100 Films

Here is a list of films my students asked me to put together. It is intended to reflect the first 100 movies I have in my collection (about 1,200 titles) that I would recommend someone watch who is studying to become a filmmaker. Sorry but there are no documentaries or animated features here, just live-action, narrative, fiction films. I welcome your comments.

2001: A Space Odyssey
8 ½
Alexander Nevsky
Alphaville
Annie Hall
Apartment, The
Apocalypse Now
Augirre: the Wrath of God
Beauty and the Beast (’46)
Bicycle Thief, The
Blow-Up
Blue Velvet
Bonnie and Clyde
Brazil
Bride of Frankenstein
Bringing Up Baby
Cabinet of Dr. Calagari, The (‘20)
Casablanca
Cat People (’42)
Chinatown
Citizen Kane
Clockwork Orange
Detour (’45)
Diary of a Country Priest
Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, The
Double Indemnity
Dr. Strangelove
Duck Soup
Duel
Eraserhead
Fargo
Footlight Parade
General, The (’27)
Godfather, The
Gold Rush, The
Gone With the Wind
Graduate, The
Grand Illusion, The
Greed
Gun Crazy (’50)
High Noon
Intolerance
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (’56)
It’s a Wonderful Life
Jules and Jim
King Kong (’33)
L’Aventura
La Strada
La Dolce Vita
Last Laugh, The
Last Year at Marienbad
Lawrence of Arabia
M (’31)
Maltese Falcon, The
Manhattan
Metropolis (’27)
Mr. Hulot’s Holiday
Nosferatu (‘22)
Notorious
On the Waterfront
Once Upon a Time in the West
Out of the Past
Passion of Joan of Arc, The
Peeping Tom
Persona
Place in the Sun, A
Playtime
Psycho
Raging Bull
Ran
Rashomon
Rules of the Game, The
Searchers, The
Seven Samarui, The
Seventh Seal, The
Singin’ In the Rain
Some Like It Hot
Stagecoach
Stalker
Sullivan’s Travels
Sunrise
Sunset Boulevard
Taxi Driver
To Be or Not To Be (’42)
Top Hat
Touch of Evil
Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The
Ugetsu
Unforgiven
Vampyr
Vertigo
Videodrome
Wages of Fear, The
West Side Story
Wild Bunch, The
Wild Strawberries
Wind, The
Wizard of Oz, The
Woman Under the Influence, A
Yojimbo