100 Greatest Movie Moments - Part I

Recently I stumbled upon a list compiled by Roger Ebert of the 100 greatest moments in movie history. While his list was pretty good, it still had some glaring omissions and some erroneous inclusions. So I was inspired to create my own list, and here it is. Some moments are iconic while others are funny, emotional, or make the audience do a collective jaw drop due to pure cinematic bravura. For your added enjoyment, I've included an image from each moment (to the best of my abilities). I've tried to be spoiler-free as much as possible, but unfortunately some have still snuck in. Ye be warned. In the interest of keeping posts from getting too long and unwieldy, I'm breaking the list up into four parts. Expect the remaining installments to come over the next couple weeks.

(In chronological order)

Intolerance (1916)
The parade into Babylon.

Safety Last! (1923)
Harold Lloyd hang perilously from a clock face.

Sherlock, Jr. (1924)
Buster finds himself inside a movie, and much to his bewilderment the world keeps cutting to somewhere completely different while he remains still.

Battleship Potemkin (1925)
A baby carriage rolls down the Odessa steps unattended.

The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
Christine rips off the Phantom’s mask to reveal Lon Chaney’s skull-like visage.

The Jazz Singer (1927)
“Wait a minute, wait a minute. You ain’t heard nothin’ yet.”

Metropolis (1927)
The robot is brought to life.

Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)
A house falls on Buster. He remains unscathed since he is standing precisely where the open window is.

King Kong (1933)
Kong swats at airplanes atop the Empire State Building.

It Happened One Night (1934)
Clark Gable attempts to hitch a ride. Claudette Colbert succeeds.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
The wicked queen drinks a potion and turns herself into an ugly old hag.

Gone With the Wind (1939)
Scarlett searches the streets of Atlanta that are filled with wounded and dying Confederate solders.

The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Dorothy steps out of her black and white house into the glorious Technicolor Oz.

Pinocchio (1940)
Lampwick turns into a donkey.

The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
The djinn towers over Sabu after being released from his prison.

Citizen Kane (1941)

“Rosebud.”

Love Crazy (1941)
William Powell goes crazy and wreaks barefooted havoc at a dinner party.

Casablanca (1942)
Rick and Ilsa say goodbye.

Cat People (1942)
A woman taking a nighttime swim is terrorized by what may or may not be a giant cat.

Anchors Aweigh (1945)
Gene Kelley dances with Jerry Mouse.

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
George Bailey runs through the streets wishing everyone and everything a “Merry Christmas” after getting his life back.

On the Town (1949)
Three navy sailors tour “New York, New York.”

The Third Man (1949)
Joseph Cotten chases shadows through the streets of Vienna until he finds, almost by accident, the cherubic, mischievous face of Orson Welles.

White Heat (1949)
“Made it, Ma! Top of the world!”

Sunset Blvd. (1950)
“All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my closeup.”