MSN.com's 100 Best Movies of All Time
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Whether we watch them at drive-in theatres (yes, they do still exist) or multiplexes, or on our TV sets, laptops, or smartphones, movies are a part of our life. They divert and entertain us, make us laugh or cry (or both), get us thinking, inspire us, and sometimes are so powerful that they leave us simply drained.
What makes a good movie? It’s largely a matter of personal taste, of course. The history of cinema is full of examples of critically acclaimed films that do little at the box office (“Brazil,” “The King of Comedy”) and, conversely, smash hits that the critics mostly disliked (“The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” “The Da Vinci Code”).
Movies that score well with both audiences and reviewers — and there are many — tend to have a few basic characteristics in common: a strong, coherent storyline; richly drawn -- and well-acted -- characters; well-done cinematography and (if applicable) special effects; and a satisfying ending.
The movies on this list share those virtues to a greater or lesser extent. They cover a wide range, spanning cinema history from 1921 to 2018. They include silent films and technologically dazzling blockbusters. Many feature famous performers of the past and present, as well as some of the film world’s most acclaimed directors — Charlie Chaplin, Frank Capra, George Cukor, Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, Stanley Kubrick, Sam Peckinpah, and Francis Ford Coppola.
Some of these movies will be familiar to almost anyone — “Citizen Kane,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “The Silence of the Lambs,” “Star Wars” (now retitled “Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope”). Others are more obscure, but well worth discovering.
Taken as a whole, this list provides a vivid illustration of why movies are so important to us.
List added January 2019
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3 new
Sherlock Jr.
1924, in 24 top lists Check -
10 new
City Lights
1931, in 34 top lists Check -
17 new
Modern Times
1936, in 30 top lists Check -
20 new
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop...
1964, in 37 top lists Check -
34 new
The Great Dictator
1940, in 25 top lists Check -
35 new
Kind Hearts and Coronets
1949, in 21 top lists Check -
36 new
The General
1926, in 33 top lists Check -
39 new
Toy Story 3
2010, in 16 top lists Check -
40 new
Singin' in the Rain
1952, in 37 top lists Check -
43 new
Inside Out
2015, in 18 top lists Check -
49 new
Some Like It Hot
1959, in 35 top lists Check -
51 new
The Gold Rush
1925, in 30 top lists Check -
52 new
It Happened One Night
1934, in 29 top lists Check -
60 new
Steamboat Bill, Jr.
1928, in 13 top lists Check -
63 new
Duck Soup
1933, in 24 top lists Check -
65 new
To Be or Not to Be
1942, in 24 top lists Check -
75 new
Playtime
1967, in 19 top lists Check -
77 new
Holiday
1938, in 8 top lists Check -
80 new
His Girl Friday
1940, in 22 top lists Check -
81 new
The Kid
1921, in 17 top lists Check -
85 new
The Philadelphia Story
1940, in 22 top lists Check -
91 new
The Apartment
1960, in 28 top lists Check
Last updated on Mar 24, 2019; source