100 Movies to See Before You Die: 

The Modern Classics

1990

Goodfellas
DIRECTED BY: Martin Scorsese
STARRING: Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Misery
DIRECTED BY: Rob Reiner
STARRING: James Caan, Kathy Bates
1991

 Beauty and the Beast

DIRECTED BY: Kirk Wise, Gary Trousdale
STARRING: Paige O'Hara, Robbie Benson
The Silence of the Lambs
DIRECTED BY: Jonathan Demme
STARRING: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Terminator 2: Judgment Day

DIRECTED BY: James Cameron
STARRING: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick
 Thelma & Louise
DIRECTED BY: Ridley Scott
STARRING: Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis
1992

 Hard Boiled (Lat sau san taam)

DIRECTED BY: John Woo
STARRING: Chow Yun-Fat, Tony Leung Chiu-wai
 Malcolm X
DIRECTED BY: Spike Lee
STARRING: Denzel Washington, Angela Bassett
 The Player
DIRECTED BY: Robert Altman
STARRING: Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi
 Raise the Red Lantern (Da hong deng long gao gao gua)
DIRECTED BY: Zhang Yimou
STARRING: Gong Li, Ma Jingwu
 Supercop (Ging chat goo si 3: Chiu kup ging chat)
DIRECTED BY: Stanley Tong
STARRING: Jackie Chan, Michelle Yeoh, Maggie Cheung

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Unforgiven
DIRECTED BY: Clint Eastwood
STARRING: Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Gene Hackman
1993

 Dazed and Confused

DIRECTED BY: Richard Linklater
STARRING: Jason London, Wiley Wiggins, Matthew McConaughey
 Groundhog Day
DIRECTED BY: Harold Ramis
STARRING: Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Stephen Tobolowsky
 Schindler's List
DIRECTED BY: Steven Spielberg
STARRING: Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes
1994

Chungking Express (Chung Hing sam lam)

DIRECTED BY: Wong Kar-Wai
STARRING: Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Faye Wong

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Ed Wood
DIRECTED BY: Tim Burton
STARRING: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker
 Forrest Gump
DIRECTED BY: Robert Zemeckis
STARRING: Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise
 Four Weddings and a Funeral
DIRECTED BY: Mike Newell
STARRING: Hugh Grant, Andie MacDowell, Simon Callow
 Pulp Fiction
DIRECTED BY: Quentin Tarantino
STARRING: John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis
 The Shawshank Redemption
DIRECTED BY: Frank Darabont
STARRING: Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman
 Red (Trois couleurs: Rouge)
 DIRECTED BY: Krzysztof Kieslowski
STARRING: Irene Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant
1995

 Babe
DIRECTED BY: Chris Noonan
STARRING: James Cromwell, Magda Szubanski
 Before Sunrise
DIRECTED BY: Richard Linklater
STARRING: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy
Clueless
DIRECTED BY: Amy Heckerling
STARRING: Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Brittany Murphy

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Heat
DIRECTED BY: Michael Mann
STARRING: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Val Kilmer
 Living in Oblivion
DIRECTED BY: Tom DeCillo
STARRING: Steve Buscemi, Catherine Keener
 Sense and Sensibility
DIRECTED BY: Ang Lee
STARRING: Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant
Toy Story
DIRECTED BY: John Lasseter
STARRING: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

The Usual Suspects

DIRECTED BY: Bryan Singer
STARRING: Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Chazz Palminteri

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

1996

 Big Night
DIRECTED BY: Campbell Scott, Stanley Tucci
STARRING: Tony Shaloub, Stanley Tucci, Ian Holm
 Dead Man
DIRECTED BY: Jim Jarmusch
STARRING: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen
 Fargo
DIRECTED BY: Joel Coen
STARRING: Frances McDormand, William H. Macy

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Ghost in the Shell (Kokaku kidotai)

DIRECTED BY: Mamoru Oshii
STARRING: Atsuko Tanaka, Akio Otsuka
 Lone Star
DIRECTED BY: John Sayles
STARRING: Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Pena, Kris Kristofferson, Matthew McConaughey,
Scream
DIRECTED BY: Wes Craven
STARRING: Neve Campbell, Drew Barrymore

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Secrets & Lies

DIRECTED BY: Mike Leigh
STARRING: Brenda Blethyn, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Timothy Spall
 Sling Blade
DIRECTED BY: Billy Bob Thornton
STARRING: Billy Bob Thornton, Dwight Yoakam, Lucas Black
 Swingers
DIRECTED BY: Doug Liman
STARRING: Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Heather Graham
 Trainspotting
DIRECTED BY: Danny Boyle
STARRING: Ewan McGregor, Jonny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle
199

Boogie Nights
DIRECTED BY: Paul Thomas Anderson
STARRING: Mark Wahlberg, Burt Reynolds, Julianne Moore

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Eve's Bayou
DIRECTED BY: Kasi Lemmons
STARRING: Samuel L. Jackson, Lynn Whitfield, Debbi Morgan
 L.A. Confidential
DIRECTED BY: Curtis Hanson
STARRING: Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, Kevin Spacey
 The Sweet Hereafter
 DIRECTED BY: Atom Egoyan
STARRING: Ian Holm, Bruce Greenwood, Sarah Polley
Titanic
DIRECTED BY: James Cameron
STARRING: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

1998

 The Big Lebowski

DIRECTED BY: Joel Coen
STARRING: Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore
 Fireworks (Hana-bi)
DIRECTED BY: Takeshi Kitano
STARRING: Takeshi Kitano, Kayoko Kishimoto
Out of Sight
DIRECTED BY: Steven Soderbergh
STARRING: George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez, Catherine Keener

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

Saving Private Ryan

DIRECTED BY: Steven Spielberg
STARRING: Tom Hanks, Tom Sizemore

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 There's Something About Mary

DIRECTED BY: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly
STARRING: Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller
1999

 All About My Mother (Todo sobre mi madre)

DIRECTED BY: Pedro Almodovar
STARRING: Cecilia Roth, Marisa Paredes, Penelope Cruz
 American Beauty
DIRECTED BY: Sam Mendes
STARRING: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch
 Being John Malkovich
DIRECTED BY: Spike Jonze
STARRING: John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener, John Malkovich
 Election
DIRECTED BY: Alexander Payne
STARRING: Matthew Broderick, Reese Witherspoon, Chris Klein
 Fight Club
DIRECTED BY: David Fincher
STARRING: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

The Matrix
DIRECTED BY: Larry Wachowski, Andy Wachowski
STARRING: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Princess Mononoke (Mononoke-hime)

DIRECTED BY: Hayao Miyazaki
STARRING: Yoji Matsuda, Yuriko Ishida
 Run Lola Run (Lola rennt)
DIRECTED BY: Tom Tykwer
STARRING: Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu
 The Sixth Sense
DIRECTED BY: M. Night Shyamalan
STARRING: Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, Toni Collette
 Three Kings
DIRECTED BY: David O. Russell
STARRING: George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube
2000

 Almost Famous
DIRECTED BY: Cameron Crowe
STARRING: Patrick Fugit, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson
Best in Show
DIRECTED BY: Christopher Guest
STARRING: Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Wo hu cang long)

DIRECTED BY: Ang Lee
STARRING: Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Ziyi Zhang
Yi Yi
DIRECTED BY: Edward Yang
STARRING: Wu Nien-jen, Issey Ogata, Elaine Jin

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

2001
 Amelie (Le fabuleux destin d'Amelie Poulain)
DIRECTED BY: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
STARRING: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz
 Donnie Darko
DIRECTED BY: Richard Kelly
STARRING: Jake Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze
 In the Mood For Love (Fa yeung nin wa)
DIRECTED BY: Wong Kar-Wai
STARRING: Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-wai
The Lord of the Rings
DIRECTED BY: Peter Jackson
STARRING: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Memento
DIRECTED BY: Christopher Nolan
STARRING: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano
 Mulholland Drive
DIRECTED BY: David Lynch
STARRING: Naomi Watts, Laura Elena Harring,
 The Royal Tenenbaums
DIRECTED BY: Wes Anderson
STARRING: Gene Hackman, Ben Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow
2002

 The Pianist
DIRECTED BY: Roman Polanski
STARRING: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Emilia Fox
 Y Tu Mama Tambien
DIRECTED BY: Alfonso Cuaron
STARRING: Maribel Verdu, Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna
2003

 City of God (Cidade de Deus)

DIRECTED BY: Fernando Meirelles
STARRING: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino De Hora Phellipe, Seu Jorge
Elephant
DIRECTED BY: Gus Van Sant
STARRING: Alex Frost, Eric Deulen, John Robinson

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Finding Nemo
 DIRECTED BY: Andrew Stanton
STARRING: Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres
2004

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy

DIRECTED BY: Adam McKay
STARRING: Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

DIRECTED BY: Michel Gondry
STARRING: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Shaun of the Dead

DIRECTED BY: Edgar Wright
STARRING: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield
 Sideways
DIRECTED BY: Alexander Payne
STARRING: Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen
2005

 The 40-Year-Old Virgin

DIRECTED BY: Judd Apatow
STARRING: Steve Carell, Catherine Keener, Seth Rogen
Brokeback Mountain
DIRECTED BY: Ang Lee
STARRING: Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 A History of Violence
DIRECTED BY: David Cronenberg
STARRING: Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris
Oldboy
DIRECTED BY: Park Chan-wook
STARRING: Choi Min-shik, Kang Hye-jeong

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

2006

 Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of

Kazakhstan
DIRECTED BY: Larry Charles
 STARRING: Sacha Baron Cohen, Kenneth Davitian
Children of Men
DIRECTED BY: Alfonso Cuaron
STARRING: Clive Owen, Michael Caine, Julianne Moore

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen)

DIRECTED BY: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
STARRING: Martina Gedeck, Ulrich Muehe, Sebastian Koch
 Pan's Labyrinth (El laberinto del fauno)
DIRECTED BY: Guillermo del Toro
STARRING: Maribel Verdu, Ivana Baquero, Doug Jones
2007

 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days (4 luni, 3 saptamani si 2 zile)

DIRECTED BY: Cristian Mungiu
STARRING: Anamaria Marinca, Laura Vasiliu, Vlad Ivanov
The Bourne Ultimatum
DIRECTED BY: Paul Greengrass
STARRING: Matt Damon, Joan Allen, David Strathairn

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le scaphandre et le papillon)

DIRECTED BY: Julian Schnabel
STARRING: Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner, Marie-Josée Croze
 Michael Clayton
DIRECTED BY: Tony Gilroy
STARRING: George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton
 No Country for Old Men
DIRECTED BY: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
STARRING: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin
 There Will Be Blood
DIRECTED BY: Paul Thomas Anderson
STARRING: Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Dano
2008

 The Dark Knight

DIRECTED BY: Christopher Nolan
STARRING: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart
 Slumdog Millionaire
DIRECTED BY: Danny Boyle
STARRING: Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Freida Pinto
 WALL-E
DIRECTED BY: Andrew Stanton
STARRING: Fred Willard, Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Garlin

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

2009

 Avatar
DIRECTED BY: James Cameron
STARRING: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver
The Hurt Locker
DIRECTED BY: Kathryn Bigelow
STARRING: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT

 Inglourious Basterds