50 Best Movies of All Time

The final film in Peter Jackson’s exceedingly popular Lord of the Rings trilogy won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Writing – Adapted Screenplay. The 201 minute epic is the 45th top-grossing movie of all time at the domestic box office when not adjusting for inflation, having grossed more than $377 million.

The 1951 version of “A Christmas Carol” is considered by many critics and film aficionados as the best. Actor Alastair Sim left an indelible imprint as Scrooge, an interpretation of the character that is equal parts contemptible and vulnerable. Critics on Rotten Tomatoes agree this version is most faithful to the Charles Dickens classic.

Based on Peter Shaffer’s Tony Award-winning play of the same name, this account of the life and successes of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — told through the eyes of his rival, Antonio Salieri –” dominated the 1985 Oscars. “Amadeus” won eight Academy Awards, including those for Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director. It is currently the 83rd top-rated movie on IMDb.

“Up” is among the highest rated of the extremely popular animated films from Pixar, with a 98% rating from critics and 90% rating from users on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie follows 78-year-old widower Carl Fredricksen who sets out to South America along with Boy Scout Russell by attaching balloons to his house. The movie was nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars and won Best Animated Feature Film of the Year.

Backstage Hollywood venom tinged with biting wit infuses this much-acclaimed Bette Davis black comedy about an aspiring actress who cold-bloodedly manipulates her way toward stardom. Critics called it “impeccably written,” “gunshot sharp,” and “downright funny.”

In “Rear Window,” James Stewart plays a photojournalist who is homebound because of an injury. He passes the time observing his neighbors, assigning them nicknames like “Miss Lonelyhearts.” He creates a story that one neighbor killed his wife, but then comes to realize he might be right. This Hitchcock gem that also starred the luminous Grace Kelly received a 99% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and 95% of audiences liked the movie.

The first entry to Peter Jackson’s epic Lord of the Rings franchise — based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic books — was a massive critical and financial success. The movie grossed more than $315 million at the domestic box office and currently has a 91% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences were even more enamored, with 95% liking it.

“Smart, innovating, and thrilling,” is the critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes as it goes on praising this complex sci-fi mystery about a thief who can enter the dreams of others and steal their ideas — and ultimately maybe implant new ones. Critics applied words like “spectacular,” “endlessly fascinating,” and “awesomely original.”

This stop-motion animated film has the gothic fingerprints of the uber-creative Tim Burton (who co-wrote the movie), though it was directed by Henry Selick, who also directed the well-liked “Coraline.” The movie follows Jack Skellington, skeletal king of Halloween Town, who discovers Christmas Town and becomes enchanted by the idea of Christmas. “The Nightmare Before Christmas” has a 95% Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and 91% of the voting audience liked it.

David Lean’s sprawling epic is about the charismatic British officer who helped rally the Arabs against the Ottoman Empire in World War I. Lean, who had already distinguished himself with films like “The Bridge on the River Kwai,” captivated audiences with his mesmerizing desert scenes. “Lawrence of Arabia” featured some of the greatest actors of the day, including Alec Guinness, Jose Ferrer, and Anthony Quinn. The film received a 98% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and 93% of audiences liked the movie.

The British comedy classic continues to win over legions of fans 45 years after its initial release. The film is sophomoric, but that hasn’t prevented critics from giving it a 97% Freshness rating. Rotten Tomatoes audiences mostly agree, giving it an approval rating of 95%.

The critically praised third entry in the hugely popular Toy Story franchise proved that computer animated movies could be great. Audiences flocked to the film, driving its worldwide box office gross to over $1 billion.

James Cameron’s “Terminator 2” excels in many of the aspects that action movie fans appreciate most, such as visual effects and tense action sequences. It stands apart from the average action flick thanks to its refined characters and philosophically intelligent storyline. The movie –” which received a 93% rating from critics and a 94% rating from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes — is a haunting tale of post-apocalyptic possibilities and a perfect popcorn action movie rolled in one.

This 1953 familial drama from famed Japanese director Yasujirô Ozu has a perfect 100% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a 93% approval rating from users. It’s considered a cinematic masterpiece that has maintained its ability to emotionally devastate modern audiences.

While not fully appreciated upon its release — a Variety review declared that movie to be “about as unfunny as a hospital operating room” — “Sherlock Jr.” is now recognized as one of the greatest films ever made. The film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 1991, 67 years after its initial release.

Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” is the second film in the hugely successful franchise. The Academy Award-winning movie’s balance of groundbreaking visuals and epic storytelling won over critics and audiences alike.

“Modern Times” was written, directed, scored, and produced by Charlie Chaplin. Set during the Great Depression, the film spoke to the masses by touching on topics such as poverty, hunger, and unemployment.

The sprawling, visionary Vietnam War drama directed by Francis Ford Coppola is based on Joseph Conrad’s book “Heart of Darkness” and shows how men descend into madness as the result of war. Though not fully embraced by audiences and critics when it was released in 1979, “Apocalypse Now” has gained more recognition, as critics on Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 98% Freshness rating and 94% of audiences liked it.

James Cameron’s powerful follow-up to director Ridley Scott’s sci-fi horror film “Alien” was hailed as “the best monster movie of the year,” “state-of-the-art science fiction,” and “the rarest of sequels” — one that’s at least equal to the original.

More than 50 years after its release, “2001: A Space Odyssey” is still one of the most thought-provoking science fiction films of all time. The film is Stanley Kubrick’s look at the arc of mankind’s existence, from the earliest humans to space travelers, with the implied question of what does it all mean? As perplexing as the movie remains, critics gave it a Freshness rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, and 89% of filmgoers liked it … if not understood it.

“City Lights” is not only frequently considered Charlie Chaplin’s best film, but also one of the greatest films of all time. The silent film — in which Chaplin’s tramp character tries to financially assist a blind girl — was released after talking pictures had been developed and is perhaps the greatest representation of Chaplin’s genius.

Though much lampooned since its release, the sardonic “Sunset Boulevard” remains one of the best movies about fame and Hollywood. As the aging silent film star Norma Desmond, Gloria Swanson, utters one of filmdom’s greatest lines, “All right Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my closeup.” Critics gave the film a 98% Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and 95% liked “Sunset Boulevard.”

“Once Upon a Time in the West” stars Henry Fonda and Charles Bronson as dueling gunslingers who briefly team up to help a woman in distress. The film is considered by many to be the greatest Western of all time and has been cited by directors, including George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, and Quentin Tarantino, as an influence.

The tagline for sci-fi horror film “Alien” states: “In space, no one can hear you scream.” Plenty of people could be heard screaming in theaters when the movie was released in 1979, however. Movie-watchers continue to enjoy the tense creeper, with 94% of users giving it a positive score on Rotten Tomatoes.

A dark, satirical comedy about nuclear war, this Stanley Kubrick classic features Peter Sellers playing three roles, including that of the sinister Strangelove. The shot of actor Slim Pickens riding an H-bomb as it falls is one of the most memorable cinematic images of the era.

Sometimes called the greatest film of all time, Orson Welles’ precocious masterpiece (he was 25 when he co-wrote, directed, and starred in it), is the story of Charles Foster Kane, a newspaper tycoon modeled after William Randolph Hearst. Welles played the title role in a performance that has been called “nothing less than astonishing,” and critics found the movie itself “exciting,” “arresting,” and “a visual marvel” that “helped define the language of film.”

Steven Spielberg’s World War II film — most notably its famous D-Day scene — brought an unprecedented realism to Hollywood war movies. In 2001, TV Guide chose the scene as the greatest moment in motion picture history. The film won five of its 11 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Cinematography. An exceptional 95% of Rotten Tomatoes users liked the film, with nearly 1 million ratings being submitted.

“Jaws” is based on Peter Benchley’s novel about an enormous Great White Shark that terrorizes a fictional New England coast town. The film vaulted Steven Spielberg into the forefront of America’s directors. The cast includes Robert Shaw as the Captain Ahab-esque shark hunter, Roy Scheider as the town’s sheriff, and Richard Dreyfuss as a marine biologist.

With a 100% Freshness rating and a 95% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, this “clever, incisive, and funny” movie, as the critics consensus on the site calls it, “is a masterpiece of the classical Hollywood musical.” It has been called the best movie musical of all time.

Michael J. Fox stars as Marty McFly, a time-traveling high school student, in this 1980s comedy classic from director Robert Zemeckis. The movie is loved by both critics and audiences for its humor, science fiction-based inventiveness, and irresistible energy.

The murder scene in the shower in “Psycho” almost instantly became a cultural landmark and is among the most famous in movie history. Adding to the tension of this taut thriller that starred Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh was the music by Bernard Herrmann that projected impending doom. “Psycho” is Hitchcock at his suspenseful best. The motion picture received a 96% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and 95% of audiences liked the movie.

South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” surprised many by winning Best Picture at the 2020 Academy Awards despite being among the lesser seen nominees. Reception of the film has been near universally positive, however, especially among critics, who have given it a 99% Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film tells the story of a lower-class family that dupes a wealthier family into employing them with unexpected results.

Jonathan Demme’s psychological thriller “The Silence of the Lambs” made a huge cultural impact upon its release in 1991, thanks in large part to its lead actors Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins. The two won Academy Awards for their work on the film, which also won best picture.

Confusingly, this is the movie originally released simply as “Star Wars” (it was retitled following the release of “The Empire Strikes Back”). Today a cultural icon, it has been praised as “pure unadulterated entertainment” by critic Vern Perry and lauded by critic Joseph Gelmis for its “technical wizardry, high-velocity storytelling and spirited good humor.”

Frank Capra’s 1946 film “It’s a Wonderful Life” is watched every holiday season by many. The heart-warming story of George Bailey — played by James Stewart — was ranked as the most inspiring film of all time by the American Film Institute.

The Miloš Forman-directed drama about a criminal who encourages rebellion against an oppressive nurse in a mental hospital did exceptionally well at the 1976 Academy Awards, winning the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, and Best Actress. Seventeen years later, the movie was deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the U.S. Library of Congress and added to the National Film Registry.

Sergio Leone’s 161 minute epic “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” is perhaps the most iconic Western of all time. Rife with memorable long shots and close-ups, the film’s story is told more with imagery than words — a decision made in part due to the ease of shooting a movie with little sound.

“Raiders of the Lost Ark” is Steven Spielberg’s homage to action/adventure movies from Hollywood’s golden age. Harrison Ford plays the swashbuckling archeologist Indiana Jones, who has to prevent Nazis from finding the Ark of the Covenant whose powers could make them invincible. The prototypical summer movie, “Raiders of the Lost Ark” received 95% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and 96% of audiences liked the movie.

From its music to its pioneering, Technicolor visuals, “The Wizard of Oz” is among the most iconic movies ever. Victor Fleming directed the bulk of the film before he was reassigned to direct “Gone With the Wind,” which would ultimately win Best Picture at the Academy Awards over fellow nominee “The Wizard of Oz.” “Oz” did win two Oscars related to music, including Best Original Song for “Over the Rainbow.”

Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro are paired once again in this mob story narrated by gangster and FBI informant Henry Hill, played by Ray Liotta, and adapted from Nicholas Pileggi’s book “Wiseguy.” “Goodfellas” is not for the faint of heart because of the mob violence, but it does provide great insight into the culture of organized crime. Critics gave the film a 96% Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and 97% of audiences liked the film.

“Dark, complex and unforgettable,” according to critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes, this sequel to “Batman Begins” pits Batman against his arch-enemy, The Joker, played here by the late Heath Ledger, whose performance won him an Academy Award for best actor in a supporting role. “[P]robably the smartest and most stylish action movie since ‘The Matrix,'” said the Orange County Register.

“Here’s lookin’ at you, kid,” is one of Hollywood’s most famous lines. Its source — wartime melodrama “Casablanca” — is just as iconic. The movie set a standard for romance and atmosphere that everything released after strived to match.

This quintessential courtroom drama scored a 100% Freshness rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and 97% of the audience liked it. Though it is now considered a masterpiece, it opened poorly, barely making enough to recoup its production and advertising costs. Its reputation began to grow several years later when it began appearing on TV.

“The Empire Strikes Back” — the second movie in the original Star Wars trilogy — is the best film in the blockbuster series. In 2010, after permanently altering the world’s cultural landscape, the movie was added to the United States’ National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

One of the greatest retellings of one of the worst chapters in human history. Liam Neeson plays Oskar Schindler, a Catholic businessman who uses his position to save hundreds of Jews from extermination. Steven Spielberg does not spare the viewer from the horrors of the Holocaust, yet the film provides viewers messages of hope and redemption. “Schindler’s List” was nominated for 12 Academy Awards and won seven. Ninety-seven percent of critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes liked the film.

“The Shawshank Redemption” tells the story of banker Andy Dufresne who is given two life sentences for murder in the oppressive Shawshank State Penitentiary. The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including best picture, in 1995, but failed to win any. It is an audience favorite, however, and currently has an outstanding 9.3 out of 10 rating on IMDb, with over 2.2 million user votes.

“Pulp Fiction,” Quentin Tarantino’s follow-up to “Reservoir Dogs,” is among the 1990s’ most definitive films. A wildly inventive mix of crime, film-noir, and comedy, the movie scored the Palme d’Or at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival. Its reputation has held up well over the past 25 years, with 96% of audiences giving the film a positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Critics awarded “The Godfather: Part II” a 98% Freshness rating and 97% of audiences on Rotten Tomatoes liked the celebrated sequel to the gangster epic. Critics generally found it deeper and more powerful than the first “Godfather,” and the Chicago Tribune called it “a landmark work from one of Hollywood’s top cinema eras.” Not surprisingly, it won six Academy Awards, including best picture, best director, and best actor in a supporting role (Robert De Niro).

Francis Ford Coppola’s gangster epic “The Godfather” breathed new life into the American film industry upon its release in 1972. The film won Best Picture at the Academy Awards and continues to entertain movie fans to this day. The film currently has 98% positive ratings from both critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics Consensus on the site describes the film as “one of Hollywood’s greatest critical and commercial successes” and credits it for establishing “new benchmarks for American cinema.”