Back in the 1990s, my pal David Blaylock’s parents asked him to come up with a pseudonym for writing on the internet (on cinema-scene.com, to be precise). He went with David “Perry” because of Matthew Perry of the TV show Friends. In 2002, while we lived in the dorms of The University of Tennessee, Blaylock — a.k.a. Perry — introduced me to Ed Gonzalez, co-founder of Slant Magazine.

Slant featured a different type of film criticism than what I had read growing up or written myself; it was intensely auteurist. Gonzalez also revealed himself to be a list-whore and made public his top 10 films of each year from 1910 to present. Hence, the inspiration for this project of my own.

Year by year, I have chosen to highlight various elements that made the greatest films great — cinematography, music, performances, costume design, etc — in addition to listing the directors who made them (for I too am an auteurist). Because Fritz Lang was one of my first beloved directors, I decided to name my superlatives after him. I introduce to you, the Fritz Goldens.


The Fritz Golden Superlatives:

2020s: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020

2010s: 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010

  • Best of the Decade: 2010s

2000s: 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000

  • Best of the Decade: 2000s

1990s: 1999, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1993, 1992, 1991, 1990

  • Best of the Decade: 1990s

1980s: 1989, 1988, 1987, 1986, 1985, 1984, 1983, 1982, 1981, 1980

  • Best of the Decade: 1980s

1970s: 1979, 1978, 1977, 1976, 1975, 1974, 1973, 1972, 1971, 1970

1960s: 1969, 1968, 1967, 1966, 1965, 1964, 1963, 1962, 1961, 1960

1950s: 1959, 1958, 1957, 1956, 1955, 1954, 1953, 1952, 1951, 1950

1940s: 1940 - 1949

1930s: 1930 - 1939

and finally: 1920 - 1929 + Superlatives Index (which is in desperate need of an update, so incomplete at the moment)

NOTES: 

I used a little bit of film history to create a few extra categories. For instance, the Best Ensemble Cast and Best First Feature Film awards were created in 1942, spurred on by the game-changing debut from Orson Welles’s Citizen Kane. Additionally, my lists changed from top 5 to top 10 starting in 1940 because it was the year of greatest early Hollywood achievement. From 1940 onward, dozens of fantastic films were released each year, from many countries. Due to expansions in their mediums, in the 1940s I added Best Animated Feature, in the 1960s I added Best Documentary and in the 2000s I added best anthology (for serial mini-series or film collections).

I sorted most films by the year they premiered in the U.S. or at the very least had a UK debut if it took years for an international film to get to the States (like Aguirre, the Wrath of God). In addition, almost all films released from Russia during the Cold War didn’t play in the states until the 90s, so they’re sorted by their Russian release year (I Am Cuba, The Cranes Are Flying, etc. — so many great ones). ESSENTIALLY, if it took more than five years from a festival debut to hit the U.S. than I kept it in its original year.