AFI : 100 YEARS, 100 THRILLS

[CAPTAIN BLAKE]

For those who didn't know already, tonight (Tuesday the 12th) CBS will be broadcasting a show celebrating the top 100 thrillers of American cinema. Their definition of "thriller" is pretty broad, but amongst the 400 nominees (you can see all of them at the AFI website, and vote for your top 10 faves) are : THE EVIL DEAD, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, THE HILLS HAVE EYES, THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER, ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13, LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, THE EXORCIST, HALLOWEEN, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, THE SHINING, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, JAWS, SECONDS, SCREAM....and a lot of other horror titles I don't have time to list. Of course, they're pitted against things like STAR WARS, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, THE BIG SLEEP, and even (burp) TITANIC, so I doubt that too many of these will make the top 100. Either way, it should be an interesting show; Harrison Ford hosts, and rumor has it that John Carpenter will appear as well. The show airs from 8 pm till 11 pm. I'd love to hear all your angry feedback when TITANIC makes the list of "most thrilling", leaving no room for the much less exciting TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE.....

[AntonioDelLago]

I'll be taping it (fast-forwarding through commercials and stupid entries), so I'll post my comments tomorrow (June 13). Hope they don't "shut out" the horror genre in favor of more mainstream fare! I'll bet James Cameron bribed them to rank the TITANIC sinking #1!!! Even FRIDAY THE 13TH was among the 400 nominees, although I doubt it made the final cut (pun fully intended).

[AntonioDelLago]

I was genuinely and happily surprised of the inclusion of many horror classics on this Top 100 List, which included (in descending order):

PSYCHO, JAWS, THE EXORCIST, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, ALIEN, THE BIRDS, ROSEMARY'S BABY, THE SHINING, CARRIE, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956), WAIT UNTIL DARK, FRANKENSTEIN (1931), THE SIXTH SENSE, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?, HALLOWEEN, THE OMEN, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925), POLTERGEIST, DRACULA (1931), THE THING (1951) and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968).

PSYCHO, JAWS and THE EXORCIST were the top three films. Many actors and actresses were interviewed: Tippi Hedren of THE BIRDS fame looked great, as did Linda Blair; Jamie Lee and Janet Leigh didn't fare too well. Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed from ROCKY) was cool and intelligent as always, much UNLIKE Jean-Claude God Damn and Steven Seagal (what the hell were these two lame brains doing on the panel?). Anyway, I was surpsied that TERMINATOR 2 was the only sequel that made the list! What about ALIENS? Hitchcock's NORTH BY NORTHWEST was great, but should NOT have been #4, nor should it have ranked higher than the likes of THE BIRDS, REAR WINDOW and VERTIGO. I was also shocked by the exclusions of MISERY and the original version of THE HAUNTING, since both of those films have been deemed classics. I added a few of the non-horror films to my video rental list: THE BRIDGE OVER RIVER KWAI, THE TREASURE OF SIERRA MADRE and THE GUNS OF NAVARONE.

Anyone else see this program?

[This message has been edited by AntonioDelLago (edited 06-12-2001).]

[Bloodybitch13]

Yeah,I saw it all right. I thought Halloween would get a higher rating than it did. And where was Freddy I know he was lame in his later movies, but in the first one he was really scary.And why the F**k was Wizard of Oz on that list? WHERE WAS JASON????!!!!!!
I didn't see him any where! That one movie they mentioned,Dorian Grey looked interresting. Good thing I read the book since they gave away the ending! And why did they go back and tell us the past 4 or 5 movies all over again? Why was Robin Hood listed? Grrrrrrrrrrr so many lame movies on that list. At least they got SOMETHING right.Psycho was THE horror movie. I think Exorcist should come in second since they DID pass out barf bags to the audience. A lot of people fainted too. One last question then I'm outta here-Why was Jaws on the list?
There is nothing scary about an oversized tuna. Not to me anyway. /ubb/biggrin.gif

[Bloodybitch13]

P.S. Saving private Ryan really is horrorable at the very beging. Definatly worth seeing it too should have got a higher ranking. Wanna know what war was like watch it. I had been wondering about that rabit film. speaking of which,guess what I'm having for dinner? /ubb/biggrin.gif

[SteveSzyk]

I must say my heart was pounding much more during The Exorcist then Psycho.

But besides that I didn't mind many of the choices. I was glad my favorite non-horror flick, Speed got on the list, even though it was 99. It was great to see Halloween up there and I was quite happy when The Wizard of Oz got in. I must admit whe I was younger this film scared the living crap out of me.

I was hoping The Evil Dead would get up somewhere but oh well, what can you do?

[SteveSzyk]

Just thought I would post the list for whoever didn't see it...

1. PSYCHO (1960)
2. JAWS (1975)

3. THE EXORCIST (1973)

4. NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959)

5. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)

6. ALIEN (1979)

7. THE BIRDS (1963)

8. THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971)

9. ROSEMARY'S BABY (1968)

10. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981)

11. THE GODFATHER (1972)

12. KING KONG (1933)

13. BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967)

14. REAR WINDOW (1954)

15. DELIVERANCE (1972)

16. CHINATOWN (1974)

17. THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (1962)

18. VERTIGO (1958)

19. THE GREAT ESCAPE (1963)

20. HIGH NOON (1952)

21. A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971)

22. TAXI DRIVER (1976)

23. LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962)

24. DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944)

25. TITANIC (1997)

26. THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)

27. STAR WARS (1977)

28. FATAL ATTRACTION (1987)

29. THE SHINING (1980)

30. THE DEER HUNTER (1978)

31. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)

32. STRANGERS ON A TRAIN (1951)

33. THE FUGITIVE (1993)

34. THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER (1955)

35. JURASSIC PARK (1993)

36. BULLITT (1968)

37. CASABLANCA (1942)

38. NOTORIOUS (1946)

39. DIE HARD (1988)

40. 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968)

41. DIRTY HARRY (1971)

42. THE TERMINATOR (1984)

43. THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939)

44. E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (1982)

45. SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (1998)

46. CARRIE (1976)

47. INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)

48. DIAL M FOR MURDER (1954)

49. BEN-HUR (1959)

50. MARATHON MAN (1976)

51. RAGING BULL (1980)

52. ROCKY (1976)

53. PULP FICTION (1994)

54. BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969)

55. WAIT UNTIL DARK (1967)

56. FRANKENSTEIN (1931)

57. ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN (1976)

58. THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI (1957)

59. PLANET OF THE APES (1968)

60. THE SIXTH SENSE (1999)

61. CAPE FEAR (1962)

62. SPARTACUS (1960)

63. WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? (1962)

64. TOUCH OF EVIL (1958)

65. THE DIRTY DOZEN (1967)

66. THE MATRIX (1999)

67. THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (1948)

68. HALLOWEEN (1978)

69. THE WILD BUNCH (1969)

70. DOG DAY AFTERNOON (1975)

71. GOLDFINGER (1964)

72. PLATOON (1986)

73. LAURA (1944)

74. BLADE RUNNER (1982)

75. THE THIRD MAN (1949)

76. THELMA & LOUISE (1991)

77. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991)

78. GASLIGHT (1944)

79. THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (1960)

80. REBECCA (1940)

81. THE OMEN (1976)

82. THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (1951)

83. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925)

84. POLTERGEIST (1982)

85. DRACULA (1931)

86. THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY (1945)

87. THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD (1951)

88. 12 ANGRY MEN (1957)

89. THE GUNS OF NAVARONE (1961)

90. THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE (1972)

91. BRAVEHEART (1995)

92. BODY HEAT (1981)

93. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)

94. THE CHINA SYNDROME (1979)

95. FULL METAL JACKET (1987)

96. BLUE VELVET (1986)

97. SAFETY LAST (1923)

98. BLOOD SIMPLE (1984)

99. SPEED (1994)

100. THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (1938)

[The Rob]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">I was genuinely and happily surprised of the inclusion of many horror classics on this Top 100 List, which included (in descending order):
PSYCHO, JAWS, THE EXORCIST, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, ALIEN, THE BIRDS, ROSEMARY'S BABY, THE SHINING, CARRIE, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956), WAIT UNTIL DARK, FRANKENSTEIN (1931), THE SIXTH SENSE, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?, HALLOWEEN, THE OMEN, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925), POLTERGEIST, DRACULA (1931), THE THING (1951) and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968).

PSYCHO, JAWS and THE EXORCIST were the top three films. Many actors and actresses were interviewed: Tippi Hedren of THE BIRDS fame looked great, as did Linda Blair; Jamie Lee and Janet Leigh didn't fare too well. Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed from ROCKY) was cool and intelligent as always, much UNLIKE Jean-Claude God Damn and Steven Seagal (what the hell were these two lame brains doing on the panel?). Anyway, I was surpsied that TERMINATOR 2 was the only sequel that made the list! What about ALIENS? Hitchcock's NORTH BY NORTHWEST was great, but should NOT have been #4, nor should it have ranked higher than the likes of THE BIRDS, REAR WINDOW and VERTIGO. I was also shocked by the exclusions of MISERY and the original version of THE HAUNTING, since both of those films have been deemed classics. I added a few of the non-horror films to my video rental list: THE BRIDGE OVER RIVER KWAI, THE TREASURE OF SIERRA MADRE and THE GUNS OF NAVARONE.</font>

almsot EXACTLY what I was going to say /ubb/smile.gif

[The Rob]

oh yeah and I actually successfully guessed the first 3 movies (yes!)

[Adam J. Hakari]

Overall, I was surprised with some of the selections on the list. I correctly guessed that "The Exorcist" and "Psycho" would be within at least the top five, but I'm sad to see that "Terminator 2", as much as it deserves to be on the list, is the ONLY sequel among the 100; "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Aliens" so needed to be on there (for the record, I still consider "Alien" to be overrated; I'm a big fan of #3).

[jgjavi]

the adventures of robin hood?braveheart?12angry men?thelma and louise?rocky?
sure their good movies but thrillers, what crack addict did they get to define thriller?

[Dr. Movielove]

I correctly guessed the first 2 and I recorded it...yea jgjavi I know, what the hell is rocky doing on it?

[TheArtistFormerlyKnownAs]

Um... since when was The Wizard of Oz a thriller...??

[The Rob]

well, ok here's what they mena by thriller...
A moment or moments in a movie that have you on the edge of your seat. All of the above acomplish that.


ex: Rocky 1 when apollo pucnhes him down and he gets back up ! ! !

[AntonioDelLago]

AFI should have included a ~SPOILER ALERT~ before the show aired, since the endings of THELMA & LOUISE, LAURA and PSYCHO were revealed. Much more unforgivable than the silly inclusions of ROCKY, RAGING BULL and the original ROBIN HOOD (all great films, though not thrillers). Also, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK was much more thrilling than STAR WARS (what's with the sequel snubbing?).

[This message has been edited by AntonioDelLago (edited 06-13-2001).]

[S. PLISSKEN]

Halloween #68?! What the @#%*!

[jgjavi]

titanic?a thriller?didnt everyone know the end?sure nice special effects, but the only time I was on the edge of my seat was when I fell asleep during the stupid love story.
-what do you expect when steven segal is part of your panel? Memento would have been a nice addition...

[SteveSzyk]

We should try to make a better list just for fun here at the forum. Anyone up for it?

[CAPTAIN BLAKE]

The worst thing about this show was the inclusiveness. There's a huge difference in the "thrills" you get from seeing CHINATOWN or FRANKENSTEIN, or 12 ANGRY MEN(?!) versus THE SHINING. They should have divided these into genre categories, like action/adventure, drama, horror, etc. The horror genre is a diverse enough landscape as it is, if our emotional responses to films like DAWN OF THE DEAD and THE SIXTH SENSE (both "horror" films) are any indication. I like nearly all the films that made the top 100, though the order was a little suspect. That's to be expected, it always will be with lists like these; It's all relative, and just because 1800 folks say PLANET OF THE APES (or even ALIEN, at that) is a more thrilling and suspenseful film than HALLOWEEN just don't make it so. It seems to me that just about every movie relies on thrills of one sort or another, visceral or cerebral, so if they want to compare the thrills of RAGING BULL's fight scenes to the thrills of THE HILLS HAVE EYES(which was nominated) flesh eating mutants, why not go ahead and throw in the thrills of SINGIN' IN THE RAIN's dance numbers? It's really not any more inane than what they actually did.

[CAPTAIN BLAKE]

And ANTONIO, I agree with you on NORTH BY NORTHWEST, Hitchcock's most overrated film in my opinion. Better than VERTIGO and REAR WINDOW? No f*cking way, and you can quote me on that.

[AntonioDelLago]

CAPTAIN BLAKE, I guess "N by NW" was included because of the cropduster chase scene and the Mt. Rushmore finale, but is it not more thrilling than the afore-mentioned VERTIGO or REAR WINDOW, and nowhere near the same league as THE BIRDS, NOTORIOUS or STRANGERS ON A TRAIN.

[This message has been edited by AntonioDelLago (edited 06-13-2001).]

[jgjavi]

It seems that many of these movies were included because of one thrilling scene...one thhrilling scene does not make a movie. if so where's when a stranger calls, scream,cliffhanger, etc...it really seems that no one involved in making this list knew what made a thriller...they should have just sepereated them into smaller categories - best horror, best action, mystery, etc...

[countchocula]

My complaint with the show is that they didn't spend enough time on each movie. They should have made the countdown stretch across the week doing twenty movies a night. It bothered me that they crammed 100 films into a couple hours.

[The Rob]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Much more unforgivable than the silly inclusions of ROCKY, </font>
Woah ! ! stay away from Rocky /ubb/biggrin.gif

[pizowell]

Very disapointing, a bad list of flicks.

[Seph]

I wouldn't call it disappointing. But definitely not fulfilling. It's hard to be disappointed if the expectations are realistic. No one could really expect AFI to put a Friday the 13th film or something like that on a Top 100 ANYTHING. It's more than just a bit of politics there.

[Bloodybitch13]

I've been thinking...even though I concider "Psycho" to be the greatest movie in the world,"Exorcist" should have been #1 on the grounds that a lot more people were freaking out in the the theater than those who saw "Psycho".
I'm not really mad that they gave away the ending to "Psycho" I mean I think most people have seen this film. If anyone on this site hasn't please let me know. If we should start our own list, would we have to create a new page? I'm going to try and the moderaters can lock me out if they have to.
I am seriously upset that "Nightmare" didn't make the list. "Puppetmaster" was missing too. WOW! a lot of those movies were OLD!