My Top 125 Movies of My Lifetime 1979-2010

1. E.T. The Extra Terrestrial (1982) – This is just a great movie all around.
2. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) – Barely beat out by E.T.
3. Dances with Wolves (1990) – Kevin Costner at his peak. Downhill from here.
4. Schindler’s List (1993) – This movie gets at the heart of Holocaust.
5. The Empire Strikes Back (1980) – The best Star Wars movie.
6. Shakespeare in Love (1998) – This movie is under-appreciated.
7. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) – Thank you Tim Robbins & Morgan Freeman!
8. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) – The best of the series.
9. Rain Man (1988) – Dustin Hoffman gives a remarkable performance.
10. Pulp Fiction (1994) – Tarantino at his best.
11. Airplane! (1980) – Best comedy of my lifetime.
12. Moulin Rouge (2001) – Best musical of my lifetime.
13. Goodfellas (1990) – Something about this movie just draws me in every time.
14. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)– Hate scary movies but I can’t stop watching.
15. Good Will Hunting (1997) – At the time, a fresh, new screenplay.
16. The Fugitive (1993) – I love this movie, so does WGN.
17. Philadelphia (1993) – Tom Hanks’ best role and Denzel is pretty good too.
18. Back to the Future (1985) – Best family movie ever, after E.T.
19. Ghostbusters (1984) – Great comedy team and Bill Murray at his best.
20. WALL-E (2008) – Best animated film, too bad it got snubbed by the Academy.
21. Braveheart (1995) – Mel Gibson’s best acting and directing. Then down hill.
22. The Departed (2006) – The best twist you never see coming.
23. Raging Bull (1980) – Top boxing movie because Rocky was before I was born.
24. Titanic (1997) – James Cameron made an epic even if the storyline is just ok.
25. Lion King (1994) – Last great classic animation movie before Pixar took over.
26. Toy Story (1995) – And then came Pixar. First movie was best, until WALL-E.
27. A Few Good Men (1992) – Cruise is excellent, Demi Moore too, and Kevin Bacon!
28. Saving Private Ryan (1998) – The opening battle scene is unforgettable.
29. Dead Poet’s Society (1989) – Great story brought to life by Robin Williams.
30. The Dark Knight (2008) – Best Batman movie ever made. Heath Ledger’s legacy.
31. Jurassic Park (1993) – The first time Dinosaurs look like real Dinosaurs.
32. Die Hard (1988) – The best Christmas movie ever. yippee ki yay.
33. Forrest Gump (1994) – All around a good movie but not that great.
34. JFK (1991) – Congress passes laws because of your movie, you know it’s good.
35. American Beauty (1999) – Spacey and Bennett peak in this dark movie.
36. Jerry Maguire (1996) – Cameron Crowe’s best movie.
37. Platoon (1986) – Oliver Stone at the top of his game, Charlie Sheen too.
38. Gladiator (2000) – Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott makes this movie great.
39. The Elephant Man (1980) – Surprise, this movie deserves to get more credit.
40. Gandhi (1982) – Ben Kingsley in one of the best all-time acting performances.
41. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) – A new era of special effects was born.
42. Shrek (2001) – First animated film that appeals to both kids and adults.
43. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) – Connery and Ford are great.
44. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) – They kept getting better.
45. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) – This one was all the rave, the year I was born.
46. Slumdog Millionaire (2008) – Out of nowhere to win Best Picture. Deserved it.
47. Beauty and the Beast (1991)– Few animated films get Best Picture nominations.
48. The Color Purple (1985) – You don’t realize it’s Whoopi or Oprah.
49. Almost Famous (2000) – Music and movie masterpiece.
50. Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (2001) – Start of an epic series.
51. Return of the Jedi (1983) – Ewoks aside, I think this deserves to be here.
52. There’s Something About Mary (1998) – Ben Stiller helps bring comedy back.
53. Erin Brockovich (2000) – Julia Roberts makes the movie, give her credit.
54. The Thin Red Line (1998) – Overshadowed by Saving Private Ryan, still great.
55. Brokeback Mountain (2005) – Broke the mold, showed how good Heath Ledger was.
56. Witness (1985) – The Amish rock along with Harrison Ford.
57. Wall Street (1987) – Greed is good. Michael Douglas wins an Oscar.
58. Stand By Me (1986) – A short story becomes a great coming of age movie.
59. The Insider (1999) – One man and the downfall of a giant American industry.
60. The English Patient (1996) – “Elaine, have you seen the English Patient?”
61. No Country for Old Men (2007) – I watched this closely, I still have no clue.
62. Chicago (2002) – Thanks Moulin Rouge, this movie was able to win Best Pic.
63. Life is Beautiful (1998) – Best foreign film I’ve seen.
64. Amadeus (1984) – Best picture of 1984, enough said.
65. As Good As It Gets (1997) – Best actor and best actress equals great movie.
66. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) – An original story finally.
67. A Beautiful Mind (2001) – Great movie by Ron Howard.
68. Milk (2008) – Sean Penn’s best role of his career and a true story.
69. Finding Nemo (2003) – Animated films don’t get the credit they deserve.
70. Juno (2007) – We’ll look back and realize how good this movie really is.
71. Terms of Endearment (1983) – Jack, along time ago.
72. The Last Emperor (1987) – Long but interesting.
73. The Big Chill (1983) – Our parents like it. Me, not so much.
74. The Matrix (1999) – Another new era of special effects was born.
75. Mississippi Burning (1988) – Reality of Civil Rights battle.
76. Big (1988) – Ok, Tom Hanks is a great actor.
77. The Sixth Sense (1999) - Shyamalan was going to be the next Speilberg. Wrong.
78. L.A. Confidential (1997) – Great movie, not sure why Basinger won the Oscar.
79. Bull Durham (1988) – Best baseball movie ever made.
80. The China Syndrome (1979) – Perfect timing, 12 days before 3 Mile Island.
81. The Breakfast Club (1985) – John Hughes makes my list.
82. Traffic (2000) – New era of Michael Douglas was born.
83. 48 Hrs (1982) – First buddy cop movie. Led to many, many more.
84. City of God (2002) – Great foreign film shows brutality of Brazilian slums.
85. Apollo 13 (1995) – Tom Hanks is on this list a lot.
86. The Pianist (2002) – This is a great movie with a great lead performance.
87. Do the Right Thing (1989) – Spike Lee made a statement with this movie.
88. Bowling for Columbine (2002) – Best documentary I’ve ever watched.
89. The Green Mile (1999) – This is on a cable channel every day.
90. Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000) – Saw the premiere, subtitles are cool.
91. Seabiscuit (2003) – This movie was better than I expected it to be.
92. Apocalypse Now (1979) – I don’t think it’s as good as others seem to think.
93. American History X (1998) – Edward Norton.
94. Amelie (2001) – One of the best foreign films.
95. Up in the Air (2009) – Best movie of 2009 but didn’t win any awards.
96. Borat (2006) – New age of comedy.
97. Batman (1989) – Before the Dark Knight, Tim Burton’s original was the best.
98. Driving Miss Daisy (1989) – Another best picture winner in a weak year.
99. The Lives of Others (2006) – Another great foreign film.
100. An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) – Great actors.
101. Remember the Titans (2000) – People watch this over and over again.
102. Garden State (2004) – This movie made soundtracks cool again.
103. Crash (2005) – Good movie but lowest rated Oscar winner on this list.
104. Thelma & Louise (1991) – 2 best actress nominations, introducing Brad Pitt.
105. Raising Arizona (1987) – I laugh just thinking about this movie.
106. Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) – Too bad they made 2 more movies.
107. My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) – 100 make-over TV shows later.
108. The Fog of War (2003) – Scary stuff here, how close were we to World War III?
109. Glory (1989) – 1989 was a good year for movies. The rise of Denzel.
110. Eternal Sunshine on the Spotless Mind (2004) – A real mind bender.
111. The Blues Brothers (1980) – Sweet home Chicago.
112. Field of Dreams (1989) – If you build it.
113. Fargo (1996) – Wood chipper.
114. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) – New movie makes this look good.
115. The Jerk (1979) – There were some really good comedies back then.
116. The Truman Show (1998) – I give this more credit than most people.
117. When Harry Met Sally (1989) – I’m going to give Rob Reiner some credit.
118. Quiz Show (1994) – The best stories always seem to be true stories.
119. Home Alone (1990) – John Hughes strikes gold.
120. Caddyshack (1980) – Bill Murray, Chevy Chase & Rodney Dangerfield are funny.
121. Working Girl (1988) – The best you’ll get from Melanie Griffith.
122. Lethal Weapon (1987) – The bad guys are really bad in this movie.
123. Top Gun (1986) – Talk to me, Goose.
124. Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995) – Richard Dreyfuss is great in the 1970s and here.
125. Rudy (1993)/The Karate Kid (1984)/Hoosiers (1986) – Feel good underdogs.