50 Casablanca (1942 / Michael Curtiz)
This must be the most quotable film of all time, the quintessential movie of the classic Hollywood era.
49 Notorious (1946 / Alfred Hitchcock)
Probably one of Hitchcock’s most underrated films. The pairing of Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant is perfect and the movie is both romantic and suspenseful.
48 Jaws (1975 / Steven Spielberg)
The final that heralded the start of the modern blockbuster. Perfectly paced with numerous memorable scenes and that soundtrack!
47 The Bicycle Thieves (1948 / Vittorio De Sica)
A classic of neo realist cinema. The story of a man trying to find his stolen bicycle may be a simple one, but makes a huge impression.
46 Matewan (1987 / John Sayles)
John Sayles is an under appreciated film maker who has made a string of great films that have made little impact at the box office. A mining community in the 1920s are victimized by their corrupt bosses. Impassioned stuff.
45 Raining Stones (1993 / Ken Loach)
Loach’s finest work is a devastating film about a beleaguered man trying to raise money for his daughter’s communion dress. There is a scene with a loan shark that is amongst the scariest I have seen.
44 The Magnificent Ambersons (1942 / Orson Welles)
Welles’ follow up to Citizen Kane is most famous for the fact that the studio butchered it and released a heavily cut version. The missing footage will probably never be found, but even in its truncated state it show the genius director at the peak of his powers.
43 Fanny and Alexander (1982 / Ingmar Bergman)
Bergman’s last great masterpiece shows its TV origins in its slightly episodic nature, but the story of a Swedish family in the early part of the last century is beautifully told.
42 I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932 / Mervyn LeRoy)
Paul Muni was the first great actor of the sound era, and here is gives his best performance as a man wrongly convicted of a crime he didn’t commit. Still remains a searing indictment of the US legal system.
41 The Third Man (1949 / Carol Reed)
Often considered the finest British film of all time. I don’t rank it quite that highly, but this noirish film is right up there. A novelist in Vienna investigates a friends’s death. Featuring an unforgettable appearance by Orson Welles.
40 His Girl Friday (1940 / Howard Hawks)
One of numerous adaptations of the play The Front Page and the best by a distance. The ultimate screwball farce with Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant sparring superbly.
39 Chinatown (1974 / Roman Polanski)
Yet another 1970s film that has gone on to be considered an all time classic and, like Network, one that doesn’t seem to age. Jack Nicholson is at his best as private detective caught up in a corruption plot. His character, JJ Gittes, returned 16 years later in the unfairly maligned The Two Jakes.
38 Network (1976 / Sidney Lumet)
This story of a ratings and profit searching TV news team seems even more apt today. One of Lumet’s finest efforts, aided by a stunning script from the great Paddy Chayevsky….I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!
37 Jeux Interdits (1952 / René Clément)
Set in France in 1940 this is a heart breaking story of a young girl trying to cope with the loss of her parents.
36 Missing (1982 / Costa-Gavras)
Once again, Jack Lemmon demonstrates why he is my all time favourite performer. Here he plays a man searching for his missing son in 1970s Chile. Gritty and moving.
35 Henry V (1989 / Kenneth Branagh)
Outdoing Laurence Olivier once again, this is the definitive version of the classic Shakespeare story. The text is rendered well by the entire cast but it is Branagh’s film. I’m hoping he will return to the bard one day.
34 Midnight Cowboy (1969 / John Schlesinger)
Still the only ‘X’ rated film to win the best picture Oscar. Dustin Hoffman was at the peak of his career and his turn as Ratso Rizzo is superb. Jon Voight was never better than here as the naïve Joe Buck.
33 Belle De Jour (1967 / Luis Buñuel)
Probably Buñuel’s most mainstream film, and a beautiful one. Catherine Deneuve is bewitching as a housewife who has a double life as a prostitute.
32 Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011 / Tomas Alfredson)
There have been some magnificent John Le Carre adaptations on the big and small screens in the last decade but this tops the lot. A superb screenplay by Bridget O’Connor and Peter Straughan, condensing a complex book into a comprehensible and subtle story plus a fantastic lead performance by Gary Oldman.
31 The Lady Vanishes (1938 / Alfred Hitchcock)
Prime Hitchcock from his British period as a young couple uncover a conspiracy on a train. Suspenseful with just the right amount of comic relief from the Charters and Caldicott characters played by the wonderful Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne. They went on to feature in 3 more movies. I also have a soft spot for the 1979 remake.