The 5 Best Films of Every Year Ever

Tristan Ettleman
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The 5 Best Films of Every Year Ever features experts and enthusiasts and, well, their favorite films of every year ever. Host Tristan Ettleman sits down with a new guest every week to dive into the history and beauty of some of the best movies to ever come out of the cinematic medium.

  1. 6 days ago

    1913 E4 - Michael Gebert

    Michael Gebert is the founder and co-moderator of NitrateVille, the online discussion site about vintage films of the silent era through the 1950s. Looking ahead to the advancements soon to come, his selections of almost all features demonstrate editing and performance style shifts, which branched off in slightly different ways in countries like America, France, and Sweden. Michael is host of the NitrateVille Radio podcast, which talks to people doing "cool stuff" in the world of vintage film, from authors and filmmakers to the curators of retrospectives and festivals. He is also a food journalist in Chicago and the author of The Chicago Way: An Oral History of Chicago Dining. Visit the5bestfilmsofeveryyearever.com/list to submit your own top five for 1913! Films and resources mentioned: Ingeborg Holm (1913) - Victor SjöströmGerminal (1913) - Albert CapellaniThe Child of Paris (1913) - Léonce PerretTraffic in Souls (1913) - George Loane TuckerMabel’s Dramatic Career (1913) - Mack SennettThe Squaw Man (1914) - Cecil B. DeMilleThe Cheat (1915) - Cecil B. DeMilleThe Conquest of the Pole (1912) - Georges MélièsThe Searchers (1956) - John FordSammy’s Scandalous Scheme (1915) - Gilbert P. HamiltonThe Extra Girl (1923) - F. Richard JonesUncle Josh at the Moving Picture Show (1902) - Edwin S. PorterAlias Jimmy Valentine (1915) - Maurice TourneurThe Blue Bird (1918) - Maurice TourneurThe Wishing Ring: An Idyll of Old England (1914) - Maurice TourneurThe Miracle Man (1919) - George Loane TuckerMetropolis (1927) - Fritz LangSuspense (1913) - Lois Weber and Phillips SmalleyThe Lonely Villa (1909) - D.W. GriffithWeapons (2025) - Zach CreggerBreathless (1960) - Jean-Luc GodardThe Mystery of the Rocks of Kador (1912) - Léonce PerretLes Vampires (1915) - Louis FeuilladeTih Minh (1918) - Louis FeuilladeFantômas (1913) - Louis FeuilladeThe Strike (1904) - Ferdinand ZeccaLes misérables (1912) - Albert CapellaniLes misérables (1925) - Henri FescourtLes misérables (1934) - Raymond BernardA Man There Was (1917) - Victor SjöströmThe Gardener (1912) - Victor SjöströmThe Phantom Carriage (1921) - Victor SjöströmGirl with Hyacinths (1950) - Hasse EkmanThe Birth of a Nation (1915) - D.W. GriffithThe Magician (1926) - Rex IngramThe Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921) - Rex IngramCecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood - Robert S. BirchardCinema’s First Nasty WomenPordenone 2025 Report - Michael GebertThe Origins of FilmMaurice Tourneur: Weaver of Dreams - Christine LeteuxGeorge Loane Tucker: The First of the Immortals - Frank Thompson

    59 min

  2. 24 Jun

    1913 E3 - Julie K Allen

    Julie K. Allen, professor of Comparative Arts and Letters at Brigham Young University, is the author of Screening Europe in Australasia. So it makes sense that her selections, each from a different country, would embody the transnational dynamic of silent film just before the outbreak of World War I. Julie is also the author of Icons of Danish Modernity, Danish but Not Lutheran, and The Silent Muse: The Memoirs of Asta Nielsen. She is currently working on a book about the Danish cinema license system with the tentative title The Cultural Politics of Film Exhibition. Visit the5bestfilmsofeveryyearever.com/list to submit your own top five for 1913! Films and resources mentioned: Quo Vadis (1913) - Enrico GuazzoniAtlantis (1913) - August BlomFantômas (1913) - Louis FeuilladeTraffic in Souls (1913) - George Loane TuckerThe Suffragette (1913) - Urban GadThe Abyss (1910) - Urban GadWhat 80 Million Women Want (1913) - Will LouisLes misérables (1912) - Albert CapellaniNick Carter, le roi des détectives (1908) - Victorin-Hippolyte JassetLes Vampires (1915) - Louis FeuilladeJudex (1916) - Louis FeuilladeSaved from the Titanic (1912) - Étienne ArnaudDestiny (1921) - Fritz LangThe Phantom Carriage (1921) - Victor SjöströmBlind Justice (1916) - Benjamin ChristensenSealed Orders (1914) - Benjamin ChristensenHäxan (1922) - Benjamin ChristensenTitanic (1997) - James CameronNero (1909) - Luigi Maggi and Arturo AmbrosioL’Inferno (1911) - Francesco Bertolini, Adolfo Padovan, and Giuseppe De LiguoroPink-Slipped: What Happened to Women in the Silent Film Industries? - Jane Gaines

    47 min

  3. 17 Jun

    1913 E2 - Shelley Stamp

    This is the 100th episode and just two weeks past the second anniversary of The 5 Best Films of Every Year Ever! It’s a special episode made even more so by Shelley Stamp, Distinguished Professor of Film & Digital Media at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She literally wrote the book on Lois Weber so it makes sense that pioneering filmmaker’s landmark 1913 film factors into the conversation, but all of Shelley's picks reflect the rapid development of American film grammar and stand in for women’s representation in front of and behind the camera, as well as their fights for equality in “real life.” Shelley is also the author of Movie-Struck Girls: Women and Motion Picture Culture after the Nickelodeon. She curated the award-winning box set Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers. Visit the5bestfilmsofeveryyearever.com/list to submit your own top five for 1913! Films mentioned: What 80 Million Women Want (1913) - Will LouisTraffic in Souls (1913) - George Loane TuckerA House Divided (1913) - Alice Guy-BlachéSuspense (1913) - Lois Weber and Phillips SmalleyThe Adventures of Kathlyn (1913) - Francis J. GrandonHypocrites (1915) - Lois WeberThe Perils of Pauline (1914) - Louis J. Gasnier and Donald MacKenzieThe Hazards of Helen (1914) - J.P. McGowan and J. Gunnis DavisThe Exploits of Elaine (1914) - Louis J. Gasnier, George B. Seitz, Leopold Wharton, and Theodore WhartonWhat Happened to Mary (1912) - Ashley Miller and Charles BrabinFantômas (1913) - Louis FeuilladeThe Lonely Villa (1909) - D.W. GriffithShoes (1916) - Lois WeberThe Merchant of Venice (1914) - Lois Weber and Phillips SmalleyThe Consequences of Feminism (1906) - Alice Guy-BlachéMaking an American Citizen (1912) - Alice Guy-BlachéMatrimony’s Speed Limit (1913) - Alice Guy-BlachéFalling Leaves (1912) - Alice Guy-BlachéIn the Hands of Impostors (1911) - August BlomA Busy Day (1914) - Charlie ChaplinYour Girl and Mine (1914) - Giles R. Warren

    50 min

  4. 10 Jun

    1913 E1 - A Milestone Year?

    1913 is considered by many to be a milestone year in the development of film grammar and industry. And it perhaps is, as is set up by this context-setting introduction and the conversations with guests to come for this season! Visit the5bestfilmsofeveryyearever.com/list to submit your own top five for 1913! Films mentioned: The Adventures of Kathlyn (1913) - Francis J. GrandonWhat Happened to Mary (1912) - Ashley Miller and Charles BrabinFantômas (1913) - Louis FeuilladeTraffic in Souls (1913) - George Loane TuckerThe Artist’s Dream (1913) - John Randolph BrayThe Evidence of the Film (1913) - Lawrence Marston and Edwin ThanhouserSuspense (1913) - Lois Weber and Phillips Smalley

    5 min

  5. 3 Jun

    1912 E7 - The Ol' Power Players Hang in There

    Although the 1912 season introduction asserted that “Hollywood was incoming,” the top picks for the year (fueled by a record number of submissions from guests!) is mostly made up of old power players, even if that power would recede in short order. Indeed, both that dynamic and the fact that all of the most popular selections are shorts may change in the near future! Visit the5bestfilmsofeveryyearever.com/list to see the list of every film submitted for 1912! Films mentioned: The Cameraman’s Revenge (1912) - Wladyslaw StarewiczThe Land Beyond the Sunset (1912) - Harold M. ShawHow a Mosquito Operates (1912) - Winsor McCayThe Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) - D.W. GriffithThe Conquest of the Pole (1912) - Georges MélièsCleopatra (1912) - Charles L. GaskillFrom the Manger to the Cross (1912) - Sidney OlcottDr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1912) - Lucius Henderson

    5 min

  6. 27 May

    1912 E6 - Paul (PT) Klein

    Film historian and cultural critic Paul (PT) Klein’s work focuses on American filmgoing cultures. So even when discussing his sole foreign pick, the conversation dives into audience reception to his selections, then and now, in addition to the various aesthetic strengths of each of his movies. PT’s writing has appeared in Film Atlas, Film Matters, Foglifter, Metro Weekly, and more. His work can be found at ptklein.com. Visit the5bestfilmsofeveryyearever.com/list to submit your top five for 1912! Films and resources mentioned: The Girl and Her Trust (1912) - D.W. GriffithThe Grit of the Girl Telegrapher (1912) - J.P. McGowanAlgie the Miner (1912) - Alice Guy-BlachéThe Invaders (1912) - Francis Ford and Thomas InceIn Night and Ice (1912) - Mime MisuSunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927) - F.W. MurnauThe Lonedale Operator (1911) - D.W. GriffithThe Hazards of Helen (1914) - J.P McGowan and J. Gunnis DavisBrokeback Mountain (2005) - Ang LeeWild and Woolly (1917) - John EmersonThe Wild Bunch (1969) - Sam PeckinpahThe Searchers (1956) - John FordStagecoach (1939) - John FordRichard III (1912) - André Calmettes and James KeaneCleopatra (1912) - Charles L. GaskillQueen Elizabeth (1912) - Louis Mercanton and Henri DesfontainesSaved from the Titanic (1912) - Étienne ArnaudTitanic (1997) - James CameronHollywood Remaking: How Film Remakes, Sequels, and Franchises Shape Industry and Culture - Kathleen LoockGirls Will Boys: Cross-Dressed Women, Lesbians, and American Cinema, 1908-1934 - Laura Horak

    1hr 8min

  7. 20 May

    1912 E5 - Stephen Horne

    Silent film accompanist and composer Stephen Horne has already composed for or accompanied a couple of his five multinational picks for 1912. But besides discussing the general aesthetic pleasures of his selections, he also ruminates on how he could approach playing for both these grounded features and short trick films (they were still hanging in there!). Stephen is a house musician at London’s BFI Southbank. He released Silent Sirens, an album of solo piano pieces based on his silent film compositions, and has scored Stella Dallas, The Manxman, and many more films. Films mentioned: The Gardener (1912) - Victor SjöströmHow a Mosquito Operates (1912) - Winsor McCayThe Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) - D.W. GriffithThe Cameraman’s Revenge (1912) - Wladyslaw StarewiczThe Conquest of the Pole (1912) - Georges MélièsThe Golem: How He Came into the World (1920) - Paul Wegener and Carl BoeseThe Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) - Carl Theodor DreyerL’Inferno (1911) - Francesco Bertolini, Giuseppe de Liguoro, and Adolfo PadovanOliver Twist (1912) - Thomas BentleyThe Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) - Robert WieneA Ruined Life (1912) - Victor SjöströmThe Abyss (1910) - Urban GadThe Phantom Carriage (1921) - Victor SjöströmThe Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1973) - Gordon HesslerThe Mascot (1933) - Wladyslaw StarewiczA Trip to the Moon (1902) - Georges MélièsIt's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) - Stanley KramerBarbie (2023) - Greta GerwigMetropolis (1927) - Fritz Lang

    47 min

  8. 13 May

    1912 E4 - Marsha Gordon

    Marsha Gordon, Professor of Film Studies at North Carolina State University, mostly highlights two directors credited with advancing film narrative with four picks. But she also sings the praises of a certain work of stop-motion animation, one taking this season by storm for both guests’ and listeners’ submissions. Marsha is the author of Becoming the Ex-Wife: The Unconventional Life & Forgotten Writings of Ursula Parrott, Film, Form & Culture (with Robert Kolker), and Film is Like a Battleground: Sam Fuller’s War Films. She is currently writing a biography of the pioneering Hollywood director Dorothy Arzner. Films mentioned: Falling Leaves (1912) - Alice Guy-BlachéMaking an American Citizen (1912) - Alice Guy-BlachéThe Girl and Her Trust (1912) - D.W. GriffithThe Musketeers of Pig Alley (1912) - D.W. GriffithThe Cameraman’s Revenge (1912) - Wladyslaw StarewiczThe Divorcee (1930) - Robert Z. LeonardNext Time We Love (1936) - Edward H. GriffithThe Immigrant (1917) - Charlie ChaplinThe Brutalist (2024) - Brady CorbetThe Consequences of Feminism (1906) - Alice Guy-BlachéThe Lonedale Operator (1911) - D.W. GriffithThe Birth of a Nation (1915) - D.W. GriffithI Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932) - Mervyn LeRoyThe Great Train Robbery (1903) - Edwin S. PorterGangs of New York (2002) - Martin ScorseseRegeneration (1915) - Raoul WalshPrincess Nicotine; or, The Smoke Fairy (1909) - J. Stuart Blackton

    57 min
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The 5 Best Films of Every Year Ever features experts and enthusiasts and, well, their favorite films of every year ever. Host Tristan Ettleman sits down with a new guest every week to dive into the history and beauty of some of the best movies to ever come out of the cinematic medium.

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