Since starting our own IMDB 250 challenge, Andrew and I have in total crossed 83 movies off of our list! If you missed it, we challenged ourselves to watch all of the movies from IMDB’s Top 250 list. Some have been pretty boring, but I wanted to share some of my favorites! I’m only going to write about movies that we hadn’t already seen since I am trying to broaden my movie horizon, haha.

I also included what number each movie is on the list. (This is according to our list from August, so the movie may/may not have changed its position on the list since that time). And, for fun I’ve provided my own twenty-words-or-less synopsis. If you want to view the movie’s IMDB page and consequently a more detailed summary of the movie, just click the number next to the movie.

Casablanca (1942) – #33
Synopsis: they fall in love in Paris during WWII, and meet again in Casablanca.

I adored this movie. I’m a sucker for old movies, so the romantic and history buff in me soaked all of this movie in. I just can’t believe I haven’t seen it until now! It just has the feel of a classic movie, which makes it hard to describe why you like it so much. The acting, plot, and characters were all perfect. Plus, it’s one of the most quoted movies. It was fun to hear all the lines throughout the movie and then go, “Oh! That’s what that line is from!” So far, Casablanca is my favorite movie from the new movies we’ve watched.

Here’s lookin’ at you, kid.

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) – #25
Synopsis: Weird angel shows a desperate and pennyless man what life would be like if he’d never been born.

Another old timey classic, this one makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. We watched this with Andrew’s family over Christmas. It’s always interesting to me to see how people end up where they are in life, and this movie showcases that really well. It also shows just how much of an impact people can have on others – even though you might not think so.

Infernal Affairs (2002) – #208
Synopsis: One’s an undercover cop in a gang, the other’s a mole in the police. Who’s who?

This is a Chinese movie that we watched with subtitles. Another movie on the list, The Departed (#44), is the American version, with the exact same plot just different actors. We didn’t realize they were the same movie until after we finished T he Departed. but we both agreed though The Departed had some really big name actors (Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Whalberg, and more), we both liked the original much better.

I actually liked the cast of Infernal Affairs a lot better, and I think part of it was because I didn’t know them. Damon and co. did a wonderful job in The Departed, but a lot of the times big actors can be really distracting from a movie. And even though we had to watch it with English subtitles, it was just overall a more enjoyable movie and seemed to flow better. It really kept you at the edge of your seat because it was so action packed! The end really surprised me, though it did leave me feeling a bit deflated afterwards. I would really recommend if you like suspense and action! I think this should be a lot higher on the list, but I’m assuming it’s a lot lower since it’s a foreign film.

Jaws (1975) – #214
Synopsis: There’s a large shark.

This movie was exactly what I thought it was going to be – but that’s not necessarily bad. Despite being forty years old, this movie holds up really well — just don’t focus too much on the shark! There were a few moments that made me jump, but it was an enjoyable, straight forward story. You have to at least watch it for the “I think we need a bigger boat” line! And for its infamous music!

We’ve watched a lot of movies on our list, but these are just a few that stood out to me. Have you seen any of these movies? If so, what did you think about them? We are currently working on The Man with No Name trilogy with Clint Eastwood. I’ve not watched very many westerns before but I’m really enjoying them!