As we get the ball rolling on a new genre this week, I want to check in with everyone on a few things that have come up in the previous weeks. * I'd love to know your thoughts on the your criteria for what constitutes a "must-see" movie. What are you looking for in terms of the writing, box office performance, critical acclaim, or other factors? There are lots of "good" dramas out there; how do we go about choosing the 10 best (for the purposes of this discussion)? * I feel like when it comes to "must-see movies" we may be conflating two different lists: 1. "I am talking about titles you will need to know when you break into the business — for general meetings, script meetings, OWA meetings, and as noted for your own benefit as a writer." 2. "What is the core content you must know in order to be able to give yourself a decent shot at nailing a script within a particular genre?" Does the same must-see list cover both of those goals or do you wind up with two lists? In the past we've had some confusion on just what the genre covered--does anyone feel confused about the scope of discussion for Drama or are we all on the same page? Any other administrivia, concerns or questions before we jump in to the new week? I'm looking forward to seeing your suggestions.

What makes a must-see movie? I would say it's got to be very good in several departments - writing, acting, direction, technical production, story concept - and outstanding in at least one of them. Must-see list: I would hope those lists would overlap, at least. Hopefully the scripts people talk about in meetings and reference during notes are the best and most enlightening examples of the genre... I think drama is a really slippery category. A lot of people use it for "doesn't fit anywhere else", and that can't be right. What is a drama, exactly? For recommendations, how about Casablanca, Amadeus, Amelie, Up In The Air, Michael Clayton?

Thank you for all the thoughtful answers, Debbie, and the great recommendations. > I think drama is a really slippery category. A lot of people use it for “doesn’t fit anywhere else”, and that can’t be right. What is a drama, exactly? Before we started this series I thought I had a grip on genre categories, but as we dig in, I'm finding ALL of them slippery. I'm going to look around for some good definitions of genre and see if I can find anything helpful. "I know it when I see it" just isn't helpful enough somehow.

A lot of the better dramas of the last forty or so years seem to be mob movies. The Godfather, Donnie Brasco, Goodfellas, Casino, Mean Streets, etc. In other dramas I'd list Raging Bull, and Taxi Driver. (Scorsese seems to be overrepresented here, right?) And going back a ways, how about I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang (or should there be another category for Social Problems Movies?)

Tom Dirks' AMC Filmsite defines drama this way: > "Drama Films are serious presentations or stories with settings or life situations that portray realistic characters in conflict with either themselves, others, or forces of nature. A dramatic film shows us human beings at their best, their worst, and everything in-between. Each of the types of subject-matter themes have various kinds of dramatic plots. Dramatic films are probably the largest film genre because they include a broad spectrum of films. See also crime films, melodramas, epics (historical dramas), biopics (biographical), or romantic genres - just some of the other genres that have developed from the dramatic genre." Agree? Disagree? Does that help at all?

In my opinion they would be the drama movies that most stimulate you, the flicks that you want everyone to see and that you'll happily sit through again and again. I know what you mean as regards genre, where do you put Amelie? Comedy or Drama because it's just a great film. Muriel's Wedding for me would be top 10 in drama because although a great comedy, it's the storyline of Muriel and her mother and also with her best friend that pulled hardest on my heart strings. In my tops for these would be ( and there's a lot of docudrama and family drama overlap); 1/ Schindler's List 2/ In the Name of the Father. 3/ Walk the Line (I saw this in a fully packed cinema, not a munch of popcorn to be heard from start to finish. That was one collectively enthralled audience). 4/ Trainspotting. 5/ My Left Foot. 6/ Catch Me If You Can. 7/ The Shawshank Redemption (of course!). 8/ Pulp Fiction. 9/ Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels ( We don't have a heist category do we? So I'm sticking this in here). 10/ Erin Brokovich. 11/ Monster. 12/ Fight Club. and for guilty pleasure 13/ About a Boy ( I know it's a bit cheesey but I must have hummed along to this film at least 10 times by now, ipso facto a great drama? Or something to talk about.) I know you probably want to have it more clearly defined Shaula for ease of compilation of final lists but I actually really like looking at everyone's suggestions too. Looking forward to seeing everyone's favourite titles.

Social Problems Movies - I don't know. I don't think we'll be looking at them separately, so if we don't want them overlooked, they should probably go in the drama list. What do you think? You're right: crime films / mob movies are a really strong subgenre and may well dominate this list. How do they fare in spec script sales?--does anyone here know?

> I know you probably want to have it more clearly defined Shaula for ease of compilation of final lists but I actually really like looking at everyone’s suggestions too. Don't worry about me! I want the lists to be good and helpful--I'm not concerned about 'easy' as long as the lists work for everybody. > In my opinion they would be the drama movies that most stimulate you, the flicks that you want everyone to see and that you’ll happily sit through again and again. That lines up really nicely with Italo Calvino's definition of a classic. On one hand, I suspect that's a great way to come up with your own list of scripts to study--the scripts to movies that have become your personal classics, and reflect your aspirations for the genre. On the other hand, and I may be off base here, I feel like if I'm prepping for a business meeting, I need to get outside myself and try to anticipate what the frame of reference in the genre will be for the business people I'm meeting with--what are the business successes of the genre? Films hopefully achieve commercial success due to great writing, but success comes down to other factors like star power, execution, marketing, timing, etc. (Likewise, when it comes to script study: there are lots of ways to a film can go wrong between the script and the box office, and commercial success isn't the only indicator of a script's quality. [See also: Nottingham]) > I know what you mean as regards genre, where do you put Amelie? Comedy or Drama because it’s just a great film. Drama/Comedy cross-genre films, or dramedies, also seem to do really well at the box office, much better than "pure comedies." I don't want all of those films to get left out of our discussions. So until we get word that there will be a "dramedy" week, or someone comes up with a better solution, let's keep any of those films on this list if you feel they have a strong drama component. Sound good? Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels - do you see this as more of a drama or an action film? (I think it came up on the action list, too.) About a Boy - now, is that more of a drama or a romantic comedy? Which genre discussion do you feel it serves better? (I've read about it but I haven't seen it.)

Re: About a Boy, I wouldn't put that in the rom-com genre. It has romance, sure, but the central question posed in the story isn't whether or not the two adults will get together at the end (which would be my definition of a romance.) The focus is on Hugh Grant's character and him "growing up", so to speak.

I definitely agree with the definition you posted re dramatic films! If I think about most movies that really impact me, there is always that dramatic element even if it's meant to be more of a comedy, etc. I find that dramas tend to force me to take a look inside or around more often than not. In terms of my top 10, here goes! 1. Meet Joe Black 2. Requiem for a Dream 3. American Beauty 4. Casablanca 5. Goodfellas 6. Donnie Darko 7. Days of Heaven 8. What's Eating Gilbert Grape 9. The Social Network 10. Leon: The Professional 11. Drive I tried to keep away from mixing genres as much as possible, but I'm pretty sure I failed. haha!

If I can add a few: The Verdict The Godfather, Parts I and II One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest Citizen Kane Lawrence of Arabia Taxi Driver To Kill A Mockingbird Some smaller dramas: Up In The Air Slingblade Ulee's Gold Wings of Desire Jean de Florette / Manon des sources Michael Clayton You know, in going through these titles in my mind, I'm reminded of how many awesome movies there are in this genre. And yet, it's a hard one to crack in Hollywood nowadays, oftentimes relying on source material [novel, biopic, article] to jump-start a project, spec dramas a tough sale.

That's a pretty good definition. Though at a push, parts of it would apply to most stories...

Yeah I thought about this Shaula & Teddy, About a Boy would be light drama but the main story is the evolution of Hugh Grant's character rather than the romance. I went back and had a look at your thoughts as well on the comedy section Shaula and I think the idea of "If you have biz meeting next week what 10 films does your friend have to see" does help focus the list. But no matter how many times I whittle my list, I can't believe the ones I forgot to include. I think it needs to be a hybrid of current great films (from a biz perspective this has to take account of box office, although this knocks out some of my favourites of all time) and it does need to make reference to the films that still stand up today against modern reinventions. Reading the Social Network, do you think you could make use of that algorithm ;-) One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest versus Girl Interrupted? The one on the left. Cuckoo knocks the chick out of the nest/ list!

This is why looking at other people's lists is great, I see what I forgot!

I actually tried to reply to you Sarah, I'll get the hang of this yet.

I'll add a few more dramas that I don't think have been mentioned yet: A Face in the Crowd Midnight Cowboy The Elephant Man Sophie's Choice Sunset Blvd. Gone with the Wind The 400 Blows Cinema Paradiso Bicycle Thieves Unforgiven On The Waterfront Wild Strawberries The Deer Hunter Good Will Hunting Once Upon a Time in America La Strada Rain Man 12 Angry Men All About Eve Gandhi The Lives of Others In The Heat of the Night Network The Last Picture Show Doctor Zhivago There are many more but I'll stop. It will be impossible for me to whittle it down to ten or even twenty films. In each genre, there will always be more films than ten that should be included on a must-see list, both for core content and for breaking into the biz. The idea of which films to know when breaking into the biz is a good one but the truth is we have to know more than ten or twenty. If you're in a meeting and someone refers to Dances With Wolves, Do the Right Thing, The Tree of Life, Rebel Without a Cause, The Grapes of Wrath, Boogie Nights, Dead Poets Society, The Seventh Seal, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Piano, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Color Purple, 127 Hours or Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, you should at least be familiar with these films (and most of the ones already mentioned in this thread) and know what's unique about them even if you can't recite the entire plot. Will Brokeback Mountain be on this final list of ten? Who knows. Is it a must-see film? Maybe. But I can guarantee you if you don't know what that movie is about and why it's important, people will not take you seriously. Right? I bet we could all mention a hundred films that we should at least know the gist of the plot and what their importance is both for historical and business reasons. Do I know the entire plot of Crash? No. It was quite forgettable in my opinion, but I know that it won the Oscar for best picture and therefore important from a business standpoint. Sorry for the rant and I don't mean to sound negative, but I kind of fail to see the point in making these lists of ten in each genre. They will possibly work as a starter kit for getting into movies but I think we all know that we have to watch more than a couple of handful of films to understand a genre. The final ten may be essentials but we could easily pick ten others that would be of equal importance. Again, I don't mean to rain on anyone's parade. And thanks Shaula for your hard work. I think it's great to make lists of essential movies to watch, but following the progress in the past couple of weeks and seeing how many essentials there really are in each genre, I think it will be a bit misleading to put out lists with so few choices and label them essentials. They will be some of the essentials, yes, but there's no way around the fact that there will always be more than ten essentials.

Teddy, I don't think you're raining on anyone's parade--at least not mine. For me, the list we generate is secondary to the discussion about how to generate a meaningful list, and getting people to think critically about how to focus their film-viewing from a business and writing perspective. > The idea of which films to know when breaking into the biz is a good one but the truth is we have to know more than ten or twenty. Agreed! This is really an industry- and cultural literacy project. I find myself asking: how do we prioritize which to watch first? > If you’re in a meeting and someone refers to [a long list of landmark movies], you should at least be familiar with these films (and most of the ones already mentioned in this thread) and know what’s unique about them even if you can’t recite the entire plot. Here's where people who are A) older or B) developed an interest in film from an early age have an advantage over newer and younger writers: more time has already been invested in seeing the greats of almost a century of cinema. But for the writers who are, for whatever reason, late to the party--how do you get up to speed fast? Scott's 1, 2, 7, 14 formula is a step in the right direction. What else can they/we do? > They will possibly work as a starter kit for getting into movies but I think we all know that we have to watch more than a couple of handful of films to understand a genre. In my books, saying (in good faith) that we need to redefine a question or the parameters of the discussion is an important contribution, not negative. So reframe the discussion, Teddy (or anyone else): you need to get a young writer friend on top of the essentials of a genre, as a writer and as a business person. What's your plan? What are your criteria? How do you go about it? (Or, reframe it as you see fit.) I think we're all in agreement that to succeed, writers need to get on top of the essentials of their chosen genre. How do we best frame that discussion and then how do we go about acting on the advice it generates?

Hi Shaula! But for the writers who are, for whatever reason, late to the party–how do you get up to speed fast? I see what you mean. Well, I don't think there's anything wrong with generating a list of essentials, especially if a lot of people are participating in the voting. But I do think you should consider not limiting it to ten in each genre. There will always be people who say "What? How can you put Blade Runner on the Sci-Fi list but not Metropolis?" Or the other way around. The same scenario will most likely occur with each genre. I think ten films are just not enough to get a sampling broad enough, and that goes for any genre. We risk ending up with a list that's either just people's favorites, or a list that is too generic that it doesn't really mean anything. How fast is "fast" when getting up to speed? Should the lists cater to people who have no experience with a genre and therefore going into this with a blank slate? I think most people and especially those of us who are interested in movies know a bit about each genre enough to already have a start. Maybe if someone wants to explore the more specialized genres like French New Wave or Japanese Horror or something a list of ten essentials would suffice, but not with the main genres that are being dissected here. Does 25 movies seem like a lot? I mean if you're really into a genre and want to learn all you can, watching 3 - 4 movies a week for a couple of months plus reading scripts and books on the same topic doesn't seem that much to me (it seems like fun!) Personally, I would have an even longer list of essentials. That's mostly because you do have to know a lot of movies if you want to work in the movie business. Young writers and newcomers should know that upfront. It's not kidding around here. People who work in this business know a lot. Like Scott said, "They know their stuff." The GITS community should set the bar high from the start, in my opinion. Sorry, I'm rambling again. But I'm glad we're having a discussion :)

> I think it’s great to make lists of essential movies to watch, but following the progress in the past couple of weeks and seeing how many essentials there really are in each genre, I think it will be a bit misleading to put out lists with so few choices and label them essentials. I've been thinking about what you said here and I think for me one of the keys is "granularization". If I'm getting ready to write a script and I'm watching related movies in preparation, I'm not worried about the "genre" so much, because as you point out it's a conceptual category that's incredibly broad. I'm much more interested in the subgenre (e.g, seige movies, road movies, buddy comedies, etc.) and in movies that do a good job of addressing specific story elements or writing challenges I'm grappling with (e.g., a strong female protagonist, comedy set pieces, literary adaptations, etc.). GITS winds up addressing many more granularized story elements in other ways / in different series on the blog. (Thank you for that, Scott!) As for this series, I feel like the initial weeks of big genre categories are a bit like freshmen survey courses--a broad introduction and overview. And I'm hoping we really drill down afterwards into some sub- and cross-genres (that are relevant to spec writing)--those more granularized categories are going to generate more discrete and maybe more definitive lists for us. For example, it makes a lot of sense to me to look at rom-coms as a distinct subgenre of comedy, and I'm glad it's getting a week of its own. In the meantime, where do you see the fix, Teddy: change the process of generating the lists, change the nature of the lists, or change the label on the lists?

Are you saying you feel that a list of 25 would be a better starting point? That's Scott's call, not mine, but I could certainly live with that. How do others feel? > We risk ending up with a list that’s either just people’s favorites... That's always a risk with this kind of exercise. Some people are clearly making an effort to think objectively and generate list that will really help other people, and I appreciate all the work that's going into building these lists. > The GITS community should set the bar high from the start, in my opinion. I'm all in favour of that with you. And I'm glad we're having a discussion, too.

Too many choices in this category:-) I'm late to the party, but here are my top picks: 4 Little Girls (1996) Apocalypse Now (1979) The Caine Mutiny (1954) Casablanca (1942) Chinatown (1974) Citizen Kane (1941) Double Indemnity (1944) Godfather, I (1972) Grapes of Wrath (1940) Grand Illusion (1938) Hamlet (2010, with David Tennant as Hamlet) Hidden Fortress (1958) In the Name of the Father (1994) On the Waterfront (1954) Proof (2005) The Sacrifice (1988) Schindler's List (2004) Shawshank Redemption (1994) Sunset Blvd (1950) Taxi Driver (1976) The Verdict (1982) Wings of Desire (1987) The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) If you must take 10, please include "hamlet" and "citizen kane" and "wings..." among them. Thanks!

I'm finding one of the tricky bits with this exercise (throughout the series) is to get past generating a list of films that I have already seen and love, and think about how to go about generating a list of films I need to see and haven't seen yet. Asking friends for recommendations is one method--especially when you have access to intelligent people who think critically about film (thank you, all!). But how could I generate a list like this on my own? Drama is a category that dominates the Academy Awards. So, in the case of drama specifically, the list of Academy Award Winning films is a great starting place to look for films I haven't seen yet but should.

Great list, David. (And I'm pleased to see Wings of Desire pop up on multiple lists.) Looking at your list has got me thinking: I wonder if dramas stand up over time better than films in other genres, and if older landmark dramas might be more relevant (from a business perspective and a writing perspective) than older films in some other genres?

Or at least it should! Without a sturdy backbone of drama to hang the comedy or action or what have you from, you probably won't wind up with much of a movie.

Way to go including a Luc Besson, Sarah. I love the film of Leon and I'd love to get my hands on the script some day. (In French would be fine!)

Good point. It is hard to make general statements, but drama is a very broad genre. To provide a functional definition of a Drama sub-genre which is not not overly inclusive of one category and too narrow in another is probably difficult. I guess that crime or war (vs family, or love of life) narrows things down I think. I don't know of any standards but would be interested in hearing of them.

I think no matter what you do, it is subjective. It's the nature of the beast. Scott is confident of you, but there is no doubt it is not easy. Good luck! (Which reminds me of the drama "Doubt" - maybe it should also be on the list...)

That good luck extends to all of us: this is about generating the "GITS-List" (not the Shaula-list!).

Yes, I do feel a list of 25 essentials would be better than 10.

I totally agree with you in regards to the subgenres. When it comes to studying a type of movie and a certain writing challenge, it makes much more sense to narrow it down like you said. If I were to write a revenge movie I wouldn't really care what main genre I was studying. There are great revenge westerns, horror films, dramas and thrillers. I'm guessing Scott wants to keep the main genres, though, since that is how most people categorize movies. And those who report spec sales seem to use fairly broad genre descriptions such as Comedy, Thriller, Adventure Drama, Science Fiction, etc. I'm not sure there's a "fix" needed. Perhaps stick to these initial main genres, generate lists based on the GITS community's collective knowledge and opinions, but expand it beyond ten in each genre. Then see what might be missing. I agree with adding Rom-Com as its own genre. There may be other subgenres too that will pop up during this project that may not be obvious at first. Or we'll use the lists from the main genres and then subdivide into more specialized genres. Not really sure...

I have no need for these films to appear on the final list, but I'm happy to recommend them to others here as dramas I have learned from as a writer. My #1 reccomendation: The Girl from Monaco (2008) by Anne Fontaine & Benoît Graffin: the story of an uptight Paris lawyer who goes to Monaco to try a love-triangle homicide case, where he struggles to maintain his orderly existence when he falls in love with a wild local girl. I don't know how to convey how impressed I was by the writing in this movie: the inverse relationship of the A plot and B plot are like clockwork; each character has his or her own agenda and motivations; and you don't see the ending coming. If you are fascinated by structure, you will love this movie. Other great international dramas I haven't seen here yet: Forbidden Games (1952) by Jean Aurenche, Pierre Bost, François Boyer & René Clément Touchez Pas Au Grisbi (1954) with Jean Gabin by Jacques Becker, Albert Simonin & Maurice Griffe Black Orpheus (1959) by Marcel Camus & Jacques Viot Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) by Louis Malle Jesus of Montreal (1989) by Denys Arcand Downfall (2004) by Bernd Eichinger And here's a tough nut for the brave among you: Caché /Hidden (2005) by Michael Haneke. It's not a tidy Hollywood story, it has essentially no resolution (a point that may be debatable), and a different sense of plot and pacing, BUT it has one of the most shocking scenes I've ever seen on film, and it strips away the sentimentality of many movies and presents a very raw and realistic look at human beings. (I'm curious if anyone else here watches Haneke's films and what you take away from them as writers.)

I love Caché. One of my favorite films in the past ten years. Talk about unpredictable plot, huh. I've raved about it before here at GITS and how it challenges the audience from the very first frame. Terrific film. I thought The White Ribbon was so-so. I need to watch it again to really form an opinion.

Thanks, Shaula! I remember it being one of the first movies I saw as a child (that wasn't made by Disney) that caused me to cry hysterically! haha Definitely one of my favorites! If anyone can find the script, I'd be interested in reading it, too!

Your wish is my command: http://www.geocities.ws/ra_sully66/leon.pdf (Grab it fast! There don't seem to be many copies out there.)

Thanks, Shaula! This will be my weekend reading :)

I haven't seen The White Ribbon yet. I went out of my way to see Caché in the theatre because I was so struck by Le temps du loup, which was chilling. (I saw Le temps du loup around the same time I watched Les égarés...interesting juxtaposition.) Also, two films I meant to include on my list: The Battle of Algiers by Gillo Pontecorvo & Franco Solinas Z by Jorge Semprún, based on a novel by Vasilis Vasilikos

Z is a brave film. I think Costa Gavras (the director) was a co-writer of the script and was banned from Greece for many years, if memory serves.

I love the film Leon. Original script is very, very, very ...different. This is a link to part of the orginal script which is considerably more controversial than the movie. http://sfy.ru/?script=leon_ds

I love you guys. One more: Leaving Las Vegas.

I see where you all are coming from with the confusion about genres and top 10 categories, but I think there are instances in which there are several movies which stand so far above the others in the genre that they have to be priorities. I'm new to this whole field, but I've already learned that when it comes to dramas, you HAVE to have seen, read, and analyzed: Citizen Cane The Godfather Chinatown The Shawshank Redemption I'm sure I'm leaving off a few others (probably On the Waterfront and Schindler's List) but can anyone really argue with those four? A personal favorite for me, but probably not everyone, is On Golden Pond. Also, I think as important (for me anyway) as seeing Citizen Cane is watching the version with Roger Ebert's commentary. Invaluable to someone just learning about movies!

Pretty sure Schindler's List was a 90's flick, not 2004. ;)

Some excellent choices. I'd definitely add P.T. Anderson's Boogie Nights to the list. Always love the "rise and fall" aspect of that film. A real classic.

PS At the mention of Raging Bull, I feel compelled to mention that when my parents were dating, Jake Lamotta hit on my mom at a dance once--and my dad thought he was going to get pulled into a fight! I might have been Shaula Lamotta...fortunately, they got out alive and without a brawl starting.

Your story about seeing Walk the Line reminds me of seeing Ghandi in its initial theatrical release. There was a 15 minute intermission while the projectionist changed the reels. No one in the theatre moved. Or spoke. Everyone sat stock still, silent, entranced, not wanting to break the spell, until the movie resumed. And there were children at least as young as 10 in the theatre, and no one even fidgeted. Magical experience.

Thanks for the link to the original script!

1993. Good catch!

Here is the list to date: 1. 12 Angry Men 2. 127 Hours 3. 4 Little Girls (1996) 4. A Face in the Crowd 5. A Streetcar Named Desire 6. About a Boy 7. All About Eve 8. Amadeus 9. Amelie 10. American Beauty 11. Apocalypse Now (1979) 12. Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) by Louis Malle 13. Bicycle Thieves 14. Black Orpheus (1959) by Marcel Camus & Jacques Viot 15. Boogie Nights 16. Caché /Hidden (2005) by Michael Haneke 17. Casablanca (1942) 18. Casino 19. Catch Me If You Can 20. Chinatown (1974) 21. Cinema Paradiso 22. Citizen Kane (1941) 23. Dances With Wolves 24. Days of Heaven 25. Dead Poets Society 26. Do the Right Thing 27. Doctor Zhivago 28. Donnie Brasco 29. Donnie Darko 30. Double Indemnity (1944) 31. Downfall (2004) by Bernd Eichinger 32. Drive 33. Erin Brokovich 34. Fight Club 35. Forbidden Games (1952) by Jean Aurenche, Pierre Bost, François Boyer & René Clément 36. Gandhi 37. Glengarry Glen Ross 38. Godfather I (1972) 39. Gone with the Wind 40. Good Will Hunting 41. Goodfellas 42. Grand Illusion (1938) 43. Grapes of Wrath (1940) 44. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner 45. Hamlet (2010, with David Tennant as Hamlet) 46. Hidden Fortress (1958) 47. I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang 48. In The Heat of the Night 49. In the Name of the Father (1994) 50. Jean de Florette / Manon des sources 51. Jesus of Montreal (1989) by Denys Arcand 52. La Strada 53. Lawrence of Arabia 54. Leaving Las Vega 55. Leon: The Professional 56. Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels 57. Mean Streets 58. Meet Joe Black 59. Michael Clayton 60. Midnight Cowboy 61. Monster 62. Muriel’s Wedding 63. My Left Foot 64. Network 65. On Golden Pond 66. On the Waterfront (1954) 67. Once Upon a Time in America 68. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest 69. Proof (2005) 70. Pulp Fiction 71. Raging Bull 72. Rain Man 73. Rebel Without a Cause 74. Requiem for a Dream 75. Schindler’s List (1993) 76. Shawshank Redemption (1994) 77. Slingblade 78. Sophie’s Choice 79. Sunset Blvd (1950) 80. Sunset Blvd. 81. Taxi Driver (1976) 82. The 400 Blows 83. The Battle of Algiers by Gillo Pontecorvo & Franco Solinas 84. The Caine Mutiny (1954) 85. The Color Purple 86. The Deer Hunter 87. The Elephant Man 88. The Girl from Monaco (2008) by Anne Fontaine & Benoît Graffin 89. The Godfather 90. The Godfather, Parts I and II 91. The Grapes of Wrath 92. The Last Picture Show 93. The Lives of Others 94. The Piano 95. The Sacrifice (1988) 96. The Seventh Seal 97. The Shawshank Redemption 98. The Social Network 99. The Tree of Life 100. The Verdict (1982) 101. The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) 102. To Kill A Mockingbird 103. Touchez Pas Au Grisbi (1954) with Jean Gabin by Jacques Becker, Albert Simonin & Maurice Griffe 104. Trainspotting 105. Ulee’s Gold 106. Unforgiven 107. Up In The Air 108. Walk the Line 109. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape 110. Wild Strawberries 111. Wings of Desire (1987) 112. Z by Jorge Semprún, based on a novel by Vasilis Vasilikos

Might as well add these too: 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days Happy-Go-Lucky Beginners Another Year

I was just about to send the list to Scott. Way to sneak in under the wire, Teddy!

Thanks, Shaula!

Here is the updated list with Teddy's final suggestions: 1. 12 Angry Men 2. 127 Hours 3. 4 Little Girls (1996) 4. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days 5. A Face in the Crowd 6. A Streetcar Named Desire 7. About a Boy 8. All About Eve 9. Amadeus 10. Amelie 11. American Beauty 12. Another Year 13. Apocalypse Now (1979) 14. Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) by Louis Malle 15. Beginners 16. Bicycle Thieves 17. Black Orpheus (1959) by Marcel Camus & Jacques Viot 18. Boogie Nights 19. Caché /Hidden (2005) by Michael Haneke 20. Casablanca (1942) 21. Casino 22. Catch Me If You Can 23. Chinatown (1974) 24. Cinema Paradiso 25. Citizen Kane (1941) 26. Dances With Wolves 27. Days of Heaven 28. Dead Poets Society 29. Do the Right Thing 30. Doctor Zhivago 31. Donnie Brasco 32. Donnie Darko 33. Double Indemnity (1944) 34. Downfall (2004) by Bernd Eichinger 35. Drive 36. Erin Brokovich 37. Fight Club 38. Forbidden Games (1952) by Jean Aurenche, Pierre Bost, François Boyer & René Clément 39. Gandhi 40. Glengarry Glen Ross 41. Godfather I (1972) 42. Gone with the Wind 43. Good Will Hunting 44. Goodfellas 45. Grand Illusion (1938) 46. Grapes of Wrath (1940) 47. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner 48. Hamlet (2010, with David Tennant as Hamlet) 49. Happy-Go-Lucky 50. Hidden Fortress (1958) 51. I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang 52. In The Heat of the Night 53. In the Name of the Father (1994) 54. Jean de Florette / Manon des sources 55. Jesus of Montreal (1989) by Denys Arcand 56. La Strada 57. Lawrence of Arabia 58. Leaving Las Vega 59. Leon: The Professional 60. Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels 61. Mean Streets 62. Meet Joe Black 63. Michael Clayton 64. Midnight Cowboy 65. Monster 66. Muriel’s Wedding 67. My Left Foot 68. Network 69. On Golden Pond 70. On the Waterfront (1954) 71. Once Upon a Time in America 72. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest 73. Proof (2005) 74. Pulp Fiction 75. Raging Bull 76. Rain Man 77. Rebel Without a Cause 78. Requiem for a Dream 79. Schindler’s List (1993) 80. Shawshank Redemption (1994) 81. Slingblade 82. Sophie’s Choice 83. Sunset Blvd (1950) 84. Sunset Blvd. 85. Taxi Driver (1976) 86. The 400 Blows 87. The Battle of Algiers by Gillo Pontecorvo & Franco Solinas 88. The Caine Mutiny (1954) 89. The Color Purple 90. The Deer Hunter 91. The Elephant Man 92. The Girl from Monaco (2008) by Anne Fontaine & Benoît Graffin 93. The Godfather 94. The Godfather, Parts I and II 95. The Grapes of Wrath 96. The Last Picture Show 97. The Lives of Others 98. The Piano 99. The Sacrifice (1988) 100. The Seventh Seal 101. The Shawshank Redemption 102. The Social Network 103. The Tree of Life 104. The Verdict (1982) 105. The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) 106. To Kill A Mockingbird 107. Touchez Pas Au Grisbi (1954) with Jean Gabin by Jacques Becker, Albert Simonin & Maurice Griffe 108. Trainspotting 109. Ulee’s Gold 110. Unforgiven 111. Up In The Air 112. Walk the Line 113. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape 114. Wild Strawberries 115. Wings of Desire (1987) 116. Z by Jorge Semprún, based on a novel by Vasilis Vasilikos

There are lots of contributions above from people who haven't shown up yet in the Drama voting thread. Please make sure you come and cast your votes for the top 10 scripts, and the top 10 films, at the Drama voting thread, where they will be counted. Thank you!