Scribd
Upload
73 views4 pages

The Greatest American Films of All Time

The document discusses the results of a poll conducted by BBC Culture to determine the 100 greatest films of the 21st century. 177 film critics from around the world participated in the poll. The results include films from 2000 to 2016 that showcase both the diversity and artistic thriving of modern filmmaking. The editors believe these films will become classics that stand the test of time if given a chance by moviegoers. They also conclude that cinema is not dying, but rather evolving.

Uploaded by

Pajarodemalaguero
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
73 views4 pages

The Greatest American Films of All Time

The document discusses the results of a poll conducted by BBC Culture to determine the 100 greatest films of the 21st century. 177 film critics from around the world participated in the poll. The results include films from 2000 to 2016 that showcase both the diversity and artistic thriving of modern filmmaking. The editors believe these films will become classics that stand the test of time if given a chance by moviegoers. They also conclude that cinema is not dying, but rather evolving.

Uploaded by

Pajarodemalaguero
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 4

They dont make em like they used to.

How often have we all heard that resigned expression? How often have we said it ourselves?
The death of cinema is debated in university film studies programs worldwide. Critics lament
the loss of 'small movies' in favour of superhero spectacles. Box-office analysts look for signs of
an industry on the brink. Studio executives fear that video-on-demand may destroy the idea of
going to the cinema more than broadcast and cable TV ever did.

And what can we really call a new classic? What in recent vintage can hold its own on the big
screen with the likes of The Searchers, The Godfather, The Rules of the Game, Seven Samurai
or Citizen Kane? Some film journalists even think the movie star is a thing of the past.

Perhaps the fault lies not in our movie stars, but in ourselves. If you cant find masterpieces
amid the blockbuster flotsam, you simply arent looking hard enough. Film-making today,
whether massively expensive or made with tiny budgets, shot on celluloid or video, is thriving
artistically as much as it ever has. But today youll find greater diversity in the kinds of films
being made, if not in the people who are making them. Thats why we, the editors of BBC
Culture, decided to commission a poll of critics to determine the 100 greatest films of the 21st
Century. Last year, we asked critics to name the greatest American films of all time, and we
were surprised that only six films made since 2000 made the top 100. Is there a feeling that
time sanctifies a classic? Perhaps. But this time, we wanted to prove that this century has
given us films that will stand the test of time, that you will continue to think about and argue
about if only you give them a chance and watch them.

For our poll to determine the 100 greatest American films, we surveyed 62 film critics from
around the world. This time, we received responses from 177 from every continent except
Antarctica. Some are newspaper or magazine reviewers, others write primarily for websites;
academics and cinema curators are well-represented too. For the purposes of this poll we have
decided that a list of the greatest films of the 21st Century should include the year 2000, even
though we recognise that there was no Year Zero and that 2001 is mathematically the start of
the century. Not only did we all celebrate the turn of the millennium on 31 December 1999,
but the year 2000 was a landmark in global cinema, and, in particular, saw the emergence of
new classics from Asia like nothing we had ever seen before.

We believe that the new classics on this list are destined to become old classics. Whether or
not that happens is ultimately up to you, the moviegoers. But one thing is certain: cinema isnt
dying, its evolving.

100. Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade, 2016)


100. Requiem for a Dream (Darren Aronofsky, 2000)
100. Carlos (Olivier Assayas, 2010)
99. The Gleaners and I (Agns Varda, 2000)
98. Ten (Abbas Kiarostami, 2002)
97. White Material (Claire Denis, 2009)
96. Finding Nemo (Andrew Stanton, 2003)
95. Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson, 2012)
94. Let the Right One In (Tomas Alfredson, 2008)
93. Ratatouille (Brad Bird, 2007)
92. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Andrew Dominik, 2007)
91. The Secret in Their Eyes (Juan Jos Campanella, 2009)
90. The Pianist (Roman Polanski, 2002)
89. The Headless Woman (Lucrecia Martel, 2008)
88. Spotlight (Tom McCarthy, 2015)
87. Amlie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001)
86. Far From Heaven (Todd Haynes, 2002)
85. A Prophet (Jacques Audiard, 2009)
84. Her (Spike Jonze, 2013)
83. A.I. Artificial Intelligence (Steven Spielberg, 2001)
82. A Serious Man (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2009)
81. Shame (Steve McQueen, 2011)
80. The Return (Andrey Zvyagintsev, 2003)
79. Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe, 2000)
78. The Wolf of Wall Street (Martin Scorsese, 2013)
77. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Julian Schnabel, 2007)
76. Dogville (Lars von Trier, 2003)
75. Inherent Vice (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2014)
74. Spring Breakers (Harmony Korine, 2012)
73. Before Sunset (Richard Linklater, 2004)
72. Only Lovers Left Alive (Jim Jarmusch, 2013)
71. Tabu (Miguel Gomes, 2012)
70. Stories We Tell (Sarah Polley, 2012)
69. Carol (Todd Haynes, 2015)
68. The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001)
67. The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow, 2008)
66. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winterand Spring (Kim Ki-duk, 2003)
65. Fish Tank (Andrea Arnold, 2009)
64. The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino, 2013)
63. The Turin Horse (Bla Tarr and gnes Hranitzky, 2011)
62. Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino, 2009)
61. Under the Skin (Jonathan Glazer, 2013)
60. Syndromes and a Century (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2006)
59. A History of Violence (David Cronenberg, 2005)
58. Moolaad (Ousmane Sembne, 2004)
57. Zero Dark Thirty (Kathryn Bigelow, 2012)
56. Werckmeister Harmonies (Bla Tarr, director; gnes Hranitzky, co-director, 2000)
55. Ida (Pawe Pawlikowski, 2013)
54. Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2011)
53. Moulin Rouge! (Baz Luhrmann, 2001)
52. Tropical Malady (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2004)
51. Inception (Christopher Nolan, 2010)
50. The Assassin (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 2015)
49. Goodbye to Language (Jean-Luc Godard, 2014)
48. Brooklyn (John Crowley, 2015)
47. Leviathan (Andrey Zvyagintsev, 2014)
46. Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami, 2010)
45. Blue Is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013)
44. 12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013)
43. Melancholia (Lars von Trier, 2011)
42. Amour (Michael Haneke, 2012)
41. Inside Out (Pete Docter, 2015)
40. Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee, 2005)
39. The New World (Terrence Malick, 2005)
38. City of God (Fernando Meirelles and Ktia Lund, 2002)
37. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010)
36. Timbuktu (Abderrahmane Sissako, 2014)
35. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Ang Lee, 2000)
34. Son of Saul (Lszl Nemes, 2015)
33. The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008)
32. The Lives of Others (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006)
31. Margaret (Kenneth Lonergan, 2011)
30. Oldboy (Park Chan-wook, 2003)
29. WALL-E (Andrew Stanton, 2008)
28. Talk to Her (Pedro Almodvar, 2002)
27. The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010)
26. 25th Hour (Spike Lee, 2002)
25. Memento (Christopher Nolan, 2000)
24. The Master (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2012)
23. Cach (Michael Haneke, 2005)
22. Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003)
21. The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson, 2014)
20. Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman, 2008)
19. Mad Max: Fury Road (George Miller, 2015)
18. The White Ribbon (Michael Haneke, 2009)
17. Pan's Labyrinth (Guillermo Del Toro, 2006)
16. Holy Motors (Leos Carax, 2012)
15. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (Cristian Mungiu, 2007)
14. The Act of Killing (Joshua Oppenheimer, 2012)
13. Children of Men (Alfonso Cuarn, 2006)
12. Zodiac (David Fincher, 2007)
11. Inside Llewyn Davis (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2013)
10. No Country for Old Men (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2007)
9. A Separation (Asghar Farhadi, 2011)
8. Yi Yi: A One and a Two (Edward Yang, 2000)
7. The Tree of Life (Terrence Malick, 2011)
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004)
5. Boyhood (Richard Linklater, 2014)
4. Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001)
3. There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2007)
2. In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar-wai, 2000)
1. Mulholland Drive (David Lynch, 2001)

More on BBC Cultures 100 greatest films of the 21st Century:


Surprising facts from the 100 greatest films of the 21st Century list
The full list of critics who participated and how they voted
What the critics had to say about the top 25
Why Mulholland Drive is number one
Are we living in a golden age of film?

How many of these films have you seen? Let us know with the hashtag #FilmsOfTheCentury
on Facebook or Twitter.

And if you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc.com

You might also like