AFI's 10 Top 10
AFI's 10 Top 10 honors the ten greatest US films in ten classic film genres. Presented by the American Film Institute, the lists were unveiled on a television special broadcast by CBS on June 17, 2008. In the special, various actors and directors, among them Clint Eastwood, Quentin Tarantino, Kirk Douglas, Harrison Ford, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Roman Polanski, and Jane Fonda, discussed their admiration for and personal contributions to the films cited.
The entire list of 500 nominated films is available on the American Film Institute website.
To date, this is the final program in AFI's countdown specials.
Animation
AFI defines "animated" as a genre in which the film's images are primarily created by computer or hand and the characters are voiced by actors.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | 1937 |
| 2 | Pinocchio | 1940 |
| 3 | Bambi | 1942 |
| 4 | The Lion King | 1994 |
| 5 | Fantasia | 1940 |
| 6 | Toy Story | 1995 |
| 7 | Beauty and the Beast | 1991 |
| 8 | Shrek | 2001 |
| 9 | Cinderella | 1950 |
| 10 | Finding Nemo | 2003 |
Courtroom drama
AFI defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in which a system of justice plays a critical role in the film's narrative.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | To Kill a Mockingbird | 1962 |
| 2 | 12 Angry Men | 1957 |
| 3 | Kramer vs. Kramer | 1979 |
| 4 | The Verdict | 1982 |
| 5 | A Few Good Men | 1992 |
| 6 | Witness for the Prosecution | 1957 |
| 7 | Anatomy of a Murder | 1959 |
| 8 | In Cold Blood | 1967 |
| 9 | A Cry in the Dark | 1988 |
| 10 | Judgment at Nuremberg | 1961 |
Epic
AFI defines "epic" as a genre of large-scale films set in a cinematic interpretation of the past.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | Lawrence of Arabia | 1962 |
| 2 | Ben-Hur | 1959 |
| 3 | Schindler's List | 1993 |
| 4 | Gone with the Wind | 1939 |
| 5 | Spartacus | 1960 |
| 6 | Titanic | 1997 |
| 7 | All Quiet on the Western Front | 1930 |
| 8 | Saving Private Ryan | 1998 |
| 9 | Reds | 1981 |
| 10 | The Ten Commandments | 1956 |
Fantasy
AFI defines "fantasy" as a genre in which live-action characters inhabit imagined settings and/or experience situations that transcend the rules of the natural world.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | The Wizard of Oz | 1939 |
| 2 | 2001 | |
| 3 | It's a Wonderful Life | 1946 |
| 4 | King Kong | 1933 |
| 5 | Miracle on 34th Street | 1947 |
| 6 | Field of Dreams | 1989 |
| 7 | Harvey | 1950 |
| 8 | Groundhog Day | 1993 |
| 9 | The Thief of Bagdad | 1924 |
| 10 | Big | 1988 |
Gangster
AFI defines the "gangster film" as a genre that centers on organized crime or maverick criminals in a modern setting.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | The Godfather | 1972 |
| 2 | Goodfellas | 1990 |
| 3 | The Godfather Part II | 1974 |
| 4 | White Heat | 1949 |
| 5 | Bonnie and Clyde | 1967 |
| 6 | Scarface | 1932 |
| 7 | Pulp Fiction | 1994 |
| 8 | The Public Enemy | 1931 |
| 9 | Little Caesar | 1931 |
| 10 | Scarface | 1983 |
Mystery
AFI defines "mystery" as a genre that revolves around the solution of a crime.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | Vertigo | 1958 |
| 2 | Chinatown | 1974 |
| 3 | Rear Window | 1954 |
| 4 | Laura | 1944 |
| 5 | The Third Man | 1949 |
| 6 | The Maltese Falcon | 1941 |
| 7 | North by Northwest | 1959 |
| 8 | Blue Velvet | 1986 |
| 9 | Dial M for Murder | 1954 |
| 10 | The Usual Suspects | 1995 |
Romantic comedy
AFI defines "romantic comedy" as a genre in which the development of a romance leads to comic situations.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | City Lights | 1931 |
| 2 | Annie Hall | 1977 |
| 3 | It Happened One Night | 1934 |
| 4 | Roman Holiday | 1953 |
| 5 | The Philadelphia Story | 1940 |
| 6 | When Harry Met Sally... | 1989 |
| 7 | Adam's Rib | 1949 |
| 8 | Moonstruck | 1987 |
| 9 | Harold and Maude | 1971 |
| 10 | Sleepless in Seattle | 1993 |
Science fiction
AFI defines "science fiction" as a genre that marries a scientific or technological premise with imaginative speculation.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | ' | 1968 |
| 2 | Star Wars | 1977 |
| 3 | E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial | 1982 |
| 4 | A Clockwork Orange | 1971 |
| 5 | The Day the Earth Stood Still | 1951 |
| 6 | Blade Runner | 1982 |
| 7 | Alien | 1979 |
| 8 | ' | 1991 |
| 9 | Invasion of the Body Snatchers | 1956 |
| 10 | Back to the Future | 1985 |
Sports
AFI defines "sports" as a genre of films with protagonists who play athletics or other games of competition.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | Raging Bull | 1980 |
| 2 | Rocky | 1976 |
| 3 | The Pride of the Yankees | 1942 |
| 4 | Hoosiers | 1986 |
| 5 | Bull Durham | 1988 |
| 6 | The Hustler | 1961 |
| 7 | Caddyshack | 1980 |
| 8 | Breaking Away | 1979 |
| 9 | National Velvet | 1944 |
| 10 | Jerry Maguire | 1996 |
Western
AFI defines "western" as a genre of films set in the American West that embodies the spirit, the struggle, and the demise of the new frontier.| # | Film | Year |
| 1 | The Searchers | 1956 |
| 2 | High Noon | 1952 |
| 3 | Shane | 1953 |
| 4 | Unforgiven | 1992 |
| 5 | Red River | 1948 |
| 6 | The Wild Bunch | 1969 |
| 7 | Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid | 1969 |
| 8 | McCabe & Mrs. Miller | 1971 |
| 9 | Stagecoach | 1939 |
| 10 | Cat Ballou | 1965 |