Sure, you can. It just might be in poor taste.
Why is this in poor taste? Are we allowed to discuss and argue these lists or are we just supposed to type 'em up, read 'em, and forget about them?
Let's say my list went like this:
1. Citizen Kane
2. 8 1/2
3. The Hot Chick
4. Rashomon
5. Taxi Driver
Wouldn't you find at least one of those somewhat odd? That's more or less how I feel about Almost Famous. I can't imagine it even coming close to being in my Top 100 American Films of the Last 10 Years. And not because I find it Bad, exactly. I don't think it's bad; I also don't find it outstanding in terms of direction, acting, writing, storytelling...It's barely important even from a "music journalism" standpoint, and is based almost entirely on cultural cliches, save for the character of real life Rock Writer Lester Bangs.
Sounds crass, but when someone places Almost Famous that high on their list, I have to ask them and/or myself "How many movies can this person possibly have seen?" That's all I'm saying.
So I'm elitist about films, shoot me.
Oh, no, no I totally agree with you. But my top five films of all time have to be my top favorites
and simply good films as far as the craft goes. There are a bunch of quality films that I just don't enjoy, but for me,
Magnolia,
American Beauty,
Fight Club,
Pulp Fiction, and
Amelie are the pinnacle of cinema. They're movies that I love, and they represent filmmaking at its finest.
And I agree with you.
Almost Famous may be a sentimental film, and therefore a favorite among many people, but it's not great filmmaking in my opinion. I was just playing devil's advocate there, a bit. It takes a special touch to make a film that is both sentimental or otherwise moving, and fine craftsmanship.
I find that list I compiled a couple pages back not only represents people's favorites, but also the best films of all time as voted by Xixax members, because of the quality represented in that list. At the very least, it makes more sense than any other lists I've seen, which seem to be made by people who are either uninformed, out of touch, or insistent that good filmmaking died in the 70s. 1999 was the best year in film in a LONG time, and with Paul Thomas Anderson warming up, at the very least, along with a whole bunch of other promising young talent, the best is yet to come.
