BOT's Ranking of the Top 200 Films of All Time Adjusted: THE OFFICIAL COUNTDOWN THREAD (after much delay, the full list on pg.10)

[TalismanRing]

15 hours ago, Tele Came Back said:

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS deserved to be above SLOP, at a minimum. 

 

Sure SLOP is much worse but on the plus side it's half as long.

 

 

[Eevin]

Next on the list: a classic horror film, and a sequel to a Best Picture winner...

Spoiler

#184

House of Wax (1953)

"Once in his lifetime, every artist feels the hand of God, and creates something that comes alive."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 103

Lists: 5

Average rank: 72.687

Rotten Tomatoes: 95%

 

House of Wax was released in 1953, a time when films like The Robe could still dominate the box office and producers thought that stereoscopic 3-D was actually a good idea. Wax, likely the best of the 50-odd films converted to 3D from 1952 to 1954, was also one of the biggest hits. It also probably helped that 1) House of Wax is actually one of the best horror movies of the 1950s, and 2) that it was most viewed on TV in 2D, where it slowly earned its reputation as a classic. Nonetheless, modern audiences often find classic horror to be a bit too detached from the genre that they're familiar with, hence why it's pretty low on the list.

Spoiler

#183

The Bells of St. Mary's (1945)

"You don't become a nun to run away from life, Patsy. It's not because you've lost something. It's because you've found something."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 53

Lists: 4

Average points: 97.471

Rotten Tomatoes: 94%

 

In 1944, Leo McCarey wrote and directed a film about the Catholic church, centering around Bing Crosby's character - the unconventional priest Father O'Malley. That film was Going My Way, which was nominated for ten Oscars, winning Best Picture. One year later, we received a follow-up, The Bells of St. Mary's, which was virtually similar in every way except for the notable distinction that it felt like a knockoff. Regardless of your feelings on The Bells of St. Mary's (which, notably, is the most popular film on the list so far), it was even more popular than Going My Way. Adjusted for inflation, it was the most financially successful film in RKO Pictures' history.

 

[Plain Old Tele]

2 hours ago, TalismanRing said:

 

Sure SLOP is much worse but on the plus side it's half as long.

 

 

 

But 80 DAYS has David Niven and Shirley MacLaine as an Indian princess (!).

[Eevin]

A financial disaster, and a disaster of a film:

Spoiler

#182

Cleopatra (1963)

"Rape, murder, pillage thousands, even millions of human beings! But neither you nor any other barbarian has the right to destroy one human thought!"

Rank adjusted for inflation: 42

Lists: 5

Average points: 78.037

Rotten Tomatoes: 55%

 

One of the most fascinating films of all time, Cleopatra nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox despite being one of the most financially successful films of all time. The incredible marketing and production costs of the film (replacing the directors? The producers? The entire cast? Rebuilding and refilming every scene twice?) utterly destroyed it - which is a shame, since it's another one of those epics that you just don't see anymore. Critics were impossibly divided on the film, some labelling it a masterpiece and others labelling it an incoherent mess. Running at just over 4 hours, it makes sense that not many people ended up seeing it- it was released at a time when movies were events. 

Spoiler

#181

Shrek the Third (2007)

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Let down your golden extension!"

Rank adjusted for inflation: 118

Lists: 15

Average points: 26.132

Rotten Tomatoes: 41%

 

Before the Despicable Me franchise, there was the Shrek franchise - the first incredibly mediocre and lackluster animated franchise to spin out of an inspired and clever original film. And Shrek the Third fits that bill perfectly, perfectly summing up the idea of "meh". There's nothing particularly memorable or worthwhile about Shrek the Third- it was the beginning of the end for the franchise, which would see a steep drop-off with the fourth film. 

 

[TalismanRing]

4 minutes ago, Eevin said:

A financial disaster, and a disaster of a film:

  Hide contents

#182

Cleopatra (1963)

"Rape, murder, pillage thousands, even millions of human beings! But neither you nor any other barbarian has the right to destroy one human thought!"

Rank adjusted for inflation: 42

Lists: 5

Average points: 78.037

Rotten Tomatoes: 55%

 

One of the most fascinating films of all time, Cleopatra nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox despite being one of the most financially successful films of all time. The incredible marketing and production costs of the film (replacing the directors? The producers? The entire cast? Rebuilding and refilming every scene twice?) utterly destroyed it - which is a shame, since it's another one of those epics that you just don't see anymore. Critics were impossibly divided on the film, some labelling it a masterpiece and others labelling it an incoherent mess. Running at just over 4 hours, it makes sense that not many people ended up seeing it- it was released at a time when movies were events. 

  Hide contents

#181

Shrek the Third (2007)

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Let down your golden extension!"

Rank adjusted for inflation: 118

Lists: 15

Average points: 26.132

Rotten Tomatoes: 41%

 

Before the Despicable Me franchise, there was the Shrek franchise - the first incredibly mediocre and lackluster animated franchise to spin out of an inspired and clever original film. And Shrek the Third fits that bill perfectly, perfectly summing up the idea of "meh". There's nothing particularly memorable or worthwhile about Shrek the Third- it was the beginning of the end for the franchise, which would see a steep drop-off with the fourth film. 

 

 

Damn, Cleopatra has issues but it most definitely does not deserve to be grouped along Shrek 3.

 

 

[4815162342]

There's a lot to respect and admire about Cleopatra. The film is very bloated but it's got quite a lot of dynamic stuff going on.

[Plain Old Tele]

These older movies are getting killed because the majority of people have never seen them (and I'm guilty of not seeing some of them too).

[angeldelmito]

18 hours ago, Eevin said:

To close out the night, I thought we'd end with two films more adherent to modern taste (though, for these two films, "taste" is a very loose term). 

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#186

The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)

"Well, I'm nearly one hundred and ten. It's time I settled down."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 192

Lists: 11

Average rank: 31.93

Rotten Tomatoes: 28%

 

I've never seen a Twilight film, nor will I ever, nor will I ever pretend to, so this write-up will be a bit more brief. New Moon exploded after the surprisingly leggy original film, breaking the then-midnight record and scoring $142m in its opening weekend, the third-biggest at the time. It had god-awful legs afterward and collapsed, a trend commonly seen in popular YA films like Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Star Wars...some people like these films. Most people don't. This is the only Twilight film on the list, so...cool?

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#185

Alice in Wonderland (2010)

"I like to achieve at least six impossible things before breakfast."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 159

Lists: 18

Average points: 19.838

Rotten Tomatoes: 52%

 

To everyone who thought that Avatar relied too much on spectacle over story, Disney made Alice in Wonderland - a cold, cynical corporate nightmare that made $1 billion worldwide in 2010 because people like bright colors. When I saw this in the theaters seven years ago, garbage me with no taste instantly named it my second-favorite movie. The more I've watched it over the years, though, the more I've seen how much of a total mess this movie is. I'm pretty sure this is singlehandedly what killed Johnny Depp's desire to try. Its visuals, though stunning, fail to cover up the fact that it's a creepy, narratively incoherent film that can't make up its mind on whether it wants to be a horror film or a family film. It is the thing that everyone is afraid Hollywood will become - an endlessly repetitive, joyless jumble of fun colors.

 

i came to this thread late, whoops. but anyways both of these are ICONIC !

 

 

[Goffe]

Yeah, not a fan of the way this list was scored. It rewards the most seen over actual favorites.

[Eevin]

A patriotic war movie, and the other really good 1980 blockbuster:

Spoiler

#180

Sergeant York (1941)

"What we done in France, we had to do. And some as done it, didn't come back, and that kind of thing ain't for buying and selling."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 112

Lists: 3

Average points: 133.845

Rotten Tomatoes: 84%

 

This is one of those films that would have been a lot higher had more people seen it. Sergeant York is a classic dedication to American patriotism, based upon the live of decorated WWI vet Alvin York. It rode a wave of post-Pearl Harbor nationalism and exceptionalism, often being used to raise funds for war bonds. It played well in various releases throughout the war, being a go-to replacement for box office failures in cinemas nationwide. While it's a bit old-fashioned in nature, the film is also sweet and charming - they just don't make 'em like this anymore.

Spoiler

#179

9 to 5 (1980)

"Okay, okay, I'm gonna leave, but I'm gonna tell you one thing before I go: don't you ever refer to me as 'your girl' again."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 194

Lists: 9

Average points: 52.251

Rotten Tomatoes: 84%

 

9 to 5 is a delightful comedy film that remains shockingly forgotten in the public consciousness despite a Broadway adaptation, a hit theme song, and a film that's incredibly similar to it in tone and context (Horrible Bosses). The film, released in an era of Empire Strikes Back madness, was the second-highest-grossing of the year, and is still among the highest-grossing comedies adjusted for inflation. It was somewhat uncommon at the time for tales of female empowerment to be the basis of a film, much less for those films to be incredibly successful - yet, nearly 40 years later, here we are.

 

Edited May 1, 2017 by Eevin

[Eevin]

11 minutes ago, Goffe said:

Yeah, not a fan of the way this list was scored. It rewards the most seen over actual favorites.

Would you propose a better method? In an ideal world, everyone would have seen all 200 films and this list could be an entirely accurate representation, but until then this makes the most sense.

[TalismanRing]

11 minutes ago, Eevin said:

Would you propose a better method? In an ideal world, everyone would have seen all 200 films and this list could be an entirely accurate representation, but until then this makes the most sense.

 

It could have been scored the smaller your list the less each choice was worth.

[Eevin]

2 minutes ago, TalismanRing said:

 

It could have been scored the smaller your list the less each choice was worth.

That was initially my system. Then I had a bunch of people protesting that because a #150 on a list of 200 could have theoretically been worth the same as #1 on a list of 50. There's no real scenario here that's going to please everyone.

If it helps, though, there are older films that get quite far along in the list. They're just not as obscure.

[Jake Gittes]

1 hour ago, Tele Came Back said:

 

Shirley MacLaine as an Indian princess (!).

 

This is the first thing I've read about it that makes me want to see it

[Plain Old Tele]

3 minutes ago, Jake Gittes said:

 

This is the first thing I've read about it that makes me want to see it

 

The amazing and ridiculous amount of Old Hollywood cameos doesn't?

 

Frank Sinatra

Buster Keaton

Marlene Dietrich

Peter Lorre

John Gielgud

Red Skelton

Trevor Howard

George Raft

John Mills

Noel Coward

Ronald Colman

John Carradine

Joe E. Brown

Robert Morley

[Kalo]

1 hour ago, Eevin said:

A patriotic war movie, and the other really good 1980 blockbuster:

  Hide contents

#180

Sergeant York (1941)

"What we done in France, we had to do. And some as done it, didn't come back, and that kind of thing ain't for buying and selling."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 112

Lists: 3

Average points: 133.845

 

 

 

Rotten Tomatoes: 84%

 

This is one of those films that would have been a lot higher had more people seen it. Sergeant York is a classic dedication to American patriotism, based upon the live of decorated WWI vet Alvin York. It rode a wave of post-Pearl Harbor nationalism and exceptionalism, often being used to raise funds for war bonds. It played well in various releases throughout the war, being a go-to replacement for box office failures in cinemas nationwide. While it's a bit old-fashioned in nature, the film is also sweet and charming - they just don't make 'em like this anymore.

  Hide contents

#179

9 to 5 (1980)

"Okay, okay, I'm gonna leave, but I'm gonna tell you one thing before I go: don't you ever refer to me as 'your girl' again."

Rank adjusted for inflation: 194

Lists: 9

Average points: 52.251

Rotten Tomatoes: 84%

 

9 to 5 is a delightful comedy film that remains shockingly forgotten in the public consciousness despite a Broadway adaptation, a hit theme song, and a film that's incredibly similar to it in tone and context (Horrible Bosses). The film, released in an era of Empire Strikes Back madness, was the second-highest-grossing of the year, and is still among the highest-grossing comedies adjusted for inflation. It was somewhat uncommon at the time for tales of female empowerment to be the basis of a film, much less for those films to be incredibly successful - yet, nearly 40 years later, here we are.

 

 

9 to 5 is really funny, there is one part in particular that was cracking up at, please watch it.  

[Jake Gittes]

51 minutes ago, Tele Came Back said:

 

The amazing and ridiculous amount of Old Hollywood cameos doesn't?

 

Frank Sinatra

Buster Keaton

Marlene Dietrich

Peter Lorre

John Gielgud

Red Skelton

Trevor Howard

George Raft

John Mills

Noel Coward

Ronald Colman

John Carradine

Joe E. Brown

Robert Morley

 

I know you were already the same age as those people's grandfathers when they were born but at least half of those names don't say anything to me

[Plain Old Tele]

5 minutes ago, Jake Gittes said:

 

I know you were already the same age as those people's grandfathers when they were born but at least half of those names don't say anything to me

 

   

 

Then all I can say is:

 

[Jake Gittes]

2 minutes ago, Tele Came Back said:

 

   

 

Hey I'm exploring though. Unlike some people, I know when interesting cinema began, and it wasn't the '70s

[Eevin]

29 minutes ago, Jake Gittes said:

 

Hey I'm exploring though. Unlike some people, I know when interesting cinema began, and it wasn't the '70s

 

2 hours ago, angeldelmito said:

i came to this thread late, whoops. but anyways both of these are ICONIC !