BO.com top 100 movie lines of all time: May the force be with you, number 1

[Jake Gittes]

I'm here, will post #2 within an hour.

[Dementeleus]

Fun bit of insider info: ShawnMR was the last member of the panel to present his personal Top 100, and before he did, this line had actually been #1 on our collective list.

WTF, Shawn!

[baumer]

Yes, I've already had words with mr MR.

[baumer]

[Jake Gittes]

2. You talkin' to me? - Taxi Driver (1976)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQkpes3dgzg

 

As far as cinematic character studies go, Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver is nearly unbeatable, and as far as film characters go, Travis Bickle remains one of the greatest and most fascinating to ever appear on the screen. As written by Paul Schrader and performed by Robert De Niro (both of whom received Oscar nominations and deserved actual Oscars for their work), Bickle is a tragic and scary product of his environment - a Vietnam veteran who, after the war, is left for a lost, lonely, sleepless life in the depressed, despair-filled and crime-ridden New York. As both anger and confusion build up in him, his desire to "do something" leads him to purchase several guns, after which he tries to imagine a confrontation that would give him a chance to fire. Travis' iconic monologue in front of the mirror has been emulated and considered "badass" - i.e., completely misunderstood - by a fair share of viewers (one of whom, as is well-known, went as far as to attempt to assassinate Ronald Reagan in order to impress Jodie Foster), but it's much easier to convincingly argue that it's at once the most tragic and disturbing scene in the film. Coming from Bickle, "You talkin' to me?" is undeniably confrontational and indicative of his desire for violence, yet, on a deeper level, it's also a desperate desire for some - any - kind of genuine human connection. 

 

Paul Schrader does not take credit for the line, saying that his script only read, "Travis speaks to himself in the mirror", and that De Niro improvised the dialogue. However, Schrader went on to say that De Niro's performance was inspired by a routine by "an underground New York comedian" whom he had once seen, possibly including his signature line. In his 2009 memoir, saxophonist Clarence Clemons said De Niro explained the line's origins when Clemons coached De Niro to play the saxophone for the movie New York, New York. Clemons says De Niro had seen Bruce Springsteen say it onstage at a concert as fans were screaming his name, and decided to make the line his own.

 

Taxi Driver won the Palme d'Or at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and remains one of the most celebrated films ever made, American or otherwise. In 2012, Sight & Sound magazine named it the 31st best film ever created on its decadal critics' poll, and the 5th greatest film ever on its directors' poll. "You talkin' to me?" was voted the 10th greatest line of all time by the AFI.

[ZappBrannigan]

9 No. I am your Father. The Empire Strikes Back 1980

 

Of the top ten lines of all time, as voted by the panel, 7 of them were unanimously voted on.  This is the first one in the top ten to have everyone's vote.  To further prove that (yes this is me talking, not the panel) critics, for the most part, are about as important to film as cup holders for your drink are to the performance of a car, many of them in 1980 panned the film.  It has gone on to be considered one of the best films ever made and by far the best Star Wars film.  Sometimes you just have to let films simmer and over time, they get the praise they deserve.  The line that Vader says to Luke, after he cuts his hand off, might be the biggest shock in motion picture history.  There was literally a veritable wave of shock that engulfed crowds when they first sat down to watch the film.  Back in 1980, there was obviously no social media to spread plot points.  So this secret was maintained for much of the film's run.  There's a scene in Chinatowne and perhaps one in The Sixth Sense that might be able to be spoken about in the same realm as this one, but nothing could surpass it. 

Been a while since I saw Chinatown, refresh my memory on what the big reveal was on that?  I don't remember being that shocked by it.

[Jake Gittes]

Been a while since I saw Chinatown, refresh my memory on what the big reveal was on that?  I don't remember being that shocked by it.

 

"SHE's MY SISTER AND MY DAUGHTER"

[ZappBrannigan]

"SHE's MY SISTER AND MY DAUGHTER"

Ah yes, ok the incest. I guess I was already too jaded by the time I saw it to be that shocked by it.

[MasterDodsen]

What the hell?!

 

Ezekiel 25-17 was left out of the entire list?

Maximus identifying himself to Commodus in the Colessium was left out as well?

 

"No, I am your father" was not #1?

 

What the hell, man...?

 

I'm disappointed.  I expected much, much more.

[4815162342]

What the hell?! Ezekiel 25-17 was left out of the entire list?Maximus identifying himself to Commodus in the Colessium was left out as well?

Neither of those are movie lines. They're movie paragraphs.

[baumer]

1 May the force be with you Star Wars 1977

 

The expression has achieved cult status and is symbolic of the Star Wars legacy.  In today's world, May the force be with you is just part of our vernacular.  But in 1977, George Lucas wrote something that sounded foreign to many of his actors.  Sir Alec Guiness thought much of the script for A New Hope was hard to say because it was so hokey.  Harrison Ford is on record as saying that Lucas wrote a brilliant script but no one but George knew it at the time.  The famous line is first said by General Dodonna after explaining the plan to attack and destroy the Death Star and then again by Han as he says it to Luke before he leaves for the battle. The AFI selected it as the number 8 line of all time.  There is even an expression that says, "May the 4th be with you."  The force is originally described by Obi Wan as an energy field that is created by all living things, that surrounds and penetrates all living beings and binds the galaxy together.  The force can be used for good but there is also a dark side to it and this is fueled by anger, jealousy, fear, lust and hate.  The Jedi are supposed to use the force for peaceful purposes but the Sith obviously don't see it that way.   Lucas attributed the origins of the Force to a 1963 abstract film by Arthur Lipsett which sampled it from many sources.  The history of Star Wars is famous as it was delayed for months.  Originally it was set for release in December of 1976 but the special effects were not ready.  In fact ILM was basically inventing special effects and Lucas and 20th Century Fox had no choice but to delay the film until May of 1977.  In February of 1977 Lucas screened an early cut of the film for Fox executives and several of his director friends.  Some of the eventual changes that had not been made yet included David Prowse's voice for Vader, most of the special effects were not finished, hand drawn arrows took the place of laser beams and when the space battles were to take place, Lucas cut to old footage of dog fights in WWII. The reaction from directors like Brian DePalma, John Milius and Coppola was disappointment.  Spielberg seemed to be the only one who enjoyed it and could see what Lucas was going for.  But shockingly, the Fox executives loved it.  Alan Ladd, Lucas' greatest supporter from the beginning of the film, loved it and Gareth Wigan told Lucas that it was the greatest film he had ever seen and he openly wept as the film ended.  This gave Lucas a vote of confidence.  When the film was finally released on May 25th, well, we all know the rest.  Vader, Princess Leia, jedis, TIE fighters, lightsabers, wookies and wishing us that the force be with us, all became part of our vernacular and almost 50 years later, it still is.  Star Wars isn't just a film, it's part of our culture.  May the force be with you makes our poll at number 1!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                 

Edited February 17, 2014 by winter baumer

[baumer]

What the hell?!

 

Ezekiel 25-17 was left out of the entire list?

Maximus identifying himself to Commodus in the Colessium was left out as well?

 

"No, I am your father" was not #1?

 

What the hell, man...?

 

I'm disappointed.  I expected much, much more.

 

No need to be disappointed.  There are about a 100 trillion lines to choose from in the history of film.  These are the ones that have stood the test of time.  The fact that they made a short list is impressive. I'll have the full list and a list of every line mentioned, listed here later.

[baumer]

Here is the entire list, and the points received per film and how many of us voted for it to be on the list (out of 11).  The points for some films were incredibly close, as you will see.

 

 

Pos Line Film Votes Points
1 May the force be with you Star Wars 11 920
2 You talking to me? Taxi Driver 11 899
3 You can't handle the truth! A few Good Men 11 892
4 You're gonna need a bigger boat Jaws 11 887
5 I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse The Godfather 11 884
6 Frankly my dear I don't give a damn Gone with the Wind 10 798
7 I'll be back Terminator 11 788
8 We're not in Kansas anymore Wizard of Oz 10 737
9 No. I am your Father Empire Strikes Back 11 705
10 Here's Johnny The Shining 10 678


11 Yippie kai yay Motherfucker Die Hard 10 652
12 Bond, James Bond James Bond 9 635
13 Yo Adrian! I did it Rocky 10 630
14 Go Ahead, Make my day Sudden Impact 11 619
15 Say Hello to my little friend Scarface 11 615
16 I love the smell of Napalm in the Morning Apocalypse Now 9 592
17 All right Mr De Mille, I'm ready for my close up Sunset Boulevard 9 562
18 Greed, for lack of a better word, is good Wall Street 10 560
19 Forget it Jake it's Chinatown Chinatown 8 547
20 There's no place like home Wizard of Oz 10 546
21 The stuff that dreams are made of The Maltese Falcon 7 542
22 Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get Forrest Gump 9 540
23 Why So serious The Dark Knight 11 534
24 Gentlemen, you can't fight here, it’s the war room Dr Strangelove 8 532
25 Roads… where we're going, we don't need roads Back to the Future 10 530


26 They may take our lives, but they'll never take away our Freedom! Braveheart 10 526
27 Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship Casablanca 8 524
28 I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it anymore Network 7 513
29 I am serious and don't call me Shirley Airplane 9 513
30 If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits 88mph, you're gonna… Back to the Future 10 513
31 Get your stinkin paws off me you damn dirty ape Planet of the Apes 10 512
32 Get busy livin or get busy dying Shawshank Redemption 8 508
33 I drink your milkshake There will be blood 7 507
34 Here's looking at you kid Casablanca 8 505
35 What we have here is a failure to communicate Cool hand Luke 7 498
36 Keep your friends close and your enemies closer The Godfather 8 494
37 I'm King of the world Titanic 9 492
38 The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he… The Usual Suspects 10 490
39 I'll have what she's having When Harry met Sally 10 480
40 E.T phone home E.T 8 478
41 I know it was you Frodo. You broke my heart. You broke my heart The Godfather 9 477
42 We all go a little mad sometimes Psycho 8 472
43 The first rule of fight club is you don't talk about Fight Club Fight Club 9 472
44 I coulda been a contender On the Waterfront 8 470
45 Well , Nobody's perfect Some like it Hot 7 468
46 Snakes. Why'd it have to be snakes Indiana Jones 10 457
47 I find your lack of faith disturbing Star Wars 9 452
48 My name is Inigo Montoya, You killed my father. Prepare to die Princess Bride 7 447
49 I'm not bad. I'm just drawn that way Who Framed Roger Rabbit 6 440
50 Badges, we don't need no stinkin badges Treasure of the Sierra Madre 9 439


51 I ate his liver with some fava beans and a bottle of Chianti Silence of the Lambs 8 438
52 Houston we have a problem Apollo 13 10 437
53 I am big, it’s the pictures that got small Sunset Boulevard 10 418
54 No. Try not. Do.. Or do not. There is no try. Empire Strikes Back 9 415
55 Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in… Ferris Bueller 7 409
56 Fasten your seatbelts it gonna be a bumpy ride All about Eve 6 406
57 They call me Mr Tibbs! In the heat of the night 10 403
58 I see dead people The Sixth Sense 10 401
59 Of all the gin joints in all the world, she had to walk into mine Casablanca 7 398
60 To infinity and beyond! Toy Story 9 398
61 It was beauty that killed the beast King Kong 9 394
62 We'll always have Paris Casablanca 6 392
63 I am Sparticus Sparticus 8 388
64 Show me the money Jerry Maguire 8 377
65 I'm too old for this shit Lethal Weapon 9 364
66 That's what I love about these Highschool girls, I keep getting older but… Dazed and confused 6 363
67 It's just a flesh wound Monty Python and the Holy Grail 7 352
68 But I'm funny how, I mean funny like a clown, I amuse you? Goodfellas 8 335
69 Whoever saves one live, saves the entire world Schindlers List 8 333
70 He chose… poorly Indiana Jones 6 328
71 Carpe Diem. Sieze the day boys. Make your lives extraordinary Dead poets society 6 326
72 My Friends. You bow to no one LOTR Return of the King 7 325
73 Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in The Godfather 8 321
74 If you build it they will come. Field of Dreams 9 320
75 There's no crying. There's no crying in baseball A league of their own 6 315


76 My Precious LOTR The Two Towers 7 315
77 Some men just want to watch the world burn The Dark Knight 6 309
78 Welcome to the real world The Matrix 10 305
79 I've always depended on the kindness of strangers A Streetcar named desire 7 305
80 Get away from her you bitch Aliens 7 301
81 Round up the usual suspects Casablanca 5 299
82 I'm here to kick ass and chew bubblegum and I'm all out of bubblegum They Live 9 299
83 Is it safe Marathon Man 6 297
84 You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become … The Dark Knight 8 295
85 The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few Star Trek 8 294
86 I've had it with these motherfucking snakes on this motherfucking plane Snakes on a Plane 8 289
87 A million dollars isn't cool, you know what's cool a billion dollars The Social Network 9 288
88 Kneel before Zod Superman 8 281
89 If it bleeds we can kill it Predator 7 280
90 There are 2 kinds of people in this world, those with loaded guns and… The Good, the bad and the Ugly 6 279
91 I killed him for the money and for a woman. I didn't get the money… Double Indemnity 5 276
92 Leave the gun, take the cannoli The Godfather 5 272
93 When you have to shoot, shoot. Don't talk The Good, the bad and the Ugly 7 272
94 I have a bad feeling about this Star Wars 7 271
95 Game over man! Game over Aliens 8 269
96 I'm gonna make you squeal like a pig Deliverance 7 264
97 Stupid is as stupid does Forrest Gump 8 259
98 One, Two Freddy's coming for you Nightmare on Elm Street 6 256
99 I know what …you've gotta ask yourself a question: Do you feel lucky… Dirty Harry 6 256
100 Never go full retard Tropic Thunder 6 251

[baumer]

Those that missed the cut, the 101st film missed the 100th spot by one point.  

 

 

 

And those that missed the cut...


X What we do in life echoes in eternity Gladiator 7 250
X I say we take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It's the only way… Aliens 5 248
X Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs... The Dark Knight 4 245
X With great power comes great responsibility Spiderman 7 241
X Well it's Groundhog Day… again Groundhog Day 5 239
X I'm the guy doing his job. You must be the other guy The Departed 5 238
X Release the Kraken! Clash of the Titans 7 236
X Have you ever danced by the pale moonlight Batman 5 235
X Shoot your eye out kid. Christmas Story 5 235
X Are you gonna bark all day little doggie? Or are you gonna bite? Reservoir Dogs 6 233
X Run Forrest Run! Forrest Gump 6 229
X I feel the need, the need for speed Top Gun 5 223
X That'll do pig, that'll do Babe 7 221
X A boy's best friend is his mother Psycho 5 220
X Live long and prosper Wrath of Khan 8 218
X Did you fuck my wife? Raging Bull 4 216
X Hasta La vista Baby Terminator 7 212
X I think of a man, take away reason and accountability. As good as it gets 5 212
X That's not a knife… now that's a knife Crocodile Dundee 5 209
X I'll get you my pretties! And you're little dog too! Wizard of Oz 5 205
X A Martini, shaken. Not Stirred Goldfinger 5 200
X Good morning. And in case I don't see ya, good afternoon… The Truman Show 5 199
X This isnt flying, it's falling with style Toy Story 4 196
X Get off my plane Airforce 1 8 193
X Failure is not an option Apollo 13 5 193
X There's something waiting for us, and it aint no man Predator 3 191
X This is Sparta 300 6 188
X As you wish Princess Bride 6 182
X You had me at hello Jerry Maguire 7 180
X Are you not entertained Gladiator 6 175
X Andy Dufresne, who crawled through a river of shit and came out clean… Shawshank Redemption 5 171
X Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope Star Wars 5 170
X Forgiveness is between man and God. It's my job to arrange the meeting Man on Fire 3 167
X Wax on Wax off The Karate Kid 4 160
X Elementary my dear Watson Sherlock Holmes 4 159
X You're tearing me apart Lisa The Room 4 155
X We didn’t land on Plymouth Rock. Plymouth Rock landed on us Malcolm X 6 148
X Argo fuck yourself Argo 4 147
X Baby, you're gonna miss that plane Before Sunset 3 143
X Some days you just can't get rid of a bomb Batman 4 142
X You complete me Jerry Maguire 5 133
X My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the armie… Gladiator 3 128
X That's no moon. It's a space station Star Wars 3 126
X Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries etc Monty Python and the Holy Grail 4 116
X I'm living in America and in America, you're on your own Killing then softly 3 109
X This one time, at band camp American Pie 3 105
X At my signal, unleash hell Gladiator 5 101
X A man who doesn’t spend time with his family can never be a real man The Godfather 2 85
X It's 1183 and we're Barbarians. How clear we make it. Oh, my piglets… The Lion in Winter 1 82
X So you're saying there's a chance? Dumb and Dumber 5 80
X I don't know who you are. I don't know what want. Set of skills etc Taken 3 77
X Spiderpig, spiderpig, does whatever a spiderpig does Simpsons 2 75
X Onions have layers, Ogres have layers. Onions have layers… Shrek 2 72
X The Dingo ate my baby A cry in the dark 1 37
X Ezekiel 25:17 The path of a righteous man is beset on all sides… Pulp Fiction 2 37

[baumer]

I'll give some insider commentary later.  Other members can feel free to do the same as well.

[Films]

Just quickly, were there any mean girls quotes outside of the top 100 and if so, what position

[baumer]

Just quickly, were there any mean girls quotes outside of the top 100 and if so, what position

 

I'll be looking that up later tonight.  I'm not sure right now.

I'll get the entire list up later tonight sometime.

[baumer]

[baumer]

Kinda surprised at the lack of interest in this thread.  There were 26 people who commented in here and maybe 7 of those were members of the panel.  Kind of disappointed seeing how long we worked on this.

[Films]

Great presentation. Personally I loved itSome quotes I would have included'It's nice'- borat'If you're from Africa, why are you white'- mean girls'Some people are worth melting for'- frozen (but it might not have been in time for this thread)