Movie lovers: What is the greatest movie ever made?
 

Please keep in mind that, given the limitation of the size of this poll, not every movie could be listed, so I limited the choices to only those that were obviously worthy of consideration.

Gilda

I've always thought Casablanca was one of the greatest movies ever made, so I had no issue voting for it given the limitations of this poll.

The only other movies that come close for me are The Seven Samurai and The Shawshank Redemption.

I've always believed the Godfather to be number one.

Obviously great - I just watched it again last month.

Can't fault the movie for this, but as the years pass I'm increasingly distracted by thoughts of the period and location when watching older films. We (the films and I) didn't carry that baggage 20yrs ago.

BTW, anyone voting "haven't see it" just made their next rental decision. :)

I've seen it and I didn't like it, not that good of a movie, and I’ve watched a lot of movies. It’s a sappy love story, it’s not a bad story but I don’t find it interesting. Why make the poll, seriously, if you want to start a thread about Casablanca why not do that? If I would have to pick a favorite/best movie of all time so far I would say the Shawshank Redemption.

i agree, i've seen it and it's not the best movie ever made throughout all time and space. there is no response to reflect my opinion. my favorite movie might be metropolis. is it the greatest? i don't know.

I can't complete your poll. I've seen Casablanca and I don't think it's the best movie of all time and I love movies.

that is such a hard question to answer. i love all sorts of movies a whole lot. maybe a pick a genre? but i suppose the greatest movie ever ever...then...um....uh...(good lord the pressure)....i guess....'forrest gump'. yeah, that sounds right.

My analytical side brings up different genres, qualities, messages, periods...
Then my artistic side backs up and says "Damn, that was a great flick!"

Where art is concerned, lines become indistinct. Shades take over.

I chose not to vote

because i've seen it

and shawshank redemption gets my vote as well as best ever

I am a movie lover, thats why I don't believe in Greatest Ever Movie Polls. There are too many great movies for just one to be voted THE greatest.
As far as this poll is concerned, I've never seen Casablanca

if that's your assessment of Casablanca, you've watched the wrong movie... :) Sappy love stories are really heinous chick flick type movies like Love actually and other such crappy movies... Casablanca had intrigue, and mystery, the beautiful Ingrid Bergman and oh heavens... Bogart and Henreid...

It's a great movie... and so much quotable from it as well..

ibid djflish.

I feel bad for never having seen Casablanca. I'm not a huge fan of 'classic' films anyway. I find them often trying to hard to fill space.

as opposed to current movies which just use nudity or have something blow up to fill space? :D At least in the classic movies there's a story... and a plot... and character development... and dialog.

No I haven't seen it. I'll reserve judgement of it until I do, but until then, my vote could go towards either Lawrence of Arabia or The Godfather.

Casablanca is a great movie. I'm not sure that it's the greatest movie ever made. I suppose it depends on your criteria.

In terms of the most innovative. Casablanca is not.
In terms of the most influential. Casablanca is not.
In terms of the most entertaining. It's probably up there near the top for me.

I think that the greatest movie ever made was Citizen Kane, though I find Casablanca far more entertaining.

With all due respect, I found The Seven Samurai to be the most amateurish, boring, overhyped piece of shit movie I've ever seen.

Like, The Big Lebowski, man.

I love Casablanca. It is one of the best examples of Hollywood at the top of its game.

There a many great films, I am not convinced Casablanca is the BEST film of all time just one of them.

I would also put these films in the top of a list of great Hollywood films:

To Have and to Have Not
It's A Wonderful Life

There are a ton of great films made independently in the US as well as around the world. I have to admit I am amazed at the popularity of The Shawshank Redemption. I thought it was a good film, just not a great film.

woah, woah, woah... Let's not get down on nudity in films...

I agree with you that classic films often to have a story, plot, and some character development. In my opinion a few of today's writers and directors have learned how to do it as well, if not better than some of the older films. Not to knock the classics. Without the classics we wouldn't have the films we have today, that includes the gold and the crap.

eh.. i saw casablanca one late night.. I was expecting more for some reason. It was entertaining but I didn't think it was all that and a bag of chips.

I've never seen it. I guess I will go rent it. I don't think I could even pick a 'greatest movie ever made'. I have a lot of favorites. As far as storylines go, I would have to say The 13t Floor. I really really enjoyed that movie. I guess I need to rent Shawshank Redemption too.

Casablanca is, hands down, the best movie...ever.

one word:

OVERRATED.


If anyone is interested it ranks #7 on imdb, behind Godfather, Shawshank Redemption, Return of the King(!!?), Godfather II, Schindler's List and Seven Samurai.

I go with Citizen Kane, but Casablanca is easily in the top 5.

CB lacks the "grey issues" that are confronted in CK. It's basically a good vs. evil film. The characters in CB are easily defined as perfectly likeable/dislikeable. I don't mean to minimize the greatness of the film, I just think the complexity of CK puts it slightly on top of CB.

Some of my other favorites: Rear Window, Harvey, A Christmas Story (Ralphie!), Pulp Fiction, Shawshank, Seven

If I get permission from my wife, can I take you as a mistress? :icare:

Disclaimer: The OP utilizes the literary technique of hyperbole, or exaggeration used to make a point, in this case in an attempt at creating a comedic tone.

Casablanca did very little new or innovative, but what it did it did very, very well. The romance, the political intrigue, the dialog, the good guys and the bad guys, the Plus there's the sexual chemistry between Ingrid Bergman and . . . that guy, whatshisname.

On any given day I might list Schindler's List, The General, Intolerance, Double Indemnity or Gates of Heaven as the best ever.

Is Casablanca great art? Maybe not. But it certainly is one of the movies that is at the pinnacle of studio system movies and was on my mind when I decided to make silly thread to help take my mind off of other things.

Gilda

I haven't seen it either, though I've meant to for such a long time :)

For my $.02 I'd have to add The Green Mile to the list, I thought the performances were incredible, the message impressive, and the depth very provoking.

I've never seen it, but I would like to. I love movies, and it's so difficult to say one is the best ever...every great film has something different to offer.

Wow, I can't see how you got that out of it. I love Toshiro Mifune in that movie, especially.

Are you not a fan of foreign films, perhaps? Or was it the lack of hollywood slickness?

It was the 4 hours of people sitting around staring at each other, over acting, bad editing, boring cinematography, dull plot, low stakes, annoying music...

I don't watch "great" films. I just watch funny and entertaining films. Give me something shiny by Pixar, I'm happy as can be. I'll take serious and philosophical in a book, but for some reason, I don't like it in a movie.

Another vote for Casablanca...followed closely by Citizen Kane.

Well I am shocked, stunned, flabbergasted that my favorite movie isn't on any of the IMBd lists, even on the Westerns list. Once Upon a Time in the West I think is one of the best movies ever made, period, let alone in the western genre. Anybody here seen it? If I had to name one movie, that would be it.

The second on my list would be Barbarella ;)

I would have to agree with Cimarron29414, Citizen Kane was better then Casablanca. although Casablanca was a great moive. Kane was greater.

of course the greatest of them all would have to be...wait for it...Dogma. Kevin Smith rules

Office Space or even Clerks was better than dogma :)

but casablanca was still better :D

< threadjack>
Those of us who knew him best talk about him often. I swear, the stuff he pulled. It always makes us laugh. Sometimes it makes me sad, though, Andy being gone. I have to remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged, that's all. Their feathers are just too bright... and when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up does rejoice... but still, the place you live is that much more drab and empty that they're gone. I guess I just miss my friend.
< /threadjack>

greatest movie ever

The Big Lebowski:

"Look, let me explain something. I'm not Mr. Lebowski; you're Mr. Lebowski. I'm the Dude. So that's what you call me. That, or Duder. His Dudeness. Or El Duderino, if, you know, you're not into the whole brevity thing--"

Fight Club or Usual Suspects. Great story, great pacing, entertaining, gets better on repeated viewings.

I will admit I have not seen Casablanca, but I do remember Coppertop playing the role of a ticket collector in a live action version of Casablanca (loosely).

Offtopic: Bigben, your new sig is awesome. :lol::lol::lol:

Hmm. I never quite understood the Fight Club or Usual Suspects cults. I like both movies, but they only work for me as two shot twist ending movies. Once for the twist, and once to pick out the clues once you know the twist. I think in Fight Club in particular you have to be able to connect to the main idea of the fight club philosophy on some level, not embrace or advocate it, but connect to it somehow, and I just can't. Good movies, both, but they don't work for me beyond that.

The attraction of The Big Lebowski will forever remain a mystery to me. Didn't laugh once, found the characters all unappealing without being amusing.

I "get" a lot of guy movies, like The Godfather, but I think I'm lacking some essential quality needed to fully appreciate these.

Gilda

I've never seen Casablanca. Aside from westerns and a few sci-fi and war movies, I'm not a big fan of old films.

I'd say the best movies of all time would be The Searchers, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Usual Suspects and The Big Lebowski.

I dont know if I'd rate it as the best, top 5 for sure, but of course what I say is the best changes about every 20 minutes...

"Two shot twist ending" - That's a good way to describe those movies. :) You're absolutely right about being able to connect to the main idea. I think that goes for a lot of media. People need to be able to relate to begin to enjoy it. For me, Fight Club describes my perspective well. This exchange of dialogue has always struck me.
The Big Lebowski is an interesting movie. People either love it or hate it.

I resolve to get a copy of Casablanca and watch it and make an assessment. :)

Something's wrong with my poll. It doesn't have any correct answers :P

But I would probably say Chinatown, Network, The Godfather, Scarface, The Graduate, or That Obscure Object of Desire.

But honestly, there's even more I could throw on that list. I find it very hard to limit the choice to one, a lot depends on what mood I'm in as to what movie I think is currently "best". And if I was forced upon penalty of death to choose one, I would probably wouldn't pick any movie, because I don't know if any great movie is undoubtedly better than others.

Gilda,

You mean to tell me that when The Dude is driving home and rocking out to "Looking Out My Back Door" by Credence after getting the anal exam, you didn't find that funny?

That entire movie is a glimpse into the mind of comic genius.

Big Trouble in Little China is the best movie ever made.

Yes Moulin Rouge was more classic than contemporary.

I appreciate that.

It started to change my life on the 7th or 8th time I watched it.

I find it soothing and very poetic, with the most perfect blend of humour and drama. It is off the wall, and makes no appologies.

I didn't get it the first time either. My buddy actually talked about it being the coolest movie ever, and I disagreed, citing your exact quoted statements. He then forced me to watch it again.

I liked it.

I went over to his house one night, and he was watching it AGAIN. So I sat down and chilled with him.

Then I rented it again, when I walked past it in the video store.

Then I bought it when I saw it on sale.

Then I fell in love with it.

shawshank redemption for me.

[Makes note on calendar: Agreed with alansmithee] I like to make note when something freakish like this happens :).

I love every one of those. Have them all on DVD. Will be getting them on HDDVD when bluray finally gets to consumer level. I've seen Network a good dozen times, and it keeps getting funnier and funnier every time I see it.

Gilda

Hey Gilda

I agree with you the The Usual Suspects is a "two shot twist ending movie"... I don't agree with you in including Fight Club in that group. This could be because I saw the twist ending coming but I found it to be an amazing critique of counter culture. It just works for me on many levels... the twist is sort of besides the point.

As for Lebowski... I think Big Ben has managed to define the undefinable.

Nope. Not a single laugh. I think I was so numb by then that even "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly" couldn't have made me laugh.

The Big Lebowski is one of those movies that I've been told requires multiple viewings to really get it. I've been told the same thing about Showgirls, that it's really a work of genius that has to be seen many times before it clicks exactly what's going on and one can really appreciate it.

I grant that as a possibility, and I have a movie or two on my list of personal favorites that work on that level, such as Last Year at Marienbad and Gates of Heaven. The difference between those and Lebowski or Showgirls is that I saw something in them the first time through that invited me back to find out what it is. I saw something that said the investment of time and effort would pay off. I don't see that in Lebowski, though I do certainly appreciate the idea of movies that require more investment than a single viewing.

Gilda

Wow. Well I am "shocked, stunned, flabbergasted" that you don't even know the proper name of your favourite movie, "C'era una volta il West", which is listed at number 22 on IMDB's top 250 of all time. ;)

And yes it's a fantastic film.

Upon further reflection, I have decided that Le Samourai directed by Jean-Pierre Melville is the greatest movie of all time. Well, maybe not the greatest, but my favorite.

Wow, lots o' great movies listed here, and Casabanca surely ranks high on my list. It's really hard for me to not pick the greatest movie of all time and not have it be a Coen brother, or a Kevin Smith movie, but those are some of my favorites, and probably not the 'greatest' movie ever made.

Nice to see everyones opinion here, so I'll throw in 'Glory' as my choice as greatest. Enduringly topical theme, plus very well acted by a great cast.

Given that people bring their own experiences, biases, expectations, and so forth to a film, I can say only what is the greatest movie(s) for me. I have seen Casablanca. Even for the genre and the time, I don't think it's the greatest movie ever. I like Waking Life for it's philosophy and art style, but I don't think it the greatest ever either. Unless you can tolerate seemingly endless monologues, it will bore you. I like Annie Hall as a romantic comedy, Memento for it's mystery/thriller quality, the original Manchurian Candidate (with Sinatra) for it's political satire, The Lord of the Rings series for its fantasy, Taxi Driver because it was just so raw and visceral for its time, and Office Space because is was so darn funny and hauntingly real for me.

To all of you who voted that you have never seen Casablanca... do yourself a favour and seek it out.

While you are at it, find a whole pile of films from the 30s and 40s... rent them, buy them, steal them... JUST WATCH THEM.

Some of the greatest films of all time (or at least the grandfathers of the greatest films of all time) were made in this era. What are you waiting for?

If you want PM me and I will give you a list of some excellent films.

Post 'em here... let the rest of us in on 'em... though I'd love to add some to the list... :)

Let me just list a few to get things rolling:

Double Indemnity
The Maltese Falcon
Notorious

And there's a really good one starring Rita Hayworth as a nightclub singer who gets involved in a love triangle with thugs who run a casino in South America. I forget the name.

Gilda

Gee, Gilda, I wonder whatever the name of that movie could be Gilda, I know I've seen it Gilda, I just can't quite remember the name of that movie, Gilda, but I know it will come to me... :lol:

it's a great movie and Rita hayworth is so beautiful...

I'd add in All About Eve (Marilyn Monroe in her first role)
Mr Smith goes to washington
It happened one night... funny funny movie
North by Northwest
to Catch a Thief
Breakfast at Tiffanys (a little newer than some of the others but always rates a high mention on my lists)
Now Voyager (everytime I see this movie, I wished I still smoked and that Paul Henreid was always around to light cigarettes)
The Philadephia Story....


I can't remember the name of the movie.. I think it was a Place in the sun, but I'm not sure.. it was the movie version of theodore dreiser's An American tragedy - and Elizabeth taylor looking so young and so incredibly beautiful was in it...

There are just so many great movies...

...now that is a good film and one of the best film noir releases (of its time, if not ever)).

I found an old list I made for a friend... I have whittled it down a bit.

That's a great list...

If I get around to posting my list from the 50s I will definately leave those films on the list.

Awesome list Charlatan...

Gaslight (1944) George Cuckor - Ingrid Bergman was so fragile in this movie and i adored Angela Lansbury -- it's hard to beleive she was ever so young... :)

Rebecca (1940) Alfred Hitchcock - Judith Anderson is so evil inthis movie... I worship her :) Though it always bugs me that they didn't follow the book because they couldn't have Laurence olivier portray the character as written.. :)

Laura (1944) Otto Preminger Didn't like this the first time i saw it - it took me two or three times before I enjoyed it..

The Red Shoes (1948) I've seen this movie at least 4o times.. and I love it every single time.. it's so full of passion and emotion, whcih I normally wouldn't like.. but it's so beautifully filmed... and moira shearer dances so beautifully...

Pygmalion (1938) Leslie Howard - I've seen My Fair Lady so many times --I should have seen this movie firstr.. because all thru this movie, I expect them to break out into song.... Pygmalion, in my mind, worked better as a play rather than a movie... but its still enjoyable. Wendy Hiller, who played Eliza, was in Major Barbara a few years later... that's a fun movie..

Good to see that this lesser known, chaotic Welles production in there. While it falls well short of Citizen Kane, The Magnificent Amberson and A Touch of Evil, I still think it is well and truly above the bar. The final scene in the house of mirrors is great, I think Bruce Lee must have watched it too :)

Letter from an Unknown Woman is such a great great film. Like M by Fritz Lang, a movie that really had no right to be made in that time and place, a tragedy, a stirring indictment of our pretensions and relationships in a time when the standard fare was an affirmation. Ophuls is also a lost treasure of directing talent I think, often overlooked in favour of other German contemporaries like King Vidor, Fritz Lang or F. W. Murnau, I still rate him amongst them.

Sorry to be a bit of a wanker, but that's one of the two most misquoted lines in the history of film. The other being 'Play it again Sam' a line which Bogart never utters in Casblanca. Funny that both films star old Bogie actually.

The actual exchange goes:

'Oh yeah, show me your badges!'

'Badges? We don't need no badges! I don't have to show you anystinking badges!'

Still, what a triumph of misanthropic sentiment this classic film is.

I'm gonna go with Stanley Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange." I've seen it 100 times or more. A movie that never gets old to me. The acting and dialogue is so great. I've never seen Casablanca. I'll have to check it out.

I would add Splendor in the Grass (1961) and A Streetcar named Desire (1951) to a must watch list.

For me personally ... My current Best Movie would be a River Runs Through It. I have read and love the book, and I love how the movie captures the essence and the spirit the author intended, and yet still stands alone in its own right. I never fail to get goosebumps from watching that movie.

I haven't seen too many older films, but the ones I've seen I liked. Gone With the Wind is my all time favorite movie, I never get sick of watching it, but I know it's not the best movie ever made. A Streetcar Named Desire is excellent (as amonkie noted :) ), and All Quiet On the Western Front is good. I also watched Harvey and found it pretty entertaining.

I actually like The Maltese Falcon better than Casablanca... Tho not by much.

Hands Down The Last Samurai. Definitly top of my list. Not into artsy films that have very little if any enteratinment value. Examples might be Sideways, Lost In Translation, Talented Mr. Ripley. American Beauty was good only because of the Boobies. other than that Last Samurai takes the cake.

LOL nice!!!
but yea ive never seen Casablanca either but I really like Mr. Smith goes to Washington and Some like it Hot.. those are good movies but a movie that i really liked would be Shawshank Redemption.

I saw a few folks mention The Philadelphia Story...what completely wonderful and amazing dialogue. Witty banter taken to the highest level. Sit down, mix a martini, pop this one in and enjoy.

I can't get into Shawshank Redemption...maybe I need to watch it again. I was bored about halfway through.

We could use a bit more Tarantino in this list too.

Forbidden Planet!

Want to try by genre? How about the flawed hero flick? I'm thinking along the lines of Rebel Without a Cause, Papillon, Cool Hand Luke. Self-made tragedies. A couple ounces of reality separate these from Commando, Dirty Harry, et al. Big slushy, happy endings immediately disqualify a film from this one.

I would rather spend a year in Abu Graib than have to watch Showgirls again! :lol:


My 3 favorite comedies of Hollywood's Golden Era:

1) Romance on the High Seas (Doris Day's first film. Only available on VHS. :( )
2) Pocket Full of Miracles (Betty Davis)
3) Harvey (James Stewart)

Casablanca gets better every time I watch it. Keeping in mind that when the movie was filmed the war was still going on must have made the "Le Marseillaise" scene that much more poweful. Rick's dialogue only seems cliched if you don't realise that HE is where that cliche comes from. Along with Han Solo, Buckaroo Banzai, Silent Bob and Van Wilder, Rick is one of the "coolest" characters on film. Very quotable lines that show up everywhere nowadays. Not the ending you expect but the only one that works.

Don't know if it's the GREATEST movie ever made, but it's right up there.

-Mikey

I agree with an earlier (long time ago) post that it's nearly impossible to pick a 'best' movie- there are just too many good movies around, but I'm actually a little bit surprised that no one brought up any of my favourites...

Anyone would consider movies like 'trainspotting', 'the dreamers' or 'lost in translation' to be one of the best?

There are also some decent movies from Hong Kong- say, 'Happy together' or '2046' or any of the masterpieces from a director named Wong Kar Wai. Any of the movie lovers here should have a look at his movies.

But inevitably the wisdom and atmosphere created by the lines in Cantonese won't be delivered and built as effectively with subtitles translated into other languages. Or in some cases one wouldn't even understand what the director (and the screenplay writer at the same time) is trying to say... *sigh*

Honestly? Superman. Hands down. I've never had so much fun watching a movie.

Casablanca was really, really good, but not even it can live up to it's own legend. It is an exceptional movie, easily one of the best, but it is overrated.

Agreed. Asoka, Shawshank Redemption, Braveheart and Fight Club round out the top 5.