Alice's 500 Greatest Films
The goal in this compilation was to determine film history's definitive creme de la creme. The titles considered to be the greatest of the great from around the world and throughout the history of film.. So, after an in-depth analysis of respected critics and publications from around the globe, cross referenced and tweaked to arrive at the ranking of films representing, we believe, the greatest cinema can offer.
Scroll, contemplate and enjoy.....
Want a printable list of the 500 greatest to check off? Click here
The Pianist (2002)
8.5/10
Director: Roman Polanski
Starring: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Maureen Lipman
Internationally acclaimed filmmaker Roman Polanski directs this award-winning testament to the power of the human spirit, based on the true-life story... Read more
Ashes and Diamonds (1958)
7.9/10
Director: Andrzej Wajda
Starring: Zbigniew Cybulski, Ewa Krzyzanowska
This brilliant statement illustrates the conflict of idealism and instinct in the story of a young resistance fighter who assassinates the wrong man a... Read more
The Red and The White (1967)
7.8/10
Director: Miklos Jancso
Starring: Tibor Molnar, Andras Kozak, Josef Madaras
Brilliantly photographed drama in which director Miklos Jancso examines Hungarians fighting in the Red Army in 1918 during the bloody civil war in Rus... Read more
Heaven's Gate (Blu-ray) (1980)
6.8/10
Director: Michael Cimino
Starring: Kris Kristofferson, Christopher Walken, John Hurt, Sam Waterston, Brad Dourif, I...
Michael Cimino's notorious spectacle about Wyoming's infamous Johnson County War - a conflict between immigrant settlers and the empire builders who w... Read more
Ran (Blu-ray) (1985)
8.2/10
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu
A Kurosawa masterpiece, a decade-in-the-making version of 'King Lear' that brilliantly blends Japanese history with Shakespeare's themes. A triumphant... Read more
Before Night Falls (2000)
7.3/10
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Javier Bardem, Johnny Depp, Michael Wincott, Olivier Martinez, Sean Penn, Andrea...
"Basquiat" director Julian Schnabel brings to the screen another doomed creative genius on the fringes of his society - gay Cuban poet Reinaldo Arenas... Read more
To Be Or Not To Be (1942)
8.2/10
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Starring: Jack Benny, Carole Lombard, Robert Stack
The original WWII satire and comedy classic. Jack Benny is a hammy Shakespearean actor who, along with members of his Polish acting troupe, becomes in... Read more
Ran (4K Ultra HD) (1985)
8.2/10
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu
A Kurosawa masterpiece, a decade-in-the-making version of 'King Lear' that brilliantly blends Japanese history with Shakespeare's themes. A triumphant... Read more
Dunkirk (Blu-Ray) (2017)
8/10
Director: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance, Michael Caine, Tom Hardy
In May 1940, Germany advanced into France, trapping Allied troops on the beaches of Dunkirk. Under air and ground cover from British and French forces... Read more
Avatar: The Way Of Water (2022)
7.9/10
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Kate Winslet, Clif...
Jake Sully lives with his newfound family formed on the extrasolar moon Pandora. Once a familiar threat returns to finish what was previously started,... Read more
Gladiator (Special Edition) (2000)
8.5/10
Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed, Derek Jacobi, Djimo...
Forced into slavery by the corrupt, incestuous heir to the throne, Roman general Maximus (Russell Crowe) becomes a gladiator. His prowess in the arena... Read more
Avatar: The Way Of Water (Blu-ray) (2022)
7.6/10
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Kate Winslet, Clif...
Jake Sully lives with his newfound family formed on the extrasolar moon Pandora. Once a familiar threat returns to finish what was previously started,... Read more
Kes (1969)
7.9/10
Director: Ken Loach
Starring: David Bradley, Lynne Perrie, Freddie Fletcher
A charming, caring chronicle of the boyhood experiences of Billy, a Northern England miner's son who finds an injured Kestrel and nurses it back to he... Read more
Ran (1985)
8.2/10
Director: Akira Kurosawa
Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu
A Kurosawa masterpiece, a decade-in-the-making version of 'King Lear' that brilliantly blends Japanese history with Shakespeare's themes. A triumphant... Read more
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
8/10
Director: Sidney Lumet
Starring: Al Pacino, John Cazale, James Broderick, Charles Durning, Chris Sarandon, Carol...
Incredible-but-true story of a loser who holds up a Brooklyn bank to raise money for his lover's sex-change operation, and sees simple heist snowball... Read more
Pickpocket (1959)
7.8/10
Director: Robert Bresson
Starring: Marika Green, Martin Lasalle, Pierre Etaix, Pierre Leymarie, Jean Pelegri
Robert Bresson's incomparable tale of crime and redemption follows Michel (Martin LaSalle), a young pickpocket who spends his days working the streets... Read more
Life is Beautiful (1998)
8.6/10
Director: Roberto Benigni
Starring: Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi
Receiving Oscars for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Actor, Roberto Benigni's celebrated and popular film boldly blends a sentimental and humourou... Read more
Yi Yi ( A One and a Two ) (Blu-ray) (1999)
8.2/10
Director: Edward Yang
Starring: Nianzhen Wu, Elaine Jin, Kelly Lee, Jonathan Chang, Issey Ogata
Set in the Taiwanese capital of Taipei, writer/director Edward Yang's acclaimed drama juxtaposes old and new, love and heartbreak as it follows the em... Read more
The Great Beauty (2013)
7.8/10
Director: Paolo Sorrentino
Starring: Sabrina Ferilli, Carlo Verdone, Toni Servillo
For decades, journalist Jep Gambardella has charmed and seduced his way through the glittering nightlife of Rome. Since the legendary success of his o... Read more
Ugetsu (1953)
8.2/10
Director: Kenji Mizoguchi
Starring: Masayuki Mori, Machiko Kyo, Kinuyo Tanaka
Aka "Ugetsu Monogatari". Quite simply one of the greatest of filmmakers, said Jean-Luc Godard of Kenji Mizoguchi. And "Ugetsu", a ghost story like n... Read more