With my birthday coming up, it’s always a good time to look back at my life. In addition to thinking through the relationships and life experiences I’ve had, I also like to reflect on the movies I’ve seen.
I saw this great idea on avclub.com a while back and thought it’d be fun to give it a go, with my two favorite films that were released that year (a slight distinction from the idea of the two best films). Of course, that doesn’t mean that this would be a complete list of my top films of all time; it goes without saying that there were great films made before I was born, and there have been exceptional years in film that have placed multiple films on my all-time favorites list. For instance, the year 2000 had the following great films: Memento, Almost Famous, Castaway, Unbreakable, The Big Kahuna, O Brother Where Art Thou?, and YiYi. On the other hand, 1988 does not have a single film that would make my top 100; about the best it had to offer was Rain Man, A Cry in the Dark, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit? So, here is my list (and it really is too bad I was born a year too late for The Godfather).
1973: Andrei Rublev, High Plains Drifter
1974: The Godfather II, Blazing Saddles
1975: Jaws, Monty Python and the Holy Grail
1976: Rocky, Taxi Driver
1977: Star Wars, Pete’s Dragon
1978: Days of Heaven, Superman
1979: The In-Laws, The Black Stallion
1980: Ordinary People, The Shining
1981: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Chariots of Fire
1982: ET, First Blood
1983: A Christmas Story, Fanny & Alexander
1984: Amadeus, This is Spinal Tap
1985: The Breakfast Club, Fletch
1986: Hoosiers, Stand By Me
1987: The Princess Bride, Raising Arizona
1988: Rain Man, A Cry in the Dark
1989: Do the Right Thing, Glory
1990: Joe vs. the Volcano, Goodfellas
1991: Beauty and the Beast, The Fisher King
1992: A Few Good Men, Unforgiven
1993: 3 Colors: Blue, Schindler’s List
1994: The Shawshank Redemption, Forrest Gump
1995: Braveheart, Dead Man Walking
1996: Fargo, Sling Blade
1997: As Good As It Gets, Good Will Hunting
1998: Saving Private Ryan, A Simple Plan
1999: Magnolia, Fight Club
2000: Memento, Castaway
2001: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Scotland PA
2002: Adaptation, About Schmidt
2003: LOTR: The Return of the King, Mystic River
2004: Hero, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2005: Crash, The 3 Burials of Melquiades Estrada
2006: Pan’s Labyrinth, L’Enfant
2007: No Country for Old Men, Once
2008: In Bruges, The Dark Knight
2009: Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds
2010: Another Year, Inception
2011: The Tree of Life, Certified Copy
2012: Jiro Dreams of Sushi, The Kid With a Bike
2013: The Past, August Osage County
2014: Whiplash, Selma
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