Our favorite movies of 1930-1989

We're finally finishing these lists. You can see 2012 (recently updated to include movies we saw late), the other 2000s, and the '90s if you click on the links, just in case you missed them. 

Our Top Ten Movies of the '80s (VERY difficult to narrow down)


1. The Untouchables- This has to be our number one, and not just because it's referenced heavily in a Supernatural episode. It's a good story about a group of guys who couldn't be corrupted. 
2. The Breakfast Club- Decades later, teens still relate to this drama. There's something about it that makes it timeless and special. Sure, the romance element is unnecessary and lame, but the rest of the movie is perfect.
3. Heathers- The original Mean Girls with way bigger balls (but, admittedly, fewer laughs).
4. Full Metal Jacket- The first half mostly. But Lord, what a first half.
5. The Princess Bride- The fact that some people still haven't seen this is inconceivable. 
6. Back to the Future- While we enjoy the whole trilogy, this is the one that made the most sense, had the tightest plot, and really made us love Michael J. Fox for the first time. 
7. The Shining- We love this book, but we think the movie improves on it. 
8. Die Hard- Not just our 8th favorite movie of the 80s, but our favorite Christmas movie of all time. YES, it's a Christmas movie. 
9. An Officer and a Gentleman- It's a military fairytale. It's romantic, it's entertaining, and the end is classic.
10. Ferris Bueller's Day Off- While the adventures of the day weren't as BIG as we would have wanted, this movie has so many laughs and features one of the few cinematic popular kids that you would actually like. He's a nice guy...for a total delinquent ass. 
Honorable mentions: Say Anything, The Goonies, Ghostbusters, ET, Chariots of Fire, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Ann of Green Gables, When Harry Met Sally, Field of Dreams, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, Do the Right Thing, Driving Miss Daisy, Coming to America, The Land Before Time, Dirty Dancing, Lethal Weapon, Stand By Me, Top Gun, Amadeus, Footloose, The Neverending Story, Sixteen Candles, Revenge of the Nerds, Flashdance, Annie, The Man from Snowy River

Best movies of the '70s
1. The Godfather part 2- Universally praised mob movie.
2. The Godfather- Almost as good as its sequel (some say better). Just a little long. Worth sitting through though.
3. The Empire Strikes Back- The is the Star Wars movie that got closest to greatness. It reached for darkness and gave us one of the best plot twists in history. It was a game changer.
4. Star Wars: A New Hope- Introduced an enthralling new universe that would entertain geeks like us for years to come. Sure, it was full of stock characters and an unoriginal plot, but the mythology and Han Solo more than made up for it.
4. Monty Python and the Holy Grail- This isn't everyone's humor, but if it is, you're gonna love this.
5. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory- Gene Wilder kicked Depp's ass in this movie. Watch and see. Grandpa Joe is a dick though. Love the songs and the characters being, essentially, the Seven Deadly Sins.
6. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest- We didn't love this one as much as the people who saw it in the '70s did, but it's still a really great movie. We think it was the ending that bummed us out. The whole ride up to it was perfect though.
7. Grease- Sure, they all look 30. Sure, Sandy has to change herself and that's a bad message. But the singing isn't bad and the dancing is fun.
8. Star Wars: Return of the Jedi- It should have been WAY more bad ass, but at least it was a satisfying ending.
9. The Stepford Wives- Nicole Kidman should never have touched this.
10. The Paper Chase- We've told you before and we'll say it again: DEAR BABY JESUS, DO NOT GO TO LAW SCHOOL FOR THE LOVE OF HUMANITY. If you don't believe us, watch this movie. It's probably the only piece of entertainment about a law school that actually works.

Best movies of the '60s
1. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly- Probably the best Western ever. 
2. To Kill a Mockingbird- Atticus Finch is one of the greatest cinematic heroes and examples in movie history. If you do go to law school (don't, stupid), try to turn out like him.
3. Breathless- Not the most entertaining movie, but technically very good.
4. Psycho- Hitchcock's most famous scarer. Maybe the shower scene is a cliche now, but we think it will still scare you a little if you watch the original.
5. 2001 A Space Odyssey- It gets points for daring to be weird and going challenging/controversial places, especially for time.
6. The Sound of Music- We love Julie Andrews and Christopher Plumber, and the songs are great. Some people might find it too sweet, but we think it was the perfect movie to grow up with.
7. My Fair Lady- We are glad they picked Audrey Hepburn. She is the best and she's so cute. She fit this role well. Yeah, the singing was dubbed, but that was common back then. The story is good and we love the songs too. 
8. Zorba the Greek- There's a lot we DON'T like about this movie and we disagree with a few of its assertions. But it's a thinker and a good film.
9. Lawrence of Arabia- We know we should be shot for putting this so low on the list. O'Toole is one of the best actors ever and this is a wonderful movie. It's just a little long and dull. VERY good though. A must-see.
10. Funny Girl- Barbra Streisand is one of America's greatest entertainers. She has so many showstoppers worthy of her voice in this movie AND her character has a lot of personality. 
Honorable mentions: Planet of the Apes, Cool Hand Luke, Mary Poppins, West Side Story

Best movies of the 50s
1. 12 Angry Men- One of us made our little brother watch this movie when he was really young, even though he hated black and white films. Years later, he suggested to his teacher that the whole class watch it. They liked it too. The script makes it.
2. Rear Window- Suburbia ripped this movie off hard.
3. Roman Holiday- Before the awful Nicki Minaj song, there was this great romantic comedy.
4. All About Eve- Catty fun.
5. Ben-Hur- Powerful historical fiction set in the days of Christ.
6. Vertigo- More Hitchcock. He was a master. We'd love to see what he could do had he been making movies today with all the technology we have. Then again, did he need it? He loved to suggest things, not put them in front of our faces. It's scarier that way.
7. The King and I- This movie is a little messy, especially since the main male love interest is just the worst person a lot of the time. But it looked great, and we think you've noticed we love musicals, haha.
8. Alice in Wonderland- We loved this movie as a kid and suspected it was too scary and adult for us to be watching. Those are the best kinds of cartoons. They challenge the kid without killing the innocence. 
9. A Streetcar Named Desire- Vivien Leigh was great in this. Good characters.

Best movies of the 40s and 30s (we seriously need to watch more from these decades)
1. Gone with the Wind- Scarlett slaps everyone in this movie and is totally histrionic. Also, there's domestic violence and emotional abuse. So why do we love her and this movie so much? Ashley was a pussy. Rhett all the way. We think Scarlett is the only woman in history who didn't agree with that.
2. The Women- Another one that never needed to be remade. What's cool about this is that it featured an all-female cast with some of the best stars of the day. There were no men; no men were needed.
3. Casablanca- The first time you watch this, you'll wonder why it's considered one of the best movies of all time. We suggest you watch it again and read some stuff analyzing it. If you dig a little, you'll get it.
4. Fantasia- Mostly for the music, really.
5. It's a Wonderful Life- Corny, but uplifting.
6. Bicycle Thieves- The shock was how much we cared in this movie, especially at the end. Painful.
7. National Velvet- Baby Liz Taylor! So pretty. Another horse movie, but it was still good.
8. Citizen Kane- The best movie of all time? Not to us. But it's close. What can we say about it that hasn't already been said? Go read the countless papers written by film students.
9. The Maltese Falcon- Which one, you ask? The Humphrey Bogart one, duh. Great noir.
10. The Wizard of Oz- Songs. Again. Also, it's entertaining.
Honorable Mention: M