Speculative: 'Best Films of All Time'
Submitted by lukeprog on Sat, 01/15/2005 - 09:50
Tags:
- Citizen Kane (Welles)
- 8 1/2 (Fellini)
- The Rules of the Game (Renoir)
- 2001: A Space Odyssey (Kubrick)
- The Seventh Seal (Bergman)
- The Seven Samurai (Kurosawa)
- Rear Window (Hitchcock)
- The Battleship Potemkin (Eisenstein)
Author Comments:
I do not mean that these films are critic-proof. What I means is that, as I begin to give up serious film criticism, I have a suspicion that these are the 'best' films ever made.
Or, put another way:
If someone bet me a million dollars that I couldn't write an utterly convincing argument (in book form) that a chosen few films are the best films of all time, and if I was given plenty of time to watch, rewatch, read about, and study those films, I would choose these titles for my argument.
Nice list. I like your explanation of the bet. Despite what the critical acclaim may say, I think Rules of the Game is the weak link in this list. It's a great movie, but it's a little silly at times, and some of the characters aren't as well-developed as one might hope.
If you're trying to totally eliminate personal biases and think only of what the closest-to-perfection films are, I'd nominate Lawrence of Arabia and at least one classic film-noir (maybe Sunset Boulevard, or The Third Man, or perhaps Chinatown).
Of course, I should watch it again (as I should, all of these films), but Rules of the Game's direction is so incredible for its time it's definitely on par with Citizen Kane in that respect. And what do you mean by 'a little silly at times'?
Since my latest re-watch, I've considered Lawrence of Arabia good but highly overrated, personally. And, with regards to film noir, Chinatown might be a good choice, but I'm not so sure about the others. Super-excellent films they are, I agree, but not as arguable as supreme achievements of cinema at every level.
When they're chasing each other around the house, falling over, etc. The slapstick definitely feels out of place with the rest of the film.
I think I agree with you about the noirs, now that I understand better what you're doing with this list. Those three films I mentioned are fantastic at every aspect of production but aren't as amazingly groundbreaking as the other films up here. But why did you feel Lawrence of Arabia was overrated?
Oh, man, I thought that was the best part of the whole movie! That and the hunt.
Anyway, Lawrence of Arabia is overrated for two reasons (for me). One, I didn't care for Peter O'Toole's performance. Two, it's basically a really big, big movie with sweeping landscapes and shots and epic size without being groundbreaking at all or having any originality in visual or narrative style.
All very highly rated classics, for sure. And do take a look at "They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?" website list, according to various polls (can't remember if you've already seen it).
The They Shoot Pictures list certainly allowed me to narrow down the choices, but this list is derived from my own thoughts (not feelings) about the films I've seen.
Notably, I haven't yet seen Sunrise, Sansho the Baliff, or Au Hasard Balthazar, which are all greatly revered and rank highly on the very useful They Shoot Pictures list.
Excellent list. I agree on those I have seen.
However I think that movies like Casablanca, The Godfather and Taxi Driver would really deserve to be on such a list.
"""Anyway, Lawrence of Arabia is overrated for two reasons (for me). One, I didn't care for Peter O'Toole's performance. Two, it's basically a really big, big movie with sweeping landscapes and shots and epic size without being groundbreaking at all or having any originality in visual or narrative style."""
Pardon?????????
Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather, Casablanca, etc. are very well-crafted mainstream narratives. The films I've chosen for this list are masterpieces of art and, to a lesser degree, narrative. That's what I really meant with my second objection to Lawrence of Arabia. As for O'Toole's performance, I couldn't make an argument either way - you either like it or you don't.
Funny. I need to rewatch all of these, but if I had to guess now, I'd say:
1. Citizen Kane
2. Persona
3. Un Chien Andalou
4. 8½
5. 2001: A Space Odyssey
6. The Mirror
7. Breathless
8. Last Year at Marienbad