes to shove.

Several films I would add to the list include "The Man From Snowy River," which was made in Australia but ranks as one of the best Western-type films I've ever seen and features an incredible performance by Kirk Douglas in a dual role; "The Right Stuff," which was horribly overlooked at the time of its release (or more likely ignored deliberately by many who perceived it as some kind of Hollywood endorsement for John Glenn's failed presidential bid); and a pair of good old-fashioned comedies: "A Night At The Opera" by the Marx Brothers, and "Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein," which many will no doubt argue against but which stands in my mind as the ultimate horror spoof.

Del Letrick

If there is a catagory for "Sarcastic Humor", I believe that Lake Placid would be hard to top. Sarcasm from the five main actors,including Betty White, crack me up, avery time I watch it

Dan Rouviere

My favorite movie is Casablanca. The greatest movie ever made has to be Citizen Kane! The way it was filmed was ingenius. Others ranking in my top spot would be Gone With The Wind, The Wizard of Oz, The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur(1959), Dracula (1931) and almost anything by Frank Capra!

Richard Abraham

I don't understand how anyone could call Citizen Kane the best movie ever made.I am a movie goer every
thursday night for years,I watch Citizens Kane and
I was very disapointed.I could name 20 movies
ahead of Citizen Kane.

Larry Jacox

Tons of great films mentioned. "Best of..." certainly is a really subjective call. Mostly we've got our favorites. I'd like to mention "Shane" again as one of my favorites in westerns. Beautifully filmed, classic story line. Best thing Ladd ever did. Although I can't not watch "Tombstone". Even after reading Guinn's "The Last Gunfight" I still love it.

Patricia

Wow - what an impossible task! There are so many wonderful movies and it depends on so many factors. One movie that touched me deeply was "Awakenings," true story and magnificent acting.

kathy

i find the miracle worker to be the greatest movie of all time. i find nothing wrong with this film. it is perfect. who could ever forget the water scene at the end of this movie? nothing was ever more moving to me.

Kent

I'd concur with most of the above, but feel compelled to add a few that I don't think were yet mentioned:

The APU Trilogy
The New World
Tree of Life
Letters from Iwo Jima
Midnight Cowboy
The Night of the Hunter
Passion of Joan of Arc
Raging Bull
The Wild Bunch
Young Frankenstein
Crash

Bill Ameen

For a true movielover it's nearly impossible to name one or even ten favorites. Some movies named above I've not even been able to sit all the way through (such as the overrated "It's a Wonderful Life"). My father's favorite film is "Best Years" likely because he's a veteran. The one I thought for many years was my favorite was "If..." by Lindsay Anderson because I saw it in my formative years and it reflected the turbulent 60's in such a unique way. Another wonderful, no-SFX, good-storyline film is "Four Friends," apparently not yet on DVD, with a little-known cast (Craig Wasson et al) but brilliant acting. And then there are the handful of movies that I find irresistible while channel-surfing..."Robocop," "Terminator," and their sequels, "Starship Troopers," and the superb "Hurt Locker". I may have to agree with Omar Soliman above that "Wizard of Oz" (1939 version) is the best ever maybe because we've all seen it so often and memorized every line. But I cry along with the soldiers every time Christiane sings her song at the end of "Paths of Glory".

Jean

I love so many of the older movies. Any of the Doris Day comedies, she was great in them and she was also good in dramas. Bette Davis in The Catered Affair; war: Tora, Tora, Tora, Seven Days in May, GWTW, Susan Hayward in I Want to Live or I'll Cry Tomorrow, Kirk Douglas in The Detective, Lonely Are the Brave, and many others, Robert Mitchum in The Sundowners, Frank Sinatra in Man with the Golden Arm, Days of Wine and Roses, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Grease, Rebel without a Cause, The Sting, Ben Hur, great actors Paul Newman, Gregory Peck, Shirley MacLaine, Henry Fonda, James Dean, Liz Taylor, Steve McQueen, James Garner, debonaire Cary Grant, Jack Lemmon, John Travolta, Joan Crawford, so many more.

May

I agree with Johnny - my best all time favourite has to be 'To Kill A Mockingbird' - I read the book and watch the film at least once a year. I also have the soundtrack (which took me a long time to find) and the audio cd of the book. My other favourites are too many to list but just about anything with James Stewart, especially 'Broken Arrow'. Walter Pidgeon and Greer Garson made many memorable films. Many of the John Wayne westerns I watch repeatedly. They made so many great films from the forties until the late sixties, early seventies. The first film I remember seeing was 'The Wizard Of Oz' and I still love to watch it at least once a year.

FlinFlon

Given that one's 'Best Movie Ever' is entirely subjective for the individual; my pick is "The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938).

It has everything I've ever wanted and gave me everything I needed from a movie. I've watched it more times than I can count, I can recite the dialogue along with the actors, and it stars Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland, with Basil Rathbone, Alan Hale, Claude Rains all in glorious Technicolor to Korngold's magnificent score.

I believe I saw it first during a kids matinee at the old Rex theatre in my hometown when I was about six or so. Then repeated viewing on TV; especially WGN Chicago's "Family Classics", which also liked to show it and the other Flynn classics on a regular basis in its rotation for which I'm very grateful. Now of course I have the DVD, which is played more than once a year even now.

I certainly have more favourites and they all have their place in my affections and have even perhaps been viewed as often or more. But "The Adventures of Robin Hood" is the best movie ever made for me.

jwp22

Godfather I and II

Laura Talbot

I don't know if one can limit down to a single film as best movie ever?One of the most important films ever:"On Her Majesty's Secret Service". The definative Bond film from a series of films that had a huge impact on human culture.

Jackie

I am looking over choices,and I totally agree with SO many folks.Donna,I am a Special Ed assistant educator and Regular Ed ,too,at times. I also agree with your choices. To Kill A Mockingbird was SO fantastic,but a lot was left out from the novel that should have been included. I guess I have read the book several times and even helped my son write a critical analysis of the movie(many years ago) for his American Lit. class in High School.( He received an A.) Gregory Peck's performance was so magnificent! Absolutely NO One else could have taken on the role as well!

Jeff C

the best movie ever made, it's an exercise in futility.
some of my favorites, Nothing Sacred, The devil and miss jones, Northwest passage, Seven brides for seven brothers, Ruggles of red gap, Goodbye Mr. chips (39), The maltese falcon, City lights. Gotta stop now.The list is just too long

joseph pandolfi

casablaca is the best movie ever made bar none!

S Judy

It is wonderful how different our favorites are!
Some of mine:
The English Patient
Heart of Dixie
Panic
Sunset Boulevard
Camelot
Monsters' Ball
L.A.Confidential
Moulin Rouge
Princess and the Warrier
The Black Stallion
40 Carats
Swept Away
The Tamirand Seed
Splendor in the Grass

nw berry

shane was the best movie ever made bar none - best story - best photograghy - best acting -

nw berry

also shane had the best score - call of the far away hills

Brolga

"Shane" is my favorite film of all time, too. I'll never forget the impression it made on me when my brother and I, and a friend, went to see it in 1953. This was back in the days when movies played continuously. We sat through it twice! I was ten. Though I've seen (and loved) many films since then, the only one that made a comparable impression on me was the magnificent, searing, intense New Zealand movie "Once Were Warriors". I sat for ten minutes while its credits rolled, unable to move!

Lynn

What fun to review all the wonderful suggestions as the year 2011 closes. I don't think anyone mentioned Dr. Zhivago. The second viewing as an adult on the big screen was magnificent. For camp and soap, Valley of the Dolls is a secret pleasure I will only admit here.

larry clemenson

some personal faves that perhaps should be included. patton, if only for the camera work. pulp fiction (if only for its memorable dialogue). the apartment, for its smaltziness (sp?) and sleeper for its slapstick. remember the giant banana?
i wish all of you lived on my road. would make for some nice academy award parties.

R Neu

Great question to spark open-ended discussion and endless debate. Impossible - yes, ludicrous - maybe. But hats off to those of you who love film craft and have the courage to try...
Maybe, if Hollywood could find some of the same courage today, they might try for the impossible too, like a quality remake of "Separate Tables?" Or...?
Otherwise, the "Greatest Film" would have to be "whatever you like (at the moment) that Hollywood wouldn't dare to try again!"

Pete

High Plains Drifter....10 Commandments......Charge of the Light Brigade.....Patton.....St. Bernedette ( the Lourdes Miracles ).....JFK....Hoffa...

Mr CAT

Its always hard to use superlatives, and I can understand the attractioin of Citizen Kane. However, one ust consider "2001" for its stunning images.

As far as best war movie, its hard to believe no one has mentioned fillms that show the darker side of war, such as"Alls Quiet on the Western Front", "Paths of Glory" or "Das Boot". I admit they are all depressing, but not all great stories need to be happy ones.

Finally, the best movie ever made is can change depending upon one's mood.

Walt Bales

Impossible to pick one, but if I had to I'd pick GWTW. Honerable mention to Casablanca, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Searchers, Patton, Titanic, The Magnificent Seven, The Quiet Man, All About Eve, Some Like it Hot, and on the still lighter side, Laurel and Hardy's Big Business and the Piano Movers, The Bank Dick, Father Goose and A Christmas Story.

Brygolf

nothing comes close to gwtw

hockeyfan

There are so many that can be included, the classical list includes Ugetsu, The Battleship Potemkin, Citizen Kane, All Quiet on the Western Front. as well as many others. I have dozens of movies that I can watch anytime and they range from the silent era to about 15 years ago. I usually find it harder to accept current releases as I don't consider CGI to be an art form but it certainly can help keep a movie interesting.

Marlowe0304

Lawrence Of Arabia gets my vote. Everything in that movie is pitch perfect. I'm in awe every time I watch it! O'Toole was robbed on that one. I love Peck but he shouldn't have won the Oscar over O'Toole as Lawrence

victor0630

I loved Ben Hur for an oldie and and the Gladiator for a newer one.

Rick

For me it's toss up, GODFATHER 1 & 11, & BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI .
Never get tired of watching them !

spirit

Without a doubt "GWTW" but "The Razor's Edge" was brilliant along with "Dark Victory"

Dmwhite50

My favorite movies are: !. A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE 2. THE APARTMENT 3. GONE WITH THE WIND 4. THE PUMPKIN EATER 5. HOWARDS END 6. THE INNOCENTS 7.EAST OF EDEN 8. HUD 9. DOCTOR ZHIVAGO 10. BEN-HUR 11. CHINATOWN 12. VERTIGO 13. CRIES AND WHISPERS 14. THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL 15. MY FAIR LADY 16. CHICAGO 17. ALL ABOUT EVE 18. TWO WOMEN 19. APOCALYPSE NOW 20. SUNSET BOULEVARD 21. THE ROMAN SPRING OF MRS STONE 22. SOME LIKE IT HOT 23. THE GRADUATE 24. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD 25. BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S 26.THE HUSTLER

kerry

Gone with the Wind; The Best Years Of Our Lives; Psycho; The Defiant Ones; Sunset Boulevard; Hannah and Her Sisters; The Best Years Of Our Lives-Oh did I say that already?

Bobby Donat

As much as I dislike violence, Godfather I and II and Goodfellas take the honors for me. In non-violent genre's "All Quiet on the Western Front"; All About Eve; Breakfast at Tiffany's and one (Italian) sleeper I feel in love with in the 80s, The Tree of the Wooden Clogs.

Burt

A Clockwork Orange, 2001 a Space Odyssey. Kubrick at his best and a Director they all learned from

Barry

Best movie lists are always subjective and never objective. I know people who think Texas Chainsaw Massacre is the best movie ever made. I prefer to think of Gone With The Wind as the best movie ever made but I don't think it's a great film. Citizen Kane is a great film but not necessarily a great movie. I define a great movie by it's ability to appeal to a large number of film fans. Godfather is one of the few that I feel is not only a great movie but also a great film.

GYSGTOFMARINESRET

THE D.I. with JACK WEBB!!!

Rosie_gibson

Laura

Kcandelori

From oldest to newest: The legendary, groud breaking classic, "The Wizard of Oz", which still thrills children, and even some adults in many different ways. The Godfather, part 1 and 2. WIth these 2, I doubt I have to explain why !! "Dances with Wolves". An extraordinary film that had you gasping in a good way, made even some men cry, and enlighted your knowledge about how Amercan Natives where treated back in those days. REALLY ?? It made many realize what a true American symbol they were..... and still are !! Not to mention the absolutely breathktaking - on the scene locations !! Costner totally deserved the 2 Oscars he won for that !!! Oliver Stones "JFK". Could anything have been more riveting, and well............. lets just say REAL ?? Film editing and mixing where nothing but outstanding. Not to mention how it caused Congress in 1992 to pass legislation - appointing a panel to review all files to determine which would be made available to the American Public !! Sadly, they may as well just been the Warren Commission all over again, being it was determined that NONE would be released; still keeping them locked up until 2030 something !! What an insult to the intelligence of Americans !! "The Shawshank Redemption". I have no words to describe how badly that movie was snubbed by the Academy !! Lastly, and off the beaten path, "Dreamgirls". I am an avid movie goer, and it had been at least 40 yrs since I witnessed an audience naturally feel the instinct to stand up and applaud Jennifer Hudson's performance of "And I am telling you" in a MOVIE THEATER...... as if they were applauding in front of a live performance in a Broadway theater !! Just that alone brought on quite a chill !!!

Lou from Missouri

Lou from Missouri.

Definitely "A Man for All Seasons" would be first choice. Second would be "Gone With The Wind".

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