Author Archives: 4 Star Films

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About 4 Star Films

I am a film critic and historian preserving a love of good movies. Check out my blog, 4 Star Films, and follow me on Twitter @FourStarFilmFan or Letterboxd. Thank you for reading!

100 Greatest Films by TIME Magazine

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Aguirre: the Wrath of God (1972)
The Apu Trilogy (1955, 1956, 1959)
The Awful Truth (1937)
Baby Face (1933)
Bande à part (1964)
Barry Lyndon (1975)
Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980)
Blade Runner (1982)
Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
Brazil (1985)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Camille (1936)
Casablanca (1942)
Charade (1963)
Children of Paradise (1945)
Chinatown (1974) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
Chungking Express (1994)
Citizen Kane (1941) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
City Lights (1931)
City of God (2002)
Closely Watched Trains (1966)
The Crime of Monsieur Lange (1936)
The Crowd (1928)
Day for Night (1973)
The Decalogue (1989) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
Detour (1945)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
Dodsworth (1936) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
Double Indemnity (1944)
Dr. Strangelove: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Drunken Master II (1994)
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
8 1/2 (1963)
The 400 Blows (1959)
Farewell My Concubine (1993)
Finding Nemo (2003)
The Fly (1986)
The Godfather, Parts I and II (1972, 1974)
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (1966)
GoodFellas (1990)
A Hard Day’s Night (1964)
His Girl Friday (1940)
Ikiru (1952) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
In A Lonely Place (1950)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
It’s A Gift (1934)
It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)
Kandahar (2001)
Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)
King Kong (1933)
The Lady Eve (1941)
The Last Command (1928)
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Léolo (1992)
The Lord of the Rings (2001-03)
The Man With a Camera (1929)
The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
Metropolis (1927) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
Miller’s Crossing (1990)
Mon oncle d’Amérique (1980)
Mouchette (1967)
Nayakan (1987)
Ninotchka (1939)
Notorious (1946)
Olympia, Parts 1 and 2 (1938)
On the Waterfront (1954)
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
Out of the Past (1947)
Persona (1966) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
Pinocchio (1940)
Psycho (1960)
Pulp Fiction (1994) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
Pyaasa (1957)
Raging Bull (1980)
Schindler’s List (1993)
The Searchers (1956)
Sherlock, Jr. (1924)
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
The Singing Detective (1986)
Smiles of a Summer Night (1955)
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Star Wars (1977)
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
Sunrise (1927)
Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Swing Time (1936)
Talk to Her (2002) – BEST FILM OF ITS DECADE
Taxi Driver (1976)
Tokyo Story (1953)
A Touch of Zen (1971)
Ugetsu (1953)
Ulysses’ Gaze (1995)
Umberto D (1952)
Unforgiven (1992)
White Heat (1949)
Wings of Desire (1987)
Yojimbo (1961)

WGA 101 Best Screenplays

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1.
CASABLANCA 
2.
THE GODFATHER 
3.
CHINATOWN 
4.
CITIZEN KANE 
5.
ALL ABOUT EVE 
6.
ANNIE HALL 
7.
SUNSET BLVD. 
8.
NETWORK 
9.
SOME LIKE IT HOT 
10.
THE GODFATHER II 
11.
BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID
12.
DR. STRANGELOVE
13.
THE GRADUATE
14.
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
15.
THE APARTMENT
16.
PULP FICTION
17.
TOOTSIE
18.
ON THE WATERFRONT
19.
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
20.
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
21.
NORTH BY NORTHWEST
22.
THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
23.
GONE WITH THE WIND
24.
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
25.
THE WIZARD OF OZ
26.
DOUBLE INDEMNITY
27.
GROUNDHOG DAY
28.
SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE
29.
SULLIVAN’S TRAVELS
30.
UNFORGIVEN
31.
HIS GIRL FRIDAY
32.
FARGO
33.
THE THIRD MAN
34.
THE SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS
35.
THE USUAL SUSPECTS 
36.
MIDNIGHT COWBOY
37.
THE PHILADELPHIA STORY
38.
AMERICAN BEAUTY
39.
THE STING
40.
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY
41.
GOODFELLAS
42.
RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK
43.
TAXI DRIVER
44.
THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES
45.
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST
46.
THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE
47.
THE MALTESE FALCON
48.
THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI
49.
SCHINDLER’S LIST
50.
THE SIXTH SENSE
51.
BROADCAST NEWS
52.
THE LADY EVE
53.
ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN
54.
MANHATTAN
55.
APOCALYPSE NOW
56.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
57.
CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS
58.
ORDINARY PEOPLE
59.
IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT
60.
L.A. CONFIDENTIAL
61.
THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
62.
MOONSTRUCK
63.
JAWS
64.
TERMS OF ENDEARMENT
65.
SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN
66.
JERRY MAGUIRE
67.
E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL
68.
STAR WARS
69.
DOG DAY AFTERNOON
70.
THE AFRICAN QUEEN
71.
THE LION IN WINTER
72.
THELMA & LOUISE
73.
AMADEUS
74.
BEING JOHN MALKOVICH
75.
HIGH NOON
76.
RAGING BULL
77.
ADAPTATION
78.
ROCKY
79.
THE PRODUCERS
80.
WITNESS
81.
BEING THERE
82.
COOL HAND LUKE
83.
REAR WINDOW
84.
THE PRINCESS BRIDE
85.
LA GRANDE ILLUSION
86.
HAROLD & MAUDE
87.
8 1/2
88.
FIELD OF DREAMS
89.
FORREST GUMP
90.
SIDEWAYS
91.
THE VERDICT
92.
PSYCHO
93.
DO THE RIGHT THING
94.
PATTON
95.
HANNAH AND HER SISTERS
96.
THE HUSTLER
97.
THE SEARCHERS
98.
THE GRAPES OF WRATH
99.
THE WILD BUNCH
100.
MEMENTO
101.
NOTORIOUS

AFI Musicals

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# FILM YEAR STUDIO
1 SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN 1952 MGM
2 WEST SIDE STORY 1961 United Artists
3 WIZARD OF OZ, THE 1939 MGM
4 SOUND OF MUSIC, THE 1965 Twentieth Century-Fox
5 CABARET 1972 Allied Artists
6 MARY POPPINS 1964 Disney
7 STAR IS BORN, A 1954 Warner Bros.
8 MY FAIR LADY 1964 Warner Bros.
9 AMERICAN IN PARIS, AN 1951 MGM
10 MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS 1944 MGM
11 KING AND I, THE 1956 Twentieth Century-Fox
12 CHICAGO 2002 Miramax
13 42ND STREET 1933 Warner Bros.
14 ALL THAT JAZZ 1979 Twentieth Century-Fox
15 TOP HAT 1935 RKO
16 FUNNY GIRL 1968 Columbia
17 BAND WAGON, THE 1953 MGM
18 YANKEE DOODLE DANDY 1942 Warner Bros.
19 ON THE TOWN 1949 MGM
20 GREASE 1978 Paramount
21 SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS 1954 MGM
22 BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 1991 Disney
23 GUYS AND DOLLS 1955 MGM
24 SHOW BOAT 1936 Universal
25 MOULIN ROUGE! 2001 Twentieth Century Fox

AFI Cheers

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# MOVIE YEAR
1 IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE 1946
2 TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD 1962
3 SCHINDLER’S LIST 1993
4 ROCKY 1976
5 MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON 1939
6 E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL 1982
7 THE GRAPES OF WRATH 1940
8 BREAKING AWAY 1979
9 MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET 1947
10 SAVING PRIVATE RYAN 1998
11 THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES 1946
12 APOLLO 13 1995
13 HOOSIERS 1986
14 THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI 1957
15 THE MIRACLE WORKER 1962
16 NORMA RAE 1979
17 ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST 1975
18 THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK 1959
19 THE RIGHT STUFF 1983
20 PHILADELPHIA 1993
21 IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT 1967
22 THE PRIDE OF THE YANKEES 1942
23 THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION 1994
24 NATIONAL VELVET 1944
25 SULLIVAN’S TRAVELS 1941
26 THE WIZARD OF OZ 1939
27 HIGH NOON 1952
28 FIELD OF DREAMS 1989
29 GANDHI 1982
30 LAWRENCE OF ARABIA 1962
31 GLORY 1989
32 CASABLANCA 1942
33 CITY LIGHTS 1931
34 ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN 1976
35 GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER 1967
36 ON THE WATERFRONT 1954
37 FORREST GUMP 1994
38 PINOCCHIO 1940
39 STAR WARS 1977
40 MRS. MINIVER 1942
41 THE SOUND OF MUSIC 1965
42 12 ANGRY MEN 1957
43 GONE WITH THE WIND 1939
44 SPARTACUS 1960
45 ON GOLDEN POND 1981
46 LILIES OF THE FIELD 1963
47 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY 1968
48 THE AFRICAN QUEEN 1951
49 MEET JOHN DOE 1941
50 SEABISCUIT 2003
51 THE COLOR PURPLE 1985
52 DEAD POET’S SOCIETY 1989
53 SHANE 1953
54 RUDY 1993
55 THE DEFIANT ONES 1958
56 BEN-HUR 1959
57 SERGEANT YORK 1941
58 CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND 1977
59 DANCES WITH WOLVES 1990
60 THE KILLING FIELDS 1984
61 SOUNDER 1972
62 BRAVEHEART 1995
63 RAIN MAN 1988
64 THE BLACK STALLION 1979
65 A RAISIN IN THE SUN 1961
66 SILKWOOD 1983
67 THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL 1951
68 AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN 1982
69 THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS 1957
70 COAL MINER’S DAUGHTER 1980
71 COOL HAND LUKE 1967
72 DARK VICTORY 1939
73 ERIN BROCKOVICH 2000
74 GUNGA DIN 1939
75 THE VERDICT 1982
76 BIRDMAN OF ALCATRAZ 1962
77 DRIVING MISS DAISY 1989
78 THELMA & LOUISE 1991
79 THE TEN COMMANDMENTS 1956
80 BABE 1995
81 BOYS TOWN 1938
82 FIDDLER ON THE ROOF 1971
83 MR. DEEDS GOES TO TOWN 1936
84 SERPICO 1973
85 WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT 1993
86 STAND AND DELIVER 1988
87 WORKING GIRL 1988
88 YANKEE DOODLE DANDY 1942
89 HAROLD AND MAUDE 1972
90 HOTEL RWANDA 2004
91 THE PAPER CHASE 1973
92 FAME 1980
93 A BEAUTIFUL MIND 2001
94 CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS 1937
95 PLACES IN THE HEART 1984
96 SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER 1993
97 MADAME CURIE 1943
98 THE KARATE KID 1984
99 RAY 2004
100 CHARIOTS OF FIRE 1981

AFI Scores

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# FILM YEAR STUDIO COMPOSER
1 STAR WARS 1977 Twentieth Century Fox John Williams
2 GONE WITH THE WIND 1939 Selznick/MGM Max Steiner
3 LAWRENCE OF ARABIA 1962 Columbia Maurice Jarre
4 PSYCHO 1960 Paramount Bernard Herrmann
5 THE GODFATHER 1972 Paramount Nino Rota
6 JAWS 1975 Universal John Williams
7 LAURA 1944 Twentieth Century Fox David Raksin
8 THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN 1960 United Artists Elmer Bernstein
9 CHINATOWN 1974 Paramount Jerry Goldsmith
10 HIGH NOON 1952 United Artists Dimitri Tiomkin
11 THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD 1938 Warner Bros. Erich Wolfgang Korngold
12 VERTIGO 1958 Paramount Bernard Herrmann
13 KING KONG 1933 RKO Max Steiner
14 E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL 1982 Universal John Williams
15 OUT OF AFRICA 1985 Universal John Barry
16 SUNSET BLVD. 1950 Paramount Franz Waxman
17 TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD 1962 Universal Elmer Bernstein
18 PLANET OF THE APES 1968 Twentieth Century Fox Jerry Goldsmith
19 A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE 1951 Warner Bros. Alex North
20 THE PINK PANTHER 1964 United Artists Henry Mancini
21 BEN-HUR 1959 MGM Miklos Rozsa
22 ON THE WATERFRONT 1954 Columbia Leonard Bernstein
23 THE MISSION 1986 Warner Bros. Ennio Morricone
24 ON GOLDEN POND 1981 Universal Dave Grusin
25 HOW THE WEST WAS WON 1962 MGM, Cinerama Releasing Alfred Newman

World War II Films

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1940s
Confessions of a Nazi Spy
Convoy
Foreign Correspondent
The Great Dictator
The Long Voyage Home
The Mortal Storm
Night Train to Munic
49thParallel
A Yank in the RAF
Buck Privates
Casablanca
Desperate Journey
In Which we Serve
Mrs. Miniver
Journey for Margaret
Saboteur
Private Buckaroo
To Be or Not to Be
Went the Day Well?
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Air Force
Bataan
Destination Tokyo
Five Graves to Cairo
Hangmen Also Die!
Immortal Sergeant
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp
The More the Merrier
Sahara
So Proudly We Hail
Star Spangled Rhythm
Thank Your Lucky Stars
Thousands Cheer
The Conspirators
The Fighting Sullivans
Four Jills in a Jeep
Hail the Conquering Hero
Hollywood Canteen
Lifeboat
The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek
Pin Up Girl
Sunday Dinner for a Soldier
Since You Went Away
Thirty Seconds over Tokyo
To Have and Have Not
A Walk in the Sun
Back to Bataan
Objective Burma
Rome, Open City
The Story of G.I. Joe
The Seventh Cross
They Were Expendable
A Matter of Life and Death
It’s a Wonderful Life
The Best Years of Our Lives
Paisan
The Stranger
The Search
Battleground
Sands of Iwo Jima
Twelve O’Clock High
Le Silence de la mer
1950s
The Men
Go for Broke!
Operation Pacific
Forbidden Games
From Here to Eternity
Stalag 17
The Caine Mutiny
Bad Day at Black Rock
The Dam Busters
Mister Roberts
A Man Escaped
Attack
Bridge on the River Kwai
A Time to Love and a Time to Die
Ice Cold in Alex
Ashes and Diamonds
The Bridge
Dunkirk
The Diary of Anne Frank
Hiroshima, Mon Amour
Run Silent, Run Deep
South Pacific
Ballad of a Soldier
Operation Peticoat
1960s
Hell to Eternity
Two Women
Bridge to the Sun
The Guns of Navarone
Judgment at Nuremberg
The Counterfeiter Traitor
The Longest Day
The Great Escape
Father Goose
The Train
The Hill
Closely Watched Trains
The Dirty Dozen
Where Eagles Dare
Army of Shadows
Battle of Britain
1970s
Catch-22
Kelly’s Heroes
Patton
Tora! Tora! Tora!
Overlord
Midway
A Bridge too Far
Cross of Iron
1980s
The Big Red One
The Last Metro
Das Boot
Sophie’s Choice
Come and See
Grave of the Fireflies
1990s
Europa Europa
Schindler’s List
Stalingrad
The English Patient
Life is Beautiful
Saving Private Ryan
The Thin Red Line
2000s
Nowhere in Africa
To End All Wars
The Pianist
Downfall
Sophie Scholl-The Final Days
Flags of Our Fathers
Letters from Iwo Jima

Inglorious Basterds

To Have and Have Not (1944)

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1b537-to_have_and_have_not_1944_film_posterStarring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan, Hoagy Carmichael, and with director Howard Hawks, this film is very reminiscent of Casablanca. On the small Vichy-controlled island of Martinique, a hardened seaman spends his days steering his boat and his nights at the local hotel. The French resistance stir up his life by asking for his help but he refuses. Everything changes however when he meets a mysterious young woman (Bacall). Their playful banter eventually leads them to a mutual affection. Wanting to help his new found girl get home, Harry Morgan finally does agree to help the French and in the process he shows his true colors. Cementing Bogey and Bacall as a star couple, and immortalizing a certain line about how to whistle, this film is a good one. It has everything you come to expect with Bogart and it gives you something special in Bacall.

4/5 Stars

In honor of Lauren Bacall

Key Largo (1948) – Film-Noir

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5b446-key_largo432Starring Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson, Lauren Bacall,  with director John Huston, the film takes place on a sweltering day during the hurricane season. Bogart is passing through Florida to say hello to the relations of a dead war buddy. In the process he and the others at the hotel are held hostage by the mobster Johnny Rocco (Robinson). Bogart seems to back away from conflict but he is only biding his time with the villainous gangster. Through a series of events the war veteran is supposed to pilot the mobsters to Cuba, however he ultimately turns on them and brings justice. This is a fairly good film with Lionel Barrymore, Claire Trevor, and Jay Silverheels in support. It must be mentioned that this was the final film pairing of Bogey and Bacall. Get ready to sweat it out in Key Largo.

4/5 Stars

In honor of Lauren Bacall

Dark Passage (1947) – Film-Noir

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74b1d-dark_passage_film_posterStarring Humprey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, the film opens with a man escaping San Quentin prion for supposedly killing his wife. Along the way he is helped by a sympathetic young artist, a friendly cabbie, and a plastic surgeon. He must evade the police while getting mixed up with another murder and some nosy people. Ultimately, he does find the actual killer but he has no way of proving it. He flees to South America where he is finally reunited with his love. This film is memorable for being shot from Bogart’s perspective early on. It makes good use of San Francisco scenery and some of the supporting characters are enjoyable to watch. However, the film’s ending seemed anticlimactic and abrupt without any real closure.

3.5/5 Stars

In honor of Lauren Bacall

The Big Sleep (1946) – Film-Noir

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e3d1f-bigsleep2This noir, crime-drama starring Bogey and Bacall with director Howard Hawks, follows private eye Phillip Marlowe (Bogart) in Los Angeles. His difficult and ever changing case has him interrogating every one under the sun and following every lead. In typical Bogart fashion, Marlowe is a tough guy who does not shy away from danger and he has the eye of many a woman. What starts off as a normal case quickly turns deadly, setting the plot off. The constant twists and new characters complicate Marlowe’s case and get him in numerous messes. However, thanks to his grit and wit he comes out on top, falling for the girl, and overcoming his adversary. One word that sums up this film is incomprehensible. Despite the confusion with the plot, this film is very enjoyable and seems to work itself out.

4.5/5 Stars

In honor of Lauren Bacall