The 20th Best Films

Pre-1973 

High Noon (1952) 
This is my favorite of the old westerns. Sure, it isn’t as action packed. And it is quite a bit more cynical than your typical myth of the Old West. But the West is all about having your doubts about civilization, and the civilization on display here—seemingly at the end of the days of the frontier—is not worthy of admiration.



1973-1998 

The Truman Show (1998) 
Peter Weir’s examination of everything from fatalism, voyeurism, and free will. This story is one of the more powerful modern parables. It is even more impressive when you remember that this film was made before reality television was so commonplace. It was prophetic in the way it predicted our obsession with this sort of entertainment.



Post-1998 

Coraline (2009) 
Neil Gaiman’s wonderfully creepy kids story translated to the screen with Henry Selick’s amazing Claymation. This is the sort of story I am drawn to, scary but with heart, and lessons to be learned.