Okay, so I\'ve stayed away from this but after seeing so many lists filled with absolute dreck, I\'m going to try to name a few movies that actually deserve consideration in the \"greatest\" category. [b]Vertigo[/b] by Alfred Hitchcock This is one of the all-time classic mystery stories. It\'s a dark, layered tale of obsession. Yes, the mystery is intriguing and the first time around you\'re blown away by the twists and turns in the narrative. However, the second time you see it, you bore more deeply into the mind of Scotty and his longing for a love that could never exist. Expertly shot and acted (Jimmy Stewart in possibly his best role), Vertigo was a subversive movie in its time and is still somewhat shocking. See also: Psycho, Rebecca, Rear Window [b]Star Wars[/b] by George Lucas No one has to tell you about this movie because hopefully you\'ve seen it. Star Wars was a benchmark of movie making. Its special effects did things no one had ever seen before, all while giving us a likeable gallery of archetypes to root for. For better or worse, it also helped usher in the age of the blockbuster. The genres of fantasy and science fiction were blurred like never before and neither has ever been the same for it. The best part is the film is still a brisk entertainment with the trench run being one of the great sequences in movie history. Empire is a better movie, but the original stands alone. Also: Han shoots first. See also: Alien, Blade Runner, 2001: A Space Odyssey [b]The Godfather[/b] by Francis Ford Coppola What list of great films would be complete without The Godfather? That rare movie that is loved by critics as well as the general populace, The Godfather is an epic tale of family and treachery, notable for giving souls to a movie staple that was once merely a stereotype - the gangster. Brando gives an iconic performance as Don Corleone, but it\'s really the story of Michael (a young Al Pacino) as the respectable son who slowly comes to rule a world he never cared to be part of. It\'s poignant and tragic, but also contains scenes of suspense that make most thrillers jealous. See also: Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Pulp Fiction [b]Double Indemnity[/b] by Billy Wilder Perhaps the greatest entry into the film style known as noir, Double Indemnity is a stylist thriller full of wit, melodrama and suspense. Its themes are broad, its writing sharp, its characters imitated, and its ending perfect. Of all the detective movies of the 40\'s and 50\'s, the best one didn\'t have a detective. See also: The Maltese Falcon, Chinatown, L.A. Confidential [b]Cool Hand Luke[/b] by Stuard Rosenberg Nothing says classic like Paul Newman in a chain gang, eating 50 eggs and quipping \"We we got here is failure to communicate!\" One of cinema\'s most adored anti-heroes, Luke\'s undying rebellion gives spirit and optimism to a camp full of condemned criminals. It\'s a tale of indomitable spirit, which sounds lame and boring but in Cool Hand Luke it is palpable. See also: One Flew Over the Cuckoo\'s Nest, The Shawshank Redemption [b]Schindler\'s List[/b] by Steven Spielberg Spielberg\'s Oscar sweep in \'93 for Schindler\'s List was well-deserved. The film is a masterpiece. Liam Neeson has never been better as the conflicted Schindler, portraying a real life German who used his wealth and position in nazi Germany to free many Jews during the Holocaust. The story is told matter-of-factly, with a bluntness and emotional restraint rarely seen in Spielberg\'s films. It\'s personal and horrifying, but also extremely well-made and yes, even entertaining. And he made this the same year as Jurassic Park. Astounding. See also: Saving Private Ryan, Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark [b]Memento[/b] by Christopher Nolan A fairly recent entry to include, but Memento is a true achievement. It\'s a gritty urban thriller told with incredible invention. The narrative goes backwards. In an inspired use of what would have been merely a gimmick in a lesser film (and has been), Nolan puts his audience uniquely in the shoes of his bewildered protagonist. It stands up to scrutiny and calls us to question our knowledge and our motives. it\'s truly the noir of the 21st century. See also: The Sixth Sense, Fight Club, No Country for Old Men These are just a few great movies and some similarly inspired films to go with them. It\'s not deep movie appreciation, but I think my choices are at least defensible on some level other than \"OH EMM GEE I JUST SAW TRANSFORMERS AND IT IS THE BEST EVAR.\"