100 Essential Films by The National Society of Film Critics

In 2002 The National Society of Film Critics brought out the book “The A List: The National Society of Film Critics’ 100 Essential Films”, edited by Jay Carr. It features 100 essays on the 100 Films. The essays look at the origins of the films, why the critics love them and their significance within the context of film history. The list is in alphabetical order. Buy – The A List: The National Society Of Film Critics’ 100 Essential Films (book/kindle)

 

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
42nd Street (1933)
The 400 Blows (1959, Fr.) (aka Les Quatre Cents Coups)
All About Eve (1950)
Annie Hall (1977)
Ashes and Diamonds (1958, Poland)
L’Atalante (1934, Fr.)
The Bank Dick (1940)
The Battleship Potemkin (1925, Soviet Union)
The Birth Of A Nation (1915)
Blow-Up (1966, UK)
Bonnie And Clyde (1967)
Breathless (1960, Fr.) (aka À Bout de Souffle)
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
Casablanca (1942)
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978, Australia)
Children of Paradise (1945, Fr.) (aka Les Enfants du Paradis)
Chinatown (1974)
Citizen Kane (1941)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Closely Watched Trains (1966, Czech) (aka Ostre Sledované Vlaky)
Close-up (1990, Iran) (aka Nema-ye Nazdik)
Dance, Girl, Dance (1940)
The Decalogue (1989, Polish)
Diary of a Country Priest (1951, Fr.)
Diner (1982)
Do the Right Thing (1989)
La Dolce Vita (1959, It.)
Double Indemnity (1944)
Duck Soup (1933)
Easy Rider (1969)
Enter the Dragon (1973)
The Entertainer (1960, UK)
The Exorcist (1973)
Faces (1968)
Fargo (1996)
Frankenstein (1931) and The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
The General (1927)
The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather Part II (1974)
Gone With The Wind (1939)
The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964, It./Fr.)
The Graduate (1967)
Greed (1924)
Happy Together (1997, HK/Jp./S.Kor.)
High Noon (1952)
The Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
Jailhouse Rock (1957)
Ju Dou (1990, China/Jp.), Raise the Red Lantern (1991, China/HK), Red Sorghum (1987, China)
Killer of Sheep (1978)
L.A. Confidential (1997)
Landscape in the Mist (1988, Greece)
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
M (1931, Germ.)
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
The Man With a Movie Camera (1929, Soviet Union)
The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979, W.Germ.)
Metropolis (1927)
Modern Times (1936)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)




Nashville (1975)
The Night of the Hunter (1955)
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Nosferatu (1922, Germ.)
Los Olvidados (1950, Mex.)
On The Waterfront (1954)
Rome: Open City (1945, It.) (aka Roma Città Aperta)
The Palm Beach Story (1942)
Pandora’s Box (1929, Germ.)
The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928, Fr.) (aka La passion de Jeanne d’Arc)
Pather Panchali (1955, India), Aparajito (1956, India), The World of Apu (1959, India)
The Piano (1993, NZ)
Psycho (1960)
The Public Enemy (1931)
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Raging Bull (1980)
Rashomon (1950, Jp.)
Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
The Rules of the Game (1939, Fr.) (aka La Règle du Jeu)
Schindler’s List (1993)
The Searchers (1956)
The Seven Samurai (1954, Jp.)
The Seventh Seal (1957, Swe.)
Singin’ In The Rain (1952)
Star Wars (1977)
La Strada (1954, It.) and The Nights of Cabiria (1957, It.)
Sunrise (1927)
Sunset Boulevard (1950)
The Thief of Bagdad (1924)
Tokyo Story (1953, Jp.)
Top Hat (1935)
Touch Of Evil (1958)
Trouble in Paradise (1932)
Ugetsu Monogatari (1953, Jp.)
Unforgiven (1992)
Les Vampires (1915, Fr.)
Vertigo (1958)
The Wild Bunch (1969)
Winchester ’73 (1950)
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Written on the Wind (1956)



Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *