Author’s
Note: I apparently did this in July of 2009 but didn’t list my top ten
favorites. It simply had my favorite film and then a few honorable mentions
that would have been in the top five.
I started a series of lists that rank my top ten favorite movies by decade. It began in the 1920s and will be working toward the new millennium.
To compile this list, I took my ranked films from IMDb, which I grade after every movie viewing, and sorted them from highest to lowest. Then, looking at each movie in each decade I came up with my favorite ten.
I have included some honorable mentions to show what the top ten were up against. We will continue with the 1970s.
1970s
Honorable Mentions: Get Carter (1971), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Enter the Dragon (1973), The Sting (1973), Chinatown (1974), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), and Halloween (1978)
10. Rocky (1976) – Is it the greatest sports movie of all time? Possibly. Is it the greatest achievement of Sylvester Stallone’s career? Undeniably. Rocky is the criterion in underdog stories and average Joe given a shot at greatness. The first in a franchise that became a cliché of itself received critical acclaim and was a box office smash made on a shoestring budget. On a budget of only $950,000, Rocky went on to earn $225 million, the most money of any film released that year. The film originally received some mixed reviews with many calling it “schmaltzy,” but it is now fondly adored as a manly fairy tale about a nobody given the unlikely chance to become somebody. Empire included the film in its list of the 500 greatest films of all time. AFI ranked it second in its Ten Top 10 list of sports genre and included it on the 100 Films, 100 Thrills, 100 Heroes and Villains, 100 Songs, 100 Quotes, 100 Cheers, and 10th Anniversary 100 Films lists. Rocky won three Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. It was nominated in another seven categories.
9. The Day of the Jackal (1973) – A political/crime thriller shot in a way that feels like a documentary, The Day of the Jackal presents a cat and mouse chase to track down an assassin who is targeting French president Charles de Gaulle. While the story is fictional with characters from the real world, the director’s intent was to create a suspenseful experience where the viewer knew the outcome of the film but would still be enthralled by the narrative. Following the plot of the novel by the same name, this film was very well received by critics and was nominated for numerous awards. Along with winning the BAFTA for best film editing, it was also nominated for Best Film, Best Direction, Best Screenplay, and three other categories. The Day of the Jackal also received an Academy Award nomination and three Golden Globe nominations.
8. Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) – What can be said about this film that hasn’t already been covered in exhausting detail. It is an iconic movie that is one of the best of its genre. It started a series that has provided children (and now adults) an abundance of excitement, pleasure, and wonderment. The characters found in the Star Wars universe are all adored from the imaginative alien heroes like Yoda and Chewbacca to the tragic protagonist-turned-villain. While the decisions George Lucas has made regarding this series, in regard to both new stories and distribution and alterations to the originals, has marred the series some, but Episode IV is still a revered classic that changed how space movies were made. Star Wars: Episode IV grossed $460 million in the U.S. on its initial release, which adjusted for inflation is the second highest grossing of all time. The awards are too countless to list here, but just know that it is really, really well liked.
I started a series of lists that rank my top ten favorite movies by decade. It began in the 1920s and will be working toward the new millennium.
To compile this list, I took my ranked films from IMDb, which I grade after every movie viewing, and sorted them from highest to lowest. Then, looking at each movie in each decade I came up with my favorite ten.
I have included some honorable mentions to show what the top ten were up against. We will continue with the 1970s.
1970s
Honorable Mentions: Get Carter (1971), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Enter the Dragon (1973), The Sting (1973), Chinatown (1974), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), and Halloween (1978)
10. Rocky (1976) – Is it the greatest sports movie of all time? Possibly. Is it the greatest achievement of Sylvester Stallone’s career? Undeniably. Rocky is the criterion in underdog stories and average Joe given a shot at greatness. The first in a franchise that became a cliché of itself received critical acclaim and was a box office smash made on a shoestring budget. On a budget of only $950,000, Rocky went on to earn $225 million, the most money of any film released that year. The film originally received some mixed reviews with many calling it “schmaltzy,” but it is now fondly adored as a manly fairy tale about a nobody given the unlikely chance to become somebody. Empire included the film in its list of the 500 greatest films of all time. AFI ranked it second in its Ten Top 10 list of sports genre and included it on the 100 Films, 100 Thrills, 100 Heroes and Villains, 100 Songs, 100 Quotes, 100 Cheers, and 10th Anniversary 100 Films lists. Rocky won three Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. It was nominated in another seven categories.
9. The Day of the Jackal (1973) – A political/crime thriller shot in a way that feels like a documentary, The Day of the Jackal presents a cat and mouse chase to track down an assassin who is targeting French president Charles de Gaulle. While the story is fictional with characters from the real world, the director’s intent was to create a suspenseful experience where the viewer knew the outcome of the film but would still be enthralled by the narrative. Following the plot of the novel by the same name, this film was very well received by critics and was nominated for numerous awards. Along with winning the BAFTA for best film editing, it was also nominated for Best Film, Best Direction, Best Screenplay, and three other categories. The Day of the Jackal also received an Academy Award nomination and three Golden Globe nominations.
8. Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) – What can be said about this film that hasn’t already been covered in exhausting detail. It is an iconic movie that is one of the best of its genre. It started a series that has provided children (and now adults) an abundance of excitement, pleasure, and wonderment. The characters found in the Star Wars universe are all adored from the imaginative alien heroes like Yoda and Chewbacca to the tragic protagonist-turned-villain. While the decisions George Lucas has made regarding this series, in regard to both new stories and distribution and alterations to the originals, has marred the series some, but Episode IV is still a revered classic that changed how space movies were made. Star Wars: Episode IV grossed $460 million in the U.S. on its initial release, which adjusted for inflation is the second highest grossing of all time. The awards are too countless to list here, but just know that it is really, really well liked.
7. Animal House (1978) – There used to be a time that putting the National Lampoon name on a movie title meant something. When Animal House was released, it was a major hit for the comedy group. Whatever your thoughts of the film’s low-brow jokes today, the film began an all-new genre that Hollywood is cashing in on still today. Wikipedia says it best: “The film, along with 1977’s The Kentucky Fried Movie, also directed by Landis, was largely responsible for defining and launching the gross-out genre of films, which became one of Hollywood’s staples.” This factoid is followed up with: “In 2001, the United States Library of Congress deemed Animal House ‘culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant’ and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.” Animal House was listed as Bravo’s number one funniest movie of all time, AFI’s 36th funniest on its 100 Laughs list, and is included in Empire magazine’s 500 Greatest Movies of All Time. Financially, the movie was the second most popular of the year.
6. The Exorcist (1973) – This is the scariest movie I have ever seen and am reluctant to watch it ever again as its images still give me frights. Partly what makes The Exorcist so horrifying is that I believe demon possessions and exorcisms do take place in the world. Earning 10 Oscar nominations, and winning two, The Exorcist is one of the highest grossing films of all time. It also received seven Golden Globe nominations. Touted the scariest film of all time by several film magazines, websites, and viewers themselves, it was listed at third on Bravo’s 100 Scariest Movie Moments and in 2003 came in second in Channel 4’s 100 Greatest Scary Moments in the United Kingdom. The Library of Congress selected it to be preserved in 2010.
5. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) – One of only three films to win the Academy Award Grand Slam (which ironically is five categories, not four), One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is the story of a convict who is put in a mental institution and reveals the philosophy and routines of such psychiatric wards of the time period. Along with Jack Nicholson’s Oscar winning performance and the Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, and Actress wins, this film was also nominated for Academy Awards in Supporting Actor, Cinematography, Editing, and Musical Score. It also won 12 other awards at the Golden Globes and BAFTAs and was nominated in another two categories. Other accolades include AFI’s Top 100 Films, 100 Films 10th Anniversary, 100 Heroes and Villains, and 100 Cheers lists. The film was included in the National Film Registry in 1993.
4. Alien (1979) – Trapped in the confines of a space craft as a monstrous extraterrestrial life form terrorizes the crew, Alien delivered on every level as a great science fiction, horror, suspense, and/or action movie. The film works for all types of moviegoers, ranging from the slow-paced thriller types to gore-fest enthusiasts. The original in a long-running series introduced various aspects of the alien creature, including the egg, facehugger, chestburster, and fully grown alien. Alien won the Academy Award for Visual Effects and was also nominated for Best Art Direction. It won three Saturn Awards in Best Science Fiction Film, Best Direction, and Best Supporting Actress, and was also nominated in four other categories. It received five BAFTA nominations and won the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation. Jerry Goldsmith's score received nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score and the Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album.
3. The Godfather: Part II (1974) – One of the most distinguishing accolades bestowed upon the Godfather series is that The Godfather and The Godfather: Part II are the only film and its sequel to win the Oscar for Best Picture. This is the continuation of the Corleone family as Michael attempts to legitimize the family business. It is balanced by the prequel story of a young Vito Corleone and his rise to power. The Godfather: Part II is as highly regarded as its predecessor, it is considered an influential piece of cinema history, especially in the crime/gangster genre. Financially, it was the fifth-highest-grossing film of the year, making $193 million on a $13 million budget. Among its numerous accolades, The Godfather: Part II was featured on Sight and Sound’s list of the ten greatest films of all time in 1992 and 2002, is ranked seventh on Entertainment Weekly’s list of the 100 Greatest Movies of All Time, and is first on TV Guide’s 1998 list of the 50 Greatest Movies of All Time on TV and Video. Pacino’s performance also garnered great praise throughout the film industry and media. In total, it received 19 Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA nominations, winning in seven categories. It has also made five of AFI’s Top 100 lists.
2. Jaws (1975) – Movies need all of its parts to be spectacular. The acting, screenplay, music, cinematography, and effects all have to mesh fluidly. Another ingredient that sets the tone is the tagline, and Jaws had a great one: Don’t go in the water. Steven Spielberg’s classic about a shark terrorizing a beach town became a watermark moment in Hollywood as it started what has become the summer blockbuster season. Jaws became the most successful motion picture of all time financially, being beaten two years later by Star Wars. In 2001, it was included by the Library of Congress in the National Film Registry and in 2006 the screenplay was ranked 63rd best of all time by the Writers Guild of America. Winning three Academy Awards, it lost Best Picture to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Along with winning the Oscar, John Williams’ haunting theme also won the Grammy, BAFTA, and Golden Globe awards for best score. It received other nominations at the BAFTA, Golden Globe, Director’s Guild of America, and Writers Guild of America ceremonies. The American Film Institute included it at number 48 on its 100 Years list, 56 on its 10th Anniversary list, and many other sources have ranked it among the 50 and 100 greatest films of all time. It was also among AFI’s 100 Quotes, 100 Thrills and 100 Heroes and Villains lists.
1. The Godfather (1972) – This is my ultimate number one film of all time. It is the one that would go to a deserted island with me, the one I can put in at any time for any reason, and the one that will always be easily accessible for viewing on all types of medium. Where The Godfather: Part II continues the story of the Corleone family and shows its patriarchs violent rise to become the Godfather, the first film intimately introduces us to the characters and puts on display the inner-workings of a crime family. The countless accolades for The Godfather include three Academy Award wins, eight more nominations, seven Golden Globe nominations with five wins, five BAFTA nominations with one win, and a Grammy win. The film is ranked at the top of innumerable lists and has sealed a legacy in pop culture with its unforgettable quotes and cinematic influence.
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