Exactly what it says on the tin – my top ten films.

And yes, that’s my master or super top ten list for all films across all genres – action and drama, fantasy and SF, horror, animation, films adapted from comics, and comedy.

And no, despite my feature image being the poster for Citizen Kane, “frequently cited as the greatest film ever made”, it is not in my top ten, although I suppose that fortuitously avoids spoiling any entry that is in my top ten. While I have seen it and acknowledge its innovative technical brilliance, I tend towards the view of the film expressed by Peter Griffin in The Family Guy, albeit I wouldn’t go quite so far as he did. In one of its signature cutaway gags, Peter has been banned from the video stores for taping over their movies. In the case of Citizen Kane, he tapes over it to say “It was his sled from when he was a kid. There, I just saved you two long, b00bless hours”.

It could be worse. It could be Peter Griffin’s opinion of The Godfather – he didn’t care for it, as “it insists upon itself”.

Anyway, here are my Top 10 Films.

Promotional poster art (fair use)

(10) FANTASY & SF: PROJECT HAIL MARY (2026)

“Amaze amaze amaze!”

My wildcard tenth place entry for best film of 2026, Project Hail Mary is an “epic science fiction film” based on the 2021 novel by Andy Weir and arguably a spiritual sequel to Weir’s The Martian, only on the much grander scale of saving the world as opposed to one astronaut (although there’s an element of the latter). No, that’s not spoiling it given that desperate last ditch shot in the dark is inherent in the title – and the film establishes its premise early on.

So yes, with the world at stake as well as an interstellar spacecraft as opposed to the interplanetary mission of The Martin, it puts both the epic and the science into epic science fiction – with Ryan Gosling swapping in for Matt Damon’s stranded figure who has to “science the sh!t out of” his scenario. It’s interesting that his character has the same initials, Ryland Grace, with the surname setting up the obvious play on the first line of the prayer – Hail Mary, full of Grace.

However, its epic science fiction plays out at the engaging levels of a twofold detective mystery crossed with a buddy film, which gives the film its most heartfelt and heartwarming moments. The twofold detective mystery is, firstly, the mystery of piercing together his memories after waking aboard an interstellar spacecraft with no memory of how he got there, and secondly the mystery that his interstellar mission has to solve.

As for the buddy film, I won’t spoil it further than the film’s own trailer did, but let’s just say Rocky is amazing.

One of the film’s strengths is its use of practical effects, particularly for the set of its spaceship and for the puppetry of one half of the buddy film.

“A visually dazzling space odyssey that’s carried along effortlessly by the gravitational pull of Ryan Gosling at his most winning, Project Hail Mary is a near-miraculous fusion of smarts and heart.”

RATING:

X-TIER (WILD TIER) – BEST OF 2026

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(9) COMICS: DREDD

(2012…There’s an ellipsis because you know there should have been a sequel or TV series)

“I am the Law!”

You also knew this was coming.

My first and true love in comics is not one of the ruling duopoly of comics, DC and Marvel Comics, nor strictly speaking a superhero comic (although its main character is arguably as much of a ‘superhero’ as Batman), nor even an American comic (although it is set there, albeit drastically transformed in the twenty-second century).

It is Judge Dredd, the most iconic character from the British weekly SF anthology comic, 2000 AD, ongoing since it was launched in 1977. Unfortunately, American audiences remain somewhat unfamiliar with (or unresponsive to) Judge Dredd, despite his American setting (albeit futuristic) and despite that he is effectively a quintessential American hero in the same vein as Batman – relying on superior discipline, training, experience, equipment and resources, except as a governmental lawman rather than a vigilante billionaire. They even both effectively remain masked in their public identities, as Dredd never removes his helmet.

Even more unfortunately, the most substantial introduction of American audiences to Judge Dredd was the 1995 film, although fortunately that particular horror is fading with time. This Hollywood travesty was particularly inexcusable, because the essence of Judge Dredd is ultimately very simple – Judge Dredd is a futuristic Dirty Harry in a dystopian (and post-apocalyptic) SF satire. How hard is that, Hollywood?! On second thoughts, this simple formula was probably too much for Hollywood to handle – when they couldn’t even have Dredd keep his helmet on throughout the film.

The 2012 film was much more effective in capturing the elements of the original comic (not least in keeping Dredd’s helmet on throughout the film, with Karl Urban playing Dredd by his chin), but not as effective in capturing an audience – in my opinion and that of a few other people who’ve spoken about it, primarily because its own studio sabotaged it, in effect if not intent.

In its own way, this is as unfortunate as the first film, particularly at a time when comic book movies were in such vogue (and dystopian or post-apocalyptic movies have always been popular) – because if ever a comic deserved its own cinematic or screen adaptation, it’s Dredd, especially when you consider the dreck (or drokk – Judge Dredd slang in-joke alert) that does get adaptations. Perhaps a television adaptation would have been better, as it suits the more episodic nature as well as longer arcs of the storyline.

As for the 2012 film, the plot is pared right down – to the classic storyline of Dredd rooting out criminals or perps from a building, which was essentially the same plot as the introduction of the character in his very first episode of the comic, with the added element similar the film’s near contemporary of The Raid with Dredd being trapped within the building and having to fight his way out. However, the film does have a better antagonist than the comic’s first episode, drug queenpin Ma-Ma played by Lena Headey and written for the film rather than adapted from the comic – and a companion for Dredd with Psi-Judge Anderson, rewritten as Dredd’s rookie for the film.

The pared down plot is perhaps the primary reason why the 2012 film captured the essence of the comic much more effectively than the 1995 film with its convoluted storyline unsuccessfully trying to insert too many elements from the comic for its own good.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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(8) ANIMATION: TOY STORY

(1995-2010: TOY STORY 1-3 and beyond?)

“To infinity and beyond!”

The flagship of Pixar Animation Studios and of course my top ten animated films, Toy Story was the first computer animated film (and therefore an extraordinarily influential part of what TV Tropes labels the Renaissance Age of Animation). It also was the flagship of the Toy Story franchise, with two film sequels that maintain the quality of the original (although Stark’s Law of Sequels still gives first place to the original) – I particularly like the interpretation that the third Toy Story film is about the afterlife, with a metaphorical representation of every major version of the afterlife in Western popular culture.

Toy Story itself, both film and franchise, needs little introduction – a story about toys that come to life when their owners are not around. The film introduces us to a group of toys belonging to a boy named Andy, led by Andy’s favorite toy – Woody, a classic cowboy doll with a pull-string vocalizer. (“Reach for the sky!”). Unfortunately for Woody, Andy acquires a new favorite for his birthday – in the form of Buzz Lightyear of Star Command. To complicate things further, Buzz believes that he is actually an astronaut adventurer rather than a toy. What ensues is a buddy comedy adventure film, as Buzz and Woody have to work together to overcome mutual perils.

Terry Gilliam praised the film as “a work of genius” – “It got people to understand what toys are about. They’re true to their own character. And that’s just brilliant. It’s got a shot that’s always stuck with me, when Buzz Lightyear discovers he’s a toy. He’s sitting on this landing at the top of the staircase and the camera pulls back and he’s this tiny little figure. He was this guy with a massive ego two seconds before… and it’s stunning. I’d put that as one of my top ten films, period.”

And as you can see, I’ve confined this entry to the classic trilogy of films from Toy Story 1 to 3. The franchise does include other works, notably the fourth film in 2019 and the fifth film in 2025 – I actually think the fourth film is decent but I just couldn’t compare it to that original trilogy of Toy Story 1-3 as a near perfect trilogy.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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Compliation of poster art from all three films as reproduced on the cover of the DVD set of the trilogy (fair use)

(7) COMEDY: MONTY PYTHON –

HOLY GRAIL / LIFE OF BRIAN / MEANING OF LIFE (1975 – 1983)

Much like The Lord of the Rings with literary fantasy (and arguably cinematic fantasy), Monty Python defines comedy – there is comedy before Monty Python and comedy after Monty Python.

The Pythons, as they are called, commenced comedy on stage at university (Cambridge and Oxford, apart from Terry Gilliam, the sole American in this otherwise British comedy troupe) and graduated to screen as television writers (again apart from Gilliam). That saw the Pythons launch the TV sketch comedy series that defined them and comedy – Monty Python’s Flying Circus, with the name Monty Python “deliberately chosen to sound like a sleazy theatrical agent who had brought the troupe together”.

Although the Flying Circus series was also definitive for television comedy, they are best known for this trilogy of films “that are almost universally considered classics” – certainly I consider them classics.

They did have two other films (excluding a reunion live show recorded on film for five of the Pythons in 2014) – And Now For Completely Different as their first film in 1971, essentially a compilation of the best sketches from their TV series, and Monty Python: Live at the Hollywood Bowl in 1982, essentially the same but live and recorded on film.

However, it’s these three films that are the classic trilogy – or holy trinity – of Monty Python:

Monty Python and the Holy Grail in 1975 did indeed feature King Arthur and his knights searching for the titular Holy Grail, but in characteristically Pythonesque way – Pythonesque being an adjective coined to describe Monty Python’s style of humor as “strangely, absurdly, or surrealistically funny” – the Grail Quest is a framing device for scenes that are sketches, albeit narratively linked or to a medieval theme. That is obvious in its abrupt ending leaving the Grail Quest unresolved – a brilliant practical solution to their problem in running out of budget that served “as a meta-joke to cap off to the film’s absurd tone”.

Amusingly, despite being essentially playful parody of Arthurian legend, it remains one of the best and most faithful cinematic adaptations of Arthurian legend, showcasing one of the Pythons (Terry Jones) as a specialist in medieval history.

Monty Python’s Life of Brian in 1979 featured the titular character, “whose life is suspiciously similar to that of Jesus” while overlapping or running parallel to that of Jesus at key points. It’s a film that was (and is) often criticized as blasphemous, but like the previous film’s adaptation of King Arthur, it’s surprisingly respectful to the person and teaching of Jesus himself.

Many fans tend to list one or the other of the previous two films as their favorite and understandably so, given that they have the greater narrative continuity – particularly Life of Brian, which is the closest of the three films to a conventional linear narrative.

However my favorite remains the third film, Monty Python’s Meaning of Life in 1983, which saw a return to their form of comedy sketches, albeit to the theme of “a guide from birth to death, all the important stages of human life”

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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Evil Dead poster art that I’d argue has transcended film iconography and become part of the Jungian collective unconscious

(6) EVIL DEAD (1981-1992 / 2013-PRESENT)

Hail to the king, baby!

What else? The Evil Dead, the film and the following franchise, are not high art but they embody (in virtually every sense of that word) the archetypal B-grade horror movie in all its fun and glory, with tongue ever more firmly in cheek.

As stated by TV Tropes – “in 1979, a bunch of college dropouts got together in a cabin in Tennessee and made a film with a standard B-Movie plot; this film was The Evil Dead. The film, which was directed by Sam Raimi and starred (the chin himself) Bruce Campbell, succeeded through elaborate gore effects, slick cinematography, and sheer audacity to make enough money to warrant two sequels and get into the public consciousness”.

It is remarkable that a movie made by college dropouts on a shoestring budget – and effects that resemble claymation or plasticine at times – should have any impact upon public consciousness, let alone the enduring impact it and its sequels had upon mine.

“Join us, Ashleeeeey!”

You know you’re in a for a gory horror ride in the first movie, as the classic group of teenagers heads to the classic cabin in the woods. There they unfortunately locate the demonic Book of the Dead or Necronomicon (borrowing from Lovecraft) which was studied by the cabin’s previous occupant – and even more unfortunately play the tape of the recitation invoking the Sumerian demons (although something seems to have been stalking the cabin and woods even prior to that recitation). Those demons possess each of them in turn, turning them into the titular evil dead which then attack the others, until ultimately only one of them, Ashley, is left to fend off the demons (including his girlfriend). This first film works quite effectively as horror, particularly as Ashley or Ash becomes the lone survivor fending off the evil dead in the seemingly eldritch architecture of the cabin. I mean, it’s probably the frantic cinematography but how many rooms does that cabin have? It’s like the Tardis in there. And you know it’s going to get bloody (and oh boy does it ever) when a further playing of the tape reveals that the only way to destroy the evil dead is…bodily dismemberment! Ewww!

The second film (Evil Dead 2), a partial remake and partial sequel, was made with more money but lacks the pure horror of the first, as embracing the absurdity of the premise, it moved from horror to comedy (and Ash became more invulnerable to the demonic threat).

The third film (Army of Darkness) fully embraced all its cheesy goodness and rule of cool as it almost entirely abandoned horror altogether for dark fantasy comedy, yet utterly glorious as a result (while Ash completed his transition into a virtually indestructible superhero). It follows from the second film, which saw Ash magically transported through time to the Middle Ages (yeah, it’s like that), in medieval Europe or perhaps the Latin kingdoms of the Crusades, where he soon has to face off against an undead army. It had the biggest budget of the original trilogy, as well as being the most well-known and quoted, with its memetic one-liners.

The franchise saw a remake of the original film with the Evil Dead film of 2013 – decent enough but somewhat forgettable as lacking the same pulpy fun and tongue-in-cheek humor of the original. That changed dramatically with the fifth entry into the franchise, Evil Dead Rise in 2023, which returned to the spirit and style of the original trilogy (and Evil Dead mythos) but with its own fun twists – and also perhaps the only Deadite that’s strangely…arousing. Whose your mummy?

The franchise has also seen a TV series, comics adaptations, video games…and a theatre musical?

Groovy!

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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(5) SF (HORROR): THE TERMINATOR

(1984-1991+: THE TERMINATOR 1-2 – Yeah – I only count the first two films)

“I’ll be back”

The Terminator franchise is the definitive cinematic Robot War franchise, a science fiction trope that seemingly works best when combined with another science fiction trope. In the Terminator franchise, the Robot War is combined with that other compelling science fiction trope of time travel.

In this, it is the direct descendant of H. G. Wells’ The Time Machine – the heart of science fiction is still all Martians and Morlocks. We’ll be looking at Martians soon, but Skynet and its Terminators are Morlocks. The original Morlocks were one of two evolutionary descendants of humanity, evolved from the working class – maintaining the advanced technology of the future for the Eloi, the other descendants of humanity evolved from its leisured upper class. The dark twist of Wells’ novel is that the Morlocks eat the Eloi, “farming” them like livestock. This theme of evolution endures in the Terminator, albeit transformed from Wells’ unrealistic biological evolution (without genetic engineering or mutation) to cybernetic evolution – involving artificial intelligence and robots (or cyborgs) as machine Morlocks that rise up against their human Eloi. This descent from The Time Machine is doubly so for involving time travel, except in the other direction – almost as a direct sequel, as if the Morlocks had reverse engineered the Time Machine to travel back to the present.

Of course, at its core, the original Terminator is a horror film of relentless nightmare pursuit, literally evolved from James Cameron’s own nightmare vision of a metallic skeleton dragging itself from fire – which perhaps explains the franchise’s law of diminishing returns with each sequel away from its horror origins. Yes, even Terminator Judgement Day, which started the rot by breaking the rules of the original – although the action was so cool, we overlooked that. The original allowed time travel for only two ‘people’, the Terminator itself and Kyle Reese sent to stop it. The sequel allowed two more – a good cyborg Terminator and a bad liquid metal Terminator – and so on, until that Skynet time machine must be like a commuter train station with all the robots and humans going back and forth.

People bemoaned Terminator Genisys because it messed up the timeline, but that timeline was messed up from the very first sequel – if not implicitly in the original itself. It’s always bemused me that Skynet is smart enough to build an actual time machine, but not smart enough to work out the implications of it – either you simply can’t change the past (because it includes your time travel already) or you can but it becomes a different timeline from your existing timeline (nice for the new timeline, but not your original timeline which you still haven’t changed). Terminator Genisys simply took the changing timelines already in the franchise in their logical direction from Skynet’s point of view – a timeline-hopping Skynet, because the only way it can actually win by time travel is for itself to do the time travelling, like Skynet crossed with Marty McFly in Terminator meets Back to the Future. Then again, Skynet is just too much of a d!ck – it also bemused me exactly why Skynet’s plan always involves killing humanity rather than making a killing on the stock exchange or otherwise using its artificial intelligence to become rich and powerful, ruling the world rather than destroying it.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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(4) SF (HORROR): ALIEN

(1979-1986+: ALIEN / ALIENS 1-2. That’s right – I mostly just count the first two films. Mostly)

Whereas Terminator is the definitive robot war franchise, Alien is the definitive, well, alien franchise – the direct descendant of H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds.

As I said in my previous entry, the heart of SF is still all Martians and Morlocks to me (or evolution and entropy, those recurring themes in Wells). We’ve looked at the machine Morlocks of the Terminator (and the Matrix) – the aliens in the Alien franchise are Martians. Not literally Martians of course, unlike the original Martians in The War of the Worlds, but still the sharp edge of evolution (Wells’ penultimate true villain), red in tooth and claw, pitted against humanity in the backdrop of cold, dead space (or Wells’ ultimate true villain of entropy).

And holy crap – the Martians are positively cuddly compared to their cinematic descendant aliens, or xenomorphs, in the Alien franchise! Sure, the original Martians may have been space vampires, sucking down human blood, but the Alien xenomorphs take it to a whole new level of body horror, with every possible bodily fluid and organ of Freudian subtext thrown in for kicks. Whereas the original Martians invaded our world, the xenomorphs invade our very bodies – in the most face-hugging, throat-thrusting, chest-bursting way possible.

Like the original Terminator, the original Alien was at its core a horror film – the body horror of the alien itself in the claustrophobic intensity of a spaceship – and subject to a similar law of diminishing returns with each sequel away from its horror origins, although the intensity of action compensated for it in the immediate sequel.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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Uma Thurman as the Bride in her most iconic appearance in Kill Bill – that yellow tracksuit (as well as motorcycle and helmet) a homage to that worn by Bruce Lee in his 1972 film Game of Death

(3) QUENTIN TARANTINO –

KILL BILL (2003-2004)

“When I woke up, I went on what the movie advertisements referred to as a roaring rampage of revenge. I roared. I rampaged. And I got bloody satisfaction. I’ve killed a hell of a lot of people to get to this point, but I have only one more. The last one. The one I’m driving to right now. The only one left. And when I arrive at my destination… I am gonna KILL BILL”.

Quentin Tarantino – “his films are characterized by elements including recurring actors, non-linear storylines, stylized violence, black comedy, witty dialogue oft laced with pop culture references, trunk shots, close-ups on feet, especially women’s bare feet (don’t ask), and a volume of homages and shout-outs to other movies only attainable with an absurdly encyclopedic knowledge of film history”.

In fairness to the foot fetish thing, who wouldn’t cast themselves to drink off Salma Hayek’s feet?

Also a director whom I have to love for his dedication to a top ten in his own films, having famously declared his intention to retire after ten films, although we’re still awaiting that tenth film as of 2024.

As for which Tarantino film to choose for this entry, it was a close call – particularly with the film that brought him widespread acclaim, Pulp Fiction – but as my featured quote indicates, I have to go with Kill Bill.

“Kill Bill is the fourth (and fifth) film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, taking all his favorite things at that point in his career – westerns, samurai movies, martial arts, pop-culture references, actions girls, and bare feet – and combining them into one hell of a revenge drama”.

Or as the female protagonist best known simply as the Bride (or Black Mamba as a former member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad) – although her name Beatrix Kiddo is dropped in the second film – played by Uma Thurman puts it in my featured quote, a roaring rampage of revenge. Indeed, one of the finest roaring rampages of revenge – and certainly top of my top ten roaring rampages of revenge.

Also it has one of my all-time favorite lines of cinema (note to self – compile a top ten lines of cinema) from legendary sword-maker Hattori Hanzo, played by Sonny Chiba, referring to the blade he made for the Bride – “If on your journey you should encounter God, God will be cut”.

(And how! From what we see her do with it, I’d say he was right about that).

It consists of two films although I tend to follow Tarantino in his own classification of it as one film, given that it was conceived by him as such although the studio split it in two for length. Although if I had to choose between them, I’d have to go with the first film or Volume 1 for the sheer glorious frenzied action of the Bride’s fight with O-Ren Ishii and the Crazy 88 Gang. (Although you’d think that at some point, maybe just one of those Yakuza gangsters would, you know, pull a gun on the Bride).

And of course Gogo Yubari, etched deep in my psyche ever since with her portrayal by Japanese actress Chiaki Kuriyama – who also starred in cult classic Battle Royale, one of Tarantino’s favorite films.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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“Yeah well, you know, that’s just like, uh, your opinion, man”

(2) COEN BROS –

THE BIG LEBOWSKI (1998)

The Dude abides.

Indeed, he abides in second place.  The Coen brothers – Joel and Ethan Coen – also abide as my favorite directors of film (albeit obviously not of my favorite film in top spot).

And yes – they have enough of a filmography for their own top ten films, but one that is impossible to categorize by genre or style apart from a blackly comedic and idiosyncratic quirky flair. “Their films span many genres and styles, which they frequently subvert or parody”.

While I enjoy all their films I’ve seen – even the weirder ones like Barton Fink and weaker ones like The Ladykillers – the holy trinity of their filmography for me would be The Big Lebowksi, O Brother Where Art Thou, and Intolerable Cruelty (although Fargo – film and television series – comes close).

And of these, the greatest is The Big Lebowksi – which despite a mixed reception and box office return at the time of its release – rose to cult classic status.

As TV Tropes describes, “it’s a bit hard to describe but let’s just call it a film noir parody”, albeit an affectionate one – particularly of Raymond Chandleresque noir detective stories set in L.A., with the title itself a nod to The Big Sleep.

Except of course for its Philip Marlowe protagonist, it’s slacker Jeff Lebowski – although he prefers to go by the Dude – played to perfection by Jeff Bridges. He’s not the titular Big Lebowksi however – and it’s the mix-up in identity between them that effectively gets the ball rolling on the plot. Well – that and also the Dude’s rug really tied the room together.

Again as per TV Tropes, “this being a Coen Brothers movie, though, the plot isn’t important. The driving force within the movie is the collection of various, bizarre, main and secondary (and tertiary!) characters, almost all of whom seem to come from completely different movies.”

Not least the film’s cowboy narrator, styled as The Stranger, played by Sam Elliott – giving us my featured quote, although the Dude himself takes a shine to it.

Oh – and of course, the Jesus.

But yeah well, you know, that’s just like, uh, your opinion, man.

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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One of the most iconic scenes in the film – and in film

(1) APOCALYPSE NOW (1979)

“I love the smell of napalm in the morning…smells like victory.”

Yeah – this is the big one, the cinematic equivalent of Catch-22, lodged next to it deep within my psyche ever since seeing it (by happenstance at about the same time as reading Catch-22).

And not coincidentally, like Catch-22 also set in a war, except of course in the Vietnam war as opposed to the former’s Second World War, and similarly using the war as a backdrop for a story beyond the war itself – a satire of modern society in Catch-22 and an exploration of the human psyche on the edges of madness and beyond in Apocalypse Now.

While it is usually (and accurately) considered a war film, it is a psychological war film which could well have been set elsewhere – and indeed originally was, given that it is a very loose adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness from nineteenth century Africa to the Vietnam War. One might well quip that it was also a loose adaptation of the Vietnam War itself (to the American or human psyche).

Hence some of those who watch it expecting a more straightforward war or action film might be disappointed, particularly with its pacing – although I was entranced by it throughout when I first watched it, even in my adolescent days. Don’t get me wrong – it absolutely does have action scenes, indeed some of the most visually striking and iconic action scenes, hence my entrancement, but not quite in the pace or style of a contemporary action film blockbuster.

As per TV Tropes – “packed to the gills with now-iconic scenes and quotes, it is a common choice for not only the definitive anti-war movie but the definitive cinematic depiction of war not as battle, or even as purgatory but as an illogical fever dream”.

Illogical fever dream is overstating it – it has a coherent plot – but things definitely get wilder and trippier the further the protagonist and his squad go.

As for that protagonist and squad – again as per TV Tropes, “”special operations Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) is sent to kill Walter E Kurtz (Marlon Brando), a Green Beret colonel who has gone mad and formed a personality cult in Cambodia”…Willard and his crew including George “Chief” Phillips (Albert Hall), Jay “Chef” Hicks (Frederic Forrest), Lance Johnson (Sam Bottoms) and Tryone “Mr Clean” Miller (a 14-year-old Laurence Fishburne) — go up a river and into the recesses of humanity.”

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola at the height of his career, it’s a miracle the film was even made, let alone be this good, given a trouble production that’s almost as legendarily epic as the film itself. On that point – and perhaps not surprisingly given that production history – the original cinematic edit is definitely the best. While the ‘redux’ director’s cut has points of interest, Coppola definitely got it right for its original cinematic release.

I’ll conclude with Roger Ebert’s thoughts when adding it to his list of great movies – ” “What’s great in the film, and what will make it live for many years and speak to many audiences, is what Coppola achieves on the levels Truffaut was discussing: the moments of agony and joy in making cinema. Some of those moments occur at the same time; remember again the helicopter assault and its unsettling juxtaposition of horror and exhilaration. Remember the weird beauty of the massed helicopters lifting above the trees in the long shot, and the insane power of Wagner’s music, played loudly during the attack, and you feel what Coppola was getting at: Those moments as common in life as art, when the whole huge grand mystery of the world, so terrible, so beautiful, seems to hang in the balance,,,Apocalypse Now is the best Vietnam film, one of the greatest of all films, because it pushes beyond the others, into the dark places of the soul. It is not about war so much as about how war reveals truths we would be happy never to discover.”

RATING: 5 STARS*****

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Scene from the Zulu film, with Michael Caine front and center – so much so that I tend to think of his historical character, Lieutenant Bromhead, simply as Michael Caine

(7) ZULU (1964)

The Battle of Rorke’s Drift.

That’s it – that’s the entry. Well that and the 1964 film Zulu which depicted it.

If you’re a fan of the Battle of Helm’s Deep in The Lord of The Rings film (The Two Towers), then you’re a fan of the Battle of Rorke’s Drift as depicted in this film, as the former was filmed in a manner deliberately reminiscent of the film Zulu according to Jackson.

If anything, Rorke’s Drift in Zulu was even more epic than Helm’s Deep – as a small company of less than 150 soldiers attached to the Royal Engineers (including a substantial number of sick and wounded) fought off a force of about 3-4,000 Zulus.

The battle was a small albeit highly celebrated part of the Anglo-Zulu War, with the British soldiers finding themselves in the path of a Zulu force in the aftermath of the opening Zulu victory at Isandlwana.

When it comes to Rorke’s Drift, I tend to default to its depiction in the film Zulu, as it is deeply embedded in my psyche. While generally accurate to the historical battle, it does of course have inaccuracies (with perhaps the most egregious involving the depiction of Private Hook, a model soldier, as a rogue redeemed in the battle). The film may also be seen as somewhat problematic in these times given its celebration of British imperial victory – I don’t care.

Indeed the film tends to glamorize both sides in the battle – with the Zulus depicted as a brave, intelligent, capable, resourceful and ultimately honorable adversary. And if anyone can resist the stirring orchestral theme by John Barry, I don’t know what to say.

The British soldiers were led by Lieutenant Chard, portrayed by Stanley Baker, and his second in command Lieutenant Bromhead, portrayed by a young Michael Caine in his breakthrough film role. Deciding that retreat isn’t an option as they will move too slowly with their sick or wounded and the Zulus will catch them out in the open, they have no option but to stand and fight behind improvised barricade defenses.

Throughout the day and night (into the following day) after the Zulu force surrounds them, wave after wave of Zulu attackers are narrowly repelled by the desperate British defenders. At one point, the Zulus succeed in setting fire to the field hospital, leading to tense scenes of the evacuation of patients under fierce attack by Zulu warriors – and British Surgeon-Major James Henry Reynolds calmly continues his surgery on a wounded soldier with fighting all around him. And yes – he got a Victoria Cross.

The British defenders retreat to the shortened lines of their inner barricades. One tactic you see through the film is the use of multiple ranks of soldiers to maintain a nearly continuous volley of fire with their bolt-action rifles. None more so than the climactic scene with three such ranks used (after falling back from desperate hand-to-hand combat at an outer barricade) to defend a massive assault by Zulu warriors. And as the camera pans back, you see the fallen Zulu warriors mere inches away from the front rank of breathless British soldiers – an impressive feat of holding the line.

That’s when you start to think from the preceding sense of overwhelming doom that hangs over the British soldiers – holy crap, they’re actually going to make it! And then – no, holy crap, they’re not…as the Zulu force masses on the hill overlooking Rorke’s Drift, seemingly barely diminished, while the British are exhausted and running low on ammunition. Lieutenant van den Burgh, their Afrikaaner advisor serving with the Natal Native Contingent, sinks to his knees and rebukes the British officers (and arguably their imperialism as well) – “Haven’t you had enough? We’re all dead!”

And then, holy crap again – as the Zulus chant, raising their spears. “They’re taunting us!” Michael Caine’s character exclaims. Van den Burgh laughs – “You couldn’t be more wrong – they’re saluting us as fellow braves!”. And then the Zulus slowly turn and walk away, still chanting, until a lone warrior is left, before he too turns and leaves.

Sadly, the historical battle ended in a more prosaic way, without the Zulus saluting the British but more withdrawing from strategic sense and an advancing British relief column. I prefer to think it ended the way it did in the film.

11 Victoria Crosses were awarded to the defenders of Rorke’s Drift, as the film itself narrates with a full roll call just before the end credits – including the surgeon as mentioned but also Hook and the two commanding lieutenants Chard and Bromhead.

FANTASY & COMEDY

I’ll deal with both at once, since the film has little fantasy or comedy as pure his

RATING:
A-TIER (TOP TIER)

From the films’ theatrical release poster

(9) GARETH EVANS –

THE RAID (2011-2014)

100 minutes of awesomeness in a frenetic, claustrophobic martial arts action masterpiece – the martial arts being the Indonesian pencak silat that is showcased by the film’s fight choreography and the claustrophobic being the film’s premise.

That premise being an Indonesian police squad deployed to raid a drug lord’s apartment block in the sums of Jakarta – actually a fortress-like safe house for the city’s worst criminals – only to find themselves forced to fight their way through the complex to carry out their mission or just to survive long enough to escape.

“Good morning, everyone. You may have noticed we have some guests trawling the halls today. Now, I certainly did not invite them and they most certainly are not welcome. So, in the interests of public health, should you rid this building of its recent infestation, well, then, you can consider yourself a permanent resident of this building. Free of charge. You’ll find these f*cking cockroaches on the sixth floor. Now, go to work. And please, please enjoy yourself.”

And yes – it was the same premise that was (independently) used to similarly great effect in the 2012 Dredd film.

And ever since, I’ve enjoyed whenever The Raid pops up in one form or another – most obviously in its 2014 sequel, which maintained the frenetic action of the first. You know you’re in for glorious action when the climax of the film is preceded by a character telling its action hero that the only way to solve his problems is to kill all of the parties responsible. My personal highlight of the sequel was the assassin duo dubbed Hammer Girl and Baseball Bat Man.

I also get excited whenever I see what I call the Raid guys – primarily Iko Suwais and ‘Mad Dog’ Yahan Ruhian – in a film. Even when they were disappointingly wasted in The Force Awakens. Fortunately, John Wick Chapter 3 made up for that.

I’m also counting it as The Raid popping up for any film by the same director Gareth Evans.

FANTASY & SF

No, except to the extent that the intense fighting skill and survival of characters borders on supernatural.

COMEDY

Again, not really any comedic elements, except occasionally of the blacker kind

RATING: 4 STARS****

B-TIER (HIGH TIER)

Film poster art

(10) WARFARE (2025)

Warfare is “a 2025 American action war drama thriller film” that earns my wildcard tenth place entry by my usual criteria as best film of the present or previous year. Also, it’s a nice bookend with my film in top spot – you’ll see why.

I like the films of Alex Garland, who wrote and directed the film with Ray Mendoza, based on Mendoza’s experiences during the Iraq War as a US Navy Seal. The backdrop is apparently the (Second) Battle of Ramadi or its aftermath in 2026. Mendoza’s platoon – shown with pseudonyms in the film – are on a surveillance mission, which involves them taking over a civilian house, much to the fear and distress of its occupants, and literally scoping out the local jihadi insurgents. Literally, that is, through their sniper sights.

And that’s where things go horribly wrong, as the insurgents scope them right back and get in first, just as American air support withdraws (except for a couple of shows of force that are indeed awesome). From there, it’s a tense story of survival, as the Americans focus purely on extraction – just getting the hell out of there, in one piece or as close as possible. Spoiler alert – it’s not possible, at least in one piece.

You, the viewer, are right there with them, immersed in a visceral experience of combat, and in real time to boot. Also the futility of it all, apart from the destruction of a random civilian house because it was in a good position for surveillance. As one of the female civilians repeatedly shouts after them – “Why?”. They don’t have a good answer for her.

RATING:

X-TIER (WILD TIER) – BEST OF 2025