A couple weeks ago I posted about how one of my more recent “just for fun goals” is to watch all of the movies on the AFI 100 list. You can read more about that (and how the list came to be) in this blog post.
Over the past two weeks I’ve made some nice progress on the list (my boyfriend is also very into this goal and over the course of my birthday weekend we watched four movies on the list. In fact, I’ve gone from 23 to 33! I thought it would be fun to post updates here with what I watch each month, and what I also like best, etc etc!
Also two things that might be fun/helpful – both are recommendations from the comments section of my first post, so thank YOU for these tips!!!!
- Unspooled is a great podcast that goes into depth about each film on the list. It’s hosted by a movie buff and a film critic and I really enjoy both their commentary and chemistry as hosts.
- Justwatch.com is a great tool here. You can add all the movies you’re looking to watch and what streaming services you have, and it also tells you where you can watch them!
AFI 100 Update: September
What I watched this month:
Singin’ in the Rain
This is just the HAPPIEST and I absolutely loved the ending. Two silent picture stars transition to “talkies” but only one of them has a good voice. An up and coming actress (played by Debbie Reynolds) lends her voice to the cause and drama ensues.
Bringing Up Baby
I had totally thought this was going to be about an actual baby. It’s about a leopard. So of course I loved it. And Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant are an absolute dream together. I really enjoyed this one.
Some Like It Hot
Two musicians witness a mob murder. To hide, they pose as female musicians and join a traveling (all female) band. Marilyn Monroe stars as the lead singer, Sugar. I loved this one. I found myself laughing out loud at times. It was campy and fun.
Bonnie & Clyde
ICONIC. I don’t know how I hadn’t seen this yet but you know the story. A bored waitress takes up with a seasoned criminal and a bloody, crime-filled road trip across the US happens. It’s violent.
A Philadelphia Story
How silly am I? High Society is one of my favorite old movies (starring Grace Kelly, it is just the BEST) but it’s actually based on this! I will be honest, I prefer High Society but I loved this!
All About Eve
This was maybe the first iteration of “single white female-ing” someone? A young actress is obsessed with an aging film star (played by Bette Davis). She ruthlessly claws her way to the top.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Whew, this was dark. I had so many thoughts on it, mostly how ahead of its time it was with regard to critiquing the way mental health was handled in America. There are wonderful moments of levity (and also heartwarming moments), but it’s pretty upsetting. Upset feelings aside, I still really enjoyed it.
The Godfather
This ranks number two on the list so it was important to me to watch it but it was not my jam. I found it super slow and I don’t really care for mob movies. I will say that it’s absolutely beautifully shot. A bit sad that I’ll have to watch part two as that one also made the list!
Apocalypse Now
So this is one of my bf’s absolute favorite films. We watched it together. I wasn’t super excited to watch a war movie but honestly, the cinematography makes it feel like you are watching an actual piece of art. But it’s very, very dark!
Gone With the Wind
I had always wanted to watch this but put off seeing it, mostly because I knew it was four hours long and also, had heard that it was super super racist and would not hold up today. Even though I knew it would be offensive and problematic, we watched it so that we could check it off the list. My boyfriend and I were both pretty upset by it. Besides being incredibly offensive (you can read more on that here), it was also very very DARK. We thought we were watching an “epic historical romance” – it was not. I hope that the AFI will eventually update the list (this list is 14 years old) to make it more diverse and remove the more problematic films.
Here’s the full list!
The starred ones, I’d already watched before I started this little goal.
- Citizen Kane (1941)
- The Godfather (1972)
- Casablanca (1942)
- Raging Bull (1980)
- Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
- Gone with the Wind (1939)
- Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
- Schindler’s List (1993)*
- Vertigo (1958)
- The Wizard of Oz (1939)*
- City Lights (1931)
- The Searchers (1956)
- Star Wars IV: A New Hope (1977)
- Psycho (1960)*
- 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
- Sunset Boulevard (1950)
- The Graduate (1967)*
- The General (1927)
- On The Waterfront (1954)
- It’s a Wonderful Life (1947)*
- Chinatown (1974)*
- Some Like it Hot (1959)
- The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
- E.T. : The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)*
- To Kill a Mockingbird (1963)
- Mr. Smith goes to Washington (1939)
- High Noon (1952)
- All About Eve (1950)
- Double Indemnity (1944)
- Apocalypse Now (1979)
- The Maltese Falcon (1941)
- The Godfather Part 2 (1974)
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1938)
- Annie Hall (1977)*
- The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
- The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
- The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
- Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb (1964)
- Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music (1965)*
- King Kong (1933)
- Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
- The Midnight Cowboy (1969)
- The Philadelphia Story (1940)
- Shane (1953)
- It Happened One Night (1934)
- A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
- Rear Window (1955)
- Intolerance (1916)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
- West Side Story (1961)
- Taxi Driver (1976)*
- The Deer Hunter (1979)
- M*A*S*H (1970)
- North by Northwest (1959)*
- Jaws (1975)*
- Rocky (1976)*
- The Gold Rush (1925)
- Nashville (1975)
- Duck Soup (1933)
- Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
- American Graffiti (1973)
- Cabaret (1973)
- Network (1976)*
- The African Queen (1952)
- Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)*
- Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf (1966)
- Unforgiven (1992)
- Tootsie (1982)
- A Clockwork Orange (1972)
- Saving Private Ryan (1998)*
- Shawshank Redemption (1994)
- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
- Silence of the Lambs (1991)*
- In the Heat of the Night (1967)
- Forrest Gump (1994)*
- All the President’s Men (1976)
- Modern Times (1936)
- The Wild Bunch (1969)
- The Apartment (1960)
- Spartacus (1960)
- Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)
- Titanic (1997)*
- Easy Rider (1969)
- A Night at the Opera (1935)
- Platoon (1986)
- 12 Angry Men (1957)
- Bringing Up Baby (1938)
- The Sixth Sense (1999)*
- Swing Time (1936)
- Sophie’s Choice (1983)
- GoodFellas (1990)
- The French Connection (1971)
- Pulp Fiction (1994)*
- The Last Picture Show (1971)
- Do the Right Thing (1989)
- Blade Runner (1982)*
- Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
- Toy Story (1995)*
- Ben-Hur (1959)
I grew up watching all the old musicals with my mom. I still love them and all the dance numbers. There are some great movies on this list. People are always amazed that I have never seen Gone With the Wind. Recently we introduced a couple of our kids to Indiana Jones and they really enjoyed it. You might enjoy Romancing the Stone with Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner if you like Indiana Jones. Pat S
Oh my gosh Romancing the Stone is one of my all time favorite movies EVER!!!
It is such a great movie. Did you ever see the sequel Jewel of the Nile?
Fun! I’ve become a bit of a movie person myself during the pandemic. I don’t think I would tackle the full AFI, but I do love filling in gaps in my viewing! Fwiw, I think narratively The Godfather Part II is a better watch than Part I. I think you are through the slowest/toughest parts of that duology already. For me, I’m hoping to catch up with Vertigo this spooky season! Signed, fellow High Society (& The Philadelphia Story) lover!
Such a fun idea! Happy Wednesday, friend!
So love that you’re doing this! It’s sadly not on the list, but since you loved Bringing Up Baby, you should add His Girl Friday (1940) to your list! It’s a hilarious screwball comedy 🙂 Also with Cary Grant haha.
After you posted this list, I sent it to my father in law (who studied film/worked in TV marketing for many years), and he has seen 99 of them! So impressed. I’ve only seen 21, but hope to watch more of the movies on this list this winter.
Also, as far as mob movies go, I haven’t any of the Godfather, but I’ll warn you now that the very beginning of GoodFellas is super violent but if you can make it through that, the rest of the movie isn’t quite as bad — just brace yourself for the first ~10 minutes.
I think you’ll really enjoy Casablanca based on your other likes. It’s one of my absolute favorites, there are so many cultural references to it you’ll recognize and it’s actually quite funny. Also, I expected Citizen Kane to be kind of a slog, but it surprised me as being a lot more watchable and entertaining than you might think, given its age. On the other hand, Lawrence of Arabia is beautifully shot but SO LONG, with soooo many shots of the desert. My recommendations to watch next: The Maltese Falcon, Sunset Boulevard, Vertigo and Goodfellas. Also, not on this list but delightful is The Thin Man – its a mystery but has a similar vibe to Bringing Up Baby.
Ooo I will add The Thin Man to my “to watch” list. Thanks Mia!
The first time I saw Casablanca I could not believe how many familiar lines there were. I watched it during a classic film fest in our town’s grand old movie house and the entire audience was practically reciting the script along with the characters. Normally that would annoy me, but it was joyful to see how many people love that movie so much.
I’m not a big movie person, but maybe this is a good way to see some classics! I’ve maybe seen 5 of these ha!
xo Jessica
an indigo day
I am so excited for you! I haven’t watched more than half of these films, but I’ve seen a bunch that you’ll get to down the road that I LOVE. Shawshank (based on a Stephen King short story!) is such a classic hero’s journey. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf is a masterclass in acting and will make you really appreciate the healthy relationships in your life! The Apartment will have you smiling from ear to ear and All the President’ men was the most fun history lesson! If you haven’t seen Spotlight I would watch that as a follow up- another great film about the tenacity of journalists and the power of the public press.
I also love The Shawshank Redemption. I’ve watched it multiple times.
Rear Window is my pick next!!! I think Woman in the Window was based off of it and Grace Kelly’s outfits are amazing!
Yes! And I can’t believe To Catch a Thief isn’t on the list, I guess that might be too many “elegant caper” movies, but Grace Kelly and Cary Grant in that are my faves.
Yes, you’re right! Rear Window is one of my favs as well. You will enjoy it!
I love this idea – might make a 2022 resolution!
Because you said your boyfriend’s favorite film is Apocalypse Now, you guys HAVE to watch Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, a documentary about the filming of Apocalypse Now. My dad had it on a few years ago during a family vacation and we all got sucked in. It’s absolutely fascinating and especially so if you’re into film/hollywood at all; it’s also just a very well done documentary IMO (honestly your bf might have already seen it but definitely worth a watch for you!)
Dying to watch Heart of Darkness! Thanks for the reminder!
I love this goal 🙂 Singin’ in the Rain is one of my favorites and is a perfect comfort movie. And the note about the Godfather made me chuckle; I’ve seen all 3 but in Godfather 2 I’ve fallen asleep and woken up during the same parts every time I’ve tried to watch!
I tackled this same project a few years back. Wait until you get to Deer Hunter, phew!!!!
New favorite game with this list is seeing how many titles Gossip Girl took inspo from for episode names! 🙂
12 Angry Men is excellent!
I think I’ve probably seen 2 or 3 of these movies. I am so not a movie person, I can’t concentrate or sit still to watch them. However, I can sit and read book for hours on end without moving! Of all the movies I’ve ever seen, Casablanca is my favourite.
I CANNOT wait for you to watch To Kill A Mockingbird! Gregory Peck !!! (One of my favorite books. If you liked it I would recommend the biography…mockingbird).
Weird question…Do you think you would have enjoyed Gone with the Wind if we weren’t unt hr climate we are in. I watched it years ago. Though I did not enjoy it per say, I did and still do appreciate it (if that makes any sense). It just wasn’t my taste. But I cna appreciate the acting.
A movie I love that’s not on this list but I think you lay enjoy is Auntie Mame! Such a great movie!!!
The book was one of my favorites, too!!!
That is a really great question and I am honestly not sure. I think (besides the racism and horrible slurs) I had been expecting a romance and it was so dark. We’d just come off of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now (so bad timing on our part) and were like, “let’s watch a romance!” And then it was just so upsetting, particularly the last 30 minutes. I can’t stop thinking about the ending (the deaths, Scarlett falling (or being pushed/) down the stairs, etc etc. I absolutely agree with you on the acting, it was wonderful… but I think I had been gearing up for what I imagined to be The Notebook of a hundred years ago and it was just… not that!!!!
I have seen all of them years ago
I LOVE this goal (I missed the prior blog post about it)! My husband and I love movies but never know what to watch, definitely going to start on this list! Thanks!
I don’t agree with your comments on Gone With The Wind. It should be number one. It is superb. Should be tied up in the number one position with The Searchers. Those two wonderful movies seem like they were made nowadays !!
This feels like satire, but okay!
Grace – you took the words RIGHT out of my mouth! Or sarcasm?