The following links are to lists derived from large sample (usually a minimum of 500 respondents) polls of film fans. Some are ongoing polls and are updated frequently. Others have finished polling. These polls tend to favor the popular taste.
ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) My Favourite Film—Viewers voted on the best films of all time in a popular/mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Amazon.co.uk Top 100 Movies of All Time—A strongly mainstream list that also leans popular derived from a poll of over 50,000 people.
BBC The Film 99 top 100—Viewers voted on the best films of all time.
Britmovie Viewers Top 100 British Films—An ongoing user poll of the best British films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Cesko-Slovenská filmová databáze Zebrícky [Ratings]—User ratings from a Czech-language film site lead to a popular list.
Channel Four Top Movie Lists—The British television network used to run periodic fan polls. Some are of top films, and others are broader with most of the finalists being films. Specific lists include:
Another series selected the 50 Best British Films. These links are from the Internet Archive.
Cinema Die 100 besten Filme aller Zeiten [The 100 best films of all time]—In 2010, the magazine conducted a new poll that resulted in a popular list that also leans mainstream.
Cinema Die besten Actionfilme: Actionfilme Top 50 [The best action movies]—In 2009, the magazine conducted a poll on specifically action films.
Daily Film Dose The Fanboy 100—The film review blog responded to the American Film Institute's 2007 list by inviting users to submit their votes using the AFI's ballot, resulting in the most strongly mainstream list analyzed for the 2020-2021 edition of this site.
Douban Top 250—The top films according to ratings by users of the Chinese social networking site lead to a popular list.
DVDBeaver The Top 100 Blu-Rays and DVDs—A highbrow list of desert island DVDs and blu rays selected in a poll of over 700 respodents who are Michael Powell fans.
Empire Your 100 Greatest Movies Ever/100 Greatest Movies of All Time—Readers pick their favorite films in polls conducted in 1999 and in 2003. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site via the Internet Archive.
Empire Ultimate Movie Poll—Empire readers pick their 50 favorite films in a popular/mainstream list. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site via the Internet Archive.
Empire The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time—Empire readers, along with a few filmmakers and critics, once again voted for their favorite films of all time in a mainstream/popular list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 301 Greatest Movies of All Time—Empire was a little more conservative in 2014 and presented just the top-301 films of all time in a popular/mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire 100 Greatest Movies—Continuting the trend, the magazine now provides only the top 100 films in a mainstream/popular list.
Esquire UK The 50 Greatest British Films Of All-Time—The results of a poll of 2,000 people in which Lawrence of Arabia comes in both 11th and 41st.
Everyone's a Critic The Top 200—The now-defunct site took user ratings to create a strongly mainstream list that also leans both highbrow and popular. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film Heritage of World Cinema Filmove dedictví 2007 [Film Heritage 2007]—A Czech language site presented the results of two polls, one of experts and one of film fans. The fans produced a mainstream list that leans popular. This link is from the Internet Archive.
FilmAfinity—The top films as rated by users of the site. The result is a highbrow list that also leans mainstream.
FilmCrave Top 100 Movies of All-Time—Films are ranked based on user ratings in a strongly popular list that is also mainstream.
Filmweb Ranking—The highest rated films on a Polish web site create a strongly popular list.
Flickchart The Best Movies of All Time—Users are asked to pick their favorite from a pair of films. After voting on a few million pairs, a user should get something that resembles her or his top-film list. This popular list that also leans highbrow is a compilation of all users' votes.
Flicks.co.nz The 100 Greatest Movies Ever MadeThe result of a poll of approximately 3,000 film fans in New Zealand is a mainstream/popular list.
FNAC/Le Monde Les Grands Films du Siecle [The Greatest Films of the Century]—The results of a fan poll in France. English speaking film fans should be able to figure out most of the titles. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Groovy Movie Top 100 Poll—Users voted on the films that they considered to be the best rather than the "coolest" in a popular/mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
The Guardian The Big 50—A Guardian panel selected its top 50 adaptations of novels into films and presented a reader poll ranking these 50 films.
IndieWire The 50 Most Important LGBT Films—Presents the resutls of a reader poll.
Internet Movie Database Top 250 films—Users of the internet's most important web site on film choose their top films in a strongly popular list that is also mainstream.
Internet Movie Questionnaire Top 100 Movies—The result of a user poll. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Internettive Top 100—An ongoing poll that results in a strongly popular list that also leans mainstream. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Jackpot Hollywood Fabulous 50 Favorite Flicks—Presents the results of an online poll. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Kinopoisk 250 best films—A Russian site similar to IMDb has its own popular list of the top 250 films.
L.A. Daily News Greatest Films—A readers poll using the 400 nominees for the AFI's 100 Years… 100 Movies list. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Landmark Theatres Favorite Foreign Film Poll—Customers of Landmark Theatres and Borders Books voted for their favorite "foreign" films. Of course, the films were foreign only to those in English-speaking nations. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Leffatykki Parhaat Elokuvat [Best Movies]—The highest-rated films on a Finnish web site create a popular list that also leans highbrow and mainstream.
Letterboxd Top Films by Rating—The site's top films by average user rating creates a highbrow list that also leans mainstream and popular.
Listal Top rated popular Movies—Another site that lists its top films by average user rating leads to a strongly popular list that also leans mainstream.
LOGO The 50 Greatest LGBT films—Users picked the best films. This link comes from the Internet Archive.
Magical Movies—A popular leaning list of users' top three most inspiring films. This link comes from the Internet Archive.
Melhores Filmes Os melhores filmes de todos os tempos [The best movies of all time]—The highest rated films on a Brazilian web site creates a highbrow/mainstream list.
MovieMeter Top 250—The highest rated films on a Dutch web site creates a strongly popular list that also leans mainstream.
MoviePilot Die besten Filme [The best movies]—The highest rated films on a German web site creates a strongly popular list.
Mr. Showbiz Centurama—Users pick the top films of the past century. This link comes from the Internet Archive.
Mr. Showbiz Readers' 100 Best Movies of All Time—Users of the web site voted on their top films. This link comes from the Internet Archive.
MUBI The best movies ever—The most popular films on the site create a highrow/popular list.
MUBI Highest Rated Films—The films on with the highest user ratings on the site create a strongly highbrow list.
The Observer Your most memorable film moments—The newspaper presented the results of a reader poll on the best film moments of all time.
The Observer The last laugh: your favourite 50—The newspaper presented the results of a reader poll on the best comedies of all time. Another page contains films #26-50.
Online-Filmdatenbank (OFDb) Beste Filme [Best Movies]—The top rated films on a German web site create a strongly popular list.
Ranker The Best Movies of All Time—The result of various up and down votes from users is a popular list that also leans mainstream.
Rate Your Music Top Films of All Time—Users of the music rating site can also rate films. The highest rated films form a highbrow list that also leans popular and mainstream.
Sens Critique Le Top 111 films [The Top 111 Films]—The top films according to user ratings from the French-language site form a list that leans mainstream and highbrow. It is heavy on Japanese films.
SensaCine Las mejores películas según los usuarios [The best movies according to users]—The top films according to user ratings from the Spanish-language site form a popular list.
Sinemalar En Iyi Filmler [Best Movies]—The top films according to user ratings from the Turkish site form a popular list.
Sisqua.com 100 Greatest Movies of All Time—The results of a fan poll. This link is from BRmovie.com via the Internet Archive.
Sky Premier channel Top 100 Films—The results of a fan poll. This link is from the BBC's website.
Time Out Readers' Top 100 Films—A poll of the film magazine's readers. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Total Film The 50 Greatest Sci-Fi Movies Ever—A fan poll selected some of the best science-fiction films in a popular leaning list. This link is from the Internet Archive
Total Film Totalfilm.com's 100 Favourite Movies—Another fan poll presents an unranked popular-leaning list of users's favorite films.
The links below are to polls of film scholars, critics, and filmmakers. With the exception of the American Film Institute polls, the number of people participating in these polls is usually much smaller than the number participating in the polls of film fans. Many polls are composites of top-10 lists submitted by respondents, although the American Film Institute polls use a ballot.
Alliance of Women Film Journalists Top 100 Films List—The AFWJ selected its top-100 film list in response to the fact that the nominees for the American Film Institute's 2007 list included very few films directed by women.
American Film Institute 100 Years… 100 Movies—This is arguably the most familiar list of top films. Several of the links on this page are to lists inspired by or in response to this list. There is also a list of nominees in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute 100 Years… 100 Laughs—The AFI lists top American comedies. There is also a list of nominees in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute 100 Years… 100 Thrills—The AFI presents the top American thrillers in a list that leans toward the mainstream taste. The list has a very loose definition of "thriller" that includes Casablanca (1942) and The Godfather (1972). There is also a list of nominees in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute 100 Years… 100 Passions—The AFI presents top American romantic films. There is also a list of nominees in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute The Greatest Movie Musicals of All Time—The AFI selected a smaller list of the best musicals. There is also a copy of the ballot in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute 100 Years… 100 Cheers—The AFI presents the most inspiring films in another list. There is also a list of nominees in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute 100 Years… 100 Movies - 10th Anniversary Edition—The AFI decided to update its list of the best American films of all time. It resulted in a very strongly mainstream list. There is also a copy of the ballot in a PDF file via the Internet Archive.
American Film Institute AFI's 10 Top Ten—Rather than create a sinlge list, the AFI in 2008 created top-ten lists in each of ten genres: animation, fantasy, romantic comedy, science-fiction, western, gangster, sports, courtroom drama, mystery, and epic. Put together, these form a mainstream leaning list.
BBC Culture The 100 greatest American films—A mainstream list is the result of a poll of 62 film critics.
BBC Culture The 100 Greatest Comedies of All Time—A poll of 253 film critics came up with a list of the top comedy films that contains more than the usual number of films in a language other than English for a list of this genre (i.e., more than zero).
BBC Culture The 100 greatest foreign-language films—A strongly highbrow list is the result of a poll of 209 film critics.
BBC Culture The 100 Greatest Comedies of All Time—After noticing that the previous lists contained very few films with female directors, BBC Culture polled 368 people for the best films with female directors.
British Film Institute Favorite British Films of the 20th Century—The BFI does for British films what the AFI did for American films. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
British Film Institute Watch This! Top fifty films for children up to the age of 14—The BFI conducted a debate of the most important films for children to see. This link is from the Daily Mail Online.
Cahiers du cinema 100 films pour une cinémathèque idéale—The film magazine published the results of a poll of French film writers and critics in a highbrow list. This link is from the Internet Archive. Cinemarealm has an English translation of the list.
Cinemarati 100 A Few of Our Favorite Movies—The results of a collection of Top-100 film lists from online critics. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Directors Guild of America The 80 Best-Directed Films—The guild celebrated its 80th anniversary by conducting a poll of its members. The result is a very strongly mainstream list.
Film Comment Top 150 Unreleased Foreign Language Films of the Nineties—In 1997. the magazine polled approximately 80 critics and film scholars for the best films of the 1990s that were not yet released in the United States. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film Heritage of World Cinema Filmove dedictví 2007 [Film Heritage 2007]—A Czech language site presented the results of two polls, one of experts and one of film fans. The experts produced a highbrow list that leans mainstream. This link is from the Internet Archive.
The Hollywood Reporter Hollywood's 100 Favorite Films—The film trade paper claims that this is the "first definitive entertainment-industry ranking." Some of the other polls in this section might want to challenge that assertion. The result is a very strongly mainstream list that also leans popular.
IRAThe Top 100 Films of All Time—A highbrow/mainstream leaning list. This link is from the Huffington Post.
John Kobal Poll—The result of a poll of various critics and filmmakers. This link is from the Combustible Celluloid site.
Motion Picture Editors Guild The 75 Best Edited Films—On the 75th anniversary of the Society of Motion Picture Film Editors, the guild voted on the best edited films. The result is a mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
El Mundo Las 100 Mejores Películas [The 100 Best Films]—The newspaper polled 100 international critics. [Scroll approximately 2/3 to 3/4 of the way down the page]. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Online Film Critics Society Top 100 Sci-Fi Films of all Time—In 2002, members voted on the best science-fiction feature films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Online Film Critics Society Top 100 Animated Features of all Time—In 2003, members voted on the best animated feature films. As one might predict, the final list is heavy on Disney and anime films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Online Film Critics Society 100 Best First Films—Members voted on the best first films from directors. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Out Magazine 50 Essential Gay Films—Some of the magazines favorite directors, artists, and entertainers voted on the best films attracted to films of the same sex.
El País 100 películas que cambiaron su vida [The 100 films that changed their lives]—Various Latin American filmmakers voted on the films that changed their lives, resulting in a mainstream list that also leans highbrow.
Peppas The 100 movies of our lives—This Greek-language site presents the result of a poll of Greek filmmakers in a highbrow-leaning list. The site also presents the ballots.
San Francisco State University Films Anyone Serious About Cinema Should See—A faculty poll created a highbrow list of films that should be seen by film students. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sight and Sound Top Films—Starting in 1952, the film magazine polled critics every ten years for their best films of all time. The magazine also polled directors starting in 1992. This link presents the top films for the polls from 1952-1992.
Sight and Sound 2002 Poll—In 2002, the magazine once again polled critics and directors.
Sight and Sound 2012 Poll—After another ten years, the magazine once again polled critics and directors resulting in the most highbrow list analyzed on this site. The list also leans mainstream. Also see the Phi-Phenomenon's analysis of this poll's results.
Sight and Sound Critics' 50 Greatest Documentaries of All Time—The film magazine polled 340 critics and filmmakers for the best documentaries of all time.
Slate Magazine The Black Film Canon: The 50 greatest movies by black directors—The online magazine polled over 20 filmmakers, critics, and scholars for the best films made by black filmmakers.
TCM Spain Las películas de nuestra vida [The films of Our Lives]—The film channel polled various filmmakers on the films that most influenced them, creating a maisntream leaning list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out Centenary Top 100 Films—The London magazine polled filmmakers and critics to create this list. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Time Out London 100 best comedy movies—Selected in part by comedians, actors, and other filmmakers. Includes comedies like GoodFellas (1990) and Pulp Fiction (1994).
Time Out London The 100 best horror films—The London branch of Time Out polled various horror filmmakers for their top horror films.
Time Out London The 100 best romantic movies—The London branch of Time Out polled various actors, writers, directors, "cultural heroes," and others for their top romantic films.
Time Out London and Time Out New York The 100 best animated movies—Both cities collaborate on (or at least present) a poll of animators, "animation experts," and Disney/Pixar "creatives" on the top animated films of all time, including special effects films such as King Kong (1933).
Time Out London The 100 best British films—A poll of over 150 filmmakers created this list of British films.
Time Out London The 100 best action movies ever made—A poll of over 50 filmmmakers led to this list of the top action films, heavy on martial arts films. It also includes Arrival of a Train at la Ciotat.
Time Out London The 50 best gay movies: the best in LGBT+ filmmaking—From a poll of "LGBT+ cultural pioneers."
Time Out New York The 101 best action movies ever made—An update to the Time Out London poll.
Time Out New York The 100 best movies of all time—The result of a poll of 73 actors's top-ten lists is a mainstream list. Another page includes the actors who participated and their top-ten lists.
Time Out Paris The 100 best French films—A poll of "industry experts," mostly from France, selected the top French films.
Time Out Shanghai 100 best Mainland Chinese films—A poll of 88 "international film experts" selected this list of the best films from the People's Republic of China.
Village Voice 100 Best Films of the 20th Century—The newspaper polled critics on the best film of the century. This link is from Tim Dirk's Greatest Films site.
Writers Guild of America 101 Greatest Screenplays—Guild members voted on the best of over 1,400 nominated screenplays to create a strongly mainstream list.
Writers Guild of America 101 Funniest Screenplays—Guild members voted on the best comedies.
All of these lists represent the personal opinion of a single identified film scholar, critic, or filmmaker.
Alain Bergala The 208 Films That You Must Have Seen—The French film critic proposed films to serve as a foundation to an education in film. This link is from I Check Movies.
Breitbart The 165 Greatest American Movies Ever Made—A critic on the [ahem] "alt-right" web site selected a mainstream leaning list of the best American films. This page has #165-141. Other pages in the countdown have #116-140, #91-115, #66-90, #41-65, #16-40, and #1-15.
Nick Burns Film List—A film professor makes his recommendations on films to see. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Edward Buscombe 100 Westerns—A list of the top film westerns. This link is from the Internet Archive.
BuzzFeed 58 Romantic Comedies You Need To See Before You Die—Reporter Louis Peitzman listed his top romcoms.
Charles Champlin 100 Best American Sound Films—At the request of the library at the California State University at Los Angeles, the former Los Angeles Times writer presents his list of best films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Chicago Reader Alternate 100—Critic Jonathan Rosenbaum responded to the AFI's 100 Years… 100 Movies list by picking 100 American films not on the original list.
Chicago Tribune 100 Best Films of the Century—Critic Michael Wilmington picks his top 100 films (really 128). This link is from the Internet Archive.
360 Classic Feature Film Project—David Meeker of the British Film Institute collected 360 (really 363) classic films. This link is from Alex Fung's page via the Internet Archive.
Cleveland Plain Dealer The 68 Greatest Sci-fi Films of All Time—In honor of a couple of classic science-fiction films from 19689, critic John Petkovic selected his top-68 science-fiction films.
CNN Essential Movies—As a tie-in to a CNN documentary, critic Brian Lowry created list of the Essential movies of the 1930s and '40s, Essential movies of the 1970s, Essential movies of the '80s, and Essential movies of the '90s which combine to form a mainstream list. It is not clear why the 1950s, 1960s, and the 2000s were skipped. Another critic created a list of the 55 essential movies to watch from the 2010s that may or may not be linked to the previous lists.
Combustible Celluloid 100 Great Movies—Critic Jeffrey M. Anderson selects his top films in a highbrow list.
Bosley Crowther The 50 Best Films of All Time—The former New York Times critic chose his 50 best films in 1967. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Frank Darabont Greatest Movies Of All Time—As part of Empire's Masterpieces series, director Frank Darabont selected his favorite films in each of 22 genres in a mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Roger Ebert 100 great movie moments—The Chicago Sun Times critic's 100 memorable moments in film.
Roger Ebert The Great Movies—A highbrow/mainstream list of the Chicago Sun-Times critic's biweekly column. His (nonidentical) top ten lists can be found at his site and at Sight & Sound.
Jim Emerson 101 Movies You Must See Before You Die—The editor of Roger Ebert's web page created a list of the films that he believes everyone should see before it is too late. The Webmaster does not know what to make of the fact that he can die after seeing only two more films.
Pino Farinotti 5-Star Films—The top rated films from an Italian film guide. This link is from Google Docs.
Filmsite Greatest Films—Tim Dirks's site includes a strongly mainstream list of top films.
Filmsite Most Influential, Significant and Important Films in American Cinema—This site also provides a mainstream-leaning list of the most important films.
Filmsite Top 100 Greatest Film Quotes—The top film quotes from "Wait a minute! Wait a minute! You ain't heard nothin' yet," to "Why so serious?" The films themselves form a mainstream list.
Filmsite Sexiest Films of All-Time—Includes plenty of NSFW stills from the selected films.
Filmsite 100 Most Iconic Movie Images Moments or Scenes—The films comprise a mainstream list. Includes 50 honorable mentions.
Filmsite The 100+ Most Controversial Films of All-Time—Films with the ability to anger, divide, shock, and/or disgust some people.
Philip French The Top 50—The film critic from The Observer selected his top films made since 1960.
The Guardian The best family films of all time—Critic Xan Brooks "risks the wrath of readers" with his top 50 family films.
Bill Hader The Films That Inspired Him to Become a Filmmaker—The actor presented the films that influenced him the most in a highbrow-leaning list.
The Independent 100 Best Films—Critic Anthony Quinn picked his 100 favorite films in a mainstream/highbrow leaning list.
Mark Kermode 50 films every film fan should watch—"The UK’s best-known film critic" created a list that is a lot more idiosyncratic than a typical list with this title.
Satoshi Kon 100 Movies chosen by The Dreaming Machine team—An anime filmmaker selected some favorite films in a mainstream-leaning list. This link is from Makiko Itoh's blog.
Sergey Kudryavtsev Kudryavtsev's List, Part 1 —Part 2 contains films that are a bit more obscure. Both pages are in Russian.
Akira Kurosawa Top 100 Movies—The webmaster's favorite director's top films.
Spike Lee Essential List of Films for Filmmakers—The director listed the films that all aspiring filmmakers should see in a mainstream-leaning list.
Los Angeles Times 129 DVDs You Must Own—Film critic Peter Rainer selected a highbrow leaning list of his favorite 129 films that are available on DVD. He favors films directed by Satyajit Ray and Preston Sturges. This link is from the Best of Movies site via the Internet Archive.
Derek Malcolm Century of Film—The critic from The Guardian presents his favorite film from each of 100 directors in a highbrow leaning list. This link is from Combustible Celluloid. Anotehr site has his top-10 list, which includes films not on the longer list.
Leonard Maltin 100 Must-See Films of the 20th Century—The critic presents a top-100 film list. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site. Maltin also presents a top-10 list at Entertainment Scene, which contains a film not on his top-100 list. This second list is from the Internet Archive.
Paolo Mereghetti 4-Star Films—The top rated films from an Italian film guide form a highbrow list.
Morando Morandini 5-Star Films—The top rated films from another Italian film guide form a highbrow-leaning list.
Bill Mousoulis Top 50 films of all time—An Australian filmmaker presents two top-50 lists, one with a limit of one film per director and one without that limit.
Jürgen Müller 100 All-Time Favorite Movies—The German film historian picked his top films in a mainstream list that also leans highbrow. This link is from the Internet Archive.
The New York Times Essential Library 100 Recommended Children's Movies—Critic Peter Nichols selected 100 films appropriate for family viewing. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Barry Norman 100 Greatest Films of All Time!—The film critic picks his top 100 films of all time in a mainstream list. Norman's top-10 list is at Sight and Sound.
Barry Norman Best British Films—The film critic picked his 49 top films and let the public choose a 50th.
O Magazine 50 Greatest Chick Flicks—Critic Karen Durbin chose her top-50 female empowerment films. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Ottawa Citizen My favorite 100 films of the century—Critic Jay Stone picked his 100 favorite films, even if he did not remember all of the titles. This link is from the Internet Archive.
El País Semanal—Critic Antonio Albert presented his top-ten films in each of ten genres. [Scroll approximately 40% of the way down the page.] This second list is from the Internet Archive.
Parade Magazine See the Films George Clooney Loves!—The actor/director presents his favorite films made between 1964 and 1976.
Gerald Peary 100 Films for Film Literacy—The film critic presents a highbrow list of important films that also leans mainstream.
Otto Penzler 101 Greatest Films of Mystery & Suspense—The author chooses the top mystery and suspense films, broadly defined. This link is from the Lists of Bests site via the Internet Archive.
Reader's Digest The 100+ Funniest Films—Stefan Kanfer composed his list of the greatest comedies. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Reel Views Berardinelli's All-Time Top 100—Online critic James Berardinelli presents his top films in a mainstream list.
Jonathan Rosenbaum 1000 Essential Films—The Chicago Reader film critic selected his top 1,000 favorite films in a highbrow leaning list. Other pages have Part Two and Part Three.
Charles Saatchi Overlooked at the Oscars: 109 movies not nominated for best picture—The film critic picked films missed at the Academy Awards.
Paul Schrader Film Canon—The writer/director selected 60 films for his film canon in a highbrow leaning list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Martin Scorsese Guilty and Unguilty Pleasures—Another director selected guilty pleasure films and films that he loves despite something that spoils them.
Martin Scorsese The 85 Films You Need To See To Know Anything About Film—The director shows a fondness for Roberto Rossellini, Robert Altman, Vincente Minnelli, Orson Welles, Frank Capra, Lucchino Visconti, and interesting cinematography.
Mike Sragow 115 favorite films—The Baltimore Sun film critic picked his favorite films.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch The 100 best American movies of all time—Critic Daniel Neman picked his favorite American films in a strongly mainstream list.
The Telegraph The 100 greatest films of all time—Critic Tim Robey picked his personal top 100 films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Toledo Blade Our Top 100 American Films (PDF file)—Christopher Borrelli responded to the American Film Institute's 2007 list with a mainstream list of his own.
Kenneth Turan Fifty-Four Favorites From a Lifetime of Film—The Los Angeles Times film critic selected 54 of his favorite films for a new book.
Vancouver Sun 100 Greatest Films—Critic Dominic Patten selected what is closer to a 100 greatest DVDs and DVD collections list that leans mainstream and highbrow. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Vulture The 50 Best Foreign-Language Movie-Musicals Ever—Critic Bilge Ebiri selected the top musicals (i.e., not documentaries, animated films, or operas) in languages other than English.
Edgar Wright 1000 Favorite Movies—Just a handful of the director's favorite films.
Edgar Wright 100 comedies you can watch while social distancing—The director presented funny films to watch alone.
Andrey Zvyagintsev Films that need to be seen by everyone—On a Russian-language site, the film director presented films to see sorted by director in a highbrow-leaning list.
Some of these lists result from collaborations between critics at a particular media outlet or from a general staff writer. Other lists are of unspecified origin but are presented by the media outlet.
The Advocate The Top 175 Essential Films of All Time for LGBT Viewers—The magazine picked its top films through a poll of its staff and its readers.
Asia Weekly Magazine 100 Strongest Chinese Films of the 20th Century—The magazine picked its top 100 Chinese films. This link is from A Chinese Cinema Page.
BBC Top 100 Movie List—The BBC's list as posted on Aaron and Mark Caldwell's site. This link is from the Internet Archive.
BestLife The 50 Most Heartbreaking Movie Deaths We're Still Not Over—Readers who prefer to click through each film one-by-one can go to MSN's site.
Bleacher Report The 101 Greatest Sports Movies of All Time—A sports film list.
Boston.com Top 60 scariest movies of all time—The web site affiliated with the Boston Globe selected its best horror films.
Boston.com Top 50 funniest movies of all time—This list makes a point to distinguish between comedies and funny films.
Boston.com 50 Best College Movies—Films focused on 18-22 year olds.
Boston.com Top 50 holiday movies of all time—A celebration of various holidays.
Bravo 100 Scariest Movie Moments—The cable television channel selected its scariest moments in horror films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Bravo 100 Funniest Movie Moments—The cable television special listed the 100 funniest movie moments selected by people who have never heard of Charles Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Laurel & Hardy, the Marx Brothers, Bringing Up Baby, Some Like It Hot, or any film made before 1964 or in any language other than English. This link is from the Film Spectrum.
Bravo Magazine 100 Essential Films—A mainstream list that also leans highbrow. This link is from I Check Movies.
Cinescape Top 100 Sci-Fi, Horror & Fantasy Films—Critics from the science-fiction magazine voted on the best genre films of all time. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Collider 100 Essential Movies Any Serious Film Fan Should See—The site selected the films that should be the start of a film education in a mainstream list.
Complex.com The 50 Best Action Movies of All Time—A standard list of action films.
Complex.com The 50 Best Animated Movies of All Time—a list of animated films.
Complex.com 100 Must Watch Movies to See Before You Die—Complex.com joins the list of pushy folks who know what needs to be done before death by creating a mainstream list.
Complex.com The 50 Best Blaxploitation Movies—This link is from the Internet Archive.
Complex.com 50 Movies That Are Better Than The Book—Some of the best films adapted from books (or, possibly, films adapted from really terrible books).
Complex.com The 50 Most Disturbing Movies—A list of some of the more edgier films.
Complex.com Documentaries to See Before You Die—This time one must watcu a list of documentaries before death.
Complex.com The 50 Greatest Movie Endings of All Time—A mainstream-leaning list. It is a safe bet that this list is full of spoilers.
Complex.com 50 Foreign Films to See Before You Die—Another task before death is to see a highbrow-leaning list. It is a wonder that anyone gets to die.
Complex.com The 50 Funniest Movies of All Time—A list of comedy films.
Complex.com 50 Indie Movies You Need to See Before You Die—Seeing the films in the above list is apparently not enough to satisfy the listmakers.
Complex.com The Best New York Movies: 50 Flicks About The City That Never Sleeps—Apparently, there are only 49 New York films better than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991).
Complex.com 50 Movie Remakes That Don't Suck—Filmed remakes that meet a rather low standard.
Complex.com The 50 Scariest Movies of All Time—The magazine's web site listed its most thrilling horror films.
Complex.com The 50 Greatest Movie Soundtracks of All Time—A list that focuses specifically on songs rather than scores.
Complex.com The 50 Most Groundbreaking Movie Special Effects—The magazine's web site listed films that influenced animation and special effects. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Complex.com The 50 Best Movie Twists—A list of the best twists, surprise endings, and misdirections in film. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Complex.com The 50 Best Villains in Movie History—Some of the better film villains.
Cowboys & Indians Magazine The 100 Best Westerns Ever Made—The magazine selected its top westerns of all time. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Current TV 50 Documentaries to See Before You Die—The former cable television network selected its top documentaries.
Edmunds.com Top 102 Movie Cars of All Time—An automobile website chose its top cars in film. The list is rather heavy on the Fast and Furious franchise.
Empire The 50 Greatest Independent Films—The British film magazine lists its top 50 films allegedly made outside the studio system. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 50 Greatest 18 Rated Movies—In honor of the magazine's 18th year, editors selected the best films that should be seen only by people older than the magazine in a popular list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 250 Greatest Films You've Never Seen—For each of ten categories, the Australian edition of the film magazine selected 25 films that most of its readers have probably never seen. This link is from the Listal.
Empire The 100 Essential DVDs You Must Own—The film magazine made helpful suggestions for how its readers should spend their money in the form of a mainstrem list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire 50 Greatest Movie Sequels—A listing of the best sequels of all time. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire Remakes That Worked—A list of the best remakes of all time using the magazine's criteria for remakes. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 100 Best Films of World Cinema—A list of the best films in languages other than English in a highbrow list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 50 Greatest American Independent Movies—A list of the best American films made outside the studio system. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 100 Best British Films Ever—A list of the best British films made within and outside the studio system. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 50 Greatest Sports Movies—A list of the top films about sports. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Empire The 50 Greatest Comedies—
Empire The 50 best kids' movies—As expected, this list is heavy on animated films.
Empire The 50 Best Horror Movies—
Empire Ultimate Movie Playlist—The magazine asked various filmmakers to select a handful of films each along a theme. This link is from IMDb lists.
Entertainment Weekly The 50 Greatest Directors and Their 100 Best Movies—The magazine's critics selected their 50 top directors and listed two must-see films for each.
Entertainment Weekly The 100 Greatest Movies of All Time—The magazine picked the greatest films. This link is from from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Entertainment Weekly Top 50 Cult Movies—The magazine presented its list of the best films adored by a few film fans and unknown to the rest. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Entertainment Weekly Top 100 Movie Moments—This link is from the Internet Archive.
Entertainment Weekly The 50 Best High School Movies—The magazine presented its list of the best films focusing on students between 14 and 18 years old.
Entertainment Weekly Best Tearjerkers Ever—The magazine updated a list from 2003 of the films most likely to make viewers cry.
Entertainment Weekly 50 Sexiest Movies Ever—The magazine selected the best 50 films for "a good old-fashioned turn-on." A different link contains films #26-50.
Entertainment Weekly 50 Best Biopics Ever—The magazine selected the best 50 films about real people. A different link contains films #26-50.
Entertainment Weekly 50 Best Movies You've Never Seen—A list of rarely seen films with the assumption that the reader has already seen every film worth seeing that was made before 1984. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Entertainment Weekly 100 Best Movie Soundtracks—The best examples of great film music. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Entertainment Weekly The Greatest Films Ever—The magazine's critics moved past genre-specific lists. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Entertainment Weekly The 55 Essential Movies Kids Must Experience (Before They Turn 13)—A list of the top films for kids in recommended viewing order.
Época 300 Filmes para assistir antes de morrer [300 films to see before you die]—The Brazilian magazine came to the conclusion that one may not die without seeing Amazon Women on the Moon (1987) at least once as part of a mainstream list. This link is from Letterboxd
Esquire The 75 Movies Every Man Should See—The magazine picked films that all men should see without indicating whether women should see these films as well. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Esquire The 100 Best Movies of All Time—At least women can see the films on this list.
Esquire The 60 Scariest Movies of All Time—
Expressen Århundradets 100 bästa filmer [Century's 100 best films]—The Swedish newspaper picked its top films. This link is from I Check Movies.
Fansided 50 Best Sports Movies Ever—The sports website lists its top sports films.
FIAF Centenary List—A list from the film publication. This link is from Aaron and Mark Caldwell's site via the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Best Coming-of-Age Movies—A list of the best films focusing on teenagers. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The Top 50 Horror Movies of All Time—A list of the best horror films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Best Movie Musicals of All Time—A similar list as above, only with musical films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The Top 50 Movies Never Nominated For Best Picture at the Oscars—A list of the best films that the Academy snubbed. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The Top 50 Best Picture Nominees That Lost The Oscar—A mainstream-leaning list of the best losers in Academy Award history. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Best Opening Scenes of All Time—A list of the films that great at least during the first few minutes. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Greatest Summer Blockbusters of All Time—A list of the best big-budget (or big revenue) films released from May through August since 1975. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Best First Films Ever Made—A list of the best debut feature films from directors, except for a few films that are shorts and/or are not really the director's first film. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Best Criterion Collection Releases—A highbrow-leaning list of the top DVDs from one of the most prominent distributors of classic films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Greatest Last Shots in Film History—A spoiler-heavy list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film.com The 50 Greatest Musical Numbers in Movie History—A list of the top musical moments. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film Comment Soundtracks 101 – Essential Movie Music: A Listener's Guide—A list of top soundtracks. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Film Review Centenary Lists—A list from the film magazine. This link is from Aaron and Mark Caldwell's site via the Internet Archive.
Film: The Critic's Choice 150 Masterpieces of World Cinema—The authors of this book divided filmdom into ten categories, usually by era and/or continent. For each category, one or two critics pick 15 top films. The picks are combined to form a list with a curious love of vampire films. This link is from the Best of Movies site via the Internet Archive.
Film4 50 Films to See before You Die—The British film channel's critics selected their top films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Film4 50 Sports Movies To See Before You Die—The British film channel's critics selected their favorite sports films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
The Guardian 1000 films to see before you die—The British newspaper presented its list of must-see films in a highbrow list.
The Guardian The best films of all time, by genre—The newspaper selected the best films in each of seven genres in a mainstream leaning list.
The Guardian The 50 best family films—The newspaper responded to readers' requests for a family film library.
The Guardian 50 documentaries you need to see—Ten documentary filmmakers select their top documentary films.
Guinness Book of Film The Top 100—The film guide picks its top five films in each of 20 categories. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
History Net 100 Greatest Sports Movies—A ranked list of the best sports films of all time.
Hollywood.com The Ultimate Movie Bucket List: Top 100 Movies of All Time—Perhaps to nobody's surprise, The Bucket List does not appear on this mainstream list that also leans popular.
IFC The 50 Greatest Sex Scenes in Cinema—The cable channel selected 50 films with scenes that are heavily repeated on DVDs. This link is from Listal.
IFC The 50 Greatest Opening Title Sequences of All Time—The cable channel selected 50 films that start well. This link is from I Check Movies.
IndieWire The All-Time Greatest Films Directed by Women—Best films directed by people usually snubbed during awards season.
Insider 110 movies you need to see in your lifetime—A mainstream-leaning list.
Marie Claire 100 Movies You Have to Watch at Least Once in Your Life—
Maxim 100 Greatest Guy Movies Ever—The magazine identifies the best films aimed at slightly less than half of the potential audience. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Maxim The 300 Movies You Must See Before You Die!—The magazine selected various must-see films in a variety of genres from action to nudity (consider the source) in a mainstream-leaning list. This link is from List Challenges.
Men's Journal 50 Best Guy Films Ever—Another magazine identifies the best films aimed at slightly less than half of the potential audience. These films promise "big guns, fast cars, dumb jokes, and huge explosions." This link comes from the Internet Archive.
Moviefone The 101 Best Sports Movies of All Time—Another list of the top sports films. This link comes from the Internet Archive.
Moviefone The 57 Greatest Westerns Ever, Ranked—Top western films in a list that does not worry about round numbers.
Movieline 100 Best Movies Ever Made—Critics Virginia Campbell and Edward Margulies chose their 100 best English-language films. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Movieline 100 Greatest Foreign Films—Critics Michael Atkinson, Stephen Rebello, and David Thomson choose their 100 best non English-language films. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
The Moving Arts Film Journal 100 Greatest Movies of All Time—An openly subjective best film list that is a mainstream/highbrow blend.
Mr. Showbiz 100 Best Movies of All Time—Critics at the now defunct web site pick their top 100 films. This link comes from the Internet Archive.
MSN 50 Greatest Science-Fiction Movies of All Time—A list of the best science fiction films of all time, including some that are not cheesy 1950s films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
MSN 50 horror flicks that give us the chills and thrills—A list of top horror films.
MSN The Greatest Movie Couples Ever—A list of top romance films.
MSN Best Date Movies—Top films to fuel romance.
MSN 70 greatest movie quotes of all time—This mainstream-leaning list is a bit closer to 70 iconic quotes from American films.
MSN 100 movies you need to see in your lifetime—A fairly idiosyncratic for a general list.
MSN The 50 best movies directed by women—A bit over half (26) are from the 21st century. All of these 26 films are in English.
MSN 100 Films you must see at least once in your life—
National Review Best Conservative Movies—The magazine selected the best films that fit its ideological viewpoint. This link is from the Internet Archive.
National Review The Best Conservative Movies—The magazine created a new list for 2009. Compared to their earlier list, conservatives still love war, but they have forgotten about Michale Curtiz and seem to be as entranced with coprophilia as they are with Christianity (at least when taking extended DVD cuts into account). This link is from the Internet Archive.
Nerve The 50 Greatest Cult Movies of All Time—A list of top films based on the "intensity and selectiveness of a movie's appeal." This link is from the Internet Archive.
New York Times The 1,000 Best Movies Ever Made—The newspaper's critics pick their top 1,000 (approximately) films of the sound era in a highbrow-leaning list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
The Observer 50 Lost Movie Classics—A panel of film writers and British filmmakers selected their favorite overlooked films.
The Observer The 50 greatest film soundtracks—A "star-studded panel of big screen connoisseurs" selected the top soundtracks. The films themselves make up a mainstream-leaning list.
Palm Beach Post Top 50 Sports Movies of All-Time—The Florida newspaper selected its best sports films. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Movies about Aliens—.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Anime Movies of All Time—The best of Japanese animation.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best "B Movies" of All Time—A list of obscure low-budget films that are allegedly entertaining.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Comedies of All Time—.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Documentaries of All Time—A list of the top non-fiction films.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Dystopian Movies of All Time—Focuses on societies plagued by a human threat rather than post-apocalyptic worlds.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Film Noirs of All Time—This list contains neo-noirs and films that stretch the definition of "noir."
Paste Magazine The 100 Best French Films of All Time—Focuses specifically on French language films in a highbrow-leaning list.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Ghost Movies of All Time—Not limited to horror films.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Horror Movies of All Time—.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Martial Arts Movies of All Time—A list of top fight films.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Romantic Comedies of All Time—A list of films that fall under a strict definition of romantic comedy. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Romantic Comedies of All Time—A newer version of the link above.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Samurai Films of All Time—The list divides films by the era in which they took place, with most coming from the Edo Period. Not all of these films are from Akira Kurosawa.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Sci-Fi Movies of All Time—Mostly avoids superhero, kaiju, and post-apocalyptic films.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Serial Killer Movies of All Time—Requires the villains to be human.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Silent Films of All Time—A list focusing on the best silent films rather than the most significant films.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Slasher Movies of All Time—To qualify for the list, a film mush have a human villain who accumulates a decent body count.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Superhero Movies of All Time—.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Vampire Movies of All Time—.
Paste Magazine The 100 Greatest War Movies of All Time—Focuses specifically on those fighting historical wars rather than on civilians, on the aftermath of wars, or on fictitious wars.
Paste Magazine The 100 Best Western Movies of All Time—.
Paste Magazine The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time—.
Popular Mechanics The 100 Best Sci-Fi Movies of All Time—The technology magazine picked its best science-fiction films.
Premiere 100 Most Daring Movies Ever Made—The film magazine picks a highbrow leaning list of films that were good despite the filmmakers' desire to be different. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Premiere The 100 Greatest Movie Characters—The film magazine picks memorable characters. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Premiere The Best Action DVDs—The film magazine picks its favorite films in this genre. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Premiere The 50 Greatest Comedies of All Time—The film magazine picks the best comedies. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Reader's Digest The Top 100+ Funniest Movies of All Time—
Reader's Digest The Most Iconic Movies Set in Every State—The magazine picked one film for each of the United States.
Redbook The 50 Best Movie Remakes Of All Time—The best films that do not care about originality. Readers who would rather click through the films one at a time can go to MSN's site.
Rolling Stone 100 Maverick Movies of the Last 100 Years—The magazine, in its End of the Millennium issue (published one year before the real end of the millennium), presented films that best exemplified the rock 'n' roll spirit. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Rolling Stone 50 Greatest Romantic Comedies of All Time—
San Francisco Bay Guardian All Century Mix—Critics for the alternative newspaper pick the best films of the last century. This link is from Combustible Celluloid.
San Francisco Chronicle Vintage Video: Hot 100 Films From the Past—Critics Mick LaSalle and Edward Guthmann pick some films of interest. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Scholastic Parent & Child 100 Greatest Movies for Kids—The magazine selected the best films for children under 14 years old. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Seventeen 100 Best Movies to Watch While You're Stuck at Home—Is there a better activity to do when stuck at home than watch films?
Sight & Sound Forgotten pleasures of the multiplex—The film magazine asked contributors to nominate underrated mainstream films released from 1981 through 2010.
Sky Movies 100 Best Comedy Films—A list of the best comedies. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies 100 Best Horror Films—Some of the best horror films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies The Top 100 Documentaries—Some of the best documentary films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies 100 Best Family Movies—A list of the best films for the whole family. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies Top 50 Traditional Animations—A list of the best "traditional" animated films. Most (but not all) of these films are cell-animated. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies Top 50 Movie Thrillers—A list of the top thrillers. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies 50 Best Hollywood Action Movies—A list of the top action films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies 50 Best Bollywood Movies—A list of the top films from what is arguably the most neglected genre in film. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Sky Movies 50 Best Biopics—Yet another list, this time of biographical films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Slant Magazine 100 Essential Films—The online magazine selects great films with an emphasis on films that are generally overlooked by other lists.
Slant Magazine The 100 Best Film Noirs of All Time—Includes neo-noirs.
Slant Magazine 100 Greatest Horror Films of All Time—The online magazine selects its top horror films in a update of an earlier list. Another page contains #101-200.
Slant Magazine The 100 Greatest LGBTQ Moviess of All Time—An update of a 2013 list.
Slant Magazine The 100 Best Sci-Fi Movies of All Time—
Southern Living 50 Classic Movies Everyone Should Watch in Their Lifetime—Each of the 50 films in the mainstream list has an "Also with..." or "Also directed by..." or some other list of films that shared a characteristic with the film in question.
The Spectator 50 Essential Films—The British publication selected 50 of the most important films of all time in a highbrow leaning list. Another page has #26-50.
Sports Illustrated The Greatest Sports Movies—The sports magazine tries film criticism and picks the best films about baseball, boxing, horse racing etc. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Stacker 50 best movies set during the [American] Civil War—The site had to stretch to find 50 films. It includes westerns set in the aftermath of the war as well as four different versions of [i]Little Women[/i]. This list ranks films based on IMDb ratings. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 50 movies that offer comfort in trying times—A list of the best comfort films. People who like to click through films one screen at a time can go to MSN's version
Stacker 50 best mockumentary movies—A list for people who did not realize that there have been 50 mockumentary films. As a result, the list is open to films that otherwise would not qualify. Rankings are based on IMDb data. People who like to click through films one screen at a time can go to MSN's version
Stacker 110 monumental movies from film history and why you need to see them—Attempts to pick a wide variety of films to serve as a basis for film education in a mainstream/highbrow leaning list. People who like to click through films one screen at a time can go to MSN's version
Stacker 100 best movie and TV soundtracks of all time—The list is based heavily on sales and chart rankings despite being described as "best." People who like to click through films one screen at a time can go to MSN's version
Stylist Our 50 must-see movies—
Stylist The 52 best female friendships in movies—
Stylist Our 50 favourite biopics—Includes thinly disguised biopics like Citizen Kane.
Tablet Magazine 100 Greatest Jewish Films—A list of the best Jewish films, with a very broad definition of "Jewish."
Telecine 100 Great Movies—The Brazilian television channel picked some of its top films. Most of the text is in Portuguese, but the film titles are in their original language. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Telegraph The 100 Best Films—The British newspaper selected its top-ten films in each of ten genres: drama, thriller/action, kids, musicals, comedy, horror, documentary, world cinema, romance, and animation.
The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph 500 Must-See Films—The newspaper selected 500 (actually 499) films that everyone must see in a highbrow/mainstream leaning list. The list is divided into various genres and includes its critics' top film lists. This link is from Letterboxd.
The Telegraph 75 films that could only have been made in Britain—A list of some of the most British films of all time.
The Telegraph The 100 greatest movie quotes of all time—A list of top film quotes. This link is from the Internet Archive.
The Telegraph The 77 best kids' films of all time—This link is from the Internet Archive.
Télérama Les 100 meilleurs films de l'histoire selon "Télérama" [The 100 best films in history according to "Telerama"]—A highbrow-leaning list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Magazine All Time 100 Movies—Critics Richard Corliss and Richard Schickel chose their top 100 films of all time in a mainstream list.
Time Magazine The 50 Best Family Movies You May Have Missed—Focuses on some of the less obvious choices. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out Hong Kong The 100 Greatest Hong Kong Films—A list of the best films from Hong Kong.
Time Out London 50 greatest animated films—The film site selected the best animated films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out London The 100 best Bollywood movies—A list of the top Bollywood films of all time.
Time Out London The 50 best Christmas movies—
Time Out London The 50 best comic book movies—Not all of these are about superheroes.
Time Out London 50 greatest directorial debuts of all time—The film site selected the best films from inexperienced directors. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out London The 50 best fantasy movies—A list of the top fantasy films of all time.
Time Out London The 100 best feminist films of all time—The writers assure us that watching these films will make the reader a better person. This list is also available at Time Out New York.
Time Out London 50 greatest monster movies—A list of the top monster films excluding zombie films, vampire films, and friendly aliens. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out London 50 greatest music films ever—A list of the top biopics and biographical documentaries about musicians. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out London The 50 best romcoms of all time—A list of the top romantic comedies of all time.
Time Out London 50 essential sci-fi films—A selection of some of the most important science-fiction films, including every Star Trek film and only one Star Wars film. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out London The 100 best sci-fi movies—A different list that stretches the definition of "sci-fi" to include Three Colors: Red.
Time Out London 100 best thriller films of all time—Also available at Time Out New York site.
Time Out London The 50 greatest westerns—Another list, this time of westerns.
Time Out London The 50 best World War II movies—With the help of Quentin Tarantino, the travel site focused on movies from filmmakers' favorite historical event.
Time Out Los Angeles The best Los Angeles movies of all time—The Los Angeles branch joins the fun with a list of films about L.A.
Time Out Los Angeles The 100 best teen movies of all time—Despite the title, the list contains films younger than 13 years old and films older than 19 years old.
Time Out New York The 100 best movies of all time—A mainstream list.
Time Out New York 50 American films, 50 states: One iconic movie for each state—A list of films representative of various states, even if 95% of North Dakota's film takes place in Minnesota and if most of Kansas's film takes place in Oz.
Time Out New York The 50 most controversial movies ever—The New York branch next takes on controversial films.
Time Out New York The 51 best documentaries of all time—The New York branch next lists the best nonfiction films.
Time Out New York The top 50 movies to watch as a family—Various films that parents can watch with their kids.
Time Out New York The 50 best food-on-film moments of all time—A list of the best films with memorable scenes involving food.
Time Out New York The top 50 foreign films of all time—The New York branch gets in the action with a list of foreign films in a highbrow list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out New York The 101 best films set in New York City—Contains four films each from Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese and three films each from Sidney Lumet and Spike Lee.
Time Out New York The 50 most romantic movies of all time—The New York branch next takes on love films.
Time Out New York The 101 best movie sex scenes of all time—A list of the top NSFW scenes of all time.
Time Out New York The 50 most special effects of all time—A list that also includes makeup effects written by people who love Steven Spielberg and also like James Cameron and David Cronenberg. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out New York The top 50 sports films of all time—Some top films about sports.
Time Out New York The 50 best movie villains of all time—A mainstream-leaning list of the best evil characters of all time.
Time Out New York The 50 greatest war films of all time—A list of the best war films with a focus "on the distinctly human condition of fighting" rather than on large battle scenes, although the latter is hardly absent in the list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Time Out New York The 50 best youth-gone-wild films—Top films about young rebels.
Time Out Paris The 50 best films set in Paris—With lists of top Los Angeles Films and New York films, the Paris branch decided to create a list of the top films with obligatory shots of the Eiffel Tower. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Total Film 50 Movies That Shook The World—The film magazine picked 50 of the most important films ever made. This link is from Listal.
Total Film The 50 Greatest Horror Movies of All Time—The film magazine selects the best horror films.
Total Film The 50 Greatest British Movies... Ever—The film magazine picks 49 top British films with an eye to diversity. For example, the list includes films in which Michael Caine does not star. Readers elected the 50th film. This link is from Listal, which skips the fan-supported film (Monty Python and the Holy Grail).
Total Film The 100 Greatest Directors Ever—The film magazine picked its top 100 directors and nominated a "perfect picture" for each one, which make up a mainstream leaning list. Separate pages have #100-#81 and #80-#61.
Total Film 100 Greatest Movies of All Time—The film magazine presented the 2005 version of the best films of all time in a mainstream list.
Total Film The 67 Most Influential Films Ever Made—The film magazine selected some of the most important films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Total Film 50 Greatest Foreign Language Films—A highbrow-leaning list. Each film is paired with an "Also see" film. Some also-see films are in English.
Total Film The 200 Greatest Movie Performances—The films make up a mainstream-leaning list. Each performance is paired with "Also See:" films.
Total Film 100 Greatest Movies Of All Time—A mainstream list of 100 of the magazine's five-star reviewed films. This link is from the Internet Archive
Total Film's web site (now run by Games Radar) had been putting out a series of top-50 (usually) film lists on a variety of topics. When combined, they make up a popular list that also leans mainstream. These lists include:
TV Guide 50 Greatest Movies on TV and Video—The television magazine chooses the top 50 films, with an emphasis on how the film looks on a small screen. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
USA Today Here are 100 movies to watch for every cinematic yearning—To help people cope with the pandemic, the newspaper suggests films in ten different categories: when you need something out of this world, when you need a change in scenery, when you need family bonding time, when you need a belly laugh, when you need a good scare, when you need a super-duper hero, when you need a history lesson, when you need a great movie, when you need a not-so-great movie, and when you need your heart warmed.
Vanity Fair 50 Greatest Films—The magazine presents its idea of the best films of all time. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Video Detective Top 100 Films of All Time—The video guide picks its top 100 films of all time. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
Vogue These Are the 66 Best Documentaries of All Time—Only one of these documentaries is about Vogue.
Vogue The 65 Best Romantic Comedies of All Time—
Wild West Magazine 100 Greatest Westerns—The magazine selected its best westerns of all time.
Yahoo! Movies 100 Movies to See before You Die: The All-Time Greats—The web portal chose the most important films to see while still alive in a strongly mainstream list. The Webmaster is a bit worried that he can die after seeing just two more films and wonders what are the most important films to see after he dies. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Yahoo! Movies 100 Movies to See before You Die: The Modern Classics—The web portal chose the most important recent films to see while still alive. This popular-leaning list suggests four additional films for the Webmaster to see. This link is from the I Check Movies.
Yahoo! Movies 50 Documentaries to See before You Die—In order to avoid liability in case someone has seen all the films on the previous two lists, Yahoo presented its list of must-see documentaries. By listing only 49 of the 50 films, Yahoo ensured that nobody will ever know if she or he can die having seen every must-see documentary. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Yardbarker The signature film of 76 cities around the world—It includes obvious cities like New York, Los Angeles, London, and Paris as well as cities like Jakarta, Lagos, Winnipeg, and Tulsa. Each city also includes a handful of honorable mentions. People who like to click through films one city at a time can go to MSN's version
The links below are to lists formed by taking data from several different sources. Some are like this site in that they combine lists of top films. Other take into account data such as awards and ratings.
100 Evenings Illuminated The Canon Reworked—In a response to the 2012 Sight and Sound critics poll, participants reordered the top-100 films from the Sight & Sound poll based on their preferences (including a list from the Phi-Phenomenon's webmaster). The result is a highbrow list that also leans mainstream. There is also The Canon Reworked... Again, which uses a different methodology to analyze participant responses.
100 Evenings Illuminated The Alternative 100—In addition to the above poll, respondents also submitted lists of the top-100 films that were not in the top-100 films in the 2012 Sight & Sound critics poll. There is also an Auteurs Edition that lists the top film from each of the 100 directors who received the most votes.
24/7 Tempo These Are The Best Movies Made About Real People—Combines user ratings at IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes with critics ratings on Rotten Tomatoes. People who like to click through one film at a time can go to MSN's site.
24/7 Tempo The Best Movie Filmed In Your State and D.C.—Combines user ratings at IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes with critics ratings on Rotten Tomatoes. Includes movies filmed primarily in the state in question except for North Dakota. Like many similar lists, the North Dakota entry is a film that is primarily filmed and set in Minnesota. Most other states also have one or two other top rated films. People who like to click through one film at a time can go to MSN's site.
24/7 Wall St. 100 Best Movies of All Time—Combines user ratings at IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes with critics ratings on Rotten Tomatoes.
24/7 Wall St. America's Favorite Movies of All Time—Combines user ratings at IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. The list contains more films in languages other than English than what one might expect from a list with this title.
Angel Critical Top 1000—A composite list posted as a spreadsheet at Google Docs.
At the Block Greatest Movies of All Time—A combination of eight different lists plus some critics' top ten lists and Academy Awards leads to a very strongly mainstream list.
BestOnly.com "List to End All Lists" Top 100 of All Time—Derived from other lists on their site. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Beyond the Canon 100 Films Deserving of Greater Attention—As a follow-up to the One-Line Review list below, various cinephiles contributed top-100 lists of films that do not appear that often on top-100 film lists (this also includes a list from the Phi-Phenomenon's webmaster).
Bog Bit Best Movies of All Time: The Top 50 Motion Pictures in Cinematic History—Combines IMDb ratings, Rotten Tomatoes scores, and box office receipts (adjusted for inflation) into a mainstream-leaning list that is also the least highbrow list studied for this edition of the Phi-Phenomenon.
Buzzfeed Iconic Movies—A basic check off all the films you have seen page. The films were selected from lists by IMDb, the American Film Institute, and Rotten Tomatoes, leading to a strongly mainstream list.
Cinepad 100 Most Acclaimed Movies of All Time—A list derived mostly from polls and critics awards. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Claudio Colombo Migliori Film di Tutti i Tempi [The Best Movies of All Time]—Combines scores in Italian film guides and various web sites in a highbrow/mainstream blend list.
Cowboyangel The Greatest Films of All Time—A compilation of 30 lists with some analyses on regional tastes in films into a strongly highbrow list that is also maisntream.
Desert Island Films—A list compiled from video guide ratings, awards won, and Internet Movie Database scores. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Digital Spy The 50 greatest movies of all time, according to… everyone—Based on a combination of lists from IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, the British Film Institute, Empire, and the Hollywood Reporter into a very strongly mainstream list.
The Film Gourmand Highest Rated 1,000 movies—The site combines IMDb ratings, Kinopoisk ratings (a Russian equivalent of IMDb), and various awards to create its list that leans highbrow, mainstream, and popular.
Films101 Top Films—The site combines various awards and ratings to create a highbrow list that also leans mainstream of the best films that makes the master list on the Phi-Phenomenon look short.
Ryan Godfrey An alternative IMDb Top 250: the “favoritest” movies relative to era—Looks at the number of high votes on IMDb for each film compared to typical votes for films of that half-decade to create a strongly mainstream list.
Paul Hsieh Fixed IMDb rankings—Allegedly what the IMDb's Top 250 Films would look like if all votes were calculated according to the formula that the IMDb presents. The result is a popular list that also leans mainstream.
IMDB Top 250 History Recurrence Top 100—Looks at how often any particular film appears on the IMDb top-250 list to create a popular/mainstream blend list.
IMDB Top 250 History Shadow Top 100—Looks at the films that have appeared most often on the IMDb top-250 list bur are not currently on the list.
Gaurang Khetan Essential Movies—A compilation of various best film lists results in a mainstream list that leans highbrow.
Katie Kleinman Movie Lists—A combination of top films lists resulted in a very strongly mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Moovee Moovee The 100 Best Movies of All Time—A composite of film ratings from 39 critics.
MSN The 100 Greatest Films of All Time—A composite of seven different lists.
Obsessed about Movies The Top 100 Movies of All Time Based on Critics' Polls—A compilation of a few critic polls. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Obsessed about Movies The Top 100 American Movies—This time, a compilation of a few polls. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Oktavian11 The IMDb top 250 by the 1000 top voters—This IMDb list tries to estimate what the IMDb top-250 film list would be if it used ratings only from the top-1,000 voters. The result is a strongly mainstream and popular blend list.
One-Line Review The 50 Greatest Films—The blog created a strongly highbrow and mainstream top-film list by combining top-50+ film lists from a variety of bloggers and other film fans.
Películas Indispensables 100 Obras maestras de la historia del cine [?100 Masterpieces of Film History?]—A combination of lists from the American Film Institute, the British Film Institute, and IMDb results in a strongly mainstream list.
Stacker 100 best movies of all time—This strongly mainstream list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic and is limited to English-language films. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best action movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best American movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best biopics of all time—Defines "biopic" to include any narrative film with a real person as a protagonist even if the film is about a historic event rather than about the life of a person. This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 50 best college movies—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. The list suggests that there have not been that many good college films. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best crime movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best dramas of all time—People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best dramas of all time—People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 50 best gangster movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best G-rated movies to watch as a family—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. These films focus specifically on organized crime. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best mystery movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best romance movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 50 best space movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. As expected, Star Wars and MCU films are well-represented. The only Star Trek film with a television cast is outside the top 40. It also includes earth-bound science-fiction films. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 100 best spy movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. The list uses a broad definition of "spy." It includes infiltrating criminal organizations and whistleblowing. Duck Soup (1933) is on the list, but not Argo (2012). People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker Best thrillers in movie history—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker Best war movies of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 50 best WWII movies of all time—The site decided to get more specific as to which war the films are about. This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
Stacker 50 best war documentaries of all time—This list combines ratings from IMDb and Metacritic. People who want to click through each film individually can go to MSN's site.
They Shoot Pictures The 1,000 Greatest Films—This site presents a list of the top films of all time derived from top-10 lists created by critics and other film experts. It is very strongly highbrow and also leans mainstream.
Top10ner 1001 Greatest Movies of All Time—This list combines ratings from IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic, and Letterboxd to create a popular/highbrow/mainstream-leaning list.
TopTenReviews Top of All Time—The review site combined reviews of films to create a strongly mainstream list of the best reviewed films of all time. This link is from the Internet Archive.
USA Today 50 Best Movies Based on True Events—Based on a combination of Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb ratings.
The Worlds Best Films The Top Ranked 1000 Films—Presents a compilation of various surveys and polls in a strongly highbrow and mainstream list that also leans popular.
ABA Journal The 25 Greatest Legal Movies—A panel of twelve lawyers with links to the film industry selected the 25 best legal films as well as 25 honorable mentions.
ABA Journal The 25 Greatest Legal Movies—Ten years later, another panel created a new list covering a broader range of films. This survey also has 25 honorable mentions.
African American Film Critics Association 110 Important Films About the Black Experience—Contains only twelve films made through 1960. Even though this is the African American Film Critics Association, many of the films reflect the Black experience in Africa or in other nations.
American Screenwriters Association Best 100 Feature Film Screenplays of All Time—A panel of screenwriters, and other film industry professionals selected the best screenplays of all time. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Bleacher Report The 100 Greatest Sports Movies of All Time—Another list of sport films.
British Airways Top 100 Films That Inspire Travel—I confess that I do not understand how City of God inspires travel, and I do not recommend that readers try to recreate the view of the Grand Canyon seen at the end of Thelma and Louise.
British Film Institute 100 thrillers to see before you die—Each entry contains two other "see also" films.
Chicago Film Critics Association 100 Scariest Movies of All Time—The CFCA chose its top horror films of all time. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Chicago Film Critics Association 50 Top Holiday Films of All Time—The CFCA selected the best films dealing mostly with Christmas, although Thanksgiving, New Years Day, and Hanukkah films also make appearances. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Every year or so, the Chlotrudis Society used to put out a list of the best films in a certain category. These lists include:
Committee for the Commemoration of the Centennial of Cinema in Portugal 100 Classics—A handful of Portuguese film scholars come up with a list. This link is from Lists of Bests via the Internet Archive.
Common Sense Media 50 Movies All Kids Should Watch Before They're 12—The films are divided by recommended age.
Common Sense Media Essential Movie Guide—Like the above list, these films are divided by recommended age, but this list includes a category for films aimed at teenagers.
Fernando Di Giammatteo & Cristina Bragaglia Dizionario dei capolavori del cinema [Dictionary of Cinema Masterpieces]—An Italian film guidebook of the best films of all time. It is understandably heavy on Italian films. It is lacking in documentaries and animated films. This link is from I Check Movies.
Eötvös Loránd University Institute for Art Theory and Media Studies Kötelezo filmlista az egyetemes filmtörténet tanulmányozásához [Required and recommended movie list for universal film history study] and [Recommended list of film study]—A list of required films for film students.
Film Threat Back Talk’s Top 500 Films—The web site selected its top-500 films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Filmcritic.com The Top 50 Movie Endings of All Time—The web site selected the best film endings. In case it is not incredibly obvious, the page is full of spoilers.
Five Colleges Film Studies Films to Know—A highbrow list of recommended films for film studies majors at the consortium of Massachusetts colleges. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Forum Cinema 50 Greatest Films—The Northampton, England film theater had weekly showings of its top-50 films. This link is from the BBC.
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs 100 films pour l'an 2000—The French governmental agency selected the best films that the nation had to offer over the 20th century. This link is from Lists of Bests via the Internet Archive.
Haber Turk Sizin filminiz hangisi? [Is This Your Movie?]—A series of top-ten films in various categories. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Harvard Visual and Environmental Studies Faculty A Suggested/Suggestive Viewing List (PDF file)—The faculty selected a highbrow list of films that undergraduates should see if they are interested in film and video. This link is from the Internet Archive.
IGN Top 100 Movie Moments—The entertainment web site lists its top moments, which are mostly memorable quotes. The result is a stongly mainstream list of films. There are spoilers for classic films.
Jackpot Hollywood Top 100 Vintage Classic Hollywood Films—Presents a list of the top American films from 1930-1959 with a special love of films adapted from Ernest Hemingway novels. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Jackpot Hollywood Top 100 Magnificent Movies of the Modern Era—Another list, this time of films from 1960-1999. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Mediafilm Les 73 chefs-d'oeuvre du cinéma [73 masterpieces of the cinema]—A French film site presents a list of top films. Another page presents a longer list. Both of these links are from the Internet Archive.
Metacritic Movie Releases By Score—The highest rated films on the review aggregator site create a mainstream-leaning list.
Montreal Film Festival Les 100 Meilleurs Films [100 Best Films]—Results from a poll taken at the Montreal Film Festival. This link is from the Académie de Nice. English language readers should have no problem with this page. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Movie Review Query Engine MRQE's 100 Best Ranked Films!—The best films of all time according to its metric form a mainstream list. This link is from the Internet Archive.
National Film Preservation Board National Film Registry—The Board chooses 25 American films per year for the National Film Registry. The result is a mainstream list.
National Film Review Top 70 of the Last Century—The organization's top films. For some reason, only 67 films are listed. This link comes from Aaron and Mark Caldwell's site via the Internet Archive.
National Film Theatre 50 Cinematic Masterpieces—The cinema, now known as BFI Southbank, selected a program of top films.
National Society of Film Critics 100 Essential Films—The National Society of Film Critics picks its top 100 film list. This link is from Tim Dirks's Greatest Films site.
National Taiwan University of Arts Must-See Films—A highbrow list that also leans mainstream of recommended "foreign" (i.e., not Taiwanese) films.
Pope John Paul II Vatican Movie List—The Vatican picked films that it believes Catholics should see. This link is from Cinepad.
PopMatters The 50 DVDs Every Film Fan Should Own—PopMatters selected 50 essential DVDs ranging from classic films to obscure B movies.
PopMatters 100 Essential Female Film Performances—The film site selected some of the most important performances by actresses.
PopMatters 100 Essential Male Film Performances—The site decided to be fair to male actors and highlight some of their best performances.
PopMatters 100 Essential Directors—The site moved behind the camera in a list that is not explicitly divided by gender. The site provides three key films and an underrated film for each director, which make up a highbrow list of films.
Princeton University Comparative Literature Reading Selection List—At the bottom is a highbrow list of films that may be of interest to comparative literature majors.
Qualitas Pro 100 Best Movies of All Time—A French website presents its top films of all time. Curiously, there are only 91 films on the list, counting The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) and The Seven Samurai (1954) twice each. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Reel.com 20th Century's 25 Best—The web site chooses its top-25 action, animated, classic, comedy, cult, documentary, drama, erotic, foreign, independent, musical, romance, science-fiction, suspense, war, and western films. These links are from the Internet Archive.
Reel.com Top 100 Scary Movies—The web site decided not to stop at 25 and presented its top 100 horror films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Rotten Tomatoes Best of Rotten Tomatoes—The site's maisntream leaning list of the best reviewed films from the critics that it surveys.
Rotten Tomatoes 300 Essential Movies To Watch Now—The site's staff picked the 300 most important films for a film buff or a beginner to see in a mainstream list.
Rotten Tomatoes 140 Essential Action Movies To Watch Now—The list excludes war films, sport films, samurai films, and westerns.
Rotten Tomatoes 60 Essential Adventure Movies—Includes ten films with rotten scores. The list was compiled by someone who really likes [i]The Three Musketeers[/i].
Rotten Tomatoes 105 Great Movies to Watch Alone—The staff sorted films designed to be watched alone into five categories: because the movie requires your absolute concentration, because the movie is gonna make you ugly cry, because the movie will instantly put you in a better mood, because the movie’s very sexy bits will be less awkward solo, and because the movie’s even scarier in perfect silence.
Rotten Tomatoes 140 Essential Animated Movies To Watch Now—The staff selected the most significant animated films regardless of their tomatometer scores.
Rotten Tomatoes The 65 Best Asian-American Movies of All Time—Rotten Tomatoes staff personally selected the films and ranked them using a formula including the year of release and number of reviews.
Rotten Tomatoes The Best Christmnas Movies of All Time—Christmas-themed films are sorted using a formula.
Rotten Tomatoes 150 Essential Comedy Movies to Watch Now—The site's editors picked out the most important comedy films.
Rotten Tomatoes 87 Fearless Women Movie Heroes Who Inspire Us—A panel of female critics selected the list. Many of the women in question are superheroines, but the list also includes real-life women and romcom leads. At least one choice is probably based more on a television spinoff than on the film itself.
Rotten Tomatoes 50 F--k Yeah Moments of Female Empowerment in the Movies—The films range from female action heroes to women delivering well-deserved sass.
Rotten Tomatoes Certified Fresh Japanese Movies—A list that is heavy on anime and particularly heavy on recent films. For example, there is only one film by Yasujiro Ozu.
Rotten Tomatoes 50 Essential Movies For Kids—The staff was a bit pickier about kids films than they were originally about slasher, zombie, and vampire films (see below). The selected films are divided by age category.
Rotten Tomatoes 100 Best Fresh Romance Movies—The staff selected romantic films that were more serious than the ones on the romantic comedies link below.
Rotten Tomatoes 80 Essential Slasher Movies—I am skeptical on whether there are 80 essential slasher films, the Rotten Tomatoes staff disagreed, although they later lowered the number to 25. The first link is from the Internet Archive.
Rotten Tomatoes The 110 Essential Spanish-Language Movies—The focus on Spanish-language means that Brazilian films and English-language films about Latinos are not included.
Rotten Tomatoes 68 Inspiring Sports Movies—This list was chosen subjectively and is unranked.
Rotten Tomatoes 50 States, 50 Essential Movies—The staff selected films that both took place in the state in question and were filmed in the state.
Rotten Tomatoes The 80 Essential Vampire Movies To Watch Right Now—Apparently, there were 80 essential vampire films. Once again, they later lowered the number to 30. The first link is from the Internet Archive.
Rotten Tomatoes The 100 Best Movies Written by Women—Contains films with female writers with a score of at least 94%.
Rotten Tomatoes 60 Essential Zombie Movies—At least the staff settled for only 60 essential zombie films. They later lowered the number to 30. The first link is from the Internet Archive.
Rotten Tomatoes frequently releases genre-specific lists based on its "Adjusted Tomatometer," which it uses to compare films released across decades. In addition to its Tomatometer score, it takes into account when the film was released, the scores of other films released around the same time, and the total number of reviews. The following lists are based on the Adjuted Tomatometer:
San Francisco State University List of Core Films for Incoming Graduate Students (PDF file)—The faculty list the films that they believe that all graduate students in films should have seen already in a highbrow leaning list. This list particularly emphasizes short documentary films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
St. Mary's College of Maryland Core Film List for Film and Media Studies Major—A highbrow-leaning list of 100 highly recommended films in a PDF file.
Technical University of Dortmund Film Recommendations List—A PDF file containing a highbrow-leaning list of recommended films.
Toronto International Film Festival The Essential 100—A combination of a top-100 list from curators and a top-100 list from stakeholders results in a highbrow list that also leans mainstream. This link is from Indiewire.
University of Delaware Library 100 Films You Should See—The library chooses its top films. This link is from the Internet Archive.
University of Kent 101 of the Greatest Films—The film department made recommendations of films to see. This link is from the Internet Archive.
Yale University Film Canon—A highbrow-leaning list of films that Yale PhD students in film need to know.