# The Great SDMB Movie Poll - Round 1 The Great 128 \[voting in this round closed\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [September 24, 2026, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339 "2026-09-24T14:07:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![colinfred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colinfred/32/21338_2.png) [@colinfred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colinfred)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/22 "2026-09-24T15:59:34Z")
Just to be clear, I’m assuming Notorious is the Hitchcock version not the one about the rapper. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/23 "2026-09-24T16:00:29Z")
A word on the matchups - I seeded all of the entries randomly because I wanted to ensure that my personal tastes didn’t interfere with any of the matchups. As a result, some are very difficult, some are no-brainers, and some are painful because I know a few of my favorites will lose. But that is how I wanted it to be so I had no influence on the outcomes. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/24 "2026-09-24T16:01:40Z")
I assumed that too and was unaware of another film with the same title. It should be the 1946 Hitchcock film. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/25 "2026-09-24T16:07:25Z")
A few of the matchups have a nice synergy. **#6: A Good Year vs. The Endless Summer**. nice. Though I chose to vote for neither. * * * * * * I’m happy Star Trek IV is slightly ahead. I’m the one that nominated it and I was probably in it, but at least my fellow crewmates on the USS Ranger were. I love that movie as I love the Star Treks with a lot of humor. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/26 "2026-09-24T16:11:13Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > I was probably in it, That one was tough for me. I was probably in it too (in the aquarium) but I had to vote for Master & Commander (which I nominated). ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/27 "2026-09-24T16:16:09Z")
I also like #67, The Godfather vs My Cousin Vinnie, but not as much synergy. #71: Goldfinger vs The Incredibles, as The Incredibles was somewhat inspired by those early James Bond movies. #73: The **Blues** Brothers vs. All that **Jazz** , Blues vs Jazz indeed. #79: **Breakfast** Club vs. Naked **Lunch**. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/28 "2026-09-24T16:37:02Z")
I think there’s a lot of synergy in #128 as well - Airplane! vs Galaxy Quest - both parodies of popular movies. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/29 "2026-09-24T16:57:08Z")
True. Stinks that Galaxy Quest is going down in round 1. ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/30 "2026-09-24T17:23:21Z")
_Snatch_ and _Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels_ are two of my favorite movies of all time, but they got paired against movies higher on the list… oof. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/31 "2026-09-24T17:30:10Z")
Wraith of Khan vs Last Crusade? Do you need me to pick between my kids as well? ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/32 "2026-09-24T18:19:04Z")
> [@Thumper668](#): > > A word on the matchups - I seeded all of the entries randomly because I wanted to ensure that my personal tastes didn’t interfere with any of the matchups. As a result, some are very difficult, some are no-brainers, and some are painful because I know a few of my favorites will lose. But that is how I wanted it to be so I had no influence on the outcomes. Unfortunately, I think the random seeding fatally damages the whole exercise. Maybe you could have used some objective criteria for seeding instead? For example, I got lots of matchups where I either hated both movies or they were just completely obscure for me. But the nail in the coffin—for me, anyway—was pitting some of favorite movies of all time against each other in the _very first round_ (at least **six** separate times!): - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan vs. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade - Back to Future vs. Saving Private Ryan - Toy Story vs. Fellowship of the Ring (how do you even compare these?) - Monty Python and the Holy Grail vs. Star Wars - My Cousin Vinny vs. The Godfather And by far the most egregious, because these are probably my two most favorite movies of all time: - The Shawshank Redemption vs. Apollo 13 There is a reason why seeding is _not_ random in the sports world. You don’t put the two top-seeded teams against each other in the first round. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/33 "2026-09-24T18:31:35Z")
> [@robby](#): > > Unfortunately, I think the random seeding fatally damages the whole exercise. Sorry for that. You are welcome to start your own poll. The whole point of the above was that it is just as painful for me as it is for you and everyone else. Collecting 256 nominations (which is itself an admittedly small number), tracking them, seeding them in a nonbiased manner and typing up 128 polls was a lot more work than I thought it would be. If I had tried to do 256 matchups I’d have bailed on the whole idea. > [@robby](#): > > There is a reason why seeding is _not_ random in the sports world. And how would you equate that to a favorite movie poll? Box office numbers? Rotten Tomatoes scores? Have fun with that. You’d be looking at about a week of research before posting the polls, and I’d bet most folks would give up before then. Favorite movies are purely and essentially subjective and do not equate to the sports world where performance is the primary metric. No one is forcing you to participate. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/34 "2026-09-24T18:33:44Z")
Fair enough…not to trying to denigrate your hard work. Thanks for putting this together. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/35 "2026-09-24T18:44:24Z")
Depending on how this shakes out, and the amount of work it ends up being, I am considering a follow up tournament (or perhaps even a concurrent one if I have the time available) for the 128 films that get eliminated in round 1. I’d need to generate some new brackets, but maybe it would be fairer if the winners and losers in Round 1 were seeded into Round 3 or Round 4. I’ll give this some more thought as we progress. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/36 "2026-09-24T18:45:23Z")
> [@robby](#): > > not to trying to denigrate your hard work. I apologize for my sharp response. From your word choice, it felt like you were. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/37 "2026-09-24T18:52:07Z")
Ditto. My impassioned comments likely came out sharper than I intended. 😊 ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/38 "2026-09-24T18:52:21Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > #79: **Breakfast** Club vs. Naked **Lunch** My Dinner with Andre beats ‘em both! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/39 "2026-09-24T18:59:40Z")
Thinking out loud on how to structure this without eliminating losers in Round 1: Round 2A - Group of 64 matchups between Round 1 winners Round 2B - Group of 64 matchups between Round 1 losers Round 3A - Group of 32 matchups between 2A winners Round 3B - Group of 32 matchups between 2B winners Round 4 - Group of 32 matchups between top 16 from 3A and 3B Round 5 - Round of 16 from Round 4 winners Round 6 - Quarterfinals Round 7 - Semifinals Round 8A - Finals Round 8B - 3rd place match I think the key would be determining the top 16 from Round 3A & B. It could work I think. Feedback welcome. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/40 "2026-09-24T19:00:24Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > My Dinner with Andre beats ‘em both! So does Breakfast at Tiffany’s 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![colinfred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colinfred/32/21338_2.png) [@colinfred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colinfred)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2026, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339/41 "2026-09-24T19:15:03Z")
I think a single elimination tournament of all 256 is fine. If a big beast goes out in round 1 to an even bigger beast, thems the breaks. A suggestion if you want to go another way: pit the winners against winners and the losers against losers, giving 3 groups: 64 who are now through, 64 who are now out, and 128 who now face each other randomly. After this the 128 that have now won 2 matchups go into a round of 128, single elimination from then on. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-sdmb-movie-poll-round-1-the-great-128-voting-in-this-round-closed/1033339.md?page=3)