Top 10 films 1965, 75, 85, 95, 05, and 2015. All Countdowns Complete!

[Kalo]

#9 of 1975 The Man Who Would Be King - 18 Points 

 

 

 

It's been a long time since there's been an escapist entertainment quite this unabashed and thrilling and fun. -Edgar Wright, Chicago Sun-Times.

 

Storyline: Two British soldiers in India decide to resign from the Army and set themselves up as deities in Kafiristan--a land where no white man has set foot since Alexander. -IMDB

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating: 96% Average of 8.4/10

 

IMDB Rating: 7.9

 

 

Making it's way to #9 is the adventure film the man who would be king, directed by John Huston and starring Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Saeed Jaffrey, and Christopher Plummer, it is based on the Rudyard Kipling novella of the same name. The film received mostly favorable reviews at the time of it's release, but was actually a financial failure upon release.

 

The Man Who Would be king was nominated for 4 Oscars in 1976:

* Best Writing, Screenplay Adapted From Other Material;

John Huston, Gladys Hill

*Best Art Direction-Set Decoration;

Alexandre Trauner, Tony Inglis, Peter James

*Best Costume Design

Edith Head

*Best Film Editing

Russell Lloyd

[Kalo]

#8 of 1975 Dog Day Afternoon - 20 Points

 

 

Dog Day Afternoon is, in the whole as well as the parts, filmmaking at its best.- Variety 

 

Storyline: A man robs a bank to pay for his lover's operation; it turns into a hostage situation and a media circus.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 97% average of 8.5/10

 

IMDB Rating: 8.1 (#220 on IMDB's top 250 list)

 

 

Coming in at #8 on the list is the american crime drama, directed by 12 angry men helmor, Sidney Lumet and Starring Al Pacino. it the story is based on the real life bank robbery of John Wojtowicz that took place in 1972. upon release it received overwhelmingly positive reviews and received numerous award nominations, including best picture it marks the end of a four year streak best actor nominations for actor Al Pacino, The Godfather (1972), Serpico (1973), and The Godfather Part II (1974), proceeding it. 

 

 

Al Pacino exhausted from the strenuous role of Godfather Part II, refused the role at first, but when he learned his rival dustin Hoffman was going to take it in his place, he changed his mind and accepted it.

 

#1 Placements: 1

[Kalo]

#7 of 1975 The Passenger - 22 Points 

 

 

 

Earlier Antonioni films have often seemed studied, but not this one. Its details are easy and apropos. - Penelope Gilliatt, New Yorker

 

Storyline: A frustrated war correspondent, unable to find the war he's been asked to cover, takes the risky path of co-opting the I.D. of a dead arms dealer acquaintance.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 91% average of 8.1/10

IMDB Rating: 7.7

 

 

Coming at #7 on the countdown is italian director Michelangelo Antonioni thriller, The Passenger. starring Jack Nicholson, and Co-starring Maria Schneider. the film received wide approval upon release. especially for it's camerawork (Luciano Tovoli) and the performances of the cast. the film was released February 28th 1975 in Italy and April 9th 1975 in the US, in 2005 an extended cut of the film was released bringing its runtime from 119 minutes to 126 minutes.  

 

#1 placements: 1

Edited September 19, 2015 by Kalo

[Kalo]

#6 of 1975 The Mirror - 29 Points 

 

 

 

The smallest details (a stammering child, the wrinkle in the turned page of a book) stick like burrs, and we are left to wonder if any director has delved with more modesty and honesty into the heartbreak of the past. -Anthony Lane, New Yorker

 

Storyline: A dying man in his forties remembers his past. His childhood, his mother, the war, personal moments and things that tell of the recent history of all the Russian nation.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 100% average of 9.4/10

 

IMDB Rating: 8.2

 

Coming at #6 is the Russian made art drama, The Mirror or Zerkalo, directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, and starring  Margarita Terekhova, Alla Demidova, Anatoli Solonitsyn and Larisa Tarkovskaya. the film is a loose autobiography and incorporates artistic styles, such as incorporating poems into the film read by the director's father, Arseny Tarkovsky. The Mirror never had an official premiere and had only a limited, second category release with only 73 copies. Although it was officially announced for September 1975, it was shown as early as March 1975. despite its limited release it was received well by it's audience.

 

 

#1 Placements: 1

Edited September 20, 2015 by Kalo

[Plain Old Tele]

FYI, that middle image is from STALKER, not THE MIRROR.

[Kalo]

FYI, that middle image is from STALKER, not THE MIRROR.

 

darn It, I wasn't 100% sure. but I really loved that image. lol  I clearly haven't seen the movie.

 

also sorry about the lethargic pace I've been going at I plan to pick up the pace a lot come this monday. 

[Plain Old Tele]

darn It, I wasn't 100% sure. but I really loved that image. lol  I clearly haven't seen the movie.

 

also sorry about the lethargic pace I've been going at I plan to pick up the pace a lot come this monday.

Yes, moar please.

Also, yes: you should really watch STALKER. And THE MIRROR. Even if you find them incomprehensible, Tarkovsky movies have some of the most unique and stunning images you'll ever see. (The full movie of STALKER is on YouTube too.)

[Kalo]

Yes, moar please.

Also, yes: you should really watch STALKER. And THE MIRROR. Even if you find them incomprehensible, Tarkovsky movies have some of the most unique and stunning images you'll ever see. (The full movie of STALKER is on YouTube too.)

 

I may have to check them out, I've been on a 1970s kick lately anyways. 

[Kalo]

#5 of 1975 Barry Lyndon - 37 Points

 

 

 

Stanley Kubrick's magisterial Thackeray adaptation now stands as one of his greatest and most savagely ironic films, not to mention one of the few period pieces on celluloid so transporting that it seems to predate the invention of cameras.- Jim Ridley, Village voice.

 

Storyline: An Irish rogue wins the heart of a rich widow and assumes her dead husband's aristocratic position in 18th-century England.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 96% average of 8/10

IMDB Rating: 8.1 (#219 on IMDB's top 250 list)

 

 

Making it's way to the top 5 is Oscar winning director Stanley Kubrick's period drama Barry Lyndon. it is based on William Makepeace Thackeray's 1844 novel  The Luck of Barry Lyndon. and stars Ryan O'Neal, Marisa Berenson, Patrick Magee, and Hardy Krüger. although it's not Kubrick best known property. it was received well by critics, despite some viewing it as too cold and slow paced. and although it was a box office disappointment it was nominated for 7 Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director nomination, it won four (Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design and Best Music, Scoring Original Song Score and/or Adaptation).

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjOSdrS7-7U

 

*The film took 300 days to shoot, from spring 1973 through early 1974.

*The film's score used pieces from various famous composers, including; Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonio Vivaldi, , Giovanni Paisiello, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Franz Schubert.

 

#1 Placements: 1

[Kalo]

#4 of 1975 The Rocky Horror Picture Show - 55 Points

 

 

 

A string of hummable songs gives it momentum, Gray's admirably straight-faced narrator holds it together, and a run on black lingerie takes care of almost everything else. - Geoff Andrew, Time Out. 

 

Storyline: A newly engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must pay a call to the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 79% average of 6.8/10

 

IMDB Rating: 7.4

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4WP3bODmfo  

 

Coming in at #4 is the cult hit Musical/Comedy/horror film "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" based on the 1973 stage production "The Rocky Horror Show" it is a satirical tribute to Science Fiction and Horror B movie ranging from the 1930s to early 1970s. It stars Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon and Barry Bostwick. upon release the film was generally ignored by critics and mainstream audiences, however over time the film was given midnight showings that many fans attended over and over again, in fact over the years the film became a box office sensation, ranking in over $112 million dollars domestically, and ranks 74th all time adjusted for inflation, giving a new meaning to the word "cult hit" 

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMRl55U0eDw  

 

#1 Placements: 1

[Kalo]

#3 of 1975 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - 69 Points

 

 

 

Nicholson explodes on the screen in a performance so flawless in timing and character perception that it should send half the stars in Hollywood back to acting school. - Kathleen Carroll, New York Daily News.

 

Storyline: Upon admittance to a mental institution, a brash rebel rallies the patients to take on the oppressive head nurse.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 95% average of 8.9/10

IMDB Rating: 8.7 (#15 on IMDB's top 250 list)

 

 

Coming up at #3 on the list is Milos Forman's Critically acclaimed mental asylum drama "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey. the film film stars Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, and Will Sampson. upon release the film was met with universal acclaim, was nominated for 9 Oscars, and the 5 major categories, (Best Picture, Saul Zaentz, Michael Douglas, Best Actor in a Leading Role

Jack Nicholson, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Louise Fletcher, Best Director, Milos Forman, and Best Writing, Screenplay Adapted From Other Material

Lawrence Hauben, Bo Goldman) it was the second film ever to win in every major category, and lasted as one of only two until Silence of the Lambs in 1991. 

One Flew over the cuckoo's Nest is now considered to be one of the best films ever made ranking #33, on American Film Institute's 100 Years... 100 Movies list. 

 

 

*In 1993, it was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.

 

#1 Placements: 1

Edited September 26, 2015 by Kalo

[Kalo]

#2 of 1975 Monty Python and the Holy Grail - 79 Points

 

 

 

Grail is as funny as a movie can get, but it is also a tough-minded picture -- as outraged about the human propensity for violence as it is outrageous in its attack on that propensity.- Richard Schickel, Time Magazine. 

 

Storyline: King Arthur and his knights embark on a low-budget search for the Grail, encountering many very silly obstacles.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 97% average of 8.4/10

 

IMDB Rating: 8.3 (#93 on IMDB's top 250 list)

 

 

Coming in at #2 at just missing the number #1 by a mere two points is the medieval parody comedy "Monty Python and the holy Grail"  directed by Gilliam and Jones. and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. and used the legend of King Arthur and the holy grail for it's plotline. the film was a critical and box office success being the highest grossing british release of 1975. In the US, The film was selected as the second best comedy of all time in the ABC special Best in Film: The Greatest Movies of Our Time; in the UK, readers of Total Film magazine ranked the film the fifth greatest comedy film of all time.

 

 

#1 placements: 4

Edited September 26, 2015 by Kalo

[Kalo]

#1 of 1975 Jaws 81 Points 

 

 

 

Perhaps the most perfectly constructed horror story in our time.- Arthur Knight, Hollywood Reporter. 

 

Storyline: When a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and grizzled fisherman set out to stop it. -IMDB.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 97% average of 9.1/10

IMDB Rating: 8.1 (#208 on IMDB's top 250 list)

 

 

And The #1 winner for best film of 1975, is the classic Steven Spielberg directed thriller, Jaws. based on the 1974 novel of the same name by Peter Benchley. Jaws' summer release date (June 20th) and behemoth gross ($123m upon initial release, 260m total) makes it's mark on history as the first motion picture to be considered a summer blockbuster. the film broke the open to $7m, breaking weekend record upon release. and in 78 days passed The Godfather for highest grossing film of all time, a record kept until Star Wars was released in 1977.  adjusted for inflation the film ranks 7th of all time. it was not just your average blockbuster though, the film was applauded by critics and audiences alike, garnering four academy awards, including a best picture nomination, although it missed the win it won three,  Best Sound, Best Film Editing, and best music Original Dramatic Score. it's score composed by John Williams. the Jaws theme is one of the most well known themes of all time and has had homage to it in many films after. 

 

 

*In 2001, Jaws was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry, being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9QTSyLwd4w  

 

#1 placements: 4

[Kalo]

Ladies and gentlemen! the top ten films of 1975! hope you enjoyed reading! 

Rankings:

1. Jaws 81 Points
2. Monty Python and the Holy Grail 79 Points 
3. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 69 Points
4. The Rocky Horror Picture Show 55 Points
5. Barry Lyndon 37 Points
6. The Mirror 29 Points
7. The Passenger 22 Points
8. Dog Day Afternoon 20 Points
9. The Man Who Would Be King 18 Points
10. Three Days of the Condor 15 Points

All these films celebrating their 40th anniversary! was that really 40 years ago some of you might say. or maybe it was 40 years to long ago for some. I am personally very excited for the next countdown, the best films of 1985 baby! 

[Kalo]

Now celebrating 30 years, the top 10 films of 1985! 
 

 

Are you ready for it people?!

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIgZ7gMze7A

[Kalo]

There were 45 films listed from 1985, much more than then previous years, there was some great and significant films released that year.

 

A few honorable mentions:

 

 

Edited September 26, 2015 by Kalo

[luna]

 

There were 45 films listed from 1985, much more than then previous years, there was some great and significant films released that year.

 

A few honorable mentions:

 

 

 

 

 

There we actually the fewest individual films listed in 1975 only 21, but the top 10 films points were more broadly distributed it was a very interesting year in film, and there were several pretty significant films that year. 

 

a few honorable mentions 

 

 

 

 

 

none of the best films are making it

[Kalo]

#10 of 1985 Shoah - 18 Points 

 

 

 

With his 9 1/2-hour Shoah, Claude Lanzmann has accomplished the seemingly impossible: He has brought such beauty to his recounting of the horror of the Holocaust that he has made it accessible and comprehensible.-Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times.

 

Storyline: Claude Lanzmann's epic documentary recounts the story of the Holocaust through interviews with witnesses - perpetrators as well as survivors.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 100% average of 9.2/10

 

IMDB Rating: 8.3

 

 

Coming in at #10, is the first documentary to appear on any list so far. a french film directed by Claude Lanzmann. consisting primarily of interviews with survivors of the holocaust, in various sites across poland. The film was praised by criticsm although was a member of some controversy as number of historians criticized it for failing to show and discuss the many Poles who rescued Jews, or to recognize the millions of Poles who were also killed by the Germans during the occupation of Poland.

 

#1 placements: 1

[Kalo]

#9 of 1985: Commando - 21 Points 

 

 

 

Chong lights up the film like a firefly, Schwarzenegger delivers a certain light touch of his own, [and] the result is palatable action comics.-Variety 

 

Storyline: A retired elite Black Ops Commando launches a one man war against a group of South American criminals who have kidnapped his daughter to blackmail him into starting a revolution and getting an exiled dictator back into power.

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes critic approval rating 69% average of 6/10

IMDB Rating: 6.7

 

 

Coming in at #9 on the list, is the action thriller "Commando" directed by Mark L. Lester and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Rae Dawn Chong. the film was released on october 4th 1985. the film received generally favorable reviews from critics and was a financial success grossing $57.5m dollars on a $10m budget.  the film is notable for it's tongue and cheek humor and is today considered a cult classic.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSFoFz6b-E0

[TalismanRing]

Commando over Shoah    (or even on this list)