Throughout the years, the world of movies has graced its audiences with various ups and downs of movie magic. In the process, the world has been enchanted, infuriated, delighted, disappointed, and taken through emotional roller coaster rides as a result of these "moving pictures" on a screen.
Now, here I am to present my forty favorite films of all time. This list has been in the making for a while now, and I can finally present it with clarity and certainty. The criteria for each film were: re-watchability (would I want to see the film again?), memorability (how memorable was the movie?), and most importantly, entertainment value (did I enjoy watching the film?).
So, here it is: my list of forty favorite movies.
1. Alien (1979, dir. Ridley Scott)
2. Inception (2010, dir. Christopher Nolan)
3. Braveheart (1995, dir. Mel Gibson)
4. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003, dir. Peter Jackson)
5. Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980, dir. George Lucas)
6. Gladiator (2000, dir. Ridley Scott)
7. District 9 (2009, dir. Neill Blomkamp)
8. Bladerunner (1982, dir. Ridley Scott)
9. Lawrence of Arabia (1962, dir. David Lean)
10. The Prince of Egypt (1998, dir. Brenda Chapman, Steve Hickner, Simon Wells)
11. Inglourious Basterds (2009, dir. Quentin Tarantino)
12. The King's Speech (2010, dir. Tom Hooper)
13. Fargo (1996, dir. Ethan and Joel Coen)
14. Spirited Away (2001, dir. Hayao Miyazaki)
15. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007, dir. Paul Greengrass)
16. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001, dir. Peter Jackson)
17. Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi (1983, dir. George Lucas)
18. Star Wars IV: A New Hope (1977, dir. George Lucas)
19. The Social Network (2010, dir. David Fincher)
20. Saving Private Ryan (1998, dir. Steven Spielberg)
21. Kingdom of Heaven (2005, dir. Ridley Scott)
22. Tropic Thunder (2008, dir. Ben Stiller)
23. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002, dir. Peter Jackson)
24. The Bourne Supremacy (2004, dir. Paul Greengrass)
25. The Dark Knight (2008, dir. Christopher Nolan)
26. Forrest Gump (1994, dir. Robert Zemeckis)
27. State of Play (2009, dir. Kevin Macdonald)
28. The Birds (1963, dir. Alfred Hitchcock)
29. True Grit (2010, dir. Ethan and Joel Coen)
30. Hercules (1997, dir. Ron Clements, John Musker)
31. The Matrix (1999, dir. Andy and Larry (Lana) Wachowski)
32. Crash (2004, dir. Paul Haggis)
33. Psycho (1960, dir. Alfred Hitchcock)
34. Princess Mononoke (1997, dir. Hayao Miyazaki)
35. Schindler's List (1993, dir. Steven Spielberg)
36. Moon (2009, dir. Duncan Jones)
37. Toy Story (1995, dir. John Lasseter)
38. Black Hawk Down (2001, dir. Ridley Scott)
39. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996, dir. Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise)
40. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939, dir. Frank Capra)