I turn ed 63 recently64 tomorrow Which, I am sure, gets all of us thinking, what are HairyLimes favorite 6364 movies released in his lifetime? For 1960 movies, they must be released in the US after to my birthdate, which excludes both The Apartment (June 15) and Psycho (June 16), but includes Shoot the Piano Player (October 21 in the UK, 1962 in the US). Movies released internationally prior to 1960 are not considered even if they had no US release until after 1960.
I am aware that I have, potentially, either 62 or 74 63 or 75 movies on this list depending on how one counts Dekalog and The Lord of the Rings, both of which I treat as one movie.
And note, these are my FAVORITE movies, which may or may not line up with best. I am aware of the argument that, say, objectively Pulp Fiction is better than, oh, Local Hero. And some haters would want to debate the inclusion of Shakespeare in Love and exclusion of Saving Private Ryan. Suck on it, haters. I know which one I want to rewatch. I should also note that the further down the list you get, the rankings are less certain. I am more interested in identifying the 63 64 movies than worrying about whether This Is Spinal Tap is better than Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
For those for whom the personal history of directors make a difference, I have multiple moves by convicted or alleged sexual predators on my list. I long ago determined that I did not want to live in a world without Chinatown or Annie Hall. If you feel otherwise, I have no issues with you. I am not going to berate you about the need to separate the art from the artist and humiliate you until your leg starts twitching uncontrollably (on the list, by the way. My fave scene from last year two years ago not involving sentient rocks. Also on the list). On the other hand, earlier iterations of this list would have included Manhattan, a movie I just cannot watch now without thinking about the allegations against Allen. I am aware of the inconsistency.
The list also contains something my lists rarely contain, reasonably recent movies, including three from last year two years ago and one from last year. I usually let things percolate before ranking them, but I have become convinced in multiple viewings of each, that there were three four fantastic movies released last year in the last two years. Their respective rankings may alter, but they deserve a spot on the list.
1. Nashville
2. Chinatown
3. The Godfather
4. Annie Hall
5. Au hasard Balthazar
6. Dekalog
7. Fargo
9. A Separation
9. Raging Bull
10. Lord of the Rings Trilogy
11. Taxi Driver
12. Dr. Strangelove
13. No Country for Old Men
14. Everything Everywhere All At Once
15. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
16. Chimes at Midnight
17. Labyrinth of the Faun
18. Goodfellas
19. Get Out
20. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
21. Anatomy of a Fall
22. The Double Life of Veronique
23. Hannah and Her Sisters
24. Jaws
25. Paris, Texas
26. All That Jazz
27. Lawrence of Arabia
28. Grand Budapest Hotel
29. Sideways
30. Yojimbo
31. Knives Out
32. Das Boot
33. Tar
34. Crimes and Misdemeanors
35. A Serious Man
36. In Bruges
37. Adaptation
37. Witness
39. Sita Sings the Blues
40. Knife in the Water
41. American Splendor
42. Shoot the Piano Player
43. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
44. Apocalypse Now
45. Shakespeare in Love
46. Downfall
47. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
48. The Producers
49. Banshees of Inisherin
50. In the Loop
51. The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964)
52. Inside Llewyn Davis
53. Groundhog Day
54. Andrei Rublev
55. Local Hero
56. Blood Simple
57. About Elly
58. Thelma and Louise
59. This is Spinal Tap
60. The Death of Stalin
61. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
62. The Great Escape
63. Roger and Me
64. 1917
So, I juggled the order a bit. As I mentioned, the further down the list you get the order becomes more uncertain, tenuous and subject to change, but there were a couple of films it seemed to me were placed at the point I remembered them when typing rather than how I actually rated them. There are a couple of films added, one from last year, Anatomy of a Fall, and four I had missed when creating the list last year, Downfall, In The Loop, Thelma and Louise and The Death of Stalin. Which means after accounting for the additional spot four dropped off. Two were 2001 and Stalker, both great films but I think my admiration for them outstrips my liking of them. Two I dropped after seeing them again this year. Lion In Winter still brings me all sorts of joy in the way Peter O Toole chews the scenery but contains too many moments of striving for profundity that make it seem too written, despite the fun of it. It is a tough competition. The other is LA Confidential, which I had not seen in years and does not benefit from knowing the plot. It also has a couple of scenes where the director assumes I am unable to follow the movie and so shoves things down my throat. Still very good, though.
I should identify one other inconsistency. If I down graded 2001 and Stalker because I admire them more than I like them, why are Raging Bull and Taxi Driver, two great films I assure you I never, ever, want to watch again, doing in the Top 15? Hey, they are my rules and I can break them if I want to.
Note: after posting I made a change very near the top I almost made before I posted but did not. Gutless coward! But I have done the right thing.
Crap! That is another movie I left out! I need to get older.
