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24 films · Greatness 9+ · Ease below 5 · Top 24

Demanding Masterworks

Twenty-four formidable achievements that reward preparation, patience, and exactly the right night.

Every selection has Greatness of at least 9 and Ease below 5. These twenty-four films ask more of the viewer while offering exceptional artistic achievement. A low Ease score describes viewing demands, rather than a reduction in artistic value.

How GCML scores and ranks films →

Refine this collection →Browse all 713 films A to Z →

Films in this collection

  1. Come and See (1985)

    Elem Klimov · USSR · 142 min

    Master Rank #503 · GCML Total 8.38

  2. Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980)

    Rainer Werner Fassbinder · West Germany · 931 min

    Master Rank #602 · GCML Total 7.90

  3. The Color of Pomegranates (1969)

    Sergei Parajanov · USSR · 79 min

    Master Rank #635 · GCML Total 7.64

  4. Napoleon (1927)

    Abel Gance · France · 332 min

    Master Rank #636 · GCML Total 7.64

  5. Ordet (1955)

    Carl Theodor Dreyer · Denmark · 126 min

    Master Rank #642 · GCML Total 7.60

  6. Shoah (1985)

    Claude Lanzmann · France · 566 min

    Master Rank #653 · GCML Total 7.50

  7. Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages (1916)

    D.W. Griffith · USA · 197 min

    Master Rank #658 · GCML Total 7.40

  8. Meshes of the Afternoon (1943)

    Maya Deren, Alexander Hammid · USA · 14 min

    Master Rank #659 · GCML Total 7.40

  9. Sans Soleil (1983)

    Chris Marker · France · 100 min

    Master Rank #662 · GCML Total 7.36

  10. Red Desert (1964)

    Michelangelo Antonioni · Italy / France · 120 min

    Master Rank #663 · GCML Total 7.36

  11. Greed (1924)

    Erich von Stroheim · USA · 140 min

    Master Rank #666 · GCML Total 7.28

  12. Flowers of Shanghai (1998)

    Hou Hsiao-hsien · Taiwan / Japan · 130 min

    Master Rank #667 · GCML Total 7.28

  13. L'Eclisse (1962)

    Michelangelo Antonioni · Italy / France · 126 min

    Master Rank #671 · GCML Total 7.24

  14. Syndromes and a Century (2006)

    Apichatpong Weerasethakul · Thailand / France / Austria · 105 min

    Master Rank #674 · GCML Total 7.16

  15. Gertrud (1964)

    Carl Theodor Dreyer · Denmark · 119 min

    Master Rank #676 · GCML Total 7.14

  16. Céline and Julie Go Boating (1974)

    Jacques Rivette · France · 193 min

    Master Rank #680 · GCML Total 7.08

  17. Twin Peaks: The Return (2017)

    David Lynch · USA · 1028 min

    Master Rank #684 · GCML Total 7.00

  18. Tropical Malady (2004)

    Apichatpong Weerasethakul · Thailand / France / Germany · 118 min

    Master Rank #688 · GCML Total 6.92

  19. Goodbye, Dragon Inn (2003)

    Tsai Ming-liang · Taiwan · 82 min

    Master Rank #692 · GCML Total 6.88

  20. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)

    Apichatpong Weerasethakul · Thailand / France / UK / Germany / Spain · 114 min

    Master Rank #693 · GCML Total 6.84

  21. The Hour of the Furnaces (1968)

    Fernando E. Solanas, Octavio Getino · Argentina · 260 min

    Master Rank #695 · GCML Total 6.80

  22. News from Home (1976)

    Chantal Akerman · Belgium / France · 85 min

    Master Rank #696 · GCML Total 6.80

  23. Werckmeister Harmonies (2000)

    Béla Tarr, Ágnes Hranitzky · Hungary / Germany / France · 145 min

    Master Rank #701 · GCML Total 6.68

  24. Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

    Chantal Akerman · Belgium / France · 201 min

    Master Rank #702 · GCML Total 6.66