Films considered the greatest ever

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2008)

While there is no agreement upon the greatest film, many publications and organizations have tried to determine the films considered the greatest ever. The films mentioned in this article have all been mentioned in a notable survey — be it a popular poll or critics' poll. Many of these sources focus on American films or were polls of English-speaking film goers, but those considered the greatest within their respective countries are also included here.

None of these citations should be viewed as scientific measures of the film-watching world. All the surveys are flawed in one way or another. They are often influenced by vote stacking or they survey a population with skewed demographics. Internet-based surveys have a self-selecting audience of unknown participants. The methodology of some surveys may be questionable. Sometimes (as in the case of the American Film Institute) voters were asked to select films from a limited list of entries.

Contents 1 Polls of critics and filmmakers 2 Audience polls 3 Particular genres or media 3.1 Action 3.2 Animation 3.3 Christmas 3.4 Comedy 3.5 Comicbook/Superhero 3.6 Courtroom 3.7 Crime/Gangster 3.8 Disaster 3.9 Documentary 3.10 Epic 3.11 Fantasy 3.12 Horror 3.13 Musical 3.14 Mystery 3.15 Propaganda 3.16 Romance 3.17 Science fiction 3.18 Sports 3.19 War 3.20 Western 4 Countries 4.1 Australia 4.2 Bangladesh 4.3 Belgium 4.4 Brazil 4.5 Canada 4.6 China 4.7 Denmark 4.8 Finland 4.9 France 4.10 Germany 4.11 Hong Kong 4.12 Hungary 4.13 India 4.14 Iran 4.15 Ireland 4.16 Israel 4.17 Italy 4.18 Japan 4.19 Mexico 4.20 Netherlands 4.21 New Zealand 4.22 Norway 4.23 Pakistan 4.24 Philippines 4.25 Poland 4.26 Romania 4.27 Russia 4.28 Serbia 4.29 South Korea 4.30 Sri Lanka 4.31 Sweden 4.32 United Kingdom 4.33 United States 5 See also 6 Notes 7 External links

Polls of critics and filmmakers

The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page.

• Every decade, the British film monthly Sight & Sound asks an international group of film professionals to vote for their greatest film of all time. The Sight & Sound accolade has come to be regarded as one of the most important of the "greatest ever film" lists. Roger Ebert described it as "by far the most respected of the countless polls of great movies--the only one most serious movie people take seriously."^[1] The first poll, in 1952, was topped by Bicycle Thieves (1948).^[2] The 2002 Sight and Sound critics' Top Ten Films:

1. Citizen Kane

2. Vertigo

3. The Rules of the Game

4. The Godfather and The Godfather Part II

5. Tokyo Story

6. 2001: A Space Odyssey

7. The Battleship Potemkin

8. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans

9. 8½

10. Singin' in the Rain

• Orson Welles' Citizen Kane (1941) has been consistently voted number one in each of the last five Sight & Sound polls. A separate poll of established film directors, held for the first time in 1992, has also placed Citizen Kane at the top.^[2] The film was selected as number one in a Village Voice and in a Time Out critics' poll. It was listed as the greatest American film by the American Film Institute in both the first (1998) and second (2007) versions of its 100 Years... 100 Movies list.
• The Searchers (1956) is the film most often mentioned in a poll of the favorite films of directors by German language Steadycam magazine in 1995.^[3]
• Tokyo Story (1953) by Yasujirō Ozu topped a critics' poll conducted by Asian film magazine Cinemaya in 1998. It was followed by Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali (1955) and Kenji Mizoguchi's Ugetsu (1953) tied at second place.^[4]
• La Règle du Jeu (The Rules of the Game) (1939) by director Jean Renoir was named the greatest film by the French film magazine Positif in 1991.^[5] It also holds the second slot in the Village Voice poll,^[6] and is one of only two movies to have appeared in every one of the Sight & Sound polls.^{[citation needed]}
• The Brussels World’s Fair, organized in 1958, offered the occasion for the organization by thousands of critics and filmmakers from all over the world, of the first universal film poll in history.^[7] These were the films chosen as most artistically fulfilled:

Rank	Film	Director	Year
1	Броненосец Потёмкин (The Battleship Potemkin)	Sergei Eisenstein	1925
2	The Gold Rush	Charles Chaplin	1925
3	Ladri di biciclette (Bicycle Thieves)	Vittorio De Sica	1948
4	La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc (The Passion of Joan of Arc)	Carl Theodor Dreyer	1928
5	La Grande Illusion (Grand Illusion)	Jean Renoir	1937
6	Greed	Erich von Stroheim	1924
7	Intolerance: Love's Struggle Through the Ages	D. W. Griffith	1916
8	Мать (Mother)	Vsevolod Pudovkin	1926
9	Citizen Kane	Orson Welles	1941
10	Земля (Earth)	Alexander Dovzhenko	1930

Audience polls

• Seven Samurai (1954) was voted number one in an audience poll conducted by MovieMail in 2000. It was followed by The Third Man (1948) at second place.^[5]
• The Godfather (1972) was voted number one by Entertainment Weekly's readers^[8] and voted as number one in a Time Out readers' poll in 1998.^[9] The film was also voted as the "Greatest Movie of All Time" in September 2008 by 10,000 readers of Empire magazine, 150 people from the movie business and 50 film critics.^[10] It currently holds the #1 spot on the Top 200 at Everyone's a Critic,^[11] and the #2 spot on the IMDb list.^[12]
• The Godfather Part II (1974) was voted best movie ever by TV Guide readers^[13] in 1998, and is currently in third place on the IMDb list.^[12]
• Star Wars (1977) and its sequel The Empire Strikes Back (1980) were chosen as the greatest films by readers of Empire magazine in November 2001 and by voters in a Channel 4 (Film4) poll.^[14] The Empire Strikes Back is also #1 on the top rated sci-fi titles at the Internet Movie Database,^[15] was voted number one in Total Film's Top 100 Movies of All Time, and number one in the 2006 Empire "Greatest Movies Ever" special.^[16]
• Raise the Red Lantern (1991) was voted the best Asian film in another audience poll conducted by MovieMail in 2000. It was followed by The Apu Trilogy (1955–1959) at second place.^[5]
• Schindler's List (1993) was voted the best film ever made by the German film magazine Cinema.^[17]
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994) currently holds the top spot on the Internet Movie Database's list of the top 250 films.^[12] It was voted the best film not to have won an Academy Award in a 2004 Radio Times poll and again in 2008.^[18] In January 2006 Empire magazine readers named it the best film ever.^{[citation needed]} It also holds the #8 spot at Yahoo! Movies as of 16 September 2009 (2009 -09-16)^[update].^[19] It is currently ranked #1 on FilmCrave.com's top 100 movies list.^[20]
• The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–2003) was voted the most popular film of all time by an audience poll for the Australian television special My Favourite Film and by a poll cast by 120,000 German voters for the TV special "Die besten Filme aller Zeiten".^[21] Its first film, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), was the pick of readers in a poll by Empire magazine in November 2004.^[22] The third film, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, was voted the best movie of all time by Yahoo movies and Movies.com's annual reader's poll in 2006 and 2007.^{[citation needed]}
• Gone with the Wind (1939) was ranked as the greatest film in a poll surveyed by Harris Interactive between January 15 and 22, 2008. Star Wars came in second place and Casablanca in third.^[23]
• Casablanca (1942) was voted the greatest film by readers of the Los Angeles Daily News in 1997.^[24] It is also regarded the "best Hollywood movie of all time" by the influential Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide.^{[citation needed]} On April 7, 2006, the Writers' Guild of America declared Casablanca's screenplay the best ever written.^[25]
• Cross of Iron (1977) was voted the greatest film of all time by Cinemag.^{[citation needed]}

Particular genres or media

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Action

• Die Hard (1988) was voted greatest action movie of all time by both Entertainment Weekly and music channel MTV2,^{[citation needed]} and the best disaster movie by Channel 4.^{[citation needed]}
• Jaws (1975) was the first film to gross over $100 million at the box office. It was ranked 2nd on AFI's list 100 Years... 100 Thrills.^[26]

Animation

• Akira (1988) was chosen as the top anime film ever by Anime Insider in fall 2001.^{[citation needed]}
• Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) was the highest-ranked animated film in an audience poll (with 80,402 voters) of 100 best animations, conducted by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs in 2007. It was also the second highest animation overall on the list after the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. They were followed by Castle in the Sky (1986) in third place.^[27]
• Samurai X: Trust & Betrayal (1999) has been voted #1 on Anime News Network's Top 500 anime list.^[28]
• Sita Sings the Blues (2008) is currently the highest ranked film on Rotten Tomatoes' "Best of Animation" list.^[29]
• Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) was selected as the best American animated movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]
• Tale of Tales (Сказка сказок) (1979) was voted by a large international jury to be the greatest animated film of all time at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympiad of Animation and the 2002 Zagreb World Festival of Animated Films.^[31][32]
• Toy Story (1995) was voted #1 on the Top 100 Animated Features of All Time by the Online Film Critics Society (list published March 2003).^[33]
• Toy Story 2 (1999) topped a Rotten Tomatoes poll of the 50 best animated movies ever made.^[34] It is also #1 on their list of the best kids movies,^[35] and is #1 on the Movie Review Query Engine's list of the best animated movies.^[36]
• Up (2009) and WALL-E (2008) are currently tied for the highest rating of all animated films, on the top rated animated titles at the Internet Movie Database.^[37] Up was also #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best animated movies.^[38]
• What's Opera, Doc? (1957) was voted the greatest animated short in animation historian Jerry Beck's 1994 poll of animators, film historians and directors.^[39]

Christmas

• It's a Wonderful Life (1946) is #1 on the Movie Review Query Engine's list of the best holiday movies,^[40] and also topped AFI's 100 Years…100 Cheers list.^[41]
• The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) is ranked #1 on Rotten Tomatoes' Top 25 Best Christmas Movies list.^[42]

Comedy

• Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) A 2004 poll by UK arm of Amazon and the Internet Movie Database named Monty Python and the Holy Grail as the best British comedy picture of all time.^[43]
• Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979) was voted the greatest comedy ever in polls conducted by Total Film magazine in 2000,^[44] the British TV networks Channel 4 in 2006 ^[45] and Channel Five in 2007 ^[46], and The Guardian newspaper in 2007.^[47]
• National Lampoon's Animal House (1978) was voted #1 on the Bravo list of funniest movies of all time.^[48]
• Some Like It Hot (1959) was listed Best American Film Comedy by the American Film Institute in June 2000.^[49]
• City Lights (1931) was selected as the best romantic comedy ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]

Comicbook/Superhero

• The Dark Knight (2008) has the highest rating of any reviewed comic book film, on both the action/adventure list at Rotten Tomatoes,^[50] and the top rated action titles at the Internet Movie Database.^[51] It is also #1 on the Movie Review Query Engine's list of the best comic and superhero movies.^[52]
• Spider-Man 2 (2004) Listed number one on Rotten Tomatoes Comix Best to worst^{[citation needed]}

Courtroom

• To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) was selected as the best courtroom drama ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]

Crime/Gangster

• The Godfather (1972) was selected as the best gangster movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30] It also tops the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best drama movies.^[53]
• GoodFellas (1990) was chosen as the greatest crime film out of the 25 movies by the IGN website.^{[citation needed]}

Disaster

• The Poseidon Adventure (1972) was voted best disaster movie in a poll commissioned by UCI cinemas in May 2004.^[54]

Documentary

• Bowling for Columbine (2002), Michael Moore's controversial documentary relating gun control and the culture of fear in the United States, heads the list of 20 all-time favorite non-fiction films selected by members of the International Documentary Association (IDA).^[55][56]
• Seven Up! (1964) was voted as the greatest ever documentary in a Channel 4 poll of the 50 Greatest Documentaries in 2005.^{[citation needed]}
• Man On Wire (2008) was voted greatest Documentary and Film of all time by Rotten Tomatoes.^{[citation needed]}

Epic

• Lawrence of Arabia (1962) was voted best epic by readers of Total Film in May 2004. It was selected as the best epic movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]

Fantasy

• The Wizard of Oz (1939) was selected as the best American fantasy movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]

Horror

• The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) is currently #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best horror movies.^[57]
• The Exorcist (1973) was voted scariest movie of all time by Entertainment Weekly and Movies.com,^{[citation needed]} and by viewers of AMC in 2006.^[58]
• Halloween (1978) is currently #1 on DigitalDreamDoor.com's list of the 100 Greatest Slasher Movies.^[59]
• Psycho (1960). The Alfred Hitchcock classic tops AFI’s list of the 100 most thrilling American films,^[26] the top rated horror titles at the Internet Movie Database,^[60] and Rotten Tomatoes' list of the 50 greatest horror movies.^{[citation needed]}
• The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Ranks #1 on AFI’s list for Heroes and Villains,^[61] and is the last film to win all of the Big Five at the Academy Awards.^{[citation needed]}
• The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) Ranks #1 on Total Film's list of the greatest horror films.^[62]

Musical

• Singin' in the Rain (1952) tops the American Film Institute's list of the 25 best American musicals of all time,^[63] and the top rated musicals at the Internet Movie Database.^[64]
• West Side Story (1961) was chosen as the best screen musical by readers of The Observer in a 2007 poll.^[65]

Mystery

• Rear Window (1954) is currently #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best thrillers.^[66]
• Vertigo (1958) was selected as the best mystery movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]

Propaganda

• Triumph of the Will (1935), Leni Riefenstahl's documentary film glorifying Adolf Hitler and the 1934 Nazi Party Convention, in Nuremberg is widely perceived, renowned and acknowledged as the best propaganda film ever,^[67] although Riefenstahl asserted she intended it only as a documentary.

Romance

• Casablanca (1942) was voted the top romantic American film on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions list,^[68] and is currently #1 on the top rated romance titles at the Internet Movie Database.^[69]
• North by Northwest (1959) is currently #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best romance films,^[70] and #2 on their list of top action/adventure films.^[50]
• Romeo & Juliet (1968) is currently #1 on DigitalDreamDoor.com's list of the 100 Greatest Romance Movies.^[71]

Science fiction

• 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) tops the Online Film Critics Society list of greatest science fiction films of all time.^[72] It is also the only science fiction film to make the Sight and Sound poll for ten best movies, and was selected as the best sci-fi movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30]
• Aliens (1986) is currently #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best science fiction movies.^[73]
• Blade Runner (1982) was voted the best science fiction film by a panel of scientists assembled by the British newspaper The Guardian in 2004.^[74] In New Scientist, Blade Runner was voted "all-time favourite science fiction film" in both the staff^[75] and reader's^[76] 2008 polls.
• E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) topped a Rotten Tomatoes poll of the 100 best Science Fiction movies ever made.^[77]
• Metropolis (1927) was the first film ever to be registered in the "Memory of the World-Register" of the UNESCO in 2001.
• Serenity (2005) was voted the greatest Science Fiction film of all time by SFX magazine in 2006.^[78][79][80]

Sports

• Murderball (2005) was number 1 on the Rotten Tomatoes countdown of the top sports movies.^[81]
• Raging Bull (1980) was selected as the best sports movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10,^[30] and is currently #1 on the top rated sport titles at the Internet Movie Database.^[82]
• Rocky (1976) was voted as the best sports film of all time by film fans in a poll conducted by LoveFilm.^[83][84]

War

• Apocalypse Now (1979). Topped the list on moviefone as the greatest war film.^{[citation needed]}
• Cross of Iron (1977) by Sam Peckinpah was voted greatest war film of all time by Sightsense magazine in 1983, for its portrayal of Germans and the battles on the Eastern Front in 1943.^{[citation needed]}
• Paths of Glory (1957) is #1 on the Movie Review Query Engine's lists of both the best military movies,^[85] and the best World War II movies.^[86]
• Saving Private Ryan (1998) was voted as the greatest war film, in a 2008 Channel 4 poll of the 100 greatest war films.^[87]

Western

• The Searchers (1956) was selected as the best western movie ever by the American Film Institute during their 10 Top 10.^[30] (See also: films acclaimed by critics and filmmakers above).
• The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo) (1966). Currently #1 on the top rated western titles at the Internet Movie Database,^[88] and listed as the 4th best film ever on the IMDb Top 250.^[12]

Countries

Australia

• Mad Max (1979): voted the best Australian film ever by the Australian Film Institute. Nominated for four Australian Film Institute Awards.^{[citation needed]}
• Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975): voted No. 1 of the Top 10 best-ever Australian films at 1995 centenary of Australian cinema.^[89]

Bangladesh

• Titash Ekti Nadir Naam (1973), also known as A River Named Titas, by the acclaimed Indian Bengali film director Ritwik Ghatak, topped the British Film Institute's "Top 10 Bangladesh Films" of all time, both in the critics ^[90] and user polls.^[91]

Belgium

• Loft: voted the best Belgian film on Moviemeter.nl, followed by Man Bites Dog, The Memory of a Killer, Toto the Hero and Ben X.^{[citation needed]}
• Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles: voted the best Belgian film on the They Shoot Pictures site (no. 142 in the Top 250).^{[citation needed]}

Brazil

• Bus 174 (2002). This documentary about a bus hijacking by José Padilha is the highest rated foreign film at Rotten Tomatoes.^[92]
• City of God (2002) is the highest rated Brazilian film on the IMDb Top 250 list.^[93]
• Deus e o Diabo na Terra do Sol (1964) has been selected by Brazilian critics as the best film of all time several times, such as the 27th edition of Brazilian film magazine Contracampo.^[94]

Canada

• Jesus of Montreal (Jésus de Montréal) (1989): Ranked second on the All Time TIFF, and in a reader's poll conducted by Playback's list since its release. Winner of 12 Genie Awards.^{[citation needed]}
• Mon oncle Antoine (1971): A poll of critics at the 1984 Toronto International Film Festival and again at the 1993 and 2004 festivals named the greatest Canadian film of all time. 8th in Playback's reader's poll.^{[citation needed]}
• The Sweet Hereafter (1997): Voted the best Canadian film ever by readers of Playback,^[95] and a poll done by Canadian film insiders named it the best Canadian film of the last 15 years.^[96]
• Wavelength (1967): the only Canadian film on the Village Voice's "100 Best Films of the 20th Century" ranking at #85.^[97]

China

• Spring in a Small Town (小城之春) (1948) was voted the best Chinese film ever made by the Hong Kong Film Awards Association in 2005. A Better Tomorrow (英雄本色) (1986) came in second place.^[98]
• Farewell My Concubine (1993), directed by Chen Kaige, is the highest-ranking Asian film on Time Magazine's "Readers Top Rated" list.^[99]
• Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) is the highest-ranking Chinese film on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 movies".^[100]

Denmark

• Day of Wrath (Vredens dag) Carl Th. Dreyer's harrowing tale of adultery and repression is often cited in Denmark as the greatest Danish film.^[101]
• Flickering Lights (Blinkende lygter) the 2000 comedy about small-time gangsters was voted the Best Danish Film in a 2007 poll by Ekstra Bladet newspaper. Thomas Vinterberg's The Celebration (Festen) was the runner-up.^[102]

Finland

• The Unknown Soldier (1955) was voted the best Finnish movie in an Internet poll by Helsingin Sanomat in 2007.^[103]
• Talvisota (The Winter War, 1989): is the highest user rated Finnish film on the IMDb having received more than 1000 votes.^[104]

France

• La Règle du Jeu (The Rules of the Game) (1939/1950). See films acclaimed by critics and filmmakers.
• Les Enfants du Paradis (Children of Paradise) (1945/1946): Voted "Best French Film of the Century" in a poll of 600 French critics and professionals in the late 1990s.^{[citation needed]}.
• Léon (The Professional) (1994) is currently the highest ranked French film on IMDb's Top 250.^[105]

Germany

• M - Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder by Fritz Lang is the highest rated German film in the IMDb

Hong Kong

• Farewell My Concubine (1993), directed by Chen Kaige, is the highest-ranking Asian film and Hong Kong co-production on Time Magazine's "Readers Top Rated" list.^[99]
• Drunken Master II (1994), directed by Jackie Chan and Lau Kar-Leung, is the highest-ranking entirely Hong Kong production and third highest-ranking Asian film on Time Magazine's "Readers Top Rated" list.^[99]
• Infernal Affairs (2002), directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak, is the highest-ranking entirely Hong Kong production on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 Movies" list.^[106]
• The Departed (2006), Martin Scorsese's remake of Infernal Affairs, is the highest-ranking Hong Kong co-production on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 Movies" list.^[107]

Hungary

In 2000, Hungarian film critics chose the so-called "Budapest 12",^[108] the twelve best films of Hungary:

• Szegénylegények (The Round-Up) - Miklós Jancsó
• Szerelem (Love) - Károly Makk
• Szindbád (Sinbad) - Zoltán Huszárik
• Emberek a havason (Men on the Mountain) - István Szőts
• Valahol Európában (Somewhere in Europe) - Géza von Radványi
• Megáll az idő (Time Stands Still) - Péter Gothár
• Hyppolit, a lakáj (Hyppolit) - István Székely
• Körhinta (Merry-Go-Round) - Zoltán Fábri
• A kis Valentino (Little Valentino) - András Jeles
• Az én XX. Századom (My 20th Century) - Ildikó Enyedi
• Apa (Father) - István Szabó
• Hannibál tanár úr (Professor Hannibal) - Zoltán Fábri

India

• The Apu Trilogy (1955–1959), a Bengali film trilogy by the acclaimed Indian independent filmmaker Satyajit Ray, appeared on the 1992 edition of the Sight & Sound Critics' Poll (ranked #88)^[109] and on The Village Voice's top 250 "Best Films of the Century" critics' poll (ranked #54).^[6][110] It is the highest-ranking trilogy in both polls.
  • Pather Panchali (Song of the Little Road) (1955), the first part of The Apu Trilogy and Satyajit Ray's debut film, appeared on the Sight & Sound Critics' Poll several times, in 1962 (ranked #11),^[109] 1992 (ranked #6)^[111][112] and 2002 (ranked #22).^[113][114] It also appeared on The Village Voice top 250 "Best Films of the Century" critics' poll (tied at #12 with The Godfather).^[6][110]
  • Apur Sansar (The World of Apu) (1959), the final part of Satyajit Ray's The Apu Trilogy, was the highest-ranking Indian film in the 1982 Sight & Sound Critics' Poll (ranked #42), followed by two other Ray films The Music Room (1958) and Charulata (1964) tied at #56.^[115]
• Sholay (Embers) (1975), a "Curry Western" Hindi film directed by Ramesh Sippy, topped the British Film Institute's poll of "Top 10 Indian Films" of all time.^[116]
• Gandhi (1982), an Indian English biographical film about Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi directed by Richard Attenborough, is the highest-ranked Indian co-production on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 Movies" list.^[117]
• Junoon (1978), produced by Shashi Kapoor and directed by acclaimed director Shyam Benegal, is an Indian film about the violent uprising during the year 1857 and a beautiful love story at the backdrop. This film has received the highest acclaims from the reviewers. The film received awards for the best feature film and also swept many other awards such as the best cinematography, best editing, best dialogues and so on. According to Khalid Mehmood, film critic, the film set high standards and was then considered to be an all time epic movie.^[118]
• Nayagan (The Leader) (1987), a Tamil film directed by Mani Ratnam, is the highest-ranking Indian film and second highest-ranking Asian film on Time Magazine's "Readers Top Rated" list. Guru Dutt's Pyaasa (1957) is the second highest-ranking Indian film and third highest-ranking Asian film on the list.^[99]

Iran

• Bashu, the Little Stranger (1986) was voted "Best Iranian Film of all time" in November 1999 by a Persian movie magazine "Picture world" poll of 150 Iranian critics and professionals.^[119]

Ireland

• The Commitments (1991) was voted the best Irish film of all time in a 2004 Jameson Whiskey poll of 10,000 Irish people, with My Left Foot coming second.^[120]

Israel

• Giv'at Halfon Eina Ona (1976) was voted "Favorite Israeli Film of all time" in a 2004 poll by Ynet, the web site of a popular Israeli newspaper. The film got 25,000 votes.^[121]

Italy

• Bicycle Thieves (Ladri di biciclette) (1948). Listed at #22 on Entertainment Weekly's 100 Greatest Movies of All Time.^{[citation needed]} (Also see Polls of critics and filmmakers section above.)
• 8½ (1963). Director Federico Fellini's film about filmmaking was the highest rated Italian film in the 2002 Sight & Sound poll of the best films of all time.
• The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo) (1966) is the highest-ranking Italian production on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 Movies" list,^[122] where it is currently listed as the 4th best film ever.^[12] (Also see Western section above.)

Japan

• Rashomon (羅生門), 1950: This film by Akira Kurosawa was the first Japanese film to gain worldwide acclaim. It is the highest-ranked Japanese and Asian film in the Village Voice poll of "Best Films of the Century" (ranked #10).^[6] It also tied for the highest-ranked Japanese and Asian film on the Sight and Sound 2002 Directors' Top Ten Poll (ranked #9).^[123]
• Seven Samurai (七人の侍 Shichinin no Samurai), 1954: Also by Kurosawa, this period adventure film is frequently cited as the greatest Japanese film ever; at #12, it is the highest-ranked Japanese and Asian film on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 movies" list.^[124] It ranked, for the first time, at #3 in the 1982 Sight & Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll,^[125] appeared on the Sight & Sound Directors' Top Ten Poll in 1992 (ranked #10),^[126] and tied for the highest-ranked Japanese and Asian film in 2002 (ranked #9).^[123] It is ranked #2 on Rotten Tomatoes' top 100 foreign films,^[92] and #3 on their top 100 action/adventure films.^[50] It was also voted the "Best Japanese Film ever" in a 1979 Kinema Junpo critics’ poll.^[127]
• Tokyo Story (東京物語 Tokyo Monogatari), 1953: Directed by Yasujirō Ozu, is the highest-ranked Japanese and Asian film on the 2002 Sight and Sound Critics' Top Ten Poll (ranked #5).^[128] It was also declared the greatest film ever by Halliwell's Film Guide in 2005.^[129]
• Ugetsu, 1953: Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, it was the highest-ranking Asian film in the Sight & Sound critics' polls in 1962 (ranked #4)^[130] and 1972 (ranked #10).^[131]

Mexico

• El callejón de los milagros (Miracle Alley) is the most awarded film in Mexican history with 49 international awards.^[132]
• Pan's Labyrinth (El laberinto del fauno) is the highest rated film in Spanish on IMDb. While this film is set in Spain and primarily features Spanish actors, it was written and produced in Mexico and is considered a Mexican film.^[133]

Netherlands

• Soldaat van Oranje (Soldier of Orange - 1977 - Paul Verhoeven): Voted best Dutch film ever made in a 2006 Internet poll by online film magazine Filmwereld.nl.^{[citation needed]}
• Turks Fruit (Turkish Delight - 1973 - Paul Verhoeven): Voted best Dutch film of the 20th century at the 1999 Netherlands Film Festival.^{[citation needed]}
• Zwartboek (Black Book - 2006 - Paul Verhoeven): Voted best Dutch film ever at the 2008 Netherlands Film Festival.^[134]

New Zealand

• See Lord of the Rings in the Films acclaimed in audience polls section above.

Norway

• Flåklypa Grand Prix (Pinchcliffe Grand Prix - 1975 - Ivo Caprino): The people's choice for "Best Norwegian Film of the Century" during the 2005 Bergen International Film Festival.^[135]
• Ni Liv (Nine Lives - 1957 - Arne Skouen): The critics' choice for "Best Norwegian Film of the Century" during the 2005 Bergen International Film Festival.^[135]

Pakistan

• Baji (1963), directed by S. Suleman, topped the British Film Institute's critics poll of "Top 10 Pakistani Films" of all time.^[136]
• Aina (1977), directed by Nazr-ul-Islam, topped the user poll of "Top 10 Pakistani Films" of all time.^[137]

Philippines

• Maynila: Sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag (Manila in the Claws of Neon) (1975): cited in numerous film anthologies and critical polls.^{[citation needed]}
• Himala (1992): won the 2008 CNN Asia Pacific Screen Awards Viewers' Choice Award for Best Asia-Pacific Film of all time (voted for by thousands of film fans around the world).^{[138][139][140][141]}

Poland

• Sexmission (Seksmisja) is the best Polish film of the last 30 years according to a 2005 poll by readers of three popular film magazines.^[142].
• Seksmisja is also on the prominence position in the ranking of Polish movies on portal Filmweb.pl^[143]. Other positions from the first ten places are: Polish-French cooproduction The Pianist (2002), comedies: Day of the wacko (2002), Our Folks (1967), How I Unleashed World War II (1969), Teddy Bear (1980), Boys Don't Cry (2000), and dramas showing important social or political problems after 1989: The Debt (1999), Symmetry (2003), Psy-Pigs (1992).
• Polish best awarded production are: A Short Film About Killing (European Film Award for Best Film in 1988), Man of Iron (Palme d'Or of 1981 Cannes Film Festival), The Pianist (Palme d'Or of 2002 Cannes Film Festival)

Romania

Best 10 Romanian films as considered by the Union of Romanian Cineastes and the Film Critics Association^[144] (Uniunea Cineaştilor din România şi Asociaţia Criticilor de Film):

1. Reconstituirea (The Reenactment - Lucian Pintilie, 1970)
2. Pădurea spânzuraţilor (The Forest of the Hanged - Liviu Ciulei, 1965)
3. Moartea domnului Lazarescu (The Death of Mr. Lăzărescu - Cristi Puiu, 2005)
4. 4 luni, 3 săptămâni şi 2 zile (4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days - Cristian Mungiu, 2007)
5. Secvenţe (Alexandru Tatos, 1982)
6. Nunta de piatră (The Stone Wedding - Mircea Veroiu, Dan Piţa. 1973)
7. La moara cu noroc (Victor Iliu. 1956)
8. A fost sau n-a fost? (Corneliu Porumboiu, 2006)
9. Probă de microfon (Mircea Daneliuc, 1979)
10. Croaziera (Mircea Daneliuc, 1981)

Russia

• Броненосец Потёмкин (Battleship Potemkin): see Films acclaimed by critics and filmakers above.

Serbia

• Who's That Singing Over There (Ko to tamo peva, 1980) was in 1996 voted the best Serbian movie made in the 1947-1995 period by the members of the Yugoslavian Board of the Academy of Film Art and Science (AFUN).^[145]

South Korea

• Obaltan (오발탄): Released in 1960. This film is widely regarded as the best South Korean film.^[146]
• Oldboy (올드보이): This 2003 South Korean film is the highest rated Korean language film on the Internet Movie Database's top 250 list.^[147] It also won the Grand Prix of the Jury at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.

Sri Lanka

• Pura Handa Kaluwara (1997), also known as Death on a Full Moon Day, directed by P. Vithanage and starring Joe Abeywickrama, topped the British Film Institute's poll of "Top 10 Sri Lankan Films" of all time.^[148]
• Ananta Rathiriya (1995), directed by P. Vithanage, topped the user poll of "Top 10 Sri Lankan Films" of all time.^[149]

Sweden

• The Emigrants (Utvandrarna): Jan Troell's naturalist masterwork is often cited in Sweden as the greatest Swedish film of all-time.^{[citation needed]}
• Persona: Acclaimed director Ingmar Bergman's movie reached the highest position (#5 in 1972) of any Swedish film on any of Sight & Sound's lists of greatest films of all time.^{[citation needed]}
• The Seventh Seal (Sjunde Inseglet), also directed by Ingmar Bergman, is the highest rated Swedish film on the IMDb top 250 list.^[150]
• The Man on the Roof (Mannen på Taket), by Bo Widerberg, is by some critics considered the best Swedish movie ever.^{[citation needed]}
• Docking the Boat (Att Angöra en Brygga), directed by Tage Danielsson, is often considered the best Swedish comedy film.^{[citation needed]}

United Kingdom

• Brief Encounter (1945): Was the highest rated British film in the Channel 4 poll of 100 greatest movies, at No 14.^{[citation needed]}
• The Third Man (1949): Voted best British film ever by members of the British Film Institute in 1999.^[151] Currently #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best action/adventure movies.^[50]
• Lawrence of Arabia (1962): voted "best British film of all time" in August 2004 by a London Sunday Telegraph poll of Britain's leading filmmakers.^[152] (See also: Epic above).
• Dr. Strangelove (1964): Directed by Stanley Kubrick, it is the highest-ranked entirely British production on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 Movies" list.^[153] It is also #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes list of the best comedy movies.^[154]
• Get Carter (1971): Named best British film in a poll of 25 film critics by Total Film magazine in 2004.^[155]
• Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) was voted the best British picture of all time by a 2004 poll by the UK arm of Amazon and Internet Movie Database.^[43]
• The Dark Knight (2008): Directed by Christopher Nolan, it is the highest-ranked British co-production on the Internet Movie Database's "Top 250 Movies" list.^[156]

United States

Since 1998, the American Film Institute has assembled juries of film community leaders and polled them for a series of top 100 lists. Two of the lists from the series, AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies from 1998 and AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) from 2007, identified Citizen Kane as the best American film ever. In other years, AFI's jury members selected Some Like It Hot the greatest American comedy, Psycho as the most thrilling American movie, Casablanca as the greatest American love story, Singin' in the Rain as the greatest American film musical, and It's a Wonderful Life as the most inspiring American film.^[157]

• See also: Gone with the Wind, Casablanca, The Godfather, The Godfather Part II, Goodfellas, Citizen Kane, Star Wars, The Dark Knight, Schindler's List, and The Shawshank Redemption in the Films acclaimed in audience polls section above.

See also

• List of highest-grossing films
• List of film-related topics
• List of films considered the worst
• National Film Registry
• AFI 100 Years... series
• Academy Awards

Notes

External links

• American Film Institute's 100 Years, 100 Movies
• BFI List of top 100 British movies
• IMDb Top 250
• Channel 4 poll: 100 Greatest Films
• Sight and Sound magazine best films of all time polls
• Village Voice 100 Best films of the 20th century list (from Archive.org)

sex

stock | retire | vm
Why are we here?
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
This page is cache of Wikipedia. History