MASTER LIST #22: The 50 Best Animated Features

I'm not a huge animation fan but, dang it, I know what's good. And I was livid after seeing Richard Corliss's woeful list of the top 25 animated films for the pages of Time Magazine. Happy Feet? Horton Hears A Who? And The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie at #3? That was just a collection of shorts hastily cobbled together! Corliss' sloppy arrangement of the titles, and the list's lack of

MASTER LIST #22: The 50 Best Animated Features

I'm not a huge animation fan but, dang it, I know what's good. And I was livid after seeing Richard Corliss's woeful list of the top 25 animated films for the pages of Time Magazine. Happy Feet? Horton Hears A Who? And The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie at #3? That was just a collection of shorts hastily cobbled together! Corliss' sloppy arrangement of the titles, and the list's lack of

MASTER LIST #21: The 50 Best Sequels

Another difficult list to compile. First off, I had to decide which sequels actually surpassed their originals in quality and influence (the first twenty entries make this cut). But, before this, I had to reconcile myself to whether or not entries in long-running series like the James Bond movies, the Hannibal Lecter series, and the Hope/Crosby "Road" movies counted as sequels. I decided the

MASTER LIST #21: The 50 Best Sequels

Another difficult list to compile. First off, I had to decide which sequels actually surpassed their originals in quality and influence (the first twenty entries make this cut). But, before this, I had to reconcile myself to whether or not entries in long-running series like the James Bond movies, the Hannibal Lecter series, and the Hope/Crosby "Road" movies counted as sequels. I decided the

MASTER LIST #20: The 50 Best Remakes

It was a little difficult, compiling this list. I had to decide what deserved to be a remake and what didn't. Did remaking TV series, or TV-produced teleplays count? (They do.) And did musical remakes, having been made for stage originally, count? (Yes, they do, too.) How about remakes of historical dramas and classic stories by Shakespeare and the like? (I decided against this; these

MASTER LIST #20: The 50 Best Remakes

It was a little difficult, compiling this list. I had to decide what deserved to be a remake and what didn't. Did remaking TV series, or TV-produced teleplays count? (They do.) And did musical remakes, having been made for stage originally, count? (Yes, they do, too.) How about remakes of historical dramas and classic stories by Shakespeare and the like? (I decided against this; these

MASTER LIST #19: The 101 Best Films of the 2000s

On the heels of perusing so many "best of the decade" lists, I do get the impression that there is a lot more from this decade for me to see (particularly from Asia and Eastern Europe); I have passion for all these films listed, but I'm still left with a needling and probably wrongful suspicion that movies are a dying art form. I'm not making excuses here, but the fact is that, unless one is

MASTER LIST #19: The 101 Best Films of the 2000s

On the heels of perusing so many "best of the decade" lists, I do get the impression that there is a lot more from this decade for me to see (particularly from Asia and Eastern Europe); I have passion for all these films listed, but I'm still left with a needling and probably wrongful suspicion that movies are a dying art form. I'm not making excuses here, but the fact is that, unless one is

Master List #18: The 101 Best Films of the 1930s

Even though the planet's mired in a similarly decade-defining depression, the movies of the 1930s are rooted so distantly away from the noisy present that watching them makes one obsess over how much life has seemingly since wriggled backwards or hence. They really feel not of this earth. Their striking opulence and risky experimentation; their steadfast dedication to amusement (there are more

Master List #18: The 101 Best Films of the 1930s

Even though the planet's mired in a similarly decade-defining depression, the movies of the 1930s are rooted so distantly away from the noisy present that watching them makes one obsess over how much life has seemingly since wriggled backwards or hence. They really feel not of this earth. Their striking opulence and risky experimentation; their steadfast dedication to amusement (there are more

Master List #17: The 101 Best Films of the 1940s

Though the 101 movies mentioned here are some of the best ever made, the 1940s still stands as my least favorite decade for movies. The texture of cinema in that era feels boxed in to me--as if only a few directors made an attempt to get away from the confines of studio-approved packaging. Those who did break out--like Welles, Sturges, and Capra, for instance--paid the price for their

Master List #17: The 101 Best Films of the 1940s

Though the 101 movies mentioned here are some of the best ever made, the 1940s still stands as my least favorite decade for movies. The texture of cinema in that era feels boxed in to me--as if only a few directors made an attempt to get away from the confines of studio-approved packaging. Those who did break out--like Welles, Sturges, and Capra, for instance--paid the price for their

MASTER LIST #16: The 101 Best Films of the 1950s

Of course, a staggering array of masterworks hail from the 1950s--so much so that putting them in order of preference was like splitting an already split hair. One can really see that this was another monumental era for cinema, with Kurosawa, Bergman, Donen, Hitchcock, Huston, Ford, Kubrick, Welles, Fellini, Nicholas Ray, Anthony Mann, Max Ophuls, and Billy Wilder, among others, delivering many

MASTER LIST #16: The 101 Best Films of the 1950s

Of course, a staggering array of masterworks hail from the 1950s--so much so that putting them in order of preference was like splitting an already split hair. One can really see that this was another monumental era for cinema, with Kurosawa, Bergman, Donen, Hitchcock, Huston, Ford, Kubrick, Welles, Fellini, Nicholas Ray, Anthony Mann, Max Ophuls, and Billy Wilder, among others, delivering many

MASTER LIST #15: The 101 Best Films of the 1960s

Whoa! Easily the most challenging decade for films since the silent era, in my opinion. So many of the following 1960s films cited are not for everyone (popular filmmaking, spearheaded by the Americans, on the other hand, was at its lowest ebb, with dunderheaded musicals, epics, and comedies taking the forefront at the box office). Very nearly half of the entries on the list hail from the

MASTER LIST #15: The 101 Best Films of the 1960s

Whoa! Easily the most challenging decade for films since the silent era, in my opinion. So many of the following 1960s films cited are not for everyone (popular filmmaking, spearheaded by the Americans, on the other hand, was at its lowest ebb, with dunderheaded musicals, epics, and comedies taking the forefront at the box office). Very nearly half of the entries on the list hail from the

MASTER LIST #14: The 101 Best Films of the 1980s

Having followed the stellar 1970s, and heavily steeped with former movie star Ronald Reagan's culture-changing presidential agenda (at least in its latter half), the 1980s may seem at first glance as a nadir for cinema (especially since the decade itself was, in my opinion, the beginning of the end for serious movies). But I find nothing worthy of burial in this list. All titles cited that

MASTER LIST #14: The 101 Best Films of the 1980s

Having followed the stellar 1970s, and heavily steeped with former movie star Ronald Reagan's culture-changing presidential agenda (at least in its latter half), the 1980s may seem at first glance as a nadir for cinema (especially since the decade itself was, in my opinion, the beginning of the end for serious movies). But I find nothing worthy of burial in this list. All titles cited that

MASTER LIST #13: The 101 Best Films of the 1970s

In response to the current poll being held at the magnificent Wonders in the Dark, I decided to commit to posterity my 101 favorite films from the 1970s. I came of age in the 1970s, so I saw about 65% of these titles in first-run theaters (it was an unbelievable time to be a budding film lover). So, in order, based on (1) influence, (2) personal affection, and (3) overall quality, here's my

MASTER LIST #13: The 101 Best Films of the 1970s

In response to the current poll being held at the magnificent Wonders in the Dark, I decided to commit to posterity my 101 favorite films from the 1970s. I came of age in the 1970s, so I saw about 65% of these titles in first-run theaters (it was an unbelievable time to be a budding film lover). So, in order, based on (1) influence, (2) personal affection, and (3) overall quality, here's my