Thursday, September 25, 2008

Another Empire List

Empire Magazine have done a vote for the 500 greatest films of all time... again. The Godfather has taken the top spot off Star Wars - but Empire Strikes Back still rated highly. Can only assume that the Godfather's renaissance is linked to its recent re-re-release on DVD, but all the same it remains in my all time top 5 and is great today as it ever was.

The top 10 is as follows:

1. The Godfather (1972)
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
3. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
4. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
5. Jaws (1975)
6. Goodfellas (1990)
7. Apocalypse Now (1979)
8. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
9. Pulp Fiction (1994)
10. Fight Club (1999)

So Spielberg (Raiders/Jaws) and Ford-Coppola (Godfather/Apocalypse) take two a piece - its a pity FFC has made a load of bollocks in recent years huh? I'm not sure what the hell Fight Club is doing in that company - its lightweight and shouldn't be there - all it is, is American Beauty for kids. Singin' in the Rain is the only one I haven't seen too so thats not bad.

The description of the Godfather is classic too: A wedding. A horse’s head. A gun in a restaurant toilet. Sicily. Another wedding. A car bomb. A toll-booth. Orange peel. A baptism. A closed door.

But anyway - other notables

100. Network (1976)
91. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983)
85. Blue Velvet (1986)
68. Annie Hall (1977)
61. The Usual Suspects (1995)
46. On the Waterfront (1954)
45. Psycho (1960)
43. The Big Lebowski (1998)
34. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
31. Gone with the Wind (1939)
28. Citizen Kane (1941)
26. Dr Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
22. Star Wars: A New Hope (1977)
20. Blade Runner (1982)
19. The Godfather Part 2 (1974)
18. Casablanca (1942)
11. Raging Bull (1980)

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