Favorite Movies of All Time: 100-76

Welcome to the last series of articles in celebration of the 10th Anniversary of The Gibson Review!

Last month The Movie Lovers podcast counted down our 12 favorite movies of all time. It was a gargantuan task that proved difficult, but also quite rewarding. There’s something really satisfying about discovering what your absolute favorites are and having that crystalized.

But it wasn’t enough. Plus, if you listen to the episode, you’ll hear there was a couple of mistakes made.

I had spent hours going through previous lists of favorite movies I made to see what popped up frequently and which ones were listed #1 the most, looking through our collection of DVDs and Blu-rays - all to boil this list down. Over 140 movies were listed and boiled down to 100.

The following list is the result. The list that follows is a list that includes work from as far back as 1936 and as recent as 2019. They are films I grew up with, films that furthered me as a cinephile, and films that were the best experiences in the theater I ever had. Make no mistake: this is NOT a Greatest Movies list. But, on the whole, they are all the ones I love the most.

Because the list is so long, brevity is key here. So, I have broken it up into four posts with brief comments on each film.

There were several that did not make the cut. Those that appeared on the most Film Faves segments (3-5 times) on The Movie Lovers podcast, that I’ve been championing most, but didn’t quite make the cut are:

Revenge (2018), Enough Said (2013), La La Land (2016), Bend It Like Beckham (2002), Booksmart (2019), Braveheart (1995), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), Erin Brockovich (2000), Fargo (1996), King Kong (2005), L.A. Confidential (1997), Lost in Translation (2002), Man of Steel (2013), Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015), Shakespeare in Love (1998), Spy (2015), Tropic Thunder (2008), Zero Dark Thirty (2012).

There were also several movies I grew up with that I have always had a fondness for. I thought this list would allow them to be recognized, but they just couldn’t make it on the list:

Dragnet (1987), Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Goldfinger (1964), The Great Outdoors (1988), Harry and the Hendersons (1987), Highlander (1986), Jewel of the Nile (1985), Mannequin (1987), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), and The Rocketeer (1991).

This, perhaps, gives you an idea of the challenge of constructing the list. Let’s get into it then.

100. Watchmen (2009)

Watchmen is one of my favorite comic book adaptations ever made. It’s based on one of the greatest and most incendiary graphic novels ever made. It did not light the cinematic landscape on fire like the previous year’s Iron Man and The Dark Knight. That may be because of its incredibly sincere tone and the ridiculous ‘Hallelujah’ song cue. But this is a film that was more daring than most and so I threw every dollar at it, seeing it in theaters and buying the Theatrical Cut Blu-ray, Director’s Cut Blu-ray, and the (inferior) Ultimate Cut DVD set. My love for it has subsided a little over the years due to its flaws. But damn, I do love it.

99. The Social Network (2010)

Named by many publications (and this blog) the best movie of its decade, David Fincher’s 2010 film, written by Aaron Sorkin, is a tough one for me to shake. Since my solo viewing in the theater and subsequent review, it is a film that has come back to me over and over. It’s not exactly a popcorn escapist fantasy, nor is it the thriller Fincher had given us in the past. But it does have a pulse and Jesse Eisenberg’s performance often has a seething intensity and Sorkin’s script expertly balances intelligent dialogue with epoch-defining realizations. It is a film that refuses to be forgotten, so its inclusion on this list was a guarantee.

98. Band Aid (2017)

We’ve championed this film several times on The Movie Lovers podcast since Episode 13. It has even made two Best of the 2010s lists! This directorial debut by Zoe Lister-Jones earned less than $250,000 during its limited theatrical release; clearly not enough people saw this film. It’s a story about a married couple who decide to turn their fights into songs and form a three-part band with their odd neighbor (Fred Armisen). The leads (Lister-Jones and Adam Palley) are excellent. Armisen provides a touch of comic relief, but also plays an important role in the couple’s healing. And the songs are great! Band Aid is one of the most overlooked and underrated movies of the past decade.

97. Never Cry Wolf (1983)

A film directed by Carroll Ballard (Black Stallion), Never Cry Wolf is now an obscure Walt Disney Pictures film. But I’ve always loved it since I was a little kid. Based on the memoir by Farley Mowat and starring Charles Martin Smith and (briefly) the recently-passed Brian Dennehy, the film tells the story about a man who was sent by the Canadian government to prove that wolves are the cause of the declining caribou population. What we get is a beautiful film about the relationship between man and nature and the destructive and tragic costs of civilization’s progress. This is Smith’s greatest performance and a film just daring enough while being completely family-friendly. It was the kind of storytelling we haven’t seen from Walt Disney Pictures since.

96. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

I distinctly remember watching this film in the theater, absolutely taken with every twist and turn and thrill, and thinking, “OMG, we might have a perfect film here… are they going to stick the landing…?!”. And then the final two or three minutes happen. They were so close! Dammit, Tom Cruise, sometimes you just need to die in the movies! I absolutely love this film, another overlooked underdog of the past decade. Through mediocre marketing and an inability to commit to a title with specificity, this $180 million sci-fi time loop film with a killer performance by Emily Blunt, bombed in the States. With foreign tickets the film barely made double its budget. But an identity crisis had already emerged. They didn’t want to commit to the source material’s title, All You Need is Kill (admittedly, also fairly generic). Nobody knew what Edge of Tomorrow meant or could even remember the title. So, they changed the title for the rental market to its tagline: Live. Die. Repeat. Well, then everyone was confused. Was this that Tom Cruise sci-fi film? Why did they change the name? It was a shit show. But the film is not and I love it and I’ve been championing it for the past several years.

95. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

So, if you listen to Episode 95 of The Movie Lovers, you’ll hear me list this and the next film instead of a couple others that somehow slipped my mind. Clearly, a lot of films that I love more slipped my mind, also. Honestly, I absolutely love this film and its placement on this list became a matter of weighing my feelings and preferences of this film against many others. But this film is an absolute gem that moves me to tears every fucking time I watch it. And I love a film that earns my tears. I am just old enough to remember the phenomenon that was E.T. in the ‘80s. You couldn’t read a comic book without an E.T. ad for Reese’s Pieces. E.T.-related books were everywhere. We had two of them, one of which was a dense novelization of the film. Action figures, collectible glasses from fast food chains… this film was one of a handful on this list that was ubiquitous in my childhood, so it holds a special place in my heart for that reason. Plus, it’s still a fucking great film; top-tier family entertainment.

94. Kill Bill (2003/04)

Uma Thurman really wanted to kill Bill. We didn’t know why exactly, but we knew he must have really fucked up. This film is a curious one in that it had such a huge impact on pop culture in its decade and then the 2010s came along and people suddenly stopped talking about it much. It is 1 of 3 Quentin Tarantino films that made this list. It’s probably the most fun of all of his films - and I’m a sucker for fun, well-made movies; you’ll see here I often prefer the fun sequel to the revered original in a franchise. Kill Bill is also a smorgasbord of Japanese cinema and Asian cinematic influences on Tarantino. Practically every scene has at least one reference to something too obscure for even your biggest cinephile friend. It is a remarkable display of various genres and styles while also still being all Quentin. Next to Pulp Fiction, it also may be Tarantino’s most quotable film.

93. Clueless (1995)

Speaking of quotable movies, here we have one of the biggest icons of the ‘90s and one of the best teen movies ever made. Directed by Amy Heckerling, who had already made the celebrated Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and loosely adapted from Jane Austen’s Emma, Clueless not only made a Victorian-era story appealing to teens like myself in the ‘90s, but it also catapulted Alicia Silverstone to super stardom for a while (Batman & Robin and Excess Baggage pretty much killed that juice). I remember seeing this film at the drive-in with my parents. I was in the back seat laughing my ass off while my parents looked at each other while shaking their heads. Clearly, this wasn’t a film for their generation. But it’s surprisingly smart, endearing, and hilarious. I love it.

92. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

I absolutely love Mad Max 2, a.k.a. The Road Warrior! It was, by far, the best Mad Max movie and I can’t but feel a pang of guilt not including it on this list. So many movies in contemporary cinema try to capitalize on or recapture the past or a known brand. So, I was reluctant and uncertain about Fury Road months before its release. Its trailers made it clear that it would be either absolutely phenomenal or a beautiful disaster. Thankfully, the film was able to not only exceed expectations toward the former, but also surpass The Road Warrior in terms of excellence and iconography. Fury Road was an orgasmic feast for the eyes. It was also one of a handful of key landmarks in film that suggested the impending Time’s Up movement three years later. It was an extraordinary cinematic experience, one that rarely happens with franchise revivals or sequels of any kind.

91. Hanna (2011)

Joe Wright made a name for himself with 2007’s Atonement, starring a young Saoirse Ronan. This existential assassin film, also starring Ronan, made less of a splash. But I love it more and have been championing it ever since I came out of the theater. It’s a film with a loud and propulsive score by the Chemical Brothers, a fairy tale motif, and explores what it would be like for someone raised to do only two things (survive and kill) to enter modern society for the first time and interact with its people and conveniences. There’s absolutely nothing like it. It failed to disappoint on any level and was one of the biggest surprises of the year. Yet, hardly anyone knows it well. As such, the choice by Amazon to adapt the movie into a series was a baffling one and I don’t know that it caught on better than the movie did. But this little-seen action film (it barely broke even in the box office) is better and more ambitious than most of the popular ones.

90. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010)

While I’m very lukewarm or negative about Hot Fuzz and The World’s End, I’m generally a huge Edgar Wright fan. And that’s because of pretty much everything else he’s made, including this… yet ANOTHER overlooked gem. I remember distinctly this film opening against The Expendables in August ten years ago. I thought for sure Scott Pilgrim would be a close second in its opening weekend. No, this $60 million movie was number 5 that weekend, earning only $10.6 million! It was absolutely destroyed by both The Expendables and Eat Pray Love! The film only earned a total of $47.6 million WORLDWIDE! It was baffling and crushing, because this film is absolutely brilliant and a way more interesting creative endeavor than its opening weekend rivals. Check out my original review for more of my thoughts, but Scott Pilgrim was “dazzling visuals meets 20-something self-reflection” and I find myself, yet again, championing an unjustly overlooked gem that was far more interesting than what we usually get.

89. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

I saw this film in class while at college. I had never heard of it before. It absolutely destroyed me and I still needed to engage in a thoughtful discussion about it after it ended. The film depicts two children who survived the initial nuclear fallout of World War II Japan. It is one of the most beautiful pieces of animation I have ever seen. In a time when the States were being served Oliver & Company and The Land Before Time (two movies I love, but didn’t quite make the list), it became very clear how far behind we were in animated storytelling. Japan set the bar of what animation was capable of very high with this film. I have never forgotten it. And, much to any friend’s great reluctance due to its depressing reputation, I continue to share it with others.

88. Ghost in the Shell (1995)

This was another film that I discovered through that college class 20 years ago. It became my favorite anime. It’s a film that is visual catnip for any sci-fi fan. But is so philosophically heady and ambitious it takes a couple viewings in order to decipher plot (what the fuck is actually going on) from themes (what the fucking movie is actually about). I appreciate it for that and for everything it is wrestling with. It’s one of the greatest pieces of science fiction I have ever seen in my life. And, again, American animation has never come close to being in the same league.

87. Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)

I grew up with Queen in my household. My brother was a fan and he imparted that appreciation onto me. Mine was a household that knew ‘One Vision’, not one of their better-known songs, generally. But we had the Iron Eagle soundtrack on vinyl and were fans of Highlander, so it got heavy play in our house. I remember being just old enough to be interested in Queen and learning Freddie Mercury had recently died. The posthumous album, Made in Heaven, was one of the first CDs that was my very own. So, being a lifelong fan of Queen made me nervous about this movie. It proved to be one of the greatest experiences at the movies I’ve ever had. Rami Malek, Gwilym Lee, and Joseph Mazzello were such dead-on embodiments of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, and John Deacon (less so Ben Hardy as Roger Taylor) that it was like seeing the band - and most especially Freddie - brought back to life and reunited. It brought me tears of joy.

86. Harvey (1950)

Harvey was named by the AFI one of the greatest comedies ever made. And I have to agree. I remember when I was a kid we would go to the video store practically every weekend. I remember waiting in the car on one occasion - maybe it was a drop-off situation - and staring at a poster in the window for a movie called Harvey with a man sitting up against a wall staring at what appeared to be a shadow on that wall of a giant rabbit. I didn’t know what that was. I would understand about 20 years later. Jimmy Stewart is one of my favorite actors. His work with Frank Capra and in this movie are the primary reasons why. His demeanor in Harvey - one of pleasantness, kindness, and politeness - is one to aspire to. At one point he explains in the back alley of his favorite bar, “Years ago my mother used to say to me, she’d say…’In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant.’ Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant.” And that always stuck with me. I reckon I’m still trying to be oh so smart. You look on social media and it’s easy to see a lot of people are. But I’m beginning to think, at this point in my life after taking stock of what being smart has gotten me and the rest of the world, that maybe it’s better to be oh so pleasant.

85. Bowling for Columbine (2002)

I have a reluctant love for Michael Moore. I’m able to recognize his flaws: he can be a little smug and his penchant for theatrics sometimes does very little to help his cause. But Moore is also one of the most passionate people about his country’s potential that I’ve ever seen. His films typically examine injustices or issues in America and asks, “How can we be better than this? Because, surely, we are.” Bowling for Columbine is one of his most successful documentaries, because it is the one that seems to be the least certain of the answers, the one with the least grand-standing. It is an exploration, a journey for answers to our nation’s obsession with guns and what can be done about gun violence. It is funny, insightful, eye-opening, shocking, and moving.

84. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

I grew up with Star Trek. As a matter of fact, after Return of the Jedi became a fond memory in pop culture, Star Trek dominated my youth. Aside from the original TV series and the cartoon, in my youth there would be 3 additional TV shows and roughly 7 movies. It was a franchise that was full-steam ahead until my college days. I love a handful of the franchise’s 10+ movies. The Wrath of Khan is the one I probably return to the most. Its ties to the original series, the contemplation of getting old, the Moby Dick allegory, Ricardo Maltalban’s iconic performance as the franchise’s greatest villain - all of these make it still the most thrilling and intellectually interesting film of the series.

83. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)

So, I’m a big fan of Capra’s work. As a young idealist in my late teens and early 20s, his films spoke to everything I believed in. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, a film about an Average Joe earning millions of dollars during the Great Depression, opposed greedy schemers and spoke to the humanity towards the less-fortunate I felt. What’s surprising is how relevant it has become this past decade with the Recession and its ripple effects, worsened by the pandemic and a corrupt leadership. Characters like Longfellow Deeds are needed to show us what we’re capable of in times like these. He also reminds the cosmopolitan that the mid-Western blue collar Everyman should not be underestimated.

82. Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Musicals were a difficult genre for me to get into. Raised largely on Rogers and Hammerstein and the like, I had a really hard time with stories that seemed to largely pause in order for someone to break out into song. Movies like Frank Oz’s Little Shop of Horrors were my way into the genre. It was different. It was unusual. The music was inspired by ‘50s rock and roll. And the cast! Rick Moranis, Steve Martin, Bill Murray, Christopher Guest, John Candy, and Jim Belushi! This was a very hard movie for a kid in the ‘80s to resist. And I absolutely love it still today.

81. Bride And Prejudice (2004)

Bride and Prejudice is a Bollywood-flavored take on the classic Jane Austen novel Pride & Prejudice, directed by Gurinder Chadha. It was her follow-up to Bend It Like Beckham and not very well known. I have been championing it for years (noticing a trend?). This film is colorful and fun with wonderful Indian-flavored songs. I absolutely love it and am surprised it isn’t better known by musical fans. Chadha’s ability to capture Indian culture is intoxicating. The cast is gorgeous. It is one of the most enjoyable versions of the story I have ever experienced. I love it so much that, not only did I hunt down a copy of the DVD, but I also own the soundtrack.

80. The NeverEnding Story (1984)

As a kid in the ‘80s, there were very few fantasies - or children’s movies - as cool as The NeverEnding Story. It didn’t matter that the characterizations were a little thin. This film captures so much of the childlike imagination while being about imagination and creativity. The cast of characters are so wildly different and unforgettable. The Rockbiter. Falcor. Atreyu and Artax. Each of these were wonderful characters. And who didn’t feel sad for the Rockbiter or had their guts ripped out by Artax or were terrified by the giant wolf? The NeverEnding Story was the fantasy of the ‘80s childhood.

79. Wayne’s World (1992)

I love this movie! I find it one of the most quotable movies I have ever seen. And, at one time, it rivaled The Blues Brothers as the best SNL movie. It’s still one of the best, however, my son has made me realize how dated it is in the sense that its jokes largely reference things of a particular time that future generations have no concept of. So, it is hampered by that and enjoyment may be limited for anyone under the age of 35. That said, I was 11 or 12 when it came out, so I am still able to giggle profusely at the references to Nuprin commercials, Laverne & Shirley, Terminator 2, and so many others.

78. Independence Day (1996)

ID4 was the event movie of the summer of 1996. Everybody was talking about it. Its cast was huge and speculations of who would live and who would die flew everywhere. Anticipation for the movie that blew up the White House was huge. And, as popcorn spectacle, it didn’t disappoint. Independence Day was one of the most thrilling and enjoyable films of the ‘90s. It is now a holiday perennial. It isn’t without its issues, but it might be fair to say that no other disaster movie compares.

77. Searching for Sugar Man (2012)

A struggling musician’s debut album is smuggled into South Africa and subsequently becomes a monster hit. Meanwhile, unaware of the success overseas, the musician makes one or two more albums - each a financial failure - and disappears into obscurity. Overseas, news of his wildly theatrical death circulate and become legend. So, I’m married to a South African. I was a bit built-in audience to this movie. But what it became was an incredible discovery of one of the greatest musical artists I’ve ever heard. One participant of the documentary claims Rodriguez’s talent was on par with Bob Dylan’s. That is no hyperbole. Going in blind, this film is an incredible journey and one I am deeply grateful for.

76. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

After all of the popcorn flicks Steven Spielberg has made, it’s easy for me to forget how much I love this film. It is one of my absolute favorites of Spielberg’s. There is so much darkness and wonder in this film, while being one of the few films of the time to be about aliens who DON’T want to blow us up. The visuals in this film are absolutely stunning. The score by John Williams is unforgettable and stirring. Richard Dreyfuss gives one of his best performances as a man so obsessed he is willing to forsake his family in order to get to the source of that obsession. It isn’t entirely wholesome (Spielberg would somewhat make up for that with E.T.), but that’s one of the reasons why it’s daring and lacks artificial feel-goodness. I appreciate that, but I appreciate the film more for everything else it accomplishes.

So, that ends Part 1 of this 4-part conclusion to the 10-year anniversary celebration of The Gibson Review.

Be sure to check back soon for Part 2: 75-51.

In the meantime, which are your favorites so far? Do you share some of my experiences or thoughts? Email me.