best film:  8 ½ has crawled past La Dolce Vita on my all-time list over the years. They’re both absolutely marvelous but the more imaginative/surrealistic set-piece brilliance of  8 ½  has won me over.  Still-

best film:  The Searchers is the best film of all-time. I’ll be the first one to admit that I can’t prove this—there are 5-10 other films that I think you could make the case for

best film: Once Upon a Time in the West. Fonda was in three masterpieces but only one made the top 100 of all-time (#52). Most critics think it’s Leone’s masterpiece (I still have The Good,

best film:  Cool Hand Luke. Newman has only actually been in two masterpieces, this and Butch Cassidy. It’s a weakness if you’re looking at his resume and comparing him with the other all-time greats. However,

best film:  The Wild Bunch. William Holden was in four masterpieces but none better than the 1969 Peckinpah fatalistic western. Holden leads the crew of rugged desperados (excellent work from Warren Oates, Ben Johnson and

best film:  Aguirre, the Wrath of God is the 31st best film of all-time and it is Herzog’s masterpiece. Kinski has actually been in some sneaky-good films outside of his famous collaborations with Herzog (Doctor

best film:  The Graduate remains Hoffman’s sole top 100 all-time film and it’s fitting because it’s also his best performance. I love Bonnie and Clyde and there are other important American films to mark the

best film:  The Royal Tenenbaums. This category is putting me to the test with my allegiance (as always, based on merit) to Wes Anderson and his crowning masterpiece, The Royal Tenenbaums. I don’t want to

best film:  The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly was at #46 on my top 100 of all-time. It’s the strongest of the “Dollars” or “Man With No Name” trilogy though Fistful of Dollars (essentially

best film:  Inception. Inception is one of the great films of the decade thus far—a sonic-boom of a filmmaking achievement from Christopher Nolan. I’ve cooled on The Departed a little in the last decade but

best film:  The Seventh Seal. Wild Strawberries is a film many critics argue is superior to The Seventh Seal but I on team Seventh Seal for the time being at least. The Exorcist is also

best film:  Out of the Past. Most would say Night of the Hunter but I still find some weaknesses in Charles Laughton’s only film as director that I can’t find in Out of the Past.