9. Goodfellas (1990)

Logline: Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) enters the Italian mob and, as he grows older, rises through the ranks with Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro) and Tommy De Vito (Joe Pesci) until one day, the whole criminal enterprise (as well as Henry’s life) starts to crumble.

Memorable Moments: With Henry Hill narrating, the corpses of several mafia figures (mostly linked to the Lufthansa heist) are paraded in a musical montage. 

Why People Love It: An epic film, especially among mob-movie fanatics, that digs deep into the rise and fall of gangster Henry Hill, Goodfellas is the quintessential mafia movie that makes absolutely no excuses for itself and glorifies nothing about the seedy, brutal underworld of the Italian mob.

Best Quote: Jimmy Conway (De Niro): “I’m not mad, I’m proud of you. You took your first pinch like a man and you learn two great things in your life. Look at me, never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut.”

10. Once Upon a Time in the West (1969)

Logline: A southern belle, Mrs. McBain, moves to the far West Frontier to join her family. Upon arrival, though, she finds discovers all were ruthlessly murdered; she has to rely on perfect strangers (outlaws and nomads) to protect her and find her family’s killer.

Memorable Moments: Frank (a ruthless outlaw) sexually harasses Jill (Claudia Cardinale). He tells her that she can’t even the resist the advances (having been informed that she was previously a hooker in New Orleans) of the very man who murdered her husband.

Why People Love It: Once Upon a Time isn’t just your de facto Western flick: Rather, a Western thoroughly blended with metaphor, style, and—perhaps—poetic justice that could be easily deemed A Hot Mess. 

Best Quote: Frank (Henry Fonda): “How can you trust a man who wears both a belt and suspenders? The man can’t even trust his own pants”

11. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)

Logline: To shirk his duties in prison, R.P McMurphy fakes insanity. Transferred to a mental institution, he tries hard to develop rapport among the crazies—while spearheading a revolt against a fascistic head nurse.

Memorable Moments: The scene where McMurphy, in all his charming quirkiness, vividly enacts an imaginary commentary of the ’63 World Series to his mellow friends, who are barred from watching the real thing on TV. 

Why People Love It: It’s one of Jack Nicholson’s first movies that made the world fall in love with his distinctive character: Funny, sarcastic, looney-in-a sane way, and at times, scathing.

Best Quote: R.P. McMurphy (Nicholson): “Why don’t ya shut your damn mouth and play some music.?”

12. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Logline: At the instruction of Yoda, Luke (Mark Hamill) and R2-D2 receive coveted Jedi training in preparation to save his kidnapped friends (Princess Leia, C-3PO, and Han Solo) from the clutches of the dark lord Vader.

Memorable Moments: In one of the most memorable scenes of the whole franchise is one of the most repeated (often in jest) quotes in cinema history: Darth Vader to Luke “No…I am your father.”

Why People Love It: The Empire Strikes Back is widely considered the best of the series, boasting an even deeper and more sophisticated story than even A New Hope.

Best Quote: Yoda (Frank Oz): “No. Try not. Do… or do not. There is no try.”

13. Citizen Kane (1941)

Logline: On a mission to discover the truth about the last word spoken (“Rosebud”) by millionaire Charles Foster Kane, a posse of reporters chronicle the man’s rise to the top of the corporate food chain and his show, agonizing fall into exile in his fortress-like home, Xanadu.

Memorable Moments: The opening sequence—with its shocking-for-the-time aesthetic—when Kane, owner of The New York Inquirer, utters ‘Rosebud’ and keels over. 

Why People Love It: Many consider it the crowning achievement of film, both then and still in modernity. Others cherish the storyline, which essentially espouses many untruths about capitalism in ordinarily down-to-Earth fashion.

Best Quote: Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles): “Don’t believe everything you hear on the radio.”

14. Pulp Fiction (1994)

Logline: In a quartet of story lines, two henchmen (Jules and Vincent), a mafia boss (Marsellus) and his wife, a boxer, and a thuggish couple all become entangled in crime and corruption and will, ultimately, realize that their lives are intertwined.

Memorable Moments: Near the end when Jules and Vincent, grabbing some grub at a diner, must deal with a man-and-woman robbery. Epic. 

Why People Love It: Perhaps most importantly, it’s a Tarantino flick. That granted, Pulp Fiction is instantly recognizable as a super dark, yet hilarious and eccentric, film icon from the mid-90s.

Best Quote: Jules (Sam Jackson): “S*** N*gro! That’s all you had to say!”

15. Rear Window (1954)

Logline: When photographer L.B. “Jeff” Jeffries is injured on the job and bound to his NY apartment, he becomes obsessed with observing his neighbors through his ‘rear window’. Before long, though, he highly suspects one of them of murder, and puts a couple of acquaintances on the case.

Memorable Moments: The scenes where the ever-voyeuristic Jeff witnesses Mr. Thorwald (Raymond Burr) with ‘suspicious’ items such as a saw, large knife, and large crate—all in the absence of his (Thorwald’s) formerly-bedridden, invalid wife.

Why People Love It: Yet another of Alfred Hitchcock’s finest works, Rear Window is a fun adventure in voyeurism and the sometimes-serious consequences of.

Best Quote: Lisa (Grace Kelly): “A murderer would never parade his crime in front of an open window.”