Favorite Movies of All Time: 25-1

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

Remember: this is NOT a Greatest Movies list. But, on the whole, they are all the ones I love the most. Don’t forget to also listen to the 95th episode of The Movie Lovers to hear more thoughts about the final 12 movies.

25. Annie Hall (1977)

I know it isn’t popular to say, but I absolutely love early Woody Allen and I absolutely love this film. Early Woody is a lot different from the kinds of films people now may be more familiar with from recent years. He started his career as a director with slapstick comedies like Take the Money and Run and Bananas. His ideas and humor became more sophisticated with each film with. Annie Hall combines the silly humor of his first films with the sophistication of something like Manhattan, which he would film two years later. You get a hodgepodge of comedic styles from slapstick, dialogue, fourth wall moments, and even animation. There are so many interesting ideas jammed into this love story it’s incredible. At the center is a failed romance. We get to see the couple meet, fall in love, and grow apart - that alone made it quite different from what audiences expected at the time. Its creator is problematic for personal reasons, but there was a time when his work was genius. Annie Hall is my favorite of Allen’s genius.

24. Wonder Woman (2017)

One of the things I’ve taken into consideration for this list are films that gave me some of the best experiences in the theater. Wonder Woman was one of those. I’m a fan of the superhero comic, although I never really collected her comics until Greg Rucka’s run around 2004. I loved that run. It showed Diana Prince had various aspects to her as a person; that she wasn’t a cookie-cutter superhero. She was a superhero, a warrior, a woman whose beauty literally renders some speechless in her presence, but also an ambassador for another society, which meant she was a diplomat. I have researched Wonder Woman’s history and there isn’t a creator who has done more for the characterization of Wonder Woman than Rucka. But it’s also a lot to translate into a movie. I had high expectations for anyone who was brave enough to put on the silver bracelets and tiara. When Gal Gadot was cast I was surprised and skeptical she was up to the task. My concerns were pretty much put to rest by director Patty Jenkins, writer Allan Heinberg (who, I believe, has also taken a crack at the comics), and Gal Gadot. Add a killer theme by Rupert Gregson-Williams (Hacksaw Ridge, Aquaman) and iconic moments like the No Man’s Land sequence - which made the feminist in me Squeee! - and Wonder Woman was one of the most thrilling superhero movies I have ever seen.

23. Pulp Fiction (1994)

I’m honestly not sure if this is my favorite Quentin Tarantino film. I haven’t seen my three favorites in a while, so it’s difficult for me to definitively say right now which one I love the most. During Episode 95 of The Movie Lovers I claimed Kill Bill was it. It may be, but there is something really special about Pulp Fiction and its slow title crawl to, I believe, ‘Miser-lou’, a song that entered pop culture iconography because of this movie. I remember seeing this film when I was 14 with my parents and laughing in disbelief often at the audacity of this film. The scenes with Zed and the Gimp and poor Phil LaMarr in the back of the car with Travolta and Jackson were unbelievable. Other films from 1994 were given the majority of awards, but it was Pulp Fiction that actually sent shockwaves in film, influencing what would come for years. Those Boondock Saints fans owe a lot to Pulp Fiction, as does Guy Ritchie and dozens of other knock-off ensemble crime films. There were few films in the ‘90s as influential as Pulp Fiction.

22. The Matrix (1999)

Speaking of influential films… The Matrix was supposed to be the next Star Wars. It followed the hero’s journey, the man vs. technologically superior superpower, and pushed the VFX envelope, dazzling audiences while making them ponder its philosophical themes. It was not the next Star Wars, as the sequels would prove. But audiences would certainly would be subjected to everyone from musketeers to Charlie’s angels doing physics-denying acrobatics for years. The sequels and pretty much any movie that tried stealing its aesthetics would prove this film was its own lightning in a bottle, a perfect piece of science fiction all on its own. I’m not sure I’m interested in returning to this well with upcoming films, but I will happily go back to Neo’s first experience taking the red pill.

21. Ed Wood (1994)

Unless Tim Burton proves me otherwise with something inside him he’s been holding back for decades, I still strongly contend Ed Wood is Burton’s last great film. I won’t deny he’s made any good movies at all in the past 26 years; Sleepy Hollow, Big Fish, Frankenweenie, and Big Eyes were not terrible. But he has made 13 films since this one and none ever compare to the height of Burton’s powers: Beetlejuice, the Batman movies, even Edward Scissorhands; he’s old hat with nothing interesting more to say - often a parody of himself. But in Ed Wood we have a lovingly-crafted portrait of a man who is ambitious and passionate about his work, no matter how good he is. His Ed is so full of optimism and positivity that there is no denying him. Johnny Depp, an actor who has been declining almost as much and as long as his beloved director - at best treading water as an artist - gives one of his last great dramatic performances here, bringing so much life and empathy to Wood. The rest of the ensemble is spectacular: Martin Landau (incredible as Bela Lugosi), Sarah Jessica Parker, Patricia Arquette, Jeffrey Jones, Bill Murray, Mike Starr, Max Casella, and Lisa Marie, most of which make up Wood’s ensemble of losers are made lovable by them. Burton chose the so-called Worst Director of All Time to make his movie about movies. It is one of the most lovely and greatest.

20. The Dark Knight (2008)

While I think Inception is the better, more influential film, The Dark Knight is my other favorite Christopher Nolan film and one of my absolute favorite comic book movies. A lot is made of Heath Ledger’s performance as Joker - and it is a superb performance, to be sure. But I think people tend to allow that performance to overshadow everything else that makes this film great. At its core, The Dark Knight is a crime film that explores the thin line between those who serve to protect society and those who desire to destroy it. This is often simplified into a good vs. evil dynamic. Regardless, taking from Alan Moore’s The Killing Joke, The Dark Knight explores how even the best of us can become the worst. The difference lies in one bad day. Aaron Eckhart (completely underrated) embodies this as Harvey Dent, who eventually becomes Two-Face through a series of tragedies and extraordinary CGI. Christian Bale’s Batman, however, realizes that sometimes in order to better serve the bigger picture one must do so at the sacrifice of their reputation. All of this and the film is a ton of fun. And it transcends its superhero movie genre to be among the greatest crime films. Period. It set the bar very high for any superhero film and any future Batman movie.

19. Star Wars (1977)

I was born while Star Wars fever was at an all-time high. This film was released 3 years before I was born, its first sequel 5 months before I was born. It resonated throughout my ‘80s childhood and my life. I may not be one of the most obsessed fans with a garage with shelves full of thousands of toys and memorabilia. But Star Wars is in my bones. I remember having to analyze the film in college. We were assigned Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces and needed to think critically of Star Wars through that lens. I must admit, I got sucked into the film’s popcorn thrills. I had to snap myself out of it after 20-30 minutes and try hard to actually analyze the film. That’s how fun this film is. But it’s also one of the few entries in the franchise that you can actually find things beyond the plot to chew on. It’s why it is still one of the best and will always be one of the best. Not only that, but the film’s combination of practical effects and special effects lend a tangibility that Lucas eventually lost sight of with his CGI meddling. You can practically see the sweat and sacrifice of the crew in every model, make-up, and puppet. Star Wars is the result of real hard work. There’s something to chew on there, too.

18. Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

I don’t think I realized until recently exactly how much I love Fiddler on the Roof. I remember when I was a kid we had the 2-cassette VHS. And I would watch it once every few years. I always liked some of the songs. I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve become a father, but I have found the past couple of years that the story of a father trying desperately to hold on to life as he knows it is absolutely moving. A big part of the movie is something that every parent must face: the maturation of their kids and the inevitable departure from under their care to live their own lives, make their own decisions, and love who they want to love, traditions be damned. Topol is extraordinary and heart-breaking as Tevye; there’s a reason that every performance of this character is compared to his. And who can fail to recognize the songbook? Fiddler on the Roof has one of the greatest musical songbooks of all time: ‘Tradition’, ‘Matchmaker’, ‘If I Were a Rich Man’, ‘To Life’, ‘Miracle of Miracles’, ‘Sunrise, Sunset’, ‘Do You Love Me’, and 12 other songs have unforgettable melodies and actually add to the story, character development, themes or texture - and that’s what a great musical’s songbook should do.

17. Rear Window (1954)

I believe Psycho may have been my first Alfred Hitchcock film… I might have seen The Birds as a kid, actually. But a handful of his films were AFI 100 Greatest discoveries for me, including this one. Vertigo used to be my absolute favorite. And then Psycho. But Psycho is a very close 2nd place to Rear Window. Why do I love Rear Window? Well, Grace Kelly is one of the most stunning women to ever grace a camera, most especially in this film. I love that her character is pro-active and participates in the story’s mystery. I love Thelma Ritter’s wise-ass tsk-tsking. I love James Stewart. Period. This is also one of the greatest single-location movies. The skill here is in being able to ratchet up the suspense without allowing the character to leave his chair, let alone his room. And Hitchcock was the master of suspense.

16. Moulin Rouge! (2001)

My favorite musical of all time. There are a bajillion reasons I love this film. A bajillion. Even though this is my opportunity to gush over this film, it’s important that I be brief, so I won’t list all bajillion reasons. I remember watching this with my parents. My dad and I were absolutely entranced during the Diamond Dogs medley; we knew at that very moment we were watching something truly unique and special. My mom was a little surprised by our reactions, as it was too different for her taste. Goodness… okay, so I love how well executed the conceit of taking modern pop music and rearranging or mashing them up to serve a story about a brothel was. I loved the songbook (very important for any favorite musical, as you can see). This is one of Nicole Kidman’s greatest, most varied performances… again, the entire cast is incredible. Baz Lurhmann’s energy and visual style is in full effect here and is far more effective than anything else he would do afterwards (The Great Gatsby, for example, was garish and hollow). Look, I would need an essay in order to fully express and carry on my feelings about this film. But, once again, maybe that’s just the way it is for the movies you absolutely love the most.

15. X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

This is my favorite X-Men movie. The only way director Bryan Singer (who returned for the first time since 2003’s X2) could improve on the mansion invasion sequence in X2 was to adapt a classic X-Men story and depict a dark future where major X-Men characters are brutally slaughtered by Sentinels. It was intense. It was heavy. And it was really fucking cool. In the comics it is Kitty Pryde (Elliot Page) who goes back in time, but the film’s choice to have Wolverine make the trip instead makes a lot more sense, especially with how the continuity was laid out in the films. And that story with Bolivar Trask in the ‘70s was really cool. I have quibbles: it sucks to have most of The First Class characters bumped off off-screen, the First Class timeline never gelled with the original movie’s timeline, and the Stryker/Mystique reveal at the end makes zero sense. But this is the film that introduced Quicksilver (a very cool Evan Peters), gave us mohawked Storm (Halle Berry), brought Bishop (Omar Sy) and Blink (Bingbing Fan) to the movies, Iceman (Shawn Ashmore) icing up and creating his ice-ramp, and had many X-Men working together. It was one of the most X-Men of X-Men movies. However, I tend to prefer the Rogue Cut of the film, which includes footage that makes quite a bit more sense and involves Rogue (Anna Paquin).

14. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Okay, so I previously gave context to how much 2012’s Avengers meant to me as a comic book fan. Now, imagine that 10-fold with Endgame. The former was a gamble in terms of whether or not a studio could successfully make the unprecedented move of combining a handful of superhero movies into one. Endgame stuck the unprecedented - and yet to be repeated - landing of a 20+ movie series with a story arc that concluded here. Movies just don’t get more epic than Endgame. As a comic book fan I was genuinely moved to tears of joy seeing the cinematic equivalent of a comic book splash page on the screen. To see literally dozens of characters mix and mingle and interact and fight alongside each other was amazing. I cried at least three times and experienced a bigger thrill than the original Assemble camera pan in Avengers or the Giant Man moment in Civil War. On top of that, it started with some great acting by Scarlett Johansson and Robert Downey, Jr. And, unlike in some previous MCU movies, there were actual losses in the film. I could go on about why this film is the best MCU film, but the point is really this movie meant a lot to me and affected me strongly as a comic book fan.

13. Tombstone (1993)

Tombstone is, by far, my favorite western of all time. This was a genre that, like musicals, took me a while to get into. It was movies like Young Guns, Unforgiven, and Tombstone that were my way in. I have since fallen in love with such westerns as Stagecoach; The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly; 2010’s True Grit; and The Wild Bunch. But Tombstone tops them all. The production was apparently a complete nightmare with one director being fired, another hired, and Kurt Russell rumored to have kept everything together. So, aside from the script, which is apparently one of the most faithful to the actual events of Wyatt Earp, the cast deserves a lot of credit. Tombstone had one of the greatest casts in any western: Kurt Russell, Sam Elliott, Bill Paxton, Val Kilmer, Powers Boothe, Michael Biehn, Jason Priestley, Stephen Lang, Thomas Haden Church, Dana Delaney, Charlton Heston, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson, Michael Rooker, Billy Bob Thornton, Paul Ben-Victor, Billy Zane, Terry O’Quinn, and John Corbett with Robert Mitchum narrating. Some hadn’t been on screen long, some were huge stars, but all were excellent in their respective roles. Add on top of it an awesome score by Bruce Broughton (Silverado, The Monster Squad). I contend that if you don’t like Tombstone you don’t like westerns.

12. Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

I don’t think The Force Awakens is the most original of the Star Wars movies. But I also know that’s by design and served the purpose of giving the original pre-prequel fans confidence and comfort that the Star Wars they knew was back. So, I give director J.J. Abrams a complete pass on aping the original film’s story. That’s made even easier by everything the film did right and gave us more of. This film gave us more of what we saw possible and loved about the original trilogy: more Millennium Falcon, more lightsaber duels, more force powers, more of the original characters, more worlds and environments. This was Star Wars. I remember experiencing this for the first time. I remember an overwhelming sense of joy bursting from me with tears when the title appeared with that extraordinary fanfare. I remember that feeling coming back hard when my old friends, Han Solo and Chewbacca, appeared on the Millennium Falcon and Han said, “Chewie… we’re home.” Yes, we were. And it felt so good to be back. I remember the absolute devastation I felt when my old friend Han was impaled by a lightsaber and fell to his death; a friend I’ve known all of my life was just killed in front of me and I felt that loss. And I remember cheering and crying with my wife when that lightsaber went into Rey’s hands; it was everything women like my wife had fantasized about for decades. It was one of the greatest cinematic experiences of my life. Yes, The Force Awakens holds a special place in my heart.

11. (500) Days of Summer (2009)

I recently watched this film for the first time in several years. It still worked on me as underappreciated greatness. Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) falls in love with Summer (Zooey Deschanel). Yet we are warned from the start that this is not a love story. We see everything from Tom’s perspective. What Tom isn’t able to see is Summer’s unhappiness. What Tom isn’t able to hear is Summer doesn’t want a relationship. Gordon-Levitt deserves a lot of credit here for his performance that alternates between being completely smitten and absolutely devastated. Just watch how he plays several of the scenes with Zooey, looking warmly at her over the smallest of activities or discussions. When I re-watched it a week ago I was struck by how much of the film is relatable. I couldn’t help but be pained by the film’s climactic conversation on the bench overlooking the city. It’s a devastating thing to lose faith in your ideas of love and, on top of it all, to have the person you loved be with someone else and tell you you weren’t right for them. On the other hand, that can be a very healing thing to hear and can restore your faith in love. It’s all about perspective. (500) Days of Summer is a gem of a movie full of brilliance. It’s a shame that few have noticed such a wonderful thing.

10. Jaws (1975)

When you’ve grown up with a director like Steven Spielberg it can be hard to quantify or rank your absolute favorites. I recently listed Spielberg as one of my favorite directors and, when I looked through his filmography, there are 14 films of his I count as my favorites. You’ve already seen a couple make this list. I’ve made Jaws my 2nd-favorite Spielberg film. The film is now 45 years old and I find the first few minutes to be among the greatest horror scenes ever constructed; it still puts me on edge and gives me chills. Our inability to see the shark for most of the movie is famously a result of production troubles and Spielberg’s ability to be creative with his challenges. So, we get POV shots of the shark swimming underneath potential victims. It’s incredibly effective and I’m sure this film has been taught in film school because of it. Jaws also features one of John Williams’s best scores - not just themes, entire scores. Most people think of the dreadful low-register theme for the shark with french horn and bass. But there’s also some other great pieces like ‘Out to Sea’ and ‘The Shark Cage Fugue’. As a complete score it is up there with Star Wars, Empire of the Sun, and E.T. But Jaws is perfect for a lot of reasons. It’s almost enough to forget Universal Studios made 3 sequels that turned one of the greatest films of all time into a B-movie monster series.

9. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

I absolutely adore Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. It’s really funny. But it also fights fights the new generation of politicians and voters are taking on 80 years later. And it has faith in our democracy and potential as a country while acknowledging its imperfection. Jimmy Stewart, Jean Arthur, Claude Rains, and the supporting cast of character actors are deserving of credit for selling the story, its pathos, and its humor. They play off each other in ways that balance cynicism and optimism. It is an absolute delight.

8. Back to the Future (1985)

So, in Episode 95 of The Movie Lovers I describe how I took months to pour over and painstakingly craft my 12 favorite movies of all time. You can imagine how I felt when I realized this and number 4 was somehow completely overlooked. I can’t remember life before Back to the Future. It was released 4 months before I turned 5. I remember seeing the third film in the theaters and going to a recently-demolished restaurant a few minutes away afterwards. This is a film that is both perfectly-constructed on its own, but also retroactively made even better by its sequels. The sequels weren’t originally planned. Zemeckis and Bob Gale had to figure out a plot that incorporates what amounted to a gag in the original’s end. What they ended up doing was making practically every single plot and character detail of the original resonate throughout the sequels, thus making it seem like the original was an incredibly constructed lay-up for the sequels. But one of the things I love so much about this film is the opening title sequence, a slow and quiet long take that pans around Doc Brown’s workshop. We see several clocks, gadgets, a mysterious case with a plutonium symbol, and a TV left on in the background. There’s so much set up and detail for those whose eyes are keen on noticing. There’s also the soundtrack, one of the best of the ‘80s, and Alan Silvestri’s iconic score. There’s absolutely no way Back to the Future isn’t among my 10 all-time favorite movies.

7. Aliens (1986)

I have vague memories of this movie being released. Very vague. I remember not knowing anything about it, but knowing I was way too young to watch it and it looked really frightening. I was probably five years old. Later on it became a cable TV staple. That’s probably where I saw it for the first time. I don’t know what age I was at that point, but I thought it was riveting and cool. As an adult, I’ve gained perspective on this film’s place in film history, its production, and its place in the Alien series and have grown to love it. Look, Ridley Scott’s original is a unique vision that amounts to a monster serial killer movie. It’s one of the best of its kind: as a sci-fi film and as a monster movie. But James Cameron was able to take the groundwork that film laid and built upon it in the way a great sequel should. Yes, the title goes from singular to plural, a natural progression in its simplest form. The story accomplishes everything that title suggests. But Cameron introduces the concept of the space marines and, not only gives us plenty of fodder for the creatures, but also some unforgettable and bad-ass characters. Like Predator a year later, each member of the rescue-team-turned-survivors is distinct and perfectly cast. Add more layers to Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley, making her among the greatest female characters in film, and you have one of the best sequels ever made and the best the series ever got.

6. A League of Their Own (1992)

I think Penny Marshall’s A League of Their Own was one of the first movies to move me to tears. I know the movie My Girl was the first. But I couldn’t help be moved by this film’s reunion finale. I still find much of the film quite moving. The scene when Marla (Megan Cavanagh) and her dad say goodbye at the train station, her dad having to explain why she has to go, gets me teary just thinking about it. I think the reason the film works so well is because it allows us to spend so much time with its ensemble cast of characters. This makes it possible to care about their wins, their losses, their tragedies, and heartaches. It also allows us to laugh with them - and laugh I often do. I’m trying to think back… I think I saw movies like Steel Magnolias and Beaches growing up, but this may be the first female ensemble film that actually made an impact on me and that I loved. I think two things helped: 1. the cast. Geena Davis, Tom Hanks, Jon Lovitz, Rosie O’Donnell, and Madonna were all names I knew at the time. On top of that there was Lori Petty, Tracy Reiner, Anne Ramsay, Ann Cusack, David Strathairn, Garry Marshall, Bill Pullman, and Eddie Jones. And 2. the subject matter. I was sort of too young to know or realize women had to literally step up to the plate when all of the men went off to WWII. It’s still not material that is explored really at all. I found it fascinating. It is probably my favorite Penny Marshall film.

5. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Those of you who are less than 30 years old may not know that T2 was a huge event in 1991. It was not only a sequel to a popular sci-fi film from 7 years before, but it was also guaranteed to be a huge blockbuster that people would be talking about. The innovative visual effects were a primary focus in the conversation that year. And they are incredible, because James Cameron spares no expense in moving the needle forward in that sense. But they aren’t necessarily the main reason I love or come back to this film. I love the creativity of Terminator 2. I love the way Cameron was able to take what he did with Ripley in Aliens and apply it to his own creation, the T-800. This is a father/ son movie. It’s also about a woman who has shaped her life around survival recognizing she may be forgetting what they’re surviving for - and it isn’t just to be able to lead an army against Skynet. That layer of humanity and that emotional depth is what makes T2 even better than the original for me. I think, also, what people forget is this is the movie that made Sarah Connor a bad-ass. She had a moment of determination at the end of the original film that is fair to extrapolate as the beginning of the Sarah Connor we see in T2. But Sarah became the iconic bad-ass woman in this film. She is tough, she is knowledgeable about firearms, but she also may not be a lot of fun to hang out with. Yet, we love her.

4. Ghostbusters (1984)

So, this was another huge oversight when I first created my 12 favorites list for the podcast. This movie is up there with Star Wars and Back to the Future in terms of being a huge part of the fabric of my life. As with any film, I’m not fanatic, but I did grow up with the Saturday morning cartoon series and still own the action figures and firehouse. I grew up liking the sequel, but it was always missing something that made me love the original so much. This film was a great example of how a movie can give a child a healthy amount of scares. And there are some hide-behind-the-couch scary moments for my 5 year-old self! But it was also hilarious and so fucking imaginative! I don’t think enough credit is given to the world building in this movie, yet what people love are elements of the world created here. You have ghosts and paranormal elements and people who trap and contain those things so they aren’t terrorizing the city. Everything within that alone is so cool to watch! On top of that there are extremely powerful supernatural elements introduced (the big bads). The creature design of the demon dogs and Gozer are among the most imaginative and iconic ever put to film. Then there’s the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, a.k.a. The Traveler. Add on top of that real world dangers like governmental agency bureaucracy in the form of Walter Peck (William Atherton, the ‘80s’ Grade A Asshole). And then there’s the score by Elmer Bernstein and the soundtrack that features everyone from the Pet Shop Boys to Oingo Boingo to the iconic main theme. And I haven’t even mentioned the genius team of Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, and the underrated Ernie Hudson. Yeah… how am I not supposed to love this movie?

3. Almost Famous (2000)

So, this movie came along after I had spent my high school years growing my taste in music and becoming an audiophile. I grew up with Oldies music (when I was a kid that referred to mostly ‘50s and ‘60s rock and roll), ‘60s, and ‘70s bands. I’m talking The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, and The Mamas and the Papas to name a few. But I also grew up in the ‘80s with Bruce Springsteen and Michael Jackson. So, I fell in love with Almost Famous fast and hard. I was the wide-eyed and bushy-tailed William Miller and I was right there with him in his journey, feeling the feelings he felt about meeting guitar gods and incendiary singers. But the thing is, Cameron Crowe constructed a wonderful script based on his experiences as a teen touring for Rolling Stone Magazine. And he is smart enough to involve the worried mom (Frances McDormand) back home and the sister (Zooey Deschanel) who grew up and got away. I was familiar with McDormand because of Fargo. And she was wonderful in that film. But she is SO GOOD as this overbearing alternative mom. She may not want to celebrate Christmas on December 25th, but you know what she has in common with any other mom? She doesn’t want her kids doing drugs. As an adult, for that and other reasons, she is incredibly relatable and brings a soul to the film that is essential to the film’s excellence. I also love Philip Seymour Hoffman as Lester Bangs. This is definitely one of my favorite Hoffman performances, if not my absolute favorite. Cameron Crowe has yet to be this good since.

2. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

Most love and revere 1981’s Raiders of the Lost Ark. It is, to be sure, one of the greatest adventure movies and has been imitated many times by lesser films like 1999’s The Mummy and National Treasure. But I always loved The Last Crusade the most. This third - and supposedly last - Indiana Jones film was the only film of the original trilogy to be a sequel (Temple of Doom took place a week before Raiders). More importantly, why I love it is because every set piece is unforgettable and fun. The dialogue is often witty and quotable. The love interest (Elsa Schneider played by Alison Doody) is unbelievably gorgeous. The finale rivals the original’s and was a bit scary for my 8 year-old self. And then there’s Sean Connery. I grew up with Sean Connery on the TV as James Bond and Ramirez in Highlander. It’s entirely possible that Henry Jones, Sr. may be my favorite character of his. Marko Ramius and John Mason are up there, also. He’s just such a fantastic foil to Harrison Ford’s Indy. I know it’s a trope and a total thing for Spielberg, but that father/son relationship was such an excellent touch here. Jones, Sr. and Jr. may be the best father/son duo of any Spielberg film. And how about that wonderful prologue with River Phoenix as the young Indiana?! I don’t know why they didn’t cast Phoenix in the short-lived spin-off TV series, but they should have. Anyway, there’s so much to enjoy about this film.

1. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983)

It is quite a challenge for a cinephile to name their favorite movie of all time. I always find it interesting when someone I respect like Roger Ebert declares their favorite movie of all time (his was La Dolce Vita). As a cinephile it can be easy to feel pressure to name something high brow and highly influential like Citizen Kane or Fellini’s 8 1/2. I realized during the process of building my list that the single movie I love most, that has always been a huge part of me, that I know so well I can mouth along practically every line of dialogue is Return of the Jedi. Yes, yes, I know… the one with the Ewoks?! Yes, the one with the Ewoks. I love those Ewoks. If you hate the Ewoks you better think twice about loving the Hobbits in the Lord of the Rings, because they are practically the same thing: that even the smallest of us, if given the opportunity, can destroy the most powerful of forces. With Ewoks you also have the added dichotomy of primitive vs. technology, which I also appreciate. But enough about Ewoks. The forest moon of Endor is only one of the reasons I love this film. I love how the film shows us there’s more to Tatooine than we thought before with Jabba’s Palace and everything that suggests (so many character designs!). I love that we see Luke has advanced further with his knowledge of the Force and is far from the whiny moisture farmer’s nephew we first met. I love the revelation that Leia is Luke’s sister, a revelation to the audience, Luke, Leia, Vader - everyone! I love that we finally get to see Anakin Skywalker. I love the 3rd act events, how they’re staged, and how they’re edited together in a way that’s completely coherent throughout. Return of the Jedi has humor, adventure, thrills, surprises - it has so much of what we want when we go to the movies. It’s a satisfying and imaginative end to the original trilogy. And it’s not even the best Star Wars movie! That’s the great thing about being a movie lover: you don’t have to love the best movie ever made. When it comes down to it the question of your favorite movie of all time isn’t an intellectual exercise or a logical evaluation of good vs. bad qualities. It’s a matter of what sparks your imagination, makes your heart sing, and fulfills your soul. It can be something cerebral, emotionally affecting, or full of thrills and excitement. For me, it’s a movie that has sparked the imagination since childhood and is loads of fun. What is it for you?

Those are my 100 favorite movies of all time. Which are your favorites? Do you share any of my experiences?

Which movies will be new discoveries for you?

It turns out the 2010s (20 movies), the 1990s (21 movies), and the 1980s (23 movies) are my favorite decades in film. What’s interesting about this is in Episode 93 of The Movie Lovers we counted down our favorite movie years and the ‘90s did not make my list. Furthermore, the year 1995 was one of three years tied with the most movies: five. The other two years were 1986 and 1987, two of my favorite years mentioned on Episode 93. The ‘40s and the ‘60s were the least-represented decades on this list.

Thank you for helping us celebrate the 10th Anniversary of The Gibson Review by going on this journey. Feel free to email any of your thoughts.