10. THE SORROW AND THE PITY
31 LISTS | 3 TOP SPOTS Marcel Ophüls | 251 mins | Documentary/History/War Georges Bidault | Matthäus Bleibinger | Charles Braun | Maurice Buckmaster
“The Sorrow and Pity was a long, methodical documentary about French life under the German Occupation. Filmed with a cool, surgical candor by director Marcel Ophuls, it moved into the mind of history and showed it to be an intensely personal experience. The many famous and obscure people interviewed for the film were revealed as brave, treacherous, culpable, weak, resolute, deluded, ashamed, naïve, comical, selfish, patriotic – but never less than complete human beings.
I think Ophuls’ film is equaled by only one other documentary, Leni Riefenstahl’s “Olympiad,” a tribute to physical beauty that is pure poetry compared to the calm, assiduous prose of Ophuls’ work. Perhaps the best review of “The Sorrow and the Pity” was written centuries ago, by Francis Bacon:
“The contemplation of things as they are, without error or confusion, without substitution or imposture, is itself a nobler thing than a whole harvest of invention.” – David Elliott, Chicago Daily News
9. SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE
32 LISTS | 2 TOP SPOTS George Roy Hill | 104 mins | Comedy/Drama/Sci-Fi Michael Sacks | Ron Leibman | Eugene Roche | Sharon Gans
“Superbly directed and edited by George Roy Hill, and with Michael Sacks extremely competent as Billy Pilgrim in his first film. Based of course on the novel by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.” – Paine Knickerbocker, San Francisco Chronicle
8. FRENZY
39 LISTS | 0 TOP SPOTS Alfred Hitchcock | 116 mins | Thriller Jon Finch | Barry Foster | Barbara Leigh-Hunt | Anna Massey
“If Anthony Shaffer’s screenplay occasionally wavered, Alfred Hitchcock’s masterful and mischievous directional hand never did in this highly pleasurable film about a cheerful murderer, a nasty hero, and a number of dead ladies in a London Hitchcock made his own years ago.” – Bernard Drew, Gannett News Service
7. THE EMIGRANTS
41 LISTS | 7 TOP SPOTS Jan Troell | 151 mins | Drama/History Max von Sydow | Liv Ullmann | Eddie Axberg | Sven-Olof Bern
“Jan Troell’s epic harvest about Swedish pilgrims on their way to a promised land in America. The hardships, fears and triumphs of the immigratnts who became our ancenstors, the majesty and sweep of the direction, the nobility and pride in the performances – there are many reasons why this is an extraordinary achievement.
But I guess what I liked most about it was the fact that it never resembled a movie at all. I was looking at history, but was never aware of the camera. Amazing that it took a Swedish film to teach me more about American history that I ever knew before. Liv Ullman was a symphony of emotional splendor, which makes me think she just might be wasting her time in Hollywood movies.” – Rex Reed, New York Daily News
6. THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE
45 LISTS | 5 TOP SPOTS Luis Buñuel | 102 mins | Comedy Fernando Rey | Delphine Seyrig | Paul Frankeur | Bulle Ogier
“One of Buñuel’s most brilliant (and most brilliantly titled) films, “The Dis creet Charm of The Bourgeoisie” is my choice of the best feature film of the year. It’s a crystal‐clear social comedy of surreal shape about a small group of chic, upper‐crust Parisians who spend most of the film trying, unsuccessfully, to dine together. Every time they sit down at the table, peculiar things hap pen: an Army arrives, the hosts dis appear, or perhaps a curtain goes up and the guests find themselves on stage in a play whose lines they don’t know. Bunuel, the moralist, social critic and humorist, has never been in better shape than he is at 72. Nor has he ever had a cast to match the stars who here make the members of the bourgeoisie seem so attractive if foolish: Fernando Rey, Jean‐Pierre Cassel, Delphine Seyrig, Stephane Audran, Bulle Ogier, Paul Frankeur and Julien Bertheau.” – Vincent Canby, New York Times
5. SOUNDER
46 LISTS | 0 TOP SPOTS Martin Ritt | 105 mins | Drama/Family Cicely Tyson | Paul Winfield | Kevin Hooks | Carmen Mathews
“Black, beautiful and universal is this tale of a family of sharecroppers, who endure hard times on the sheer strength of their mutual love. Directed by Martin Ritt from a script by Lonne Elder III, the drama offers outstanding portrayals by Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield.” – Giles M. Fowler, Kansas City Star
4. DELIVERANCE
53 LISTS | 5 TOP SPOTS John Boorman | 109 mins | Adventure/Drama/Thriller Jon Voight | Burt Reynolds | Ned Beatty | Ronny Cox
“The grimmest, starkest, but perhaps the most brilliant picture of the year.” – Elston Brooks, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
3. CRIES AND WHISPERS
57 LISTS | 9 TOP SPOTS Ingmar Bergman | 91 mins | Drama Harriet Andersson | Liv Ullmann | Kari Sylwan | Ingrid Thulin
“Bergman’s most elegant and poetic film to date studies the subject of women and female-ness. Everything in the film’s stylized world except the four female characters at its center serves its décor, men included.
Here, the great Swedish director proves himself to be the best colorist in the business; his palette serves not only the décor of the film but also the deep psychological intentions.” – Susan Stark, Detroit Free Press
2. CABARET
62 LISTS | 4 TOP SPOTS Bob Fosse | 124 mins | Drama/Musical Liza Minnelli | Michael York | Helmut Griem | Joel Grey
“Bob Fosse’s landmark remake of the Broadway musical about an American cabaret singer in Germany during the rise of the Third Reich, a stunningly made movie aptly described in its ad campaign as “more than a musical,” just brilliant all the way, with a wonderful performance by Liza Minnelli and substantial support from Michael York, Helmut Griem and, a particularly, Joel Gray.” – Kevin Kelly, Boston Globe
1. THE GODFATHER
74 LISTS | 22 TOP SPOTS Francis Ford Coppola | 175 mins | Crime/Drama Marlon Brando | Al Pacino | James Caan | Diane Keaton
“A friend of mine who runs an intellectual magazine was grousing about his movie critic, complaining that though the fellow had liked The Godfather, he had neglected to label it clearly as a masterpiece. “I don’t are how you people squabble among yourselves,” my friend said, “but one of the prime duties of a critic is to recognize a masterpiece when he sees one.”
I myself am guilty of this oversight and I gladly rectify it: The Godfather is a masterpiece. The fact is that Francis Ford Coppola’s movie was instantly recognized by most critics -this one included – as an extraordinary fine movie, and before were done talking the great public had rudely elbowed us aside in its rush to the theaters. The last time anybody asked, a dazed Paramout executive was saying that the film might gross a quarter of a billion dollars around the world, at least twice as much as any other film in history.
Besides such a phenomenon, all the other phenomena of the year pale. It’s a one-picture trend if ever there was one. Like all such events, it is literally inimitable, but that isn’t going to stop anyone from trying. But the care and maintenance of movie cycles is something for distributors to worry about, not movie execs. We can but note that there is, pardon the cliché, good news and bad news in The Godfather success story.
The good news is simply that, for once, quality was clearly and unambiguously rewarded in the marketplace. The film is not a Love Story or an Airport. Its people are not thin stereotypes, but richly developed characters firmly rooted in a lovingly detailed milieu. Its story is not a succession of desperate expedients designed for quick thrills, but a slowly unfolding, smoothly enveloping thing that draws us artfully out of our preoccupations and into a strange new world. And make us feel at home there. Nor can the movie be called escapist in the usual sense. It makes us contemplate a pressing social issue, the rise and the influence of organized crime in our society. Nor can it be called, patronizingly, “a real old-fashioned movie-movie.” It does not resemble classic gangster films either stylistically or morally. In short, while it may be the most popular movie in history, it is also a tricky and difficult work.” – Richard Schickel
Full List:
| R | Film | L | #1 | AR | L% | #1% | TCL | TCL1 | TCL% | TCL1% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Godfather | 74 | 21 | 2.71 | 74% | 33% | 21 | 6 | 64% | 30% |
| 2 | Cabaret | 62 | 4 | 4.24 | 62% | 6% | 14 | 0 | 42% | 0% |
| 3 | Cries and Whispers | 57 | 9 | 3.53 | 57% | 14% | 18 | 2 | 55% | 10% |
| 4 | Deliverance | 53 | 5 | 4.88 | 53% | 8% | 15 | 0 | 45% | 0% |
| 5 | Sounder | 46 | 0 | 5.92 | 46% | 0% | 12 | 0 | 36% | 0% |
| 6 | The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie | 45 | 5 | 4.22 | 45% | 8% | 18 | 2 | 55% | 10% |
| 7 | The Emigrants | 41 | 7 | 3.32 | 41% | 11% | 13 | 1 | 39% | 5% |
| 8 | Frenzy | 39 | 0 | 6.56 | 39% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 45% | 0% |
| 9 | Slaughterhouse-Five | 32 | 2 | 5.29 | 32% | 3% | 9 | 0 | 27% | 0% |
| 10 | The Sorrow and the Pity | 31 | 3 | 4.42 | 31% | 5% | 17 | 2 | 52% | 10% |
| 11 | Sleuth | 30 | 0 | 5.86 | 30% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 27% | 0% |
| 12 | Fat City | 27 | 1 | 5.86 | 27% | 2% | 8 | 1 | 24% | 5% |
| 13 | The Heartbreak Kid | 22 | 0 | 6.10 | 22% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 27% | 0% |
| 13 | What's Up, Doc? | 22 | 0 | 6.88 | 22% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 6% | 0% |
| 13 | The Candidate | 22 | 0 | 6.67 | 22% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 12% | 0% |
| 16 | Chloe in the Afternoon | 19 | 0 | 6.67 | 19% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 27% | 0% |
| 17 | Fellini's Roma | 18 | 1 | 6.36 | 18% | 2% | 4 | 0 | 12% | 0% |
| 18 | Two English Girls | 16 | 2 | 4.91 | 16% | 3% | 10 | 1 | 30% | 5% |
| 19 | Play It Again, Sam | 16 | 0 | 7.11 | 16% | 0% | 6 | 0 | 18% | 0% |
| 19 | Bad Company | 16 | 0 | 7.20 | 16% | 0% | 8 | 0 | 24% | 0% |
| 21 | The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds | 14 | 0 | 7.14 | 14% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 9% | 0% |
| 22 | Jeremiah Johnson | 14 | 1 | 6.25 | 14% | 2% | 3 | 1 | 9% | 5% |
| 23 | Young Winston | 13 | 0 | 6.44 | 13% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 15% | 0% |
| 24 | Travels With My Aunt | 12 | 1 | 6.86 | 12% | 2% | 6 | 1 | 18% | 5% |
| 25 | The Ruling Class | 12 | 0 | 6.80 | 12% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 9% | 0% |
| 26 | Lady Sings the Blues | 11 | 0 | 6.50 | 11% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0% |
| 27 | The Other | 10 | 1 | 6.57 | 10% | 2% | 5 | 1 | 15% | 5% |
| 28 | Tokyo Story | 10 | 0 | 5.40 | 10% | 0% | 6 | 0 | 18% | 0% |
| 28 | Butterflies Are Free | 10 | 0 | 5.40 | 10% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 9% | 0% |
Lists Included 100 | Top Critics’ Lists Included 33
R Rank
L Total number of lists where the film was selected as one of the top 10 films of the year
AR Average position on ranked top 10 lists
#1 Total number of lists where the film was selected as the best film of the year
L% Percentage of total lists where the film was selected as one of the top 10 films of the year
#1% Percentage of mentions where the film was selected as the best film of the year
TCL Number of times that the film was selected as one of the top 10 films of the year on top critics’ lists
TCL1 Number of times that the film was selected as the best film of the year on top critics’ lists
TCL% Percentage of times that the film was selected as one of the top 10 films of the year on top critics’ lists
TCL1% Percentage of lists where the film was selected as the best film of the year on top critics’ lists
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