A New Top List of my All Time favourite Films for the New Year!

When I started this blog in October 2014, the first article I presented to you was a top 10 of my most favourite films. The years have passed and, since I made this top list, I have obviously seen many more films, some of my tastes have changed, etc. So, I thought the beginning of 2019 would be a perfect way to update this top and present a fresh one to you! This time, however, I’ve decided to go with a top 40 for the simple reason that a top 10 is too short and doesn’t show a large enough range of my tastes.

It still was a hard task especially since a bunch of films I love were obviously not included on the list.

I gave myself a few personal rules for this top list

• To include films that I have seen at least twice.
• To include at least a film from Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, William Wyler, and Fritz Lang since they are my four most favourite directors.
• To include at least one James Stewart film since he is my favourite actor.
• To include at least one Ingrid Bergman/Audrey Hepburn/Grace Kelly’s film since they are my favourite actresses
• To include at least one 1967 film as it is my favourite year in films.
• To explore various decades. Mission almost complete. I must confess, I haven’t included any films from the 1890s to the 20s and I don’t have any films from the 90s either.
• To make my choices, I really thought about films that I like from the beginning until the end. Films that captivate me from A to Z.

If we look at my original top 10 list, some of its films are still included in the new top (not necessarily among the first 10 howerver). Some of them aren’t there anymore. It’s not because I don’t like them anymore but, as I’ve said, I’ve seen many new movies since, I mean, it’s been more than four years!

A disclaimer before we move on with the top: These are my personal choices and I ask you to respect them. It’s a VERY subjective list. I’m not claiming that one of the films is better than a film that is not on the list, but simply that it’s one that I personally love. I agree that some of these films aren’t necessarily masterpieces but they satisfy my own taste, which is plenty for such a personal top. If your favourite film isn’t on the list, it’s not necessarily because I don’t like it. Ok maybe it is (hehe), but it could also be that I have never seen it, or simply that I like it but as I’ve said, to make a top 40 out of hundreds of films seen isn’t obvious. So, many great films are going to be left.

I didn’t include any documentary or short films. I’d like to eventually do a top different top list for these.

This being said, I still hope you’ll appreciate my top! Please don’t hesitate to share what are your most favourite films in the comment section!

You’ll notice that I included links in blue for the articles I’ve previously written on these films.

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40- The Blue Gardenia (Fritz Lang, 1953)

39- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (Frank Capra, 1939)

38- A Patch of Blue (Guy Green, 1965)

37- Roman Holiday (William Wyler, 1953)

36- The Snake Pit (Anatole Litvak, 1946)

35- La Nuit Américaine (François Truffaut, 1973

34- Love in the Afternoon (Billy Wilder, 1958)

33- Rebecca (Alfred Hitchcock, 1940)

32- It’s A Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)

31- The Naked City (Jules Dassin, 1948)

30- 12 Angry Men (Sidney Lumet, 1957)

29- Gold Diggers of 1933 (Mervyn Leroy, 1933)

28- White Heat (Raoul Walsh, 1949)

27- The Miracle Worker (Arthur Penn, 1962)

26- Sullivan’s Travels (Preston Sturges, 1941)

25- The Day the Earth Stood Still (Robert Wise, 1951)

24- The Innocents (Jack Clayton, 1961)

23- To Be Or Not To Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942)

22- Give Us The Moon (Val Guest, 1944)

21- La Grande Illusion (Jean Renoir, 1937)

20- The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (Mark Robson, 1958)

19- Bonnie & Clyde (Arthur Penn, 1967)

18- The Best Years of Our Lives (William Wyler, 1946) – article 2

17- Desperately Seeking Susan (Susan Seidelman, 1985)

16- The Man Who Knew Too Much (Alfred Hitchcock, 1956)

15- The African Queen (John Huston, 1951)

14- High Noon (Fred Zinnemann, 1952)

13- Modern Times (Charlie Chaplin, 1936)

12- 42nd Street (Lloyd Bacon, 1933)

11- Singin’ in the Rain (Stanley Donen/Gene Kelly, 1952)

10- Sunset Boulevard (Billy Wilder, 1950)

9- Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson, 2011)

8- One, Two, Three (Billy Wilder, 1963)

7- C.R.A.Z.Y. (Jean-Marc Vallée, 2005)

6- Romance on the High Seas (Michael Curtiz, 1948)

5- The Lady Vanishes (Alfred Hitchcock, 1938)

4- Kiss Me Deadly (Robert Aldrich, 1955)

3- Little Miss Sunshine (Jonathan Dayton/Valerie Faris, 2006)

2- Bringing Up Baby (Howard Hawks, 1938)

1- Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959)

Yes, Some Like It Hot and Bringing Up Baby are still my two most favourite! But I love these films so much!

I’d like to give a few honourable mentions to some films that didn’t make the list but that I love: Portrait of Jennie, Scarlet Street, Gone With the Wind, Lawrence of Arabia, Whiplash, Rear Window, Spellbound, Casablanca, Full Metal Jacket, The Cameraman, Guys & Dolls, Badlands, etc.

But althought I couldn’t includ everything, I’m still pretty satistied with this top 40!

Happy new year!