Best Movie on IMDb Top 250's Shadow List
by urbanemovies | created - 08 Aug 2017 | updated - 20 Oct 2018 | PublicMost of these movies spent the majority of the past twenty years listed on the IMDb Movie Top 250. Despite, their lengthy stays as fixtures in the IMDb Top 250 these movies have been replaced by newer, more popular, more worldly and higher rated options in recent years. The Shadow 100 is comprised of movies that have disappeared from the IMDb Top 250 but have been on it the longest. Given the IMDb Top 250's eligible movies pool growth, its widening international scope, its higher inclusion thresholds and the nature of voting for movies: The likelihood of any of these movies reclaiming a Top 250 spot is slim.
Which select Shadow 100 movie* not currently listed in the IMDb Top 250, but formerly a long time IMDb Top 250 member, would you rate the highest? * listed in order of IMDb Top 250 recurrence, Source: IMDb Movie Top 250 Shadow 100
Cast your vote here or See Your IMDb Movie Answer Option Ratings or Discuss the Topic Here.
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Strangers on a Train (1951)
PG | 101 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
A psychopathic man tries to forcibly persuade a tennis star to agree to his theory that two strangers can get away with murder by submitting to his plan to kill the other's most-hated person.
Director: Alfred Hitchcock | Stars: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, Ruth Roman, Leo G. Carroll
Votes: 140,950 | Gross: $7.63M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 78 (on 12 April 1999)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 28 April 2017
Shadow Rank: 6 out 100 89%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
2. High Noon (1952)
PG | 85 min | Drama, Thriller, Western
A town Marshal, despite the disagreements of his newlywed bride and the townspeople around him, must face a gang of deadly killers alone at "high noon" when the gang leader, an outlaw he "sent up" years ago, arrives on the noon train.
Director: Fred Zinnemann | Stars: Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Thomas Mitchell, Lloyd Bridges
Votes: 110,119 | Gross: $9.45M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 78 (on 01 June 2003)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 10 September 2016
Shadow Rank: 7 out 100 85%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
3. Notorious (1946)
Not Rated | 102 min | Drama, Film-Noir, Romance
The daughter of a convicted German spy is asked by American agents to gather information on a ring of German scientists in South America. How far will she have to go to ingratiate herself with them?
Director: Alfred Hitchcock | Stars: Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains, Louis Calhern
Votes: 107,218 | Gross: $10.46M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 77 (on 30 December 1998)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 11 May 2016
Shadow Rank: 8 out 100 83%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
4. Roman Holiday (1953)
Passed | 118 min | Comedy, Romance
A bored and sheltered princess escapes her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome.
Director: William Wyler | Stars: Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Eddie Albert, Hartley Power
Votes: 147,550
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 89 (on 26 April 1996)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 15 November 2016
Shadow Rank: 9 out 100 81%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
5. The Night of the Hunter (1955)
Not Rated | 92 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
A self-proclaimed preacher marries a gullible widow whose young children are reluctant to tell him where their real dad hid the $10,000 he'd stolen in a robbery.
Director: Charles Laughton | Stars: Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason
Votes: 97,275 | Gross: $0.65M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 103 (on 16 November 1999)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 07 May 2016
Shadow Rank: 10 out 100 81%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
6. The Graduate (1967)
PG | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A disillusioned college graduate finds himself torn between his older lover and her daughter.
Director: Mike Nichols | Stars: Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, William Daniels
Votes: 288,255 | Gross: $104.95M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 60 (on 20 August 1998)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 14 February 2016
Shadow Rank: 11 out 100 80%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
7. Sin City (2005)
R | 124 min | Crime, Thriller
An exploration of the dark and miserable Basin City and three of its residents, all of whom are caught up in violent corruption.
Directors: Frank Miller, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez | Stars: Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba
Votes: 793,568 | Gross: $74.10M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 57 (on 15 April 2006)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 17 March 2017
Shadow Rank: 12 out 100 79%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
8. The Big Sleep (1946)
Passed | 114 min | Crime, Film-Noir, Mystery
Private detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a wealthy family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail and what might be love.
Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely, Martha Vickers
Votes: 90,487 | Gross: $6.54M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 90 (on 30 December 1998)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 28 September 2015
Shadow Rank: 13 out 100 78%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
9. The Hustler (1961)
Not Rated | 134 min | Drama, Sport
An up-and-coming pool player plays a long-time champion in a single high-stakes match.
Director: Robert Rossen | Stars: Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, Piper Laurie, George C. Scott
Votes: 86,763 | Gross: $8.28M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 136 (on 03 May 2003)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 10 December 2015
Shadow Rank: 14 out 100 78%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
10. The Killing (1956)
Approved | 84 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
Crook Johnny Clay assembles a five-man team to plan and execute a daring racetrack robbery.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Sterling Hayden, Coleen Gray, Vince Edwards, Jay C. Flippen
Votes: 97,423
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 123 (on 18 May 2006)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 07 February 2016
Shadow Rank: 15 out 100 75%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
11. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
PG-13 | 126 min | Drama, Thriller
An American POW in the Korean War is brainwashed as an unwitting assassin for an international Communist conspiracy.
Director: John Frankenheimer | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh, Angela Lansbury
Votes: 79,763
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 44 (on 1 August 1999)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 09 January 2014
Shadow Rank: 21 out 100 65%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
12. The Wild Bunch (1969)
R | 135 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
An aging group of outlaws look for one last big score as the "traditional" American West is disappearing around them.
Director: Sam Peckinpah | Stars: William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, Edmond O'Brien
Votes: 90,314 | Gross: $12.06M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 121 (on 22 January 1997))
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 03 January 2014
Shadow Rank: 22 out 100 65%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
13. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
PG | 122 min | Drama
Disturbed Blanche DuBois moves in with her sister in New Orleans and is tormented by her brutish brother-in-law while her reality crumbles around her.
Director: Elia Kazan | Stars: Vivien Leigh, Marlon Brando, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden
Votes: 114,297 | Gross: $8.00M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 114 (on 12 April 1999)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 14 February 2016
Shadow Rank: 23 out 100 65%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
14. The Exorcist (1973)
R | 122 min | Horror
When a young girl is possessed by a mysterious entity, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
Director: William Friedkin | Stars: Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Linda Blair, Lee J. Cobb
Votes: 454,681 | Gross: $232.91M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 136 (on 03 November 2001)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 08 January 2014
Shadow Rank: 24 out 100 64%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
15. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
Passed | 152 min | Drama, War
A German youth eagerly enters World War I, but his enthusiasm wanes as he gets a firsthand view of the horror.
Director: Lewis Milestone | Stars: Lew Ayres, Louis Wolheim, John Wray, Arnold Lucy
Votes: 67,647 | Gross: $3.27M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 113 (on 08 May 2005)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 20 December 2013
Shadow Rank: 25 out 100 64%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
16. Manhattan (1979)
R | 96 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
The life of a divorced television writer dating a teenage girl is further complicated when he falls in love with his best friend's mistress.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway, Michael Murphy
Votes: 147,183 | Gross: $45.70M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 72 (on 07 November 1997)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 05 August 2013
Shadow Rank: 26 out 100 64%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
17. Mystic River (2003)
R | 138 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The tragic murder of a 19-year-old girl reunites three childhood friends still living in Boston--the victim's gangster father, a detective, and the disturbed man they both suspect of killing her.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Emmy Rossum
Votes: 485,647 | Gross: $90.14M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 119 (on 12 June 2004)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 15 November 2013
Shadow Rank: 27 out 100 60%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
18. Big Fish (2003)
PG-13 | 125 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
A frustrated son tries to determine the fact from fiction in his dying father's life.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange
Votes: 458,727 | Gross: $66.26M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 138 (on 13 December 2004)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 3 January 2014
Shadow Rank: 30 out 100 55%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
19. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
Approved | 123 min | Drama, Western
A senator returns to a Western town for the funeral of an old friend and tells the story of his origins.
Director: John Ford | Stars: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin
Votes: 82,247
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 125 (on 9 May 2005)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 24 May 2016
Shadow Rank: 31 out 100 45%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
20. The Incredibles (2004)
PG | 115 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
While trying to lead a quiet suburban life, a family of undercover superheroes are forced into action to save the world.
Director: Brad Bird | Stars: Craig T. Nelson, Samuel L. Jackson, Holly Hunter, Jason Lee
Votes: 808,055 | Gross: $261.44M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 65 (on 20 October 2005)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 01 May 2012
Shadow Rank: 45 out 100 46%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
21. King Kong (1933)
Passed | 100 min | Adventure, Horror
A film crew goes to a tropical island for a location shoot, where they capture a colossal ape who takes a shine to their blonde starlet, and bring him back to New York City.
Directors: Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack | Stars: Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot, Frank Reicher
Votes: 90,925 | Gross: $10.00M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 182 (on 27 April 2007)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 14 December 2012
Shadow Rank: 48 out 100 45%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
22. Spartacus (1960)
PG-13 | 197 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
The slave Spartacus survives brutal training as a gladiator and leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman Republic, as the ambitious Crassus seeks to gain power by crushing the uprising.
Directors: Stanley Kubrick, Anthony Mann | Stars: Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Charles Laughton
Votes: 143,110 | Gross: $30.00M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 141 (on 1 December 2001))
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 27 October 2010
Shadow Rank: 56 out 100 41%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
23. Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
R | 111 min | Action, Biography, Crime
Bored waitress Bonnie Parker falls in love with an ex-con named Clyde Barrow and together they start a violent crime spree through the country, stealing cars and robbing banks.
Director: Arthur Penn | Stars: Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, Michael J. Pollard, Gene Hackman
Votes: 120,561
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 179 (on 1 December 2001)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 12 November 2010
Shadow Rank: 59 out 100 41%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
24. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
G | 92 min | Drama, Sci-Fi
An alien lands in Washington, D.C. and tells the people of Earth that they must live peacefully or be destroyed as a danger to other planets.
Director: Robert Wise | Stars: Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe
Votes: 85,730
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 117 (on 3 October 1997)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 15 March 2010
Shadow Rank: 52 out 100 38%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
25. In the Heat of the Night (1967)
Approved | 110 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A black Philadelphia police detective is mistakenly suspected of a local murder while passing through a racially hostile Mississippi town, and after being cleared is reluctantly asked by the police chief to investigate the case.
Director: Norman Jewison | Stars: Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates, Lee Grant
Votes: 83,517 | Gross: $24.38M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 173 (on 12 April 1999)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 31 October 2013
Shadow Rank: 65 out 100 36%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
26. The Avengers (2012)
PG-13 | 143 min | Action, Sci-Fi
Earth's mightiest heroes must come together and learn to fight as a team if they are going to stop the mischievous Loki and his alien army from enslaving humanity.
Director: Joss Whedon | Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner
Votes: 1,458,749 | Gross: $623.28M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 25 (on 08 May 2012)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 6 November 2016
Shadow Rank: 69 out 100 34%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
27. The Searchers (1956)
Passed | 119 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
An American Civil War veteran embarks on a years-long journey to rescue his niece from the Comanches after the rest of his brother's family is massacred in a raid on their Texas farm.
Director: John Ford | Stars: John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Ward Bond
Votes: 96,227
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 90 (on 18 October 2002)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 03 November 2013
Shadow Rank: 78 out 100 29%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
28. Annie Hall (1977)
PG | 93 min | Comedy, Romance
Alvy Singer, a divorced Jewish comedian, reflects on his relationship with ex-lover Annie Hall, an aspiring nightclub singer, which ended abruptly just like his previous marriages.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts, Carol Kane
Votes: 278,274 | Gross: $39.20M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 61 (on 7 November 1997))
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 19 August 2018
Shadow Rank: 3 out 100 99%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
*added 10 October 2018
29. 12 Monkeys (1995)
R | 129 min | Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
In a future world devastated by disease, a convict is sent back in time to gather information about the man-made virus that wiped out most of the human population on the planet.
Director: Terry Gilliam | Stars: Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt, Joseph Melito
Votes: 646,447 | Gross: $57.14M
Highest IMDb Top 250 Rank: 30 (on 26 April 1996)
Last IMDb Top 250 Appearance: 20 June 2018
Shadow Rank: 4 out 100 99%+ (As of 10 October 2018)
*added 10 October 2018
Tell Your Friends