What are the best Indie movies? When the Hollywood film community evolved in the early 1900s, most of the power of film making came into the hand of major film studios. By the end of 1940s the 3 major film studios Warner Bros, Paramount and Walt Disney studios were sharing most profits of film released every year. This set a trend and production code within Hollywood where certain limits were not meant to be crossed by directors and major production houses. The budget of the film, the theme and plot of the film, characters,actors almost every thing was controlled by the production company and director has no control over the film. This formula was successful until 1960s where big budget movies like war movies and musicals were a huge success at box office.
However, by 1960s many directors and film makers considered to step out of the normal trend to overcome the limits and control imposed over them. Small Production companies were established where low budget films were funded and promoted by the film makers. This led to a rise in violence and $ex shown in films. Interestingly such movies were liked and praised by fans as the films shown the raw and brutal face of life which was earlier hidden under the melodious tones of major studio films. This trend was called as independent film making and the trend on a rise in horror and sci fi genre.
A huge boom in indie film making came during the 90s where directors like Quentin Tarantino and actors like Bruce Willis and Tim Robbins became world icon after starring in several indie movies. With the fall in the prices of film making equipment and camera the indie film making came to its peak. Almost every year hundreds of Independent films are released and showcased at various film festivals. Many of them even compete with mainstream films and became a huge box office success.
Here we have made a list of 100 greatest indie films of all time:
Contents
100. The Virgin Suicides
Director – Sofia Coppola
Cast – Kirsten Dunst, Kathleen Turner, Josh Hartnett, James Woods, A J Cook
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 76%
Release Date – 21 April 2000
Box Office – $10.4 million
Genre – Drama, Romance
Awards – None
Plot –
99. Syriana
Director – Stephen Gaghan
Cast – Chris Cooper, Jeffrey Wright, Tim Blake Nelson, George Clooney, Matt Damon
IMDB Rating – 6.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 73%
Release Date – 23 November 2005
Box Office – $94 million
Genre – Drama, Thriller
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
98. Pandorum
Director – Christian Alvart
Cast – Ben Foster, Cam Gigandet, Dennis Quaid, Antje Traue
IMDB Rating – 6.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 28%
Release Date – 25 September 2009
Box Office – $20.6 million
Genre – Action, Horror, Mystery
Awards – None
Plot –
97. Billy Elliot
Director – Stephen Daldry
Cast – Gary Lewis, Jamie Draven, Julie Walters, Jamie Bell
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 85%
Release Date – 19 May 2000
Box Office – $109.3 million
Genre – Drama, Music
Awards – None
Plot –
96. Ghost World
Director – Terry Zwigoff
Cast – Scarlett Johansson, Brad Renfro, Thora Birch, Illeana Douglas
IMDB Rating – 7.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 92%
Release Date – 20 June 2001
Box Office – $8.8 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
95. Carrie
Director – Brian De Palma
Cast – John Travolta, Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie
IMDB Rating – 7.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 94%
Release Date – 3 November 1976
Box Office – $33.8 million
Genre – Horror
Awards – None
Plot –
94. Mad Max
Director – George Miller
Cast – Hugh Keays-Byrne, Steve Bisley, Mel Gibson, Geoff Parry, Joanne Samuel
IMDB Rating – 6.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 90%
Release Date – 12 April 1979
Box Office – $100 million
Genre – Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
93. Four Weddings and Funeral
Director – Mike Newell
Cast – James Fleet, Kristin Scott Thomas, Hugh Grant, John Hannah, Andie MacDowell, Simon Callow, David Bower
IMDB Rating – 7
Rotten Tomatoes – 96%
Release Date – 9 March 1994
Box Office – $245.7 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama, Romance
Awards – None
Plot –
92. Paths of Glory
Director – Stanley Kubrick
Cast – Ralph Meeker, George Macready, Richard Anderson, Kirk Douglas, Adolphe Menjou, Wayne Morris
IMDB Rating – 8.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 95%
Release Date – 1 November 1957
Box Office – $900,000
Genre – Drama, War
Awards – None
Plot –
91. Raising Arizona
Director – Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Cast – Holly Hunter, William Forsythe, Nicolas Cage, John Goodman
IMDB Rating – 7.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 91%
Release Date – 6 March 1987
Box Office – $29.2 million
Genre – Comedy, Crime
Awards – None
Plot –
90. This Is Spinal Tap
Director – Rob Reiner
Cast – Rob Reiner, Michael McKean, June Chadwick, Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, Tony Hendra
IMDB Rating – 8
Rotten Tomatoes – 95%
Release Date – 2 March 1984
Box Office – $4.7 million
Genre – Comedy, Music
Awards – None
Plot –
89. Buried
Director – Rodrigo Cortés
Cast – Ryan Reynolds
IMDB Rating – 7
Rotten Tomatoes – 86%
Release Date – 24 September 2010
Box Office – $21.3 million
Genre – Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
88. Chasing Amy
Director – Kevin Smith
Cast – Jason Lee, Joey Lauren Adams, Dwight Ewell, Ben Affleck
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 87%
Release Date – 4 April 1997
Box Office – $12 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama, Romance
Awards – None
Plot –
87. Dirty Dancing
Director – Emile Ardolino
Cast – Jennifer Grey, Jerry Orbach, Patrick SwayzeCynthia Rhodes
IMDB Rating – 7
Rotten Tomatoes – 71%
Release Date – 17 August 1987
Box Office – $214.6 million
Genre – Drama, Music, Romance
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
86. Hard Candy
Director – David Slade
Cast – Patrick Wilson, Ellen Page, Odessa Rae, Sandra Oh
IMDB Rating – 7.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 67%
Release Date – 21 January 2005
Box Office – $8.3 million
Genre – Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
85. Evil Dead
Director – Sam Raimi
Cast – Hal Delrich, Bruce Campbell, Betsy Baker, Ellen Sandweiss
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 95%
Release Date – October 15, 1981
Box Office – $2.4 million
Genre – Horror
Awards – None
Plot –
84. Paranormal Activity
Director – Oren Peli
Cast – Micah Sloat, Katie Featherston
IMDB Rating – 6.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 83%
Release Date – September 25, 2009
Box Office – $193.4 million
Genre – Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
83. Resident Evil Series
Director – Paul W. S. Anderson
Cast – Eric Mabius, Michelle Rodriguez, Martin Crewes, Milla Jovovich, James Purefoy
IMDB Rating – 6.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 35%
Release Date – 12 March 2002
Box Office – $103 million
Genre – Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
82. Pitch Black
Director – David Twohy
Cast – Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, Vin Diesel, Keith David
IMDB Rating – 7.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 59%
Release Date – 18 February 2000
Box Office – $53.2 million
Genre – Horror, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
81. BoogieNights
Director – Paul Thomas Anderson
Cast –
Julianne Moore, Don Cheadle, William H. Macy, Mark Wahlberg, Burt Reynolds, John C. Reilly
IMDB Rating – 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 93%
Release Date – 10 October 1997
Box Office – $43.1 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
80. The English Patient
Director – Anthony Minghella
Cast – Juliette Binoche, Kristin Scott Thomas, Colin Firth, Ralph Fiennes, Willem Dafoe, Naveen Andrews
IMDB Rating – 7.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 84%
Release Date – 6 November 1996
Box Office – $232 million
Genre – Drama, Romance, War
Awards – Won 9 Oscars
Plot –
79. Dazed and Confused
Director – Richard Linklater
Cast – Joey Lauren Adams, Shawn Andrews, Rory Cochrane, Jason London, Milla Jovovich, Anthony Rapp
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 91%
Release Date – 24 September 1993
Box Office – $8.0 million
Genre – Comedy
Awards – None
Plot –
78. Rounders
Director – John Dahl
Cast – Edward Norton, Gretchen Mol, Matt Damon, Famke Janssen, John Turturro
IMDB Rating – 7.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 65%
Release Date – 11 September 1998
Box Office – $22.9 million
Genre – Crime, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
77. Blue Velvet
Director – David Lynch
Cast – Laura Dern, Kyle MacLachlan, Hope Lange, Isabella Rossellini, Dennis Hopper
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 94%
Release Date – 19 September 1986
Box Office – $8.6 million
Genre – Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
76. A Nightmare on Elm Street
Director – Wes Craven
Cast – Ronee Blakley, Nick Corri, John Saxon, Heather Langenkamp, Amanda Wyss
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 94%
Release Date – 9 November 1984
Box Office – $25.5 million
Genre – Horror
Awards – None
Plot –
75. Sunshine
Director – Danny Boyle
Cast – Troy Garity, Cliff Curtis, Hiroyuki Sanada, Rose Byrne, Chris Evans, Cillian Murphy
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 76%
Release Date – 5 April 2007
Box Office – $32 million
Genre – Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
74. Sideways
Director – Alexander Payne
Cast – Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, Paul Giamatti, Sandra Oh
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 97%
Release Date – 12 October 2004
Box Office – $109.7 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama, Romance
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
73. Cube
Director – Vincenzo Natali
Cast – David Hewlett, Andrew Miller, Julian Richings, Nicole de Boer, Nicky Guadagni
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 63%
Release Date – 11 July 1998
Box Office – $9 million
Genre – Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
72. Pi
Director – Darren Aronofsky
Cast – Ben Shenkman, Pamela Hart, Sean Gullette, Samia Shoaib, Mark Margolis
IMDB Rating – 7.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 88%
Release Date – 10 July 1998
Box Office – $3,221,152
Genre – Drama, Horror, Mystery
Awards – None
Plot –
71. Phone booth
Director – Joel Schumacher
Cast – Forest Whitaker, Radha Mitchell, Colin Farrell, Katie Holmes
IMDB Rating – 7
Rotten Tomatoes – 72%
Release Date – 4 April 2003
Box Office – $97.8 million
Genre – Crime, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
70. Robocop
Director – Paul Verhoeven
Cast – Nancy Allen, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, Peter Weller, Daniel O’Herlihy, Ronny Cox
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 89%
Release Date – July 17, 1987
Box Office – $53.4 million
Genre – Action, Crime, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
69. Whats Eating Gilbert Grape?
Director – Lasse Hallström
Cast – Juliette Lewis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Johnny Depp, Mary Steenburgen
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 90%
Release Date – 17 December 1993
Box Office – $10 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
68. The Royal Tenenbaums
Director – Wes Anderson
Cast – Gene Hackman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Danny Glover, Bill Murray, Anjelica Huston
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 80%
Release Date – 6 December 2001
Box Office – $71.4 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
67. The Passion of the Christ
Director – Mel Gibson
Cast – Maia Morgenstern, Monica Bellucci, Sergio Rubini, Jim Caviezel, Claudia Gerini
IMDB Rating – 7.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 49%
Release Date – 25 February 2004
Box Office – $611.9 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
66. Closer
Director – Mike Nicholls
Cast – Jude Law, Clive Owen, Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 68%
Release Date – 3 December 2004
Box Office – $115 million
Genre – Drama, Romance
Awards – None
Plot –
65. Natural Born Killers
Director – Oliver Stone
Cast – Robert Downey, Jr., Juliette Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones, Woody Harrelson
IMDB Rating – 7.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 47%
Release Date – 26 August 1994
Box Office – $50.3 million
Genre – Crime, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
64. Before Sunset
Director – Richard Linklater
Cast – Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
IMDB Rating – 8
Rotten Tomatoes – 95%
Release Date – 17 June 2004
Box Office – $16.0 million
Genre – Drama, Romance
Awards – None
Plot –
63. K-Pax
Director – Iain Softley
Cast – Jeff Bridges, Mary McCormack, Kevin Spacey, Alfre Woodard
IMDB Rating – 7.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 41%
Release Date – 22 October 2001
Box Office – $65 million
Genre – Drama, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
62. The Girl With Dragon tattoo (2009)
Director – Niels Arden Oplev
Cast – Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 85%
Release Date – 27 February 2009
Box Office – $104 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Mystery
Awards – None
Plot –
61. The Blair Witch Project
Director – Eduardo Sánchez, Daniel Myrick
Cast – Joshua Leonard, Michael C. Williams, Heather Donahue
IMDB Rating – 6.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 87%
Release Date – 16 July 1999
Box Office – $248.6 million
Genre – Horror, Mystery
Awards – None
Plot –
60. From Dusk Til Dawn
Director – Robert Rodriguez
Cast – Quentin Tarantino, Cheech Marin, Harvey Keitel, Fred Williamson, George Clooney, Juliette Lewis
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 63%
Release Date – 19 January 1996
Box Office – $59.3 million
Genre – Action, Crime, Horror
Awards – None
Plot –
59. Scream
Director – Wes Craven
Cast – Courteney Cox, Matthew Lillard, Neve Campbell, David Arquette
IMDB Rating – 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 79%
Release Date – 18 December 1996
Box Office – $173 million
Genre – Horror, Mystery
Awards – None
Plot –
58. Thank you for Smoking
Director – Jason Reitman
Cast – Cameron Bright, Sam Elliott, Aaron Eckhart, Adam Brody, Katie Holmes, Rob Lowe
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 86%
Release Date – 17 March 2006
Box Office – $39.3 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
57. The Bondoock Saints
Director – Troy Duffy
Cast – Norman Reedus, Sean Patrick Flanery, David Della Rocco, Willem Dafoe
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 22%
Release Date – 22 January 1999
Box Office – $30,471
Genre – Action, Crime, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
56. Clerks.
Director – Kevin Smith
Cast – Marilyn Ghigliotti, Jason Mewes, Brian O’Halloran, Jeff Anderson
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 88%
Release Date – 19 October 1994
Box Office – $3.2 million
Genre – Comedy
Awards – None
Plot –
55. Dances With Wolves
Director – Kevin Costner
Cast – Mary McDonnell, Rodney Grant, Kevin Costner, Graham Greene
IMDB Rating – 8
Rotten Tomatoes – 82%
Release Date – 19 October 1990
Box Office – $424.2 million
Genre – Adventure, Drama, Western
Awards – Won 7 Oscars
Plot –
54. First Blood
Director – Ted Kotcheff
Cast – Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy, Sylvester Stallone
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 88%
Release Date – October 22, 1982
Box Office – $125.2 million
Genre – Action, Adventure
Awards – None
Plot –
53.Dogma
Director – Kevin Smith
Cast – Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Alan Rickman, Salma Hayek, Linda Fiorentino
IMDB Rating – 7.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 67%
Release Date – 12 November 1999
Box Office – $31.4 million
Genre – Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
52. 21 Grams
Director – Alejandro González Iñárritu
Cast – Benicio del Toro, Naomi Watts, Sean Penn, Charlotte Gainsbourg
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 80%
Release Date – 21 November 2003
Box Office – $60.4 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
51. Jackie Brown
Director – Quentin Tarantino
Cast – Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Forster, Pam Grier, Bridget Fonda
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 87%
Release Date – 25 December 1997
Box Office – $74.7 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
50. Gangs of New York
Director – Martin Scorsese
Cast – Daniel Day-Lewis, Jim Broadbent, Leonardo DiCaprio, John C. Reilly, Cameron Diaz
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 73%
Release Date – 9 December 2002
Box Office – $193.8 million
Genre – Crime, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
49. Training Day
Director – Antoine Fuqua
Cast – Scott Glenn, Ethan Hawke, Denzel Washington, Eva Mendes, Dr. Dre
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 72%
Release Date – 5 October 2001
Box Office – $104.5 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
48. Lost in Translation
Director – Sofia Coppola
Cast – Giovanni Ribisi, Scarlett Johansson, Anna Faris, Bill Murray
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 95%
Release Date – 9 September 2003
Box Office – $119.7 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
47. Collateral
Director – Michael Mann
Cast – Jada Pinkett Smith, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx
IMDB Rating – 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 86%
Release Date – 6 August 2004
Box Office – $217.8 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
46. Amores Perros
Director – Alejandro González Iñárritu
Cast – Gael García Bernal, Emilio Echevarría, Vanessa Bauche, Álvaro Guerrero, Goya Toledo
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 92%
Release Date – 16 June 2000
Box Office – $20.9 million
Genre – Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
45. The Man From Earth
Director – Richard Schenkman
Cast – John Billingsley, David Lee Smith, Tony Todd
IMDB Rating – 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes –85%
Release Date – 10 June 2007
Box Office – $ 1 million
Genre – Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
44. Halloween
Director – John Carpenter
Cast – P. J. Soles, Nancy Loomis, Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 96%
Release Date – Jamie Lee Curtis
Box Office – $60–70 million
Genre – Horror, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
43. The Hurt Locker
Director – Kathryn Bigelow
Cast – Evangeline Lilly, Anthony Mackie, Ralph Fiennes, Jeremy Renner, Brian Geraghty
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 97%
Release Date – 10 October 2008
Box Office – $49.2 million
Genre – Drama, Thriller, War
Awards – Won 6 Oscars
Plot –
42. The Breakfast Club
Director – John Hughes
Cast – Paul Gleason, Judd Nelson, Anthony Michael Hall, Emilio Estevez
IMDB Rating – 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 89%
Release Date – February 7, 1985
Box Office – $51.5 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
41. Moon
Director – Duncan Jones
Cast – Sam Rockwell
IMDB Rating – 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 90%
Release Date – 12 June 2009
Box Office – $9.8 million
Genre – Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Awards – None
Plot –
40. Mulholland Drive
Director – David Lynch
Cast – Laura Elena Harring, Justin Theroux, Naomi Watts, Ann Miller, Mark Pellegrino
IMDB Rating – 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 83%
Release Date – 6 June 2001
Box Office – $20.1 million
Genre – Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
39. The Graduate
Director – Mike Nicholls
Cast – Dustin Hoffman, Katharine Ross, Anne Bancroft
IMDB Rating – 8
Rotten Tomatoes – 88%
Release Date – 21 December 1967
Box Office – $104.9 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama, Romance
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
38. Leon: The Professional
Director – Luc Besson
Cast – Natalie Portman, Jean Reno, Gary Oldman, Danny Aiello
IMDB Rating – 8.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 72%
Release Date – 14 September 1994
Box Office – $46.1 million
Genre – ction, Crime, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
37. The Machinist
Director – Brad Anderson
Cast – Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, Christian Bale, John Sharian, Jennifer Jason Leigh
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 77%
Release Date – 18 January 2004
Box Office – $8.2 million
Genre – Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
36. Being John Malkovich
Director – Spike Jonze
Cast – Catherine Keener, Mary Kay Place, John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Orson Bean
IMDB Rating – 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 93%
Release Date – 11 October 1999
Box Office – $32.4 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Awards – None
Plot –
35. Magnolia
Director – Paul Thomas Anderson
Cast – Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeremy Blackman, William H. Macy, Melinda Dillon, Tom Cruise, Ricky Jay
IMDB Rating – 8
Rotten Tomatoes – 83%
Release Date – 8 December 1999
Box Office – $48.5 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
34. Platoon
Director – Oliver Stone
Cast – Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 88%
Release Date – 19 December 1986
Box Office – $138.5 million
Genre – Drama, War
Awards – Won 4 Oscars
Plot –
33. The Game
Director – David Fincher
Cast – Sean Penn, Deborah Kara Unger, Michael Douglas, Peter Donat, James Rebhorn
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 73%
Release Date – 12 September 1997
Box Office – 12 September 1997
Genre – Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
32. Dumb and Dumber
Director – Peter Farrelly
Cast – Jeff Daniels, Karen Duffy, Mike Starr, Jim Carrey, Lauren Holly
IMDB Rating – 7.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 67%
Release Date – 6 December 1994
Box Office – $247.3 million
Genre – Comedy
Awards – None
Plot –
31. Requiem Of a Dream
Director – Darren Aronofsky
Cast – Jared Leto, Ellen Burstyn, Marlon Wayans, Jennifer Connelly
IMDB Rating – 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 79%
Release Date – 6 October 2000
Box Office – $7.4 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
30. Into the Wild
Director – Sean Penn
Cast – Marcia Gay Harden, Brian Dierker, Jena Malone, Emile Hirsch, William Hurt, Catherine Keener
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 83%
Release Date – 21 September 2007
Box Office – $56,822,960
Genre – Adventure, Biography, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
29. American Psycho
Director – Mary Harron
Cast – Jared Leto, Samantha Mathis, Christian Bale, Josh Lucas, Willem Dafoe, Matt Ross
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 68%
Release Date – 14 April 2000
Box Office – $34.3 million
Genre – Crime, Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
28. Dr. Strangelove
Director – Stanley Kubrick
Cast – George C. Scott, Keenan Wynn, Peter Sellers, Slim Pickens, Sterling Hayden
IMDB Rating – 8.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 98%
Release Date – 29 January 1964
Box Office – $9.4 million
Genre – Comedy
Awards – None
Plot –
27. Amadeus
Director – Miloš Forman
Cast – Elizabeth Berridge, Tom Hulce, Roy Dotrice, F. Murray Abraham, Simon Callow
IMDB Rating – 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 93%
Release Date – 6 September 1984
Box Office – $52 million
Genre – Biography, Drama, History
Awards – Won 8 Oscars
Plot –
26. Hotel Rwanda
Director – Terry George
Cast – Joaquin Phoenix, Don Cheadle, Nick Nolte, Sophie Okonedo
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 91%
Release Date – 22 December 2004
Box Office – $33.9 million
Genre – Biography, Drama, History
Awards – None
Plot –
25. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Director – Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones
Cast – Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Terry Jones, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle
IMDB Rating – 8.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 97%
Release Date – 14 March 1975
Box Office – $5 million
Genre – Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy
Awards – None
Plot –
24. Little Miss Sunshine
Director – Valerie Faris, Jonathan Dayton
Cast – Steve Carell, Abigail Breslin, Greg Kinnear, Paul Dano, Toni Collette
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 91%
Release Date – 26 July 2006
Box Office – $100.5 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama
Awards – Won 2 Oscars
Plot –
23. Trainspotting
Director – Danny Boyle
Cast – Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Ewan McGregor, Kevin McKidd
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 90%
Release Date – 23 February 1996
Box Office – $72 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
22. Saw
Director – James Wan
Cast – Monica Potter, Leigh Whannell, Michael Emerson, Cary Elwes, Danny Glover
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 49%
Release Date – 1 October 2004
Box Office – $103.9 million
Genre – Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
21. The Illusionist
Director – Neil Burger
Cast – Paul Giamatti, Edward Norton, Jessica Biel
IMDB Rating – 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 73%
Release Date – 18 August 2006
Box Office – $87.8 million
Genre – Drama, Fantasy, History
Awards – None
Plot –
20. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Director – Miloš Forman
Cast – William Redfield, Louise Fletcher, Jack Nicholson
IMDB Rating – 8.7
Rotten Tomatoes – 94%
Release Date – 19 November 1975
Box Office – $109 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – Won 5 Oscars
Plot –
19. Lock,Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Director – Guy Ritchie
Cast – Dexter Fletcher, Jason Statham, Jason Flemyng, Steven Mackintosh, Nick Moran
IMDB Rating – 8.2
Rotten Tomatoes – 75%
Release Date – 28 August 1998
Box Office – $28.1 million
Genre – Comedy, Crime
Awards – None
Plot –
18. Crash
Director – Paul Haggis
Cast – Matt Dillon, Jennifer Esposito, Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Terrence Howard
IMDB Rating – 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes – 74%
Release Date – 26 April 2005
Box Office – $98.4 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards – Won 3 Oscars
Plot –
17. Shaun of the Dead
Director – Edgar Wright
Cast – Kate Ashfield, Nick Frost, Dylan Moran, Simon Pegg, Lucy Davis
IMDB Rating – 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 92%
Release Date – 29 March 2004
Box Office – $30 million
Genre – Comedy, Horror
Awards – None
Plot –
16. Psycho
Director – Alfred Hitchcock
Cast – John Gavin, Martin Balsam, Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles
IMDB Rating – 8.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 96%
Release Date – 16 June 1960
Box Office – $50 million
Genre – Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
15. Eternal Sunshine of Spotless Mind
Director – Michel Gondry
Cast – Kirsten Dunst, Kate Winslet, Elijah Wood, Jim Carrey, Mark Ruffalo
IMDB Rating – 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 93%
Release Date – 19 March 2004
Box Office – $72.3 million
Genre – Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
14. Apocalypse Now
Director – Francis Ford Coppola
Cast – Frederic Forrest, Marlon Brando, Albert Hall, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall
IMDB Rating – 8.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 97%
Release Date – 15 August 1979
Box Office – $150 million
Genre – Drama, Mystery, War
Awards – Won 2 Oscars
Plot –
13. Juno
Director – Jason Reitman
Cast – Michael Cera, Allison Janney, Ellen Page, Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner
IMDB Rating – 7.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 94%
Release Date – 4 December 2007
Box Office – $231.4 million
Genre – Comedy, Drama
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
12. Fargo
Director – Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Cast – Steve Buscemi, Frances McDormand, Harve Presnell, William H. Macy
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 93%
Release Date – 8 March 1996
Box Office – $60.6 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards -Won 2 Oscars
Plot –
11. Kill Bill Series
Director – Quentin Tarantino
Cast – Michael Madsen, David Carradine, Uma Thurman, Daryl Hannah, Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 85%
Release Date – 10 October 2003
Box Office – $180.9 million
Genre – Action, Crime, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
10. The Usual Suspects
Director – Bryan Singer
Cast – Pete Postlethwaite, Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Pollak, Stephen Baldwin, Chazz Palminteri
IMDB Rating – 8.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 89%
Release Date – 19 July 1995
Box Office – $34.4 million
Genre – Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Awards – Won 2 Oscars
Plot –
9. American History X
Director – Tony Kaye
Cast – Fairuza Balk, Stacy Keach, Edward Norton, Edward Furlong
IMDB Rating – 8.5
Rotten Tomatoes – 83%
Release Date – 30 October 1998
Box Office – $23.9 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – None
Plot –
8. Donnie Darko
Director – Richard Kelly
Cast – Drew Barrymore, James Duval, Jena Malone, Jake Gyllenhaal, Katharine Ross, Mary McDonnell
IMDB Rating – 8
Rotten Tomatoes – 87%
Release Date – 19 January 2001
Box Office – $7.5 million
Genre – Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
7. The Big Lebowski
Director – Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Cast – John Goodman, David Huddleston, Jeff Bridges, Steve Buscemi, Julianne Moore
IMDB Rating – 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes – 83%
Release Date – 6 March 1998
Box Office – $46.2 million
Genre – Comedy, Crime
Awards – None
Plot –
6. American Beauty
Director – Sam Mendes
Cast – Thora Birch, Annette Bening, Peter Gallagher, Kevin Spacey, Allison Janney
IMDB Rating – 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 88%
Release Date – 8 September 1999
Box Office – $356.3 million
Genre – Drama
Awards – Won 5 Oscars
Plot –
5. Memento
Director – Christopher Nolan
Cast – Joe Pantoliano, Carrie-Anne Moss, Guy Pearce
IMDB Rating – 8.4
Rotten Tomatoes – 92%
Release Date – 5 September 2000
Box Office – $39.7 million
Genre – Mystery, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
4. Se7en
Director – David Fincher
Cast – Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Richard Roundtree, Brad Pitt, Kevin Spacey, R. Lee Ermey
IMDB Rating – 8.6
Rotten Tomatoes – 81%
Release Date – 15 September 1995
Box Office – $327.3 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Mystery
Awards – None
Plot –
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey
Director – Stanley Kubrick
Cast – Gary Lockwood, Keir Dullea
IMDB Rating – 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 93%
Release Date – 2 April 1968
Box Office – $138–193 million
Genre – Adventure, Sci-Fi
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
2. Reservoir Dogs
Director – Quentin Tarantino
Cast – Tim Roth, Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Chris Penn
IMDB Rating – 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes – 91%
Release Date – 25 June 1992
Box Office – $2.8 million
Genre – Crime, Drama, Thriller
Awards – None
Plot –
1. Pulp Fiction
Director – Quentin Tarantino
Cast –
Samuel L. Jackson, Harvey Keitel, Amanda Plummer, John Travolta, Maria de Medeiros, Uma Thurman, Tim Roth
IMDB Rating – 8.9
Rotten Tomatoes – 92%
Release Date – 10 September 1994
Box Office – $213.9 million
Genre – Crime, Drama
Awards – Won 1 Oscar
Plot –
Do you think Indie films are way better than major studio films? Have you ever seen an Indie film at a film festival? Which Independent film festival have you attended?
