Filtering by Tag: lists

Movies Watched in February 2026

Added on by C. Maoxian.

I now think the goal of watching 60 movies a month is a little crazy so I’m dropping it to a more manageable 50 a month. Check out the January 2026 list here.

Here is what I watched in February, listed alphabetically:

  1. Alien, 1979

  2. All Quiet on the Western Front, 1930

  3. Bonjour Tristesse, 2024

  4. Charade, 1963

  5. Cries and Whispers, 1972

  6. Diary of a Chambermaid, 1946

  7. Elevator to the Gallows, 1958

  8. Fanny and Alexander, 1982

  9. Fiend Without a Face, 1958

  10. Fitzcarraldo, 1982

  11. Forbidden Games, 1952

  12. Foreign Correspondent, 1940

  13. Germany Year Zero, 1948

  14. Ghostbusters, 1984

  15. Green for Danger, 1946

  16. Heaven Can Wait, 1940

  17. I Know Where I'm Going, 1945

  18. Japon, 2002

  19. Journey to Italy, 1954

  20. Kiss Me Deadly, 1955

  21. La piscine, 1969

  22. La ronde, 1950

  23. Last Holiday, 1950

  24. Last Year at Marienbad, 1961

  25. L'avventura, 1960

  26. Le corbeau, 1943

  27. Le jour se leve, 1939

  28. Mad Max, 1979

  29. Make Way for Tomorrow, 1937

  30. Miss Julie, 1951

  31. My Man Godfrey, 1936

  32. Pickpocket, 1959

  33. Red River, 1948

  34. Sawdust and Tinsel, 1953

  35. Scarface, 1932

  36. Secret Honor, 1984

  37. She's Gotta Have It, 1986

  38. Shoot the Piano Player, 1960

  39. Stolen Kisses, 1968

  40. The Browning Version, 1951

  41. The Innocents, 1961

  42. The Lovers, 1958

  43. The Most Dangerous Game, 1932

  44. The Virgin Spring, 1960

  45. Tootsie, 1982

  46. Touchez pas au grisbi, 1954

  47. Trouble in Paradise, 1932

  48. Two or Three Things I Know About Her, 1967

  49. Videodrome, 1983

  50. Viridiana, 1961

  51. White Mane, 1952

  52. Youth of the Beast, 1963

The movies that I consider must-see among these are listed below:

  1. Alien, 1979

  2. Charade, 1963

  3. Germany Year Zero, 1948

  4. La ronde, 1950

  5. Sawdust and Tinsel, 1953

  6. The Lovers, 1958

I’m still on the fence about Cries and Whispers (1972) and Last Holiday (1950).

Maoxian's One a Day Playlist for February 2026

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Here’s the wildly anticipated February playlist. The songs are sorted chronologically, latest to earliest. If you don’t like a song, skip to the next. Don’t forget to check out January’s playlist.

  • Kendra Morris, In My House

  • Jeanines, To Fail

  • Warhaus (feat. Sylvie Kreusch), Popcorn

  • Joe Yorke, Man

  • Gabi Hartmann, Maladie d'amour

  • Gabriels, Blame

  • Drugdealer (feat. Kate Bollinger), Pictures of You

  • Celeste, Love is Back

  • Ian Pooley, Venasque

  • Suzanne Vega, Caramel

  • Cesaria Evora, Sodade

  • Tom Tom Club, Genius of Love

  • Waylon Jennings, Amanda

  • George McCrae, Rock Your Baby

  • Phil Upchurch, Sitar Soul

  • Donny Hathaway, Love, Love, Love

  • Charlie Rich, Behind Closed Doors

  • The Beginning of the End, Funky Nassau, Pt. 1

  • Shuggie Otis, The Hawks

  • Roberta Flack, Do What You Gotta Do

  • Elton John, Your Song

  • Bobby Womack, California Dreamin'

  • The Youngbloods, All Over the World (La-La)

  • Jacqueline Taieb, Le Coeur au bout des doigts

  • Percy Sledge, When a Man Loves a Woman

  • Buffalo Springfield, For What It's Worth

  • Irma Thomas, Anyone Who Knows What Love Is

  • Ricky Nelson, Travelin' Man

Bertz & Fischer 100 Greatest Directors List

Added on by C. Maoxian.

A meta-list from zee German gentlemen:

  1. Alfred Hitchcock

  2. Stanley Kubrick

  3. Steven Spielberg

  4. Francis Ford Coppola

  5. Martin Scorsese

  6. Billy Wilder

  7. Ridley Scott

  8. Quentin Tarantino

  9. Orson Welles

  10. Akira Kurosawa

  11. Charles Chaplin

  12. Sergio Leone

  13. Ingmar Bergman

  14. James Cameron

  15. David Lean

  16. Federico Fellini

  17. Roman Polanski

  18. Howard Hawks

  19. Victor Fleming

  20. Jean-Luc Godard

  21. John Ford

  22. Fritz Lang

  23. Joel and Ethan Coen

  24. Michael Curtiz

  25. Christopher Nolan

  26. Frank Capra

  27. Jean Renoir

  28. John Huston

  29. Woody Allen

  30. George Lucas

  31. Francois Truffaut

  32. Milos Forman

  33. David Fincher

  34. Robert Zemeckis

  35. Stanley Donen

  36. Michelangelo Antonioni

  37. Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau

  38. Andrei Tarkovsky

  39. George Cukor

  40. Robert Altman

  41. Robert Bresson

  42. Carl Thedor Dreyer

  43. David Lynch

  44. Elia Kazan

  45. Luis Bunuel

  46. Peter Jackson

  47. Yasujiro Ozu

  48. Carol Reed

  49. Rob Reiner

  50. Clint Eastwood

  51. Sam Peckinpah

  52. Frank Darabont

  53. Buster Keaton

  54. Joseph L. Mankiewicz

  55. Sidney Lumet

  56. Sergei Eisenstein

  57. William Wyler

  58. Vittoria De Sica

  59. Krzysztof Kieslowski

  60. Andy and Larry Wachowski

  61. Terry Jones

  62. Jonathan Demme

  63. Wong Kar-wai

  64. Irvin Kershner

  65. Satyajit Ray

  66. Jean-Pierre Jeunet

  67. Brian De Palma

  68. Roberto Rossellini

  69. Mike Nichols

  70. Robert Wise

  71. Jacques Tati

  72. Ernst Lubitsch

  73. Kenji Mizoguchi

  74. Charles Laughton

  75. Pedro Almodovar

  76. Hayao Miyazaki

  77. D.W. Griffith

  78. Terrence Malick

  79. Marcel Carne

  80. John Lasseter

  81. Curtis Hanson

  82. Ang Lee

  83. Michael Cimino

  84. George Roy Hill

  85. William Friedkin

  86. Bernardo Bertolucci

  87. John McTiernan

  88. Vincente Minnelli

  89. Leo McCarey

  90. Fernando Meirelles

  91. Luc Besson

  92. Darren Aronofsky

  93. Michael Powell

  94. Terry Gilliam

  95. Wim Wenders

  96. Max Ophuls

  97. John Carpenter

  98. Nicholas Ray

  99. Jean Vigo

  100. Danny Boyle

Bertz & Fischer 100 Greatest Movies List

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Two German gentlemen, Bertz & Fischer, came up with a “list to end all lists” of the 100 greatest movies. It’s just another meta-list, but it’s worth recording anyway:

  1. The Gold Rush, Chaplin, 1925

  2. Battleship Potemkin, Eisenstein, 1925

  3. The General, Keaton, 1926

  4. Metropolis, Lang, 1927

  5. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, Murnau, 1927

  6. The Passion of Joan of Arc, Dreyer, 1928

  7. City Lights, Chaplin, 1931

  8. M, Lang, 1931

  9. Modern Times, Chaplin, 1936

  10. Grand Illusion, Renoir, 1937

  11. Bringing Up Baby, Hawks, 1938

  12. The Rules of the Game, Renoir, 1939

  13. The Wizard of Oz, Fleming, 1939

  14. Gone with the Wind, Fleming, 1939

  15. Citizen Kane, Welles, 1941

  16. The Maltese Falcon, Huston, 1941

  17. Casablanca, Curtiz, 1943

  18. Double Indemnity, Wilder, 1944

  19. Children of Paradise, Carne, 1945

  20. It’s a Wonderful Life, Capra, 1946

  21. Bicycle Thieves, De Sica, 1948

  22. The Third Man, Reed, 1949

  23. Sunset Blvd., Wilder, 1950

  24. Rashomon, Kurosawa, 1950

  25. All About Eve, Mankiewicz, 1950

  26. Singin’ in the Rain, Donen, 1952

  27. Tokyo Story, Ozu, 1953

  28. Seven Samurai, Kurosawa, 1954

  29. On the Waterfront, Kazan, 1954

  30. Rear Window, Hitchcock, 1954

  31. The Night of the Hunter, Laughton, 1955

  32. The Searchers, Ford, 1956

  33. The Seventh Seal, Bergman, 1957

  34. Touch of Evil, Welles, 1958

  35. Vertigo, Hitchcock, 1958

  36. Some Like It Hot, Wilder, 1959

  37. The 400 Blows, Truffaut, 1959

  38. North by Northwest, Hitchcock, 1959

  39. La Dolce Vita, Fellini, 1960

  40. Breathless, Godard, 1960

  41. L’avventura, Antonioni, 1960

  42. The Apartment, Wilder, 1960

  43. Psycho, Hitchcock, 1960

  44. Lawrence of Arabia, Lean, 1962

  45. 8 1/2, Fellini, 1963

  46. The Leopard, Visconti, 1963

  47. Dr. Strangelove, Kubrick, 1964

  48. Persona, Bergman, 1966

  49. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Leone, 1966

  50. Bonnie and Clyde, Penn, 1967

  51. 2001: A Space Odyssey, Kubrick, 1968

  52. Once Upon a Time in the West, Leone, 1968

  53. Andrei Rublev, Tarkovsky, 1969

  54. The Wild Bunch, Peckinpah, 1969

  55. A Clockwork Orange, Kubrick, 1971

  56. The Godfather, Coppola, 1972

  57. Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Herzog, 1972

  58. Chinatown, Polanski, 1974

  59. The Godfather: Part II, Coppola, 1974

  60. Nashville, Altman, 1975

  61. Jaws, Spielberg, 1976

  62. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Forman, 1975

  63. Taxi Driver, Scorsese, 1976

  64. Annie Hall, Allen, 1977

  65. Star Wars, Lucas, 1977

  66. The Deer Hunter, Cimino, 1978

  67. Apocalypse Now, Coppola, 1979

  68. Alien, Scott, 1979

  69. The Empire Strikes Back, Kershner, 1980

  70. The Shining, Kubrick, 1980

  71. Raging Bull, Scorsese, 1980

  72. Raiders of the Lost Ark, Speilberg, 1981

  73. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Spielberg, 1982

  74. Blade Runner, Scott, 1982

  75. Fanny and Alexander, Bergman, 1982

  76. Once Upon a Time in America, Leone, 1984

  77. Back to the Future, Zemeckis, 1985

  78. Blue Velvet, Lynch, 1986

  79. Die Hard, McTiernan, 1988

  80. GoodFellas, Scorsese, 1990

  81. The Silence of the Lambs, Demme, 1991

  82. Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Cameron, 1991

  83. Reservoir Dogs, Tarantino, 1992

  84. Schindler’s List, Spielberg, 1993

  85. Pulp Fiction, Tarantino, 1994

  86. Forrest Gump, Zemeckis, 1994

  87. The Shawshank Redemption, Darabont, 1994

  88. The Usual Suspects, Singer, 1995

  89. Fargo, Coen, 1996

  90. L.A. Confidential, Hanson, 1997

  91. The Big Lebowski, Coen, 1998

  92. Saving Private Ryan, Spielberg, 1998

  93. The Matrix, Wachowski, 1999

  94. American Beauty, Mendes, 1999

  95. Fight Club, Fincher, 1999

  96. Gladiator, Scott, 2000

  97. Amelie, Jeunet, 2001

  98. The Lord of the Rings, Jackson, 2001

  99. City of God, Meirelles, 2002

  100. The Dark Knight, Nolan, 2008

British Film Institute -- 100 Greatest Movies Picked by Working Directors

Added on by C. Maoxian.

This is a somewhat better list that the BFI 100 Greatest Movies list. Dr. Strangelove, Kes, and La cienaga are all great movies that make my list, which is of course the definitive list.

  1. 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968, Kubrick

  2. Citizen Kane, 1941, Welles

  3. The Godfather, 1972, Coppola

  4. Tokyo Story, 1953, Ozu

  5. Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce 1080 Bruxelles, 1975, Akerman

  6. 8 1/2, 1963, Fellini

  7. Vertigo, 1958, Hitchcock

  8. Mirror, 1974, Tarkovsky

  9. Persona, 1966, Bergman

  10. Close-Up, 1990, Kiarostami

  11. In the Mood for Love, 2000, Wong

  12. Barry Lyndon, 1975, Kubrick

  13. Taxi Driver, 1976, Scorsese

  14. Stalker, 1979, Tarkovsky

  15. Breathless, 1960, Godard

  16. Seven Samurai, 1954, Kurosawa

  17. Beau travail, 1988, Denis

  18. A Woman Under the Influence, 1974, Cassavetes

  19. Apocalypse Now, 1979, Coppola

  20. Rashomon, 1950, Kurosawa

  21. Bicycle Thieves, 1948, De Sica

  22. Raging Bull, 1980, Scorsese

  23. The Battle of Algiers, 1966, Pontecorvo

  24. Pather Panchali, 1955, Ray

  25. Mulholland Drive, 2001, Lynch

  26. The Godfather Part II, 1974, Coppola

  27. Andrei Rublev, 1966, Tarkovsky

  28. GoodFellas, 1990, Scorsese

  29. Do the Right Thing, 1989, Lee

  30. Ordet, 1955, Dreyer

  31. The Passion of Joan of Arc, 1927, Dreyer

  32. Man with a Movie Camera, 1929, Vertov

  33. The 400 Blows, 1959, Truffaut

  34. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, 1927, Murnau

  35. La jetee, 1962, Marker

  36. La dolce vita, 1960, Fellini

  37. Au hasard Balthazar, 1966, Bresson

  38. La strada, 1943, Fellini

  39. L’avventura, 1960, Antonioni

  40. La regle du jeu, 1939, Renoir

  41. Come and See, 1985, Klimov

  42. Vagabond, 1985, Varda

  43. A Man Escaped, 1956, Bresson

  44. The Night of the Hunter, 1955, Laughton

  45. Play Time, 1967, Tati

  46. Dr. Strangelove, 1963, Kubrick

  47. Don’t Look Now, 1973, Roeg

  48. One Upon a Time in the West, 1968, Leone

  49. Le mepris, 1963, Godard

  50. L’atalante, 1934, Vigo

  51. Psycho, 1960, Hitchcock

  52. Viridiana, 1961, Bunuel

  53. Eraserhead, 1976, Lynch

  54. La notte, 1961, Antonioni

  55. Fanny and Alexander, 1984, Bergman

  56. La maman et la putain, 1973, Eustache

  57. Ali: Fear Eats the Soul, 1974, Fassbinder

  58. The Piano, 1992, Campion

  59. City Lights, 1931, Chaplin

  60. Cleo from 5 to 7, 1962, Varda

  61. Singin’ in the Rain, 1951, Donen

  62. La cienaga, 2011, Martel

  63. Lawrence of Arabia, 1962, Lean

  64. Jaws, 1975, Spielberg

  65. Tropical malady, 2004, Weerasethakul

  66. Satantango, 1994, Tarr

  67. Sunset Blvd., 1950, Wilder

  68. Blade Runner, 1982, Scott

  69. Some Like It Hot, 1959, Wilder

  70. Late Spring, 1949, Ozu

  71. Meshes of the Afternoon, 1943, Deren

  72. Kes, 1969, Loach

  73. A Separation, 2011, Farhadi

  74. Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom, 1975, Pasolini

  75. The Conversation, 1974, Coppola

  76. L’argent, 1983, Bresson

  77. Where Is the Friend’s House, 1987, Kiarostami

  78. Ikiru, 1952, Kurosawa

  79. Chinatown, 1974, Polanski

  80. The Seventh Seal, 1957, Bergman

  81. The Ascent, 1976, Shepitko

  82. Wild Strawberries, 1957, Bergman

  83. Blue Velvet, 1986, Lynch

  84. The Spirit of the Beehive, 1973, Erice

  85. A Brighter Summer Day, 1991, Yang

  86. Modern Times, 1936, Chaplin

  87. The Red Shoes, 1948, Powell & Pressburger

  88. Touki Bouki, 1973, Mambéty

  89. Sans soleil, 1982, Marker

  90. News from Home, 1976, Akerman

  91. Shoah, 1985, Lanzmann

  92. The Searchers, 1956, Ford

  93. Throne of Blood, 1957, Kurosawa

  94. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, 2004, Gondry

  95. Hidden, 2004, Haneke

  96. Taste of Cherry, 1997, Kiarostami

  97. Pickpocket, 1959, Bresson

  98. The Colour of Pomegranates, 1968, Parajanov

  99. The Conformist, 1970, Bertolucci

  100. Parasite, 2019, Bong

  101. Yi Yi, 1999, Yang

  102. Moonlight, 2016, Jenkins

  103. Battleship Potemkin, 1915, Eisenstein

  104. Wanda, 1970, Loden

British Film Institute 100 Greatest Movies -- 2012 Poll

Added on by C. Maoxian.

It’s a pity they gave multiple entries to single directors… ideally they could come up with a 100 Greatest Movies from 100 Different Directors list.

  1. Vertigo, 1958, Hitchcock

  2. Citizen Kane, 1941, Welles

  3. Tokyo Story, 1953, Ozu

  4. La regle du jeu, 1939, Renoir

  5. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, 1927, Murnau

  6. 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968, Kubrick

  7. The Searchers, 1956, Ford

  8. Man with a Movie Camera, 1929, Vertov

  9. The Passion of Joan of Arc, 1927, Dreyer

  10. 8 1/2, 1963, Fellini

  11. Battleship Potemkin, 1915, Eisenstein

  12. L’atalante, 1934, Vigo

  13. Breathless, 1960, Godard

  14. Apocalypse Now, 1979, Coppola

  15. Late Spring, 1949, Ozu

  16. Au hasard Balthazar, 1966, Bresson

  17. Seven Samurai, 1954, Kurosawa

  18. Persona, 1966, Bergman

  19. Mirror, 1974, Tarkovsky

  20. Singin’ in the Rain, 1951, Donen

  21. L’avventura, 1960, Antonioni

  22. Le mepris, 1963, Godard

  23. The Godfather, 1972, Coppola

  24. Ordet, 1955, Dreyer

  25. In the Mood for Love, 2000, Wong

  26. Rashomon, 1950, Kurosawa

  27. Andrei Rublev, 1966, Tarkovsky

  28. Mulholland Drive, 2001, Lynch

  29. Stalker, 1979, Tarkovsky

  30. Shoah, 1985, Lanzmann

  31. The Godfather Part II, 1974, Coppola

  32. Taxi Driver, 1976, Scorsese

  33. Bicycle Thieves, 1948, De Sica

  34. Psycho, 1960, Hitchcock

  35. The General, 1926, Keaton

  36. Metropolis, 1927, Lang

  37. Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce 1080 Bruxelles, 1975, Akerman

  38. Satantango, 1994, Tarr

  39. The 400 Blows, 1959, Truffaut

  40. La dolce vita, 1960, Fellini

  41. Journey to Italy, 1954, Rossellini

  42. Pather Panchali, 1955, Ray

  43. Some Like It Hot, 1959, Wilder

  44. Gertrud, 1964. Dreyer

  45. Pierrot le fou, 1965, Godard

  46. Play Time, 1967, Tati

  47. Close-Up, 1990, Kiarostami

  48. The Battle of Algiers, 1966, Pontecorvo

  49. Histoire(s) du cinema, 1998, Godard

  50. City Lights, 1931, Chaplin

  51. Ugetsu monogatari, 1953, Mizoguchi

  52. La jetee, 1962, Marker

  53. North by Northwest, 1959, Hitchcock

  54. Rear Window, 1954, Hitchcock

  55. Raging Bull, 1980, Scorsese

  56. M, 1931, Lang

  57. The Leopard, 1963, Visconti

  58. Touch of Evil, 1958, Welles

  59. Sherlock Jr., 1924, Keaton

  60. Barry Lyndon, 1975, Kubrick

  61. La maman et la putain, 1973, Eustache

  62. Sansho Dayu, 1954, Mizoguchi

  63. Wild Strawberries, 1957, Bergman

  64. Modern Times, 1936, Chaplin

  65. Sunset Blvd., 1950, Wilder

  66. The Night of the Hunter, 1955, Laughton

  67. Pickpocket, 1959, Bresson

  68. Rio Bravo, 1958, Hawks

  69. Blade Runner, 1982, Scott

  70. Blue Velvet, 1986, Lynch

  71. Sans soleil, 1982, Marker

  72. A Man Escaped, 1956, Bresson

  73. The Third Man, 1949, Reed

  74. L’eclisse, 1962, Antonioni

  75. Les enfants du paradis, 1945, Carné

  76. La grande illusion, 1937, Renoir

  77. Nashville, 1975, Altman

  78. Chinatown, 1974, Polanski

  79. Beau travail, 1988, Denis

  80. Once upon a Time in the West, 1968, Leone

  81. The Magnificent Ambersons, 1942, Welles

  82. Lawrence of Arabia, 1962, Lean

  83. The Spirit of the Beehive, 1973, Erice

  84. Fanny and Alexander, 1984, Bergman

  85. Casablanca, 1942, Curtiz

  86. The Colour of Pomegranates, 1968, Parajanov

  87. Greed, 1925, von Stroheim

  88. A Brighter Summer Day, 1991, Yang

  89. The Wild Bunch, 1969, Peckinpah

  90. Partie de campagne, 1936, Renoir

  91. Aguirre: Wrath of God, 1972, Herzog

  92. A Matter of Life and Death, 1946, Powell & Pressburger

  93. The Seventh Seal, 1957, Bergman

  94. Un chien andalou, 1928, Buñuel

  95. Intolerance, 1916, Griffith

  96. A One and a Two, 1999, Yang

  97. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, 1943, Powell & Pressburger

  98. Touki Bouki, 1973, Mambéty

  99. Ali: Fear Eats the Soul, 1974, Fassbinder

  100. Imitation of Life, 1959, Sirk

  101. Madame de…, 1953, Ophüls

Mary Bronstein's Closet Picks in the Criterion Closet

Added on by C. Maoxian.

I’ve added the nine movies that Mary Bronstein picked in her Criterion Closet appearance:

  • Dance, Girl, Dance

  • Merrily We Go to Hell

  • Frownland

  • Daddy Longlegs

  • Chantal Akerman Masterpieces, 1968-1978

  • Inland Empire

  • This Is Spinal Tap

  • Eric Rohmer's Six Moral Tales

  • It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Mary Bronstein made two original picks: Merrily We Go to Hell, and Daddy Longlegs. She is apparently the wife of Ronald Bronstein. He made one of the grimmest movies of all time, Frownland, which I wouldn’t recommend to my worst enemy.

Identifying whether a pick is original or not is one reason why my Master List of Closet Picks in the Criterion Closet is so valuable.

Movies Watched in January 2026

Added on by C. Maoxian.

One of my goals for 2026 is to watch 60 movies every month. I fell short in January with only 57 movies watched. Here they are, listed alphabetically:

  1. 49th Parallel, 1941

  2. Adam's Rib, 1949

  3. Army of Shadows, 1969

  4. Au hasard Balthazar, 1966

  5. Ballad of a Soldier, 1959

  6. Band of Outsiders, 1964

  7. Bicycle Thieves, 1948

  8. Big Deal on Madonna Street , 1958

  9. Blow-Up, 1966

  10. Boudu Saved from Drowning, 1932

  11. Breathless, 1960

  12. City Lights, 1931

  13. Cléo from 5 to 7, 1962

  14. Cool Hand Luke, 1967

  15. Crazed Fruit, 1956

  16. Cria Cuervos…, 1976

  17. Death is a Caress, 1949

  18. Death of a Cyclist, 1955

  19. Deep Cover, 1992

  20. Destroyer, 2018

  21. Double Suicide, 1969

  22. Following, 1999

  23. Framed, 1947

  24. Frankenstein, 1931

  25. Guilty Bystander, 1950

  26. Hidden in the Fog, 1953

  27. Le Million, 1931

  28. Les dames du Bois de Boulogne, 1945

  29. Louie Bluie, 1985

  30. Loves of a Blonde, 1965

  31. Meet Me in St. Louis, 1944

  32. Midnight Cowboy, 1969

  33. Mouchette, 1967

  34. My Left Foot, 1989

  35. Night of the Living Dead, 1968

  36. Overlord, 1975

  37. Persona, 1966

  38. Ran, 1985

  39. Sword of the Beast, 1965

  40. The Bank Dick , 1940

  41. The Big Sleep, 1946

  42. The Exorcist, 1973

  43. The Flowers of St. Francis, 1952

  44. The Graduate, 1967

  45. The Lady Vanishes, 1938

  46. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, 1962

  47. The Man with the Golden Arm , 1955

  48. The Naked Spur, 1953

  49. The Only Son, 1936

  50. The Passion of Joan of Arc, 1928

  51. The Taste of Others, 2000

  52. Tokyo Drifter, 1966

  53. Two Minutes Late, 1952

  54. Vampyr, 1932

  55. Vernon, Florida, 1981

  56. Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, 1962

  57. Young Frankenstein, 1974

And here’s the list in chronological order by release year:

  1. The Passion of Joan of Arc, 1928

  2. City Lights, 1931

  3. Frankenstein, 1931

  4. Le Million, 1931

  5. Boudu Saved from Drowning, 1932

  6. Vampyr, 1932

  7. The Only Son, 1936

  8. The Lady Vanishes, 1938

  9. The Bank Dick , 1940

  10. 49th Parallel, 1941

  11. Meet Me in St. Louis, 1944

  12. Les dames du Bois de Boulogne, 1945

  13. The Big Sleep, 1946

  14. Framed, 1947

  15. Bicycle Thieves, 1948

  16. Adam's Rib, 1949

  17. Death is a Caress, 1949

  18. Guilty Bystander, 1950

  19. The Flowers of St. Francis, 1952

  20. Two Minutes Late, 1952

  21. Hidden in the Fog, 1953

  22. The Naked Spur, 1953

  23. Death of a Cyclist, 1955

  24. The Man with the Golden Arm , 1955

  25. Crazed Fruit, 1956

  26. Big Deal on Madonna Street , 1958

  27. Ballad of a Soldier, 1959

  28. Breathless, 1960

  29. Cléo from 5 to 7, 1962

  30. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, 1962

  31. Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, 1962

  32. Band of Outsiders, 1964

  33. Loves of a Blonde, 1965

  34. Sword of the Beast, 1965

  35. Au hasard Balthazar, 1966

  36. Blow-Up, 1966

  37. Persona, 1966

  38. Tokyo Drifter, 1966

  39. Cool Hand Luke, 1967

  40. Mouchette, 1967

  41. The Graduate, 1967

  42. Night of the Living Dead, 1968

  43. Army of Shadows, 1969

  44. Double Suicide, 1969

  45. Midnight Cowboy, 1969

  46. The Exorcist, 1973

  47. Young Frankenstein, 1974

  48. Overlord, 1975

  49. Cria Cuervos…, 1976

  50. Vernon, Florida, 1981

  51. Louie Bluie, 1985

  52. Ran, 1985

  53. My Left Foot, 1989

  54. Deep Cover, 1992

  55. Following, 1999

  56. The Taste of Others, 2000

  57. Destroyer, 2018

The movies that I consider must-see among these are listed below; there are several more that are borderline must-see (e.g., Bicycle Thieves, The Passion of Joan of Arc, Midnight Cowboy, My Left Foot, etc.), but I’m still on the fence about upgrading them:

  1. Au hasard Balthazar, 1966

  2. Breathless, 1960

  3. City Lights, 1931

  4. Frankenstein, 1931

  5. The Graduate, 1967

  6. Young Frankenstein, 1974

Charlotte Emma Aitchison's Closet Picks in the Criterion Closet

Added on by C. Maoxian.

I’ve added the four movies that Charlotte Emma Aitchison picked in her Criterion Closet appearance:

  • Celine and Julie Go Boating

  • The Shrouds

  • La Notte

  • Autumn Sonata

Charlotte Emma Aitchison made one original pick: The Shrouds. I have no idea who Charlotte Emma Aitchison is, but she’s apparently a musical artist.

Identifying whether a pick is original or not is one reason why my Master List of Closet Picks in the Criterion Closet is so valuable.

Maoxian's One a Day Playlist for January 2026

Added on by C. Maoxian.

You’ll recall that I recently posted a One a Day Playlist for 2025. The trouble with that list was that it was 365 songs long (duh) and clocked in at 21 hours and 10 minutes.

So in 2026 I’m going to post the One a Day Playlist every month, and here’s January’s, which is 31 songs long (duh) and clocks in at a more digestible 2 hours and 4 minutes.

The songs are sorted chronologically, latest to earliest. If you don’t like a song, skip to the next!

Music discovery is something that interests me. My musical taste is both eclectic and superlative, and I hope you find the monthly playlist useful.

  • Kali Uchis, All I Can Say

  • Star Feminine Band, Bowo Fun Obiri

  • JID, Glory

  • Trond Kallevag, Pretty Polly

  • Derya Yildirim & Grup Simsek, Gunes

  • Emiliana Torrini, Miss Flower

  • Pearl & the Oysters, Side Quest

  • Kate Bollinger, J'aime les filles

  • Molly Tuttle, Helpless

  • Her's, Cool With You

  • Joy Kills Sorrow, Such Great Heights

  • Andrea Triana, Far Closer

  • Nouvelle Vague, Road to Nowhere

  • Blur, Clover Over Dover

  • Violent Femmes, Gone Daddy Gone

  • Stevie Ray Vaughan, Little Wing

  • David Bowie, Wild Is the Wind

  • Steely Dan,  Doctor Wu

  • Jerry Goldsmith, Love Theme from Chinatown

  • Barry White, Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up

  • Quincy Jones, Sandford & Son Theme

  • Bill Withers, Lean on Me

  • Cat Stevens, Morning Has Broken

  • Nolan Porter, If I Could Only Be Sure

  • Albert King, Finger on the Trigger

  • The Feminine Complex, Hold Me

  • Janis Joplin, Little Girl Blue

  • Jose Feliciano, California Dreamin'

  • Jimi Hendrix, Hey Joe

  • John Mayall, Hideaway

  • Dion, Runaround Sue