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Search 713 spoiler-free recommendations from 1916 to 2026. Filter by the night you want—not the list you’re supposed to finish.

Direct film viewShowing master rank #509 on its own—not above the ranking.
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Artwork
DirectorAll directors

Most represented · 6+ films

More recurring directors · 3–5 films54
All directors · surname A–Z438
ActorAll actors

Most represented actors

Big Three membership
Major award winners

1 selected film

Master Rank balances Greatness, Engagement, and Ease. Sort by Greatness for the artistic-canon view.

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View The Leopard film page
Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

A Sicilian prince watches his family and class confront the political upheaval of Italian unification.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

During Garibaldi's campaign in 1860 Sicily, Prince Fabrizio of Salina watches aristocratic authority yield to a new political order. His ambitious nephew Tancredi courts beautiful Angelica, daughter of wealthy bourgeois mayor Don Calogero Sedara.

Why it belongs

Through Sicilian landscape, aristocratic ritual, and Lancaster's prince recognizing that survival may require surrender, The Leopard makes historical transition sensuous.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Burt Lancaster's stillness carries lucid melancholy. Dust, palaces, military processions, hunting estates, formal dinners, fading frescoes, and the extended ballroom sequence make class change visible in bodies and décor.

Major award record

Metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Cannes1 win1963 · official festival record ↗
Palme d'or (Remis à l'unanimité)1963 · Luchino VISCONTIofficial festival record ↗

Totals include every recorded competitive win. Only Picture or top-film honors, Direction, Screenplay, and lead or supporting performances are named.

Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.

Institutional reference ranks

Sight & Sound90IMDb Top 250—AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score

Great Cinema Master List scores

Greatness9.4
Engagement8.1
Ease6.8

Italian · Not Rated
Narrative Feature
Mood: Absorbing & Reflective