Movies are back. Not that they ever really went anywhere. For a few years, though, particularly during and after the pandemic, it felt like film culture was in the dumps. But with the rise of outlets like Letterboxd, the booming popularity of repertory theatres and the social media omnipresence of the Criterion Closet, it seems like cinema is nudging back toward the centre of culture again, especially among younger generations.
With interest in movie history rising, now’s a perfect time to make use of our list of the 100 greatest movies of all-time. It’s a broad survey of the highlights of film’s first century-plus, covering over 100 years, multiple countries, and just about every genre imaginable, from massive blockbusters to intimate cult films, silly comedies to bloody horror, action-packed thrillers to thrilling action flicks. We’re not so high-minded to consider it the definitive canon – but as a road map, it’s a great place to start.
Jump to list: 100-91 | 90-81 | 80-71 | 70-61 | 60-51 | 50-41 | 40-31 | 30-21 | 20-11 | 10-1
How we chose our 100 best movies of all time
Admittedly, the process is not an exact science. Mostly, it involves a bunch of arguing, whittling and deal-making amongst Time Out’s most movie-obsessed writers, and then voila: a top 100 everyone is kinda sorta happy about! In terms of why we chose what we chose, that’s just as messy and multivarious. Mostly, it comes down to timelessness. Is a movie among the rare films that will play as fresh today as it did ten, 20, 50, 100 years ago? Will it still be on the list another decade from now? We’d like to think so.
Indeed, you never know when the next GOAT is going to hit theatres. To that end, if you’d like to keep up with current cinema and what’s most worth watching, you can keep up with all of Time Out’s up-to-the-minute film coverage here.
Looking for something specific? Here are our favourite movies by genre:
Best Comedy Movies | Best Horror Movies | Best Romcoms | Best Thrillers | Best Sci-Fi Movies | Best Action Movies | Best Animated Movies | Best Fantasy Movies | Best Romantic Movies | Best War Movies