|
4/4
|
97%
|
Unforgiven (1992) |
"
The great Orson Welles once stated that Clint Eastwood was the most underrated filmmaker in America, and the sobering footnote is that he passed away in 1985, well before Eastwood began to be taken seriously as an artist by most critics and moviegoers."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Anatomy of a Murder (1959) |
"
Otto Preminger, no stranger to ruffling moral-watchdog feathers, never succumbs to the sleaziness inherent in the material, instead turning out an intelligent and tightly controlled drama that ranks as one of the all-time great courtroom procedurals."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
97%
|
Casablanca (1943) |
"
Rick and Ilsa. Laszlo and the letters of transit. Captain Renault and his charming corruptibility. "As Time Goes By." "Here's looking at you, kid." You know the routine. So round up the usual accolades."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Le Voyage dans la lune (A Trip to the Moon) (1999) |
"
A treat for cineastes and sci-fi fans alike, with Melies borrowing from both Jules Verne and H.G. Wells."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) |
"
An unqualified masterpiece."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
87%
|
Brief Encounter (1945) |
"
Haunting in its evocative mood -- one enhanced by Robert Krasker's cinematography and Lean's meticulous, muted direction -- Brief Encounter primarily hinges on the extraordinary performance by Celia Johnson."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
This Happy Breed (1944) |
"
This Happy Breed ranks with 1949's One Woman's Story and 1950's Madeleine as the most obscure title in David Lean's canon. That's a shame, because it's a wonderful motion picture."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Apr 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
85%
|
Spellbound (1945) |
"
A commercial and critical hit in its day, this Best Picture Oscar nominee has seen its standing slip in the ensuing decades, as it's never mentioned on any list of Alfred Hitchcock's best works. That's a shame."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Rebecca (1940) |
"
The real show-stopper remains Judith Anderson's formidable turn as Mrs. Danvers."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
Notorious (1946) |
"
Second only to Psycho as my favorite Hitchcock movie."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 25, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
To Kill A Mockingbird (1962) |
"
One of those rare instances when a movie perfectly captures the essence of its source material without compromising it in any way."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 23, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
Wings of Desire (1987) |
"
How brilliant is Wings of Desire? Understand that Peter Falk is playing himself - that is to say, he's playing actor Peter Falk, who happened to be an angel himself until he elected to become human decades earlier."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jun 25, 2011
|
|
4/4
|
89%
|
Hair (1979) |
"
With the possible exception of A Hard Day's Night, it gets my vote as the all-time best rock film."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jun 13, 2011
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
Superman (1978) |
"
Superman still remains the best superhero movie ever made, full of humor, heart, and an iconic performance by Christopher Reeve as the Man of Steel."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jun 6, 2011
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Citizen Kane (1941) |
"
Citizen Kane has been cited as the greatest film ever made from so many different quarters, it's a wonder that a Congressional law hasn't been passed making it required viewing for anyone who claims they like movies."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 20, 2011
|
|
4/4
|
87%
|
Black Swan (2010) |
"
A messy masterpiece. Like Apocalypse Now, Eraserhead and Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream, it's one of those films that will force viewers to either reject it outright or allow it to burrow into the brain and remain there for days, weeks, months on end."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Dec 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
88%
|
Tootsie (1982) |
"
Hoffman is magnificent in his dual role, though it's Bill Murray who stealthily steals scenes."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Oct 12, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
Some Like It Hot (1959) |
"
The film's final line is legendary, though I have a soft spot for Jerry's description of a sashaying Sugar: "Look at that! Look how she moves! That's just like Jell-O on springs!""
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Oct 12, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
92%
|
Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001) |
"
Mitchell's performance as Hedwig remains one of the best of modern times -- the character is by turns sexy, scary, outrageous, obnoxious, pitiable and vulnerable -- and it anchors a movie that landed on my list of the 10 best films of the 2000s."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Sep 24, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
86%
|
Inception (2010) |
"
I suspect even repeat viewings won't be enough to nail this one down: Like 2001, it's both knotty enough and ambiguous enough to lead to conflicting opinions. Besides, our dreams are open to different interpretations, so why not some of our films as well?"
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jul 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
99%
|
Toy Story 3 (2010) |
"
Three-peats may be rare in the sports world, but they're even harder to achieve in the cinematic realm. Yet Toy Story 3 emerges as the perfect final chapter in a trilogy that's guaranteed to live on for generations (to infinity and beyond?)."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jun 19, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
91%
|
The Apartment (1960) |
"
A screen gem that attained classic status in about as much time as it takes to comb one's hair."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 12, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
93%
|
The Wolf Man (1941) |
"
Even with a canon that includes the definitive versions of (among others) Frankenstein, Dracula and The Phantom of the Opera, this 1941 classic has always remained my favorite of the studio's prolific output."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Feb 15, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
91%
|
Up in the Air (2009) |
"
A timely seriocomic work that manages to be breezy without once diminishing the sobering realities that constantly hover around the picture's edges."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Dec 19, 2009
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
The Seventh Seal (Det Sjunde inseglet) (1957) |
"
As a youth, perhaps no other film opened my eyes to the wonderful possibilities of cinema as much as The Seventh Seal."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jun 21, 2009
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
The Wrestler (2008) |
"
It lines up nicely with my only other four-star pictures of 2008 [Milk and The Dark Knight], collectively presenting a portrait of the uncertain, often unhappy America in which we presently reside."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 21, 2009
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
Milk (2008) |
"
Full of both passion and purpose, Milk is clearly one of the year's best films."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Dec 13, 2008
|
|
4/4
|
99%
|
L.A. Confidential (1997) |
"
Writer-director Curtis Hanson's adaptation of the James Ellroy novel wasn't merely one of the two or three greatest movies of the 1990s; it stands as a masterpiece for the ages."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 26, 2008
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
The Dark Knight (2008) |
"
The Dark Knight might be the first superhero movie that exudes a palpable sense of dread and menace that tugs at our nerves in a way that both disturbs and delights us."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jul 18, 2008
|
|
4/4
|
95%
|
No Country for Old Men (2007) |
"
No Country for Old Men isn't the first great movie certain to have its ending criticized even by many who enjoyed the rest of the picture."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 22, 2007
|
|
4/4
|
81%
|
A Prairie Home Companion (2006) |
"
Altman's best film since the one-two punch of The Player and Short Cuts back in the early 1990s."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jun 7, 2006
|
|
4/4
|
91%
|
United 93 (2006) |
"
It's hard to imagine a less sensationalized 9/11 film than United 93."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted May 4, 2006
|
|
4/4
|
90%
|
Midnight Cowboy (1969) |
"
It only takes a movie like Midnight Cowboy to point out the limitations of a rating system: How can a measly four stars convey the magnificence of this acknowledged classic?"
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 10, 2006
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
King Kong (1933) |
"
In much the same manner as The Wizard of Oz and It's a Wonderful Life, it long ago entered into the national consciousness as an enduring part of our heritage."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 30, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
——
|
Harold Lloyd Comedy Collection (2005) |
"
Lloyd's appeal was as the all-American kid trying to make good, and this trademark characteristic can be seen in his two acknowledged masterpieces, both included in this set."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 29, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Laura (2005) |
"
A genuine classic -- not only of film noir but of film, period."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 23, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
97%
|
To Be or Not to Be (1942) |
"
It's held up marvelously over the years, hurtling forward with its dizzying blend of laughs and intrigue."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 18, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
The Philadelphia Story (1940) |
"
[Relies] less on physical comedy and more on immaculately delivered zingers."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 18, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
95%
|
Bringing Up Baby (1938) |
"
One of those movies that seems to improve upon repeat viewings."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 18, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
95%
|
Stage Door (1937) |
"
Second only to the incomparable All About Eve as the best movie ever made about the theater."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Mar 18, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
86%
|
Get Shorty (1995) |
"
Released in the shadow of Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty - for all its acclaim - has never received its due as one of the funniest Hollywood films of modern times."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Feb 24, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
Raging Bull (1980) |
"
The true power of De Niro's performance rests in his ability to worm his way into this lug's twisted psyche and air out his personal demons for all to see."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Feb 16, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
92%
|
Million Dollar Baby (2004) |
"
The best movie of 2004, edging out Sideways by a half-whisker."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jan 26, 2005
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
M (1931) |
"
It's clear that Lang was ahead of most of his peers in grasping the promise of the motion picture form."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Dec 13, 2004
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
Short Cuts (1993) |
"
Rarely has a slice-of-life film been so delicious to consume."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 24, 2004
|
|
4/4
|
82%
|
The China Syndrome (1979) |
"
Even without its eerie parallel to real life, this superb film generates enough drama on its own."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 19, 2004
|
|
5/5
|
100%
|
City Lights (1931) |
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Nov 19, 2004
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
That's Entertainment (1974) |
"
The cinematic equivalent of a sustained two-hour orgasm, That's Entertainment! is pure pleasure from first frame to last."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Oct 20, 2004
|
|
4/4
|
81%
|
The Untouchables (1987) |
"
It's one of the all-time great gangster flicks, a gorgeously realized production that places archetypal heroes and villains in the service of a rip-roaring storyline."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Oct 12, 2004
|
|
4/4
|
83%
|
The English Patient (1996) |
"
As the sensitive Hana, Binoche delivers one of the most incandescent performances I've ever had the pleasure to watch."
—
Creative Loafing
Posted Jul 21, 2004
|
68%
——
98%
