45. The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Many say this is the best of the Star Wars films. I can’t say it’s my favorite, but the character development, love story, and poignant themes certainly make it great.
As one might assume from the title, this is a dark film in which the bad guys essentially win. Nonetheless it has a great battle scene on the snowy planet of Hoth and the best lightsaber duel of the series between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, as well as some of the greatest moments in the series with Luke being trained by Yoda.
Luke is separated from his friends as he escapes to Dagobah to seek out a great warrior named Yoda. Yoda is of course a little green puppet around eight hundred years old. While later proving himself to be wise, Yoda’s introductory scene is quite humorous. This is one of the very many points that bothers me about the Star Wars prequels; Empire introduces Yoda as a joke-playing character while the prequels play him as this ultra-serious dude. I understand him not making a joke in Jedi ‘cause he’s on his deathbed but whatever.
The most powerful scene of the film is when Yoda has Luke enter the cave, insisting that he doesn’t need his lightsaber, but he brings it anyways. He comes across Darth Vader who he fights shortly before defeating only to reveal his own face inside Vader’s mask. This scene carries more weight than any other scene in the series and is typically fresh on anyone’s mind who argues this as the best in the series.
There’s also a love story going on between Han Solo and Leia. It comes off as very genuine and real and is one of the best parts of the movie. All this makes the ending quite tragic as well.
44. 61* (2001)
This was a HBO film directed by Billy Crystal, essentially a salute to his younger years as a Yankees fan. More specifically than that, it’s a look at the 1961 home run race between teammates Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle.
Maris is the highlight of this film. He’s a tragic figure both in real life and in this film, never respected like the hero that Mantle was, though every bit as deserving. Barry Pepper and Thomas Jane do a great job as Maris and Mantle respectively, and they both look a great deal like them.
The look of the film is great, capturing the times well with the off-field clothes of the players and making great use of out-of-use Tiger Stadium in Detroit (now demolished) and some CG to make it look like the pre-1976 renovation of Yankee Stadium.
This is a film that non-baseball fans will not enjoy as much, of course, but it’s a fascinating look at two American heroes.
43. The Exorcist (1973)
Just about anyone who knows anything about horror films says this is the scariest film ever made. I don’t completely agree with that statement, but it is certainly one of the scariest and definitely one of the greatest.
Despite being a violent, gross, and disturbing horror film, this is also thematically powerful, with great statements on faith. While the average exorcism film sucks horribly and is an insult to the Catholic Church, the Vatican actually highly recommended this film at the time for both its realism and what it had to say about faith.
If you’re not familiar with the plot, in Georgetown, Regan MacNeil is possessed by the Devil. At first they think it’s just a psychological disorder but when all resources are exhausted, her faithless mother goes to a local priest to convince him to do an exorcism. The priest is Father Karras, played by an Oscar-nominated Jason Miller, a man terrorized by his mother’s recent death and troubles with his own faith. He’s the most interesting character in the film.
He’s joined by an elderly priest, played by Max Von Sydow, a man very experienced in exorcisms. He advises Karras that the Devil will tell lies, but also mix lies with the truth to make things seem more believable.
The scenes that show Reagan possessed, particularly toward the end, are gruesome but terrific. The things she does are so horrible and the special effects are so great. One can easily see why so many consider this the scariest film ever made. In addition to this, what is more terrifying than an innocent little girl being possessed by the Devil himself? All I can say is there’s a reason this was up for a lot of Academy Awards and is still today regarded as one of the greatest films ever made.
42. I’m Not There (2007)
This is a difficult movie to recommend to a lot of people. That’s not to say it’s bad at all; it’s a great film. Director Todd Haynes creates such an original arthouse film and utilizes some very talented actors, including Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere, and Christian Bale.
The film is about Bob Dylan, perhaps the most mystically iconic figure in American music and coincidentally my favorite musician. The film is separated into different episodes of different actors and actresses playing Dylan-like characters at different stages in his life and career. It’s an abstract but very rewarding film. It makes great use of existing Dylan music and the covers by the cast are also great. The highlight is the Cate Blanchett segment, which earned her an Academy Award.
If you’re interested in music, Dylan, or unique art films, then there might not be any films I’d recommend higher than this one.
41. North by Northwest (1959)
North by Northwest is one of director Alfred Hitchcock’s most exciting and funniest films. It’s a tale of mistaken identity, catching witty and miserable advertising man Roger Thornhill (Cary Grant) in the middle of an international espionage plot.
He’s arrested for drunk driving after nearly being killed and is unable to prove his story and is even framed for murder at the United Nations. He is then on the run for the rest of the film. This could have been done as a straight-forward and serious spy film, but there are darkly comic overtones throughout, making it even more entertaining. It’s even revealed that the spy Thornhill is confused for never actually existed, and he is then recruited for the American government to play the role of this spy.
This has had a huge influence on just about every spy film ever made. It’s obvious seeing the Sean Connery Bond films that this was the mold they would often follow. Coincidentally, Ian Fleming even based Bond’s appearance on Cary Grant in the late-‘40s/early ‘50s.
There are many classic scenes, the cropduster being the most classic but not my favorite. My favorite scene is actually an actionless scene in which Thornhill shows up as an auction and realizes he is going to be gotten rid of, so he draws attention to himself and is arrested before the enemy spies can get to him. It’s a hilarious scene and perhaps the best example of this film’s wit. There’s also the climax taking place on Mount Rushmore, which is great.
Modern audiences will probably find this pretty slow for an action movie and maybe a little boring, but the enjoyment of the film comes from the ridiculous situation Thornhill finds himself in. The adventure he partakes on is grand in scale and ridiculously entertaining.
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