50.  Bride
of Frankenstein (1935) 75 minutes, Not Rated (NR), BW
A
spark of real wit surges through this classic, easily the best of
the Universal monster movies. Director James Whale, one of Hollywood's
founding eccentrics, used his sophisticated humor to expand the
boundaries of the chiller genre, and a fright-wigged Elsa Lanchester
turned a few minutes of screen time into one of the most enduring
images in horror. But it's the exquisitely weird actor Ernest Thesiger's
performance as the effete Dr. Pretorius that secures a place for "Bride" among
that rare group of Hollywood films: sequels better than the originals. 49. Dirty
Harry (1971) 102
minutes, Rated R, Letterbox
Originally
rebuked by critics as a fascist fantasy,
"Dirty Harry" nonetheless gave Clint Eastwood his best role
as Harry Callahan, a renegade cop whose .44 Magnum could blow
a hole in the ozone. This superbly made thriller stands as one of the
most influential films in the crime genre, inspiring four sequels and
countless rip-offs. Directed with cold-blooded expertise by Eastwood's
mentor, Don Siegel, "Dirty Harry" eschews traditional cops-and-robbers
histrionics for a morally complex and disturbing study of evil
and contains several brilliant action scenes and a complicated title
character who could play good cop/bad cop all by himself.
48. The
Quiet Man (1952) 129 minutes, NR
Perhaps
the most enjoyable of the numerous collaborations between director
John Ford and star John Wayne, "The Quiet Man" is
full of characters as colorful as its Irish vistas. Wayne plays
an Irish-American boxer seeking refuge in Erin after accidentally
killing an opponent in the ring. But instead of peace, he finds
culture shock, love with a fiery colleen (Maureen O'Hara) and
fisticuffs with her "big,
bellowing bully" of a brother (Victor McLaglen). All in all,
a grand bit of the blarney.
47. Cabaret (1972) 128 minutes, Rated PG
In
the year of "The Godfather," "Cabaret" managed
to win eight Oscars, including Best Director, Actress and Supporting
Actor. Under Bob Fosse's ultrastylized direction, "Cabaret" also
dragged the Hollywood musical into the modern era. Liza Minnelli,
in her first filmed singing role, is a thrill as the starry-eyed
Sally Bowles, an American in 1931 Berlin performing at the tawdry
Kit Kat Klub, where the divinely decadent entertainment parallels
the rise of Nazism outside. Integrating social satire with smashing
production numbers (including "The Money Song" and the showstopping
title number), Fosse created a landmark film from a genre most
thought dead.
46. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance
Kid (1969) 112 minutes, Rated PG
One
of the screen's great buddy teams was born when Paul Newman and
Robert Redford saddled up for this rollicking comic western about
two legendary outlaws. With a gleam in his baby blues, Newman
dazzles as Butch, while Redford became a superstar with his self-deprecating
portrayal of the dashing, trigger-happy Sundance. Burt Bacharach's
bouncy score includes "Raindrops Keep Fallin'
on My Head."
45. Top
Hat (1935) 99 minutes, NR, BW
Ginger
Rogers. Fred Astaire. Irving Berlin. You want more? OK, a supporting
cast topped by Edward Everett Horton and some of the fanciest
footwork ever committed to film. The fourth of the 10 Astaire-Rogers
matchups, this is the one with Fred's tour de force choreography
for the title song and the two stars dancing "Cheek
to Cheek" -- as blatant and beautiful an example of dance-as-sex
as ever graced a musical. And look for Lucille Ball in the bit
role of a flower-shop girl. Released by RKO a few years later, she
got the last laugh by buying the entire studio in 1958.
44. Babe (1995) 92 minutes, Rated G
This
charming fable about a plucky pig with "an
unprejudiced heart" is a delightful children's movie that's just
as beguiling for adults. The Oscar-winning visual effects (combining
real animals, animatronic wizardry and computer graphics) and
dazzling fairy-tale sets bring to life the touching and tender tale
of an orphaned Yorkshire piglet who goes to live on a farm and trains
to be an expert sheepdog.
43. Raiders of the Lost Ark
(1981) 115 minutes, Rated PG, Letterbox
This
thrill ride kicks off with a booby-trap sequence that any other
movie would have considered a climax: For "Raiders,"
the beginning is just the beginning. When two of the screen's
modern masters, producer George Lucas and director Steven Spielberg,
teamed up with star Harrison Ford, the result was the ultimate
action movie with the ultimate action hero -- Indiana Jones, the asp-kicking
adventurer with quip and whip at the ready. Far better than either
of its two sequels,
"Raiders" is the definitive homage to Saturday-matinee serials,
and includes the best snake scene since Genesis.
42. Modern
Times (1936) 87 minutes, NR, BW
A
mostly silent film, Charlie Chaplin's "Modern
Times'' is a comic nightmare of mass production, runaway capitalism,
the police state -- all of which helped get the film (and its
star) labeled Red. At times sentimental, the movie nonetheless
includes some utterly stunning sequences: Chaplin under assault
by the automatic feeding machine, and his trip through the cogs
of a factory. "Modern
Times" perfectly captures Chaplin: naive, but ever so heartfelt.
41. Saturday Night Fever (1977) 119 minutes, Rated
R (108-minute version Rated PG)
When John
Travolta staged his comeback in 1994's "Pulp
Fiction," this is what he was coming back to. As Tony Manero,
Bay Ridge, Brooklyn's answer to Fred Astaire, Travolta strutted
and swiveled through a defining picture of the 1970s. His big-man-in-a-little-disco
bravado remains as poignant and pathetic as ever. His costars
might be klutzy, but Travolta never misses a step.
40. On
the Waterfront (1954) 108 minutes, NR, BW
The
theatrical trailer promised "a story that's
as warm and moving as 'Going My Way' (but with brass knuckles!)" --
as good a description as any for this Oscar-winning morality
tale. The characters struggling with pier pressure include an ex-boxer
with a soft spot for pigeons, a luscious nun-in-training and a priest
with a mean punch. And Marlon Brando's "contenduh" speech
is still a knockout.
39. Laura (1944) 85 minutes,
NR, BW
Otto Preminger's deliciously sleek
Manhattan murder mystery is a grabber from its first line -- "I
shall never forget the weekend Laura died" -- and keeps its
hold through a shocking mid-picture twist and shattering climax.
With a cigarette dangling from his lip, Dana Andrews plays a tough
cop investigating the murder of a beautiful woman (played by the
dreamy Gene Tierney in flashbacks) who finds himself obsessed with
her portrait. Among the suspects: a shifty fiancé (Vincent
Price) and Laura's arrogant mentor (unforgettably played by Clifton
Webb). Add a theme song that virtually defines haunting and the
elements conspire to make "Laura" one
of film noir's great cases.
38. Jaws
(1975) 124 minutes, Rated PG, Letterbox
The
movie that emptied beaches and created the modern blockbuster, "Jaws" holds
up today not so much for its jolts -- there aren't as many as
you think you remember -- but because of something missing from
the movies it inspired: real characters. Roy Scheider, Richard
Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw are more than fish bait, and the conversation
about the USS Indianapolis is worth all the dinosaurs in "Jurassic
Park."
37. American Graffiti (1973) 110
minutes, Rated PG, Letterbox
George Lucas
was a 28-year-old unknown when he made this autobiographical teen
picture for less than $800,000. The result was a genuine pop classic
that became an audience favorite and brought accolades to Lucas
and his cast (including Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss and Harrison
Ford). With its drag races, sock hops, doo-wop and Mel's Drive-In, "Graffiti" makes
pop-culture myth out of nostalgic reverie.
36. The
Graduate (1967) 105 minutes, Rated PG, Letterbox
"The rules don't make any sense to me," says
a baby-faced Dustin Hoffman as recent college grad Benjamin Braddock. "They're
being made up by all the wrong people." So goes a rallying cry
for the 1960s in Mike Nichols's comic masterpiece. The gap of
ages is hilariously and poignantly evoked in the soulless affair between
Ben and Anne Bancroft's Mrs. Robinson, the embodiment of middle-aged
resignation.
35. The
African Queen (1951) 105 minutes, NR
Humphrey
Bogart bagged his only Oscar anchoring John Huston's rumbling
adventure set in WWI German East Africa. Bogie's gin-guzzling
skipper of the floating junk heap called the African Queen meets
his match in Katharine Hepburn's "psalm-singing,
skinny old maid." The duo embarks on a suicide mission to torpedo
one of the Kaiser's gunships, en route making film history.
Bogie and Kate were made for each other.
34. Apollo 13 (1995) 139 minutes, Rated PG, Letterbox
"Houston, we have a problem." With that,
Tom Hanks gave liftoff to a nifty summer entertainment -- riveting
drama and thrilling special effects. The true story of astronaut Jim
Lovell (Hanks) and his crew's long-awaited moon mission is nostalgically
captured by director Ron Howard. Who cares that Lovell's actual words
were "Houston, we've had a problem"?
33. Schindler's
List (1993) 195 minutes, Rated R, BW with color segments,
Letterbox
An emotional obstacle course
of a film, Steven Spielberg's Holocaust movie tells the story
of Oskar Schindler, the enigmatic industrialist who saved more
than 1,000 Polish Jews from the Nazi gas chambers. As painful
as it is powerful, "Schindler's List" is
enobled by Spielberg's vision, Janusz Kaminski's cinematography,
and two Olympian performances: Liam Neeson as the self-made hero
Schindler and Ralph Fiennes as the astonishingly demonic Nazi
officer.
32. Dr.
Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love
the Bomb (1964) 93 minutes, NR, BW
Blasted
and praised when it was released, Stanley Kubrick's black comedy
about nuclear annihilation remains unchallenged as cinema's most
devastating attack on the military mind. The brilliant cast is
headed by an inspired Peter Sellers playing three roles -- the
eggheaded U.S. president, a stiff-upper-lip RAF captain and the
wheelchair-bound ex-Nazi scientist Dr. Strangelove.
31. Rebel
Without a Cause (1955) 93 minutes, NR, BW 111 minutes, NR,
Letterbox
The archetypal juvenile delinquency
movie has everything it takes to be, well, the archetypal juvenile
delinquency movie: Teen angst, switchblades, blue jeans, hot rods
and James Dean. "Rebel" stands
as director Nicholas Ray's enduring ode to disaffected youth.
Dean, Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo. Who would have pegged Dennis Hopper
as a survivor?
30. The Palm Beach Story (1942) 90
minutes, NR, BW
His fame hasn't kept up
with that of Frank Capra or Billy Wilder, but writer/director Preston
Sturges is responsible for a series of comedic fables about the
American dream that are some of Hollywood's funniest films. His "The
Lady Eve" has the
sophistication,
"Sullivan's Travels" the satirical bite, but for pure laughs
it's hard to beat "The Palm Beach Story." The fun begins when
Claudette Colbert dumps husband Joel McCrea and heads to Palm
Beach to land a rich beau. Take a deep breath before viewing -- the
antic pace doesn't let up in this classy, sexy satire.
29. The Lion King (1994) 88 minutes, Rated G, Animated
Disney's
32nd animated musical was its highest-grossing and, at least among
the studio's post-1970 features, its best. The story -- a sort of "Bambi" meets "Hamlet" --
can by now be recited word for word by any parent with a VCR, but
the songs, lush colors and sly inside jokes make "Lion" worth
another rewind.
28. Gone
With the Wind (1939) 222 minutes, NR, Letterbox
The
epic by which every other is measured. David O. Selznick's grand
Technicolor version of Margaret Mitchell's novel is, quite simply,
a glorious soap opera. Even on television, "GWTW" is
hard to resist: The burning of Atlanta might be less spectacular
on the small screen, but nothing can snuff the sparks between
Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable, not to mention the fire in Scarlett's
eyes.
27. The Empire Strikes Back
(1980) 124 minutes,
Rated PG, Letterbox
"Star Wars" was the first, but real fans
of George Lucas's science fiction trilogy know "Empire" is
the best installment. While Lucas focused on the technical wizardry,
Irvin Kershner handled the direction. The result is a smashing
display of action, special effects and drama, all tied together by
the darkest and best-written script of the series. The plot soars
to unpredictable places and includes some of the most breathless flights
in Lucas's galaxy: Yoda's instruction of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill),
the burgeoning love of Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) for Han Solo
(Harrison Ford). Best of all is Darth Vader's pivotal revelation to
Luke, one of the neatest twists in one of the top sequels ever made.
26. The Exorcist (1973) 121
minutes, Rated R
Take it on faith: "The
Exorcist" is the scariest
motion picture ever. The ultimate showdown of good and evil
pits a soul-searching priest (Jason Miller) against a demon inhabiting
the body of a 12-year-old girl (Linda Blair). Director William Friedkin's
shocks are as heart-stopping as ever, and the excellent cast
is assisted by the most frightening noises ever recorded. Rent this
one -- the edited broadcast version is a desecration.
25. A
Streetcar Named Desire (1951) 122 minutes, NR, BW
The
performances in Elia Kazan's landmark adaptation of Tennessee Williams's
play remain among the most electric in American film. The brutish
Stanley Kowalski reminds us how Marlon Brando became Marlon Brando.
And Vivien Leigh's Blanche DuBois is a heartbreak, and not just
because she evokes an aging Scarlett O'Hara. Of all the screen actresses
who played one of Williams's doomed heroines, Leigh best personified
the fate that befalls fragile souls in a world of Stanleys. Censors
forced Williams to alter the play's ending, but "Streetcar" is
still a steamy hothouse of a movie.
24. Double
Indemnity (1944) 106 minutes, NR, BW
"How could I have known that murder sometimes
smells like honeysuckle?" That line alone, courtesy of
screenwriters Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler, would earn
this lusty tale of murder a place among film noir classics.
But with Wilder's masterful direction and that venetian-blind
lighting, we have a moody masterpiece. Barbara Stanwyck is the
very fatale femme and Fred MacMurray (forget My Three Sons)
plays her sap. Deadly fun, even without the original ending
that had MacMurray snuffed out in a gas chamber.
23. All
About Eve (1950) 138 minutes, NR, BW
A
smooth sip of champagne with a sprinkle of arsenic,
"All About Eve" remains Hollywood's definitive backstage
drama and the high point of Bette Davis's long career. Joseph
L. Mankiewicz's marvelously nasty tale of surly, aging Broadway
actress Margo Channing (Davis) and her ultra-ambitious fan Eve
Harrington (Anne Baxter) says trunkloads about show business,
human behavior and the direct correlation between talent and utter
viciousness. Sit back, fasten your seatbelts and enjoy the most
literate catfight ever filmed.
22. Ninotchka
(1939) 110 minutes, NR, BW
Sly
glances. Slamming doors. Innuendo. Lots of innuendo. Such
was the stuff of the famed "Lubitsch touch," with
which the director Ernst Lubitsch (who deserves Hollywood canonization)
summoned a bewitching aura of mischievous eroticism. Some of
the screen's most effervescent comedies came from Lubitsch (his "The
Shop Around the Corner" is being remade with Tom Hanks
and Meg Ryan), but "Ninotchka" may be his most sparkling,
thanks to a very witty screenplay and, of course, the divine
Greta Garbo.
21. Annie
Hall (1977) 93 minutes, Rated PG
La-de-da.
It's hard to believe that Woody Allen's Oscar winner is
more than two decades old; "Annie Hall" still
seems as fresh and funny as ever. A semiautobiographical romantic
comedy about a neurotic Jewish comedian and his kooky WASP girlfriend,
Woody's breakthrough film made a star of his former real-life
love Diane Keaton, whose baggy pants, vest, hat and tie look
started a '70s fashion craze. Employing fantasy flashbacks,
direct-to-camera monologues, subtitles and even a cartoon sequence,
the movie ranks among the best comedies ever filmed. It's certainly
Allen's sweetest.
20. Raging
Bull (1980) 128 minutes, Rated R, BW
The
anti-Rocky. Though no contender at the box office, director
Martin Scorsese's powerful depiction of boxer Jake La Motta
is the most beautifully brutal sports film ever made, and
one of the best movies of the 1980s regardless of genre.
The breathtaking ringtime scenes, the unflinching depiction
of a deeply disturbing "hero," and one of the standout
performances of Robert De Niro's career make "Raging Bull" a
must for any fan of cinematic bloodsport. Or cinema, for that
matter.
19. Duck
Soup (1933) 70 minutes, NR, BW
The
Marx Brothers' glorious lunacy reached its zenith in this
inspired blend of slapstick and satire. A flop in its day
(let's blame the Depression), "Duck Soup" is
now considered the boys' masterpiece. Groucho becomes prime
minister of Freedonia, firing off more zingers than international
law should allow. Is there a more satisfying sight than Margaret
Dumont's reactions to such shots as "I'm fighting for this
woman's honor...which is more than she ever did."?
18. The
Searchers (1956) 119 minutes, NR, Letterbox
Nobody
made westerns better than John Ford, and he never made one
better than this. The saga of a cowboy's long quest to find
a niece kidnapped by Comanche, "Searchers" is
by turns explosive and melancholy, a pilgrimage into the dark
heart of an outsider. As the flawed hero, John Wayne turns in
a deceptively simple performance that would forever define his
swaggering macho style.
17. Some
Like It Hot (1959) 121 minutes, NR, BW
Billy
Wilder was at the height of his powers when he made this
uproarious sex farce about two musicians (Jack Lemmon, Tony
Curtis) who witness the 1929 St. Valentine's Day Massacre
and flee by disguising themselves as women in an all-female
band. As the two bosom buddies get cozy with the band's voluptuous
singer (a never better Marilyn Monroe), the laughs come as fast
as bullets from a tommy-gun. Among the movie's treats: Curtis's
dead-on lampoon of Cary Grant.
16. Sunset
Blvd. (1950) 110 minutes, NR, BW
"All About Eve" might be Hollywood's
greatest look at Broadway, but "Sunset Blvd." remains
Tinseltown's best gaze into its own fun-house reflection. Gloria
Swanson is smashing as demented silent-screen queen Norma Desmond,
and William Holden makes for a terrific pre-Richard Gere gigolo.
From the moment Holden's floating corpse begins the narration,
through Norma's deranged final close-up, the stunning
"Sunset" is the standard against which all movies about
movies must be viewed.
15. The
Philadelphia Story (1940) 112 minutes, NR, BW
Hollywood's
great comedy of manors, "The
Philadelphia Story" was the perfect antidote to Katharine
Hepburn's two-year stint as "box office poison." As
a moneyed ice princess fending off the affections of costars
Cary Grant and James Stewart, Hepburn, under the expert guidance
of director George Cukor, gives one of the performances of her
life, while Grant and Stewart keep pace. "There's a magnificence
in you, Tracy,"
Stewart's character tells Hepburn's. Same can be said about this
classic.
14. Bringing
Up Baby (1938) 102 minutes, NR, BW
Director
Howard Hawks said "Bringing Up
Baby" had only one flaw: "There were no normal people
in it. Everyone you met was a screwball." Every comedy
should be so flawed. Sorry, Howard, but "Baby"
is the perfect screwball comedy. The leopard-quick dialogue, Katharine
Hepburn's loopy heiress, Cary Grant's hapless zoologist and a
great menagerie of secondary characters couldn't be better.
13. Pinocchio (1940) 88 minutes, NR, Animated
Arguably
the greatest animated feature of all time (with all due respect
and apologies to Snow White), Disney's richly drawn version
of the Italian fairy tale is a perfect synthesis of wonderful
music (including the Oscar-winning "When
You Wish Upon a Star"), indelible characters and the studio's
most exquisitely detailed animation: No computer has ever spit
out anything this beautiful. The Rembrandt tones survive the
trip to TV, and even today's action-addicted kids will love
the terrifying trip to Pleasure Island and the exciting climax
in the belly of Monstro the whale. All that and Jiminy Cricket,
too.
12. It's
a Wonderful Life (1946) 129 minutes, NR, BW
Until
recently, this Frank Capra classic was aired so frequently
throughout the holiday season that even die-hard fans took
it for granted. Big mistake. "It's a
Wonderful Life" is a terrific film, and it contains at
least one true celluloid miracle: James Stewart's engrossing
performance as George Bailey, one of Hollywood's most honorable,
memorable and troubled American dreamers.
11. Vertigo
(1958) 128 minutes, Rated PG, Letterbox
Audiences
and critics of the day were underwhelmed by this unconventional
thriller upon its release, but now nearly everyone agrees
that "Vertigo" is not only among Alfred
Hitchcock's finest movies, but one of Hollywood's. It's certainly
the director's most personal, idiosyncratic work -- OK, it's
downright strange -- and Hitchcock himself described it as being
about "a man who wants to sleep with a dead woman."
Never before (nor after) would Hitch display his erotic, neurotic
fetishes so blatantly (or hypnotically) as in this oft-imitated
dreamlike masterpiece. James Stewart stars, of course, as the
acrophobic detective drawn into a complex murder plot by a cool,
mysterious blonde (Kim Novak). Bernard Herrmann's score and the
superb photography further the mood of this trance of a movie.
And as good as the cast is, no one, not even Stewart, can upstage
the wonders of the setting:San Francisco, looking gorgeous.
10. Bonnie
and Clyde (1967) 111 minutes, NR
The
Dust Bowl panoramas and cloud-shaded wheat fields lose some
of their sweep on the television screen, but the wit, excitement
and star chemistry of Arthur Penn's landmark film remain
as vivid as a hail of bullets. The notorious advertising
slogan for "Bonnie and Clyde" ("They're young.
They're in love. And they kill people") should have included "And
they look absolutely marvelous." Within minutes of the
film's opening credits (and what great opening credits they
are), an audacious close-up of a young, ravishing Faye Dunaway
all but screams
"a star is born." Beatty is just as comely and never
more charming. Gene Hackman, Oscar-winning Estelle Parsons and
Michael J. Pollard round out the unforgettable cadre, and if the
innovative blend of humor and violence isn't as shocking as it
was in '67, "Bonnie and Clyde" holds its own among the
best films of its decade. Rent this one again, if only for another
chance to see that odd, lyrical sequence of the doomed Bonnie's
family reunion. And look for Gene Wilder in a brief comic performance,
making his debut as an undertaker kidnapped by the gang.
9. Chinatown
(1974) 131 minutes, Rated R, Letterbox
Screenwriter
Robert Towne based his wonderfully intricate tale of Los
Angeles corruption on historical fact, but the brilliance
of "Chinatown" springs from tradition
of a different sort: Director Roman Polanski, at the peak of
his considerable powers, dipped from the well of classic film
noir to create a film that was at once an homage to and an improvement
over its forebears. Jack Nicholson became a superstar, Faye
Dunaway continued the winning streak she began with "Bonnie
and Clyde," and John Huston virtually personified political
and personal rot in this fetid reservoir of murder, incest and
land development. Polanski has an effective cameo as the sadistic
hoodlum who gives Nicholson the most famous nose job in Hollywood
film history.
8. Psycho
(1960) 109 minutes, NR, BW, Letterbox
Alfred
Hitchcock considered it a black comedy, but
"Psycho" laughs only at its stunned audience. Poor Anthony
Perkins was so disturbing in his role he never really escaped
the shadow of the ultimate mama's boy Norman Bates, just as anyone
who's seen the movie won't ever completely shake those behind-the-shower-curtain
tingles. Janet Leigh's watery demise has been deconstructed by
film scholars and stolen by other directors too many times to
count, yet remains a remarkable piece of work. More than a great
horror film (though it's certainly that), "Psycho" is
a nightmare of fractured images, symbols and angles that closes
in on its characters -- and the viewer. Bernard Herrmann's slashing
violin score has become aural shorthand for terror, and even though
the killer-in-drag has outlasted its shock value, "Psycho"
remains an unsettling, fascinating descent into the dark side.
A shot-for-shot color remake, to be directed by Gus Van Sant ("Good
Will Hunting"), sounds about as crazy as the doings at Chez
Bates.
7. The
Godfather (1972) 175 minutes, Rated R, Letterbox
Mario
Puzo's pulp fiction became, in the hands of director Francis
Ford Coppola, a truly great American gangster film. Not
even the small screen can reduce the scope of this sepia-toned
Sicilian saga or its career-launching performances. Al Pacino,
Robert Duvall and James Caan became household names, John
Cazale should have, and Marlon Brando made the most startling
comeback Hollywood had ever -- make that has ever -- seen. Debating
the comparative merits of "The Godfather" and its
remarkable 1974 sequel, "The
Godfather Part II" will keep film buffs battling
long into the next century, but Brando's performance alone would
give "The Godfather" a secure place on any 10 Best
list.
6. Singin'
In the Rain (1952) 102 minutes, NR
If
there's a stretch of celluloid more joyous than Gene Kelly's
triumphant splash through the title song, we haven't seen
it, and Donald O'Connor's "Make 'Em Laugh" is
pure choreographed delirium. Codirected by Kelly and recent
Lifetime Achievement Oscar-winner Stanley Donen, this musical
paean to Hollywood's transition from silents to talkies also
boasts a terrific Arthur Freed/Nacio Herb Brown songbook, a
very funny script by Adolph Green and Betty Comden, and Jean
Hagen's delightfully shrill performance as the silent-screen
triple threat ("She can't act, she can't sing and she can't
dance"). As Hagen's character would say, all their "hard
work ain't been in vain for nothing."
5. To
Kill a Mockingbird (1962) 129 minutes, NR, BW, Letterbox
"Hey, Boo," says young "Scout" Finch
to the town's bogeyman, Arthur "Boo" Radley, and never
has so much tolerance and compassion been packed into two small
words. Robert Mulligan directed Horton Foote's faithful adaptation
of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, a rare example
of a movie being as good as -- some would say better than --
the book, and the film's wistful nostalgia makes its condemnation
of racial bigotry and needless cruelty all the more potent.
Gregory Peck won an Oscar for his elegantly restrained performance
as the upright lawyer Atticus Finch, Robert Duvall made his
debut in the brief but unforgettable role of Boo, and the three
children -- Mary Badham as Scout, Philip Alford as Jem and John
Megna as Dill -- are as fine as any cast of kids ever assembled.
Finally, though, it's the evocation of small-town past and childhood
gone that keeps "Mockingbird" lingering in memory.
The film also boasts one of the prettiest musical scores of
its (or any other) era.
4. The
Wizard of Oz (1939) 101 minutes, NR, color/BW
The
Technicolor brilliance of Munchkinland, the spectacle of
the Emerald City, the performances of a perfect cast and
a tornado worth more than all the hot air in "Twister" would
seem to make this most beloved bit of Hollywood history containable
only on the big screen, but generations of television viewers
long ago disproved that notion. A legend of the cinema, a tradition
of TV and a national treasure trove of songs, "The Wizard
of Oz" might not be the most sophisticated of the MGM musicals,
but it's certainly the sentimental favorite, and Judy Garland's
career-making performance of "Over the Rainbow" still,
after all these decades, has a poignancy few moments on film
can match. And you just gotta love those flying monkeys.
3. Citizen
Kane (1941) 119 minutes, NR, BW, Letterbox
The
two hours between the whispered "Rosebud" and
the burning sled have inspired more intellectual pontificating
than just about anything else ever put on film, but what's almost
always overlooked in all the reverence is just how much fun
this movie is. Yes, the debut of the 25-year-old Orson Welles
actually merits the overused description of cinematic genius,
and Gregg Toland's deep-focus cinematography remains as extraordinary
(even on television) as legend has it. But "Citizen Kane" is
also a damn good yarn, a rollicking, electrifying entertainment
that includes some of the most dazzling imagery ever shot. Call
it a classic -- in fact, call it the classic -- but don't for
a second think that "Kane" is a musty, petrified museum
piece. The rich black-and-white tones look as vibrant as today's
headlines, and not even a modern-day Kane can change that: Attempts
to colorize the film in the 1980s were thwarted when it was
discovered that Welles's 1939 contract with RKO gave him control
over any future revisions. Weeks before his death, Welles told
a friend, "Keep Ted Turner and his goddamned Crayolas away
from my movie."
2. Casablanca
(1942) 102 minutes, NR, BW
What
began as an unproduced play called "Everybody
Comes to Rick's" would eventually become the best-loved
wartime romance in Hollywood history. But first there were rewrites
-- lots of them.
"Casablanca" was shot sequentially because the script
changed continually throughout filming. You'd never know it now:
Every word seems as inviolable as sacred text. Paul Henreid, Claude
Rains, Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet and, of course, Dooley
Wilson singing the heart-tugger "As Time Goes By" are
the incomparable supporting cast, while only Clark Gable and Vivien
Leigh in "Gone With the Wind" could rival Humphrey Bogart
and Ingrid Bergman as cinema's greatest pair of star-crossed lovers.
And can anyone imagine a better closing line than Bogie's to Rains?
The start of a beautiful friendship indeed: Nearly 60 years after
its release, Michael Curtiz's "Casablanca" remains the
definitive romantic picture of Hollywood's Golden Age.
1. The
Godfather Part II (1974) 200 minutes, Rated R, Letterbox
The
only sequel ever to win an Oscar for best picture,
"The Godfather Part II" also made Hollywood history
by actually topping the pretty amazing standard set by the groundbreaking
1972 original. Aside from establishing its cast (Al Pacino, Robert
De Niro and Robert Duvall, to name a few) as the premier actors
of their generation -- and of one of Hollywood's richest eras
-- Francis Ford Coppola's masterpiece is the cinematic equivalent
of an un-put-downable book: Just try watching for only a few minutes.
Impossible. You're hooked until the amazingly poignant final shot
of a contemplative, spiritually broken Pacino. Coppola and cowriter
Mario Puzo weave a hypnotic multigenerational saga, cutting between
the turn-of-the-century immigrant life of Vito Corleone (De Niro,
in a remarkable, uncommonly subtle performance) and the later
years of his disillusioned son, godfather Michael Corleone (Pacino,
staggeringly good). Along the way are some of the most memorable,
disturbing and affecting scenes in all of cinema: Vito's first
vision of the Statue of Liberty, his first murder, the attack
on Michael's Lake Tahoe estate, his quiet ruthlessness as he shuts
the door on his estranged wife (Diane Keaton). And then there's
the lonely execution of Michael's pathetic brother (John Cazale)
as he fishes on a lake, a sequence so elegantly photographed and
perfectly timed that every film school should offer a course on
it. But perhaps the real success of this opus is the way Coppola
achieves what so few epic directors have accomplished: "The
Godfather Part II," in its meditations on family, the past
and the corruption of America's soul, melds historical sweep with
searing personal intimacy, a feat that makes Hollywood's best
sequel our choice for best movie. Period.
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