185. In the Name of the Father
The story of Gerry and Giuseppe Conlon is one of injustice, but it is also a unique retelling of Carlo Collodi’s Pinocchio.
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184. When Harry met Sally…
The rom-com goes back to 300BC. Since then, four major categories have emerged with Ron Reiner’s classic being one of the best.
183. Room
In adapting Emma Donoghue’s award-winning novel, Lenny Abrahamson extends a cinematic tradition established by French master, Robert Bresson.
182. Gaslight
Made in 1944, Gaslight is an Oscar-winning melodrama concerning madness and murder. The film itself is guilty of attempted homicide.
181. In the Mood for Love
Mixing social history, European art film and a British melodrama, Wong Kar-wai delivered a masterpiece of aching beauty.
180. The Elephant Man
To call David Lynch a surrealist is to misses the point. This masterpiece proved he is one of cinema’s great humanists.
179. Traffic
Steven Soderbergh’s drama is fifteen years old but came of age the instant it was released because it dared to reimagine the war on drugs.
178. Brief Encounter
Once dismissed as parochial and passé, the influence of David Lean’s classic can be seen in such unlikely places as The Third Man, The Godfather and Carol.
177. The King’s Speech
This film has two men talking. However, its strength lies in the way it uses sound to tell us one thing while showing us another.
176. Persepolis
How do you make a film relating your experiences of the Islamic Revolution in Iran? If you’re Marjane Satrapi you use animation to tackle the subject.
175. The People vs. Larry Flynt
It may have been controversial when it was released twenty years ago, but if ever there were a need for such a film it is right now.
174. The Unbearable Lightness of Being
How well did Philip Kaufman succeed in adapting Milan Kundera’s ‘unfilmable’ philosophical love story?
173. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
How do you make a film about a character who can neither move nor speak, but can only blink his left eye?
172. The War of the Roses
Divorce is traumatic enough we hardly need to laugh at it. But this deliciously dark comedy brought career highs from all involved.
171. Three Days of the Condor
Adapting James Grady’s straight forward thriller, Sydney Pollack delivered a commentary on dehumanising institutions.
170. My Darling Clementine
John Ford made so many great westerns, he is synonymous with the genre. But that doesn’t mean he always got everything right.
169. Withnail and I
When a filmmaker enters the realm of autobiography, the result is all too often soaked in nostalgia. Bruce Robinson’s Withnail & I is fermented in fine wine.
168. Rear Window
He was called The Master of Suspense (a title he coined himself), but for all the thrills did Alfred Hitchcock not make rom-coms wrapped inside mysteries?
167. Sexy Beast
Jonathan Glazer’s film is one of the most assured debuts in cinema history. But the film has another entrance that also stands with the best of them.
166. The Killing Fields
When it comes to America’s military intervention in South East Asia, David Puttnam’s Oscar winner is the anomaly. Less a war picture, it’s more a love story.
165. Trainwreck
Is it possible to put a new twist on a formula as old as the rom-com? Getting Amy Schumer to write the script and Judd Apatow to direct certainly gives you a head start.
164. The Parallax View
Adapted from Loren Singer’s poorly reviewed best seller, Alan J. Pakula’s conspiracy thriller is a classic of assured pacing and paranoia.
163. Inside Out
Inside Out may reveal the the emotional turmoil going on within a young girl’s mind, but a closer look will show you the secret workings inside Pixar Studios.
162. True Detective
Whether it be theatre, film or TV, all stories need good plots and performances. But what elevated True Detective Season 1 to the status of classic was its structure.
