Best Movies of All Time

1. His Girl Friday

1940, Directed by Howard Hawks
Cast: Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy

His Girl Friday is one of the best, if not the best, romantic movies of all time. Cary Grant is a newspaper editor trying to woo back his star-reporter, ex-wife Rosalind Russell. Hoping to knock her good-natured fiancé out of the way, he dangles the one thing that no hard-nosed journalist can resist: the scoop on the murder trial of the century. These two fine actors trade barbs and witticisms at a breakneck speed throughout the movie for a winning romantic comedy.

2. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

1966, Directed by Sergio Leone
Cast: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach

This Sergio Leone masterpiece put "spaghetti westerns" on the map and catapulted Clint Eastwood into the hearts and minds of movie lovers throughout the world. The Good the Bad and the Ugly is about the pursuit of gold lost by the Confederates during the Civil War. Clint Eastwood is the "good", Lee Van Cleef is "bad", and Eli Wallach, well, he's just ugly. What more makes one of the best movies of all time?

3. It’s a Wonderful Life

1946, Directed by Frank Capra
Cast: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore

It's a Wonderful Life is as synonymous with Christmas as trimming the tree or caroling. While it's been done a million times, nothing restores the faith in humanity quite the way this classic movie does.

4. Psycho

1960, Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Cast: Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh

Alfred Hitchcock brought Psycho to the theatre in 1960, and fans have been peeping through the shower curtain ever since. Anthony Perkins is exemplary in the role of Norman Bates and Janet Leigh strikes just the right balance between working girl and sex siren. Psycho introduced psychological terms like "unresolved Oedipus complex" that have since become part of the American dialogue.

5. The Great Escape

1963, Directed by John Sturges
Cast: Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough,
Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasance, James Coburn et al

What an action-packed movie! An all-star cast led by Steve McQueen and Richard Attenborough devise a risky scheme to escape the prisoner-of-war camp Stalag Luft III. Crowds cheer when they escape, cringe when they get caught, and cry as some of their favorite characters are killed. Still need a reason to watch? It's based on a true story. Remarkable!

6. 12 Angry Men

1957, Directed by Sidney Lumet
Cast: Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, E.G. Marshall

Sidney Lumet's 12 Angry Men does for the American justice system what Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life did for Christmas; it restores humanity. With the exception of the opening and closing scenes, the movie takes place in the jury room. There's a bird's eye view as the jurors contentiously decide whether or not a young Hispanic boy stabbed his father. Viewers watch as the jurors confront the issue of racism, deal with anger, and agonize over keeping the status quo. This movie is so good it may actually make you want to enroll in law school.

7. How to Marry a Millionaire

1953, Directed by Jean Negulesco
Cast: Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable, William Powell

Before Chick Lit ever hit the scene, Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, and Betty Grable were renting posh apartments on the Upper East Side, wearing fabulous clothes, and devising hair-brained schemes to marry a millionaire. How to Marry a Millionaire makes fans want to put their feet up, grab a martini, and laugh right along with this talented trio of actors.

8. Network

1976, Directed by Sidney Lumet
Cast: Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch and Robert Duvall

Sidney Lumet's back on the list with the show-stopper Network, a film that foreshadows the network's disdain for the public. It aptly demonstrates the anger the public feels towards both television programming and news network politics. Courtney Cox's new show, Dirt, demonstrates just how relevant this movie still is today.

9. The Graduate

1967, Directed by Mike Nichols
Cast: Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katherine Ross

This coming-of age-tale about a recent college graduate, Dustin Hoffman, and his affair with the sultry and stunning Anne Bancroft forever changed popular culture. The Graduate is an iconic piece of American film.

10. Casablanca

Directed by Michael Curiz
Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Itenreid, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt, Peter Lorre

Humphrey Bogart is torn between the love of his life, and his need to do the right thing in this 1942 romantic movie classic. See this movie not only for its stellar performances and musical score, but also to note its influence on today's entertainment industry.