The 50 Greatest Movies of All-Time, According to IMDb

With just about every film available to stream on one platform or another, there’s no better time to make your way through some of the classics you’ve been meaning to watch for years—and according to IMDb, you should probably start with The Shawshank Redemption. The 1994 prison drama, based on Stephen King’s novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, ranks highest on IMDb’s list of top-rated movies of all time with a score of 9.2 out of 10.

IMDb’s ranking system isn’t as simple as listing all films in descending order by rating. A film needs to have a minimum of 25,000 user ratings to even qualify for the list, and those ratings must come from “regular IMDb voters,” though the site doesn’t specify how that group is chosen. Then, IMDb determines the film’s position using a weighted formula that accounts for the total number of ratings and rating average. In other words, just because 1998’s Saving Private Ryan (in the 27th spot) and 1968’s Once Upon a Time in the West (number 49) both have an 8.5 rating doesn’t mean they’re tied.

There are two truths that seem to be universally acknowledged among regular IMDb voters. One: Audiences love a good mob movie. The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather: Part II (1974) sit in the second and third spots, respectively, and 1990’s GoodFellas and 2006’s The Departed are both in the top 50. And two: Christopher Nolan can direct the heck out of anything. He has four films on the list, including The Dark Knight (2008), Inception (2010), Interstellar (2014), and The Prestige (2006).

Considering the 25,000-rating minimum, it’s pretty impressive that certain recent films have already made the cut. This year’s Best Picture Oscar winner Parasite, for example, ranks 29th with an average rating of 8.5, and 2020’s Hamilton—which debuted on Disney+ mere weeks ago—is number 19, with an 8.6.

Scroll through the top 50 films below, and see IMDb’s full list of 250 here.

1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) // 9.2

1. The Godfather (1972) // 9.1

1. The Godfather: Part II (1974) // 9.0

1. The Dark Knight (2008) // 9.0

1. 12 Angry Men (1957) // 8.9

1. Schindler’s List (1993) // 8.9

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) // 8.9

1. Pulp Fiction (1994) // 8.8

1. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) // 8.8

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) // 8.8

1. Fight Club (1999) // 8.8

1. Forrest Gump (1994) // 8.8

1. Inception (2010) // 8.7

1. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) // 8.7

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) // 8.7

1. The Matrix (1999) // 8.6

1. GoodFellas (1990) // 8.6

1. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) // 8.6

1. Hamilton (2020) // 8.6

1. Seven Samurai (1954) // 8.6

1. Se7en (1995) // 8.6

1. Life Is Beautiful (1997) // 8.6

1. City of God (2002) // 8.6

1. The Silence of the Lambs (1991) // 8.6

1. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) // 8.6

1. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) // 8.6

1. Saving Private Ryan (1998) // 8.5

1. Spirited Away (2001) // 8.5

1. Parasite (2019) // 8.5

1. The Green Mile (1999) // 8.5

1. Interstellar (2014) // 8.5

1. Léon: The Professional (1994) // 8.5

1. The Usual Suspects (1995) // 8.5

1. Harakiri (1962) // 8.5

1. The Lion King (1994) // 8.5

1. Back to the Future (1985) // 8.5

1. The Pianist (2002) // 8.5

1. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) // 8.5

1. American History X (1998) // 8.5

1. Modern Times (1936) // 8.5

1. Psycho (1960) // 8.5

1. Gladiator (2000) // 8.5

1. City Lights (1931) // 8.5

1. The Departed (2006) // 8.5

1. The Intouchables (2011) // 8.5

1. Whiplash (2014) // 8.5

1. The Prestige (2006) // 8.5

1. Grave of the Fireflies (1988) // 8.5

1. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) // 8.5

1. Casablanca (1942) // 8.4