202 Movies You Must See Before You Die

This is my list. Why isn’t “High and Low,” “Some Like it Hot,” “Gone With the Wind” or a hundred other movies not on this list? Well they could be. I just picked my favourites at this moment in time. My main criteria in selecting films: Is this an excellent movie and do I love it? An excellent film translates to, excellent writing, acting, costumes, story, directing, music, etc. I tend to like strange and arty stuff that will sometimes leave you with nothing but questions. That said, I’m also drawn towards films filled with interesting characters and have a strong narrative. This is a list of 202 films I love and hope you will find some you love too. 

I recognize there are short comings to my list: there are a lot of films from white men here, mostly English speaking. This is because these are the films which have dominated my viewing experience throughout my lifetime. I continue to seek out diverse voices and maybe this list will change (likely) in the future. 

This list does include female directors, gay directors, black directors, and Jewish directors. Directors who are American, Mexican, Canadian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, British, Australian, New Zealanders, German, South African, Russian, French, Italian, Pakistani, and Danish. The bottom line is, no matter the background of the people, they all have made these wonderful films. 

If you watch one a week, you will be done in just under four years. One a month, just under 17 years. Time to get moving! Listed in alphabetical order


1. 12 Angry Men (1957)

2. 1900 (1976)

3. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

4. A Clockwork Orange (1971)

5. A Woman Under the Influence (1974) 

6. The Accountant (2016)

7. Airplane! (1980)

8. Alien (1979)

9. Amadeus (1984)

10. Amarcord (1973)

11. Amélie (2001)

12. American Honey (2016)

13. Amores Perros (2001)

14. Anora (2024)

15. The Apartment (1960)

16. Apocalypse Now (1979)

17. Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (2022)

18. Barfly (1987)

19. Beau is Afraid (2023)

20. Beautiful Girls (1996)

21. The Big Short (2015)

22. Bird (2024)

23. Blade Runner (1982)

24. Blonde (2022)

25. Blood Simple (1984)

26. Blue Ruin (2013)

27. Blue Velvet (1986)

28. Braveheart (1995)

29. Brazil (1985)

30. The Breakfast Club (1985)

31. Breaking the Waves (1996)

32. Bridesmaids (2011)

33. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974) 

34. Buffalo ’66 (1998) 

35. Casablanca (1942)

36. Cast Away (2000)

37. Citizen Kane (1941)

38. The Conjuring (2013)

39. Cool Hand Luke (1967)

40. Coraline (2009)

41. The Creator (2023)

42. Cremaster 3 (2002)

43. Dances With Wolves (1990)

44. Das Boot (1981)

45. Dead Poet’s Society (1989)

46. Dead Ringers (1988)

47. The Deer Hunter (1978)

48. Deliverance (1972)

49. District 9 (2009)

50. Do the Right Thing (1989)

51. Don’t Breathe (2016)

52. Down by Law (1986)

53. Dr. No (1962)

54. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

55. Dracula (1931)

56. Dragged Across Concrete (2018)

57. Dream Scenario (2023)

58. Drive (2011)

59. Easy Rider (1969)

60. Ed Wood (1994)

61. Enter the Dragon (1973)

62. Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

63. The Exorcist (1973)

64. Fargo (1996)

65. Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

66. Fight Club (1999)

67. Fitzcarraldo (1982)

68. Frankenstein (1931)

69. Free Solo (2018)

70. The French Connection (1971)

71. Garden State (2004)

72. The Godfather (1972)

73. The Godfather Part II (1974)

74. Goldfinger (1964)

75. Good Time (2017)

76. Good Will Hunting (1997)

77. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly (1966)

78. Goodfellas (1990)

79. The Great Escape (1963)

80. Groundhog Day (1993)

81. Halloween (1978)

82. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

83. Harold and Maude (1971)

84. Heat (1995)

85. Heredity (2018)

86. The Holy Mountain (1973)

87. Hoosiers (1986)

88. The Hustler (1961)

89. In the Bedroom (2001)

90. In the Heat of the Night (1967)

91. Inception (2010)

92. Into the Void (2019)

93. Into the Wild (2007)

94. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

95. Jaws (1975)

96. John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982)

97. Jojo Rabbit (2019)

98. Joyland (2022)

99. Jurassic Park (1993)

100. Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003)

101. Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004)

102. The Killer (1989)

103. The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)

104. Koyaanisqatsi (1982)

105. La Femme Nikita (1990)

106. The Last Detail (1973)

107. The Last Duel (2021)

108. Léolo (1992)

109. Life is Beautiful (1997)

110. Looper (2012)

111. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

112. Maelstrom (2000) 

113. The Maltese Falcon (1941)

114. Mandy (2018)

115. Match Point (2005) 

116. The Matrix (1999)

117. Memento (2000)

118. Men (2022)

119. Midnight Cowboy (1969)

120. Million Dollar Baby (2004)

121. Misery (1990)

122. Mob Land (2023)

123. Mud (2013)

124. Night of the Living Dead (1968)

125. No Country for Old Men (2007)

126. North by Northwest (1959)

127. On the Waterfront (1954)

128. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Next (1975)

129. Paper Moon (1973)

130. Parasite (2019)

131. Paris, Texas (1984)

132. Paterson (2016)

133. The Philadelphia Story (1940)

134. Platoon (1986)

135. The Player (1992)

136. Poltergeist (1982)

137. Poor Things (2023)

138. Pretty Woman (1990)

139. Primer (2004)

140. The Princess Bride (1987)

141. Psycho (1960)

142. Pulp Fiction (1994)

143. Pusher (1996)

144. Pusher 2 (2004)

145. Pusher 3 (2005)

146. Raging Bull (1980)

147. The Raid: Redemption (2011)

148. The Raid 2 (2014)

149. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

150. Rain Man (1988)

151. Rear Window (1954)

152. Requiem for a Dream  (2000)

153. Rocky (1976)

154. Run Lola Run (1998)

155. Santa Sangria (1989)

156. Schindler’s List (1993)

157. Scream (1996)

158. Seven Samurai (1954)

159. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

160. The Shining (1980)

161. Short Cuts (1993)

162. Sideways (2004)

163. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

164. The Silent Partner (1978)

165. The Sixth Sense (1999)

166. Smile (2022)

167. The Social Network (2010)

168. Solaris (1972)

169. Stalker (1979)

170. Star Wars – A New Hope (1977)

171. The Substance (2024)

172. Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)

173. Synecdoche, New York (2008)

174. Talk to Me (2022)

175. Taxi Driver (1976)

176. The Terminator (1984)

177. Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)

178. Thelma & Louise (1991) 

179. The Third Man (1949)

180. This is 40 (2012)

181. Titanic (1997)

182. Tombstone (1993)

183. Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

184. Unbreakable (2000)

185. Uncut Gems (2020)

186. Unforgiven (1992)

187. Up (2009)

188. Us (2019)

189. Vertigo (1958)

190. The Wailing (2016)

191. When Harry Meet Sally (1989)

192. Whiplash (2014)

193. Wild at Heart (1990)

194. Wings of Desire (1987)

195. Withnail & I (1987)

196. Witness for the Prosecution (1957)

197. The Wizard of Oz (1939)

198. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

199. Woodstock (1970)

200. You Can Count on Me (2000)

201. Zodiac (2007)

202. Zombie (1979)


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