Every Oscars show ends with the presentation of the award for Best Picture. Among the hundreds or thousands of movies made in any given year, that’s the one that’s deemed “the best” by the voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Everything Everywhere All at Once is the current frontrunner for tomorrow night’s ceremony. Is this sci-fi dramedy, a wild tale of self-discovery, really “the best”? Is it “better” than the tender and touching The Banshees of Inisherin, for example, or the remade All Quiet on the Western Front that takes you inside the horror of WWI? Such questions are the stuff of every year’s decision to pick “the winner.” It’s still hard to believe that Rocky was chosen “the best” over Network, All the President’s Men or Taxi Driver—three of the best films of all time that all happened to be made in a single year (1976)—although you can see how voters were drawn to its sweet story of the simple underdog triumphing over adversity.
Today I considered asking about your favorite movie or what you think is the best movie or even your favorite actors. (I asked about the “best” movie decades ago as a newspaper features writer and Gone With the Wind easily won the reader poll.) But it struck me that the question that gets at what movies stick with you—what you’ve watched again and again—may be the better question to understand what resonates at a deeper emotional level than any careful calculation of what’s best.
It’s hard for me to count—almost embarrassing to count really—how many times I’ve watched Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life from 1946. Yes, the Christmas season provides an annual reason to give it another spin. But that perfectly crafted tale of a small town man’s life always gets to me, even if I know almost every line in the movie.
George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) confronting the villainous Henry Potter (Lionel Barrymore) after he almost agrees to take a job? I wait for that scene. “You sit around here and you spin your little webs and you think the whole world revolves around you and your money. Well, it doesn't, Mr. Potter. In the whole vast configuration of things, I'd say you were nothing but a scurvy little spider.”
Or that closing scene after George seriously considers ending his life over money troubles and winds up back at home? Even if I’ve seen it more than a dozen times, a tear or a lump in the throat is unavoidable. "A toast to my big brother George: The richest man in town,” says Harry Bailey. And: “Look, Daddy,” says his little daughter Zuzu. “Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.”
I could offer up a similar summary for others I’ve watched again and again, including Sunset Boulevard, Groundhog Day, The Godfather, Taxi Driver, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Wizard of Oz and various romantic comedies with my family. But I want to turn this conversation over to you: What movies do you watch again and again? I’m excited to read what emerges. I suspect this list may be more compelling than many of the movies that end up getting the Oscar’s “Best Picture” seal of approval. (Crash in 2005? The mind still reels.)
I have several that I’ve watched more times than I can count. It’s A Wonderful Life is one of those that always had an impact.
But another is The Grapes of Wrath with Henry Fonda as Tom Joad. It always leaves me sad but somehow uplifted as a poignant story of the strengths and weaknesses of our country.
Another one I’ve watched many times is The Pelican Brief. The story of manipulation of the membership of the Supreme Court seemed far fetched at one time. But having watched the craven behavior of Mitch McConnell and his accomplice trump as they restructured the Court to fit McConnell’s agenda, the Pelican Brief no longer seems so fantastical.
Finally my favorite movie of all time is Shawshank Redemption. That film highlights the enduring spirit of people who, even when crushed by the system, can still find joy, even in small things like the scene where the prisoners get to enjoy a beer as they tar the roof. And in large things as Andy and Red reunite on a vast beach in Mexico. That scene always makes me think of how much I would like to leave the cares of the entire world behind and walk off into the sunset on a nearly deserted beach. And find peace waiting for me there.
My cousin Vinny makes me laugh so much. If I’m flipping channels and see it, I watch it in its entirety, no matter how short or long! Goldfinger, To Kill a Mockingbird, Dr. Zhivago. And thanks for your excellent opinions on sub stack. Mark B
My over-and-over-again holiday movie is Christmas in Connecticut. Barbara Stanwyck. I also watch The Holiday. Ive been watching feel good movies over and over again this last year: Spirited and all the Pitch Perfect movies. I know I know…
One of my all time favorites is The Lion in Winter with Peter O’Toole, Katherine Hepburn and Anthony Hopkins in his early years. The family dynamics with King Henry on the throne are something to be seen .
I haven't heard this one mentioned yet, but I have watched it several times. It is the American President with Michael Douglas and Annette Bening. I especially watch the press conference at the end which has a speech by Michael Douglas that is excellent and much of it is valid even today.
Dr Zhivago; E.T.; Zero Dark Thirty; Cary Grant movies; Red Sparrow which seems based in reality these days; Schindlers List
Saw an interview with Steven Spielberg while ago, & when asked about UFOs said he believes they are our own future historians coming back to document history!
Moonstruck (I'm from an Italian family and some of the scenes just resonate!) and Oh Brother Where Art Thou, which I think is the best Coen brother's film. The performances are fantastic (think George Clooney deserved an Oscar nom for his role) and it makes me laugh every time!
A Man For All Seasons, Avalon, Awakenings, To Kill a Mockingbird, A Price Above Rubies, Shawshank Redemption, Schindler’s List, The Verdict, Dead Poets Society.
Gone With The Wind, The Godfather, Philadelphia, Sunset Boulevard, 12 Angry Men (with Henry Fonda), Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner, Sargent York, To Kill A Mockingbird- just to name a few.
Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent. (1940 film) with Joel McCrea, Herbert Marshall and George Sanders. It reminds us that the forces that would conspire to destroy democracy have always been with us..(.like rust.). Just a brilliant, classic film by one of the best directors to work in the medium.
Mar 11, 2023·edited Mar 11, 2023Liked by Steven Beschloss
“Auntie Mame,” “The Thin Man,” and the original “The Bishop’s Wife,” “The Philadelphia Story,” as well as “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” are always good for watching again.
To Kill a Mockingbird, Fiddler on the Roof, Out of Africa, You've Got Mail, Legally Blond, Miss Congeniality, Seabiscuit, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Miracle on 34th Street, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Far From the Madding Crowd, Shakespeare in Love...all the Miss Marple and Poirot films...I could go on and on...many more of my faves are already listed below...we all seem to have similar taste in films...thanks for the opportunity to share some of my favorites!
I hate the idea of naming a 'best' movie or performance of the year, especially when there are so many great ones. (It ends up creating resentment for a winner like Rocky, when that movie is pretty great and even timely, as I wrote recently - https://letterboxd.com/filmnotesnw/film/rocky/ )
The answer for me is <i>Blazing Saddles</i> - I've seen it, or at least segments of it, more times than I can count and it gets me... every single time. God bless you, Mel Brooks!
Of course, It’s a Wonderful Life! Of course, The Wizard of Oz; The Sound of Music; White Men Can’t Jump, because my son loved it, and Rosie Perez and Danny DeVito were classic with her standing beside the car tapping he heel of her spikes, cracking her gum, and commenting on his choices, saying, “And you call this class?!” with the accent so New York thick. I saw it so many times, because my then teenage son loved Woody Harrelson and the basketball; and no to Psycho, because I saw it in college and am still terrified, scared to the hills, by the shower scene.
Movies are wonderful, and Covid seems to have taken this joy away, at least, for the last few years. Once a week growing up in our little town’s theater for a quarter and an extra dime, if you wanted popcorn, a penny for a stick of Wrigley’s. Those days are long gone. I am sure a young man would have to think twice before asking a girl on a movie date. With that last line, I show my age, too.
Try not to laugh, but Mamma Mia! I've watched it at least 15 times. It seems to speak to a part of me that is still living in an earlier time (probably a trauma reaction from current times). Never knew Meryl Streep could sing so well! Otherwise, To kill a Mockingbird, Shawshank Redemption, A Christmas Carol,-the earliest version, Schindler's list, The Sixth Sense, because it totally fooled me, and White Christmas.
There are several movies that I will watch repeatedly despite seeing them countless times. One is the 1949 movie The Heiress, with Olivia de Havilland. Great acting and excellent story!
There are many films I will watch repeatedly, but one makes me stop everything I’m doing to revisit it again (and again): Broadcast News. A perfect little film with amazing performances from everyone in the cast, especially Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, William Hurt, Lois Chiles, and Joan Cusack.
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, The Quiet Man, Moonstruck, Sabrina (either version), White Christmas. I’ve lost count the number of times I’ve watched each of these movies. It doesn’t matter because the story in each is universal and eternal, at least for me.
SCENT OF A WOMAN has me for it's tango scene; which is one of the best examples of it's kind, and of course Al Pacino's speech to the general assembly, hits home on integrity. Who knew that Phillip Seymour Hoffman; who played a despicable cad, would turnout to be the brilliant actor he was to became! I've watched this flick over and over, just for the tango scene alone!
As an Gen X Elder I was there when the modern blockbuster was born. Star Wars, Jaws, Indiana Jones, the Muppet Movie etc, were seen over and over in the theaters. Then again when the magic of cable ppv and video rental arrived. We were the generation that began wearing films as part of the wardrobe of our lives.
Mar 11, 2023·edited Mar 11, 2023Liked by Steven Beschloss
I haven't gone to the movies in a long while. Last one was We Are Marshall-I was getting my masters there at the time that plane crashed. I liked those that were made when a star was a star. I hardly recognize any of them today other than Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Clint Eastwood . . .There are several older movies I could watch over and over -Butterfield 8, To Kill a Mocking Bird, Love Story, The Way We Were, Ferris Beuller, The Firm . . . But I cannot resist My Cousin Vinny. I watch it every time it is on TV. I love the Brooklynese talk (are you shouwa), the foot pounding on the porch, the squealing pigs, the stuttering public defender, the grits, everything. I understand it is so legally correct that law students are often required to watch it.
To me, movies that win are and should be ones that are so impactful, it could give people pause and change their perspective... even after watching just once!
I tend towards comedy and mystery but I guess my number 1 is All the President's Men. Not only is it a momentous and true story, but the fact that these two reporters had to gather their facts before the internet and the challenge that presented and they never gave up. The scene where they sit with the phonebooks from cities all across the country trying to locate one man, continues to resonate. Its the scene I recount to my grandchildren so that they understand what commitment to truth telling can mean, no matter the difficulty, before the existence of Google or the internet.
But, as I look for respite from the pressures of the reality of life in the USA today I am drawn back to comedies like Arsenic and Old Lace, Bringing up Baby etc. I can also watch Birdcage again and again. What a cast!!!
Round it off with the films of Hitchcock. Also Devil in a Blue Dress, the Walter Mosely classic and the amazing acting by Denzel Washington and Don Cheadle. Oh dear this list is getting longer and longer as I write: Shawshank Redemption. All Sidney Poitier's movies.
Lastly, my new favorite that I look forward to watching over and over is Everything Everywhere....
Everyone has made some great choices, but I’m not seeing one kind of film mentioned. Maybe it’s because I was intent on becoming a dancer (which I did, in fact, do), but I loved all the dumb movies with GREAT dancing—almost everyone that Astaire and Kelly made got me through the 10am Million Dollar Movie when I sat at home, skipping school! The plots were mundane, the acting so-so, but the dancing was truly sublime.
Upon contemplation, it seems I really like comedy. The Pink Panther movies are great on repeat. Who doesn’t love his battles with Cato?!. Peter Sellars in Being There. This Is The End is hilarious over and over. I love anything with Robin Williams and got my husband to watch Mrs. Doubtfire. Mars Attacks and Edward Scissorhands. Okay. Thanks Steven, this is fun and reading folks replies too.
Delores Claiborne! With Catherine Bates . She made you feel her anger and hurt and you understood her revenge. She is fabulous in any movie I’ve seen her in but this movie helped you with any anger you ever “felt guilty “about .
Jeremiah Johnson, Dances With Wolves, Will Penney, The Godfather, Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, Lonesome Dove, The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, In The Heat Of The Night...and a bunch more!
When I saw the picture of Gloria Swanson in famous last scene from Sunset Boulevard I knew I had to reply. Sunset Boulevard was Gloria Swanson's and Erich von Stroheim's movie. I know Nancy Olson was nominated best supporting actress but for me Norma and Max make the movie what it is. Another movie I can watch over and over is Blazing Saddles. Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder are a great comedy duo. Finally but not least is Laura one of the best film noir movies. Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews really had great chemistry. I guess I should also mention the Star Wars series of movies but not the prequels.
I have several “watch ‘em every time they’re on” movies, but i’ll just name two: “Casablanca,” one of the all-time greats, and Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” which to me is note~perfect sweet and charming.
I have several that I’ve watched more times than I can count. It’s A Wonderful Life is one of those that always had an impact.
But another is The Grapes of Wrath with Henry Fonda as Tom Joad. It always leaves me sad but somehow uplifted as a poignant story of the strengths and weaknesses of our country.
Another one I’ve watched many times is The Pelican Brief. The story of manipulation of the membership of the Supreme Court seemed far fetched at one time. But having watched the craven behavior of Mitch McConnell and his accomplice trump as they restructured the Court to fit McConnell’s agenda, the Pelican Brief no longer seems so fantastical.
Finally my favorite movie of all time is Shawshank Redemption. That film highlights the enduring spirit of people who, even when crushed by the system, can still find joy, even in small things like the scene where the prisoners get to enjoy a beer as they tar the roof. And in large things as Andy and Red reunite on a vast beach in Mexico. That scene always makes me think of how much I would like to leave the cares of the entire world behind and walk off into the sunset on a nearly deserted beach. And find peace waiting for me there.
I know I’m not alone in having that fantasy.
Any of The Thin Man movies with William Powell and Myrna Loy. Any time.
My cousin Vinny makes me laugh so much. If I’m flipping channels and see it, I watch it in its entirety, no matter how short or long! Goldfinger, To Kill a Mockingbird, Dr. Zhivago. And thanks for your excellent opinions on sub stack. Mark B
My over-and-over-again holiday movie is Christmas in Connecticut. Barbara Stanwyck. I also watch The Holiday. Ive been watching feel good movies over and over again this last year: Spirited and all the Pitch Perfect movies. I know I know…
One of my all time favorites is The Lion in Winter with Peter O’Toole, Katherine Hepburn and Anthony Hopkins in his early years. The family dynamics with King Henry on the throne are something to be seen .
I haven't heard this one mentioned yet, but I have watched it several times. It is the American President with Michael Douglas and Annette Bening. I especially watch the press conference at the end which has a speech by Michael Douglas that is excellent and much of it is valid even today.
Dr Zhivago; E.T.; Zero Dark Thirty; Cary Grant movies; Red Sparrow which seems based in reality these days; Schindlers List
Saw an interview with Steven Spielberg while ago, & when asked about UFOs said he believes they are our own future historians coming back to document history!
Love the guy!
Moonstruck (I'm from an Italian family and some of the scenes just resonate!) and Oh Brother Where Art Thou, which I think is the best Coen brother's film. The performances are fantastic (think George Clooney deserved an Oscar nom for his role) and it makes me laugh every time!
A Man For All Seasons, Avalon, Awakenings, To Kill a Mockingbird, A Price Above Rubies, Shawshank Redemption, Schindler’s List, The Verdict, Dead Poets Society.
Gone With The Wind, The Godfather, Philadelphia, Sunset Boulevard, 12 Angry Men (with Henry Fonda), Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner, Sargent York, To Kill A Mockingbird- just to name a few.
Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent. (1940 film) with Joel McCrea, Herbert Marshall and George Sanders. It reminds us that the forces that would conspire to destroy democracy have always been with us..(.like rust.). Just a brilliant, classic film by one of the best directors to work in the medium.
“Auntie Mame,” “The Thin Man,” and the original “The Bishop’s Wife,” “The Philadelphia Story,” as well as “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” are always good for watching again.
To Kill a Mockingbird, Fiddler on the Roof, Out of Africa, You've Got Mail, Legally Blond, Miss Congeniality, Seabiscuit, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Miracle on 34th Street, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Far From the Madding Crowd, Shakespeare in Love...all the Miss Marple and Poirot films...I could go on and on...many more of my faves are already listed below...we all seem to have similar taste in films...thanks for the opportunity to share some of my favorites!
One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, Cool Hand Luke, Groundhog Day, Trains, Planes and Automobiles
I hate the idea of naming a 'best' movie or performance of the year, especially when there are so many great ones. (It ends up creating resentment for a winner like Rocky, when that movie is pretty great and even timely, as I wrote recently - https://letterboxd.com/filmnotesnw/film/rocky/ )
The answer for me is <i>Blazing Saddles</i> - I've seen it, or at least segments of it, more times than I can count and it gets me... every single time. God bless you, Mel Brooks!
The Best Years of Our Lives; Lawrence of Arabia; To Kill a Mockingbird.
Our Christmas tradition is to gather the family and watch the Big Lebowski. Never fails to entertain! The dude abides.
Smoke Signals, Bagdad Cafe, The Whale Rider, The Shawshank Redemption, Serenity. I’m off the beaten path.
The Longest Day
Top Gun
Shawshank Redemption
Saving Private Ryan, Saving Private Ryan, Saving Private Ryan, Saving . . . .
Of course, It’s a Wonderful Life! Of course, The Wizard of Oz; The Sound of Music; White Men Can’t Jump, because my son loved it, and Rosie Perez and Danny DeVito were classic with her standing beside the car tapping he heel of her spikes, cracking her gum, and commenting on his choices, saying, “And you call this class?!” with the accent so New York thick. I saw it so many times, because my then teenage son loved Woody Harrelson and the basketball; and no to Psycho, because I saw it in college and am still terrified, scared to the hills, by the shower scene.
Movies are wonderful, and Covid seems to have taken this joy away, at least, for the last few years. Once a week growing up in our little town’s theater for a quarter and an extra dime, if you wanted popcorn, a penny for a stick of Wrigley’s. Those days are long gone. I am sure a young man would have to think twice before asking a girl on a movie date. With that last line, I show my age, too.
Try not to laugh, but Mamma Mia! I've watched it at least 15 times. It seems to speak to a part of me that is still living in an earlier time (probably a trauma reaction from current times). Never knew Meryl Streep could sing so well! Otherwise, To kill a Mockingbird, Shawshank Redemption, A Christmas Carol,-the earliest version, Schindler's list, The Sixth Sense, because it totally fooled me, and White Christmas.
To Kill a Mockingbird, The African Queen, The Godfather, Star Wars
There are several movies that I will watch repeatedly despite seeing them countless times. One is the 1949 movie The Heiress, with Olivia de Havilland. Great acting and excellent story!
Dr. Zhivago.
I always watch White Christmas.
Others, all the Thin Man, Basil Rathbone's Sherlock Holmes, 1930s Charlie Chan, all the 30s WW1 biplane movies
Almost Famous always takes me back to my teenage age years and my discovery of (now) Classic Rock.
There are many films I will watch repeatedly, but one makes me stop everything I’m doing to revisit it again (and again): Broadcast News. A perfect little film with amazing performances from everyone in the cast, especially Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, William Hurt, Lois Chiles, and Joan Cusack.
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, The Quiet Man, Moonstruck, Sabrina (either version), White Christmas. I’ve lost count the number of times I’ve watched each of these movies. It doesn’t matter because the story in each is universal and eternal, at least for me.
I can never get enough of Shawshank Redemption. I also watch it’s a wonderful life every Christmas season .
Ferris Buellers day off, Dirty Dancing, Home Alone....favorite Xmas movie, The Godfather movies,
Fiddler on the Roof, Top Gun, Shindlers List, Moonstruck, the new ELVIS movie, I cry Every time!
All About Eve
SCENT OF A WOMAN has me for it's tango scene; which is one of the best examples of it's kind, and of course Al Pacino's speech to the general assembly, hits home on integrity. Who knew that Phillip Seymour Hoffman; who played a despicable cad, would turnout to be the brilliant actor he was to became! I've watched this flick over and over, just for the tango scene alone!
As an Gen X Elder I was there when the modern blockbuster was born. Star Wars, Jaws, Indiana Jones, the Muppet Movie etc, were seen over and over in the theaters. Then again when the magic of cable ppv and video rental arrived. We were the generation that began wearing films as part of the wardrobe of our lives.
Casablanca
Platoon
Mississippi Burning
Shining
In the Heat of the Night
Glory
Apocalypse Now
I haven't gone to the movies in a long while. Last one was We Are Marshall-I was getting my masters there at the time that plane crashed. I liked those that were made when a star was a star. I hardly recognize any of them today other than Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Clint Eastwood . . .There are several older movies I could watch over and over -Butterfield 8, To Kill a Mocking Bird, Love Story, The Way We Were, Ferris Beuller, The Firm . . . But I cannot resist My Cousin Vinny. I watch it every time it is on TV. I love the Brooklynese talk (are you shouwa), the foot pounding on the porch, the squealing pigs, the stuttering public defender, the grits, everything. I understand it is so legally correct that law students are often required to watch it.
The Departed
Dances With Wolves
The Godfather
Citizen Kane
King Kong
Midnight Cowboy
Raging Bull
ET
Platoon
Fatal Attraction
Rain Man
Godfather III
JFK
Silence of the Lambs
Unforgiven
To me, movies that win are and should be ones that are so impactful, it could give people pause and change their perspective... even after watching just once!
I tend towards comedy and mystery but I guess my number 1 is All the President's Men. Not only is it a momentous and true story, but the fact that these two reporters had to gather their facts before the internet and the challenge that presented and they never gave up. The scene where they sit with the phonebooks from cities all across the country trying to locate one man, continues to resonate. Its the scene I recount to my grandchildren so that they understand what commitment to truth telling can mean, no matter the difficulty, before the existence of Google or the internet.
But, as I look for respite from the pressures of the reality of life in the USA today I am drawn back to comedies like Arsenic and Old Lace, Bringing up Baby etc. I can also watch Birdcage again and again. What a cast!!!
Round it off with the films of Hitchcock. Also Devil in a Blue Dress, the Walter Mosely classic and the amazing acting by Denzel Washington and Don Cheadle. Oh dear this list is getting longer and longer as I write: Shawshank Redemption. All Sidney Poitier's movies.
Lastly, my new favorite that I look forward to watching over and over is Everything Everywhere....
Everyone has made some great choices, but I’m not seeing one kind of film mentioned. Maybe it’s because I was intent on becoming a dancer (which I did, in fact, do), but I loved all the dumb movies with GREAT dancing—almost everyone that Astaire and Kelly made got me through the 10am Million Dollar Movie when I sat at home, skipping school! The plots were mundane, the acting so-so, but the dancing was truly sublime.
The year of living dangerously. There is something new every time I watch
Upon contemplation, it seems I really like comedy. The Pink Panther movies are great on repeat. Who doesn’t love his battles with Cato?!. Peter Sellars in Being There. This Is The End is hilarious over and over. I love anything with Robin Williams and got my husband to watch Mrs. Doubtfire. Mars Attacks and Edward Scissorhands. Okay. Thanks Steven, this is fun and reading folks replies too.
Blazing Saddles. Fargo.
Delores Claiborne! With Catherine Bates . She made you feel her anger and hurt and you understood her revenge. She is fabulous in any movie I’ve seen her in but this movie helped you with any anger you ever “felt guilty “about .
Schindler’s List
Fargo
Saving Private Ryan
Green Mile
Crash
Munich
No Country for Old Men
Social Network
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty
12 Years A slave
Big Short
The Revenant
Spotlight
The Irishman
Nomad land
Belfast
Jeremiah Johnson, Dances With Wolves, Will Penney, The Godfather, Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, Lonesome Dove, The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, In The Heat Of The Night...and a bunch more!
I just saw someone mentioned ET. I loved it, so I took my daughter. She wanted nothing but to bring ET home. It was heartrending how she reacted.
The Mission, The Lion in Winter, Shakespeare in Love, Chocolat, A Knight’s Tale
When I saw the picture of Gloria Swanson in famous last scene from Sunset Boulevard I knew I had to reply. Sunset Boulevard was Gloria Swanson's and Erich von Stroheim's movie. I know Nancy Olson was nominated best supporting actress but for me Norma and Max make the movie what it is. Another movie I can watch over and over is Blazing Saddles. Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder are a great comedy duo. Finally but not least is Laura one of the best film noir movies. Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews really had great chemistry. I guess I should also mention the Star Wars series of movies but not the prequels.
I have several “watch ‘em every time they’re on” movies, but i’ll just name two: “Casablanca,” one of the all-time greats, and Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” which to me is note~perfect sweet and charming.
On the Waterfront, The Godfather are my top two, but love The Verdict...adding more: A River Runs Through It, The Candidate, Barefoot In the Park