School of Film

School of Film. How pretentious. We don't teach filmmaking at the University because the faculty doesn't know shit about it, so it's really about film appreciation: movies that the Prof likes a lot—including his favorite.

This is an ongoing project because the Prof is forgetful, so check back now and then for sudden remembrances that wake him at 3 a.m. in the dead of dark.


FAVORITE: 1. It's a Gift (1934) W.C. Fields

2. Valley of the Dolls (1967) Barbara Parkins, Patty Duke, Sharon Tate (Best trash movie ever made.)

3. Grease (1978) John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John

4. Fiddler on the Roof (1971) Topol

5. National Lampoon's Animal House (1978) John Belushi

6. The Blues Brothers (1980) John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd

7. A Thousand Clowns (1965) Jason Robards

8. A Patch of Blue (1965) Sidney Poitier, Elizabeth Hartman

9. Lilies of the Field (1963) Sidney Poitier, Lilia Skala

10. Only the Lonely (1991) John Candy, Ally Sheedy (A great non-goofball romance.)

11. Midnight Cowboy (1969) Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight

12. The Graduate (1967) Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross

13. Papillon (1973) Dustin Hoffman, Steve McQueen

14. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) Alec Guinness,  William Holden

15. Von Ryan's Express (1965) Frank Sinatra, Trevor Howard

16. Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964) Frank Sinatra, The Rat Pack

17. Ocean's Eleven (1960) Frank Sinatra, The Rat Pack (The ORIGINAL)

18. A Hole in the Head (1959) Frank Sinatra, Edward G. Robinson

19. Dirty Harry (1971) Clint Eastwood, Andrew Robinson

20. Mad Max (Australia, 1979) Mel Gibson

21. The Road Warrior (Australia, 1981) Mel Gibson

22. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (France, 1964) Catherine Deneuve (First movie), Nino Castelnuovo

23. A Little Romance (1979) Laurence Olivier, Diane Lane (First movie)

24. Going in Style (1979) George Burns, Art Carney, Lee Strasberg

25. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) Cary Grant

26. Sleuth (1972) Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine

27. Harvey (1950) James Stewart, "Harvey"

28. Goldfinger (1964) Sean Connery, Gert Frobe

29. Honeysuckle Rose (1980) Willie Nelson, Dyan Cannon, Amy Irving

30. The Competition (1980) Richard Dreyfuss, Amy Irving

31. The Fortune Cookie (1966) Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau

32. Irma la Douce (1963) Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine

33. Edward Scissorhands (1990) Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder

34. Dancer in the Dark (2000) Björk, Catherine Deneuve

35. A Bronx Tale (1993) Robert De Niro, Chazz Palminteri

36. Goodfellas (1990) Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci

37. Medicine Man (1992) Sean Connery, Lorraine Bracco

38. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman

39. The Muppet Movie (1979) The Muppets, Numerous Cameos

40. The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) Burt Reynolds, Dolly Parton

41. Bill (Television movie, 1981) Mickey Rooney, Dennis Quaid

42. Forrest Gump (1994) Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise

43. The Jerk (1979) Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters

44. Blazing Saddles (1974) Cleavon Little, Slim Pickens, Harvey Korman, Madeline Kahn

45. History of the World, Part I (1981) Mel Brooks, Dom DeLuise, Gregory Hines, Madeline Kahn

46. Strictly Ballroom (Australia, 1992) Paul Mercurio, Tara Morice

47. Gypsy (1962) Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden

48. Funny Girl (1968) Barbra Streisand, Omar Sharif

49. Pennies from Heaven (1981) Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Christopher Walken

50. King of New York (1990) Christopher Walken, David Caruso, Laurence Fishburne

51. The Nutty Professor (1963) Jerry Lewis, Stella Stevens

52. The Bellboy (1960) Jerry Lewis

53. The Ladies Man (1961) Jerry Lewis, Kathleen Freeman

54. Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000) Eddie Murphy (8 roles), Janet Jackson

55. Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) Burt Lancaster, Karl Malden, Thelma Ritter

56. South Central (1992) Byron Minns, Glenn Plummer, Lexie Bigham

57. The Commitments (Ireland, 1991) Robert Arkins, Michael Aherne, Angelina Ball

58. Sons of the Desert (1933) Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy (I think this is their best)

59. Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn

60. What's New Pussycat (England, 1965) Peter Sellers, Peter O'Toole, Woody Allen

61. Alfie (England, 1966) Michael Caine, Shelley Winters

62. The Pink Panther (England, 1963) Peter Sellers, David Niven

63. A Shot in the Dark (England, 1964) Peter Sellers, Elke Sommer

64. Mask (1985) Cher, Sam Elliott, Eric Stoltz

65. Silkwood (1983) Meryl Streep, Kurt Russell, Cher

66. The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) Jeff Bridges, Beau Bridges, Michelle Pfeiffer

67. Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley (The FIRST in the series)

68. Natural Born Killers (1994) Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis

69. Annie Hall (1977) Woody Allen, Diane Keaton

70. Manhattan (1979) Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway

71. Diner (1982) Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon

72. The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins,  Scott Glenn

73. They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) Jane Fonda, Michael Sarrazin, Susannah York

74. Lady Sings the Blues (1972) Dianna Ross, Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor

75. Taras Bulba (1962) Tony Curtis, Yul Brynner

76. The Magnificent Seven (1960) Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson

77. The Great Escape (1963) Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough

78. The Collector (England, 1965) Terence Stamp, Samantha Eggar

79. Thelma & Louise (1991) Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis

80. Pure Country (1992) George Strait, Lesley Ann Warren

81. Gigot (1962) Jackie Gleason

82. Streets (1990) Christina Applegate

83. Blood Simple (1984) John Getz, Dan Hedaya, M. Emmet Walsh

84. Elmer Gantry (1960) Burt Lancaster, Jean Simmons

85. Cannery Row (1982) Nick Nolte, Debra Winger

86. Body Heat (1981) William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Richard Crenna

87. Purple Rain (1984) Prince, Apollonia, Morris Day

88. The Atomic Cafe (1982) Documentary

89. The Pawnbroker (1964) Rod Steiger, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Brock Peters

90. Girl, Interrupted (1999) Winona Ryder, Angelina Jolie





For those who think the Professor's all-time favorite movie is stupid, childish, and numb-nutted, please note that it's included in TIME magazine's 100 best movies since 1923. No small feat, that.




UNDER PERPETUAL CONSTRUCTION. 
PLEASE WATCH MY STEP.


How many of these movies (films) have you seen?
Comments are welcome here