100 Greatest Movies All-Time Pt. 3: 50 - 25

Hey gang, here's the last post before we get into my top 25 movies all-time, so I hope you enjoy the last of the "bottom" 75. Again, I'll be listing 25 movies here, with a brief write-up explanation of why that movie for certain films that I choose to defend. Again, this is based on my theory of there being two kinds of films, quality films and entertaining awesome films with both types getting equal weight. Hit the jump for 50 through 26.

Honorable Mentions: Casino, Shakespeare in Love, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, The Sixth Sense, The Green Mile, Apollo 13, Tomcats (wait, not that last one. Never that last one)

50.) Serenity

 - I saw this movie before I ever saw an episode of Firefly, which is the way that I did it but not what I would recommend to others with the Firefly universe. The reason why it's number 50? The great writing and acting, plust I consider Captain Malcom Reynold's one of the best characters ever.

49.) Vertigo

48.) Mystic River

47.) Star Wars Episode VI- The Return of the Jedi

46.) Taxi Driver
 - I originally had Jedi here and Taxi driver at #47, but I could not come up with a good reason why Jedi would be higher than Scorsese's meditation on a truly psychotic life.

45.) Batman Begins
 - "It should be you standing by my side, saving the world."
  "I'll be standing where I belong. Between you and the people of Gotham"

44.) A Clockwork Orange

43.) Memento
 - The second appearance by Christopher Nolan, and I guarantee it won't be the last. I consider him one of the best current directors in Hollywood, if the best.

42.) The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

41.) Duck Soup

40.) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

 - Features one of the best villains in the history of film, plus an unforgettable performance by Jack Nicholson

39.) Iron Man
 - One of the few instances where the comic book character actually feels like it comes alive by the performance. Can not say enough about the marvelous job by Robert Downey Jr.

38.) Deer Hunter
 - Not to be confused by the popular drinking game "Beer Hunter" where you shake up one beer out of six and everybody takes turns opening it next to their face until one explodes on them.

37.) Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
 - I'm sure film buffs will have noticed this, but there are a lot of Jimmy Stewart movies on this count-down. He's my favorite actor from films ever.

36.) The Manchurian Candidate.

 -Not the Denzel Washington one, the one with Frank Sinatra and Angela Lansbury. The good one.

35.) Network
 - "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!"
Amazingly, this film is even more true now about the exploitive nature of televised media then it was when it was created. Way to go society.

34.) Schindler's List
 - Should probably be higher, because of the absolutely incredible performances throughout the entire film. The only thing is, I felt that even though it was an incredibly important film, the whole thing wasn't insanely good. Plus, I saw it once proably twelve years ago, and if I had the choice I wouldn't see it again.

33.) Blazing Saddles
 - This movie, more than any other, shaped my sense of humor as a child and to this day.

32.) Chinatown

31.) The Third Man

-This explanation is going to apply to both films, because they are two of the best endings to a film in history. End of story.

30.) Raging Bull

29.) Training Day
- Here's my explanation. See this movie again. After watching it for the second and third time, I fell in love with this movie. And every time I see it I find something new and I enjoy it more.

28.) The Untouchables
 - "They pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of your boys to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That's the Chicago way." -Now imagine Sean Connory saying that line.

27.) The Prestige

 - Same as my explanation for Training Day. Except this one is absolutely beautiful and a true work of art. Again though, this is not the last Christopher Nolan film on the list. Look for that much later.

26.) Collateral
 - One of the most beautifully shot films to come out in the last couple decades. Made L.A. look gorgeous, not to mention the incredible acting by Jamie Foxx, Tom Cruise, Javier Bardem, and just about every actor in the movie. Michael Mann's best in my mind.

Starting tomorrow, we go five at a time from 25 all the way up to number 1. Look for it tomorrow.