Number 40
Forrest Gump
 When you think about it, Forrest Gump is like no other movie that's ever been made. The way it ties American and pop culture into a love story between two people who grow up together, Forrest (Tom Hanks) and Jenny (Robin Wright Penn), is unlike anything that has ever been done before. The innocent and simple minded Forrest is a character that is impossible not to love. On a side note, much like Titanic, I can hardly believe this movie got a PG-13 rating.
Also Recommended Viewing: The Shawshank Redemption, American Pie, Catch Me If You Can
Number 39
Rushmore
 Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman), a prep school student at Rushmore, tries to be the ultimate overachiever. He organizes clubs, writes and produces school plays, and much more. His only problem is he just can't cut it when it comes to academics. He becomes friends with a local business man, Herman Blume (Bill Murray), and falls in love with a teacher, Mrs. Cross (Olivia Williams). Rushmore is full of dry humor and the "fight" between Max and Herman is amongst my favorite storylines in a comedy.
Also Recommended Viewing: The Royal Tenenbaums, The Battle of Shaker Heights, Fast Times at Ridgemont High
Number 38
The Silence of the Lambs
 Silence of the LambsEasily one of the creepiest movies I've ever seen, the feeling of watching Silence of the Lambs stays with you long after the movie is over. Anthony Hopkins stars as the worlds most famous cannibal, Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) plays a young FBI agent who is assigned to find a missing woman who is kidnapped by a serial killer, Buffalo Bill. Clarice uses the help of the former psychiatrist Dr. Lector to find the killer.
Also Recommended Viewing: Manhunter, Se7en, Cape Fear
Number 37
L.A. Confidential
 Taking place during the 50's in Los Angeles, LA Confidential is the story of a corrupt police department. The son of a departmental legend, Ed Exley (Guy Pearce) is cop who's goal in life is to find the quickest way to get promoted. Bud White (Russell Crowe) is willing to break rules to do what is right, but has trouble keeping his violent temper under control. Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey) is more concerned with the celebrity associated with being an LA police officer. A great ensemble cast and great crime drama makes for a great movie that y'all should see.
Also Recommended Viewing: Dark Blue, The Usual Suspects, The Insider
Number 36
Quiz Show
 Another movie that was well received when it came out, but has since been kind of forgotten. Herbie Stempel (John Turturro) is a working class man who has his winning streak on the quiz show "21" broken by Charles Van Doren (Ralph Fiennes), a wealthier, more handsome, and more appealing contestant on the show. A young lawyer then discovers that the tv show is being fixed and an investigation ensues. In an era of reality tv, a show like this really makes you wonder if this sort of thing really goes on.
Also Recommended Viewing: Catch Me If You Can, Boiler Room, Traffic
Number 35
Jaws
 Jaws should be required summer viewing. Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) is the police chief of a resort town called Amity. Everything is fine until one day a shark infests the waters around the busiest time of the year for the community, July 4th. Brody, along with marine biologist Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and local shark expert Quint (Robert Shaw) must try to kill the shark. In typical Steven Spielberg fashion, Jaws is one of those movies that, for whatever reason, is just a joy to watch. The John Williams score might be one of the most memorable and one of my personal favorites of all time.
Also Recommended Viewing: Jurassic Park, Psycho, The Abyss
Number 34
The Usual Suspects
 Investing an boat explosion, police decide to bring in five criminals for a lineup. Only two men survived, one severly burned terrorist and Verbal Kint (Kevin Spacey - who won best supporting actor), a crippled small-time criminal. Reluctantly, Kint tells his eyewitness story of the events leading up to the explosion. Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio Del Toro, and Kevin Pollack are great in supporting roles as the suspects and Chazz Palmineteri does a great job as US Customs agent Dave Kujan.
Also Recommended Viewing: LA Confidential, Se7en, Identity
Number 33
Seven Samurai
 A very long and epic tale that is an early example of what a long and epic movie should be. The story is easy enough that even a five year old could follow, yet it has enough depth that you learn something new every single time you watch it. If you do miss out on anything, the Criterion DVD has a great commentary which contains everything and more you'd ever want to know about this movie.
Also Recommended Viewing: The Last Samurai, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Lawrence of Arabia
Number 32
Back to the Future trilogy
 Might be my favorite "fun" movies of all time. I spent my entire childhood trying to be Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox). Christopher Lloyd is very enjoyable as the surprising Dr. Emmett Brown. Besides just being a fun movie, the concept of time travel is handled in a very interesting way in this movie. Can you imagine going to a high school dance and getting hit on by your mom? Great Scott!
Also Recommended Viewing: The Goonies, ET, Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Number 31
Kill Bill 1 & 2
 Tarantino is, in my opinion, the most creative and original director of our generation. While his writing and direction is a little in your face for some people, I'm absolutely floored with nearly ever new movie I see of his. I'm not a fan of Uma Thurman, but she is awesome in this movie as is Lucy Lui and Vivica A. Fox. Great performances by David Carradine and Michael Madsen in Volume 2, as well. Very bloody, but it's done in a way that almost makes it stylish. Also, this movie is the rare movie where the sequel is probably as good as the original, if not better!
Also Recommended Viewing: Jackie Brown, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Seven Samurai
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