Shite! I should have consulted IMDB before I made my picks. “Orphee” (which I had picked for the best drama of the 1940s didn’t come out until 1950!
Okay, substitute “Casablanca” (which I can’t believe I forgot) for the best 1940s drama for “Orphee”. But leave “All About Eve” in place - I still like that better than “Orphee.”
70’s has many great candidates:
Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Animal House and Holy grail or Life of Brian.
Jim
Arrrrrrrrrrgh! I can’t believe I forgot “Casablanca” - and it’s my favorite movie of all time! Should’ve put in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” too. Shoot.
Foreign: Little Otik
Yeah, one of my current faves too.
Just filling in ones where I have an opinion…
Documentary? - Woodstock
Children’s (Live action) - Wizard of Oz
Children’s (Animated) - Little Mermaid
Comedy of the 90s? - The Full Monty
Comedy of the 80s? - Airplane
Comedy of the 70s? - Young Frankenstein
Comedy of the 60s? - Bedazzled
Comedy of the 50s? - Some Like It Hot
Comedy of the 30s? - Duck Soup
Drama of the 70s? - Godfather (I)
Drama of the 50s? - All About Eve
Drama of the 40s? - Casablanca
Action/Adventure of the 60s? - Great Escape
Action/Adventure of the 30s? - Adventures of Robin Hood
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? - Lord of the Rings trilogy
SciFi/Fantasy of the 30s? - King Kong
Thriller of the 90s? - Silence of the Lambs
Thriller of the 80s? - Alien
Thriller of the 70s? - The Exorcist
Thriller of the 60s? - Rosemary’s Baby
Documentary? Paradise Lost
Silent? Nosferatu
Children’s (Live action) Harry Potter
Children’s (Animated) Finding Nemo
Comedy of the 00s? Pirates of the Carribean
Comedy of the 90s? Austin Powers
Comedy of the 80s? The Princess Bride
Comedy of the 50s? Some Like it Hot
Drama of the 00s? The Pianist
Action/Adventure of the 00s? Sin City
Action/Adventure of the 90s? True Lies
Action/Adventure of the 80s? Raiders of the Lost Ark
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? Serenity
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s? The Matrix
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? Aliens
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? Alien
Foreign1? Cinema Paradiso
Foreign2? Like Water for Chocolate
Foreign3? Amelie
Miscellaneous1? Lord of the Rings Trilogy
The obvious choice is Attack of the Killer Tomatoes!
A partial list, the best I can do right now given time constraints (damn job!):
Documentary? Bowling For Columbine
Silent?
Children’s (Live action) Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory (original)
Children’s (Animated) Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas
Comedy of the 00s?
Comedy of the 90s? Clueless
Comedy of the 80s? When Harry Met Sally…
Comedy of the 70s? Young Frankenstein
Comedy of the 60s? The Pink Panther
Comedy of the 50s? Stalag 17
Comedy of the 40s? The Philadelphia Story
Comedy of the 30s? It Happened One Night
Drama of the 00s? 25th Hour (so far)
Drama of the 90s? LA Confidential
Drama of the 80s? Do The Right Thing
Drama of the 70s? Apocalypse Now
Drama of the 60s? Inherit the Wind
Drama of the 50s?
Drama of the 40s? Casablanca
Drama of the 30s?
Action/Adventure of the 00s?
Action/Adventure of the 90s? The Matrix
Action/Adventure of the 80s? Raiders of the Lost Ark
Action/Adventure of the 70s?
Action/Adventure of the 60s? Goldfinger
Action/Adventure of the 50s? North By Northwest
Action/Adventure of the 40s?
Action/Adventure of the 30s? Gunga Din
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (so far)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s? Jurassic Park (the first one)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? The Thing (John Carpenter’s remake)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? Alien
SciFi/Fantasy of the 60s? 2001: A Space Odyssey
SciFi/Fantasy of the 50s? The Day The Earth Stood Still
SciFi/Fantasy of the 40s?
SciFi/Fantasy of the 30s?
Thriller of the 00s?
Thriller of the 90s?
Thriller of the 80s?
Thriller of the 70s?
Thriller of the 60s?
Thriller of the 50s?
Thriller of the 40s?
Thriller of the 30s?
Foreign1? Amélie
Foreign2? Il Postino
Foreign3? Yojimbo
Miscellaneous1? Unforgiven (honorable mention, 90s drama, best Western)
Miscellaneous2? Moulin Rouge! (favorite musical)
Miscellaneous3?
Guess I’m a little confused about the difference between Action/Adventure and Thriller.
An updated version of my previous post, with some titles added. Still too many gaps, though.
Documentary? Bowling For Columbine
Silent? City Lights
Children’s (Live action) Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory (original)
Children’s (Animated) Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas
Comedy of the 00s? Sideways
Comedy of the 90s? Clueless
Comedy of the 80s? When Harry Met Sally…
Comedy of the 70s? Young Frankenstein
Comedy of the 60s? The Pink Panther
Comedy of the 50s? Stalag 17
Comedy of the 40s? The Philadelphia Story
Comedy of the 30s? It Happened One Night
Drama of the 00s? 25th Hour (so far)
Drama of the 90s? LA Confidential
Drama of the 80s? Do The Right Thing
Drama of the 70s? Apocalypse Now
Drama of the 60s? Inherit the Wind
Drama of the 50s? Rebel Without A Cause
Drama of the 40s? Casablanca
Drama of the 30s?
Action/Adventure of the 00s?
Action/Adventure of the 90s? The Matrix
Action/Adventure of the 80s? Raiders of the Lost Ark
Action/Adventure of the 70s?
Action/Adventure of the 60s? Goldfinger
Action/Adventure of the 50s? North By Northwest
Action/Adventure of the 40s?
Action/Adventure of the 30s? Gunga Din
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s? Jurassic Park (the first one)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? The Thing (John Carpenter’s remake)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? Alien
SciFi/Fantasy of the 60s? 2001: A Space Odyssey
SciFi/Fantasy of the 50s? The Day The Earth Stood Still
SciFi/Fantasy of the 40s?
SciFi/Fantasy of the 30s? The Wizard of Oz
Thriller of the 00s?
Thriller of the 90s? The Silence Of The Lambs
Thriller of the 80s?
Thriller of the 70s? Jaws
Thriller of the 60s? The Manchurian Candidate
Thriller of the 50s?
Thriller of the 40s?
Thriller of the 30s?
Foreign1? Amélie
Foreign2? Il Postino
Foreign3? Yojimbo
Miscellaneous1? Unforgiven (honorable mention, 90s drama, best Western)
Miscellaneous2? Moulin Rouge! (favorite musical)
Miscellaneous3? Ghost World (honorable mention, both drama and comedy for the 90s)
Documentary? Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills
Silent? Nosferatu
Children’s (Live action)? Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
Children’s (Animated)? Mulan
Comedy of the 00s? Almost Famous
Comedy of the 90s? Being John Malkovich
Comedy of the 80s? A Fish Called Wanda
Comedy of the 70s? Harold and Maude
Comedy of the 60s? The Graduate
Comedy of the 50s? Some Like It Hot
Comedy of the 40s? Arsenic and Old Lace
Comedy of the 30s? It Happened One Night
Drama of the 00s? Hotel Rwanda
Drama of the 90s? Magnolia
Drama of the 80s? Frances
Drama of the 70s? Dog Day Afternoon
Drama of the 60s? Bonnie and Clyde
Drama of the 50s? A Streetcar Named Desire
Drama of the 40s? Great Expectations
Drama of the 30s? Of Mice and Men
Action/Adventure of the 00s? Kill Bill: Vol. 2
Action/Adventure of the 90s? Léon
Action/Adventure of the 80s? Platoon
Action/Adventure of the 70s? Apocalypse Now
Action/Adventure of the 60s? Bullitt
Action/Adventure of the 50s? The African Queen
Action/Adventure of the 40s? To Have and Have Not
Action/Adventure of the 30s? The Wizard of Oz
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? Donnie Darko
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s? The Nightmare Before Christmas
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? Unendliche Geschichte, Die (The Neverending Story)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? A Clockwork Orange
SciFi/Fantasy of the 60s? Planet of the Apes
SciFi/Fantasy of the 50s? Harvey
SciFi/Fantasy of the 40s? Miracle on 34th Street
SciFi/Fantasy of the 30s? Frankenstein
Thriller of the 00s? Memento
Thriller of the 90s? The Usual Suspects
Thriller of the 80s? The Shining
Thriller of the 70s? The Exorcist
Thriller of the 60s? Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Thriller of the 50s? The Night of the Hunter
Thriller of the 40s? Rope
Thriller of the 30s? M
Foreign1? Breathless
Foreign2? Spoorloos
Foreign3? Belle de jour
Miscellaneous1? Badlands
Miscellaneous2? Stand By Me
Miscellaneous3? Ordinary People
We need an Honorable Mention! Just so I can nominate Jacob’s Ladder. 
I’m afraid i’m a very pessimistic person, so while there’s lots of films I like, there’s less that I think are worth “best” in their category. And I haven’t seen that many films from before I was born.
Children’s (Animated) The Lion King
Action/Adventure of the 00s? Ong Bak
Action/Adventure of the 80s? Die Hard I
Action/Adventure of the 50s? Seven Samurai
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? The Empire Strikes Back (beats out Princess Bride for me, sadly 
)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? Star Wars
Foreign1? Battle Royale
Foreign2? Hero
Foreign3? Seven Samurai (Yes, it gets in twice.)
Miscellaneous1? Pulp Fiction
Miscellaneous2? Princess Bride (since it didn’t get in before)
Using ‘my favorite’ in each group :
Documentary? The Thin Blue Line
Children’s (Live action) The Muppet Movie
Children’s (Animated) Pinocchio (Disney)
Comedy of the 00s? The Royal Tennenbaums
Comedy of the 90s? Office Space
Comedy of the 80s? The Princess Bride
Comedy of the 70s? Blazing Saddles
Comedy of the 60s? The Graduate
Comedy of the 50s? Harvey
Comedy of the 40s? His Girl Friday
Comedy of the 30s? Duck Soup
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? The Lord of the Rings : Fellowship of the Ring
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s? Terminator 2 : Judgment Day
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? Blade Runner
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? Star Wars
SciFi/Fantasy of the 60s? 2001:A Space Odyssey
SciFi/Fantasy of the 50s? The Day the Earth Stood Still
SciFi/Fantasy of the 40s?
SciFi/Fantasy of the 30s?
Foreign1? Faraway, So Close! (Germany)
Foreign2? Love Letter (Japan)
Foreign3? Jean de Florette (France)
Miscellaneous1? The Shining
Miscellaneous2? Brazil
Miscellaneous3? Ran
Documentary - When We Were Kings
Silent - The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
Children’s (Live action) - The Princess Bride
Children’s (Animated) - Shrek
Comedy of the 00s - Team America
Comedy of the 90s - The Big Lebowski
Comedy of the 80s - Brazil
Comedy of the 70s - The Bad News Bears
Comedy of the 60s - It’s A Mad Mad Mad Mad World
Comedy of the 50s - Some Like It Hot
Comedy of the 40s - Arsenic and Old Lace
Comedy of the 30s - Duck Soup
Drama of the 00s - American Splendor
Drama of the 90s - Once Were Warriors
Drama of the 80s - Do The Right Thing
Drama of the 70s - One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest
Drama of the 60s - Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Drama of the 50s - Paths of Glory
Drama of the 40s - Treasure of the Sierra Madre
Drama of the 30s - All Quiet On The Western Front
Action/Adventure of the 00s - Sin City
Action/Adventure of the 90s - Resevoir Dogs
Action/Adventure of the 80s - The Stunt Man
Action/Adventure of the 70s - Apocalypse Now
Action/Adventure of the 60s - The Dirty Dozen
Action/Adventure of the 50s - Cyrano De Bergerac
Action/Adventure of the 40s - The Maltese Falcon
Action/Adventure of the 30s - Adventures of Robin Hood
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s - Lord of the Rings trilogy
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s - The Matrix
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s - The Thing
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s - Star Wars
SciFi/Fantasy of the 60s - Planet of the Apes
SciFi/Fantasy of the 50s - Invasion of the Body Snatchers
SciFi/Fantasy of the 40s - The Thief of Bagdad
SciFi/Fantasy of the 30s - The Wizard of Oz
Thriller of the 00s - Memento
Thriller of the 90s - The Usual Suspects
Thriller of the 80s - Blue Velvet
Thriller of the 70s - Jaws
Thriller of the 60s - The Spy Who Came In From The Cold
Thriller of the 50s - North By Northwest
Thriller of the 40s - The Third Man
Thriller of the 30s - Public Enemy
Foreign1 - Wings of Desire
Foreign2 - M
Foreign3 - The Seven Samauri
Miscellaneous1 - Koyaanisqatsi
Miscellaneous2 - Fantasia
Miscellaneous3 - Heavy Metal Parking Lot
I saw this topic and thought “Oh fun! Another ‘Favorite Movie’ poll!” Then I opened it up only to be confronted with a ‘History of Cinema’ exam.
Here are my responses, one per category (not taking decade into account), for the ones that I have a definite answer for.
Silent? The General
Children’s (Animated)? The Emperor’s New Groove
Comedy? Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Drama? Casablanca
Thriller? The Shining
Foreign? The Seven Samurai
I think anybody who puts anything other than “Star Wars” down for best Fantasy SciFi of the 70s should have to explain why they chose something other than Star Wars. Its effect on the look and feel of SF films was so pronounced that you can neatly divide the SF genre into “Before Star Wars” and “After Star Wars.” No other film even comes close to that kind of influence.
EC, because you think a poorly written, poorly acted film is great because of its special effect, this does nothing to sway me from Close Encounters.
I could use your argument for 2001 Space Odyssey by the way. It proved Special effects could look real. This was incredible and 8 years earlier.
Instead of trying to start a fight in this thread, why don’t you provide your own list for review. There is no shortage of Star Wars fans on the board, start an appreciation thread if you like.
Jim
Besides which, the greatest SF film of all time, Solyaris, was made in 1972. And the second greatest SF film of all time, Stalker, was made in 1979. Star Wars and Close Encounters aren’t even in the running.
I like the original Alien & Star Trek IV more than Star Wars also, You can at least understand why someone might not like Star Wars or Solyaris as #1 I hope.
Jim
Children’s (Live action) Babe
Children’s (Animated) Finding Nemo (The Incredibles, a close 2nd)
Comedy of the 00s? Napoleon Dynamite
Comedy of the 90s? The Big Lebowski
Comedy of the 80s? Raising Arizona
Comedy of the 70s? Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Drama of the 00s? Million Dollar Baby (or The Pianist?)
Drama of the 90s? Shawshank Redemption
Drama of the 80s? The Color Purple
Drama of the 70s? The Godfather
Action/Adventure of the 00s? Kung Fu Hustle
Action/Adventure of the 90s? Pulp Fiction
Action/Adventure of the 80s? Raider’s of the Lost Ark
SciFi/Fantasy of the 00s? Primer (scifi), LOTR: FOTR (fantasy)
SciFi/Fantasy of the 90s? Matrix
SciFi/Fantasy of the 80s? Damn, too much good stuff in this decade: Blade Runner, Alien, ESB, The Thing, Close Encounters, Back to the Future… I’ll have to go with Close Encounters.
SciFi/Fantasy of the 70s? Star Wars: A New Hope
SciFi/Fantasy of the 60s? 2001:A Space Odyssey
Thriller of the 00s? Memento
Thriller of the 90s? Silence of the Lambs
Thriller of the 80s? The Shining
Thriller of the 70s? Jaws
S’all I got.