A Thinker in Space

Now that I have finished going through this series, discussing each of the films on my Top 160 Movies List, I wanted to talk a little bit about movies that were not on the list for one reason or another, and address them. I still might be missing some that should be on this list, as I have seen quite a few movies, but I have tried my best to compile the most notable absences here and will explain each!

I will be going through 20 movies here, same as most of my articles throughout this series. These are not necessarily organized in a specific order, though some are grouped together based on different categories. I will not be addressing movies I haven’t seen – only ones that I have seen and did not make the list for one reason or another.

Blade Runner

Blade Runner fits a category that quite a few of these movies fit into – it was not considered for this list because it has been a long time since I’ve watched it. Blade Runner is known as one of the best sci-fi movies ever made for a reason – it is a very, very good film. However, I could not rank it competently simply because it has been so long since I’ve seen it. When I rewatch it, it will likely take its rightful place somewhere in this list.

Top Gun: Maverick

This movie was great!! I really enjoyed it – the film was patriotic, fun, and was innovative while being traditional. However, it did not immediately become one of my favorite movies after watching – it will take a few more views to decide where it lands.

The Hunger Games (series)

I have only watched the first and second film of The Hunger Games, and while they are very good, I do not have a deep enough personal connection them to warrant their placement. Perhaps I’d reevaluate after watching them again

The Sound of Music

The next few films on this list are musicals. For each of these, the story is pretty much the same: I did not include them because I have not seen them in years. But they are here because I really like them and they definitely have potential to be on this list!

The first one here is Sound of Music, which is a legendary, classic musical. Julie Andrew’s performance is amazing, and the film stays charming and heartfelt throughout its 2h 52m runtime (wow). I really need to rewatch this one.

Fiddler on the Roof

I remember loving Fiddler on the Roof. I was blown away by its depth, beautiful story, and incredible music. I could not tell you more than three things about this movie now. For some reason, it has been mostly purged from my memory – this is one I’d need to revisit before ranking.

Les Misérables

Once again, this is a movie I haven’t seen in way too long – this film should be on this list and isn’t for that reason. I remember that it had some excellent performances, fantastic songs, and was deeply emotional. But I don’t remember nearly enough to call it one of my favorites (a common theme for most of these films).

My Fair Lady (1964)

This one really, really should be on the list. I really like the “Taming of the Shrew” archetype, and I loved this movie when I watched it. But, as is the theme here, I have not seen it in many years and would need to rewatch before ranking.

Shrek

The ogre-shaped elephant in the room – on a list including some of the best animated movies of all time, there is a giant onion-shaped hole where Shrek should be. Why isn’t it there? There are a plethora of reasons.

First and foremost, I really dislike gross-out humor, and that is a huge part of the draw of Shrek. It creates a significant issue when rating my favorites, because I find those sequences painful to sit through.

Second, and perhaps more importantly, Shrek is not a good kids movie. It is full of garbage – borderline swearing, adult humor, and multiple problematic lines. Since it was marketed primarily to kids, I have never been able to get over this issue, and I have gone on record saying how offensive this film is.

All of that being said… I get it. Perhaps it is because I’m a teacher, and cover things like archetypes of characters and plotlines, but the brilliance of Shrek is no longer lost on me. The way it subverts expectations and rehashes tired tropes is refreshing and startlingly well done. Recently, I have given mostly praise to this movie instead of criticisms, referencing how groundbreaking it was. In fact, in recent watches separating it from a “kids movie” I have gained such a strong appreciation for it that it may very well end up on my favorites list.

Shrek 2

Shrek 2 is also an excellent film – with significantly less of the problematic content from the first one. However, I could not include this on a favorites list without including the first, which is definitely the superior film (though by a much closer margin than one would expect), so they were both absent this go-around.

Tangled

This movie has everything I would want in a Disney classic. Excellent antagonist, interesting moral questions, entertaining premise… etc. Its problem? I have never watched the whole movie. I’ve seen most of it, but never the whole thing. Otherwise, it would certainly be here. I should go do that!

National Treasure 2

I really enjoyed this movie, as I enjoyed the (easily superior) first one. But again, I haven’t seen it in years. Maybe next list!

Oceans 11

Another fun romp, Oceans 11 probably is higher than some of the lower movies on my list. It missed the list mostly because I didn’t think of it, but also because I don’t have a very personal connection to it.

Everything Everywhere All at Once

Take out three(?) scenes and one subplot and this is a top 40 (maybe even top 20) movie for me. As it is, these three sequences are so unnecessarily gratuitous that they ruin the movie for me, and I might never rewatch it. Which is a shame, because it was otherwise mindblowingly incredible, with some amazing performances (shoutout to Ke Huy Quan who absolutely stole the show). I really, really wish I lived in an alternate reality where this movie was just a tad less gratuitous, because if it weren’t for the aforementioned problems, I would actively love it.

The Passion of the Christ

This movie is unrankable for me. It is a powerful, emotional, incredibly-well-done film, and because of that, it can’t be on this list. Its depictions of crucifixion are scarring, and when you look at this film and remember what it means and who it’s about, it cannot be placed on a ranking list for me. It is a different kind of movie. Some say that all Christians should watch this movie at least once. I’d say that if you are a Christian and you can bear to watch it, you should. But if you can’t, don’t. Being aware that crucifixion is so horrible watching it would be too much for you is enough.

As a film, The Passion of the Christ has excellent direction, cinematography, acting, and tells the story in a haunting and beautiful way, making it the best biblical adaptation I have ever watched.

Movies that will be on this list in the future

LEGO Ninjago

We’re starting with a sleeper hit here. I watched LEGO Ninjago for the first time a month or two ago (after this list had already started), and I loved it. The dialogue was great, the story was unexpected, and it was both funny and heartwarming. I have the advantage of not being a fan of the LEGO Ninjago show, as I know that this movie did some significant damage to the actual franchise, but without any of that context, I would recommend it in a heartbeat.

Edge of Tomorrow

Groundhog Day with killing aliens? Sign me up. This movie is fun and exciting, and the premise is executed very well. I am a huge fan of this movie – the only reason it didn’t make the cut is simply because, as with many others, I need to watch it again before I can competently rank it. But it will be on this list after a rewatch for sure.

The Bourne Trilogy

Specifically, I am talking about Identity, Supremacy, and Ultimatum. This trilogy is a tight series of action movies, and all three should be on this list because I genuinely love them. However, as you are probably sick of me saying, I haven’t seen them in years, so I cannot competently rank them.

The Ten Commandments

I alluded to my feelings about this film earlier, in my discussion of Nativity Story. There’s so much to unpack here. Overall, this is an excellent film with some fantastic performances. It suffers from the same flaw as Prince of Egypt, but that doesn’t make it a bad adaptation. In this film, Moses is unequivocally the hero. Is he flawed? Sure. But he is definitely a heroic protagonist. Aaron’s role has been written out in favor of the warrior of justice Moses presents as in this film. The hero-Moses is a tried and true archetype despite its biblical errancy. Part of Moses’s story is that he couldn’t do everything, and that’s something modern portrayals tend to hand-wave

Everything else, however, is done excellently. Moses’s performance is incredible, the politics of Egypt are fascinating, and the story is poignant and powerful. A lot was added to the biblical narrative, but it works for the film – it does not pretend to be scripture, only a vision of possibilities. The director isn’t saying “this happened during the original story”, instead saying “this could have happened during the original story”.

I do want to watch it again and let the movie sit a bit longer before ranking it, as it is long (3h 40m) and I have only seen it once.

Trading Places

Another movie watched since this list began – this movie was so much fun. As I have said before, I am a huge fan of the “Taming of the Shrew” archetype and this one was a fresh and entertaining take! There are some scenes that need to be censored, but if you watch with ClearPlay or VidAngel those scenes are easily skipped and you have a fantastic film.

My Cousin Vinny

I have mentioned in previous articles that my family celebrates New Year’s Eve by watching two very good movies. My wife and I have continued this tradition, and this was her movie this year! I loved it – it does have quite a bit of language, but the film itself was excellent. After a rewatch, this will certainly be added.

And there you have it! Here is the final list – movies that I might (or will) add in the future but didn’t make the cut this round.

With that, my 160(ish) movies list is finally complete, and the bow is tied on this series! It has been a fun and engaging challenge to tackle my favorite films and write something about each and every one. I look forward to doing this with video games next and doing lists or series like this in the future.

For those of you who have been attending this blog for the films, I am unfortunately going to pause my discussion of movies and lean a bit heavier into video games, including a brand new series that I am very excited for.

Let me know what movies I missed! Even in a list this extensive I’m sure there are more that could be added. I am always expanding it as I watch new movies and remember ones I have watched. I also am always looking for new films to view!

If you made it all the way here from the very beginning, thank you for reading! It’s been a blast writing for you – I hope you have enjoyed reading as much as I have enjoyed putting it together.

Until next time!

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