Top tens are a very personal thing so I don’t expect everyone to agree with me but if asked to compile a list of the top ten British films of all time I would like to think at least a few of my suggestions would be on there. Seven of the ten films came out before I was born and the newest film on is over ten years old, is that a reflection on the state of British cinema or just my personal taste? I couldn’t rank them in any order if I tried so here they are in chronological order:
The 39 Steps (1935): John Buchan’s novel has been filmed many times but Alfred Hitchcock’s version remains by far the best. It is also probably the best pre-Hollywood Hitchcock and explores themes of an innocent man on the run after being wrongly accused, a theme synonymous with Hitchcock and best known in North by Northwest. The direction is well paced and there are some neat touches to in the photography. Don’t be put off by the age, this is a great film.
Brief Encounter (1945): David Lean’s masterpiece based on a Noel Coward play from ten years earlier this film has been criticised as been dated, but that is why it is so good. The film is so much of the era that I wonder if the spirit of the film could be captured today. In makes me think how amazing Atonement (a good film in its own right) could have been if made by a director like David Lean had he been alive today. As I mention at the end of this article I could have included another three David Lean films on the list.
Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949): Simply the best comedy of all time (or at least on a par with Some Like it Hot). The main character in the film is Louis (Dennis Price) who plots and executes the murder of eight relatives who stand between him and a Dukedom in revenge for the way the aristocratic family treated his late mother. However the star of the film is Alec Guinness playing all eight family members. There have been many suggestions of remakes but following the debacle that was The Ladykillers remake in 2004.
The Third Man (1949): Set in Vienna just after the end of the second world war against a backdrop of Blck Market. Everyone remembers the cuckoo-clock speech and the Anton Karas’ zither score but the film has so much more to offer. Joseph Cotton and Orsen Welles are perfectly cast and Robert Krasker’s photography is amazing. The story is beautifully paced and constructed under Carol Reeds direction (Stories of Orsen Welles taking over the direction have been refuted by all involved including Welles himself). The word classic is an over used one but in this case it really is a classic. Trivia note: Look out for appearances from Bernard Lee and Robert Brown both of whom went on to play M in James Bond Films.
From Russia With Love (1963): Surprised to see a Bond film in the top ten? This is still the best Bond film ever made in my opinion and as an early one (second) it is able to exist without all the baggage that the latter films had to deal with therefore making it a great film on its own merits not just a great Bond film. It is also one of the more faithful to the book but then it had great source material as it is also one of the best Ian Fleming Novels. The gadgets are kept to a minimum and are believable, the supporting cast is excellent and the villains are memorable.
Get Carter (1971): Bleak, brutal and sometimes violent. A grown up version of the British gangster films we have been seeing over the last ten years. The long tracking shots give a gritty realism and a near documentary feel to some of the film as does Michael Caine’s deadpan delivery. When you look beyond the grim exteria it is actually quite a stylish film. In 2004 Total Film selected it as the number one British movie of all time, this is a little genorouse but it is certainly worthy of a place in the top ten.
Don’t Look Now (1973): Short of a few jumps and shocks a film can never truly be scary but Don’t look now is a truly haunting film that disturbs you and stays with you for days. I first say the film when I was about fifteen and have seen it many times since. Although it never has that same impact a second time it still digs away into your mind. It is as beautiful as it is grim and is all the better for the ambiguity in certain parts of the plot and the fact it doesn’t neatly tie up loose ends. The chemistry between Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland is amazing. Anyone who hasn’t seen it go and get a DVD copy, turn the lights out and sit back and enjoy it uninterrupted.
Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979): Pure comedy geniuses. People often don’t look beyond the controversy to realise how incredibly clever and thought provoking this movie actually is, and incredibly funny at the same time. Even as a fan of the TV series I can still say this is Monty Python’s finest hour. The film is filled with quotable lines and is still funny after numerous viewings. One of the taglines used to advertise it was “A motion picture destined to offend nearly two thirds of the civilized world. And severely annoy the other third”.
The Long Good Friday (1980): Gritty British gangster film that shows Lock Stock and the new generation how its done. The style is probably more in keeping with the American black and white gangster movies than the new breed of the time like the Godfather, strangely this makes the film less dated than if it had been atypical 70s/80s movie. The cast reads like a whose who of British talent from the time and even includes a future Bond and a future Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels star, I will let you work out who they are for yourselves. I must admit I thought long and hard about the inclusion of this one as I haven’t seen the film for over ten years so I am assuming it will have the same impact it did when I have seen it in the past.
Trainspotting (1996): A film where everything works. Danny Boyle has made some great films but this and Slumdog Millionaire are probably the only two that are faultless and capture the imagination so perfectly. Set in the late 80’s the film is the perfect mirror for the feel-good Britpop soaked mid 90’s. Some people find the structure hard get to grips with but it just adds to the flavour of the film. It is full of memorable scenes, I started listing them but there are far too many, just watch the film.
So that’s my list of the best British films of all time. The ones that nearly made it are: Doctor Zhivago, in fact it would have been very easy to put Lawrence of Arabia and The Bridge on the River Kwai in as well but I decided to just go with one David Lean film although all of these could have had a place on the list. The Italian Job was also really hard to leave out. It will be interesting to see how we look back on more recent films in a few years time and The English Patient, Four Weddings and a Funeral and Slumdog Millionaire may appear in future. There are also lots of films others would put amongst their favourites that aren’t on the list such as Withnail & I.
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