Top 10 Films
Written on October 28th, 2025 by Dr Hobo
These are 10 films that have stuck with me over the years. No ranking - just movies I love and think are worth your time. As of October 2025.
Aliens (Director’s Cut)
Director: James Cameron
Year: 1986
Cameron took Ridley Scott’s horror and turned it into an action masterpiece: every set piece is perfectly crafted and the marines’ dialogue is endlessly quotable. Indeed, every sci-fi action game I’ve played pays homage to this piece of cinema. The Director’s Cut is a must with the extra scenes. The perfect sequel?
💬 Favorite Quote
They're coming outta the walls. They're coming outta the goddamn walls.
The Godfather
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Year: 1972
Brando, Pacino, and one of the most perfectly constructed films ever made. The transformation of Michael Corleone remains one of cinema’s greatest character arcs. Every frame and line is iconic. For me, its better then the sequel.
💬 Favorite Quote
Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Director: George Roy Hill
Year: 1969
The chemistry between Newman and Redford is electric, mixing humor and heart with classic Western action. The final freeze-frame always gets me, pure cinema magic. A film that never ages.
💬 Favorite Quote
Shouldn't take more than a couple of days. I'm not picky. As long as she's smart, pretty, and sweet, and gentle, and tender, and refined, and lovely, and carefree...
The Prestige
Director: Christopher Nolan
Year: 2006
Nolan’s most rewatchable film? Entertaining and a thoughtful meditation on obsession, sacrifice, and the cost of greatness. Bale and Jackman are phenomenal, Johansson beautiful.
💬 Favorite Quote
The secret impresses no one. The trick you use it for is everything.
Rocky
Director: John G. Avildsen
Year: 1976
Almost put in Rambo instead, but this classic wins out for me as it’s more then just a boxing film, dovetailing as a social commentry on 1970s Philidelphia also. It’s somehow able to be raw, honest, and inspiring without being cheesy (unlike its follow-ups). I love how he knows he’s going to lose, but is doing it anyway - on his own terms.
💬 Favorite Quote
You're gonna eat lightnin' and you're gonna crap thunder!
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Director: Steven Spielberg
Year: 1989
For me each one gets better, culminating with this one (P.S. I don’t recognize the existence of 4 & 5). Adding Connery as Indy’s dad was genius - their dynamic elevates everything. Adventure, humor, heart, and that final choice at the temple. Peak Spielberg delivering the complete action adventure family film.
💬 Favorite Quote
Nazis. I hate these guys.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (Director’s Cut)
Director: James Cameron
Year: 1991
Cameron in my list again, with another sequel. The liquid metal T-1000 was groundbreaking at the time and still holds up kind of. I love the motorbike scene, and the Sarah Connor transformation - immense performance by Linda Hamilton. Try to watch the Directors Cut for the definite version.
💬 Favorite Quote
I need your clothes, your boots and your motorcycle.
Casino
Director: Martin Scorsese
Year: 1995
Scorsese’s most underrated masterpiece. And yes, I think it’s better than Goodfellas - a hill I’ll happily die on. De Niro and Pesci at their brutal best, showing the rise and fall of Vegas with style and violence. The pen scene, the desert, Sharon Stone’s performance… utterly captivating.
💬 Favorite Quote
Listen to me very carefully. There are three ways of doing things around here: the right way, the wrong way, and the way that I do it. You understand?
Reservoir Dogs
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Year: 1992
Tarantino’s debut is arguably his best, stripped back and not as indulgent as his others. The dialogue, the soundtrack, that torture scene - all gripping. Film also announced many major acting talents too, such was its caliber.
💬 Favorite Quote
You keep talking like a bitch, I'm gonna slap you like a bitch.
The Matrix
Directors: The Wachowskis
Year: 1999
A film that redefined action cinema and influenced every subsequent video game in this genre - to the extent its (inferior) sequels felt more like a ‘game’ than a ‘film’. The bullet-time, the philosophy, the style - and themes still relevant today.
💬 Favorite Quote
I'm trying to free your mind, Neo. But I can only show you the door. You're the one that has to walk through it.
Honorable Mentions
These almost made the list, and on another day, some of them might have:
- Back to the Future (1985)
- The Usual Suspects (1995)
- L.A. Confidential (1997)
- The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
- Die Hard (1988)
- The Thing (1982)
- The Last King of Scotland (2006)
- My Cousin Vinny (1992)
- The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- The Incredibles (2004)
- Toy Story (1995)
- The Departed (2006)
- Inception (2010)
- The Rock (1996)
- Rambo: First Blood (1982)
- The Negotiator (1998)
- Rush Hour (1998)
- Alien (1979)
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
- Gladiator (2000)
- Predator (1987)
What are your top films? Disagree with my picks? Drop a comment and let me know what I’m missing!
