The history of film can easily be defined by the specific releases contained throughout the 12-month window. Some are more robust than others in terms of great movie releases in their respective year. While some years are generally best known for only a select number of truly “great” films, others have been home to ample amounts of masterpieces released in quick succession. A generally remarkable feature is the large swath in genres and cinematic styles thatmake up a successful year in film history.
Update August 02, 2025: This article has been updated by Rafa Boladeras with even more great years in film history, as well as some additional titles to each year to showcase how great each respective years were.
This list will highlight some of the best years in the history of film and the projects that helped them receive their acclaimed status. Some years just had many great films released in a single year where one could go to a cinema every week and find something worth watching. Obviously, opinions will differ, but these years are agreed upon as having some amazing films released within them.
1975 and 1976 were great years for movies, but they didn’t have as many unique directors making their first films, and a couple of them made the movie they’re still known for today. That’s right,1977was the year the originalStar Warswas released, but also Woody Allen’sAnnie Hall. Both films have affected every movie in their genre that has come since, and only for that, this would already be a great movie year, but that was just the tip of the iceberg.
Steven Spielberg releasedClose Encounters of the Third Kind,David Lynch directedEraserhead,David Cronenberg hadRabid,Dario Argento made Suspiria, John Landis, and the creators of Airplane!did the hilariousKentucky Fried Movie,John Badham made a star of John Travolta inSaturday Night Fever,and Roger Moore had his best entry as James Bond inThe Spy Who Loved Me.If nothing else, this year was a moment where many directors from who we still watch movies today were showing their talents with low budgets and weird ideas, and that makes it a great year.
The year1946was the first full year of peace after World War II, and as such, it meant many more movies were produced than in the years before. The Hollywood studio system was in full swing, with incredible directors like William Wyler, Alfred Hitchcock, and John Ford all making films. In Europe, directors were also making their best work, as the Italian Neorealism was already showing how good Vitorio De Sica (Shoeshine) or Roberto Rossellini(Paisà)were, and in France and Russia, Jean Cocteau (La Belle et la Bete) and Sergei Eisenstein (Ivan the Terrible, Part 2) were also doing their thing.
The absolute variety of movies and their themes and styles also make this one of the best years in movie history, as there was space for noir movies like Howard Hawks’The Big Sleep, but also much more uplifting stories like Frank Capra’sIt’s a Wonderful Life,or William Wyler’sThe Best Years of Our Lives(that won most Academy Awards, seven). Other films worth a watch from that year were John Ford’sMy Darling Clementine,Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious, Charles Vidor’sGilda(with a great Rita Hayworth), and David Lean’sGreat Expectations.
2001was one of the best years in movie history as it was a timewith an incredible buffet of movie flavors and opportunities, be it franchises, indie films, animation, international hits, musicals, and first-time masterpieces from directors we still love today. It also marked a shift, as the events of September 11th would fundamentally alter Hollywood movies and shift the type of movies audiences wanted.
If you liked franchises,Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s StoneandLord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ringwere released just a month apart from one another. If you were into smaller character pieces, you hadMulholland DriveandThe Royal Tenenbaums.If you loved animation, there were Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, Dreamwork’sShrek, and Pixar’sMonsters Inc. Y Tu Mamá TambiénandAméliewere international films that also broke out with mainstream audiences. 2001 had such a wide array of films fromMoulin Rouge, A.I. Zoolander, Ocean’s Eleven,andDonnie Darko,making for a year full of interesting year that would be a turning point.
All the cinema we love today, their experimentation, the director as the author, and being able to tell small personal stories, changing the perception of what it was possible to do in film, can be traced to the movies of1959. This year marked the end of Classic Hollywood and was the start of the French New Wave, B-movies like Ed Wood’sPlan 9 from Outer Space,and real indie film movies, like John Cassavetes’Shadows,but it was also the time mainstream Hollywood released three of its still most iconic films; William Wyler’sBen-Hur(it changed action and stunts forever),North by Northwest(made Cary Grant and Alfred Hitchcock even bigger names), andSome Like It Hot(still Marylin Monroe’s best performance and one that tackled gays and trans).
Other great films of this year were Howard Hawks’Rio Bravo(Tarantino loves this movie), Disney’s animatedSleeping Beauty,the French New Wave’sThe 400 Blows,Hiroshima Mon AmourandPickpocket, andSatyajit Ray’sThe World of Apu.
Many films from1984remain beloved to this day. For comedic works, look to bothGhostbustersandBeverly Hills Cop. Additionally, films such asFootloose, Gremlins,andThe Karate Kidhave remained culturally memorable to this day. 1984 marked the release ofA Nightmare on Elm Street, introducing audiences toFreddy Kruger. Though it can be argued that no film from 1984 has had more relevance to the cultural zeitgeist than Arnold Schwarzenegger’s breakout performance inThe Terminator.
In terms of dramatic films,Amadeuswould be considered to be among the best and proved as such by hauling in an impressive eight Oscars. As well,The Killing Fieldstook home three Oscars, including one for Haing S. Ngor’s incredible performance. Wim Wenders’Paris, Texasis another standout film from the year. 1984 also provided the final films of two incredible directors: David Lean’sA Passage To Indiaand Sergio Leone’sOnce Upon A Time In America.
While some may argue that this is a “prisoner of the moment” type of selection,2022provided one of the strongest years in film history. The year is led by the award-winning masterpieceEverything Everywhere All at Once, a cinematic triumph in a plethora of ways. In terms of major blockbuster releases, the likes ofTop Gun: Maverick,Avatar: The Way of Water, andBlack Panther: Wakanda Foreverserve as massive triumphs both commercially and creatively.
Meanwhile, a plethora of notable directors released new entries that enhance their portfolio of cinematic classics. These include Steven Spielberg’sThe Fabelmans,Jordan Peele’sNope, and Martin McDonagh’sThe Banshees of Inisherin,though there are certainlymore worth mentioning. And in terms of films for the whole family, bothGuillermo del Toro’s PinocchioandMarcel the Shell with Shoes Onare two of the most poignantly resonant family-oriented films in a distinct period.
2012was a year that seemed to have a great film in almost every single genre. Quite a few of its best had espionage-centric stories, likeArgo,Zero Dark Thirty, andSkyfall, one of the best movies in the James Bond franchise. The year also saw the release ofLincoln, which won Daniel Day-Lewis his third Oscar through his much-acclaimed portrayal of the titular president. 2012 was a major year for superhero movies, as Christopher Nolan concluded his Batman films withThe Dark Knight Rises,and the MCU became the biggest pop culture franchise on the planet with the release ofThe Avengers.
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2012 is also host to well-received romantic dramasAmourandSilver Linings Playbook.As well Ang Lee’s directorial triumph in the adventurous adaptation ofLife of Pideserves a distinct mention.Beasts of the Southern Wildis another great film from this year. And while Paul Thomas Anderson’sThe Mastermight not be a film designed for everyone, it does contain two wonderful performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman.
1982was a great year for science fiction fans. The highest-grossing movie of the year, and for a while of all time, wasE.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. There were plenty of flavors of sci-fi that year, from horror sci-fi in John Carpenter’sThe Thing, Ridley Scott’s noir sci-fiBlade Runner, or classic swashbuckling adventure withStar Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. This was also the year Disney releasedTron, a breakthrough in special effects.
There was also the iconic horror film Poltergeist, the comedyFast Time as Ridgemont High, and the action-packedRocky IIIwere all released this year as well.An Officier and a Gentlemen,Tootsieand the Best Picture winnerGhandihelped make 1982 an amazing year for movies.
It’s a challenge to determine where to begin when discussing1989. Arguably the most notable place to start is withThe Little Mermaid, the film that kicked off the Disney Renaissance that revitalized the animation and family film juggernaut. It is also very much worth mentioning two fantastic romantic comedies that came out this year that defined a generation of the genre:When Harry Met SallyandSay Anything.
It’s a true positive for the success of the year when the biggest performers at the box office were the conclusion of Steven Spielberg’s seminal trilogy withIndiana Jones and The Last CrusadeandTim Burton’sBatman, a film that served as a launching point for the superhero genre of film.Crimes and Misdemeanorsand Steven Soderbergh’s debut film,Sex, Lies and Videotape, serve as high points in the world of serious dramas. Then there isGlory, one of the best US Civil War films ever made. One can’t forget to mentionDead Poets SocietyandMy Left Foot, which earned Daniel Day-Lewis his first of three Oscars. All of this is without mention of perhaps the most influential film of the year: Spike Lee’sDo The Right Thing.
1994saw the release of one of the most beloved movies Disney has ever put out. That film is, of course,The Lion King, which is still the highest-grossing hand-drawn animated movie. The second-highest-grossing film of the year wasForrest Gump, which was also the big winner at the Academy Awards that year thanks to the irreverent performance from Tom Hanks. For those looking for action movies,True Lies,Speed, andLeon: The Professionalare among the best in the genre.1994 was the year of Jim Carreyas the star had three movies open in the year:Dumb and Dumber,Ace Venture: Pet Detective, andThe Mask. Titles likeFour Weddings and a Funeral,Ed Wood, andNatural Born Killersfurther bolster the strength of 1994 in film.
And there is a definite need to mention three of the most memorable films of the year. The first is Frank Darabont’sThe Shawshank Redemption, the emotionally gripping adaptation of Stephen King’s classic novel that, while a box office bomb, was a critical favorite and has since become one of the most beloved movies of all time. The second was Quentin Tarantino’s magnum opus,Pulp Fiction, which left a huge impact on movies and proved that independent films could thrive at the box office.Kevin Smith’sdebut film,Clerks, premiered at Sundance at the beginning of the year and introduced the world to the director’s unique voice.
