My Starting Point for American Film Appreciation

These are NOT the "Top 100 Movies of All Time," NOR are they my "Top 100." They are debatable examples of broad, genres of fictitious, American film. Obviously more than 50 genres exist, but some are not fictitious (biopics and documentaries) and some are not American: Monty Python absurdist comedies (British) to Sergio Leone spaghetti westerns (Italian). If a person had never seen a single movie and wanted to catch up quickly with everything that is out there, these are first 100 that I would recommend. For each one listed here, there are many similar movies and/or sequels. A person could get a taste of more actors, directors, eras, settings, and storylines by watching all the movies here than from those on any "greatest movies" list. They could then branch out with what they enjoyed and at least say they gave the rest a try. The first title next to each genre is my obvious pick and the second is my alternate (to cover my bases):

Animated comedy - Shrek (2001)

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Animated drama - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)*

The Lion King (1994)
Children's comedy - The Wizard of Oz (1939)*

A Christmas Story (1983)
Children's drama - E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)*

The Little Princess (1939)
Classic action - Die Hard (1988)

Dirty Harry (1971)
Classic comedy - City Lights (1931)*

Duck Soup (1933)*
Classic drama - Casablanca (1942)*+

Citizen Kane (1941)*+
Classic horror - Jaws (1975)*+

Frankenstein (1931)
Classic sci-fi - Star Wars (1977)*+

Planet of the Apes (1968)
Classic thriller - Psycho (1960)*+

House of Usher (1960)
Comedy of errors - Forrest Gump (1994)*+

Some Like It Hot (1959) *+
Comedy of manners - The Graduate (1967)*

Dogma (1999)
Comic book action - Sin City (2005)+

Superman (1978)

Crime comedy - Pulp Fiction (1994)*+

The Sting (1973)+
Crime drama - The Godfather (1972)*+

Goodfellas (1990)
Cult drama - The Shawsank Redemption (1994)*+

It's a Wonderful Life (1946)*+
Cult horror - Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Saw (2004)
Fantasy adventure - Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)*+

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)*+
Historical action - Braveheart (1995)+

Ben-Hur (1959)*
Historical drama - Schindler's List (1993)*+

Gone with the Wind (1939)*
Martial arts action - Enter the Dragon (1977)

Rush Hour (1998)
Melodrama (chick flick) - Titanic (1997)*

An Affair to Remember (1957)
Musical comedy - Singin' in the Rain (1952)*+

Swing Time (1936)*
Musical drama - The Sound of Music (1965)*

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)*
Mystery thriller - Chinatown (1974)*+

In the Heat of the Night (1967)*
Noir thriller - Sunset Blvd. (1950)*+

The Maltese Falcon (1941)*+
Political comedy - Dr. Strangelove (1964)*+

Network (1976)*
Political thriller - The Manchurian Candidate (1962)+

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
Psychological drama - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)*+

Fight Club (1999)+
Psychological thriller - Silence of the Lambs (1991)*+

Cape Fear (1962)
Quirky comedy - The Big Lebowski (1998)

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
Road comedy - The Blues Brothers (1980)

It's a Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
Road drama - The Grapes of Wrath (1940)*

Easy Rider (1969)*
Romantic action - Bonnie and Clyde (1967)*

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
Romantic comedy - Annie Hall (1977)*

Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
Sci-fi thriller - Alien (1979)+

The Terminator (1980)
Screwball comedy - The Philadelphia Story (1940)*

The Lady Eve (1941)
Sex comedy - The 40-Year Old Virgin (2005)

She's Gotta Have It (1986)
Sex thriller - Blue Velvet (1986)

Basic Instinct (1992)
Slasher horror - Halloween (1978)

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Sports comedy - The Bad News Bears (1976)

Happy Gilmore (1996)
Sports drama - Rocky (1976)*

Remember the Titans (2000)
Spy (techno-) thriller - The Bourne Identity (2002)

Mission: Impossible (1996)

Supernatural horror - The Shining (1980)+

The Sixth Sense (1999)*
Teen comedy - The Breakfast Club (1985)

Gidget (1959)
Teen drama - Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

Boyz N the Hood (1991)
War comedy - M*A*S*H (1970)*

The General (1927)*
War drama - Platoon (1986)*

The Birth of a Nation (1915)
Western comedy - Blazing Saddles (1974)

Cat Ballou (1965)
Western drama - High Noon (1952)*

The Searchers (1956)*

I started compiling this list by breaking down well-known movie lists to discover the trends that define each one. I wanted to create my own, more comprehensive one, so I decided to base it on genres (which were never completely covered on other lists), but still represent different decades as evenly as possible. Only two movies per genre are included so many great movies are missing. Why were some minor subgenres (screwball, slasher, and spy movies) featured here while others (aviation, buddy, and courtroom movies) were not? All I can say is that I tried to include as many major actors, directors, and genres as I could. By the numbers, 1/3 are comedies, 1/3 are dramas, and action/adventure, horror/thriller, sci-fi/fantasy make up the other 1/3, which I feel is representative of what is actually released. Also, almost 1/2 of the AFI "Top 100" (*), 1/3 of the IMDb "Top 100" (+), and 1/5 of the Academy Award winners for best picture (in bold) are included on my list.