During the pandemic of 2020, we reached out to our fanbase to send in their top ten movies of all time. Our listeners, readers, fans, and followers responded by sending in their lists with thoughts on the best the movie industry had to offer. With that in mind, and a large group of lists in hand, we tabulated everyone’s vote into a supreme list of 100 films we can say are your favorites (plus four more that had the same score as #100). So without any further delay, let’s take a look at this great set of films…
39. La La Land (2016, Lionsgate, 128 minutes, Directed by Damien Chazelle)- One of the best musicals and (almost) winner of Best Picture for 2016, La La Land is part love story and part Hollywood satire blended into a brilliantly-made and directed musical. Yes, Moonlight may have taken away the top prize at the Oscars, but La La Land captured the hearts of many and cemented the star status for Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone.
38. Lawrence of Arabia (1962, Columbia, 227 minutes, Directed by David Lean)- One of the few great epic films that have been remembered fondly for generations, Arabia has been the inspiration of many an auteur seeking to draw motivation from this sweeping tale of adventure. Peter O’Toole commands the screen like very few others could during that era in filmmaking as the hero tasked to report to the British on the ongoing Arab-Turk battles during World War I when his emotions compel him to interject himself in the conflict that was so beautifully categorized through the eyes of Director Lean.
37. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003, 20th Century Fox, 138 minutes, Directed by Peter Weir)- Made during the height of Russell Crowe’s stardom, this film may not be the most well-remembered of his movies during that time, but this sea-faring adventure set at the early part of the nineteenth century chronicles aspects of the British-French sea conflicts that resonated throughout history. The true star of the show is not Crowe or Paul Bettany, but the ship-to-ship battles directed by Weir and how important control over the sea was to Europe in that era.
36. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000, Universal/Buena Vista, 107 minutes, Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen)- One can always expect the Coen Brothers when they’re together directing to always create something decidedly offbeat. And with O Brother, which details the escape of three convicts (George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson) and their search for buried treasure, it’s the side adventures they get caught up in which makes for enjoyable chaos and set the stage for a Grammy-award winning soundtrack that weaves itself beautifully as it is applied throughout the film.
35. RoboCop (1987, Orion, 102 minutes, Directed by Paul Verhoeven)- In the cycle of ultra-violent star-driven action movies that were all the rage in the 1980s, it is Verhoeven’s Robocop that stands out as one of the most well-made and poignant of its kind during that era. Petter Weller stars as Officer Frank Murphy, whose near death at the hands of a ruthless gang causes him to be reconstructed into a killing machine with a badge. Set in a futuristic dystopian Detroit, Murphy’s programming to uphold the law at any costs come in between his desire to regain his memories, his increasing thoughts of revenge, and his investigation into exactly who (or what) is actually in charge of running New Detroit.
34. Sin City (2005, Miramax, 124 minutes, Directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez)- One of the best examples (along with “300“) of the comic book look of the early 2000s, Sin City serves as a homage to its source material as a detective noir thriller, and to the hyper-violent era of movies during the height of the box office in the late 1980s. Featuring a cast of who’s who’s in Benicio Del Toro, Bruce Willis, Clive Owen, Jessica Alba, and more, what makes this movie resonate with audiences is its now infamous glamourized look and stylized storytelling from Rodriguez and creator Miller himself.
33. Stay (2005, 20th Century Fox, 99 minutes, Directed by Marc Forster)- Yes, Marc Forster has directed a number of good films (Monster’s Ball, World War Z, Finding Neverland among others) but it’s this movie that resonated so profoundly with our audience. This psychological thriller brings audiences one of the first stand-out performances of Ryan Gosling as Henry Letham, a man fighting his way through reality and how he copes with the ongoing turmoil. Ewan Mcgregor’s Dr. Sam Foster and Naomi Watts Lila are tasked to guide Gosling through his anxiety, mental anguish, and thoughts of suicide, with Forster bringing a closing twist that explains the true nature of Henry’s pain.
32. The Terminator (1984, Orion, 107 minutes, Directed by James Cameron)- One of Cameron’s early triumphs as a director, The Terminator has Arnold Schwarzenegger as a cyborg sent back in time from the year 2029 to “terminate” Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton), who will give birth to the leader of the resistance in a future war against artificial intelligence aggressors. While this movie is fondly remembered as one of the highlights of the ultra-violent films of the 80’s, it is even more known as setting the stage for the amazing sequel, T2, and the string of not-so-incredible sequels and derivatives that came after it.
31. There Will Be Blood (2007, Paramount/Miramax, 158 minutes, Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson)- Considered by many to be one of the best movies (if not the best) of the first decade of the 2000s, the movie follows Daniel Day-Lewis as he portrays a prospector whose oil hunting eventually pays off and the struggles he has to maintain control of his growing Petroleum empire. Director Anderson takes a subject that could have easily been crafted as dull in another director’s hands and turns it into a period piece that brilliantly sets the stage for Lewis’ masterful performance, further cementing his legacy as one of the greatest actors of all time.
30. Avengers Endgame (2019, Disney/Marvel, 181 minutes, Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo)- One of the highest-grossing films of all time is also the culmination of ten years and 22 films that encompassed the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Pitting the ultimate battle of heroes vs. villains, Endgame satisfies the audience’s need to see a completion of the story arc a decade in the making, ever since Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) got captured, thrown into a cave, and had to come up with an idea to get himself out. The final confrontation, set five years after the snap from Thanos (voiced by Josh Brolin) and the Infinity Gauntlet that caused half of all life to cease to exist, is expertly diagrammed by the Russo brothers in a way that delights and saddens all at the same time. Will this movie ever get de-throned as the reigning box-office champion? Who knows, but noting how many people are a fan of this movie, maybe it should be allowed to sit atop of that throne for quite some time.
Pop Culture Cosmos 