Plan a Movie Marathon Weekend—We Ranked the 100 Best Movies of All Time

To celebrate the very best of the most popular and influential modern entertainment medium and art form, we've rounded up and ranked the best movies ever made.

Whether you're a highly cine-literate film enthusiast or a casual fan, these are the movies everyone should see at least once. For this list, narrative features from all genres and around the world are fair game: We've included essential dramas, comedies, family and kids movies, thrillers, action, horror, fantasy, sci-fi and more. We're showcasing timeless old classics and new favorites, Hollywood pictures and foreign fare. In ranking these movies, we're taking into account their artistic merits, how well they've aged and re-watchability. This list does not include documentaries.

Get ready for the all-time essentials. To celebrate the very best movies of all time, here are the top 100 movies, including the greatest movies, iconic movies, must-see movies, and famous movies you need to watch. Enjoy this best movies list! In ascending order, here are the 100 best movies of all time, ranked. All titles are available to rent and purchase across major streaming platforms.

The 100 Best Movies of All Time

100. Bridesmaids (2011) 

Likely the funniest—not to mention one of the most influential—of all 21st-century motion pictures, Paul Feig's uproarious, unflinching look at modern-age female friendship launched the film careers of Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy into the stratosphere. Audiences flocked to the picture in its initial run, and it only benefits from repeat viewings: this subject matter (women bonding in adulthood) is all but completely neglected in mainstream film, never this insightful or gut-bustlingly hilarious.

The imitators read Bridesmaids' success the wrong way: it wasn't a hit because chicks were being vulgar (although that was an incidental perk). Bridesmaids was a prolonged sensation at the box office because, for once, a mainstream comedy accurately depicted what happens in women's social and personal lives.

Related: Best Comedies on Netflix

99. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

Two of the big screen's all-time brightest stars—Paul Newman and Robert Redford—are immortalized in George Roy Hill's buddy adventure Western about real-life outlaws on the run. A defining work of the era's "New Hollywood," Butch Cassidy succeeds as both experimentation and grand entertainment. There's excitement, million-watt movie-star bravado and unconventional yet crowd-pleasing storytelling. The Writers Guild of America named William Goldman's screenplay the 11th-best script of all time.

Related: 100 Movie Trivia Questions (With Answers) 

98. Gravity (2013)

Alfonso Cuarón's space-set survival disaster drama set a new standard for visual effects—and it showcases career-best work from Sandra Bullock in an intensely physical, layered role. Beneath the technical aspects—which, to be clear are revolutionary (the immersive flick demands to be seen in IMAX 3D), audiences were hooked by the simple, emotion-heavy story of a lost soul who finds the will to live in extreme circumstances (not unlike the hook of Titanic).

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97. GoodFellas (1990)

An account of the rise and fall of mob associate Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) is such a masterpiece that upon its release, Roger Ebert christened it the finest organized crime movie of all time, ahead of even The Godfather. Say no more. A key work of our finest living director, Goodfellas lost the Oscar for Best Picture to Dances With Wolves in an upset for the ages.

96. The Matrix (1999)

The Wachowskis‘ stone-cold stunner sci-fi actioner broke all the rules, captured the zeitgeist and snagged four Academy Awards (notably beating Star Wars: The Phantom Menace for Visual Effects, American Beauty for Film Editing). With every trip down the rabbit hole, The Matrix loses none of its allure or heart-pounding excitement. 

95. Halloween (1978)

A restrained, tasteful yet nerve-frying work of art whose impact is hard to overstate. Is this the most ripped-off movie ever?

With likable characters, incredible music and other unique artistic flourishes, ingenious use of widescreen space and a lack of cynicism, John Carpenter’s beloved classic about a masked lunatic stalking teen babysitters still stands head-and-shoulders above the legions of films that ripped it off. There’s an elegance and earnestness to Halloween that the imitators didn’t even attempt to recreate.

Roger Ebert gave Halloween a rave four-star (his highest rating) review that became one of his most well-known. It also had a lot to do with the film’s gradual, substantial success. The American Film Institute has named Halloween one of the most heart-pounding films ever made.

Not least of its myriad contributions to culture, Halloween gave us Oscar winner Jamie Lee Curtis: radiant, intelligent and effortlessly sympathetic in her debut feature. She's remained an audience favorite across all genres ever since.

Related: We Break Down Why Halloween Is One of the Best Scary Movies Ever 

94. The Color Purple (1985) 

Based on Black feminist Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name, The Color Purple brought the career of director Steven Spielberg into a new dimension. Following wildfire effects-heavy genre successes Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T., this was a grounded, mature Southern drama of cruelty, hope and perseverance. The Color Purple played a pivotal role in advancing the careers of its cast, including Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey— and most notably Whoopi Goldberg, in her film debut.

93. Good Will Hunting (1997)

A virtually perfect drama that's equal parts hilarious, romantic and moving, Good Will Hunting launched the A-list careers of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. The duo’s Oscar-winning screenplay centers on a mathematics genius grappling with mental health issues, a lady love and small-town trappings. Good Will Hunting struck a chord with audiences worldwide, grossing about 20 times its budget. Robin Williams won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for an indelible turn as a grieving psychotherapist.