For this blog about ranking the best films of all time, according to Gail Kinn and Jim Piazza in “Four-Star Movies The 101 Greatest Films of All Time”, published in 2003 by Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, Inc. of New York, we’ll use the first several posts for listing the book’s ratings and for a generalized look at what listed movies I own and a brief opinion on their appeal.
After the listing is completed, we’ll go more in depth to explore each movie, blog by blog.
Kinn and Piazza’s first 20 top rated films are:
No. 1 = Godfather I and II
No. 2 = Casablanca
No. 3 = Citizen Kane
No. 4 = Gone With The Wind
No. 5 = Lawrence of Arabia
No. 6 = North by Northwest
No. 7 = The Wizard of Oz
No. 8 = Annie Hall
No. 9 = Chinatown
No.10 = Singin’ in the Rain
How many of the first ten do you own? How many of them have you seen?
I own a copy of No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, No. 6, No. 7, and No. 10.
I wouldn’t walk across the street to see the Godfather series again, although it has many of the big name actors we love and is a favorite portrayal of the Mafia world. I’m mild about No. 5 and No. 9. The others I like very much, and Gone With The Wind is my favorite film, adapted from my all-time favorite novel, by Margaret Mitchell.
My favorite Cary Grant film
No. 11 = Nashville
No. 12 = Some Like It Hot
No. 13 = All About Eve
No. 14 = Psycho
No. 15 = Taxi Driver
No. 16 = Apocalypse Now
No. 17 = On the Waterfront
No. 18 = The Graduate
No. 19 = Sunset Boulevard
No. 20 = The Searchers
How about those 11 through 20?
I have No. 12, No. 18, and No. 20.
Numbers 14 and 15, I dislike intensely. No. 12 is a riot, one of the best comedic performances ever, with my hometown (Holgate, Ohio) hero, Joe E. Brown. No. 11 is disgusting. No. 13 is spooky good. No. 16 is a gritty statement on war. No. 17 is Marlon Brando’s signature role, a great story about a boxer who thinks he should make it to the top of his profession but who is tied to corruption. No. 19 is superbly interesting.
Best Comedy Ever?
The next blog will list rankings No. 21 through No. 40.
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Credits:
“North By Northwest” DVD Cover, 1959, by Turner Entertainment Co., from my personal home collection.
“Some Like it Hot” VHS Cover, 1959, by MGM/UA Home Video, from my personal home collection.
Favorite 20th Century Films 