Top 250 wrap-up, part 20 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 20 of 20: The Top Ten

3.9/4 (Great):

#10. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Michel Gondry, 2004. Currently #62 at the IMDb.

#9. Twelve Monkeys, Terry Gilliam, 1995. Currently #178.

#8. Amélie, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001. Currently #45.

#7. In Bruges, Martin McDonagh, 2008. Currently #199.

#6. Up, Pete Docter & Bob Peterson, 2009. Currently #94.

#5. The Incredibles, Brad Bird, 2004. Currently #192.

#4. Dog Day Afternoon, Sidney Lumet, 1975. Currently #181.

#3. The Departed, Martin Scorsese, 2006. Currently #60.

4.0/4 (Great):

#2. Wall-E, Andrew Stanton, 2008. Currently #48.

#1. Inglourious Basterds, Quentin Tarantino 2009. Currently #89.



The IMDb's actual Top Ten at the moment is:
10. The Dark Knight - my #13 (3.8/4)
9. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - my #68 (3.4/4)
8. 12 Angry Men - my #20 (3.7/4)
7. Schindler's List - my #219 (2.6/4)
6. Inception - my #196 (2.8/4)
5. Pulp Fiction - my #31 (3.6/4)
4. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly - my #38 (3.6/4)
3. The Godfather: Part II - my #205 (2.7/4)
2. The Godfather - my #21 (3.7/4)
1. The Shawshank Redemption - my #270 (2.2/4)

For comparison, the actual best movies of all time:
10. Where the Wild Things Are - Never on the list.
9. Kill Bill: Vol. 2 - Currently #226; my #51.
8. Time Bandits - Never on the list.
7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - Currently #62; my #10.
6. The Dark Crystal - Never on the list.
5. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 - Currently #141; my #52.
4. Labyrinth - Never on the list.
3. The Princess Bride - Currently #188; my #125.
2. Wall-E - Currently #48; my #2.
1. The Muppet Movie - Never on the list.

And now:
It's done! Ha-ha! Mwa ha ha! HA HA HA HA HA HA HAAA IT'S OVER!

Top 250 wrap-up, part 19 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 19 of 20: 3.7/4 & 3.8/4

3.7/4 (Great):

#24. Rocky, John G. Avildsen, 1976. Currently #216 at the IMDb.

#23. Brief Encounter, David Lean, 1945. Currently off the list.

#22. Casablanca, Michael Curtiz, 1942. Currently #17.

#21. The Godfather, Francis Ford Coppola, 1972. Currently #2.

#20. 12 Angry Men, Sidney Lumet, 1957. Currently #8.

#19. The Exorcist, William Friedkin, 1973. Currently #205.

#18. All About Eve, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1950. Currently #82.

#17. The Bridge on the River Kwai, David Lean, 1957. Currently #80.

#16. The Sixth Sense, M. Night Shyamalan, 1999. Currently #131.

#15. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Mike Nichols, 1966. Currently #207.

#14. Shadow of a Doubt, Alfred Hitchcock, 1943. Currently off the list.

3.8/4 (Great):

#13. The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan, 2008. Currently #10.

#12. Magnolia, Paul Thomas Anderson, 1999. Currently #218.

#11. Yojimbo, Akira Kurosawa, 1961. Currently #125.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 18 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 18 of 20: 3.6/4 (Great)

#38. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly, Sergio Leone, 1966. Currently #4 at the IMDb.

#37. Mary and Max, Adam Elliot, 2009. Currently #220.

#36. Finding Nemo, Andrew Stanton & Lee Unkrich, 2003. Currently #166.

#35. Children of Men, Alfonso Cuarón, 2006. Currently #209.

#34. Monsters, Inc., Pete Docter, David Silverman & Lee Unkrich, 2001. Currently off the list.

#33. Dr. Strangelove, Stanley Kubrick, 1964. Currently #34.

#32. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Frank Capra, 1939. Currently #102.

#31. Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino, 1994. Currently #5.

#30. Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino, 1992. Currently #66.

#29. American Beauty, Sam Mendes, 1999. Currently #39.

#28. Fargo, Joel Coen, 1996. Currently #118.

#27. Strangers on a Train, Alfred Hitchcock, 1951. Currently #137.

#26. The Manchurian Candidate, John Frankenheimer, 1962. Currently #156.

#25. Taxi Driver, Martin Scorsese, 1976. Currently #41.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 17 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 17 of 20: 3.5/4 (Very good)

#52. Kill Bill: Vol. 1, Quentin Tarantino, 2003. Currently #141 at the IMDb.

#51. Kill Bill: Vol. 2, Quentin Tarantino, 2004. Currently #225.

#50. The Big Lebowski, Joel Coen, 1998. Currently #139.

#49. Frankenstein, James Whale, 1931. Currently off the list.

#48. Stalag 17, Billy Wilder 1953. Currently #203.

#47. To Kill a Mockingbird, Robert Mulligan, 1962. Currently #56.

#46. The Conversation, Francis Ford Coppola, 1974. Currently off the list.

#45. Sherlock Jr., Buster Keaton, 1924. Currently #241.

#44. For a Few Dollars More, Sergio Leone, 1965. Currently #124.

#43. Spirited Away, Hayao Miyazaki, 2001. Currently #50.

#42. Anatomy of a Murder, Otto Preminger, 1959. Currently off the list.

#41. (500) Days of Summer, Marc Webb, 2009. Currently off the list.

#40. Seven Samurai, Akira Kurosawa, 1954. Currently #13.

#39. Snatch, Guy Ritchie, 2000. Currently #129.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 16 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 16 of 20: 3.4/4 (Very good)

#71. Planet of the Apes, Franklin J. Schaffner, 1968. Currently off the list at the IMDb.

#70. Network, Sidney Lumet, 1976. Currently #197.

#69. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring, Ki-duk Kim, 2003. Currently #248.

#68. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Milos Forman, 1975. Currently #9.

#67. Harold and Maude, Hal Ashby, 1971. Currently off the list.

#66. The Prestige, Christopher Nolan, 2006. Currently #74.

#65. No Country for Old Men, Ethan Coen & Joel Coen, 2007. Currently #119.

#64. The Silence of the Lambs, Jonathan Demme, 1991. Currently #27.

#63. Life Is Beautiful, Roberto Benigni, 1997. Currently #71.

#62. In the Heat of the Night, Norman Jewison, 1967. Currently off the list.

#61. The Third Man, Carol Reed, 1941. Currently #65.

#60. Ed Wood, Tim Burton, 1994. Currently #213.

#59. The Wizard of Oz, Victor Fleming, 1939. Currently #122.

#58. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, John Huston, 1948. Currently #70.

#57. Cool Hand Luke, Stuart Rosenberg, 1967. Currently #136.

#56. La Haine, Mathieu Kassovitz, 1995. Currently off the list.

#55. M, Fritz Lang, 1931. Currently #58.

#54. Touch of Evil, Orson Welles, 1958. Currently #123.

#53. Oldboy, Chan-wook Park, 2003. Currently #104.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 15 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 15 of 20: 3.3/4 (Very good)

#87. My Neighbor Totoro, Hayao Miyazaki, 1988. Currently #190 at the IMDb.

#86. Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Terry Gilliam & Terry Jones, 1975. Currently #73.

#85. The Red Shoes, Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1948. Currently off the list.

#84. Witness for the Prosecution, Billy Wilder, 1957. Currently #127.

#83. Toy Story 3, Lee Unkrich, 2010. Currently #26.

#82. In Cold Blood, Richard Brooks 1967. Currently off the list.

#81. Downfall, Oliver Hirschbiegel, 2004. Currently #93.

#80. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Julian Schnabel, 2007. Currently #203.

#79. Rear Window, Alfred Hitchcock, 1954. Currently #21.

#78. Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock, 1958. Currently #44.

#77. Annie Hall, Woody Allen, 1977. Currently #132.

#76. 3:10 to Yuma, James Mangold, 2007. Currently off the list.

#75. High Noon, Fred Zinnemann, 1952. Currently #138.

#74. Little Miss Sunshine, Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris, 2006. Currently off the list.

#73. Rashomon, Akira Kurosawa, 1950. Currently #81.

#72. The Nightmare Before Christmas, Henry Selick, 1993. Currently off the list.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 14 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 14 of 20: 3.2/4 (Very good)

#108. Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan, 2005. Currently #111 at the IMDb.

#107. Alien, Ridley Scott, 1979. Currently #46.

#106. Star Wars, George Lucas, 1977. Currently #14.

#105. Jaws, Steven Spielberg, 1975. Currently #114.

#104. Hotel Rwanda, Terry George, 2004. Currently #115.

#103. The Truman Show, Peter Weir, 1998. Currently #231.

#102. Harvey, Henry Koster, 1950. Currently #237.

#101. Back to the Future, Robert Zemeckis, 1985. Currently #72.

#100. The Night of the Hunter, Charles Laughton, 1955. Currently #189.

#99. Umberto D., Vittorio De Sica, 1952. Currently off the list.

#98. Princess Mononoke, Hayao Miyazaki, 1997. Currently #112.

#97. The Wrestler, Darren Aronofsky, 2008. Currently #157.

#96. Rififi, Jules Dassin, 1955. Currently off the list.

#95. Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock, 1960. Currently #23.

#94. Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola, 1979. Currently #36.

#93. Sunset Boulevard, Billy Wilder, 1950. Currently #32.

#92. Rebecca, Alfred Hitchcock, 1940. Currently #108.

#91. The Lives of Others, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006. Currently #57.

#90. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, David Fincher, 2008. Currently off the list.

#89. The Day the Earth Stood Still, Robert Wise, 1951. Currently off the list.

#88. Gandhi, Richard Attenborough, 1982. Currently #184.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 13 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 13 of 20: 3.1/4 (Very good)

#125. The Princess Bride, Rob Reiner, 1987. Currenlty #187 at the IMDb.

#124. Groundhog Day, Harold Ramis, 1993. Currently #162.

#123. A Christmas Story, Bob Clark, 1983. Currently #242.

#122. Raiders of the Lost Ark, Steven Spielberg, 1981. Currently #22.

#121. The Shining, Stanley Kubrick, 1980. Currently #48.

#120. Zombieland, Ruben Fleischer, 2009. Currently off the list.

#119. 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick, 1968. Currently #87.

#118. Rosemary's Baby, Roman Polanski, 1968. Currently #225.

#117. Once Upon a Time in the West, Sergio Leone, 1968. Currently #20.

#116. The Maltese Falcon, John Huston, 1941. Currently #99.

#115. The Graduate, Mike Nichols, 1967. Currently #163.

#114. The Grapes of Wrath, John Ford, 1940. Currently #158.

#113. Stand by Me, Rob Reiner, 1986. Currently #171.

#112. American History X, Tony Kaye, 1998. Currently #40.

#111. Ratatouille, Brad Bird & Jan Pinkava, 2007. Currently #182.

#110. Ran, Akira Kurosawa, 1985. Currently off the list.

#109. La Strada, Federico Fellini, 1954. Currently #194.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 12 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 12 of 20: 3.0/4 (Good)

#150. The Empire Strikes Back, Irvin Kershner, 1980. Currently #11.

#149. The Return of the King, Peter Jackson, 2003. Currently #12.

#148. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Gore Verbinski, 2003. Currently #234.

#147. Return of the Jedi, Richard Marquand, 1983. Currently #108.

#146. King Kong, Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Schoedsack, 1933. Currently off the list.

#145. The Adventures of Robin Hood, Michael Curtiz & William Keighley, 1938. Currently off the list.

#144. Ace in the Hole, Billy Wilder, 1951. Currently off the list.

#143. Casino Royale, Martin Campbell, 2006. Currently off the list.

#142. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Steven Spielberg, 1989. Currently #106.

#141. The Usual Suspects, Bryan Singer, 1995. Currenlty #24.

#140. Let the Right One In, Tomas Alfredson, 2008. Currently #215.

#139. Wings of Desire, Wim Wenders, 1987. Currently off the list.

#138. Hero, Yimou Zhang, 2002. Currently off the list.

#137. Gran Torino, Clint Eastwood, 2008. Currently #95.

#136. Some Like It Hot, Billy Wilder, 1959. Currently #79.

#135. L.A. Confidential, Curtis Hanson, 1997. Currently #67.

#134. American Gangster, Ridley Scott, 2007. Currently off the list.

#133. Judgment at Nuremberg, Stanley Kramer, 1961. Currently #188.

#132. Toy Story, John Lasseter, 1995. Currently #149.

#131. Patton, Franklin J. Schaffner, 1970. Currently #227.

#130. Gone with the Wind, Victor Fleming, 1939. Currently #152.

#129. Citizen Kane, Orson Welles, 1941. Currently #37.

#128. The Hustler, Robert Rossen, 1961. Currently #192.

#127. The Bicycle Thief, Vittorio De Sica, 1948. Currently #88.

#126. Red, Krzysztof Kieslowski, 1994. Currently #245.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 11 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 11 of 20: 2.9/4 (Good)

#175. Roman Holiday, William Wyler, 1953. Currently #229 on the IMDb.

#174. It's a Wonderful Life, Frank Capra, 1946. Currently #29.

#173. Life of Brian, Terry Jones, 1979. Currently #164.

#172. Fight Club, David Fincher, 1999. Currently #15.

#171. The Wages of Fear, Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1953. Currently #179.

#170. On the Waterfront, Elia Kazan, 1954. Currently #105.

#169. Inherit the Wind, Stanley Kramer, 1960. Currently off the list.

#168. Come and See, Elem Klimov, 1985. Currently off the list.

#167. City Lights, Charles Chaplin, 1931. Currently #60.

#166. Blade Runner, Ridley Scott, 1982. Currently #117.

#165. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, George Roy Hill, 1969. Currently #151.

#164. Full Metal Jacket, Stanley Kubrick, 1987. Currently #86.

#163. Iron Man, Jon Favreau, 2008. Currently off the list.

#162. Kind Hearts and Coronets, Robert Hamer, 1949. Currently #209.

#161. Big Fish, Tim Burton, 2003. Currently #217.

#160. The General, Clyde Bruckman & Buster Keaton, 1927. Currently #120.

#159. The Ox-Bow Incident, William A. Wellman, 1943. Currently off the list.

#158. 8½, Federico Fellini, 1963. Currently #186.

#157. Brazil, Terry Gilliam, 1985. Currently off the list.

#156. Nights of Cabiria, Federico Fellini, 1957. Currently #226.

#155. There Will Be Blood, Paul Thomas Anderson, 2007. Currently #146.

#154. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Ang Lee, 2000. Currently off the list.

#153. Million Dollar Baby, Clint Eastwood, 2004. Currently #148.

#152. Donnie Darko, Richard Kelly, 2001. Currently #134.

#151. Grave of the Fireflies, Isao Takahata, 1988. Currently #131.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 10 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 10 of 20: 2.8/4 (Good)

#199. Aliens, James Cameron, 1986. Currently #61 on the IMDb's list.

#198. Singin' in the Rain, Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen, 1952. Currently #78.

#197. Sin City, Frank Miller & Robert Rodriguez, 2005. Currently #103.

#196. Inception, Christopher Nolan, 2010. Currently #6.

#195. The Gold Rush, Charles Chaplin, 1925. Currently #155.

#194. Young Frankenstein, Mel Brooks, 1974. Currently off the list.

#193. Shaun of the Dead, Edgar Wright, 2004. Currently off the list.

#192. Memento, Christopher Nolan, 2001. Currently #30.

#191. Unforgiven, Clint Eastwood, 1992. Currently #100.

#190. Amadeus, Milos Forman, 1984. Currently #83.

#189. The Killing, Stanley Kubrick, 1956. Currently #193.

#188. Star Trek, J.J. Abrams, 2009. Currently #185.

#187. Howl's Moving Castle, Hayao Miyazaki, 2004. Currently #236.

#186. The Elephant Man, David Lynch, 1980. Currently #101.

#185. Paths of Glory, Stanley Kubrick, 1957. Currently #52.

#184. The Seventh Seal, Ingmar Bergman, 1957. Currently #113.

#183. Ikiru, Akira Kurosawa, 1952. Currently #175.

#182. A Clockwork Orange, Stanley Kubrick, 1971. Currently #55.

#181. Dial M for Murder, Alfred Hitchcock, 1954. Currently #210.

#180. Mystic River, Clint Eastwood, 2003. Currently #220.

#179. Notorious, Alfred Hitchcock, 1946. Currently #147.

#178. Saving Private Ryan, Steven Spielberg, 1998. Currently #43.

#177. In the Mood for Love, Kar Wai Wong, 2000. Currently #234.

#176. Wild Strawberries, Ingmar Bergman, 1957. Currently #128.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 9 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 9 of 20: 2.7/4 (Good)

#214. The Fellowship of the Ring, Peter Jackson, 2001. Currently #19 on the IMDb.

#213. The Hangover, Todd Phillips, 2009. Currently off the list.

#212. North by Northwest, Alfred Hitchcock, 1959. Currently #38.

#211. Run, Lola, Run, Tom Tykwer, 1998. Currently off the list.

#210. How to Train Your Dragon, Dean DeBlois & Chris Sanders, 2010. Currently #174.

#209. The Wild Bunch, Sam Peckinpah, 1969. Currently #199.

#208. The Social Network, David Fincher, 2010. Currently #150.

#207. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, John Ford, 1962. Currently #246.

#206. The African Queen, John Huston, 1951. Currently off the list.

#205. The Godfather: Part II, Francis Ford Coppola, 1974. Currently #3.

#204. City of God, Fernando Meirelles & Kátia Lund, 2002. Currently #18.

#203. Slumdog Millionaire, Danny Boyle & Loveleen Tandan, 2008. Currently #116.

#202. Fanny and Alexander, Ingmar Bergman, 1982. Currently #212.

#201. A Streetcar Named Desire, Elia Kazan, 1951. Currently #200.

#200. The Pianist, Roman Polanski, 2002. Currently #54.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 8 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 8 of 20: 2.6/4 (Good)

#228. The Two Towers, Peter Jackson, 2002. Currently #31 on the IMDb.

#227. My Man Godfrey, Gregory La Cava, 1936. Currently off the list.

#226. Double Indemnity, Billy Wilder, 1944. Currently #53.

#225. Metropolis, Fritz Lang, 1927. Currently #97.

#224. The Apartment, Billy Wilder, 1960. Currently #92.

#223. Laura, Otto Preminger, 1944. Currently off the list.

#222. Letters from Iwo Jima, Clint Eastwood, 2006. Currently #232.

#221. A Man for All Seasons, Fred Zinnemann, 1966. Currently off the list.

#220. The Lady Vanishes, Alfred Hitchcock, 1938. Currently off the list.

#219. Schindler's List, Steven Spielberg, 1993. Currently #7.

#218. Blood Diamond, Edward Zwick, 2006. Currently off the list.

#217. Casino, Martin Scorsese, 1995. Currently #176.

#216. Goodfellas, Martin Scorsese, 1990. Currently #16.

#215. The Big Sleep, Howard Hawks, 1946. Currently #161.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 7 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 7 of 20: 2.5/4 (Okay)

#241. The Thing, John Carpenter, 1982. Currently #174 on the IMDb.

#240. All Quiet on the Western Front, Lewis Milestone, 1930. Currently #214.

#239. Hot Fuzz, Edgar Wright, 2007. Currently off the list.

#238. Crash, Paul Haggis, 2004. Currently #242.

#237. Forrest Gump, Robert Zemeckis, 1994. Currently #33.

#236. Juno, Jason Reitman, 2007. Currently off the list.

#235. The Great Escape, John Sturges, 1963. Currently #110.

#234. The Lion King, Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff, 1994. Currently #143.

#233. The Lost Weekend, Billy Wilder, 1945. Currently off the list.

#232. The Battle of Algiers, Gillo Pontecorvo, 1966. Currently #201.

#231. Spartacus, Stanley Kubrick, 1960. Currently off the list.

#230. Trainspotting, Danny Boyle, 1996. Currently #154.

#229. Sweet Smell of Success, Alexander Mackendrick, 1957. Currently off the list.



The Thing is the only one of these that I liked, although I think very highly of All Quiet on the Western Front as well. A few others are all right. There are some real "classics" in this bunch (The Great Escape, Spartacus) that completely fail to live up to their reputations.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 6 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 6 of 20: 2.4/4 (Okay)

#252. Grindhouse, Robert Rodriguez & Quentin Tarantino, 2007. Currently off the IMDb's list.

#251. Toy Story 2, John Lasseter, Ash Brannon & Lee Unkrich, 1999. Currently off the list.

#250. The Professional, Luc Besson, 1994. Currently #35.

#249. The Sting, George Roy Hill, 1973. Currently #98.

#248. Infernal Affairs, Wai-keung Lau & Alan Mak, 2002. Currently #231.

#247. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Guy Ritchie, 1998. Currently #173.

#246. Pan's Labyrinth, Guillermo del Toro, 2006. Currently #75.

#245. The Celebration, Thomas Vinterberg, 1998. Currently #222.

#244. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Robert Wiene, 1920. Currently off the list.

#243. Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War, Je-gyu Kang, 2004. Currently off the list.

#242. The Green Mile, Frank Darabont, 1999. Currently #85.



There's not a single movie in this bunch that I feel strongly about, one way or the other. Weird.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 5 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 5 of 20: 2.3/4 (Okay)

#264. Duck Soup, Leo McCarey, 1933. Currently #226 on the IMDb.

#263. The Bourne Ultimatum, Paul Greengrass, 2007. Currently #165.

#262. Out of the Past, Jacques Tourneur, 1947. Currently off the list.

#261. Good Will Hunting, Gus Van Sant, 1997. Currently #195.

#260. It Happened One Night, Frank Capra, 1934. Currently #141.

#259. Great Expectations, David Lean, 1946. Currently off the list.

#258. Chinatown, Roman Polanski, 1974. Currently #68.

#257. Once, John Carney, 2006. Currently off the list.

#256. Lawrence of Arabia, David Lean, 1962. Currently #48.

#255. Requiem for a Dream, Darren Aronofsky, 2000. Currently #63.

#254. The 400 Blows, François Truffaut, 1959. Currently #197.

#253. The Best Years of Our Lives, William Wyler, 1946. Currently #169.



A few of these are very good, and of those that I didn't like, there are only two I wouldn't want to watch again: Lawrence of Arabia is too damn long to be considered for a second chance, and Requiem for a Dream, while it has many fine qualities, is too draining to see a second time.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 4 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 4 of 20: 2.2/4 (Okay)

#279. Modern Times, Charles Chaplin, 1936. Currently #69 on the IMDb.

#278. The Terminator, James Cameron, 1984. Currently #168.

#277. Avatar, James Cameron, 2009. Currently #137.

#276. The Kid, Charles Chaplin, 1921. Currently #170.

#275. The Matrix, The Wachowski Brothers, 1999. Currently #26.

#274. Das Boot, Wolfgang Petersen, 1981. Currently #64.

#273. Seven, David Fincher, 1995. Currently #28.

#272. Changeling, Clint Eastwood, 2008. Currently off the list.

#271. Manhattan, Woody Allen, 1979. Currently #218.

#270. The Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont, 1994. Currently #1.

#269. Barry Lyndon, Stanley Kubrick, 1975. Currently #221.

#268. Amores perros, Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2000. Currently #167.

#267. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, F.W. Murnau, 1927. Currently #152.

#266. Le Samouraï, Jean-Pierre Melville, 1967. Currently off the list.

#265. La Dolce vita, Federico Fellini, 1960. Currently off the list.



Finally, we're getting into the part of the ranking where there are some genuinely good movies (but flawed enough to get a relatively low score). Of course, there's also a lot of crap in this bunch (but well made enough to get a relatively high score).

Anyway, here is a list of mediocre movies for you. Merry Christmas.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 3 of 20

Over the last three years, I’ve watched my way through the IMDb’s Top 250. Now I’m ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my “objective rating” system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 3 of 20: 2.1/4 (Okay)

#289. Kick-Ass, Matthew Vaughn, 2010. Currently #233 on the IMDb.

#288. District 9, Neill Blomkamp, 2009. Currently #131.

#287. The Great Dictator, Charles Chaplin, 1940. Currently #91.

#286. Heat, Michael Mann, 1995. Currently #121.

#285. Ben-Hur, William Wyler, 1959. Currently #159.

#284. Glory, Edward Zwick, 1989. Currently off the list.

#283. Beauty and the Beast, Jean Cocteau, 1946. Currently off the list.

#282. Bonnie and Clyde, Arthur Penn, 1967. Currently off the list.

#281. Platoon, Oliver Stone, 1986. Currently #144.

#280. The Deer Hunter, Michael Cimino, 1978. Currently #135.



We're pretty solidly in Unremarkable But Harmless territory here.  The spectrum ranges from good but vastly over-rated movies at one end to movies I hated but can see the draw to at the other. Beauty and the Beast stands out as one I'd particularly like to give a second chance to; my own misguided expectations (of seeing a fairytale romance) might have wrecked that one for me.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 2 of 20

Over the last three years, I've watched my way through the IMDb's Top 250. Now I'm ranking those 314 movies (math is hard) from worst to best according to my "objective rating" system. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties are broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

Part 2 of 20: 1.8/4 through 2.0/4

1.8/4 (Eh):

#302. Cinderella Man, Ron Howard, 2005. Currently off the IMDb's list.

#301. Braveheart, Mel Gibson, 1995. Currently #90.

#300. The Searchers, John Ford, 1956. Currently off the list.

#299. Scarface, Brian De Palma, 1983. Currently #158.

1.9/4 (Eh):

#298. Diabolique, Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1955. Currently #186.

#297. Into the Wild, Sean Penn, 2007. Currently #145.

#296. Nosferatu, F.W. Murnau, 1922. Currently off the list.

#295. Once Upon a Time in America, Sergio Leone, 1984. Currently #84.

2.0/4 (Indifferent)

#294. Die Hard, John McTiernan, 1988. Currently #110.

#293. Safety Last!, Fred C. Newmeyer & Sam Taylor, 1923. Currently off the list.

#292. The Philadelphia Story, George Cukor, 1940. Currently #237.

#291. V for Vendetta, James McTeigue, 2005. Currently #176.

#290. Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Werner Herzog, 1972. Currently off the list.



There are only a few here that I think deserve a second chance (Philadelphia Story, Nosferatu, and Safety Last). And Die Hard is a good movie - just not the sort of good that gets credit from my rating system. The rest of these range from mediocre to completely terrible.

Top 250 wrap-up, part 1 of 20

It is done.

On February 11th, 2008 I wrote (on my old blog): "I plan on watching every one of [the movies on the IMDb's Top 250]... starting with #250. It'll take a year or more to get through, but I like the idea of watching movies that a lot of people think are the best." Two years, ten months, ten days and 314 films later (i.e., yesterday), I'm finally finished.

To be fair, I haven't seen every movie on the Top 250. I passed over Sleuth (which has since fallen off the list) because it's not available to rent. For Cinema Paradiso, I saw the director's cut, which I don't count as the same movie. Black Swan, The Secret in Their Eyes, The Passion of Joan of Arc and Castle in the Sky crawled onto the list long after I'd passed their current spots, and I didn't double back for them. Things are always jumping on and off, and at some point I had to just say, "these are the ones that I'm watching, and that will be that." Otherwise the project would literally never end. 314 movies out of 250 is close enough!

Now, since I spent nearly three years watching these movies, I figure they deserve and epic send-off. So I will be ranking them, in 20 installments, from worst to best. But not according to how much I liked them, oh, no. That would be too easy (and besides, there are so damn many of them, it would just be like copying my Favorites page with arbitrary omissions). When I first started this unholy project, I made up a ten-point "objective" rating system (which evolved into the rating format I now use on this blog). The system was created for the Top 250, and so that is how I will rank them. And as a token adjustment for my glaring biases in grading the movies, ties will be broken by favoring the ones I liked least.

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My Ranking of the IMDb's Top 250, part 1 of 20: 1.7/4 (Eh) and below

1.2/4 (Bad):

#314. Mulholland Dr., David Lynch, 2001. Currently #248 on the IMDb.

1.3/4 (Bad):

#313. Arsenic and Old Lace, Frank Capra, 1944. Currently #236.

#312. Doctor Zhivago, David Lean, 1965. Currently off the list.

1.4/4 (Bad):

#311. His Girl Friday, Howard Hawks, 1940. Currently #238.

#310. Rope, Alfred Hitchcock, 1948. Currently #241.

1.6/4 (Eh):

#309. Bringing Up Baby, Howard Hawks, 1938. Currently off the list.

#308. Terminator 2: Judgment Day, James Cameron, 1991. Currently #42.

#307. Raging Bull, Martin Scorsese, 1980. Currently #76.

#306. Persona, Ingmar Bergman, 1966. Currently #213.

1.7/4 (Eh):

#305. Gladiator, Ridley Scott, 2000. Currently #97.

#304. Bride of Frankenstein, James Whale, 1935. Currently off the list.

#303. Stalker, Andrei Tarkovsky, 1979. Currently off the list.



Given the scale of this project, and that I've already posted about each of these movies, I'm sure you will excuse the lack of film-by-film commentary. There are several in this bunch that I wouldn't mind seeing again to give another chance (Bride of Frankenstein, Bringing Up Baby, Raging Bull), though I don't think I'd change my mind about them. Some are harmless garbage (Arsenic and Old Lace, Terminator 2, Gladiator, Persona). Others I wouldn't mind destroying every last copy, as a service to future generations.

I realize that posting a list of Beloved Movies That I Think Are Bad to the internet may be asking for trouble. But I welcome anyone to tell me why I'm wrong about any of these. I sincerely want to know.