Chicago Film Critics Break Down Sight and Sound’s New Greatest Films of All Time List


The latest edition of the revered “Greatest Films of All Time” list by Sight and Sound magazine was unveiled this month, sparking discussion about representation in film and which movies are often either included or left out in prestigious lists.

One of the most notable changes to the list was the No. 1 pick, “Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles” (1975) directed by Chantal Akerman. It’s the first film directed by a woman to land on the top of a list, beating out longtime former top picks like “Citizen Kane” and “Vertigo.”

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“It’s a landmark of feminist cinema, partially inspired by the life of the director’s mother,” said freelance film critic Marya Gates. “She specifically wanted to make a film that showed that her mother’s life mattered, that women who are homemakers — their lives matter, that these emotional ups and downs of their everyday life are just as poignant as Charles Foster Kane and Rosebud.”

The Sight and Sound list is determined once a decade by film critics who are asked to submit their own top 10 film nominations. This year’s edition featured the largest poll conducted with over 1,600 participants, including not only film critics but also programmers, curators, archivists and academics.

“How you feel about every movie is subjective in some way, we all approach movie and filmmaking and cinema with our own personal emotions, and I think everything in cinema and everything in art is inherently political,” said freelance film critic Robert Daniels. “The Sight and Sound poll is used to create a canon and how we want people to see film, how we want people to see the experiences of others is reflected in this poll.”

Both Gates and Daniels were asked to contribute their own ballots for the poll. 

You can find Marya Gates’s ballot picks here.

  • Gates’ movie recommendation from the list: “Daisies” (1966) directed by Věra Chytilová
  • A movie that didn’t make the final Slist that Gates wanted to highlight: “Shoes” (1916) directed by Lois Weber

You can find Robert Daniels’ ballot picks here.

  • Daniels’ movie recommendation from the list: "Killer of Sheep" (1977) directed by Charles Burnett
  • A movie that didn’t make the final list that Daniels wanted to highlight: “The Watermelon Woman” (1996) directed by Cheryl Dunye

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