Take 2: TIME Magazine's Top 100 Films

Before I go through this, I'm guessing that I'll have seen barely any of their top 100 films as compared to the list of novels. For one thing, I tend to read more often than watch movies, but even when I do watch movies, it's usually just the latest thing that I'm seeing with my friends, not one of the timeless classics of cinema. Anyway, here goes nothing.



Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972):

The Apu Trilogy (1955, 1956, 1959):

The Awful Truth (1937):

Baby Face (1933):

Bande à part (1964):

Barry Lyndon (1975):

Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980):

Blade Runner (1982): Finally, one I've heard of! Unfortunately, all I know about Blade Runner is that it has Han Solo.

Bonnie and Clyde (1967):

Brazil (1985):

Bride of Frankenstein (1935):

Camille (1936):

Casablanca (1942): Play it again, Sam. That's all I've got.

Charade (1963):

Children of Paradise (1945):

Chinatown (1974):

Chungking Express (1994):

Citizen Kane (1941): Aha! I've seen this one.... and was utterly underwhelmed. Maybe it didn't help that I knew the secret of Rosebud going in, but it just never seemed very interesting. Maybe it was really influential at the time and knowing its historical context would help, I don't know.

City Lights (1931):

City of God (2002):

Closely Watched Trains (1966):

The Crime of Monsieur Lange (1936):

The Crowd (1928):

Day for Night (1973):

The Decalogue (1989):

Detour (1945):

The Discrete Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972):

Dodsworth (1936):

Double Indemnity (1944):

Dr. Strangelove: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964):

Drunken Master II (1994):

E.T. The Extra Terrestrial (1982):

8 1/2 (1963):

The 400 Blows (1959):

Farewell My Concubine (1993):

Finding Nemo (2003): Frankly, I think almost every one of Pixar's movies should be on this list. They have an absolutely uncanny ability to tell a story.

The Fly (1986):

The Godfather, Parts I and II (1972, 1974):

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (1966):

Goodfellas (1990):

A Hard Day's Night (1964):

His Girl Friday (1940):

Ikiru (1952):

In A Lonely Place (1950):

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956):

It's A Gift (1934):

It's a Wonderful Life (1946):

Kandahar (2001):

Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949):

King Kong (1933):

The Lady Eve (1941):

The Last Command (1928):

Lawrence of Arabia (1962):

Léolo (1992):

The Lord of the Rings (2001-03): Yep, those films were really incredible. I've seen some other film adaptations of LotR that came out before this, and they were all rather cartoony and silly. Kudos to Peter Jackson for taking it seriously, and by extension making the move-viewing public take fantasy stories in general more seriously.

The Man With a Camera (1929):

The Manchurian Candidate (1962):

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944):

Metropolis (1927):

Miller's Crossing (1990):

Mon oncle d'Amérique (1980):

Mouchette (1967):

Nayakan (1987):

Ninotchka (1939):

Notorious (1946):

Olympia, Parts 1 and 2 (1938):

On the Waterfront (1954):

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968):

Out of the Past (1947):

Persona (1966):

Pinocchio (1940): I've got to take issue with this quote from the guy who wrote the blurb on Pinocchio for TIME:

Now, for the first time since Steamboat Willie in 1928, traditional animation is dormant, replaced by the CGI geniuses at Pixar. I miss the greatness of the old format, which could persuasively mix barnyard critters with human motion and emotion. I wish, upon a star, that it could return.

Really? Pixar didn't give "human motion and emotion" to fish, or toys, or monsters, or even robots that barely speak English? Sure, some CGI movies have been duds, but there were duds made with more traditional animation too, we've just ignored them with the passage of time. The same will happen to the CGI movies of today. Take off your rose-colored glasses and get some perspective, buddy.

Psycho (1960):

Pulp Fiction (1994): I'd seen bits and pieces of Pulp Fiction, but I finally saw it all the way through on the bus this summer, and I absolutely loved it. Despite the often gruesome and serious story, you're never far from an absolutely hilarious moment. Add that to the weird avant garde feeling you get from the fact that the story isn't told in order, and you've got a very original film.

The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985):

Pyaasa (1957):

Raging Bull (1980):

Schindler's List (1993):

The Searchers (1956):

Sherlock, Jr. (1924):

The Shop Around the Corner (1940):

Singin' in the Rain (1952):

The Singing Detective (1986):

Smiles of a Summer Night (1955):

Some Like It Hot (1959):

Star Wars (1977): Of course. There's really nothing left to say.

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951):

Sunrise (1927):

Sweet Smell of Success (1957):

Swing Time (1936):

Talk to Her (2002):

Taxi Driver (1976):

Tokyo Story (1953):

A Touch of Zen (1971):

Ugetsu (1953):

Ulysses' Gaze (1995):

Umberto D (1952):

Unforgiven (1992):

White Heat (1949):

Wings of Desire (1987):

Yojimbo (1961):



Yep, my guess was right. I've barely seen or heard of any of these movies. A lot of the time, movies are just kind of "whatever" for me; they're entertaining, but not memorable enough for me to want to go back and watch them again. Here are a few that I've seen recently and haven't already mentioned that break that mold:

• Zombieland (2009). As you might guess, Zombieland takes place after the US has been ravaged by a zombie apocalypse, but it's nowhere near as serious as that sounds. In fact, it's one of the most uproariously funny films I've ever seen. However, since it is a zombie movie, it's chock-full of scares and gore, so if that's not your thing, you'd be wise to avoid it. Otherwise, I highly recommend it.

• How To Train Your Dragon (2010). I was really skeptical going into this, because it just looked like another cheesy CGI kid's movie, but it really surprised me. The story is great, and I ended up really caring about the characters. The setting is absolutely original, too, which made it very interesting.