Sight & Sound Greatest Films Of All-Time 2022

[DSC]

A few days ago the results of the poll conducted by the Sight & Sound magazine towards both critics and directors inquiring about what they consider to be the greatest films of all time has been released. The list is published every ten years, last time was 2012 and now finally, after such a long period of time waiting, it has arrived. For those who don't know, this list is a big, BIG deal. Its by far the list with the most serious and respectful reputation among movie people.

 

https://www.bfi.org.uk/news/revealed-results-2022-sight-sound-greatest-films-all-time-poll

 

For those who want a quick list of the top spots:

 

Critic's Poll

1.Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

2.Vertigo (1958)

3.Citizen Kane (1941)

4.Tokyo Story (1953)

5.In the Mood for Love (2000)

6.2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

7.Beau Travail (1998)

8.Mulholland Drive (2001)

9.Man with a Movie Camera (1929)

10.Singin' in the Rain (1952)

 

Director's Poll

1.2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

2.Citizen Kane (1941)

3.The Godfather (1972)

4.Tokyo Story (1953)

4.Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

6.Vertigo (1958)

6.8½ (1963)

8.Mirror (1975)

9.Persona (1966)

9.In the Mood for Love (2000)

9.Close-up (1989)

 

 

Jeanne Dielman was by far the biggest surprise. It did make the Top 100 on the 2012 Critic's Poll, but to appear in both this time around, one of them in the top position even? Pretty insane. I've heard it got a video release recently though, which probably introduced the movie to a much bigger audience, therefore the gigantic surge of popularity. The fact it talks about issues topical and relevant to the current political landscape also helps. Other than that, I'm very happy to see 2001 on the top spot of the Director's poll.

[Serum]

Wow. That's a big time jump. The last couple of critic polls from 2002 and 2012 had no entries newer than 1975. The youngest films on the lists were 30 and 45 years old, at the times of the polls' releases. Now, all of a sudden, we have a few from the late 90s/early 00s. A modest 20 years ago.

 

Critics slowly catching up, lol

Edited December 7, 2022 by Serum

[Murdoch]

2 hours ago, DSC said:

For those who don't know, this list is a big, BIG deal.

 

Maybe but to be brutally honest, I personally don't care what other people think about movies. Directors and critics are just people, with the same subjective whims as everyone else. That said, one useful purpose i can see lists like this having is guiding someone wanting to explore particularly vintage cinema.

[Graf Zahl]

This is just a good example that shows how detached film critics are from the public and I'd take any "Critics' choice" list with a huge grain of salt.

So where are the ones that consistently rank best on sites like IMDb?

 

That film they put on the top spot got a measly 7.5 there and looks to me like it's a typical case of a film made for critics.

 

The directors' list isn't much better, though (it gets suspicious if only one film on that list is less than 30 years old), so it makes me wonder if they deliberatly favored arthouse-style directors.

 

[Murdoch]

1 hour ago, Graf Zahl said:

That film they put on the top spot got a measly 7.5 there and looks to me like it's a typical case of a film made for critics.

 

I get bored just reading the title. I shudder to think of what the film itself is actually like.

 

*googles*

 

"Distinguished by its restrained pace and static camerawork"

Yeah, that's a no from me.

[hybridial]

15 hours ago, Murdoch said:

Maybe but to be brutally honest, I personally don't care what other people think about movies. 

 

I kept trying to say something and in the end, this is the only thing that makes sense. I've not seen every movie, I'm not really interested in seeing every movie either. But I should probably watch Vertigo at the very least because I do like thrillers and it's almost certainly a very good one.

 

As a fan of horror, the genre never gets its due from any list anyway. 

[Redneckerz]

1 hour ago, Murdoch said:

 

I get bored just reading the title. I shudder to think of what the film itself is actually like.

 

*googles*

 

"Distinguished by its restrained pace and static camerawork"

Yeah, that's a no from me.

From the synopis on Jeanne Dielman, i read it was a precursor for the feminist film.

 

This is obviously bias through social media, but i can't help but thinking that social developments (Me-Too, renewed interest for women's/LGBHTIQ+ rights) played a part in this one.

 

Like i said, this is bias aswell, but that's what i first thought.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

I'm happy to see In the Mood for Love in the top five, as it's my favorite from either list. I'd put Vertigo lower though, and Mulholland Drive wouldn't even be in my top 10. Never seen #1, don't care for Singin' in the Rain, love Tokyo Story. 2001 might make my top 50. 8 1/2, Mirror, and Persona are all great.

Edited December 8, 2022 by TheMagicMushroomMan

[Mr. Freeze]

Both lists seem really solid, although I'd take off Muholland Drive and swap it with Lawrence of Arabia but that's just me. 

At least there's no Nolan or Tarantino on either list, thank Christ. 

[Wyrmwood]

17 minutes ago, Mr. Freeze said:

At least there's no Nolan or Tarantino on either list, thank Christ. 

 

Though there are a few films on these lists I've seen and enjoyed, I'd personally choose to re-watch Dark Knight or Pulp Fiction any day. I'm an uncultured lout though.

 

2001 took me 3 attempts to watch, kept falling asleep at the monkeys. I've read the novels and all I can say is glad they never made the last one, it gets really stupid in the end with the travelling space zoo. The Godfather's okay but honestly I think Goodfella's or Scarface are better. Which for me only leaves Vertigo as a great film but don't think it would make my top 50 even.

[Doomkid]

Citizen Kane is SO fucking boring holy shit. I understand it was important at the time, but god damn. I watch a fuckload of films but to be honest I’ve only seen half of what’s on this list. Maybe it’s because I have a tendency to watch random films rather than consistently seeking out the all-time greats but the descriptions of some of these films don’t exactly have me rushing to PirateBay.. ER UH I mean my local, legal video outlet, of course.

 

I’d rather watch a Tarantino film than half of the ones here that I have seen, though maybe I’ll try some of the stuff on this list that I’ve never heard of and be pleasantly surprised. Though I do love 2001. I don’t think there’s any harm in admitting you prefer entertaining films over artsy-fartsy picks. 
 

The list frankly seems - dare I say it - pretentious!

[Kyka]

I don't see Kickass on that list.

 

I'm done here.

 

I have seen three films on that list, and weirdly enough just a couple of nights ago I was talking with a friend, saying that we should see Citizen Kane.

[Doomkid]

Maybe you’ll have a more cultured view of the movie than I did! To me, putting Citizen Kane at #3 greatest film of all time in 2022 is like putting Memento Mori as the 3rd greatest Doom wad of all time in 2022. Yes, it was damn important and damn influential in its day, but I’m not just gonna view the world through 100% nostalgia lenses/“all modern stuff bad and uncultured” lenses and pretend that it reflects reality. I’d feel like a total snob doing that shit.
 

The best films made since the turn of the century (and “popcorn films” in their totality) are just as important for the medium as the stuff that broke new ground in its day, and I feel the same about modern/classic wads and popcorn/“deep” wads as well. I’m glad there’s not a huge chunk of Doomers who just instantly assume old and “popular in its day” somehow elevates a wad to the top echelon automatically.

 

I think it’s fair to give a piece of art a little extra grade bump if it was an influential or important work that many were inspired by, but that’s about it. Some artistic lessons, technological progress, and even some general storytelling/pacing lessons have indeed been learned in the multiple decades since!

[Herr Dethnout]

Ah yeah, another day where western film critics doesn't give the respect to animation.
 

NSFW

Spoiler

 

[Mr. Freeze]

Akira's film is massively overrated, and it's not as good as the manga by a long shot.

If we're including animated films, I'd put in Fantasia and Toy Story.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

52 minutes ago, Doomkid said:

Citizen Kane is SO fucking boring holy shit. I understand it was important at the time, but god damn. I watch a fuckload of films but to be honest I’ve only seen half of what’s on this list. Maybe it’s because I have a tendency to watch random films rather than consistently seeking out the all-time greats but the descriptions of some of these films don’t exactly have me rushing to PirateBay.. ER UH I mean my local, legal video outlet, of course.

 

I’d rather watch a Tarantino film than half of the ones here that I have seen, though maybe I’ll try some of the stuff on this list that I’ve never heard of and be pleasantly surprised. Though I do love 2001. I don’t think there’s any harm in admitting you prefer entertaining films over artsy-fartsy picks. 
 

The list frankly seems - dare I say it - pretentious!

It's worth noting that the director of the #1 pick (who died in 2015, which likely had an effect besides the current relevance of the film itself) declined to participate in a survey like this because she wasn't a fan of an end-all-be-all classification of things.

[Egg Boy]

23 minutes ago, Mr. Freeze said:

Akira's film is massively overrated, and it's not as good as the manga by a long shot.

If we're including animated films, I'd put in Fantasia and Toy Story.

Akira is a triumph of animation, its also a historic piece that represents not only the opulence of 80s japanese animation, but is extremely important in the West's adoption of such films. On another note, Fantasia should totally be on there, or perhaps Pinocchio (which actually has some interesting commonalities with Akira in terms of historical context). Lack of Disney animated features is pretty suspicious. 

[yakfak]

i went to check that The Conversation was lower down the director's poll and it was there so the list owns

best descriptive-of-life film ever

just constant embarrassment and paranoia and in-over-your-headness absolutely encapsulated, single best movie of all time imo

[hybridial]

48 minutes ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

It's worth noting that the director of the #1 pick (who died in 2015, which likely had an effect besides the current relevance of the film itself) declined to participate in a survey like this because she wasn't a fan of an end-all-be-all classification of things.

 

Sounds like a smart person there.

 

I've not seen many of the top 10 BFI list, I've seen most of the top 10 imdb list. 

 

And regardless, so far, The Ninth Configuration is my favourite. I think a somewhat polarising film at best, but it interested me more than anything else I've ever watched so far. 

[Gez]

1 hour ago, Doomkid said:

Maybe you’ll have a more cultured view of the movie than I did! To me, putting Citizen Kane at #3 greatest film of all time in 2022 is like putting Memento Mori as the 3rd greatest Doom wad of all time in 2022. Yes, it was damn important and damn influential in its day, but I’m not just gonna view the world through 100% nostalgia lenses/“all modern stuff bad and uncultured” lenses and pretend that it reflects reality. I’d feel like a total snob doing that shit.

This is a list made by professionals for professionals, so it's going to be about the stuff they deem historically important for their profession more than about the average viewer's experience.

 

I think this list makes sense when you look at it this way; and not when you're looking for a list of best movies to watch if you're just a casual movie watcher.

 

But this brings in an interesting tangent: how do you judge that something is "the best of all time" without replacing it inside its context? There is no work of art (be it movie, video game, music, writing, painting, sculpture, choreography, whatever) that truly stands alone. Art, after all, is interpreted by its audience -- what makes art great is not the work in itself, but the impact it has on the people who experience it. And the way the audience experiences art depends on their own previous experiences. In other words, while the art in itself can be seen as "the text", you also have "the context" that goes with it, and this is what allows to understand "the intertext" and "the paratext" and a lot of other even nerdier notions. So should we judge Citizen Kane based on its 1946 context, or based on the 2022 context? Which approach will still make sense in, say, the year 2050?

 

 

TL;DR: "best X of all times" list are always a waste of time.

[Mr. Freeze]

Hell Revealed is the best WAD of all time according to me and if you disagree you are wrong 

[TheFocus]

the best movie I've ever seen is Blade Runner 2049. i don't even have much to say about it.

 

the cinematography is unmatched, the plot is a perfect follow-up to the original,and the actors are all doing a great job. even though action isn't at all the point of the movie, it's still very well constructed and executed.

 

i know a lot of people were complaining about the runtime. while 2hrs 50mins is pretty damn long, i think the movie used every minute very well.

 

and before anyone says it: yes, i prefer 2049 over the original.

 

[Herr Dethnout]

2 hours ago, Mr. Freeze said:

Akira's film is massively overrated, and it's not as good as the manga by a long shot.

If we're including animated films, I'd put in Fantasia and Toy Story.

Probably, but the movie and the manga are so different that is pointless to compare it. I prefer to seeing it as alternate story rather than a adaptation of the manga.

Also, what makes AKIRA (movie) so special is not the story itself (who for a movie is still great and captures the message perfectly), but his animation, artistic direction, the technical aspects. Is still pretty damn impressive today. 

Probably the most influential animated movie not only in Japan but also the West. A truly game changer.

I agree that Fantasia and Toy Story deserves recognition too, along with Pink Floyd - The Wall (although this one is Partial), Night on the Galactic Railroad, and basically every Ghibli movie lol

Edited December 8, 2022 by Herr Dethnout

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

2 hours ago, Mr. Freeze said:

Hell Revealed is the best WAD of all time according to me and if you disagree you are wrong 

Personally I agree, but Gamarra Part IV fans are going to give you a lot of shit for your opinion.

[Sena]

I firmly believe The Bald Soprano is a brilliant work, but it would be completely asinine if I were to try and convince anyone that it was a better narrative than something by Shakespeare, Tennessee Williams, or any other accomplished dramatist. But not if I wrote for Sight and Sound evidently, because if their #1 pick is an exercise in anti-cinema that is more concerned with scenes of the main character silently peeling vegetables than anything else, then that really says it all. I guess if you depict someone's completely unremarkable life on reality TV, it's worthless tripe, but if you do it in a 3 hour French movie from the 70s, then it's a work of genius.

 

[BGreener]

I'm far from a film buff but I like seeing Mulholland Drive up there.

[Graf Zahl]

14 hours ago, Gez said:

This is a list made by professionals for professionals, so it's going to be about the stuff they deem historically important for their profession more than about the average viewer's experience.

 

I think this list makes sense when you look at it this way; and not when you're looking for a list of best movies to watch if you're just a casual movie watcher.

 

Yes, it makes sense that way, but it still manifests a severe out-of-touch mindset.

The problem I have with such backwards looking attitudes is that they deliberately eschew more recent developments, glorify the long forgotten past and exist in a parallel universe where the most important part of film making, i.e. the audience is ignored.

 

Especially here in Germany this always creates a sour taste because for decades this was virtually all German cinema was about. In the 60's they created a shitload of cheap but entertaining films, but afterward some more cerebral crowd took over and produced an endless supply of critic-proof but audience-repulsing stuff that would coexist well with this list. That #1 film, although not German-made would be a textbook example for the kind of fare these people produced.

It's not this bad anymore but well-made German films that aren't pure arthouse fare are exceptionally rare - anything made as a crowd pleaser is almost only dumb comedies.

 

 

 

 

[Kes Gaming YT]

21 hours ago, Doomkid said:

Citizen Kane is SO fucking boring holy shit. I understand it was important at the time, but god damn.

I feel the exact, same way about The Godfather. It just drags on and on, for the life of me I cannot understand why everyone likes those movies so much.

[hybridial]

Just now, Kes Gaming YT said:

I feel the exact, same way about The Godfather. It just drags on and on, for the life of me I cannot understand why everyone likes those movies so much.

 

I tried to watch it but I just couldn't maintain interest. Marlon Brando's portrayal of Don Corleone is clearly the centrepiece and I could appreciate that but I just struggled to be invested in the subject matter. I can make a comparison with The Exorcist and The Wicker Man in that if you solely discuss horror movies, those two are generally cited among the best. And when I watched them, I felt they held up. I think of the two I liked The Wicker Man more, and in fact I think Legion is a better story than the Exorcist (adapted into a movie I wouldn't call better than The Exorcist but I liked it more if only for the performances of George C. Scott, Brad Dourif and Jason Miller)

 

I think my point is those are, generally speaking somewhat older movies. But in terms of subject matter they are about ideas I find interesting and they are extremely well crafted. I went to see Midsommar because of it's very clear influences (and honestly its plot mostly resembles The Wicker Man and also Cannibal Holocaust) and I kind of hated it because it's ideas were so much more muddled, it's characters so much flatter, and the director's style far more obnoxious than The Wicker Man. @Graf Zahl said he gets suspicious if a list has a lot of older movies, but I am the opposite to that, a list with too many newer movies to me would indicate two things, trend chasing or someone of the idea older movies should be discounted and are not worthwhile. In terms of everything I've watched, the screen writing seemed way sharper in movies prior to the 90s than movies later. Exceptions exist obviously but it's a pattern that sticks out to me. 

[Kinsie]

On 12/8/2022 at 7:09 PM, Graf Zahl said:

This is just a good example that shows how detached film critics are from the public and I'd take any "Critics' choice" list with a huge grain of salt.

So where are the ones that consistently rank best on sites like IMDb?

If it was a popular vote it'd just be every Marvel movie twice.