Is there such a thing as a perfect movie? We found 23 of them.
People have been debating this topic for years. Hundreds of movie fans recently shared the movies they think are perfect on Reddit, with selections ranging from Alien to Little Miss Sunshine to Catch Me If You Can.
After all that debate, a single movie emerged as the Most Perfect of Perfect Movies. Hot Fuzz earned astounding 30,200+ votes from readers as the perfect picture. If you want to know what makes Edgar Wright’s films so perfect, Every Frame a Painting will show you in this video.
We turned the question over to Film Threat’s amazing readers, and got a huge list of perfect movies—how many of these have you seen?
Keep reading for months and months of cinematic perfection. In the comments, tell us what we missed!
GOODFELLAS
This was the most-recommended perfect picture, according to Film Threat readers. The great Roger Ebert described this perfect film:
“Most films, even great ones, evaporate like mist once you’ve returned to the real world; they leave memories behind, but their reality fades fairly quickly. Not this film, which shows America’s finest filmmaker at the peak of his form. No finer film has ever been made about organized crime.”
BACK TO THE FUTURE
A number of Film Threat readers suggested this time travel classic. Bobby Schwartz added some context:
“Back to the Future is an obvious choice, as it’s a favorite to many. But I would argue it goes beyond that with perfect casting, perfect score and vfx, and a narrative pace that makes engaging concepts out of ideas that could easily be bad moves in a lesser film. A pure classic.”
THE FALL
Film Threat’s own Bobby Kenneth LePire added this movie because it has everything: “visually stunning, great characters, impactful story.”
Directed by Tarsem, the Indian director behind mind-bending thrillers like The Cell, and Self/less. And don’t forget “Losing My Religion,” one of the world’s perfect music videos.
In this video, the Best Movie Shots YouTube channel broke down the film’s amazing compositions.
THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM
Hunter Lanier recommended this perfect film:
“The best movie ever made about dependency, in its many forms. With a protagonist named Frankie Machine, the movie has to be perfect. Good names are undervalued.”
Let’s take a moment to appreciate the Saul Bass credit sequence…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS76whmt5Yc
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
Film Threat founder Chris Gore added this classic. “Very re-watchable too,” he adds.
Lady Loves Film agrees…
Great list!