The Bad and the Beautiful
The Bad and the Beautiful succeeds at telling an excellent story with excellent characters that simultaneously rips and celebrates Hollywood without ever gilding anything with a sense of nostalgia or reverence, earning the film a place of greatness.
Witness for the Prosecution
Blending strong performances with a well-paced story and a fun and twisting third act, Witness for the Prosecution shows itself as one of Wilder’s best films, one of the best courtroom dramas ever made, and one of the Greatest Films of All Time.
The Killing
The Killing is a raw take on both Kubrick and film noir that does things that other films from the director and in the genre wouldn’t necessarily be expected to do, but it works refreshingly well and earns a spot among the greats as well.
To Be or Not to Be
To Be or Not to Be is a uniquely fun screwball comedy that handles its subject matter well with plenty of irreverent laughter without ever actually stepping into the realm of making light of the struggles of others, earning a clear spot among the Greatest Films of All Time as it does so.
Chimes at Midnight
Welles takes the lion’s share of the credit for the greatness of Chimes at Midnight in both his direction and acting, giving us a portrayal of the works of Shakespeare that stay true to the original content while highlighting their universal nature, earning the film a spot among the greats along the way.
Elevator to the Gallows
In Elevator to the Gallows, Louis Malle combines crime thriller with the comedy of errors to give us an entirely new take on what crime films can be, elevated even more by some excellent filmmaking and a beautiful jazz score from Miles Davis, all of which work together to earn it a spot among the greats.
A Place in the Sun
Ultimately, A Place in the Sun is an inconsistent film, carried by strong leading performances bolstered by some interesting social commentaries that end up falling short of their potential due to the norms and mores of the era.
Frankenstein
Frankenstein offers a near-perfect look at the genre of sci-fi/horror, giving the audience plenty to ruminate on while also providing sheer entertainment in the form of iconic characters, visuals, and locales, earning the film a place of greatness.
I Vitelloni
For me, the stories told in I Vitelloni present a universally relatable look at young adulthood and the changes that the world forces on us, offering the best and worst ways to handle those changes, which certainly earns it a spot among the all-time greats.
Cold War
Pawel Pawlikowski has given us a truly enthralling romance in Cold War; bolstered by the performances of his two leads, it offers audiences a love worth rooting for in the face of the storms of life and the hardships of the Cold War in Europe, earning the film a much-deserved spot among the greats.
The Seventh Seal
Altogether, The Seventh Seal offers a rich examination of death, mortality, human relationships, and religion without doing too much to answer any of its posed questions, instead offering partial answers and stunning visuals to engage the audience and earn a place of greatness along the way.
Swing Time
Swing Time is really a fun, if a bit simple, musical romantic comedy that hits all the right notes along with a few of the wrong ones on the path to cinematic greatness, bolstered by its two charismatic and compatible leads.
Intolerance
Credit is owed where it’s due, and for D.W. Griffith’s Intolerance, credit is owed greatly to its filmmaking techniques that gave audiences a historical epic interwoven with a tale of the Christ, a French historic melodrama, and a modern parable of legalism and capitalism, earning it a place among the greats.
What Ever Happened TO Baby Jane?
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? could have easily fallen by the wayside as so many psychological horror films have throughout the history of cinema, but instead, the three actors at its heart gave some of the best horror performances of all time and elevated the film to a place of greatness.
The Magnificent Ambersons
Orson Welles took what should be a depressing, bleak look at the outlook of America in a post-industrial world and made it into a gripping film that looks wonderful even as it beats you over the head with the inevitability of its conclusion, earning The Magnificent Ambersons a place among the greats.
Mrs. Miniver
Mrs. Miniver’s cast lends a much-needed sense of weight and emotion to this film about surviving the turmoil of the early days of World War II, earning it a spot among the Greatest Films of All Time.
Journey to Italy
Ingrid Bergman and George Sanders are the ideal leads to bring Rossellini’s film about the more mundane side of marriage and holding it together or watching it fall apart to the big screen, and together the team makes a film that stands the test of time and earns a spot among the greats.
Young Mr. Lincoln
Between Henry Fonda’s excellent portrayal of the iconic president’s early years in law and the fascinating case study presented in the film’s legal drama, Young Mr. Lincoln cements an easily rewatchable spot among the Greatest Films of All Time.
King Kong (1933)
King Kong stands the test of time thanks to its innovative approach to visual effects and a genuinely engaging display of monster movie magic that combine to earn it a spot among the greats.