“Breakfast Club” has been my favorite movie for many years, and nothing has come along to dethrone it. Something about that movie resonates deeply with me, maybe because I, in school, was part athlete and part brain, thereby crossing two of the categories this film focuses on.The first ten are listed pretty much in order. After that, it’s a crapshoot–I just list movies I like a lot, in roughly descending order.

1. Breakfast Club. Amazing dialogue, amazing characters. I never get tired of it. (1985)
2. Last of the Mohicans. It’s the music that really makes it, especially that great ending sequence. (1992)
3. Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Peter Jackson did it right. Just an incredible work. (2001-2003)
4. The Dirty Dozen. I’ve probably seen this more than any other movie. (1967)
5. Field of Dreams. There are 3 or 4 places where I get choked up every time. (1989)
6. Tombstone. The Kurt Russell and Sam Elliott version. Val Kilmer is amazing. “I’m your huckleberry.” (1993)
7. Legends of the Fall. The epic saga of a family, with Brad Pitt as the tragic centerpiece. (1994)
8. Die Hard 1. Pure action, like Terminator 1, plus humor, superb dialogue, and a wonderful villain. (1988)
9. Ferris Buehler’s Day Off. Pure fun. Impossible to pick out a single favorite part. (1986)
10. Princess Bride. So many great lines which have become part of pop culture. As you wish. (1987)
11. Terminator 1. Action doesn’t get any better. Michael Biehn (Kyle Reese) was a high school classmate of mine. (1984)
12. The Godfather 1 & 2. Both are outstanding. I guess I like the first one better, but you need to take them together. (1972, 1974)
13. The Outlaw Josey Wales. My all-time favorite western. Loved the drama of that final scene in the saloon. (1976)
14. Gladiator. Put Russell Crowe on the map. Pam and I visited the real coliseum, in Rome, a couple months after seeing this movie. (2000)
15. Saving Private Ryan. Begins and ends with the best battles scenes you’re bound to see in a movie. (1998)
16. The Quick and the Dead. A perfect movie I’ve seen numerous times, with outstanding performances–Sharon Stone, Russell Crowe, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Gene Hackman. (1995)
17. Patton. Best war movie ever (though not as addictive as Dirty Dozen or Kelly’s Heroes). (1970)
18. Sound of Music. I never get tired of the music or the story. (1965)
19. As Good as it Gets. Basically three characters–Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, and Greg Kinnear–with the best dialogue anyone could ask for. (1997)
20. Star Wars. Still the best of the Star Wars movies. (1977)
21. John Wick. Count this as a guilty pleasure, perhaps. Lots of action, great mood. I’ve seen it over and over. (2014)
22. Pulp Fiction. This is such an unusual movie, with offbeat performances that grab my attention. That final cafe scene is incredible. (1994)
23. The Matrix 1. Something about this movie–the very unique style, the cryptic dialogue–I find very compelling, whether or not anything ultimately makes sense. (1999)
24. Braveheart. Mel Gibson’s masterpiece. (1995)
25. Pretty Woman. My favorite guilty pleasure. (1990)
26. Shawshank Redemption. A Stephen King prison movie. Great acting. (1994)
27. Air Force One. Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman battle it out. A believable, but unbelievable, movie. (1997)
28. Titanic. A love story built into a historical tragedy. (1997)
29. Broadcast News. I love movies about the journalism business. (1987)
30. The Blues Brothers. Lots and lots of fun, with some really great music thrown in. (1980)
31. Schindler’s List. Spielberg’s second masterpiece (after Saving Private Ryan). (1993)
32. Independence Day. A rollicking good time. Will Smith is superb. (1996)
33. Airplane. Nothing is funnier than this movie. (1980)
34. Speed. Put Sandra Bullock on the map, and didn’t hurt Keanu Reaves either. (1994)
35. Unforgiven. Another great western by Clint Eastwood. Gene Hackman always delivers. What an ending! (1992)
36. Dead Calm. A very simple movie set in the Pacific Ocean with 3 characters. Nothing is wasted. (1989)
37. Bonnie and Clyde. An all-time classic. (1967)
38. Rambo: First Blood. A southern hick town picks on a war hero. (1982).
39. Tremors. A fun monster movie. (1990)
40. Silence of the Lambs. Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster at their best. Is there a better villain anywhere in movies than Hannibal Lecter? (1991)
41. Rocky 1. Sort of a Cinderella story for boxers. (1976)
42. Dave. A presidential impersonator becomes president. I just loved this movie. Kevin Kline was a comedic character playing it straight. (1993)
43. Road House. Patrick Swayze is a bouncer. (1989)
44. Rocky Horror Picture Show. I love the music, every single song. (1975)
45. Kill Bill. Amazing fight scenes, especially the Japan one. Like Vol 1 better. (2003, 2004)
46. Scarface. Excellent performance by Al Pacino. Amazing ending. (1983)
47. The Highlander. There can be only one! (1986)
48. Twilight. The first movie of the foursome was by far the best. Great style. (2008)
49. No Country for Old Men. A very different kind of movie, with a most memorable villain. (2007)
50. All the President’s Men. As a journalist, this story keeps me riveted. Plus, I used to be a Watergate junky. (1976)
51. A Few Good Men. Tom Cruse was good, but Jack Nicholson made it work. Loved the drama and dialogue of that final courtroom confrontation. (1992)
52. Deliverance. More banjo! (1972)
53. Payback. A tightly-written piece of roman noir featuring Mel Gibson. (1995)
54. True Grit. John Wayne at his best. And Glen Campbell’s not bad either. (1969)
55. Kelly’s Heroes. A truly oddball assortment of characters thrown together to make a first-rate war movie. (1970)
56. The Green Mile. A slow-paced, character-driven movie, starring Tom Hanks. (1999)
57. You’ve Got Mail. Yet another heart-warming Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan chick flick. (1998)
58. 300. Very stylish movie about the Spartans vs. Persians. (2006)
59. Red Dawn. A teen fantasy movie of taking on “the man.” A guilty pleasure movie. (1984)
60. The Untouchables. Great performances all around, especially by Sean Connery. (1987)
61. Top Gun. Another good Tom Cruse performance. Great music. (1986)
62. Jerry McGuire. The saga of a sports agent, his main client, his wife, and other stuff. (1996)
63. Sleepless in Seattle. Loved Meg Ryan in this movie. Wonderful final scene. (1993)
64. Gettysburg. I love anything having to do with the Civil War. Need more Civil War movies. (1993)
65. The Omega Man. Saw this movie in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., as a teen. Scared the tar out of me. The original “I am Legend.” (1971)
66. The Avengers. Lots of Marvel superheroes brought together with humor. (2012)
67. Open Range. A slow-paced, character-driven western, starring Kevin Costner. (2003)
68. LA Confidential. A noir piece involving corruption and race in 1930s Los Angeles. Made Russell Crowe a star. (1997)
69. 84 Charring Cross Road. A movie for book-lovers. (1987)
70. House of Flying Daggers. Very stylish martial arts movie set in China. (2004)
71. Planet of the Apes. A cheesy classic. (1968)
72. Troy. Brad Pitt and the Battle of Troy. Some really neat scenes. (2004)
73. Tin Cup. A mindless golf movie starring Kevin Costner. (1996)
74. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. The original crew goes back in time to present-day earth. Very funny. (1986)
75. Aliens. Not as scary as Alien, but a whole lot more mayhem. (1986)
76. Ever After. Always a sucker for Cinderella movies. This one had Drew Barrymore and Angelica Huston. (1998)
77. White House Down. Terrorists take over the White House. This Channing Tatum flick is better than Gerald Butler’s “Olympus Has Fallen” from earlier in the year. (2013)
78. Lincoln. Another amazing Daniel Day Lewis performance. (2012)
79. Twister. Chasing tornadoes and love. (1996)
80. Black Hawk Down. True story of our misadventures in Somalia. (2001)
81. The Last Samurai. Tom Cruse becomes a Japanese samurai. (2003)
82. Thelma and Louise. Two ordinary women on the run. A cross-country buddy movie. (1991)
83. The Truman Show. Jim Carey plays it serious, as a young man in a lifelong reality show about his life. (1998)
84. Chariots of Fire. A positive treatment of religious belief, plus the Olympics. (1981)
85. Mars Attacks. I can’t get enough of this. (1996)
86. Night of the Comet. Another guilty pleasure. A quirky apocalyptic zombie movie with valley girls. (1984)
87. Sin City. Love the look and feel. And very violent (2005)
88. Wanted. A somewhat silly movie where you can bend the path of bullets. But it has Angelina Jolie! (2008)
89. Last Man Standing. A Bruce Willis shoot-em-up. (1996)