161. Dr. Strangelove
Until 1964, Stanley Kubrick had suffered years of set-backs, disappointments and frustration. But he made his reputation with this satire on nuclear war.
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160. Amy
Asif Kapadia’s extraordinary documentary makes for uncomfortable viewing, not least because he doesn’t only focus on the flaws of the tragic singer.
159. The Concert Film
With content pretty much always the same, what elevates one concert movie above others is not just the quality of the music, it is also the film’s form.
158. The Big Sleep
How can Howard Hawks’ adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s labyrinthine detective novel be heralded as a classic when it is impossible to follow?
157. Jaws
For all the fun stories and anecdotes about how the shark didn’t work, none of them help explain how Steven Spielberg managed to deliver a masterpiece.
156. The Apartment
With six Oscars, five WGAs, a DGA and the Palme d’Or, Billy Wilder’s career was so blazing you’d be forgiven for saying, “Well, somebody’s perfect.”
155. Jazz in Film
If jazz really is the authentic American art form, why are there so few great jazz movies? No matter, at least there are dozens of great jazz soundtracks.
154. The Verdict
Sidney Lumet hadn’t read Barry Reed’s novel when he brought it to the screen. Instead, he let David Mamet’s masterful screenplay be his guide.
153. Memento
Christopher Nolan’s time-warping mind-bending classic left many audiences very confused. But the director left more than enough clues to make sense of it.
152. Mad Max: Fury Road
Most action films are fuelled by testosterone. But Fury Road has so much estrogen coursing in its engines, let’s call it Mad Maxine.
151. Drive
Nicolas Winding Refn’s film focuses on Ryan Gosling’s nameless getaway driver. But its best scene involves a vehicle of an entirely different kind.
150. The Bridge on the River Kwai
With this Oscar winning classic, David Lean stopped being an ‘English filmmaker’ and became an ‘international star director’.
149. The Last Picture Show
How did New York’s Peter Bogdanovich make a masterpiece set in small town Texas when he had never set foot in the state?
148. Diner
Some of the best films have so much plot they are very difficult to sum up. Others give you too little. Barry Levinson’s classic serves you french fries and gravy.
147. The Case for the Courtroom Drama
Of all the genres, the courtroom is perhaps the one most beset by clichés. So is there any evidence for a few masterpieces?
146. Invasion of the Body Snatchers
There have been four adaptations of Jack Finney’s novel. But what new angle could you bring to the classic sci-fi allegory?
145. Sweet Smell of Success
To make a masterpiece about greed, media manipulation and McCarthyism, you hire a director whose background is in comedy.
144. The Searchers
The Searchers is both a cinematic monument and an extremely unsettling depiction of the racism that lies at the heart of America’s own mythology.
143. The Adventures of Robin Hood
The legend has endured for 500 years and Hollywood has filmed it a dozen times. But Errol Flynn is still the only Robin Hood.
142. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
With Ferris Bueller, John Hughes forged an icon of teenage freedom. But pay close attention and the film is not about Ferris.
141. Once Upon a Time in the West
Sergio Leone’s masterpiece doesn’t only reference American westerns. He also drew inspiration from an English film.
140. Kiss of the Spider Woman
How do you make a film about Marxism, sexual oppression and Nazis? Set the whole thing in an Argentinean prison.
139. Repulsion
Repulsion was Roman Polanski’s first film he made after defecting from communist Poland. Its depiction of mental disintegration is also his first masterpiece.
138. Network
When Paddy Chayefsky set out to write Network, his aim was to satirise the medium that had given him his start. What he gave cinema was a tragic opera.
