I've blogged about 94 of the current Top 250 films, so my mission is 38% complete.
I first did a mission status snapshot in February 2009. The Top 250 has changed a lot since then. 36% of the films that were on the Top 250 in 2009 have now dropped off. Nearly half of that is because 49 (20%) of the films that are now in the Top 250 were made after 2009 (the two highest being a duo of Chris Nolans: Inception in the #13 spot and Interstellar at #27). Apart from those, some of the highest climbers since 2009 have been:
26. The Green Mile (1999) +90 places
36. The Lion King (1994) +138 places
47. Harakiri (1962) new to the Top 250
48. Grave of the Fireflies (1988) +152 places
75. Toy Story (1995) +104 places
82. Good Will Hunting (1997) new to the Top 250
92. High and Low (1963) new to the Top 250
101. Come and See (1985) new to the Top 250
107. Ikiru (1952) new to the Top 250
123. Like Stars on Earth (2007) new to the Top 250
142. A Beautiful Mind (2001) new to the Top 250
143. The Truman Show (1998) new to the Top 250
Of the films I've heard about on that list, I thoroughly approve of their elevation, but it's baffling to me as to why they've gained so much cachet in the last 13 years. Perhaps it's at least partly to do with improved availability in the age of streaming? (And the four films on that list I'd never heard of are going onto the to-watch list for sure.)
RISEN: Since I blogged about them, 24 films have gone up in the ranking:
The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) (up 2 places)
The Sixth Sense (1999) (+2)
The Dark Knight (2008) (+2)
Gone with the Wind (1939) (+3)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) (+5)
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) (+7)
The Departed (2006) (+9)
Forrest Gump (1994) (+17)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988) (+19)
Fight Club (1999) (+20)
Princess Mononoke (1997) (+20)
V for Vendetta (2006) (+21)
Oldboy (2003) (+22)
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983) (+24)
Toy Story (1995) (+37)
The Lion King (1994) (+43)
Back to the Future (1985) (+44)
A Beautiful Mind (2001) (+48)
Howl's Moving Castle (2004) (+54)
Inception (2010) (+70)
Dial M for Murder (1954) (+80)
The Prestige (2006) (+146)
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) (previously unranked)
STATIC: 7 films have stayed the same:
Top Gun: Maverick (2022) (#45)
Paths of Glory (1957) (#61)
Avengers: Infinity War (2018) (#65)
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) (#69)
Hamilton (2020) (#119)
The Father (2020) (#132)
Million Dollar Baby (2004) (#174)
FALLEN: And the rest have gone down. Of the 23 films I blogged about that had dropped out of the ranking as of my 2013 snapshot, only one has resurfaced (and deservedly so) - The Incredibles at #228. Apart from those, the biggest losers, including 22 more which have dropped out of the ranking altogether, are:
The Third Man (1949) (down 104 places)
Inside Out (2015) (-110)
Chinatown (1974) (-112)
The Wizard of Oz (1939) (-128)
The Incredibles (2004) (-148)
Hotel Rwanda (2004) (-151)
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) (-172)
Life of Pi (2012) (was #227)
The Artist (2011) (was #224)
Roman Holiday (1953) (was #220)
The King's Speech (2010) (was #185)
Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) (was #184)
Arrival (2016) (was #174)
The Lego Movie (2014) (was #172)
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) (was #155)
Her (2013) (was #125)
Birdman (2014) (was #125)
Avengers Assemble (2012) (was #124)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) (was #119)
Drive (2011) (was #98)
Star Trek (2009) (was #82)
Sin City (2005) (was #68)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) (was #58)
The Wrestler (2008) (was #57)
Dunkirk (2017) (was #51)
Gravity (2013) (was #50)
Black Swan (2010) (was #49)
District 9 (2009) (was #44)
Slumdog Millionaire (2008) (was #34)
(Some big losers at the end there!)
See previous snapshots: Feb 2017, Feb 2013, Sep 2010, Feb 2009.
| Title | IMDb rating | Blogged? |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) | 9.2 | |
| 2. The Godfather (1972) | 9.2 | |
| 3. The Dark Knight (2008) | 9 | Yes |
| 4. The Godfather: Part II (1974) | 9 | |
| 5. 12 Angry Men (1957) | 8.9 | |
| 6. Schindler's List (1993) | 8.9 | |
| 7. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) | 8.9 | |
| 8. Pulp Fiction (1994) | 8.9 | |
| 9. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) | 8.8 | |
| 10. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) | 8.8 | |
| 11. Forrest Gump (1994) | 8.8 | Yes |
| 12. Fight Club (1999) | 8.7 | Yes |
| 13. Inception (2010) | 8.7 | Yes |
| 14. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) | 8.7 | |
| 15. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) | 8.7 | Yes |
| 16. The Matrix (1999) | 8.7 | |
| 17. Goodfellas (1990) | 8.7 | |
| 18. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) | 8.6 | |
| 19. Seven (1995) | 8.6 | |
| 20. Seven Samurai (1954) | 8.6 | Yes |
| 21. It's a Wonderful Life (1946) | 8.6 | |
| 22. The Silence of the Lambs (1991) | 8.6 | |
| 23. City of God (2002) | 8.6 | Yes |
| 24. Saving Private Ryan (1998) | 8.6 | |
| 25. Life Is Beautiful (1997) | 8.6 | |
| 26. The Green Mile (1999) | 8.6 | |
| 27. Interstellar (2014) | 8.6 | Yes |
| 28. Star Wars (1977) | 8.6 | Yes |
| 29. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 30. Back to the Future (1985) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 31. Spirited Away (2001) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 32. Psycho (1960) | 8.5 | |
| 33. The Pianist (2002) | 8.5 | |
| 34. Leon (1994) | 8.5 | |
| 35. Parasite (2019) | 8.5 | |
| 36. The Lion King (1994) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 37. Gladiator (2000) | 8.5 | |
| 38. American History X (1998) | 8.5 | |
| 39. The Usual Suspects (1995) | 8.5 | |
| 40. The Departed (2006) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 41. The Prestige (2006) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 42. Casablanca (1942) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 43. Whiplash (2014) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 44. Untouchable (2011) | 8.5 | |
| 45. Top Gun: Maverick (2022) | 8.5 | Yes |
| 46. Modern Times (1936) | 8.5 | |
| 47. Harakiri (1962) | 8.4 | |
| 48. Grave of the Fireflies (1988) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 49. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 50. Rear Window (1954) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 51. Alien (1979) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 52. City Lights (1931) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 53. Cinema Paradiso (1988) | 8.4 | |
| 54. Memento (2000) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 55. Apocalypse Now (1979) | 8.4 | |
| 56. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 57. Django Unchained (2012) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 58. WALL·E (2008) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 59. The Lives of Others (2006) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 60. Sunset Blvd. (1950) | 8.4 | |
| 61. Paths of Glory (1957) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 62. The Shining (1980) | 8.4 | |
| 63. The Great Dictator (1940) | 8.4 | |
| 64. Witness for the Prosecution (1957) | 8.4 | |
| 65. Avengers: Infinity War (2018) | 8.4 | Yes |
| 66. Aliens (1986) | 8.3 | |
| 67. American Beauty (1999) | 8.3 | |
| 68. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) | 8.3 | |
| 69. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 70. The Dark Knight Rises (2012) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 71. Oldboy (2003) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 72. Joker (2019) | 8.3 | |
| 73. Amadeus (1984) | 8.3 | |
| 74. Braveheart (1995) | 8.3 | |
| 75. Toy Story (1995) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 76. Coco (2017) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 77. Das Boot (1981) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 78. Inglourious Basterds (2009) | 8.3 | |
| 79. Princess Mononoke (1997) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 80. Avengers: Endgame (2019) | 8.3 | |
| 81. Once Upon a Time in America (1984) | 8.3 | |
| 82. Good Will Hunting (1997) | 8.3 | |
| 83. Toy Story 3 (2010) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 84. Requiem for a Dream (2000) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 85. Your Name. (2016) | 8.3 | |
| 86. Singin' in the Rain (1952) | 8.3 | |
| 87. 3 Idiots (2009) | 8.3 | |
| 88. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 89. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) | 8.3 | |
| 90. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 91. Reservoir Dogs (1992) | 8.3 | |
| 92. High and Low (1963) | 8.3 | |
| 93. Capernaum (2018) | 8.3 | |
| 94. Citizen Kane (1941) | 8.3 | |
| 95. Lawrence of Arabia (1962) | 8.3 | Yes |
| 96. The Hunt (2012) | 8.3 | |
| 97. M (1931) | 8.3 | |
| 98. North by Northwest (1959) | 8.3 | |
| 99. Vertigo (1958) | 8.2 | |
| 100. Amélie (2001) | 8.2 | |
| 101. Come and See (1985) | 8.2 | |
| 102. A Clockwork Orange (1971) | 8.2 | |
| 103. Full Metal Jacket (1987) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 104. Double Indemnity (1944) | 8.2 | |
| 105. The Apartment (1960) | 8.2 | |
| 106. Scarface (1983) | 8.2 | |
| 107. Ikiru (1952) | 8.2 | |
| 108. The Sting (1973) | 8.2 | |
| 109. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) | 8.2 | |
| 110. Taxi Driver (1976) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 111. Up (2009) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 112. L.A. Confidential (1997) | 8.2 | |
| 113. Heat (1995) | 8.2 | |
| 114. Metropolis (1927) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 115. A Separation (2011) | 8.2 | |
| 116. Die Hard (1988) | 8.2 | |
| 117. Incendies (2010) | 8.2 | |
| 118. Snatch (2000) | 8.2 | |
| 119. Hamilton (2020) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 120. Bicycle Thieves (1948) | 8.2 | |
| 121. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) | 8.2 | |
| 122. 1917 (2019) | 8.2 | |
| 123. Like Stars on Earth (2007) | 8.2 | |
| 124. Downfall (2004) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 125. For a Few Dollars More (1965) | 8.2 | |
| 126. Batman Begins (2005) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 127. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) | 8.2 | |
| 128. Dangal (2016) | 8.2 | |
| 129. The Kid (1921) | 8.2 | |
| 130. Some Like It Hot (1959) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 131. All About Eve (1950) | 8.2 | |
| 132. The Father (2020) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 133. Green Book (2018) | 8.2 | |
| 134. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 135. Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) | 8.2 | |
| 136. Ran (1985) | 8.2 | |
| 137. Unforgiven (1992) | 8.2 | |
| 138. Casino (1995) | 8.2 | |
| 139. Pan's Labyrinth (2006) | 8.2 | |
| 140. There Will Be Blood (2007) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 141. The Sixth Sense (1999) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 142. A Beautiful Mind (2001) | 8.2 | Yes |
| 143. The Truman Show (1998) | 8.2 | |
| 144. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) | 8.2 | |
| 145. Yojimbo (1961) | 8.2 | |
| 146. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) | 8.1 | |
| 147. Shutter Island (2010) | 8.1 | |
| 148. Rashomon (1950) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 149. Jurassic Park (1993) | 8.1 | |
| 150. The Great Escape (1963) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 151. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 152. Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 153. No Country for Old Men (2007) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 154. Finding Nemo (2003) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 155. The Elephant Man (1980) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 156. Chinatown (1974) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 157. Raging Bull (1980) | 8.1 | |
| 158. Gone with the Wind (1939) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 159. V for Vendetta (2006) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 160. The Thing (1982) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 161. Inside Out (2015) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 162. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) | 8.1 | |
| 163. Dial M for Murder (1954) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 164. The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 165. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) | 8.1 | |
| 166. Howl's Moving Castle (2004) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 167. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 168. Trainspotting (1996) | 8.1 | |
| 169. Warrior (2011) | 8.1 | |
| 170. Gran Torino (2008) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 171. Fargo (1996) | 8.1 | |
| 172. Prisoners (2013) | 8.1 | |
| 173. My Neighbour Totoro (1988) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 174. Million Dollar Baby (2004) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 175. The Gold Rush (1925) | 8.1 | |
| 176. Catch Me If You Can (2002) | 8.1 | |
| 177. Blade Runner (1982) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 178. On the Waterfront (1954) | 8.1 | |
| 179. The Third Man (1949) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 180. Children of Heaven (1997) | 8.1 | |
| 181. Ben-Hur (1959) | 8.1 | |
| 182. The General (1926) | 8.1 | |
| 183. Wild Strawberries (1957) | 8.1 | |
| 184. 12 Years a Slave (2013) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 185. Before Sunrise (1995) | 8.1 | |
| 186. Gone Girl (2014) | 8.1 | |
| 187. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) | 8. | Yes |
| 188. The Deer Hunter (1978) | 8.1 | |
| 189. In the Name of the Father (1993) | 8.1 | |
| 190. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 191. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) | 8.1 | |
| 192. The Wages of Fear (1953) | 8.1 | |
| 193. Barry Lyndon (1975) | 8.1 | |
| 194. Sherlock Jr. (1924) | 8.1 | |
| 195. Memories of Murder (2003) | 8.1 | |
| 196. Klaus (2019) | 8.1 | |
| 197. Hacksaw Ridge (2016) | 8.1 | |
| 198. The Seventh Seal (1957) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 199. Room (2015) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 200. Wild Tales (2014) | 8.1 | |
| 201. The Big Lebowski (1998) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 202. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 203. How to Train Your Dragon (2010) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 204. Mary and Max (2009) | 8.1 | |
| 205. Monsters, Inc. (2001) | 8.1 | |
| 206. Jaws (1975) | 8.1 | |
| 207. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) | 8.1 | |
| 208. Tokyo Story (1953) | 8.1 | |
| 209. Dead Poets Society (1989) | 8.1 | |
| 210. Hotel Rwanda (2004) | 8.1 | Yes |
| 211. Rocky (1976) | 8 | Yes |
| 212. Pather Panchali (1955) | 8 | |
| 213. Platoon (1986) | 8 | |
| 214. Le Mans '66 (2019) | 8 | |
| 215. Stand by Me (1986) | 8 | |
| 216. The Terminator (1984) | 8 | |
| 217. Spotlight (2015) | 8 | |
| 218. Rush (2013) | 8 | |
| 219. Network (1976) | 8 | |
| 220. Into the Wild (2007) | 8 | Yes |
| 221. Logan (2017) | 8 | Yes |
| 222. The Wizard of Oz (1939) | 8 | Yes |
| 223. Ratatouille (2007) | 8 | |
| 224. Groundhog Day (1993) | 8 | |
| 225. Before Sunset (2004) | 8 | |
| 226. The Exorcist (1973) | 8 | |
| 227. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) | 8 | |
| 228. The Incredibles (2004) | 8 | Yes |
| 229. To Be or Not to Be (1942) | 8 | |
| 230. The Grapes of Wrath (1940) | 8 | |
| 231. Rebecca (1940) | 8 | |
| 232. The Battle of Algiers (1966) | 8 | |
| 233. Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009) | 8 | |
| 234. Cool Hand Luke (1967) | 8 | |
| 235. Amores perros (2000) | 8 | Yes |
| 236. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) | 8 | Yes |
| 237. La Haine (1995) | 8 | |
| 238. The 400 Blows (1959) | 8 | |
| 239. Persona (1966) | 8 | |
| 240. My Father and My Son (2005) | 8 | |
| 241. It Happened One Night (1934) | 8 | |
| 242. Life of Brian (1979) | 8 | Yes |
| 243. The Sound of Music (1965) | 8 | |
| 244. Dersu Uzala (1975) | 8 | |
| 245. The Handmaiden (2016) | 8 | |
| 246. Aladdin (1992) | 8 | |
| 247. Gandhi (1982) | 8 | Yes |
| 248. Jai Bhim (2021) | 8 | |
| 249. The Help (2011) | 8 | |
| 250. Beauty and the Beast (1991) | 8 |
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