Now, I've always preferred hamburger to steak, so let's just say at times my choices may not exactly be prime rib. And since the AV club version had alternates, well, I decided to include a couple of runners-up for each year.
I am prepared for the wholesale mocking I am about to receive for some of these choices.
1976: Network. I just watched this last week, and it still holds up remarkably well in a creepy, creepy way. Runners-Up: Assault on Precinct 13/All the President's Men
1977: A Bridge Too Far. I've expressed a great affection for this movie in the past, and I still feel it got gypped in terms of Oscar nominations. Runners-Up: The Spy Who Loved Me/Star Wars
1978: Dawn of the Dead. A movie that inspired so many, and when I saw it as a kid, I was traumatized, but man, it has some staying power. Runners-Up: Animal House/Halloween
1979: The Warriors. This one was a toss-up, with the tie breaker being mainly based on the fact that if given a choice most days, I would watch the one I chose. Runners-Up: Alien/China Syndrome
1980: Caddyshack. I'm all about the 'shack... Bill Murray, Ted Knight, Rodney Dangerfield... all I have to say. Runners-Up:The Empire Strikes Back/The Shining
1981: Raiders of the Lost Ark. Do I really need to explain this choice? Honestly, I don't think I have to. Runners-Up: Escape from New York/Thief
1982: The Thing. Another one of my favorite movies. To me, this is the alien-related movie of 1982, even though the other one made me cry... it just hasn't held up the same way for me. Runners-Up: Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid/The World According to Garp
1983: WarGames. I watch this movie every time it is on. It is silly, but I like it. Runners-Up: Trading Places/Monty Python's Meaning of Life
1984: Beverly Hills Cop. A great action/comedy, and a movie that balances those two aspects well. Runners-Up: Ghostbusters/Revenge of the Nerds
1985: Silverado. Until I tried putting together this list, I never realized how many movies I loved were made in 1985. I am sort of surprised that Silverado ended up at the top of this year for me, but through the "what would you rather watch?" game, it prevailed. Runners-Up: Remo Williams/Better Off Dead
1986: Night of the Creeps. I'm not going to defend it at length. It is just good, writhing fun, what can I say? Runners-Up: Tampopo/Ruthless People
1987: Raising Arizona. A Coen Brothers comedic farce over a balls-to-the-wall, tricked out action satire? This was the closest year for two movies to take #1 for me... the margin was hair thin. Runners-Up: Robocop/Princess Bride
1988: Die Hard. John McClane kicks serious ass while getting chewed up by the rigors of an action movie. Talk about a legend. Runners-Up: Comic Book Confidential/Bloodsport
1989: Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. After seeing this again recently, the elements of the plot hold together really well, especially for a time travel movie, and the two leads are still likable. Runners-Up: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade/Uncle Buck
1990: Quick Change. I think this is one of the most underrated movies ever made. Snake Plissken had an easier time escaping from New York than these three hapless bank robbers. Runners-Up: GoodFellas/Robocop II
1991: Silence of the Lambs. Even though Anthony Hopkins does ham it up a bit, I've always felt that this movie was a great atmospheric thriller. Runners-Up: Terminator II/Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey
1992: Wayne's World. It is a goofy movie that realizes it is such and plays to those strengths with a wink. Runners-Up: My Cousin Vinnie/Manufacturing Consent
1993: Gettysburg. An epic battle deserves an epic movie. It was perhaps Jeff Daniels' finest role to date. Runners-Up: The Sandlot/Last Action Hero
1994: Pulp Fiction. I went with the easy choice... Sam Jackson, Bruce Willis, Ving Rhames. I can't deny their combined star power in this movie. Runners-Up: The Paper/True Lies
1995: Babe. It makes me weep more every time I see it. Runners-Up: Goldeneye/Die Hard with a Vengeance
1996: The Long Kiss Goodnight. I wrote about this movie as one of my first Remembering columns, and I still think it is one of the hippest and most quotable little action movies to come out in the past couple of decades. Runners-Up: Matilda/The People Vs. Larry Flynt
1997: L.A. Confidential. A taut cop procedural with corruption, Hollywood vice and an all-star cast. What is not to like? Runners-Up: Starship Troopers/The Fifth Element
1998: The Big Lebowski. Was there any doubt that this would be my choice for 1998? Runners-Up: Ronin/Babe:Pig in the City
1999: Fight Club. I still laugh every time I see this movie when I picture Janeane Garofalo playing Marla Singer. A great big swig of Fincher style. Runners-Up: Galaxy Quest/Payback
2000: O Brother, Where Art Thou?. Good Actors. Check. Good writing. Check. An Allusion to another work of myth/fiction that I love. Double Check. Runners-Up: The Whole Nine Yards/Snatch
2001: Ocean's Eleven. I like a good con, or a good scheme, and what plays out in this Steven Soderburgh remake is exactly what I am talking about. Runners-Up: Series 7: The Contenders/Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back
2002: An Evening with Kevin Smith. While not a theatrical release, I still count it as a documentary, and it was one of the most entertaining and informative things I saw that year. Runners-Up: The Bourne Identity/XXX
2003: Kill Bill Vol. 1. I like Spaghetti Westerns, I like Kung Fu/Samurai movies, and I love revenge... so this one is a given. Runners-Up: The Corporation/Old School
2004: Kill Bill Vol. 2. See above. Runners-Up: Shaun of the Dead/Anchorman
2005: Sin City. Stylish, ultra-violent and just really good at what it does, this movie has stuck with me since I saw it. Runners-Up: Kung Fu Hustle/Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
2006: Casino Royale. I have been a James Bond fan since I was a kid (I was a Moore man), and this movie made me forget about the gimmicks and the half-hearted humor of those earlier films and see the character anew. To erase a 40 year legacy in one film and rebuild it just as quickly is something truly noteworthy. Runners-Up: Lucky Number Slevin/Cocaine Cowboys
2007: Hot Fuzz. A spoof and true homage to the entire police procedural/cop action movie ever made. I love what Pegg and Wright do, and I look forward to the last part of their Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy. Runners-Up: Shoot Em Up/No Country for Old Men
Now, I haven't seen enough movies from 2008 to actually make a choice at this moment, which I think is the best option at the moment.
So, let the mocking begin. And feel free to try this little exercise yourself.
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